Eden's Pleasure (Pulse Book 1) (42 page)

“I knew from the first moment I took you into my arms and we danced that I loved you,” he divulged like a dirty little secret.

“It took me a little longer. I was so absorbed in not getting close that I missed it, didn’t see it coming. I’m so sorry.”

“Don’t be silly. It doesn’t matter when, it only matters that you do now.” He kissed her lips, resuming his attention to her curl. She reached over and touched the bracelet on his wrist.

“That was supposed to be for your birthday. What are we going to do about that?” she asked in a naughty, affected tone.

“We’ll think of something, I’m sure.” He kissed her, sliding his hand up her inner thigh. She removed it and kissed each fingertip, giggling and placing his hand into his own lap.

“I better call work and let Amanda know I’ll be late,” she said, suddenly rising from the table.

“Amanda knows,” he told her, pulling her back playfully into her seat. “I told her yesterday that you wouldn’t be in.”

“You were very sure of yourself, Mr. Dean,” she said with a scowl.

“Yeah, I guess I was…I’m taking you somewhere today,” he proclaimed.

“Where?” she asked, puzzled.

“You’ll see.” He was giving nothing away. “Go get showered and dressed. You’ll find something to wear in the guest room closet. Be sure to dress warm, and don’t forget a jacket.”

“You still have the clothing?” She was a bit put off at the thought that he kept the items that he bought for other women. She had hoped that when he had the room redecorated that it included the closet.

“No.” He recognized the distaste in her voice and understood her annoyance; an explanation was in order. “The things from the closet are gone, donated to a women’s shelter, and replaced with the rest of your belongings from the country house. I had them brought here for you. I did add a few new things to the collection…and some undergarments of my liking.”

“Really? I’d forgotten all about my things at the house. That was sweet. You didn’t have to do that.” He was so good to her. She knew all he wanted was to make her happy. This domineering, controlling man had the biggest heart of anyone she knew. He shared everything without question.

“Now go shower and get dressed. We’ll leave when you’re ready,” he ordered in his gruff, tough-ass voice, making her laugh as she ran off out of the kitchen. “Don’t dawdle!”

The guest room looked wonderful. She was very pleased with how it turned out, bright and colorful. Her favorite Process Blue was used perfectly on the walls with Chintz Green used for the bedspread, drapes, etcetera. It looked so like her drawing, and she was happy that he had followed her design to a tee, even if it didn’t blend in with the rest of the penthouse decor.

She opened the closet. All of her old familiar outfits hung on wooden hangers, and vanilla scented the air. Even her old favorite shoes sat on the shoe stands. It felt almost like home, almost.

As she rummaged through the clothing looking for something warm to wear, she opened a drawer in search of panties and found, tucked carefully to the side, her old childhood teddy with the pink ribbon that she used to tie it to her headboard tied lovingly around his neck. She lifted him out and held him to her cheek as a tear ran down her face. He smelled like vanilla, and his glass eye that her foster parents’ dog had chewed out had been replaced.

“You ok?” Chase asked when he saw her standing quietly in the closet.

“Did you do this?” she asked, holding the teddy out for him to see.

“Yes, well I had Hazel clean it. She took it upon herself to have it repaired. She said that it must be special and needed special care. I found it among some things.”

“I didn’t think I’d ever see it again. I thought he took it,” she said, placing it back in the drawer and closing it.

Chase looked out under his lashes. “He did take it. I wasn’t going to tell you. It was in his duffle bag Mason found in one of his hiding places.” He watched her, waiting for a reaction to his confession.

“Well, however Jasper was found, I’m just glad I have him back. Thank you!” She pulled him down so she could plant a kiss on his cheek.

“Jasper?” he asked.

“My dad’s name. Apparently, he gave it to me when I was born. I never knew him.”

Eden rushed off with her clothes to the washroom, leaving the conversation at that. Chase understood, happy in his decision to repair the bear. Chase closed the closet and followed close behind. He trimmed his beard and washed while she showered, his eyes trailing over to gaze over her wet, shimmering skin. He forced himself to go get dressed before his painful erection got the better of him.

