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‘And you’ll hold that over me?’

He nodded. ‘If it means keeping my job, and not having a wife arranged for me. In a word—yes.’

Chapter Eight

Jane

Twenty-four hours later I knew I was in trouble.

Big trouble.

Linc and I had headed to the marina from the airport and we’d boarded Amore just after dark. But it was still light enough for me to see that the vessel was every bit as luxurious as the brochure had promised.

Linc preceded me down to the bottom deck and threw my duffel bag into the master cabin. ‘You get the good cabin seeing as you’re the paying customer.’ He’d been snarky ever since we’d left the airport and had stayed that way.

I’d poked about inside and even I’d been impressed by the luxury gold fittings in the large bathroom, and the full-size wardrobe along one side of the cabin. It seemed a shame to throw four pairs of shorts and six T-shirts in there. It looked like it deserved a couple of glam evening dresses.

I tested the bed and smiled; it was feather soft.

When I went back up to the galley, Linc was perusing the contents of the refrigerator. ‘You ordered all this?’ he said. ‘For yourself?’

‘I thought there was going to be two of us,’ I defended myself.

He pulled out a bottle of Moet and then pointed at the two lobster salads sitting on the shelf. ‘It’s a waste not to eat it.’

‘Are you going to keep that scowl for ten days?’ I said. ‘It will play havoc with your digestion.’

‘I’m sorry. It’s been one hell of a day.’ Finally, he grinned and, I won’t say my insides melted, but it sure felt like they did.

Big trouble.

Not the fact that I had no money, and no passport, but the fact that every time this man looked at me, or spoke to me, my hormones went ‘oh yeah’, without my permission.

We went to bed early—in separate cabins—after polishing off the bottle of champagne and the delectable salad, not to mention the two slices of chocolate cheesecake that were in the fridge.

‘Do you want to take her out?’ Linc asked after I wandered up in a pair of shorts and a singlet top, early the next morning.

‘I’d love to.’ I’d pored over the charts for the past two weeks, and I’d already logged a charter route with the Charter Yacht company. That had been the hard part; there were so many islands to explore. ‘You trust me?’

He nodded. ‘I’ve checked you out online. You’ve got some sailing awards behind you. I was impressed.’

I couldn’t help the blush that warmed my cheeks.

‘I’ve got some calls to make before we lose phone range. And a passport to chase up.’

‘I thought you were off duty now. But thank you.’

The only downside of the morning was the sight of Brad and Serena walking along the path at the edge of the marina as we’d prepared to leave. I couldn’t help the little surge of glee when I saw the angry expression on Brad’s face, and the way Serena walked behind him. I made sure they didn’t see me. Eventually they headed around the point and out of sight.

I went down to the cabin and picked up my phone. At least I had that.

I dialled home and braced myself. ‘Hi, Mum. It’s me,’ I said when my mother answered.

‘Jane. Where are you? We’ve been beside ourselves. Poor Brad is almost suicidal.’

I snorted. ‘Is he? Where is he?’

‘Joanie is distraught. She said he was so devastated by what you’d done and the embarrassment of being left at the altar, he’s gone off to an island to recover. I don’t think she’ll ever forgive you. She’s worried about his mental health.’