Sarah reached out, grabbed her arm as she started to rise, and attempted a smile. "No, really, thanks. It's not that bad and I don't take pills of any kind."

"Ever? Not even vitamins or aspirins?"

"Nope. None. Ever."

Ivy looked at a loss, and Sarah felt like an ogre for always putting the young woman on the defensive when she was just trying to be nice. She made an attempt herself, changing the subject.

"I'm sorry. I just need to sit for a while. But thank you. How are you doing?"

Ivy seemed taken by surprise at the apology and the inquiry, her brow creasing before she smiled, her eyes lighting up.

"Oh! I do have news! I have a date." She said the word proudly, beaming.

"With the kayak instructor? Jim?"

Ivy nodded enthusiastically. "I b.u.mped into him last night, in the office, and we got talking, and then, boom, he just asked me out. I was such an idiot, I couldn't say anything for like five minutes, but he was so nice. He didn't seem to mind how dumb I acted."

"You're not dumb. And you're not an idiot. Don't talk that way."

"Oh, I know, in general. I'm smart enough for college, and smarter than a lot of folks. But I always get so tongue-tied around guys, and especially around him. He's just so...I get shivery whenever I look at him."

Her voice had gone all dreamy, and Sarah felt a surge of uneasiness, a reminder of days when she, like Ivy, had been unsuspecting of what men were capable of.

"Are you sure you should go out with him, Ivy? Alone? Maybe you should make it a group date until you know him better."

Ivy's eyes shadowed, and the furrow in her brow returned. "Why, I'm sure he's very trustworthy-he's been working at the resort for several years, and Karen says she trusts him implicitly."

Hmmm. Shows how much Karen knows, Sarah thought sourly as she remembered Jim's flirting the day before. She was sure the guy had only one thing in mind when he looked at Ivy, fresh, innocent and ripe for the picking: easy target.

"Listen, Ivy...I don't want to burst your bubble, I really don't, but be careful around Jim. Have some fun, but don't let him charm you into anything you don't want to do."

"Like having s.e.x, you mean?"

Sarah was surprised at the girl's candor, and relieved-maybe Ivy wasn't as naive as she'd thought. As naive as she had once been.

"Yeah, for one."

Ivy's cheeks stained with a light pink, and she leaned in toward Sarah. "I haven't done that with anyone yet. Not all the way, anyhow. But isn't it better to have a guy who's older for your first time? Maybe he knows more, you know, what to do?"

"Could be. But I met Jim and I just have a feeling you should be careful."

Ivy drew back. "Really? Why?"

"He just seems kind of...you know, like a guy who gets around. He flirts, a little too much."

She smiled. "You mean in his lessons. He's always like that. It's just part of how he puts people at ease."

Sarah fought the urge to roll her eyes. She hadn't felt at ease when Jim was sliding his hand up her calf the day before. The guy was a shark.

"Ivy, older guys know things, true, but take it from me, older women know a few things, too. I'm just saying, be careful with him. Don't let him use you."

Ivy's eyes clouded over, and Sarah stood, putting her hand on her shoulder. "I know you have a crush on him but believe me, he's not as trustworthy as you think."

Ivy looked up, a few sparks in her eyes now. "How can you know? You don't even know him!"

Sarah sighed. "I've known plenty of guys like him. Believe me, the more you keep your distance, the better."

With that, she smiled thinly and walked toward the stairs. The talk with Ivy about men using women had fired up her ire toward Logan. She would go about her day, but not before she had a few words with him first.

LOGAN OPENED one bleary eye, looking up and seeing only the ceiling. G.o.d, he was still dressed and still on the floor, where he'd finally spent hours working once he'd broken back into the wireless connection. He didn't even remember falling asleep, though it couldn't have been all that long ago. His laptop had fallen into sleep mode as well, the screen dark, a small, bouncing basketball the only indication the machine was on at all. He had to pack everything up before it was discovered by housekeeping, but first he needed to clean up. one bleary eye, looking up and seeing only the ceiling. G.o.d, he was still dressed and still on the floor, where he'd finally spent hours working once he'd broken back into the wireless connection. He didn't even remember falling asleep, though it couldn't have been all that long ago. His laptop had fallen into sleep mode as well, the screen dark, a small, bouncing basketball the only indication the machine was on at all. He had to pack everything up before it was discovered by housekeeping, but first he needed to clean up.

He stood slowly, cursing the fact that at thirty-four, he'd left the flexibility and stamina of his twenties long behind. His back protested painfully as he walked toward the bathroom. Shower. Hot water. Food.

Sarah.

The basic needs occurred to him one by one, the last one making him frown as he stripped and stepped into the spray. He'd wanted to bring her to bed with him last night, pull her through the door and repeat what they'd done on the beach-and more-until he couldn't walk for other, better reasons. But he wasn't here for a fling. Sarah was great, and he wanted to spend more time with her, but it was going to be a daytime affair-his nights were spoken for.

