She shouldn’t be a woman who melted at the sound of a deep voice. A successful woman didn’t go to dinner with a stranger just because he told her to. Nor did they dampen their panties at the mere suggestion of what else he may tell her to do.

Panic boiled deep inside of me, erasing Nox’s words. For a moment I was a voyeur watching the scene as a silent movie. With the faint lighting highlighting the railing, the illumination of the pool, and the glow of the candle, I saw the movement of his lush full lips, but I couldn’t hear the words. My attention was focused on the small shadows that chased across his high cheekbones and in the hollows of his eyes.

Nox reached across the table as my name echoed through the salty air.

“Charli? Charli?” The name was spoken each time louder than the one before. “Are you feeling ill?”

“What?” I shook my head. Perspiration dripped between my breasts as a chill settled over me. “I-I’m sorry. I don’t know…” I didn’t know how to finish the sentence. Four years in one of the most acclaimed colleges and suddenly I was inarticulate.

“Give me your hand.”

Mindlessly, I obeyed.

“Let’s go inside. Maybe it’s the chill.”

I stood, allowing Nox to guide me back into the suite. With only the slight pressure of his large hand in the small of my back I became his puppet.

“B-But our dinner?”

“Don’t worry. Mrs. Witt will bring it inside. If you’re feeling up to it, we can finish it in here.”

Hugging my midsection and calming the thoughts in my head, I nodded.

Once we were inside, Nox removed his suit coat and placed it over my shoulders. The intoxicating scent of cologne filled my senses. I wondered how I hadn’t noticed it outside. It must have been the breeze. With the soft satin covering my shoulders, I was enveloped in a woodsy scented cloud. Nox led me to a sofa near the windows while Mrs. Witt set our dinner on a dining room table.

His blue eyes swirled with gray and navy, like the clouds to his rumbling voice. “What happened?”

I lowered my chin, unable to answer, not because I couldn’t speak, but because I didn’t know.

His grin returned, if only tentatively. “Your coloring is better. How do you feel?”

I nodded. “Better. I really don’t know what happened. I-I don’t want to admit that I’m nervous.”

Nox’s confident tone was back. “Nervous? Surely, Charli, you’re accustomed to the attentions of men.”

I shrugged. “I-I’m not.” I looked up at his scrutinizing stare. “I mean, it’s not like this is my first either. It’s that I’ve been busy with school and, well, I haven’t dated in awhile.”

“School?”

“Yes, I recently graduated.”

“Tell me that you mean from college,” he demanded.

I couldn’t help the smile. Did I look that young? “Yes. I promise I’m of legal consent.”

“I didn’t doubt that.” His tone rose and he squeezed my knee. “Now, what it is that you’re willing to consent to… that’s what has piqued my interest.”

“Nox, this week is supposed to be my—well, our, my and Chelsea’s—discover life week. Discover and enjoy but take no souvenirs. I have a lot happening in the future.”

“Charli, I may have called you my wife at the pool, but rest assured, that’s not what I’m looking for. Simply put, I find you attractive—striking really. You’re well-spoken and witty. I like that. Believe me, when I decide a woman is mine, I hold on tight. But if we set the ground rules of going into this next week with no expectations for more, I can do that.”

I thought about his proposal as we moved to the table. Though the seared shrimp smelled delicious, I moved it around my plate more than I ate.

“Again with the rules?”

His forehead wrinkled. “Do you have a problem with following rules?”

“As long as they’re plainly stated, I suppose not.” Truthfully, I was too good at it. That was one of the things Chelsea has tried over the years to rectify. Live, be spontaneous, she’d say. “Take college for example…” I tried to steer the conversation away from the obvious.

We talked about my major. At first I told him it was quantum physics. After all, he’d said I was well-spoken. However, it didn’t take long before I admitted the truth. I’d majored in English with a dual minor in business and political science.

“Those future plans don’t include law school, do they?”

“Nox, I-I…”

“Yes, Charli, seeing as I still don’t know your last name, I’m going to assume that discovering life means some questions are off-limits. I can follow rules too, but I prefer to make them.”

I smiled. “Do you have a last name?”

“Doesn’t everyone?”

“Touché.”

With our meals as done as they were to be, Nox lifted up a new bottle of wine. “Shall we toast to a week of first names?”

I offered my glass. “I’d like that.”

His brow twitched. “I’ll add to that, a week of finding out what else you like and the boundaries to your limits.”

I almost choked on my wine as he added that final statement, but it was too late. As the crisp liquid flowed, I drank to his exploration of my limits.

“Are you up for going back outside? The view is why I stay here.”

I shifted to stand. The lighting within the suite was much brighter than what we’d had on the patio. With his drink in his right hand, he offered me his left, and I saw it—my limit.

Suddenly the handsome, powerful man in front of me was no better than every other man, no better than Alton Fitzgerald and all of his business trips.

My neck straightened. “I’ve changed my mind.”

“What?” Nox asked, visibly surprised.

I pulled my eyes from his left hand. “I forgot. I promised Chelsea that I’d be back to our room tonight. This week is about us. It really isn’t fair of me to leave her alone.”

“I saw your sister. I doubt she’s alone.”

Though Nox tried again for my hand, I pulled it away, busy with removing his jacket from my shoulders. Shoving what undoubtedly was a very expensive suit coat his direction, I reached for my handbag.

“Goodbye, Nox. It was nice to meet you. I’m sorry, but I do know my limits and I’ve already, albeit unknowingly, broken a hard one.” I hurried toward the elevator. “Please don’t attempt to contact me.”

As the elevator doors opened, I turned to see not only Nox’s puzzled expression but also Mrs. Witt’s. With my lips pressed together in disgust, not only at them, but also at myself, I stepped into the elevator and waited for the door to shut. When it did, I exhaled and tried to comprehend how either of them would assume that I’d be comfortable with this circumstance.

I didn’t care how good looking or charismatic Mr. Nox—no last name—was. I didn’t see married men. The tan line on his fourth finger was too prominent to be anything but recent.

“MISS CHARLI?” FREDRICK asked with concern in his voice as I rushed from the private hallway. “Is everything all right?”

All right? No!

I took a deep breath. If I couldn’t stop whatever game Nox was playing from getting to me, I sure as hell could stop from showing it to others. Pausing only briefly, I replied, “Thank you, Fredrick. I’m not feeling well.”

“May I help you? Do you need assistance getting to your room?”

“No, I just need to lie down.”

“Really, Miss Charli, I don’t mind. I’m sure your host wouldn’t want anything to happen to you.”

My host. I wasn’t born yesterday. Maybe I was being paranoid, but I believed as soon as Fredrick escorted me to my room, he’d report my room number directly to Nox.

“No, thank you.” I began to walk away. “That won’t be necessary. I’m sure your resort is safe enough for a woman to walk unescorted.”

“Yes,” he admitted coming out from behind his stand. “It is. However, if you need anything…” He handed me a card. “…you can call me direct.”