The Maverick by Jan Hudson

suite at the most expensive hotel in town. Too, she thought, he was macho enough to want to make up for her having to foot the bill for the evening’s expenses. Men were sometimes goofy like that.
    Back upstairs, he insisted that she take the bathroom while he changed in the living room. Cass took time for a quick shower and put on her new suit. It was a perfect fit, but a tiny bit of her appendectomy scar showed. Although it had faded considerably since she was fourteen and she rarely thought about it, she was suddenly very self-conscious. Why hadn’t she chosen a one-piece as she usually did?
    She sighed. Oh well. If a scar turned Griff off, so be it. What was, was. She pulled on her cover-up, stepped into her slides and grabbed a couple of towels and terry robes as she left the bathroom.
    Griff smiled when she came out. “Ready?”
    “Yep. Let’s hit that pool.”
    They went down the elevator again.
    “I heard you taking a shower,” he said. “I must smell like a goat.”
    She giggled—and couldn’t stop. They’d both had goats on their mind.
    “Am I really that bad?” he asked.
    “Not at all.”
    “Then what’s so funny?”
    Cass giggled again. “I’d been thinking the same thing about me earlier.”
    He threw an arm around her neck and gave her a peck on the nose. “You certainly don’t smell like a goat. You smell like…bluebonnets.”
    “For your information, bluebonnets don’t smell.”
    He grinned. “Neither do you.”
    “Is the pool indoor or outdoor?”
    “Outdoor, but it’s heated so the water should be perfect.”
    And it was. The full moon shimmered over the lake, just visible between the trees lining the shore, and sparkled on the surface of the pool.
    “It’s like swimming in moonbeams,” Cass said as she did a slow breaststroke across the water.
    “I arranged it just for you,” Griff said, pacing himself beside her.
    She laughed. “Yeah, sure. But it is nice. And we have the whole pool to ourselves.” She glanced up at the bank of hotel windows. “And whoever is playing voyeur inside.”
    She changed to a fast crawl, and still Griff kept pace. When she reached the edge of the pool, she grabbed on and wiped the water from her face.
    “You’re a regular otter,” he said, catching hold with both hands so that she was pinned.
    “I love swimming, but I haven’t had much opportunity lately. This is a fantastic pool.”
    “You’re welcome to come anytime you’d like.” He moved his face closer to hers, then touched her lips with his.
    Desire shot through her. If she’d done what she wanted to, they would probably have drowned. Plus the voyeurs would have had an eyeful.
    His tongue played over her lips and the pressure of his mouth deepened. Maybe drowning wasn’t such a bad way to go, and to hell with whoever was watching. Her arms went around his neck, her legs around his waist, and she returned his kiss with all the pent-up passion in her. Warm morphed into scorching until she was sure the water around her boiled.
    He groaned and reached for the ties to her bikini top. She clung tighter to him.
    “Ahem!” a voice said. “Ahem!”
    They both looked up to see a man standing nearby. “I’m sorry, but the pool is closing.”
    “But we just got here,” Griff said, his voice hoarse.
    “Sorry, sir, but it’s eleven o’clock. Perhaps you would be more comfortable…in your room.” The attendant grinned and winked.
    Cass felt herself turn a thousand shades of red. What in the world was she thinking? That was the problem. She hadn’t been thinking. Another couple of minutes and she’d have been stripped in front of God and everybody.
    “I could die,” she murmured.
    “Don’t do that,” Griff whispered. “I have better things in mind, and I’m not into necrophilia.”
    She made sure her bikini top was tied, and hoisted herself from the pool. They quickly rinsed off, toweled themselves dryand donned terry robes. Cass barely had time to step into her slides