I want You Deeper

There was no way Renee could sleep. Just a short discussion with Derek had given her an angle on her article. But could she actually use it?

She decided she had to at least look into it. There had to be a connection there. Maybe the reason he’d gone missing was to keep his father from tracking him down. But that made no sense. She was pretty sure Derek Hughes was listed as head of his company somewhere. One internet search and his father would have tracked him down years ago.

There had to be more there.

After staring up at the bottom of the bunk above her for a good half hour, Renee got out of bed and headed straight for her kitchen. She needed her phone. A little research and maybe she could get some sleep.

Her phone was on the counter where she’d left it when she’d headed to her room to change for the hot tub. The boat was eerily quiet, even though it wasn’t all that late. She’d noticed the door to April’s cabin was shut, though, so she assumed she was studying to get her license. Captain Jake was on lookout and Derek…well, who knew where Derek was. Maybe in his theater or the cockpit with Captain Jake.

Renee picked up her phone and unlocked it, checking the screen for any missed messages. Still, no one worried about her. No surprise. It just was a huge disappointment that nobody had stepped forward to ask how she was holding up after suddenly losing her job. Apparently, being fired was like being diagnosed with a highly contagious illness. Nobody wanted to come near you out of a fear they might catch it.

“You’re supposed to be resting.”

The voice startled Renee so much, she dropped her phone. She spun to find Derek standing there, wearing the same button-down shirt and khakis he’d had on during dinner.

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.”

Renee took a deep breath and swooped down to pick up her phone. “No, it’s okay. I just…it’s so quiet.”

“Is it okay?” He nodded at her left hand, now holding the phone, screen up.

She looked down at it, examining it for any signs of cracks or scratches.

“Looks like it’s fine. I have a good case on it.”

Why she’d said that, she had no idea. He didn’t care about her case. She should just excuse herself and go back to her room.

“I came to get a snack,” he said. He gestured to indicate the pantry behind her. “Any suggestions for good movie-watching food?”

She smiled. “Popcorn, of course.”

Maybe she should offer to make some caramel-covered popcorn. It was something she and her mom had made on movie nights when she was a kid, but that had involved PJs and snuggling on the couch, not sitting in a movie theater on a superyacht.

“I think we have some microwave popcorn in there.” He gave her a sheepish look. “I guess that’s probably something I shouldn’t bring up in front of a professional chef.”

Guilt stabbed through her. It would be so nice just to dump the truth on him, but she couldn’t. She had to keep her cover. The more she got to know him, though, the harder it became.

“I’ll doctor it up for you.” She stepped toward the pantry, setting her phone on the counter again. She was still wearing her bathing suit and the coverup, which meant no pockets. She’d just have to try to remember to grab her phone before she returned to her cabin.

“I’ll get it,” he said, going around the other side of the counter and beating her to the pantry. “I have a trick I’ll show you.”

He started up the popcorn, then went straight to the fridge that had the cheese in it, immediately finding what he was looking for. She’d rearranged some things, but she had left the cheese where it had been. She considered the fact that he’d stocked all this on his own. She also pictured him throwing meals together for himself and Captain Jake before she and April had arrived. She wondered if that was the reason for the frozen meals she’d found in the back of one of the freezers.

“Live alone long enough and you find ways to improvise,” he said, pulling the popcorn bag out of the microwave. The popping had slowed to a near-stop. She figured she couldn’t admit to him that she had plenty of experience with microwave popcorn.

“You don’t cook, I take it.” Renee watched as he pulled parmesan cheese from the bag and sprinkled it over the top of the bag. He reached for a cooking spoon and began mixing it inside the bag.

“Why cook when there’s such good takeout?” He smiled at her. “I consider it outsourcing. Besides, I work all the time. There’s no time for cooking.”

“Especially when you’re on the road.” She made eye contact with him as she said the words. If he were David, the sales executive, he’d be away from home all the time. She wasn’t sure how much Derek Hughes traveled, though. If not as much, she might have busted him a little.

“It’s all the same.” He shrugged. “Pull up an app, find the local restaurants delivering, have food brought to you. Doesn’t matter if it’s a hotel room or my own front door.”

