Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
Adrian
Iwatch Maya walking along my yacht in that ravishing red dress and I almost feel guilty for keep all this beauty to myself. Almost.
A woman this beautiful should be admired by millions.
She should be on display on a red carpet or strutting down a runway while hundreds of cameras click away, capturing the enchanting moment.
Instead, she’s here with me. Just the two of us with a few waitstaff who are hiding in the back, giving us some privacy.
The ocean breeze catches the loose strand of amber hair that tumbled out when she nearly fell into the ocean. I breathe in her intoxicating perfume as I get in close and tuck the loose strand behind her ear. She smiles up at me, shy and beautiful and it feels like someone is squeezing my heart.
“I can’t believe you did all of this for me,” she says when she looks at the table for two set up on the upper deck.
It’s arranged beautifully with white linens, tropical flowers, and fine silverware all tucked under strings of golden lights that are swaying in the breeze.
The sea stretches out endlessly below and as we glide further into the ocean, the stars begin to emerge.
“I would do anything for you, Maya,” I say as I trace the edge of her jaw with the back of my hand.
“I can see that,” she says with a laugh. “The dresses and jewelry…”
“Too much?” I ask, afraid that I went overboard. I would have bought her more jewelry if I had time. There’s one piece in particular that I’d like to give her. An engagement ring with a diamond big enough to sink this boat.
“Maybe a little,” she says, “but I think it’s sweet. I’m just not used to being spoiled like this.”
“Well, get used to it,” I say as I lean in and kiss her. “This is just the beginning.”
We’re barely able to keep our eyes off each other as we head over to the table. I pull the chair out for her and drag my heated gaze along her bare shoulders as she sits down.
She checks me out just as hard as I sit across from her.
I’ve sat across from heads of state from all around the world, powerful CEOs, celebrities, and billionaires who could buy yachts that make this one seem like a bath toy, but none of them have ever made my pulse jump like this woman can with only a smile.
The waitress appears with a bottle of wine I selected from the cellar when I was getting everything ready earlier. I chose it while Maya was getting ready with the stylist at The Aurelia.
“Domaine de la Romanée-Conti,” she says as she holds out the bottle. “From Burgundy, France. Nineteen thirty-six.”
“Sounds delicious,” I say as I straighten up in my seat.
The waitress opens the bottle and pours a little into my glass for the testing. I love it, but I hope it’s okay for Maya. At sixty-two thousand dollars a bottle, I hope she likes it.
I nod to the waitress and she pours us each a glass before leaving.
“Did she say nineteen thirty-six?” Maya whispers, leaning over the table and giving me a glimpse of that spellbinding cleavage. “Like the year?”
I smile and nod. “Yes, nineteen thirty-six the year. Do you like fine wine?”
“A fine wine for me is one that costs nineteen dollars and thirty-six cents. I’ve never had anything like this before.”
“Well, drink up,” I say as I raise my glass. “It’s another first of many firsts tonight. Cheers.”
We clink glasses and I watch as she takes a sip. Her eyes fall closed as she savors the smooth dry wine.
“I could get used to this,” she says with rosy cheeks.
“Good, because I have a case of it in my cellar downstairs.”
“You have a cellar?” she says, her face dropping in shock. “On this yacht?”
“We have everything on this yacht.”
She smiles as she looks around like she’s seeing it all for the first time again. “What is she called?”
“The yacht?”
“Yeah, what did you name her?”
“What would you have named her?”
She thinks about it and grins. “Probably something ridiculous like Yachty McYachtface.”
I shake my head and laugh. “Where were you when I was picking names? That’s certainly memorable.”
She does a little bow as she grins at me. “So, what did you call her?”
“Eterna.”
“Eterna?” she says, tilting her head. “Is that the name of an ex-girlfriend? Or… a current girlfriend?”
“No,” I say a little too fiercely. “There’s no one else, Maya.
No one has ever made me feel even close to what you make me feel.
Eterna is Italian for eternal or unfading.
I was in Italy when I bought the yacht and…
I don’t know, it just felt right. I honestly don’t know why I chose it, but it’s all starting to make sense now. ”
Our eyes are locked on one another as the yacht gently sways under us and the stars shine over our heads.
