One Look Ch. 04

Jamie decided later, as she swam around the back of the boat with Clark that although the water was warm, at least by Canadian standards, it still felt pretty refreshing, just to be able to go in for a swim and get out of the heat for a while. Insisting she put a life jacket on, just in case, she smiled when he came up in the water in front of her, brushed his dark hair back from his eyes, and pressed his wet lips to hers for a kiss. "You having fun?" he asked her.

"Yes," she said, lazily treading water and enjoying the warmth of the sun on her face. "It just feels so good being out in the water like this and away from the bustle of the city." And he nodded at that.

Then unable to resist, with him so close, wrapping her arms around his neck, playfully smiling into his eyes, she sucked his bottom lip into his mouth tugging it between her teeth. Clark groaned, murmuring against her mouth, "You keep that up, and we're going back below decks again."

Her eyes gleaming with mischief, running her hand down along the front of his board shorts, already finding him already semi-hard, she asked, "Is that a promise, or a threat?"

Laughing, he swam away from her on his back, till he realized anyone looking down could see the semi he was sporting, quickly flipping onto his front, eyeing her he mouthed, "Later," smiling as she bit into her lip and nodded yes. Damn, no wonder he'd fallen for her so hard. She was everything he ever wanted in a woman: gorgeous, fun, smart, sexy as hell and thankfully every bit as insatiable as he was.

Even after grazing on the boat for most of the afternoon, Jamie couldn't believe the appetite she'd worked up. Deciding it had to be the fresh air, sunshine, and workout she'd gotten in the water - and of course in his stateroom - she was looking forward to the seafood dinner Clark had promised. Having donned a T-shirt and shorts for their trip to the island, she watched intrigued as the small outboard on the back of Clark's junk was carefully lowered into the water to take everyone ashore in shifts. And when they came ashore to dock on Lamma Island, Jamie was wide-eyed all over again, staring into the fish pens in the water all along the wooden docks, being inspected by prospective diners, all hunting for the best looking catch for their meal. She'd never seen anything like it. And it sure as hell beat shopping at the fish counter in any supermarket she'd ever been in.

Holding her hand in his, Clark led her along, explaining that Luis and Marcus would be doing the selecting, since they knew better than anyone what to look for. And since they'd never let him down, they'd be ordering their dinner for them, too, telling the restaurant what they'd like done with their selections once they'd picked out what they wanted from the water.

All of them following the man with the plastic buckets filled with fresh seafood up to the restaurant, like kids trailing along after the pied piper, Jamie couldn't believe the way her stomach was growling. Especially since she'd had more than enough to snack on all afternoon on the boat, she imagined it had to be the sea air, because she could really eat now. Like maybe everything last thing in those buckets - at least once it was cooked.

And once they were shown to their group of waterfront tables, the incredible aromas wafting in the air - heavy with the intoxicating scent of garlic, ginger and chilies, had her stomach almost howling to be filled. Clark grinned, hearing the noises it was making, he reached down and patted her flat little tummy, and asked, "You hungry?"

Leaning close, she admitted, "Starved."

Chuckling and wrapping his arm around her, he kissed the top of her head, saying, "Good, because we're going to have plenty to eat soon."

Relieved to see appetizing bowls of hot peanuts, vinegary cucumber and carrot slices and sweet pickled seaweed set before them, Jamie didn't waste any time reaching for her chopsticks. And by the time their dinner dishes start to arrive, she felt a little less famished, but still dug in with gusto, mostly because it all smelled so incredible.

Clark turned the lazy susan in the center of the table, explaining as he put a little of each on her plate what everything was, even feeding her a bite or two with his chopsticks, smiling into each other's eyes between bites, pretty much oblivious to everyone else around the table.

Watching them, Steve leaned close to his pal Bruce and said, "Jeez, I've never seen him like this, have you? What I can't figure out though, is if it's cute as hell or straight up nauseating."

Bruce shook his head, looking a little sorry for Clark, as he said, "I'd say the poor bastards got it bad."

Steve laughed at that, but then noticing the way Jamie was smiling right back into his friend's eyes, he said, "Yeah, but I can't really blame him. She's pretty sweet huh?"

