Erin opened the door of the stateroom and peered down the narrow corridor that ended in a flight of stairs leading to the deck above.Still smarting from Ethan's desertion, she walked towards the stairs, mentally retracing the path Ethan had led them through when they'd boarded. The polished wood floor echoed her footsteps in a rather unsettling way and Erin wondered if she was the only one on the boat.She wouldn't put it past that arrogant bastard to leave her marooned in the middle of the ocean. It was the sort of petty, ridiculous thing he seemed to enjoy.Another cringe ran through her as she remembered how easily she had given in to him. Granted the man could kiss like it was a talent, but that was no excuse.Christ Lord Almighty! She'd acted like a hormonal sex starved teenager, letting him make love to her not just once or twice in the space of one evening. And now she had muscles aching in places she hadn't been aware of existing.Her chee

He was going to kill if someone didn’t start explaining soon.“I believe I asked a simple question.”Ethan’s gaze stayed fixed on Erin who stood with her eyes shut, rubbing her temple. His eyes flicked over her tussled hair, the flush of color on her cheeks; sliding down to the swell of her breasts beneath the t-shirt and finally down to the point where the shirt ended mid-thigh, revealing creamy, supple skin and shapely legs.Had those legs - the same ones that had been wrapped around his waist while he pleasured her- had they been locked around her lover’s waist only a few minutes ago?Had she screamed out his name as she came?The possible answer elicited a growl from him, his hands clenching

Ethan balled his hands into fists. Behind him, he could hear her footsteps as she walked away.A huge part of him wanted to yank her back and finish what they’d started- his need surged within him, the need to make love to Erin again and again till he could make himself forget the blistering anger her little deception had caused.The door closed with a soft click. Erin was gone. Ethan set his jaw; he would not go after her.Her cousin. The words cut through the haze of desire, turning him cold as he recalled the scene in the hallway of her apartment. She’d stood there, silent and watching while he made a complete and utter fool of himself fighting over a manipulative little bitch.Was this her way of getting back at him?

Erin studied the man seated across from her desk and repressed a shudder of distaste as smoke from a particularly offensive cigar curled under her nostrils. Her gaze moved from the top of his gray head, lingering on a weather-beaten face that showed every wrinkle, deceptively shrewd blue eyes studying her even as she watched him, then down to the crisp white shirt and blue tie.She dropped her gaze down to the papers on her desk. “So, I take it we have a deal Mr. Saunders?”Thin lips parted to reveal a full set of surprisingly pristine white teeth. She could almost bet those dentures were fake.“Ah yes of course, Ms. Gosling.” Kellan Saunders’ voice was a wheeze from too much cigars, yet carried an air of a man used to good living. “And I can’t thank you enough for the gener

Out in the hall, Erin met her secretary’s stunned look with a self-satisfied smile and suantered past, pulling her shirt back on, uncaring of what the woman thought. Nothing could detract from the triumph that engulfed her at the moment, certainly not the fact that she’d walked out of her office half naked or the shock on Heather’s face.She’d done it! She’d actually walked away with her pride intact, had proved to Ethan that she was just as capable of cold, hard revenge as he. Erin couldn’t help the wide grin that spread across her entire face at the image of Ethan standing there in helpless anger.Fastening the buttons on her shirt, Erin turned to her secretary. “Heather, give my guest a couple of minutes alone, then make sure he doesn’t do much damage to the furniture.”