being wrapped in a velvet intimacy so complete it filled the whole world. “In a way it’s like you. Different and lovely and totally special.” He looked away and his eyes fell on a colorful object on the rattan chest across the room. “What’s that?”
She was glad he’d been distracted. She didn’t know if she could have broken the intimatemoment herself. She followed his gaze with her own and then smiled eagerly. “That’s my music box.” She ran across the room and knelt by the chest. Her hands lifted the scarlet-and-ivory carousel with loving care and wound the key at the bottom. “I discovered it in a pawn shop in Port of Spain. Isn’t it lovely? A carousel with not only horses but unicorns and centaurs. It was in pretty bad shape when I bought it, but I repainted it and Julio found a man to fix the mechanism.” She set the music box back on the chest and stayed there, her eyes misty with dreams as she watched the carousel turn slowly on its pedestal. “I’ve always loved the tune it plays. I tried to find out what it was, but the man in the shop didn’t know and neither did Julio and Jeffrey.”
“It’s ‘Lara’s Theme’ from
Dr. Zhivago
,” Beau said, his voice husky.
“
Dr. Zhivago
?”
“A beautiful movie taken from a book by Pasternak. I have a copy of the book in my cabin on the
Searcher
. I’ll give it to you once we’re back on board.”
“Thank you. I’d like that.” Her gaze was stillfixed dreamily on the carousel. “You know, I’ve always wanted to ride a carousel. I was at a carnival in a little village in Nicaragua once, but it didn’t have a merry-go-round.”
“I’ll buy you one.”
“What?” She turned to look at him in bewilderment.
“I’ll buy you the best damn carousel in the whole world,” he said thickly. “Hell, I’ll buy you an entire amusement park.” He wanted to give her everything she’d never had. The experience, the beauty, the knowledge. He
needed
to give them to her.
She laughed uncertainly. “You’re joking.” She rose to her feet. “For a moment I thought you were serious.”
He opened his lips to speak but quickly closed them again. “We’ll talk about it later,” he said. “Now where can I get rid of this combination of salt and sweat that’s coating me? You promised me a bath.” He looked around with a whimsical smile. “Somehow I don’t think your very special house has a bathroom.”
“There’s a spring-fed pool several yards north of here,” she said with a grin. She picked up thecarousel and set it carefully on the floor before opening the chest. “It’s a little cold, but very clear.”
“That’s where you sunbathe?”
There was something in the smoky darkness of his eyes that caused a frisson of heat to tingle through her. “Yes, that’s the place,” she said, quickly reaching into the chest to pull out soap, a large folded terry towel, and shampoo. “It won’t be very warm there now. It’s almost dark.”
“You only have one towel.”
Her eyes flew to meet his and what she saw there made the heat in her loins turn molten.
“We’ll need at least two,” he said with slow deliberation. “You’re all salty too.” His voice dropped to velvet softness. “But don’t worry, I’ll wash every grain of it off you personally.” He smiled intimately. “Very personally.”
She drew a deep breath. “You want me to go with you?”
“I insist upon it,” he murmured. “I always did have a lousy sense of direction. I might get lost in the forest and never be heard from again.”
“Then I guess I’d better come along,” she said,reaching for a few more towels and a white cotton caftan. “I may need to redeem that promise you made to help me storm the bastille.” Her voice was as light as his, and didn’t reflect the fact that her heart was pounding so hard she felt as if she’d been running.
She didn’t dare keep up the badinage as they made their way down the ladder and along the path
She was glad he’d been distracted. She didn’t know if she could have broken the intimatemoment herself. She followed his gaze with her own and then smiled eagerly. “That’s my music box.” She ran across the room and knelt by the chest. Her hands lifted the scarlet-and-ivory carousel with loving care and wound the key at the bottom. “I discovered it in a pawn shop in Port of Spain. Isn’t it lovely? A carousel with not only horses but unicorns and centaurs. It was in pretty bad shape when I bought it, but I repainted it and Julio found a man to fix the mechanism.” She set the music box back on the chest and stayed there, her eyes misty with dreams as she watched the carousel turn slowly on its pedestal. “I’ve always loved the tune it plays. I tried to find out what it was, but the man in the shop didn’t know and neither did Julio and Jeffrey.”
“It’s ‘Lara’s Theme’ from
Dr. Zhivago
,” Beau said, his voice husky.
“
Dr. Zhivago
?”
“A beautiful movie taken from a book by Pasternak. I have a copy of the book in my cabin on the
Searcher
. I’ll give it to you once we’re back on board.”
“Thank you. I’d like that.” Her gaze was stillfixed dreamily on the carousel. “You know, I’ve always wanted to ride a carousel. I was at a carnival in a little village in Nicaragua once, but it didn’t have a merry-go-round.”
“I’ll buy you one.”
“What?” She turned to look at him in bewilderment.
“I’ll buy you the best damn carousel in the whole world,” he said thickly. “Hell, I’ll buy you an entire amusement park.” He wanted to give her everything she’d never had. The experience, the beauty, the knowledge. He
needed
to give them to her.
She laughed uncertainly. “You’re joking.” She rose to her feet. “For a moment I thought you were serious.”
He opened his lips to speak but quickly closed them again. “We’ll talk about it later,” he said. “Now where can I get rid of this combination of salt and sweat that’s coating me? You promised me a bath.” He looked around with a whimsical smile. “Somehow I don’t think your very special house has a bathroom.”
“There’s a spring-fed pool several yards north of here,” she said with a grin. She picked up thecarousel and set it carefully on the floor before opening the chest. “It’s a little cold, but very clear.”
“That’s where you sunbathe?”
There was something in the smoky darkness of his eyes that caused a frisson of heat to tingle through her. “Yes, that’s the place,” she said, quickly reaching into the chest to pull out soap, a large folded terry towel, and shampoo. “It won’t be very warm there now. It’s almost dark.”
“You only have one towel.”
Her eyes flew to meet his and what she saw there made the heat in her loins turn molten.
“We’ll need at least two,” he said with slow deliberation. “You’re all salty too.” His voice dropped to velvet softness. “But don’t worry, I’ll wash every grain of it off you personally.” He smiled intimately. “Very personally.”
She drew a deep breath. “You want me to go with you?”
“I insist upon it,” he murmured. “I always did have a lousy sense of direction. I might get lost in the forest and never be heard from again.”
“Then I guess I’d better come along,” she said,reaching for a few more towels and a white cotton caftan. “I may need to redeem that promise you made to help me storm the bastille.” Her voice was as light as his, and didn’t reflect the fact that her heart was pounding so hard she felt as if she’d been running.
She didn’t dare keep up the badinage as they made their way down the ladder and along the path
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