Marooned with a Millionaire Read Free Page A

to roll over onto her belly, face down, to try to rid herself of the heat his presence had generated.
    Instead, she came to her knees, folded her arms on the tub’s ledge and rested her chin atop them. “I would really like some privacy, if you don’t mind.”
    â€œI’ve seen a naked woman before.”
    â€œNot this naked woman.”
    His gaze slid over her once more. “I’m not looking.”
    Could’ve fooled her. “Thanks for the T-shirt. Is there anything else?”
    He turned toward the cabinet and studied her undies. Guess he didn’t find her drawers at all satisfactory. Obviously he resented her cluttering his bathroom. Or he might just plain resent her.
    â€œActually, there is something else,” he said. “Several things. First, the rules about bathing on the boat.”
    â€œI promise I won’t take another bath while I’m here.”
    â€œI doubt that.”
    â€œSeriously, Jack, I don’t bathe twice a day unless I happen to exert myself.”
    That brought his attention back to her. “It’s going to take us more than a day to get back to land.”
    â€œI didn’t think we were that far offshore.”
    â€œRelatively speaking, we’re not. But we have a few problems.”
    From the stony look on his face, Lizzie wasn’t sure she wanted to hear about their problems. But she guessed she might as well. “What’s wrong?”
    He rolled his neck on his shoulders, obviously dealing with a pain perhaps directly associated with her. “First of all, I went to check on the mast, to see if you did any damage. When I raised the sail, it blew out. The jib might catch some wind, if there was any, but there’s not much to speak of. And to top it off, the sails won’t come down because the block was damaged when you hit the mast.”
    â€œOh.” It was all she could think to say. “Surely the Coast Guard will be here soon.”
    â€œNot likely.”
    â€œDidn’t you call them?”
    â€œI tried. Your little basket took out the radio antenna.”
    She frowned. “Oh, so that’s what that was.”
    â€œYeah, that’s what that was. I have no way to communicate with anyone.”
    Surely things weren’t as dire as he had made them out to be. “Doesn’t this boat have some sort of an engine?”
    â€œUnder normal circumstances, yes. But I have no power since something’s caught up on the prop. Would you happen to know what that could be?”
    â€œYou did cut the cables, right?”
    â€œYeah.”
    â€œWhat about the tether lines?”
    â€œTether lines?”
    Uh-oh. “The ones that hang from the gondola. They tie down the balloon once you’re grounded.”
    His scowl made her want to shrivel and shrink. “Great. Thanks for telling me.” He turned toward the door but before exiting faced her again. “Take your time, princess. Might be your last soak for a long while.”
    The nerve of him, calling her princess. Nobody called her that and got away with it. She stood without regard to her nudity. “I’m quite through now, and I’m definitely not a princess.” Ahab.
    His silver eyes darkened as he gave her a lingering once-over, from chin to thighs, pausing at intimate places in between. “I could argue that point, but right now I have other things to do.”
    Then he was gone, leaving her dripping, naked and totally bumfuzzled. Full of questions she needed answered now, whether he liked it or not.
    Princess. Ha! She’d just have to show him that when backed into a corner, Queen Elizabeth could be a royal pain in the posterior.

Two
    L izzie grabbed the towel hanging from the bar at the end of the tub and quickly dried. She shoved the T-shirt over her head, thankful it was long enough to provide adequate cover. Refusing to wear soggy panties, she stomped out of the bathroom, barefoot and covered only