Like the suite at the baseball game, the yacht clearly showed Zach had the means and the desire to enjoy the finer things in life. Lindsay was right, Kaitlin could spend as much as she needed on the renovations, and he’d barely notice.
The chamber dinner had been held at an island marina just off the coast of southern Manhattan. Most people had traveled by water taxi but a few, like Zach, had brought their own transportation.
“This is a nice ride,” she acknowledged one more time, as they settled into a grouping of comfortable, white, cushioned furniture. The sitting area, on a teak wood deck, was positioned next to a covered hot tub near the stern of the boat, protected from the wind by a glass wall at midship, but providing an incredible view over the aft rail.
Kaitlin chose a soft armchair, while Zach took a love seat at a right angle to her, facing the stern. The pilot powered up the engine, and they glided smoothly out into the bay.
“It’s slower than a helicopter,” said Zach. “But I like it out here at night.”
Kaitlin tipped her head and gazed at the twinkling skyline. A three-quarter moon was rising, and a few stars were visible beyond the city’s glow. “You have a helicopter?”
“Dylan has the helicopters. My company owns ships.”
Kaitlin had liked Dylan, even if Lindsay hadn’t seemed to warm up to him. Then again, there were few things Lindsay enjoyed more than a rollicking debate, and Dylan had played right into her hand. Kaitlin was convinced Lindsay missed being in a courtroom. Lindsay had worked for a year as a litigator, and Kaitlin had always wondered about her choice to take the teaching position.
“Tell me more about the pirates,” she said to Zach. She’d never met anyone with such a colorful family history.
“You want a drink or anything?” he asked.
She shook her head, slipping off her shoes and bending her knees to tuck her feet beneath her in the shimmering black cocktail dress. “One more glass of champagne, and I’ll start singing karaoke.”
“Champagne it is.” He started to rise, his devilish smile showing straight white teeth in the muted deck light.
“Don’t you dare,” she warned, with a waggle of her finger. “Trust me. You do not want me to sing.”
He rocked back into his seat and loosened his tie. He ran a hand, spread-fingered, through his thick hair and crossed one ankle over the opposite knee. In the buffeting breeze, with the faint traces of fatigue around his dark eyes, he looked disheveled and compellingly sexy.
“Back to the pirates,” she prompted in an effort to distract herself from her burgeoning desire. “Is it all true?”
He shrugged easily. “Depends on what you’ve heard.”
“I heard that your ancestor was a pirate, arch enemy of Dylan’s ancestor, and the two of them formed a truce nearly three hundred years ago on what is now Serenity Island. I heard the nexus of your fortune is stolen treasure.”
Criminal or not, she still found herself envious of his detailed family history. Zach would know details of his parents, his grandparents, his aunts and uncles, and every ancestor back three hundred years. Kaitlin would give anything to be able to go back even one generation.
“Well, it’s all true,” said Zach. “At least as far as we can tell. Dylan’s in denial.”
Kaitlin laughed lightly, remembering the argument at the baseball game. “It sure sounded like it.”
Zach removed his tie and tossed it on the love-seat cushion beside him. “Dylan wants to pretend his family was pure of heart. I think he must have more scruples than me.”
“You’re unscrupulous?” she couldn’t resist asking.
“Some would say.”
“Would they be right?”
He looked her square in the eyes. “Like I’m going to answer that.”
She couldn’t tell if he was still teasing. And maybe that was deliberate. “Are you trying to keep me off balance?” she asked, watching his expression closely.
“You’re not exactly on my side.”
“I thought we’d formed a truce.” She certainly felt as if they’d formed a truce tonight.
“I’m appeasing you,” he told her. His tone and dark eyes were soft, but the words revealed his continued caution.
“And I’m trying to build you a masterpiece,” she responded tartly.
He sighed, and seemed to relax ever so slightly. “You’re trying to build yourself a masterpiece.”
She had to concede that one. Her primary motivation in this was her own reputation. Of course, it was all his fault she was forced into this position.
“You make a fair point,” she admitted.
“So, who’s unscrupulous now?”
“I’m not unscrupulous. Just practical.” She had no one in this world to depend on but herself.
Orphans learned that fact very quickly in life. If she didn’t have a career, if she couldn’t provide for herself, nobody would do it for her. Since she was old enough to understand, she’d feared poverty and loneliness.
She was sure the view was quite different from where Zach was sitting on millions of dollars worth of New York real estate. He had a successful company, money to burn and a lineage that went back to the dawn of statehood.
“So, what have you decided?” he asked.
“About what?” Was there anything left outstanding on their deal? She thought they were both quite clear at this point.
“My building. You’ve been working at it for a couple of weeks now. Tell me what you have in mind.”
Kaitlin instantly saw through his ploy. No wonder he’d behaved so well this evening. He’d been lulling her into a false send of security.
She came to her feet, keeping a close eye on him, backing toward the rail. The teak deck was cool and smooth beneath her bare feet. “Oh, no, you don’t. I’m not opening myself up for a fight over the details.”
He rose with her. “You’ll need my input at some point. It might as well be-”
“Uh-uh.” The breeze brushed the filmy, scalloped-hem dress against her legs and whipped the strands of hair that had worked their way loose from her updo. “No input.
He widened his stance. “I’ll have to approve the final designs.”
The waves rolled higher, and she braced herself against the rail. “What part of carte blanche didn’t you understand?”
He took a few steps forward. “The part where I sign the check.”
“
He came even closer, all pretense of geniality gone from his expression. He was all business, all intimidation. “Right. And ‘we’ had best be happy with both the plans and the price tag.”
“There is no limit on this project’s budget.”
He came to a halt, putting a hand on the rail, half trapping her. “I won’t let you bankrupt my company.”
She struggled not to react to his nearness. “Like I could possibly bankrupt Harper Transportation. You give me too much credit.”
The boat lunged into a trough, and he swayed closer. “You want to see the balance sheets?”
“I want to see a new Manhattan skyline.”
“It’s talk like that that scares me, Kaitlin.”
Her scare him?
He was the one unsettling her.
His intense expression brought her heart rate up. His lips were full, chin determined, eyes intense, and his hard, rangy body was far too close for her comfort. Sweat prickled at her hairline, formed between her breasts, gathered behind her knees, and was then cooled by the evening breeze.
His arms were only inches away. He could capture her at any moment, kiss her, ravage her.
She swallowed against her out-of-control arousal.
Any second now, she’d be throwing herself in his arms. Maybe talking about the renovation was the lesser of all evils.
