“No.” I shook my head and stopped him before he dived. “Don’t even think about it. I don’t want to get hypothermia.”
“You won’t,” he said. “Just keep moving.”
I tilted my head. “Easy for you to say. You’re a man. You don’t feel the cold like I do.”
“You’re right, babe. That’s because seeing you nak*d always raises the temperature a few degrees.” The corners of his lips twitched.
I frowned, suddenly seeing the connection. “Is that why you asked me to get out of my dress?”
“I’m not sure. I thought it’d help.” He held up his hand in an innocent gesture. “I’m just saying it would turn every man on. It sure turns me on seeing your n**ples harden.”
“Listen, Tarzan.” I poked a finger in his chest, unable to remain pissed off. “No more funny stunts.” The water barely reached my chin. I rubbed my arms to infuse some warmth into them. It didn’t help.
“It’s going to get warmer, I promise,” Jett said. “Give it a few minutes until the pool heats up.” He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me against his chest.
Warm water began to pulsate from all directions. The knots in my muscles began to ease and I grew more relaxed with every minute. The underwater lights changed from blue to a fluorescent green—dark and shimmering beautiful like the color of emerald. Just a few shades lighter than Jett’s eyes.
“Have you ever done this before?” I asked.
Jett shot me a sideway glance. “What?”
“Breaking and entering.”
“I’m not exactly breaking in.”
“You’re right. You had a key, on both this and the previous occasion.” I put on the most serious expression I could muster. “Unlocking and entering, then?”
“The only thing I need to unlock is you.” He laughed out loud. “Honestly, it’s the first time, but you’ve got to admit Kim has a nice house.” He swam in a circle and then pulled me close again. I wrapped my legs around his waist, knowing well he couldn’t resist. “We should do it more often,” Jett whispered. “Visit properties, make sure they’re well maintained. Unlock all the places we have to see.”
He wasn’t talking about houses.
Jett grabbed my ass and I looked up into his eyes. They were glinting, full of mischief. Full of hope and promises.
With my legs wrapped around him, he carried me. I didn’t put up a fight. Even if I tried, I wouldn’t have been strong enough to push him and swim away.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“The middle is heated,” he said.
Every pool is heated, I wanted to point out.
“You know I can’t resist seeing you wet.” He gave me a sly look, and I remembered we were intruders.
“I can’t believe you jumped in nak*d. What if someone caught us?”
He laughed at my mortified expression. “So what? It’s worth the trouble. It’s worth everything when you’re with me. Not taking the risk is far riskier.”
We stopped at the side of the pool, right below the sculpted statue of a Greek goddess towering over us. The water was warmer here.
“Ready?” Jett winked and pressed his palm against what looked like an inconspicuous white tile. Instantly, hot water began to shoot from small openings, shifting around my thighs and lower back in a fast spiral. I had been in a Jacuzzi before, but this was different because the bubbles didn’t reach the surface. My arms went around Jett’s neck, and his eyes met mine with such intensity it took my breath away.
The lights in the pool began to change, turning darker and darker until the surface was almost black and the lights underwater twinkled like stars in the night sky. I felt as though we were floating in a galaxy amidst stars. A minute passed, then another, and the lights changed to green again.
It was out of the ordinary. Nothing I had seen before.
It was so hauntingly beautiful I wished I could take a picture and hang it on the wall in my office. In the serenity around us, I brushed my fingertips along his jawline, praying I could freeze time and hold onto this moment forever.
“It’s amazing,” I said. “I want to capture the moment of us and treasure it forever.”
“No need. Our future holds plenty more of such moments.” He traced the contours of my lips, sending a tingle down my neck, right into my heart. “You’re not just any girl for me. You’re the only one that matters, and I have no intention to ever let you go because every moment with you is a little more than amazing.”
“You’re lying.” I laughed even though I felt a little bit like crying because his words matched the way I felt about him.
His magnificent green eyes bored into me, and it took my breath away. “Why would I be? I’ve no plans to give you anything less than you deserve, and you deserve the world,” he whispered. “I wish I had met you sooner.”
I didn’t reply. I couldn’t because my heart was doing cartwheels, and my mind was spinning.
“Even knowing I might have pushed you away? Or fallen pregnant?” I asked at last.
“Especially because of that. I love a challenge, and you provide plenty of that,” he whispered. “We both know you pushed me away because you love being chased. You got pregnant because you wanted my baby.”
I slapped his arm.
“You couldn’t keep it in your pants and that’s the reason.” I returned his smile. In spite of the tranquility inside me, life tugged at me, growing, a reminder our future would bring many challenges. “I’m so afraid I’ll get huge and ugly like a walrus.”
“What?” He laughed. “You could never look ugly.”
“Nope.” His gaze was relentless. “I’m not wasting one minute.”
The dress then. I bent down to pick it up and caught Jett glancing at my nak*d ass. No surprise to find him grinning.
“I hope you’re not going to wear that.” He pointed to the dress in my hand. “I love the way you are just now.”
“Naked?”
The corner of his lips twitched. “Yep, au natural. With no flavors, no additives, no make-up. Stripped of all the layers.” He smiled his most saccharine smile. “Just raw pureness.”