Free One Night With the Billionaire (Men of the Zodiac) by Sarah Ballance

identity getting out—she doubted Ryder’s inner circle would betray the confidence—but she didn’t want to contradict anything he may have said. The more she kept to herself, the better.
    She put on her new bikini and found she was a lot more self-conscious in it now than she had been in the store’s dressing room. Just the thought of Ryder’s hungry gaze skating over her body was enough to draw chills over every inch of flesh, and that was in spite of an inferno that seemed to rage every time she thought of him. Which was often. Fortunately he was off doing whatever one did before launching a resort, and she’d have the beach to herself.
    The sand was powder soft, the sea so tranquil Zoe almost felt like an intruder in a world that wasn’t hers. Still, she paused only for a moment before walking out into the water, kicking out her feet to swim when the water reached her belly. After several tranquil laps, she dove under. When she broke the surface, she was richly rewarded when a school of brightly colored fish shimmied in unison as they darted away from her disruption.
    “Looks like you have some rebel in you after all.”
    Zoe jolted at the sound of Ryder’s voice. She turned to find him standing in the water just a few feet away, nothing but bare skin visible. She looked below the surface, somewhat relieved he wasn’t naked, and back up again to see him grinning.
    “I can take them off.”
    She ignored his offer. “Why am I a rebel?”
    “You’re not supposed to swim alone.” He pointed to a sign on the beach noting as much.
    “Then why do the cabanas have private pools?”
    “Let me rephrase. You’re not supposed to swim alone offshore. You drown in the pool, at least we’ll all know what happened.”
    “Charming.”
    He laughed. “Want to help me out? I could use some feedback from a tourist.”
    She eyed the gear in his hands, unsure what she was getting herself into. “Okay?”
    “Easy and harmless. I promise.”
    “If it’s so easy and harmless,” she asked warily, “why haven’t you told me yet what you’re talking about?”
    “Snorkeling. Not to be confused with scuba. You stay at or near the surface unless you want to dive, but we’ll work up to that. I assume you’re a strong swimmer, since you didn’t have any qualms about being out here alone?”
    “Yep, no problem there.” Other than she wondered how long he’d been watching her, but the idea thrilled her. Maybe even more than it mortified her. To catch up with her so quickly, he had to have almost followed her out, although now that she thought about it, she hadn’t looked behind her. She’d been too mesmerized by the sea ahead.
    He tossed her a vest, then slipped into a second one. “This is a snorkeling vest. It won’t keep you from diving or going under, but it will provide some buoyancy. It helps with fatigue, which can kind of creep up on you if you get involved with the view or if you’re not used to swimming in currents. I’ll stay with you, and Neil knows we’re out here, but if you start to get tired, let me know. Where we’re going, you’ll be able to touch the bottom, so I don’t anticipate any trouble.”
    After she’d gotten into the vest, he handed her the snorkel and mask.
    “Breathing through the tube is simple enough, though it takes some getting used to. The problem most people have is when they get water in there. It can happen if a wave hits—a boat wake can do it even in calm water—or if you end up with your head deeper than you thought and accidentally submerge the tube.”
    “At which point I suck in a lung full of water.”
    He grinned. “Pretty much, but it’ll probably only happen once.”
    “Yeah, I’m betting you pretty much only drown the one time.”
    “You won’t drown,” he said, laughing. Good for him, so easily amused. “Breathing water when you expect air can be scary, but the solution is as simple as blowing through the snorkel to get rid of the water. It’ll