And he'd made some good progress. He'd definitely tracked the names of two of the missing women to the gaming company's master list-now he just had to find out which boat they'd been on. Melanie had been missing for almost six months, but these other two had only been missing for two.

There were only two ships that made port at Norfolk and Virginia Beach. He'd spent the better part of the night trying to break into the company computers, but it was far beyond his capabilities to get through their security. He'd been banging his head against a brick wall for hours before he'd finally lost his connection and had fallen asleep while trying to get it back.

But the evidence was mounting, and he knew the next step was trying to get on board the ship. However, doing that would be tricky. He had no jurisdiction here, let alone out there where none of the laws applied. That was a snag he hadn't quite counted on. But if he could get out there, get some solid evidence, and bring it back- A loud knock on the door startled him out of his train of thought, and he hurried out of the bathroom. His laptop and the papers lying all over the floor had to be hidden away.

"Just a minute!" He let the towel drop, scrambling to shove everything under the bed. He would put it away properly once he got rid of whoever was knocking.

Wrapping the towel securely back around his waist, he opened the door, surprised to find Sarah-looking a bit riled-on the other side. Her blue eyes flashed, first with anger, then with something else as she let her gaze drift over him. His body responded with a quickening that was almost embarra.s.sing.

"Sarah."

"Logan. You just got up?"

He ran a hand through his hair, feeling awkward and half-aroused. He glanced back at the bed to make sure nothing of what he'd kicked underneath showed from where he stood.

"Yeah, I'm sorry-were we meeting?"

"No. We weren't. Forget it, sorry to bother you."

Her voice was cold and she started to turn away when it hit his sluggish mind that she thought he was giving her the brush-off. He'd parted ways with her last night-when it was clear she wouldn't have said no to spending the night together. And then he'd failed to show up this morning. Now he was acting like he barely remembered her. He couldn't blame her for being p.i.s.sed. He sighed, holding his hand out to her and opening the door a little wider.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart. I'm just groggy." When she didn't reach for his hand he moved forward, catching the door with his heel, standing close to her. "I was up late, couldn't sleep and then overslept this morning. I thought it was housekeeping at the door, and just didn't expect to find you there."

She seemed to bristle at that, stepping back. "Fine. I'll leave you alone, then."

He snagged her hand. "C'mon, come in. It'll take me a second to throw some shorts on, and we can go get some food."

"Already ate."

He tugged her hand, pulling her up close against him.

"I'm sorry I was a dumba.s.s. I missed you last night...."

"You didn't have to." The meaning of her words was obvious, and he felt his response catch in his throat when she spoke again, her features softening just a little. He felt like a jerk for hurting her, and swore to make it up, starting right now. "What were you doing that kept you up so late anyhow?"

"I tossed and turned for a bit, then got caught up in a book."

"You were reading all night?" She was outright skeptical now.

"Yeah. I thought about coming down and knocking on your door, but I didn't know if you would appreciate being awakened at that hour."

"It must have been some book. Maybe I should borrow it."

"I'll give it to you when I'm done."

Her voice softened, "Well, I guess I shouldn't have my nose so out of joint. I was late to meet you yesterday, after all."

He smiled, remembering yesterday. "Let's just not worry about any of that, huh? We're on vacation, right? Off the clock?"

They stood silently for a moment, and her eyes drifted over his bare chest, the towel he'd almost forgotten he was wearing. She must have forgiven him; color pinched her cheeks. Without a word he pulled her toward him and closed the door, pushing her up against it, and kissed her before she could say one more word.

The kiss should have left her with no doubt about the fact that he'd missed her, but even as he searched her mouth, ran his hands over her curves, he felt a sting of guilt for lying to her. He pushed it back. The two things, what he did with Sarah during the day and the case he worked on at night, had to be kept separate. He didn't want anyone anyone knowing what he was up to. knowing what he was up to.

When her hands yanked impatiently at the towel, leaving him naked and pressed up against her, he smiled, enjoying how forthright she was about her wants and needs. It was daytime now-Sarah time. He intended to enjoy it and leave the night behind, for now.

"I think you're overdressed." His voice dropped an octave and he saw her lips open slightly as she took a deeper breath, and then smiled. She'd forgiven him.

She ran her hands over his chest, stopping to tweak his nipples in a way that brought his c.o.c.k immediately to attention. He didn't feel sluggish now, that was for sure. He pushed the spaghetti string sundress she wore up her waist and past her gorgeous b.r.e.a.s.t.s and kissed every inch of skin as he revealed it. The pink lace bra she wore hinted at a sweetness, a femininity, that provided contrast to her tough demeanor. It totally turned him on and he groaned, sucking a dark nipple through the lace and pulling gently with his teeth as it budded in between his lips.

