Chapter 6
ROWAN
W hat a disastrous evening.
It started out promising, with a relaxed dinner at Hidden Cove and Luke as an entertaining diversion.
For a while. Admittedly, my interest in the younger man was fleeting.
He was beautiful, but I felt nothing more than flirtatious toward him.
I was determined to get my mind off my handsome chief steward, and I figured the best way to do that was to focus on Luke.
Unfortunately for everyone tonight, my plan backfired.
I’d only heard the tail end of the conversation between him and Andrew.
Had my fleeing guest been angry enough to disclose what had gone down in my bedroom?
Or rather, Luke going down on me and my uncooperative cock not responding.
Whatever. It happened to all guys occasionally.
I wasn’t a bloody machine. And I wasn’t into Luke.
“That man is a first-rate prick, so good riddance,” Andrew replied, and I was suddenly all too aware that we were standing alone on the deck with only the moon and the stars above us for company.
There was hardly a breeze, the humid air as thick as the tension that tethered my gaze to Andrew’s.
I took in the fierce expression on his stunning face and began to sweat.
The intimacy of our surroundings had my blood racing but my brain panicking.
“I apologize if he was rude. Please ignore whatever drivel he passed along as conversation.”
“No apology needed. Is there anything you need before I head back to my room?”
You. My dick twitched at the thought of my naked body entwined with Andrew’s, hot and writhing. Despite the relief that my cock was once again in working order, the timing couldn’t be worse.
“I’m fine. I’m going to sit out here for a while.” I needed to calm the hell down and locate my brain, which was threatening to jump overboard. Andrew moved closer, and his earthy scent filled my head. I took a step closer to him and then realized my mistake.
“You had every right to change your mind. Don’t let his stupid attitude affect you,” Andrew whispered.
“I only heard the end of your conversation. Did he tell you what happened?”
Andrew grimaced and shook his head. “I prefer not to repeat what he said.”
“Tell me.” I didn’t care that he knew about what happened in my bedroom. I just wanted him to keep talking to me. The safety of the darkness that surrounded us had my normal anxieties floating away.
“No.”
“Andrew.” I took another step, and only a small distance now separated us.
The moonlight cast a pale glow on Andrew’s face, highlighting his sharp cheekbones, his long nose, and his deep-set eyes.
He’d shaved this morning, but his beard was already growing in again.
I wondered how his stubble would feel rubbing against my lips, my inner thighs, my arse.
God, just thinking about Andrew’s face between my arse cheeks made my body shiver uncontrollably.
My sudden arousal was so unexpectedly good I wanted to hold on to the feeling for as long as possible.
It was what I needed, craved. But I couldn’t do anything about it. Fuck.
“He said you weren’t—” Andrew cleared his throat. “Aroused.”
Talk about irony. All it took was one look at Andrew and I was now ready to fuck.
“Then he said you were overtired and asked him to leave.”
“It’s true. Everything he said is true.”
“But he didn’t need to tell me your personal details. You have a right to your privacy,” Andrew growled.
“Yes, but I shouldn’t have asked him back here. I knew that I wasn’t into him, but I needed a distraction. A temporary diversion from my so-called life. I won’t make that mistake again.”
“Why do you need a distraction? What’s wrong with your life?” Andrew asked softly.
I could lose the company that means everything to me, and what would be left?
I glanced at him and sighed. For one moment and in the safety of darkness, the rhythmic sound of the waves and the slight motion of the yacht hypnotised me into believing that something special was happening.
In this hazy fantasy, Andrew could be mine.
My chest tightened as I remembered who I was and where I was, and I shook my head at my inane musings.
“Go to bed, Andrew. Enjoy your day off tomorrow,” I murmured.
Andrew’s footsteps grew distant, and I breathed out another sigh. Looking up at the glimmering stars, I made a wish. I made several. They were all irrational, silly, stupid.
Good thing I didn’t believe in wishes.
ANDREW
I reluctantly walked away when every instinct I had told me to turn around and reach out to Rowan.
I wanted to ease the hurt and embarrassment I saw on his face.
Which was so unlike me since I never felt this protective about anyone, outside of my family and friends.
Maybe Anton at one point. Certainly not any of my lovers.
Not that Rowan and I were lovers. Or would be.
Still, I couldn’t deny the intense pull the man had on me.
Every time I was in Rowan’s vicinity, my clothes were too tight, my skin too hot, and my eyes unable to look away.
And it wasn’t just my physical reaction.
There was also a great curiosity to know Rowan’s mind.
Why did he need a distraction? And how was it that a man who wanted for nothing seemed dissatisfied with everything?
As I made my way down the long corridor to my bunk, my phone pinged.
Rowan: Charlie’s back. I spoke to him and apologized for the late hour. He’ll be ready to take you to shore anytime you wish tomorrow
Andrew: thank you
Rowan: my pleasure
My fingers typed before I could stop myself.
Andrew: why don’t you and Dylan come with?
Rowan: I don’t think that’s appropriate. And I have work.
Andrew: theoretically you’re not my boss for 8 hours. And even billionaires need a day off. I’ve booked your other guests on a guided excursion.
Rowan: I – we - don’t want to interrupt your personal time
Andrew: We can tour the island, enjoy lunch at the private beach club. Just three guys hanging out.
I watched and waited as three tiny dots appeared on my screen. Then disappeared. I waited. And waited.
Rowan: that sounds nice
Andrew: 10?
Rowan: 10
It was almost 2 AM as I slid into bed, but my mind was still buzzing with the bits of conversation from tonight. I grabbed my tablet and searched Rowan Carter , and the number of articles that popped up made my head spin.
I already knew the basics about him, but the volume of media over the past two years was staggering.
They ranged from interviews in high profile business magazines to entertainment channels and raunchy gossip websites.
His life was tagged for everyone to read about.
A ton of the personal stuff was edited for sales but still.
No wonder he comes down to stay on his yacht. I’d hide out too if that were me.
One theme kept repeating as I scrolled through article after article: Will Rowan Carter and Jojo Egeley reunite? The headlines included a picture of Rowan and a pretty man with auburn hair standing side by side at a polo match just outside of London.
Johan Egeley, heir to the Egeley Software fortune and host of the popular reality TV series “Hitched OR Ditched”, and Rowan Carter, in happier times.
Johan – or Jojo as he is known to his friends - and Carter had a long-standing intimate relationship until two months ago.
Sources close to Egeley claim that Carter fractured the relationship because of another man. Read more details here…
I finished the rest of the article, but I was uneasy.
There was so much speculation and rumor.
I tried to imagine how Rowan must’ve felt seeing his relationship laid bare.
Then I thought about my ex and how painful that was, and that was without public scrutiny.
I was so angry on Rowan’s behalf that my pulse pounded like a drumbeat in my skull.
What had Dylan said earlier? Trust had been violated.
I closed out of the site and shoved my tablet aside.
But I couldn’t get Rowan out of my head.
I wanted my reaction to him to make sense so I could file it away and forget about it.
Maybe I was missing my friends? That had to be it.
Rowan was unhappy for whatever reason, and I was homesick.
The two of us made a lonely-hearts club of sorts.
Then I remembered the way Rowan looked at me as we stood on the deck. I wasn’t one for romanticizing, but even I couldn’t deny the hypnotic effect of his big blue eyes. Like the iridescent sea below us, they’d beckoned me to dive right in.
I had to remind myself that whatever spell the night had provoked, it was just that – a temporary turn, a circumstantial blip that would resolve in the light of day. This surge of desire, like waves churning before a hurricane, would calm soon enough. I just had to get past the eye of the storm.