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and held it in front of her midriff self-consciously as she exited.
    Jacob was waiting for her, wearing nothing but a pair of black trunks that rode low on his trim hips, leaving the entire breathtaking landscape of his bronzed, cut torso exposed. He stood in the bright sun with his arms crossed below his chest, his stance lazy. Her gaze dropped down longingly over the thin strip of fine, light brown hair that went from his taut belly button and disappeared below the trunks.
    “All set,” she said with fake cheeriness as she approached him. In a second flat, he ripped away her attempt at modesty by whisking the towel out of her hands.
    “Jac—”
    “Wow,” he said, checking her out appreciatively. “You look
amazingly
good in that,” he said, his stare now on her overflowing cleavage.
    “Down boy,” she muttered, embarrassed but flattered, too. He laughed, white teeth flashing. She started in the direction of the pool, but he caught her hand.
    “Let’s go to the lake,” he said, laughter still lingering on his lips, a sparkle in his eyes. Her heart gave a little jump. He was the most attractive man she’d ever imagined, let alone met . . . or allowed outrageous liberties sexually.
    “Okay,” she agreed.
    He led her down to a sandy beach that was enclosed on two sides by massive, stacked granite boulders. The water in the natural enclosure was calmer than it was further out. It shone in Harper’s eyes like a shimmering liquid sapphire.
    “Do you want to take some boards out?” Jacob asked her.
    “Boards?”
    He pointed to several surfboards stored on a rack, along with a kayak.
    “I don’t surf.”
    “They aren’t surfboards,” he said. “They’re paddleboards.” She followed him over to the rack, watching as he lifted down one of the boards, his back muscles flexing and his gleaming golden brown skin snagging her attention “You can’t surf on Lake Tahoe. Not enough waves. But it’s perfect for paddleboards,” he said, standing the board up in front of her and waiting until she reached to hold it. “You’ve never done it?”
    “No,” Harper admitted, checking out the board with interest while he turned to pull down another one. It was larger than a surfboard, she realized. “I’ve seen people doing it, though. Is it hard?”
    “The hardest part is standing on it. It’s tricky, until you get used to it. Takes a lot of balance. You up for trying it?”
    She glanced down at the brief little bikini top she wore and breasts that threatened to break free of their confinement at any moment. When she met his stare, she saw humor glittering in his eyes. “You know very well what’s going to happen if I try to stand up on one of these things wearing this bikini,” she said condemningly.
    “I have faith,” he said, grinning.
    Something rushed through her. For a few seconds, Harper just stood in place, even when he headed toward the shore, a paddleboard tucked under one arm and a paddle in the opposite hand. He’d looked so young there for a moment, so uninhibited.
    So beautiful.
    It took her a moment to regain her wits after witnessing that unguarded, boyish smile. It had been in such stark contrast to the sober, contained, utterly in control man she’d grown used to.
    And so bizarrely . . .
    . . . Familiar.
    She blinked, realizing he held out a board for her. He handed her a paddle and they both went to the shore. They shoved their boards out into the water.
    After they’d waded in, Jacob instructed her to come up on her knees as a first step. After Harper had balanced herself on the board with effort, they began to paddle around in the cool, calm water. It was very peaceful. Because of Tahoe’s pristine waters, she could look all the way down to the bottom of the bright blue lake, seeing smooth, round stones and schools of silvery fish.
    She looked over at Jacob and saw he was watching her as he paddled. She smiled.
    “It’s so beautiful,” she said.
    “Yeah. You ready for