Free Undertow by Cherry Adair

to reach for. He was shocked at how aware of her he was as she stood there in his peripheral vision. Teal was blissful y unaware that the sight of her unfettered breasts, the length of her sexy legs, was givin g him an erection that she could hardly miss if she cared to glance at his shorts.
    ´Thanks for taking me down today,µ she said quietly. ´That was amazing. It·s different at night, isn·t it? Beautiful from up here, but scary. I imagine there are sharks hun ting at night.µ
    There was a shark right here who wanted to nibble on her tender bits. But of course he didn·t say it. ´The ocean can be a dangerous place. But everything she has to offer makes that danger worthwhile.µ

    Ánd you thrive on it, don·t you?µ
    ´Danger? Nah, not so much. High adventure? Thril s? The chal enge? Hel yeah.µ He grinned. Ńever gets old. I·ve waited a long time for something like the Vrijheid, and I do believe she·s going to reward me for my patience.µ
    Teal·s laugh sounded a little rusty. ´You·ve never been patient or waited for anything a second in your life.µ
    ´You·d be surprised,µ he told her dryly.
    ´How does one go about finding a wreck?µ she asked, her gaze focused on the pinpoints of light shimmering in the water. Ánd then, wh en you do find it, how to you know that there·l be treasure on board?µ
    He glanced beyond Teal through the window of the salon. Maggie smiled and gave him a quick thumbs-up. So she·d sent Teal out. Zane made a mental note to buy her flowers the next time he was in port. ´Went to the archives in Spain four years ago, looking for a likely virgin wreck for a salvage.µ It was impossible not to look at her and he stopped pretending.
    Her eyes looked very dark in the moonlight.
    What was she thinking when she look ed at him that way? A little wary? A little intrigued?
    Śpent weeks scouring information at the Sevil e Archivo de las Indias,µ he told her. Ĺocal archives, newspaper articles, books, testimonies, monasteries, and churches³they al had their own chronicles and reports, and there was usual y at least one priest on board the Spanish boats to write it al down. The only reason I know about the Vrijheid being in this area at al was from a few smal and very annoyed notations in Spanish log books. She was Dutch and shouldn·t have been anywhere near the Caribbean. The fact that she·d been a thorn in Spain·s side, intrigued me.µ
    Óf course it did.µ Teal·s voice was dry. ´But why?µ
    Śhe was a pirate ship.µ
    Her wide eyes picked up the light. Ŕeal y?µ
    Warming to his story, Zane wanted to hold on to her rapt attention. Ánd she was fast . That girl could give the Spaniards a real run for their money. She was like a gnat on the nose of a pit bul . And yeah, her admiral, van Wassenaer, was an honest -to-God pirate. And a good one with an excel ent track record. He was returning to Rotterdam and retirement. But this time, he didn·t want to go back with the usual haul of spices or tobacco or hides from Cape Horn. He wanted a much more valuable treasure on his last voyage.µ
    Teal leaned forward, total y enthral ed, and out of habit when a woman showed any interest, Zane leaned in too. Inside, he did a double fist pump ´yes!µ at final y having her attention, without the attitude, and kept the story going. Śo on h is final voyage, van Wassenaer boldly crossed to the West Indies and got the haul of a lifetime ³only to lose it in a hurricane. And that·s where we come in.µ

    Teal·s eyes lit up. Émeralds as big as your fist, huh?µ
    He shifted his bare feet, moving closer to her. Ál sorts of gemstones.µ He had no idea how big they were, or even if the stories were true, but he loved seeing her bit by the treasure bug. Ánd plenty of them, just waiting almost four hundred years for us to pick them up off the ocean floor. Also an estimated in the multiple mil ions of dol ars, in today·s market, in gold and silver.µ
    ´Why aren·t we down there right now?µ she