Chase called to her from the bottom of the stairs to get her butt in gear, and she joked with him that it was a woman’s prerogative to be late. When she saw Mason standing with Chase, she screamed out his name and ran down the stairs, jumping up into his arms.

“I missed you!”

“I missed you too, sweetheart,” Mason said as he tried to pry her off of him in his I’m-too-macho-for-this-shit way.

“Are you going with us?” she asked him, happy at the prospect of being out with her two favorite guys.

Mason moved their things over to the elevator. “Yep, you know he doesn’t go too far without me,” Mason stated, very matter-of-fact.

“So where are we going?” she asked him, whispering slyly.

“Nice try, sweetheart,” he said with a single raised eyebrow and a smirk, as he waited for her to get onto the elevator.

***

A large sign with a huge blue anchor and red lettering reading “Boston Harbor Shipyard and Marina” came into view, and Eden turned to Chase with excitement in her eyes.

“What are we doing here?” she asked.

“We’re going sailing today,” he said. “On
Pleasure
. I had her delivered a few weeks ago.”

“Sailing on
Pleasure
?” She saddened, remembering the plans he had made for them to enjoy a getaway together. It never happened because of the incident that horrible night, and then she walked away and left him. “I’m sorry we missed our trip.”

“It wasn’t your fault. It just wasn’t meant to be,” he said, squeezing her hand as they came to a stop at a small, gated archway leading onto a very long dock. “No more about it.” He wasn’t messing around, he put his foot down, and the subject was closed.

The marina housed hundreds of boats ranging in size from small single-family pleasure crafts, up to large luxury liners and everything in between.
Pleasure
was docked at the far end of D-Dock, which meant quite a walk, but Eden was enjoying every moment as Chase pointed out the finer details of some of the larger crafts. She giggled at some of the strange names that people called them. At least ten were called
Sail La Vie
.
Paradise Island
and
Love Boat
took a close second and the ever-popular
Salty Dog
brought up the rear. But none compared to the sight of
Pleasure
as she gently bobbed in the quiet waters.

“She’s beautiful,” Eden declared to Chase with a real, heartfelt appreciation.

Lined on the yacht’s deck to meet them were the crew, dressed in stark white uniforms, each standing stiff, and waiting for them to board.
Pleasure
sparkled in the sun, polished to perfection. A gentleman, obviously the captain, removed his hat and bowed politely to Eden as she climbed aboard with Mason’s help. He put out his hand and shook Eden’s with an enthusiastic vigor, catching her off guard, her entire body shaking like a rag doll.

Chase greeted the captain with a strong pat to the back and manly shoulder hug. He introduced Eden as his girlfriend, which made her smile with pride, and commanded the crew to take good care of her, that she was precious cargo, making her blush.

“Come, I’ll show you around.” He took her hand, and led her on a tour below deck.

There were four staterooms, three crew rooms, two heads, one with a full shower and bath, a huge galley and an entertainment room with a movie screen and gas fireplace, which made her laugh at the idea of fire on water.

She heard the engines thunder to life, and felt the movement of the yacht as it pulled gracefully from the dock. A thrill of excitement took her over, and she practically pulled Chase off his feet to get up onto the deck. The feel of the air whipping through her hair and the sound of the yacht’s horn blasting propelled shivers up and down her spine. It was a dream come true, and she wanted to delight in every last moment.

On the upper deck, they settled into deck chairs, and were served Hawaiian margaritas and tropical fruit salad with an assortment of luau favorites. Poi, Pipi Kuala, which she found quite nice, and Lau Lau were among a lot of raw fish dishes that she just couldn’t bring herself to try. All in all, she enjoyed her lunch and the company very much. Mason came to join them for a short stint, downing a Mai Tai in a few gulps and passing on the food altogether. His idea of sailing on a yacht involved computer work in one of the crew rooms.

“Enjoying yourself?” Chase asked after the dishes had been cleared from the table and fresh drinks arrived.

Eden looked out over the water to the city landscape in the distance. “I am. I have dreamed of cruising around the world on a yacht since I was a little girl. I had posters of cruise ships plastered on the wall in my room. It drove my foster mother nuts because of the holes in the walls. One of my favorite reruns on TV was
Love Boat
.”

