Sea Haven 01 - Water Bound

open for him, feet flat on the bed, knees wide. He caught her bottom with one hand, wrapped her hips with his arm and, gaze locked with hers, buried himself deep with one thrust, sinking to the hilt. Lights and colors seemed to burst behind his eyes, even as he watched her face, that miracle of beauty, the gaze, the breath, the flush as he took her higher.
    He trailed his free hand over her breasts, down her stomach to the soft mound where they were joined. She arched her back, her hips moving into the rhythm of his, time suspended. There was only the sound. The scent. The 278

    sensation. He let go, let himself drown, giving himself up to her soft music and the love in her eyes. Her body clamped down on his, held him as the ripples turned to swelling tides and his hot release washed inside of her. He felt the rush through his body, through hers, through their joined bodies.
    He waited, locked inside her, fighting for breath. Waited. She just looked at him with a glazed, sexy, giving look that turned him inside out.
    “Say it. I have to hear you say it,” he ordered, holding her beneath him.
    She didn’t pretend to misunderstand. She smiled at him, that Rikki smile that could take his breath. “I love you, you goofball.”
    He stared down at her for a few more seconds, and then rolled over laughing, gathering her close to him. “I’ve never been called a goofball before. There’re just so many firsts with you.” He wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her neck. “Go to sleep.”
    “Already there,” she murmured drowsily. Her hand moved over the top of his and they fell asleep together, bodies tight against one another.
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Chapter 19
    LEV scowled as Jonas Harrington swung out of his truck, and Blythe slid out of the passenger side. Rikki, in her hammock swing, stiffened, but she covered it well, taking a sip of coffee and peering at their visitors over the rim of the steaming mug. Just to give her added confidence, Lev moved close behind her, dropping his hand casually on her shoulder.
    “I was hoping not to see you for a while,” Lev greeted. He rubbed his jaw. “I’m a little stiff and not certain I want to go another round.”
    Rikki glanced up at him, her dark eyes searching his face. He winked at her.
    Jonas followed Blythe up onto the porch. “I think I got the worst of the deal, so don’t complain. I wouldn’t mind a cup of coffee, since no one’s offering.”
    Rikki flushed. “I’m sorry. I should have...”
    “Rikki,” Jonas interrupted gently. “I was teasing. I grew up with the Drake girls and spent my younger years tormenting them. I have a tendency to do that with those I consider family. You and Blythe are family to me.”
    “I’m getting the coffee,” Blythe said.
    “There goes my morning,” Lev muttered.
    Rikki sent him a reprimand from under her long lashes, just as he knew she would. He bent to whisper in her ear. “Little miss prim and proper.”
    He felt her laughter in his mind, but she didn’t laugh aloud. Beneath his hand, he felt some of the tension slip away. He took a swallow of coffee and waited for Jonas to tell him why he’d shown up again, this time with Blythe.
    The sheriff wouldn’t have brought Blythe unless he thought Rikki would be upset by his visit.
    Jonas remained silent until Blythe returned, studying the blackened strip surrounding Rikki’s house, while Lev studied him. Definitely, he was worried about Rikki’s reaction to his news. His fingers slipped to the nape of Rikki’s neck, gently massaging, wanting to keep contact.
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    “Rikki,” Blythe said, as she passed a coffee cup to the sheriff, “Jonas would like to talk to you about an official who wants to ask you some questions.” She glanced up at Lev, her expression worried.
    Rikki went still. “About the fire?” Her voice was low, strangled. The fingers of one hand turned white as she gripped her coffee mug, while the other dug into her denim-clad thigh.
    Jonas shook his head. “No. There’s a Russian making inquiries into the death of a man who was on board the yacht that sank off our coast a few weeks ago. Apparently he isn’t entirely satisfied that the man drowned.”
    Rikki didn’t react as Lev expected. She actually relaxed a little, took a sip of her coffee and met Jonas’s gaze steadily. “What has that got to do with me?”
    “You were diving that day. He apparently checked with the processing company and they had sent out a truck to collect your