“It does matter if it’s a boat, though. Can’t have food delivered here.”

“I don’t need to. I have one of the best chefs in the country. Do we have kosher salt?”

Renee headed to the cabinet where the most often used spices were. “I could have grated some fresh parmesan.”

“Don’t mess with my masterpiece. I’m cooking for you right now.”Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

Hmm. She thought he was making a snack to enjoy alone while watching a movie. This was for her, too? She felt a little touched. If he wasn’t her boss-slash-source, she’d even say it was romantic.

“Try it,” he said after salting and mixing the popcorn by shaking the bag. “It’s delicious.”

She reached inside and pulled out several kernels. No matter how it tasted, she was sure it would be delicious, but she knew chefs consumed food differently than other people. She should have an appreciation for what she was tasting.

As soon as the popcorn hit her tongue, she closed her eyes and savored. She took the time to fully appreciate the various flavors and how they all combined, along with the textures.

When she opened her eyes after swallowing, her intention was to make a detailed critique of what she’d just tasted. It only used two flavorings, so it wasn’t like it was a gourmet meal, but it was exactly what a chef would do.

But what she saw in his eyes stopped her from saying a word. He was looking at her with what she could only describe as pure desire.

Before she could speak, he stepped toward her, putting his free hand under her chin and lifting her face toward his. He watched her for another few seconds, likely waiting to make sure she was okay with this, before beginning his slow descent toward her.

The instant their lips touched, a shiver ran through her. She felt it from head to toe, and it was everything she’d imagined.

He stepped closer and she moved toward him, too. She lifted her hand to his shoulder to brace herself as she gave in to the kiss. In that moment, she let all her fears about this disappear and just focused on him. On the way he gently rubbed his thumb along her jawline as he deepened the kiss. On the sensation of his lips against hers. On the small groan that escaped him as the kiss deepened.

By the time he pulled away, she wasn’t sure she could breathe anymore. He looked down at her, and she braced herself for regret. But she didn’t see that. Instead, he smiled down at her before stepping back and holding the bag of popcorn up between them.

“What’s the verdict?” he asked.

Was he serious? He wanted a verdict on the popcorn? She couldn’t even catch her breath right now, and he wanted a food review?

“Pretty good.” She reached in and took a small handful. “I think I can do better, though.”

His eyes widened. He took a bite of his own and shook his head. He didn’t think so.

“That sounds like a challenge to me.” He stepped back, turned, and pulled another bag of popcorn from the pantry, then slid it into the microwave.

Glad to have something to take her mind off that kiss, Renee headed to the cabinet and began pulling out what she’d need to make caramel popcorn. She fired up the stove, grabbed a small pan, and dropped a stick of butter into it.

“An entire stick?” he asked. He sat down in one of the chairs at the table nearby and let her do her thing.

“Just trust me.”

“What got you into cooking? Have you always wanted to be a chef?”

Derek’s question threw her off. She didn’t really have a good answer for that. She thought back to college.

“It started as a job at a restaurant in college. It was good money. There was something about the rush that came from working under pressure. Plus, what’s better than being able to enjoy a delicious meal with those you love? I bring that to people.”

That explanation was a jumbled mess, but she kind of related to it. As exciting as journalism was, there was something truly gratifying about creating something that she could watch people enjoy, in real time. It wasn’t all that different from the stories she put together while working in TV news, aside from being able to watch those who were enjoying her work.

“You’re really good at it. Have you ever thought about opening your own restaurant?”

Her head whipped around and she just stared at him. Wow. His question had brought up something she hadn’t thought about in years.

“When I was a little girl, I used to pretend I owned my own restaurant,” she finally said. “I’d take my dad’s order, and my mom and I would make the food. As I got older, she let me make dinner more and more often. It was something I really enjoyed.”

Just as she’d enjoyed cooking for the three people on this boat this week. She wasn’t sure what to do with this information. As she poured her caramel and chocolate syrup over the popcorn, though, she realized just how much this was taking her back to childhood…and making her realize that her dreams might be changing.