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aroused him.
    Okay, now her face caught fire, but
her mind couldn’t help wondering… “Uh…what are you doing here? Please put that
down.” She worked hard at censoring her lust-crazed thoughts. Gray dressed in
khaki shorts showing strong tan legs, and today he wore a white tee shirt
straining over his upper body. Damn! The man had muscles.
    He set the book on the table, his eyes rose
as he quickly scanned the rest of the titles. “ Joy of Sex , The Idiots
Guide to the Kama Sutra , Satisfaction — The Art of the Female
Orgasm ? Great reading material,” he said.
    She’d give him points. He managed to spit
the titles out with a straight face. “Research material. Go home, Gray.” She
worked at not bolting. Instead she went to close her laptop and started to
gather the books.
    “Research? For a book? Are you writing
something non-fiction?”
    “I am so not having this
conversation with you. Did you come here for a reason or just to torment me?”
Her supplies were gathered up, and she glanced back at him, ready to go back
into the house.
    Gray looked at her. Quietly. Studiously.
When she had been jumping around and screeching at the top of her lungs, she’d
been full of fire. Of life. And had looked spectacular. His body responded
enthusiastically to her nearness and passion. He could come up with some pretty
outrageous fantasies of how she could turn that fire on him. But now, she
looked beaten. Tired. Sad. He didn’t like her looking like this. He shrugged
his shoulders. “I came to see if you wanted to go for a walk,” he said. “It
looks like you need a break. Don’t worry about shoes; we’ll just walk down the
beach. I want to show you something.”
    “I don’t want…”
    He cut her off. “Just a walk, Joey. I won’t
bite and I won’t pry. And you won’t want to miss this. I’d like for you to see
this very special place; it’s hidden and I’m sure you wouldn’t find it on your
own.”
    She couldn’t help but be intrigued but she
debated the wisdom of furthering her humiliation. She thought about her
internal promise to herself to be open to new experiences, open to things and
people that would expand her horizons. Devine would go with him. Taking a deep
breath she looked inquiringly at him. “Promise?” she asked softly.
    He grinned. “About the biting or the
prying? Yes, I promise, for both. Set your stuff in the house and let’s go. You
don’t need to worry about locking up.”
    Jeez, she thought as she turned and went
into the house, his grin should be a registered weapon. Her body sizzled and
tightened in reaction to his lethal smile. Laying her things on the dining room
table, she wavered there for a moment and took a deep breath. Why was she
doing this? She sighed. She knew why. Because the book made her mad but it
also made her feel like maybe Mike’s infidelity had been her fault. Right now
she felt more vulnerable than she wanted to. And she didn’t like the feeling.
    She wouldn’t have to talk to Gray, wouldn’t
have to tell him anything she didn’t want to. She could just look at his
splendid body and drool. Tease her mind with thoughts of what she’d like to do
to him, with him. She wasn’t starting a relationship and this wasn’t a date so
she didn’t need to get nervous. It was a walk. Easy. Simple. Grinning after her
pep talk, she turned and walked out the door, feeling better already. Wonderful
plan .

Chapter Four
     
    Joey followed Gray down the soft, sandy
beach to the water. It was beautiful here and quiet. “Why aren’t there people
on this beach?” she asked. She didn’t want a crowd to spoil her view but you
would think there would be somebody enjoying the pristine
salt-and-pepper sand. She knew from previous trips to Hawaii that the lighter
grains came from crushed coral while the black granules were from lava rock.
    He smiled, sending heat zinging through her
already over-warm body. Damn, the man should be outlawed! Her brain took a
major vacation