She buried her hands in his hair, directing him, but this time he intended to stay in charge and shook her hands off, exploring the swell of cleavage at his own pace, working her panties lower as he did so. Soon, they were both naked.

Leaning down, he snuck one arm under her knees and the other behind her, slipping her away from the door and up into his arms as he carried her over to the bed. The look on her face was one he'd carry with him forever-open desire and sheer surprise-apparently, Sarah had never been swept off her feet before.

She certainly hadn't. Sarah was too surprised to protest when Logan swept her feet from under her, though she felt silly and touched all at once by the gesture, enjoying the feel of his hard arms holding her, but smiling as she watched her feet, still wearing her sandals, flopping around out in midair. Being so tall, she'd never really thought of herself as portable, but Logan made her feel like a feather. It was nice. It seemed like everything he did was nice.

Any anger she'd had about his absence that morning died a swift death as he laid her down and covered her from head to toe with his body, warming her and touching her everywhere. She couldn't think straight, he was everywhere, and when he nudged his thigh between hers, pressing up where she was melting for him, she groaned and arched into him, rubbing against him harder.

Sarah couldn't believe she was ready so fast, on the edge and urging him to do something-anything-to push her over. She wanted it hard and fast, like before, but, maddeningly, he took his time. She raised her head to object, but he shushed her.

When she shifted up onto her elbows her body moved just enough so that his chin was in line with the shadowy spot between her thighs. He smiled in a way that had her heart racing, and her objections caught in her throat.

When he pushed his face between her legs, nudging until she opened for him, she fell back to the pillows again. His tongue circled her c.l.i.t, hot and slick, and she nearly lifted off the bed when her o.r.g.a.s.m hit her. Panting, she opened wider, inviting him in for more.

He peered up at her, his eyes clouded with desire. Watching him lave her, his tongue darting out and tasting her, she felt a tide of affection and desire-no ugly thoughts or images a.s.saulted her-and something that had been locked up tightly inside of her finally broke free.

Then he moved, and she felt his fingers probe, sliding inside, exploring her depths until she was blind to anything but everything he was making her feel. Just as she hovered on the edge again, he stopped, pulling himself up and covering her.

They looked into each other's eyes, and Sarah swallowed at the tenderness she saw in his. Her scent surrounded them, and she rose to kiss him experimentally, finding that anything seemed to taste good on those lips of his, even her own essence. She deepened the kiss, partially because she loved kissing him, but also because she was a little afraid of how deeply he was looking at her, and what he might see when she was open to him like this.

But he wasn't going to let her be afraid. Pulling back, he reached down, sliding one hand beneath her hip, and held her steady as he thrust inside her, deep and hard, and stayed planted there, rotating his hips in a delicious grind against her, never letting her eyes leave his.

"Tell me a secret, Sarah." He pressed deeper, and she moaned, hardly able to hold a conversation. But he kissed her, refusing to pull out but maintaining the torturous pressure of staying deep inside her, until her gaze met his.

"Why?"

"I want to know something about you. While I'm this deep inside you, I want to know something about you that no one else knows."

Sarah tried to wiggle, tried to move, to ease the need and the unbearable fullness, but he weighed her down, held her firm. Why did he want this from her? Wasn't what she was giving him enough?

Her breathing was uneven, her mind blurred with pleasure and the increasingly urgent desire for release as he placed one hand between them, rolling her nipple almost casually, causing her to shudder.

"Just...one...secret...Sarah." He kissed her face, punctuating his words. "Just one small thing about you that no other man knows."

She bit her lip, searching his face. "Then I want one from you."

"Deal."

He pulled all the way out of her and she gasped with the wonderful friction of it, confused-she hadn't told him a secret-but then he thrust back in, deeper, harder. She dragged her hands down his back, squeezed his a.s.s, pulled him against her and felt him tense. Two could play.

"Okay. Um, I've never had food s.e.x."

He blinked, then smiled. "Not even with whipped cream?"

She shook her head, pressing up against him, sighing when he moved just a little.

"What kind of food s.e.x do you fantasize about?"

"You want details now?"

He slid from her body in one long, leisurely pull, and then plunged back into her, making her cry out.

"Yes."

She was aching for relief, but she managed to gasp out her one small food fantasy. She'd read about it in a book once, and had never been able to forget-and had never had anyone to share it with.

"Peaches. You have ripe, juicy peaches...you slice them open. You rub them all over each other, Lick the juice off...oh..."

He smiled, kissing her ear, swirling his tongue inside it in such a way that she lost all coherent thought for several seconds. She'd never known her ears were so sensitive.

"You rub them everywhere? Even here?" He licked lightly behind her ear, down the curve of her neck to her shoulder, and pumped into her slowly.

"Yes, there..."

He lifted up, moving down her body, his mouth everywhere, on her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, the indent of her waist...

"Here?"