Trade by Tabitha A Lane

I started school he’d retired.” She spotted his
surprised look. “He was a lot older than most of the dads at school. He’s
eighty now. My mother is the church connection—she’s the vicar.”
    “Unusual.”
    “Oh, I was unusual at school okay.
Older parents, daughter of the vicar, handmade clothes…I was never going to fit
in.” She didn’t look upset about it. “I love being a grownup so I don’t have to
deal with that shit any longer.”
    They were walking along the pier
now, toward a sleek white speedboat. A man seated inside waved, then jumped out
onto the weathered planks before them. “Miss Max?”
    She nodded.
    “Welcome!” He waved a hand to the
boat. “I’m Adam. I’ll take you to the island.”
    *****
    The heat of the sun beat on the top of Max’s head. The
speedboat sped through the clear, pale green water, churning up lacey white
foam in its wake. Sholto sat close to her on the burgundy leather bench, so
close their legs touched. His legs were parted, and his hands rested on his
thighs.
    She swallowed, and swiped her
tongue over her dry lips, tasting a trace of salt.
    In the week since they’d met, she’d
managed to convince herself the attraction couldn’t have been that powerful,
that her memory must be faulty. But she’d been wrong. She dealt with men on a
daily basis, rich men, powerful, attractive men, but none of them made her
tingle with awareness as Sholto did.
    She edged away from him a fraction
and trailed her hand in the water.
    There was a touch on her arm. She
turned to find Sholto leaning close. “How far is it to the island?”
    “Apparently the trip will take
about an hour.” The sea was dotted with islands. “The island we’re visiting is
private and uncharted. No one will find us there.” She unzipped her bag and
pulled out a heavy satellite phone. “Jasper conceded that we should have this
for emergencies, and I have a spare charged battery in reserve. We shouldn’t
need it though. Nine days is barely long enough to get into trouble.”
    “I don’t know about that…” Sholto’s
grin made her knees weak.
    “We won’t get into trouble.
This is business, remember?”
    “There’s no reason it has to be
just business, though, is there?” He spoke quietly, so the boat captain couldn’t
hear. “We’re both adults, and we’re attracted to each other.” He stroked a hand
down her arm.
    Max stared at his mouth, then
glanced up to see him watching, amusement evident in the green depths of his
eyes. Eyes the color of the water they sped across.
    “You won’t try to deny it, will you?”
    “I’m not denying it.”
    His eyebrows rose.
    “But you and I are no good for
each other. I’m not the sort of woman you need.”
    His mouth curved in a grin. “Oh, I
think I’d have to disagree with you there.” He leaned in and whispered in her
ear, “You’re precisely what I need right now.” His lips brushed her neck. A
soft caress, but one that filled her with heat.
    Right now. That was the
operative phrase, wasn’t it? A temporary affair—a momentary diversion. A chance
to slake the desire that had taken her over since he’d come back into her life,
and a chance to safely lower herself back into the casual dating pool. It didn’t
have to mean any more than that. She could pretend outrage, but she’d made an
appointment with her doctor and had a contraceptive implant inserted in her arm
just in case she decided to sleep with him in the next few days. If she denied
she wanted him she’d be the biggest hypocrite in the world.
    “So your plan is that the moment
we’re alone we rip each other’s clothes off and fuck?”
    Satisfaction trickled through her
at the look on his face. She’d shocked him.
    “Crude—but yeah, it crossed my
mind.”
    “Just because I’m there, right?
The only woman for miles.”
    His arm snaked around her and he
pulled her close. “Not because you’re the only woman for miles. Because I’ve
been hard for you since I