Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

***SIMON***

S imon grabbed Kira's hand and, with a wave called his thanks out to Hector, "Do you know the way to the bus stop?" he asked as they pushed their way through the door onto the side walk. "I hate to admit it, but I'm a little turned around."

"It's this way," she said, pointing to the left. "I've always been good with directions. When I was a kid, my dad would always get us lost, and I'd be the one to get us straightened out."

He looked over at her, picturing her as a child, wondering if she had freckles and if she'd liked to climb trees or ride her bike. "What were you like as a child?" he asked. "What did you do for fun?"

Kira looked over at him, studied him for a second, then shrugged her shoulders, "All the things normal kids do, played with my friends, went to the park, hated school," she said. "It was a fairly normal childhood. I always thought I was lucky. I mean, my parents are great, they've always been there for me. "

"That's nice," he said, a bit jealous. "And it explains why you have your life so together."

Kira surprised him by snorting, "I'd hardly say that, my life is far from perfect. In fact, the last couple of years haven't been easy," she said. "That's why I came to the island, to rest and recuperate. I'm kind of starting over when I get home, a new house, a new job, a new life, I guess you could say."

He studied her for a second, hoping that she'd say more, "The old one must have been bad if you left it behind," he finally said, then realized that's what he was doing. "I guess we're not that different after all. I'm leaving the old me behind, and so are you."

She looked over at him and smiled, "Well, how about that," she said, shaking her head. "I think that's the first thing we have in common."

"Well, maybe not the first thing," he said, smiling back at her and squeezing her hand. "There's that little spark between us."

"That spark is dangerous," she said, but she didn't look away. "It scares me, Simon, and I've been scared enough for a while."

"I don't mean to scare you, Kira," he said. "That's the last thing I want, I just……well, I've never met a woman like you before. You're so different than the women I'm usually with. It's like a breath of fresh air after being closed in a dark room for a long time."

"You are one smooth talker, Simon Nelson," she said, shaking her head. "How many times have you used that line?"

He was hurt for a second, then forced himself to look at it from her point of view, "I understand why you might ask that, but just for the record, I've never used that line as you called it on anyone," he said. "I mean what I just said, I've had more fun with you today than I've had with a woman in a long time, I don't want to just go to bed with you, Kira. I want to get to know you."

She let out a little gasp, then sucked in a deep breath, "So, you admit it?" she asked. "All of this was just to get me into bed."

"That's not what I said and don't forget this was your idea," he reminded her. "I never made it a secret that I wanted to sleep with you, I knew it the second that I saw you. A lot has changed since then, but that hasn't. The only difference is I want you for more than just your body. I have fun when I'm with you, Kira. You treat me like a regular person, and even if it does annoy me sometimes, you don't let me get away with being a stuck-up snob."

"And that's a full-time job, let me tell you," she said, her eyes softening. "Maybe if we'd met somewhere else, maybe if the circumstances were different……. I don't know, it might have worked."

"Well, in case you missed it, my circumstances are a little fluid at the moment," he said. "So, I'm not going to give up yet, sweetheart. My path could lead me anywhere including to right where you are."

"Oh, Simon, that's……" but the sound of a band breaking into a song interrupted them.

He looked around, realizing that they'd stopped in front of a park full of people. There were tables full of food and best of all, a live band with a temporary dance floor set up in front of it. Looking down at Kira, seeing the way her eyes softened when she looked at him and the spark of desire in them, he knew that this was the moment to sweep her off her feet.

"Dance with me, Kira?" he asked, taking her hand again. "Just one dance, that's all I ask."

"But the bus, we have to get back to the marina," she protested. "We don't want to keep the boat waiting."

"It will only take five minutes," he said. "They'll wait that long for us. Please, Kira, it's just a dance."

"Don't think I don't know what you're doing," she said, letting him lead her through the crowd. "It's not going to work."

"Then it will just be a dance, and there won't be any harm done," he said, grinning at her over his shoulder. "Unless you're scared to dance with me."

"I'm not scared of dancing with you, that's silly," Kira said, lifting her chin in the air. "One dance, and that's it. We have a bus to catch."

"Yes, sweetheart," he said, then swung her into his arms. "Anything you say."

***Kira***

Kira knew that she'd made a mistake the moment Simon's arms encircled her and a wave of comfort washed over her, quickly followed by thrills as she slowly became aware of his body pressed against hers. Her breath came a little faster. She looked up at him, then wished she hadn't when she saw the desire in his eyes, and quickly looked away, but the damage had been done. Desire flooded her system, her knees went a little weak, and she was forced to cling to him or go tumbling to the ground.

