Free Christmas with the Boss by Annie Seaton

brushed the long strands from his eyes.
    Jilly glared up at him. “Just what is your problem? Do you really
have to go to these extremes to get me to move out of your precious cottage? I
suppose it was you who came back and left the door open last night when you
brought the board inside, too?” Her words ran together as rage filled her
chest.
    The water splashed around Dominic’s legs as he strode from the
water. His mouth was tight and his eyes were flashing as he put his board down
carefully on the sand and turned to her.
    “Would you like to tell me exactly how it’s my fault that you fell
off your board? I thought you said you could surf?”
    Jilly let her temper burn ever hotter. She didn’t have red hair for
nothing. She picked up the board and shoved it at him “When did you do that? In
the middle of the night when I was asleep? You really do have a problem, don’t
you?”
    Socialising and being pleasant to her boss was no longer an option
after this prank. How the hell she was going to take him seriously enough to
work with from now on was something she’d worry about when she went back to
Sydney.
    “I need this break and I’m not going to let you, or anyone else ruin
it for me!”
    She turned away, intending to leave him there, but stopped when
Dominic reached out and held her arm. He held her firmly and took her board
with his free hand. She saw the exact moment that he realised what she was upset
about.
    “Bloody hell,” he said.
     “Is that all you’ve got to say?” Jilly pulled her arm away and
folded her arms. “Why on earth would you put soap on my board instead of wax?”
    He put the board down on the ground and turned to her, his other
hand holding her shoulder lightly. “I didn’t.” His eyes narrowed as he stared
down at her. “And what was that you said about the door being open?”
    “Don’t worry about it. I’m going to go back, have a shower—and leave
the door propped open while I have it—and have a peaceful day away from you.”
She lifted her chin and held his gaze with hers. “So, are you going to let me
go?”
    Damn him. No matter how angry she was, Jilly had to admit how he
really was irresistible. In a suit he’d looked fine, but standing in front of
her, sun drenched muscles, golden-chested and dripping with salt water, he was
ridiculously handsome. Like some Greek god or something . She couldn’t bear to think how much better he’d look without
anything on at all. She blinked as she tried to clear the picture and the
stupid comparisons from her mind. What the heck was wrong with her?
    His chuckle was husky as he looked down at her. “I’m so sorry. I
should have checked the board better.” He reached up and tucked her hair behind
her ear. “I’m really sorry. I’ll stay out and you can have my board. I’ll go
home and get some wax.”
    Jilly shook her head, bemused as his eyes held hers. His touch was
sending trembles down her back. “So who soaped the board?”
    Dominic stared down at her, his expression unreadable. “My cousin
used to do it for a lark. He was the world’s biggest practical joker.”
    Jilly picked up the sadness in Dominic’s voice. “Was?” she asked
quietly.
    He lifted his gaze and pointed to the rocks on the point to the
south. “Derro drowned on the point the day after his eighteenth birthday.”

Chapter Ten
     
    Jilly’s lips parted in sympathy as Dominic told her about Derro.
He’d not spoken of the tragedy for years and his voice caught as he told her of
waiting on the beach that afternoon; waiting hopelessly for Derro to reappear
after he’d slipped beneath the water. But he hadn’t.
    “Luckily I had my phone and I called triple zero. The guys from the
surf club were here on the jet ski within minutes.” He shook his head and
lifted his gaze to the horizon. “It took two days for his body to wash up. His
sister, Margaret found him. It was a pretty tough time for the family.”
    Jilly reached over and squeezed his