“You row us out, I'll row us back,” she offered, admiring his skill but at the same time eager to show him that she had a little of her own, that she could handle herself on the water. If this was so important to him, she strangely wanted to be a part of it.

“Where shall we head?” he asked.

“The boat guy mentioned a few small islands just over there, around the bend.” She pointed the way. “He said people sometimes get out and look around. I hope it isn't too busy. Nothing worse than being on a secluded island than having other freaking people there.”

“Robinson Crusoe might disagree with you.”

“That's because he was alone. But if a hot young lady had been shipwrecked with him, you can bet...”

“He'd have told his rescuers to keep on swimming. That way.” Bellamy pointed down to the depths where the harbor’s mouth opened to the ocean.

Rose laughed. “Now you're getting it.” She gave him a coy grin and he couldn’t help but return it. The curve of his mouth was hypnotizing to her. “There’s no better fantasy, am I right?”

“You're not wrong.” The way he checked her out this time, especially her neck and her breasts, slowly, with a devilish curl of his lips, was such a turn-on that she could almost see the erotic scene playing out in his mind. She could tell he fought with the thoughts, that they conflicted with his deeply imbedded morals and gentlemanly ways.

Now she wished she'd brought some kind of swimsuit. The skimpier the better. It wasn't her usual modus operandii for scoring with a guy—her skin had always been pale as winter, whereas most men preferred the bronzed look—but this was an opportunity she didn't want to miss. He definitely wanted her. That much had been obvious for some time now. But he was reluctant to make his move, for whatever reason. So, Rose decided that it was up to her to seal this deal. One way or another, they were going home from this outing fully acquainted. As many times as he could handle her.

The island they selected was the least accessible of the three. One tiny sand cove, barely big enough for their boat to fit into, was the only place for them to land. After Bellamy had dragged the little boat onto the beach, Rose swerved the stern around so that the boat rested diagonally across the cove, blocking anyone else from landing there.

“Sneaky,” he told her, his eyes burning with…something.