saboteur. There wasn’t much more they could do besides enjoy the afternoon on Ryan’s private beach. They swam, then ate a delectable meal Candace and Fallon prepared. Candace explained that she and Ryan preferred their privacy, and thus only had people come in to clean the house and stock the kitchen once a week. The rest of the time, they were free to roam the house and grounds as they pleased. Fallon took it to mean the lovebirds made love any time and any place the mood struck them. When the couple disappeared late in the day, Richard and Fallon returned to the ship.
* * * * *
“That was fun. They’re such a cute couple,” Fallon said as the tender reached the ship.
“Cute? Don’t let Ryan hear you say that.”
“I don’t think he’d mind. He’s so much in love, I bet he hears birds chirping in his sleep.”
“I don’t think he gets much sleep.”
“You’re probably right. They couldn’t keep their hands off each other.”
“I noticed.”
“They weren’t shy about. . . you know.”
“Doing it in public? We weren’t exactly the public, and they only did it once, and they were discreet about it.”
“He could have taken her a little further out. When the waves washed out, you could see everything.”
“I know.”
“You looked?”
“You did, too. Don’t tell me you didn’t. I saw you.”
“Well. . . I’m a professional. I observe.”
“And what did you observe?”
“Two people so much in love they forget there are other people in the world.”
“Hmm. And I thought it was my best friend making love to his fiancé in the ocean.”
“Fiancé?”
“Yeah. He’s going to ask her to marry him.”
“She’s going to be the happiest woman on earth.” Fallon sighed, remembering the love evident on Candace’s face every time she looked at Ryan.
They stopped in front of her cabin, and Richard drew her into his arms. His lips came down to cover hers in a heated kiss. “I’ll be back in an hour. No ropes tonight. I want to take you dancing.”
“Okay. I’ll miss the ropes.”
“Tomorrow I’ll bring you the final pieces of the ensemble. Tonight I just want to party, forget about what happened earlier.”
An hour later Fallon was dressed in the short white toga trimmed with gold braid that she found lying on her bed. She added the gold rope leash as a belt, unwilling to do without the symbolic ornament for even one night. When Richard saw her, he advanced on her like a wolf stalking his dinner. He took the end of the leash in his fist and wrapped it around his wrist, pulling her closer with each circular motion, until her hips met his. With only his fist between them, he bent his head and took her mouth in a kiss that spoke of possession and desire.
“Mine,” he whispered against her ear.
“Yes,” she breathed.
“Let’s go before I forget my good intentions.”
“Would that be so bad?”
“Yes, tonight it would be.”
Richard managed to keep the leash wrapped around his wrist, and slid his arm behind her so her hip pressed against his as they walked.
She’d been to Muses many times, always to watch the passengers dance and to enjoy the music. The eight women who made up the Muses band were skilled musicians. Even though they wore costumes fit for a gathering on Mt. Olympus, they played a mix of classic and contemporary rock that invited dancing, and in many cases, dirty dancing. Fallon had always thought the mating rituals inherent in dancing would make a good study, but she wasn’t the one to do it. Her interest had always leaned toward a more intimate level of sexual communication. Richard commandeered a table near the dance floor, but secluded from the rest of the club by a wall of scarlet veils. Richard had changed back into a passenger’s toga that matched the one Fallon was wearing, but he was still recognized by the staff as co-owner of the ship, and treated accordingly.
A waitress wearing a costume of sheer veils took their drink order and
* * * * *
“That was fun. They’re such a cute couple,” Fallon said as the tender reached the ship.
“Cute? Don’t let Ryan hear you say that.”
“I don’t think he’d mind. He’s so much in love, I bet he hears birds chirping in his sleep.”
“I don’t think he gets much sleep.”
“You’re probably right. They couldn’t keep their hands off each other.”
“I noticed.”
“They weren’t shy about. . . you know.”
“Doing it in public? We weren’t exactly the public, and they only did it once, and they were discreet about it.”
“He could have taken her a little further out. When the waves washed out, you could see everything.”
“I know.”
“You looked?”
“You did, too. Don’t tell me you didn’t. I saw you.”
“Well. . . I’m a professional. I observe.”
“And what did you observe?”
“Two people so much in love they forget there are other people in the world.”
“Hmm. And I thought it was my best friend making love to his fiancé in the ocean.”
“Fiancé?”
“Yeah. He’s going to ask her to marry him.”
“She’s going to be the happiest woman on earth.” Fallon sighed, remembering the love evident on Candace’s face every time she looked at Ryan.
They stopped in front of her cabin, and Richard drew her into his arms. His lips came down to cover hers in a heated kiss. “I’ll be back in an hour. No ropes tonight. I want to take you dancing.”
“Okay. I’ll miss the ropes.”
“Tomorrow I’ll bring you the final pieces of the ensemble. Tonight I just want to party, forget about what happened earlier.”
An hour later Fallon was dressed in the short white toga trimmed with gold braid that she found lying on her bed. She added the gold rope leash as a belt, unwilling to do without the symbolic ornament for even one night. When Richard saw her, he advanced on her like a wolf stalking his dinner. He took the end of the leash in his fist and wrapped it around his wrist, pulling her closer with each circular motion, until her hips met his. With only his fist between them, he bent his head and took her mouth in a kiss that spoke of possession and desire.
“Mine,” he whispered against her ear.
“Yes,” she breathed.
“Let’s go before I forget my good intentions.”
“Would that be so bad?”
“Yes, tonight it would be.”
Richard managed to keep the leash wrapped around his wrist, and slid his arm behind her so her hip pressed against his as they walked.
She’d been to Muses many times, always to watch the passengers dance and to enjoy the music. The eight women who made up the Muses band were skilled musicians. Even though they wore costumes fit for a gathering on Mt. Olympus, they played a mix of classic and contemporary rock that invited dancing, and in many cases, dirty dancing. Fallon had always thought the mating rituals inherent in dancing would make a good study, but she wasn’t the one to do it. Her interest had always leaned toward a more intimate level of sexual communication. Richard commandeered a table near the dance floor, but secluded from the rest of the club by a wall of scarlet veils. Richard had changed back into a passenger’s toga that matched the one Fallon was wearing, but he was still recognized by the staff as co-owner of the ship, and treated accordingly.
A waitress wearing a costume of sheer veils took their drink order and
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