If Simon noticed her response, he didn't show it. He expertly led her around the dance floor, spinning her at the right times, then folding her into his arms again. She slowly began to relax, and was soon enjoying herself as the passion gradually growing between them began to build. When the music finally came to an end, she couldn't stop herself from looking up at him, and this time didn't look away when his eyes met hers.

Her heart began to pound when he slowly lowered his mouth until it was only inches from hers, "Is it still a bad idea if I kiss you?" he asked. "Because I really want to right now."

"I think it might be okay just this one time," she said. "You did ask, after all."

Simon laughed, pulled her up against him, then brushed his lips across hers, sending delicious tendrils of anticipation shooting through her. She let out a sigh as all the fight slowly drained out of her. When his lips met hers again, pleasure rushed through her, and she gave herself over to the kiss as the world around them melted away, leaving only the two of them. Simon's tongue slipped into her mouth, sending another wave of sensation washing over her, and she moaned deep in her chest.

Simon groaned, then deepened the kiss, exploring her mouth with his tongue, then nipped at her lips with his teeth before kissing her again. When they were finally forced to part, chests heaving, Simon looked down at her with surprise in his eyes, then crushed her to him.

"That was way more than I bargained for," he said, his voice husky with desire. "A few more minutes of that and I would have embarrassed us both."

She looked around, suddenly remembering where they were, and felt the blush rising on her cheeks, but it looked like no one had noticed them. "We should go," she said. "The bus will be here any minute."

"Oh, no you don't," Simon said, pulling her back into his arms. "Tell me that was the best kiss you've ever had, or I'm going to kiss you again, because I've never felt anything like that before, and I don't want to be the only one."

"Hmm, that's a tough decision to make, if I tell you the truth, it will only make that ego of yours bigger," she said. "And if I lie, I get another kiss."

"Does that mean you want one?" he asked, grinning at her. "Because I always aim to please, and I promise to keep my ego in check. I've learned my lesson, that's for sure."

"Then I guess you'd better kiss me again," she said. "Just to make sure we were feeling the same thing."

When they parted the second time, both out of breath and wishing they were alone, the bus was just coming down the street. "The bus is here," he said, looking down at her. "Do you think you're up to making a run for it?"

She wasn't about to admit how much he'd gotten to her, "I bet I can beat you there," she said, grinning up at him. "The winner gets the window seat."

They didn't talk much on the way back to the marina, but Kira was very aware of everything about Simon, the way his arm hair tickled when he brushed up against her, the way he smelled, the tilt of his head as he watched the island go by out the window. She was falling and falling hard, having the vacation romance she hadn't wanted, with a man she'd once hated, and had no idea how to stop what was happening, no longer sure that she wanted to.

The bus dropped them off with just a few minutes to spare, and they arrived back at the slip slightly out of breath just as the boat pulled up, Montgomery behind the wheel this time. He gave Simon a quick once over, then threw him the rope to tie up, watching carefully to make sure he did it right.

"I have to grab a few packages from the office," Montgomery said. "I'll just be a few minutes. Make yourselves comfortable, you know where the cold drinks are."

"We'll help ourselves, take your time," Simon said. "Thanks for coming to get us."

Montgomery just grunted and walked away, "I'm going to have to work at winning him over," Simon said, helping her onto the boat. "I guess he knows. I wonder who else does."

"Probably the whole island," she said, shrugging her shoulders. "You know how gossip spreads. "

"I'm used to people talking about me, but not like this," he said with a sigh. "Oh, well, I suppose that's part of my punishment."

They settled onto the bench seats on the boat deck, "Is that how it feels?" she asked. "Like you're being punished?"

He didn't answer right away, "It did at first," he finally said. "But not so much anymore. To tell you the truth, for the last few hours, I've just felt like myself."

She looked up at him, "That's good," she said. "Maybe you're finally beginning to figure out who you really are."

"It feels nice," he said, putting his arm around her. "Just like this does."

When she opened her mouth, he hushed her, "This is all I want right now, Kira," he said. "I just want to sit here with you in my arms and not think about anything but how beautiful it is here and how lucky I am to be sharing it with you."

"There you go again, saying all those sweet things to me," she said, smiling up at him. "I almost believed you that time."

"Then I'm getting better at telling the truth," he said. "Do you really have to sit with that Corey guy tonight at dinner?"

"I promised him that I would," she said. "It wouldn't be very nice to cancel on him."

"I was just hoping to spend some time with you, that's all," he said. "But a promise is a promise. I'll be okay on my own."

"That sad face won't work on me," Kira said, shaking her head. Think of this as another opportunity to try out the new you. There will be lots of other people there, Simon. Talk to them."

"It won't be as fun as being with you," he said. "But I'll do my best."