Bruce agreed, "That she is, but to be honest, I'd never have thought she'd be his type. Hasn't he always gone more for leggy glamorous brunettes?"

Just then, Becca leaned in and with a subtle tip of her chin at the couple in question, asked, "Are you guys seeing this?"

The three of them nodded, watching Clark and Jamie shamelessly flirt with each other, lost in a world of their own, as though they were the only two at the table. "We just think it's the cutest thing ever," Becca said, nodding along with the two women beside her.

"Who would have guessed, after all the crap he went through with Gia that he'd wind up with someone like her," Bruce said, watching them.

"I know, right?" Becca agreed. "I was worried there for a while that he'd never get over her."

Steve smiled at the tender way Clark ran his thumb over Jamie's bottom lip, his eyes never leaving hers. "From the way he's looking at her now, I'd say he's definitely over Gia."

When Jamie and Clark reached for their beer, finally taking their eyes off each other for a second, seeing a chance to converse, Bruce cleared his throat and asked, "So what is it you do, Jamie?"

"Oh, I work at a bank, as an investment strategist," she told him, accepting a small bowl of fried rice from Clark with a little smile.

"So is that how you met?" Becca asked, looking curious as she reached for a juicy grilled chili-garlic shrimp, popping it into her mouth with a shameless eye-rolling moan.

Smirking at Clark, remembering the surprising heat of their first kiss on takeoff before they'd even left the ground, Jamie shook her head and said, "No, we actually met on the plane coming over from Vancouver."

Clark chimed in then. "But the funny thing is, I went in to try a new bank a few days after we'd met, looking for investment advice, and who should be working there but Jamie."

"Wow, it had to kismet," Becca said, smiling at the secretive little grins they were shooting each other.

"I like to think so," Clark said, wrapping his arm around Jamie's shoulder again and giving her a squeeze, deciding it best not to kiss again her till they'd at least finished eating, especially since he'd finally noticed the way everyone was staring at them. But damn, if they were alone right now, he wouldn't give a shit what anyone thought he'd be feeding her in his lap and kissing her face off.

Then looking around the table at his friends, he told them, "And if any of you are looking for investment advice you can trust, you can't go wrong with Jamie. She's been fantastic, and really knows her stuff."

Nodding thoughtfully, Bruce said then, "I have a few veterinary clinics, and I could probably use some advice, now that my operation's grown so much." And the rest of them began to look at each other and nod, too.

After that the meal went on for hours, with lots of laughing and teasing between courses, finishing with sweet bowls of red bean soup and huge platters of fresh cut fruit. Jamie had had red bean soup before, and didn't mind it, but she just couldn't get enough of the cool taste of the fruit after all that seafood, rolling her eyes as she savored a juicy piece of star fruit. Then taking ahold of Clark by the chin, she popped a grape into his mouth, followed by a quick peck on the lips. Winking at her, leaning close, he murmured against her mouth, "I can't wait to get you home."

And that made her blink when he said the word home. Biting into her lip as she turned her gaze out at the sea, the moment he said it, it occurred to her, not for the first time, she had no idea what that would be like. Growing up in foster care, bounced from one family to the next, until she was old enough to go off to university, she'd never actually had a place she could call home. Even once she'd graduated, she'd barely gotten over the thrill of having her first apartment in Toronto when the bank she worked for decided they needed her more in Vancouver and she'd had to break the lease. And now here she was in Hong Kong, transferred to one of the money capitals of the world - adrift again, living out of a suitcase in a hotel. But the idea of having an actual place to call home did sound pretty appealing, especially with a man like Clark, who she realized she was pretty much in love with, whether she wanted to be or not.

Then looking over at him teasing and joking with his friends, she just hoped she wasn't making another mistake - especially not this time, with how deeply she was already into him.

Once they got back on the junk, with the sun going down and the wind picking up, the entire vessel bathed in the most striking orange glow she'd ever seen, Jamie went below decks and got back into her Jeans, adding a wind breaker to block the cool air coming off the sea. On her way back up, noticing that the lace on her sneaker was undone, stopping on the stairs to tie it, she overheard a few of the women above her up on deck quietly chatting, and her eyes flew open when she realized it was all about her.