“
Love Boat
?” Chase roared with laughter. Trying to imagine her as a young girl sitting with her knees drawn to her chin in front of an old TV set, singing along to the
Love Boat
theme, warmed him. He wished she could have had so much more, sad that her childhood was so full of emptiness.

Eden swatted at Chase for making fun of her. “I was a kid! It was romantic and adventurous. It allowed me to escape for one hour every Saturday night from the world.”

“A little girl needing an escape, that’s sad,” Chase said with pain in his voice.

Shrugging it off, she explained as best she could. “It wasn’t sad. I didn’t know any different. Life was hard. You did what you had to do. Mik and I didn’t have a lot so we got lost in TV shows. Didn’t you?”

“No. We didn’t watch a lot of TV. Actually, we rarely watched at all. There was family time, game nights, and during the week, we had homework and studying to do. Anything less than an ‘A’ was unacceptable in our house. If we expected to hang with friends on weekends, you made sure the grades kept up.”

“I don’t know who had it worse.” Eden laughed.

Chase pushed back his seat and stood at her side. “Come. Let’s watch the water from one of the chaises.” He took her hand, and they walked over to a lounge. Chase sat first, straddling the cushioned seat and settling against the back, and Eden planted her rear end tight against his crotch, happily laying her back against his chest.

He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, and they sat silently watching as the yacht glided effortlessly through the choppy waters leaving the Boston skyline behind them.

“Why did you name her
Pleasure
?” she asked, breaking the peace.

“She is one of a few true pleasures in my life. It seemed only fitting.” He squeezed her with a kiss to her cheek, and she smiled. “You, baby, are my most cherished pleasure.”

“Trying to get into my pants, Mr. Dean?” she joked.

He hummed into her ear, “If it’s working, then yes.

“It just might be.” She shivered.

“Are you warm enough? There’s a blanket right here if you like?” he asked, holding her just a little bit tighter.

“The breeze is a bit chilly,” she admitted, even though she didn’t want him to take his arms from around her.

Chase reached for the blanket under the lounge and shook it until it opened fully, draping it over them and tucking it around her chin. His arms tucked under the blanket and held her tight once again. He was warm at her back and she wiggled herself farther into him. She loved the connection they shared.

“Eden?” Chase asked, with a speck of seriousness in his voice.

“Yes?”

His hesitation only lasted a few seconds. “Move in with me?” The question came without warning, so unexpected that he felt her stiffen in his arms.

“What?” she asked. She knew exactly what he asked but needed to hear it again, just to be sure it wasn’t a hallucination since she had been in such a relaxed dream state.

“Move in with me,” he repeated. “I love you. I want to share everything that I have and everything that I am with you. I want to come home every night to you and wake up in the morning with you in my arms.”

Eden wanted to say yes so badly. “I don’t know what to say.” Her head was playing the pros and cons game. They loved each other so that was a definite pro. She still hadn’t found an apartment so that was a pro, but they really didn’t know each other that well, which was a con, and they worked together so that could turn out to be a con. But the apartment was huge, and a person could get lost easily if she wanted private time, so that was a pro.

“Say yes.” He sounded so sure, so convincing. “Just say yes, baby.”

“Yes.”

Eden turned herself around to straddle his legs, pulling the blanket around them, and kissing him tenderly. “Are you sure this is what you want? I can be a real pain in the ass. I’ll get in your way and probably piss you off…and I like alone time, can you handle that?”

“I’m sure, and baby, I know how to handle you!” He smiled before burying his face between her breasts, and pulled at her jacket with his teeth, growling like an animal.

She blushed when she saw several of the crew members with the perfect view of them, and tried to wriggle free from his advances. “Not here, Chase, we have an audience.”

“You’re not into exhibitionism?” he asked, reaching his hands up under her too many layers of clothing to touch her warm skin. “We could give them a voyage to remember.”

She laughed. “I don’t think so.”

Chase’s hands running across her ribs and up her sides and around to her back were very distracting. His lips caressing the soft delicate skin at her ears and his hot breath against her cool skin made her breathing difficult. She could feel herself heating up down below, yearning for his touch.