Free The Tycoon's Son by Cindy Kirk

rest of the cruise?”

    She held her breath and prayed. Say yes. Say yes .

    “I’m not sure,” he said. “I came back to spend time with Katherine and Helena. But Katherine informed me this morning she has to leave the ship tomorrow. I may get off in Naples, too.”

    “Tomorrow?” Trish’s heart sank. That wouldn’t work at all. She needed time to come up with a plan. Time to convince him signing the contract was a good idea. “You can’t leave.”

    “Excuse me?”

    “You need a vacation.”

    A skeptical look crossed his face. He glanced at the door as if plotting his escape from this crazy woman who was talking nonsense.

    “Everyone needs a vacation,” she said, attempting to improvise and be clever and doing a horrible job of both. “Especially you.”

    It wasn’t really her fault the attempt was so pathetic, maybe even a bit insulting. It was difficult to think with him standing so close.

    “What do you mean, especially me ?”

    Trish offered him a mysterious smile. Obviously she was more quick-witted than she realized. She’d intrigued him and he’d finally stopped looking as if he was ready to flee.

    “Come and sit in the sun with me,” Trish said. “I’ll tell you.”

    She didn’t wait for his answer but turned and headed back to the chairs she and Sally had staked out by the Coral Cove, the outdoor pool.

    Though she didn’t look back, she sensed his hesitation. Still, she hadn’t gone more than a foot or two before she heard his footsteps. All the way across the deck Trish was conscious of Theo behind her.

    Her skin prickled and she felt flushed. She wished she’d taken time to put on the skirt. Though she was dressed no different than most of the women around the pool, she suddenly felt exposed and more than a little self-conscious. She picked Sally’s book up from the lounge chair and motioned for Theo to have a seat.

    After only a second’s pause, he sat down. “Whose spot am I taking?”

    “Sally’s,” Trish said. “She’s at the spa getting a massage.”

    Theo glanced around looking as ill at ease as Trish felt. “Tell me what you meant.”

    Think outside the box , she told herself.

    “Take off your shirt.” For her spur-of-the-moment plan to work, she needed Theo to begin to think like someone on vacation. “Sit back and relax a little.”

    He looked at her suspiciously.

    “None of the men have their shirts on,” Trish explained, waving a hand vaguely in the direction of the other chairs. “At least try to look like you’re having fun.”

    Theo glanced around the deck then at her bikini. Slowly he pulled his T-shirt over his head.

    Trish did her best not to gawk. After all, she’d been married. She’d seen naked men before. And Theo was hardly naked. But his bare chest was enough to set her heart pounding. She knew the heat flowing through her body had nothing to do with the bright Mediterranean sun and everything to do with the handsome Greek sitting only a few feet away.

    He lifted a dark eyebrow, a slight smile playing at the corners of his lips. “Do I look like I’m having fun now?”

    Trish struggled to keep her eyes riveted to Theo’s face.

    “You’re off to a great start,” Trish said, adding a teasing lilt to her voice. “But this is just the beginning. The point is not to only look like you’re having fun, but to actually have fun. That’s why you need to stay.”

    Theo tilted his head, his eyes speculative. “Are you offering to teach me?”

    “Me?” Trish gave a little laugh. “I’m not qualified. I’m still learning how to have fun myself.”

    “Ah,” he said with an enigmatic smile. “Another novice. Perhaps we could learn together?”

    Was it only her imagination or was Theo Catomeris flirting with her? Had she won him over with her brilliant conversational skills or was it her yellow bikini? Actually, she reminded herself, she hadn’t won him over, she’d only bought herself a little time.

    She still