"I don't care how pretty she is," one of them said, "I think she's just the flavor of the week for a guy like Clark."

"Oh, I don't know," another woman disagreed, "could be flavor of the month though, at least from the way he's been looking at her."

"I think maybe more," another one chimed in. "But of course, who really knows if he ever got over Gia. I mean, she was gorgeous enough that I would have done her, although I've never been into chicks."

The women all laughed at that, until one said, "I just hope she's not after his money. I heard she's some kind of investment advisor, so she's got to know what he's worth. And it could be the only reason she's with him."

"Yeah, that would suck," another agreed, "especially since Clark's such a great guy. But, since he's never exactly been one for relationships, I just hope for her sake, she's not looking for anything long term, or she's going to be pretty disappointed when he calls it quits and moves on in another week or so."

Her stomach churning, Jamie recognized Becca's voice when she said, "Well, if you guys saw them at dinner, I'd say anything's possible, because they both looked pretty happy to me, and about as lovey dovey as I've ever seen."

"Okay, fine, I give it two weeks," one of them said.

"I'd say three," another suggested.

Then one of them added, "That is unless Gia shows up again, then the poor girl will be kicked to the curb so fast her head'll spin, no matter how they feel about each other now. We all know how he was with that one, and how messed up he was after she left him and went back to Italy. It was just so sad."

Her stomach dropping to the ground, Jamie actually wondered if she was about to lose her dinner. Dazedly plopping her butt down on the steps, clenching her eyes shut, she wondered how she could have been so stupid. Having the shittiest track record in the world with men, how could she have ever thought it would be any different with him? With everything the women said about her echoing in her head, she seriously thought she was going to hurl.

But then she looked up when she heard Clark's voice sounding concerned. "Jamie what are doing sitting down there, are you okay?"

Numbly nodding her head, she somehow managed to get to her feet. And knew, all she had to do now was wait till they made it back to land, then she could escape. Maybe change hotels, and then do her damndest to concentrate on work, since it was really the only reason she was here, to work for the bank, and not to get involved with a client so far out of her league it was laughable.

Mentally bashing herself, she thought, what the hell had she been thinking hooking up with a guy like him, anyway? And why would he even be interested in a nobody like her? Then she knew, clear as day, of course he wouldn't be, at least not seriously. Just as the others had said, she was just another fling for him, who'd unfortunately been foolish enough to fall in love in with him.

Then bringing her back to where she was, Clark pulled her into his arms and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips, and she realized that she hadn't been thinking at all, not with how good it felt whenever she was with him. But now it was all going to end, no matter how much it hurt to walk away from him. She just couldn't allow herself to be hurt again. And just the idea of him tossing her to the curb made her shudder.

Once they'd finally moored back in Aberdeen Harbor, Jamie wished she could have said goodbye to him then, but since she didn't really see how she could, she said her goodbyes to everyone else, including the crew. And then after greeting his driver with a silent little wave, she quietly got in his car for the tortuous drive back to her hotel.

Noticing how quiet she'd gone, Clark reached for her hand and asked, "You okay?"

Nodding, she managed an anemic smile and then lied her ass off, telling him, "I'm fine." When she'd never felt worse in her life. At least when she'd discovered what a creep her ex David had turned out to be, she'd already felt things cooling between them, and was ready to cut him loose. But with Clark - god, it had just been so good. Squeezing her eyes shut, she wouldn't let herself cry. Never one for tears, she couldn't believe how badly she wanted to bawl her eyes out. Trouble was, she knew once she started she might never stop.

"Hey." Tipping up her chin, Clark stared into her eyes, and she knew he had to see the tears threatening to spill. Then finally realizing how upset she was, he said, "Jesus, Jamie, are you crying? What the hell's going on? Did someone say something that upset you?" Then his eyes widened. "Was it me? Did I say something wrong?"

Shaking her head, she turned her head and said, "I just overheard something that's all. But it's okay, forget it."

Wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her closer, he said, "No, it's not, okay, not if you're upset. Talk to me, Jamie. Tell me what's going on. At least give me a chance to try and fix it."