Eterna is what I would call this moment. Eternal. Unfading. Forever.
“I like it,” she says as she reaches across the table and puts her hand on mine. “It’s a good choice.”
She turns to gaze out at the ocean and then gasps.
“What is it?” I ask as she leaps up from the table and rushes over to the railing. I’m right there beside her, heart pumping and grabbing her arm so she doesn’t fall over.
“Dolphins,” she says, pointing at the water. “Look!”
A pod of dolphins are swimming alongside the boat. They get closer, leaping in and out of the water as Maya watches in awe.
After a moment, I turn my attention onto her, watching her take in the sight with tears in her eyes and a smile of disbelief on her face.
She presses a hand to her chest like she’s afraid her heart might burst right out of it. “They’re beautiful,” she whispers.
“Stunning,” I say, but I’m not looking at the dolphins. I’m admiring my future wife.
“Did you plan this?” she asks, grinning at me. “Did you hire these dolphins too? Are they employees of yours?”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” I say, taking her in my arms. “They work on a strict freelance basis.”
She stands on her toes, kisses the bottom of my chin, and then sinks into my arms as she watches the dolphins swim alongside us.
After a while, they either lose interest or can’t keep up and disappear under the water, so we head back to the table and have our amazing dinner—pan-seared snapper with saffron risotto and a drizzle of coconut cream prepared by the best chef on the island.
Maya keeps making these sexy moans while she eats and I’m glad we’re seated because I’m rock hard from watching her luscious lips chewing. I keep remembering how those plump pink lips felt wrapped around my cock and I want to experience it again.
When we’re on our dessert—a delicious mango crème br?lée—and our Brazilian coffees with whipped cream, she starts peppering me with rapid-fire questions. It’s Maya’s idea. She says she wants to know everything about me. Every weird and random detail.
Her eyes are a little glossy from the wine and she has a permanent smile on her face as she scoops up a dollop of whipped cream with her finger and puts it to her lips as she watches me. My jacket is draped over her shoulders and she looks so perfectly mine.
“What is your favorite place in the world?”
“Right here with you,” I say. Wherever this girl is standing is where I want to be.
“Besides here,” she says, nudging my leg with her foot under the table.
“I love The Aurelia,” I say. “But if you won’t let me choose that either, there’s this wonderful bistro in Paris that I adore called Le Cygne Bleu.
It’s tucked away on ?le Saint-Louis, overlooking the Seine.
It only has ten tables so it feels private and intimate like nothing else in Paris.
From the terrace, you can see the reflection of Notre-Dame’s towers shimmering in the river. It’s beautiful.”
“It sounds wonderful,” she says, picking at her crème br?lée. “I’ve never been to Paris.”
“What are you doing next week?” I ask as she puts the spoon in her mouth. God, that mouth… Those sensual lips make it hard to think straight.
“Not going to Paris,” she says with a laugh.
I’m not laughing. “I have a private jet. We can go anywhere you desire.”
She tilts her head as she studies me, wrapping my coat around her body a little tighter.
“What was your childhood dream job?” she asks, changing the subject.
“Comic book illustrator.”
“Really? Are you any good at drawing?”
“If I was, you wouldn’t be sitting on a yacht.”
She laughs. “Fair point. Do you believe in fate?”
“I didn’t until today.”
She takes another spoonful of crème br?lée and sucks it clean as she studies me. “Explain.”
“I don’t know…” I say, going over the unlikely events of the day that brought us together.
“I have a new jet and there was a mechanical failure. One person vomited on the plane and it happened to be your seat. The two of us sitting together and hitting it off immediately. The flight attendant who seemed to realize what was happening all along. It just doesn’t feel like coincidence.
I think it was fate bringing us together. ”
Maya’s eyes fill with desire as she stares at me long and hard. I feel her foot sliding up and down my leg and something hungry in me stirs.
“How long until we dock?” she asks in a husky voice.
“Are you ready to go home?”
She licks her lips as her heated gaze roams all over me. “Yeah. Let’s get the fuck out of here.”