Joanne Rock - Wild And Willing

“We do?”

“The boat won’t start.” The grimace on his face made him look dangerous enough to sport the eye patch and dagger he’d long ago ditched.

Mia realized she didn’t experience the slightest qualm at the thought of being stuck out here alone with Seth, however. After seeing him play noble with her one too many times tonight, she figured he must be a pretty upstanding, trustworthy guy.

“The boat won’t start? It sounds like a tried and true ploy to fool around with your date.” She sidled closer, just in case Seth had changed his mind about testing out the bed below deck. “Remember on Happy Days when Richie would conveniently run out of gas so he could score with his girlfriend?”

“Do you think that’s what I’m doing? Not starting up my boat to angle for more time with you when I’ve just admitted you’ve got me tied up in so many damned knots I can’t think straight?” The rippling water below them cast constantly moving shadows over Seth’s face. The moonlight that would have seemed pale on dry land now lit their whole world.

“Spoilsport.” Mia shivered and tried to hide it. If ever she’d been worried she’d inherited her mother’s wild ways with men, Seth’s reaction to her tonight had put that fear to rest in a hurry. “Care to at least tell me how we’re going to get home then?”

Seth’s jaw clenched as he bent to pick up her blouse off the deck. “I’m sure we could signal someone for a tow, but if you don’t mind waiting a little longer to be rescued, I’d prefer to have my uncle come get us. He’ll be able to fix the boat tomorrow if I can get it to him tonight.” He handed her the shirt, keeping his eyes trained on her face.

“I’m in no hurry.” She shrugged into the halter top, disappointed to see Seth pulling a cell phone out of his pants pocket rather than watching her. “Even though you’re determined to thwart all my adventures, at least I’m getting to spend some time out on the water tonight. That’s sort of fun.” She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been on a boat. She didn’t own one, and she would never rent one given her run-ins with Frankie the marina guy.

“Sorry about this, Mia.” He started punching numbers into the keypad, pointing the antenna back toward St. Petersburg.

“Not a problem.” Time to grow up and pack away her fantasy. “I should be thanking you instead of trying to lead you astray. This is more adventure than I’ve had in ages.”

He rolled his eyes. “We’ll see if you’re still saying that after you’ve been stuck out here another hour and—” He held up his finger as he listened to whatever was going on at the other end of his phone call, then spoke into the receiver. “Hey Uncle Brock, it’s Seth…”

Mia slipped away from his conversation and headed toward the back of the boat, unwilling to cause the guy any more grief tonight. She wasn’t sure whether to applaud his noble efforts not to dally with a woman he wasn’t seeing, or to curse his incredible restraint for not making a move on her since the oh-so-startling orgasm incident.

The night air held a slight chill, but not enough to give her goose bumps even without Seth next to her. She smoothed her hands up and down her bare arms, wishing for Seth’s touch instead of her own.

Why hadn’t she paid more attention to her mother’s seductive moves around men? Maybe she’d be rolling around in the pirate’s cabin being treated to a mind-blowing ravishing instead of haunting the shadows while Seth tied up the details with his uncle.

But she’d given it her best shot, damn it. She didn’t want a relationship in her life—she’d seen firsthand from her mother how men could distort a woman’s priorities and make her forget what was important in life.

She’d only wanted a weekend to play, and somehow she had managed to get herself kidnapped by a sexy pirate. Even if the story ended right there, it was more excitement than she’d been treated to since her mother had surprised her with an offer to work a few hours in the tourist shop last week.

Of course, tonight’s adventure would be just as fleeting as that offer would probably turn out to be.

Mia just wasn’t the kind of woman to live on the edge, and sooner or later she was going to have to resign herself to that. She was going to leave Seth far behind once they hit dry land.

Right after she stole one more kiss.

SETH WAITED as long as he could to approach her. He’d tried calling his brother umpteen times to discuss the boat problems but got no answer. He’d checked and double-checked the engines, hoping he overlooked some glitch in the mechanics he could fix after all.

Now, he couldn’t put off spending a few more minutes with her before his uncle arrived. He was supposed to be showing her a good time tonight. Instead he’d spent the entire night running from her.

He regarded Mia sprawled out along the cushions at the back of the boat. She lay on one side, propped on an elbow and looking out over the moonlit water.

Her resemblance to Carmen had faded since she’d lost her flower and she no longer flaunted her very appealing self in front of him. Now, her long hair trailed down over her shoulders and snaked around her body at intriguing intervals.

She gave the impression of a sea nymph washed up out of the water, and Seth suddenly envisioned exactly what he wanted painted on that blank wall below deck. Her. Irrepressible Mia Quentin, possibly clad in nothing but red lace.

He’d barely recovered from that most recent assault on his senses. He was lucky he hadn’t gone into cardiac arrest at that little stunt.

He’d dated his share of beautiful women. But they all sort of blended together in his memory now, a chain of failed relationships with women who’d been all wrong for him, women who left citing the same catalog of his shortcomings.

Of course, the possibility loomed that he sucked at relationships and that every one of those women had been right. Given his high rate of failure, that seemed fairly likely.

But maybe, just maybe, he’d made a mistake in choosing the kinds of women to get involved with. One day, instead of finding women who were as cynical about dating as him, he would be with someone more passionate, someone who hadn’t lost her sense of optimism for romance.

Someone like Mia.

The idea teased the edges of his brain, tempting him with a mental picture every bit as enticing as the one of Mia in red lace. He’d been running from her because he didn’t get involved with any woman lightly. But what if he initiated something more committed with Mia? Would she go for a relationship, or was she such a wild child that one-night encounters and pirate abductions were more her speed?

Too bad he’d started the night off by lying to her about his ties to the Gasparilla fest. Would she resent his evasion of the truth? Or would she be all the more tempted to give up her wild child ways if she knew his bottom line?

The thought grated.

“Are you going to join me, Blackbeard, or am I going to have to stargaze by myself all night?” Mia twisted on the cushions to glance back at him, her smile beckoning him.

Damn it. He wanted her. Wanted more from her than just this night. But telling her who he was might irrevocably shift their relationship into the same territory that always got him into trouble with women. He never knew if they wanted him for himself.

“Come on, Chandler. I promise I won’t bite.” Mia sat up and patted the vacated space beside her. “This time, anyway.”

Seth weighed his options as he moved closer. Edgy from wanting this woman, he couldn’t afford to make rash decisions based on sexual attraction. He would feel out the situation a bit, maybe get a handle on how receptive she would be to exploring things a little more slowly.