Free Sinfully Summer by Aimee Duffy

something so pretty.
    He rounded the desk and offered her his elbow. She took it gladly and tried to shift as much of her weight as possible onto him. Snatching up the shoes in her free hand, she hobbled to the door and down the corridor with Ric supporting her.
    He hit the button and the doors opened. After helping her in, he stepped back out. ‘I guess you’ll have to wear the navy suit tomorrow again. One more day shouldn’t kill you.’ He grinned.
    As the doors began to slide shut, Alexa couldn’t hold back. ‘Yeah, like that’s going to happen.’
    His scowl was the last thing she saw. She smirked and leaned back against the cool pole. They’d been shopping and she now had a new conservative wardrobe for her time in Marbella. Alexa had checked his schedule for the month and it was packed with ‘mortuary’ gigs and non-fun. Still, she was doing this for her business and herself. She could bear the penguin-suited functions and her silly craving for Ric’s hot body. Now all she had to do was forget the sight of that chest.
    It couldn’t be too hard. After all, he had the personality of an accountant.

Chapter Five
    ‘Purple?’
    Alexa’s skin prickled at the sound of his husky, accented voice. She kept her gaze focused across the road, firmly on the ocean, refusing to turn back to face him until her heart slowed enough to think around the blood pounding in her ears. It was ridiculous the sound of his voice affected her like this.
    Ric offered his elbow and she had no choice but to make eye contact. She nearly swallowed her tongue at the amusement tilting his lips. With as little sleep as they had, he looked fabulous whereas she had circles under her eyes to rival a panda.
    ‘Beats navy,’ she answered and slid her hand through the crook of his arm.
    Like a gentleman, he led her down the marble steps to the waiting limo. All she knew from Ric’s curt phone call to her suite at seven this morning was that the owners of the yacht would meet them in a speedboat in the harbour, so she’d sensibly opted for a dark purple knee length dress. It was tight enough not to blow up in the wind and expose her flesh. But standing next to him in flats made her feel like one of the seven dwarfs—Sleepy at the moment.
    Ric waited until she scooted over and he slid into the seat beside her. She was hit again by his intoxicating smell, but this time she was prepared. Scooting closer to the opposite side, she rolled down the window and leaned her head against the frame.
    He eyed her curiously. ‘Do I smell that bad?’
    Maybe if she closed her eyes and couldn’t see him, the mortification would go away. ‘No, my stomach’s queasy.’ Which was also true, but she could handle that.
    His laugh shivered through her and she was glad when the car pulled away from the road. Alexa made herself focus on the reason they were there. ‘Tell me more about the owners.’
    ‘Two American men own the yacht. Justin is planning to take Mark on a European tour as a second honeymoon in a month or so, but they have to return to the States for work before that.’
    ‘They’re married?’ He nodded. ‘I’m glad I wore Prada.’
    He chuckled again and she made the mistake of not looking away. When he let loose like that his face relaxed and he looked young, carefree and even sexier. She turned back to the window to look out at the tourists setting up on the beach for the day, wishing it was her.
    ‘We have to convince them to trust us to take care of their boat while they’re in the States. Justin is very attached to it.’
    Alexa nodded and shut her eyes. Yawning, she shifted until her weight rested against the inside of the limo. Functioning on so little sleep was tough, especially without coffee. Even her body’s reaction to the infuriating Spanish hunk next to her couldn’t keep her alert today.
    A hand shook her shoulder a second later and she snapped her eyes open. ‘What?’ She scowled at Ric.
    His warm smile made her heart