Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Roman held out his hand. “Come walk with me?”
“At night?” She darted a quick look toward the beach before slipping her palm into his. “Are we allowed to do that?”
He managed to bite back a smile. “Nothing that says we can’t,” he replied. “Wait till you see the moonlight on the water. You’re gonna love it.”
He helped her off his lap then stood, reveling in the feel of her slender fingers in his.
It was a terrible idea, but one he hadn’t been able to talk himself out of.
She was just a job, and their time together would be over just as soon as the police found her stalker.
According to Knox’s last message, they were investigating a few new leads, one of which sounded promising.
He wasn’t sure how much time he and Irina actually had left, so he wanted to make sure she enjoyed every minute. He tried to focus on her and not the disappointment that had settled like lead in his gut. He knew this was all for show, but he couldn’t help how right it felt to have her by his side.
He slipped several bills into the folio on the table and tucked her sunglasses into the neckline of his shirt.
Tightening his fingers around hers, he tugged her toward the wide steps that led down to the beach.
At the bottom, he pulled her to a stop and motioned for her to remove her shoes.
He held her hand while she bent over to remove first one sandal, then the other.
No matter how stupid it was, he couldn’t force himself to let go of her.
A smile curved his mouth at the sight of her stepping out of her sandals.
The little brat had been playing footsie with him under the table.
At first, he thought it was an accident, so he’d pretended he hadn’t even noticed.
But then she hadn’t moved. He’d been tempted to reach under the table and pull her foot into his lap, to show her exactly what she was doing to him.
She straightened, and he took the shoes from her, letting them dangle from his fingertips as he propelled her onto the sand, still slightly warm from the sun. He watched her expression light up as she took in the moonlight rippling over the ocean. “It’s so beautiful.”
He couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. “It is,” he agreed, not referring to the ocean at all. She darted a look at him, and he swore he could see her cheeks flare pink at his implication. He squeezed her hand. “Want to walk down to the water?”
“Sure.”
Hand in hand, they picked their way across the sand down to the edge of the surf. She jumped back as the cool water lapped over her toes. He reluctantly released her as she began to look for stray shells buried in the sand.
“It’s better to look for them after high tide,” he said. “The ocean brings all the shells in at high tide, then leaves them when it goes back out.”
“Can we come back when—” Her question was cut short as she let out a little squeak of surprise. “Oh, my God! What was that?”
The weight of her petite body slammed into him, her arms and legs winding around him like a vine.
Already scanning for whatever had frightened her, he scooped her into his arms, lifting her easily against his chest. Still holding her tightly, he turned, checking every direction, searching the darkness.
Seeing nothing, he dipped his head to look her in the eye. “What’s wrong?”
One arm curled around his neck, she pointed at the ground, her words shaky. “I don’t know. Something ran over my foot.”
He glanced down in time to see a handful of white creatures burrow back into the sand, and relief poured through him. “Probably just a ghost crab.”
Her eyes widened as she turned back to him. “What is that?”
He fought the urge to smile but lost the battle. “They’re tiny white crabs that primarily come out at night.”
“Those things are seriously creepy.” A delicate shudder moved through her, and her legs tightened around his waist.
She was too close, and he was too turned on. Trying to break the tension, he bent over, dipping her backwards toward the sand. She threw a panicked look downward, clutching at his shirt, her fingers curling into the fabric. “What are you doing?”
“You just took ten years off my life, woman. I should let the crabs have you.” He swung her low enough that the strands of her long hair brushed the ground.
She seemed to know that he wouldn’t drop her, and her fear bled away, turning to laughter. “Stop! Roman, please!” she called out between giggles.
Taking pity on her, he lifted her back into his arms where she met his eyes with a lethal glare. “That wasn’t very nice.”
“I couldn’t help teasing you just a little bit,” he replied, the corner of his mouth kicking up. “I mean, seriously. Who’s afraid of a little crab?”
She playfully slapped his chest, and silence fell as he stared into her eyes.
Heat raced through his body, and with her pelvis flat against his, he was certain she could feel the evidence of his lust there.
Her gaze dropped to his lips, and his pulse shifted into overdrive.
He curled his fingers into her flesh and started to lean in before common sense took over.
No matter how badly he wanted to kiss her, he couldn’t let it go that far. Easing his hold, he slowly lowered her to her feet. She leaned heavily on him, her eyes darting around to make sure the crabs were gone.
“Come on,” he said softly. “Let’s head home.”
He placed a hand on her lower back to try to dispel the awkwardness of the moment.
He knew it was his fault, but it was something he had to do.
She was a client, and a fairly high profile one at that.
They were technically married, but that piece of paper didn’t mean a thing to her other than her safety.
There was no way he could ever let it go far enough for anything to happen. As real as it all seemed, he had to remember one thing—this was just pretend.