But he couldn't fix it. Not after what she'd heard.

"I'm just tired okay?" she finally told him, keeping her eyes trained on the passing traffic outside the window.

Not completely sold about her just being tired, sure it wouldn't be enough to bring her to tears, he suggested, "How about we have a shower when we get home before we go to bed and you'll probably feel better, and you'll sleep better, too."

Drawing in a breath to muster her courage, she said, "I'm not going back to your place, Clark."

Sounding confused, he asked, "So, you want to stay at the hotel tonight?"

Nodding her head, she said, "Yes."

A sick feeling came over him when he asked her, "Alone?"

Still refusing to look at him, she confirmed his worse suspicions, when she quietly murmured, "Yes, alone."

Fed up with being shut out, he said, "Okay, now I want to know what the hell's going on." Tucking one hand under her and the other around her waist, he picked her up and put her in his lap, where she'd have no choice but to look at him. "Now you tell me what you heard."

Heaving a shaky breath, doing her damndest to hold it together, especially so close to him like this, she told him, "Just before the trip ended, I heard some of the other women saying that for you, I'm nothing more than just another flavor of the week and that I shouldn't count on anything with you."

Hearing that, his eyes went big and his mouth actually fell open. "Who the hell said that? And what could they know about us, and how I feel about you." Tipping her chin up, so she had to look in his eyes, he said, "When I said I love you, Jamie, I meant it. And I've honestly never told anyone that before - ever. And believe me I have never felt this way about anyone before you."

With a lump big enough to choke her filling her throat, carefully studying the intensity in his eyes, Jamie wanted so much to believe him. But if what those women had said was true, she wouldn't have a hope in hell of ever having anything with him, and he must have cared a lot for that Gia woman they were talking about, too, and for all she knew probably still had feelings for her. "I just don't want to get hurt again," she said, not even sure if she said it out loud - because she really did not want to be left in pieces again. It would just hurt too much, and she'd be crushed to bits, especially this time when it meant so much more with him.

Looking her right in the eye, sounding more serious than she'd ever heard him, he told her, "I will do my damndest never to hurt you, Jamie. I swear."

Oh, god. But he really did sound sincere.

Swallowing hard, she came to a decision - maybe they should try being apart. Unable to stare into that compelling look in his eyes any longer, averting her gaze, she suggested, "I think we should try taking a break." But when he went to object, pressing a finger to his lips, she went on, "And if we still want to be together after another week or so, then we'll know."

Kissing the finger she held to his lips, he said, "I can tell you right now, I don't need time away from you to know how I feel about you, Jamie."

Heaving a shaky breath, she finally met his gaze head on. "But if we spend some time apart, then we'd know after a week without each other, if this thing we've got going has only been about sexual attraction or something more."

Gently running the back of his hand along her cheek, he said, "Believe me, it's more. I already know that, okay? And I sure as hell don't need a week away from you to be sure."

"But maybe I do," she said, so quietly he barely caught what she said. And once she said that, he really didn't know what else to say.

Once he dropped her off at her hotel, insisting on walking her up to her room, circling her in his arms at her door, he kissed her so long and hard, that Jamie was already having second thoughts about her plan to test how serious he was about her. Because if that was how he kissed her goodbye - in a week from now, if they really did get back together - he'd probably want to eat her alive. Still, heaving a shaky breath, she finally stepped away, gave him a sad little smile and said, "Bye for now, Clark."

Watching stunned as Jamie stepped into her room and closed the door behind her, staring at the closed door, Clark still couldn't believe how a perfect day on the water could have ended so badly. Tempted to start beating on it to force her to reconsider, finally shaking his head he decided maybe he should give her the space she asked for. Although it sure felt like hell already, just knowing he wasn't going to be seeing her for an entire week.

The absolute worst night of her life was followed by the most horrible morning ever, when Jamie realized, that for the first time since she's been in this city, that she really was alone in her bed. And unbelievably it was her who asked for it to be this way, too. But refusing to lie in bed and moon over an empty pillow another minute, she got up and headed into the bathroom.