"It's chilly for any nighttime activity," I grumbled, getting out of the back of the luxury SUV. I squinted into the now-cloudy sky, the kind of bright-white that I recalled from my winters during college in New York. It was eight o'clock, and nighttime was obviously a faint memory this far north. "Or daytime or whatever."

Colin tipped the driver, then slung a black leather duffel over his shoulder, as if it was perfectly normal to be taking a strange woman somewhere without telling her where she was going.

He turned and grinned. "Come. My friend said this is the best."

"I could be the judge of that if you'd tell me what this is."

"A summer solstice surprise, remember?"

We walked a few paces down a sidewalk, and Colin opened the door for me, then put his hand on the small of my back as we approached a counter, sending a pulsing warmth through my body. The signs were entirely in Icelandic, so I still had no clue where we were. There was a young, bearded man behind the counter, and he looked up.

"Mr. King?"

"Yes."

"Welcome to the Secret Lagoon. We're always happy to accommodate friends of Mr. Fontana. We've arranged everything for a private evening for you both."

Fontana was the name of the man who owned the condo. I wondered what kind of private evening Colin had arranged and what, exactly, a lagoon entailed. All I could think of was that campy 1950s movie with the sea creature.

"Men's changing rooms are there," the man said, pointing to the left, "and the women's are over there." He gestured to his right. "Make sure you take showers before you go in the water. There are showers in the locker rooms and outside. When you're both finished, follow the signs, and there you'll find the water, along with beverages and other amenities that we've set out for you."

"Meet you in the lagoon," Colin said to me, grinning.

I glanced at him sideways. "Have you been here before? You seem awfully familiar with this."

He shook his head. "It's actually my first time in Iceland."

"Hmm." We locked eyes. Not for the first time, I wondered what I was getting myself into. Why was I allowing this man to drag me outside of my comfort zone?

While Colin asked the attendant more questions, I turned and walked down a hall until I found the locker room. It was clean, but sparse. Colin obviously hadn't arranged an evening for us at a five-star spa. This looked more like a particularly sterile school gym, with blue lockers, a white cement floor, and average sinks.

I snapped the tags off the bathing suit he'd talked me into buying. It was a pale pink bikini he'd picked out earlier in the store. "This would be great on you," he'd said. I'd snorted in response.

I'd tried it on to appease him, but to my surprise, it had fit well. I hadn't paraded out to show him while in the store. I'd bought it because I hadn't felt like trying on dozens of suits.

Now, in the cold locker room, I wasn't so sure of my decision. I hadn't worn a bikini in years. On my way to the shower, I paused to assess myself in the mirror. I sighed. My rational mind told me I looked decent for forty-five, but nagging insecurities and my ex-husband's old taunts told me otherwise. I turned, pinching my own butt. My ex had always proclaimed I needed to be careful of droopy skin in that area, otherwise I'd look like an "old crone." For years, his words had made me exercise obsessively—harsh boot camp classes in the morning and at night. I rotated in front of the mirror slowly, like a rotisserie chicken, sucking in my gut. Since my divorce, I'd eased up on the workouts and only swam in the mornings.

I poked at my outer thighs with my fingers. My legs looked stubby. Maybe it was time to resume boot camp?

Although I had the money for plastic surgery, I'd declined. It seemed risky to be put under for vanity's sake, and some things, like aging, you just couldn't change. I curled my lip at my image, wondering if I looked saggy and old.

What did it matter? I wasn't here to impress anyone, least of all Colin. As I walked to the shower, I wondered why I even cared what he thought of my body.

The shower came on full blast, and I yelped when the cold water shocked my skin, my voice echoing in the empty locker room. After a moment of adjustment, I turned in a circle, allowing warmer water to wash over me.

I shut the shower off and shivered. Wrapping a towel around my body, I walked outside. I still hadn't gotten used to the nighttime sun. And while it was cloudy, it was as bright as afternoon, disarming me with the white-gray sky. It took a moment for my eyes to focus on what was sitting in front of me, but I gasped when I saw it: a pond of light blue water, almost the color of Colin's eyes.

The pool was huge and surrounded by big, gray rocks that looked like they'd been spit out of a volcano. Behind the rocks was a forest of lush green pine trees. Everything smelled heavenly, like Christmas and crisp air.

Steam rose from the water, giving everything an otherworldly quality. It was as if I'd stepped onto another planet, a primordial one where no one lived. I almost felt out of place, being the only human in this pristine landscape.

"It's good to see you finally impressed by something."

It was Colin, standing behind me. I turned and stared at him. Of course, I'd been impressed by him but hadn't let on.

"Why are we the only ones here?"

"I arranged it."

"Why? How?"

"Stop asking so many questions. Let's go in the water and get those goosebumps off your arms."

I didn't tell him that the goosebumps weren't from the cold air, but from his presence. In the outdoors, he appeared even more rugged while shirtless, with a broad chest a sprinkling of hair trailing down his stomach; and those eyes, those blue eyes, popping against dark lashes and black hair.

He stepped first into the water. He was wearing black swim shorts, a bit baggy, but still framing his muscled legs nicely. I shifted my gaze from his powerful thighs to the water.

The water was almost a milky ice-blue hue. Colin turned and looked up at me standing on the top stair, and at that moment, he was like some sort of primal god, his eyes glittering and matching the hue of the water.

"Come." He stretched his hand out. I stood, dumbly, staring at him. I wasn't sure what I was afraid of. The water? The brightness that threatened to engulf me? Him?

"The bathing suit looks lovely on you. More than lovely. Stunning." He didn't say it in a lecherous tone, but in a gentle one.

I took his hand and stepped into the blissfully hot water. Groaning with pleasure, I waded in up to my shoulders.

"See? I knew this would be relaxing."

"So this isn't a regular Jacuzzi pool, is it?"

He shook his head and skimmed a hand through the water. "It's natural. Geothermal. Heated by Earth's energy. The milky color is due to the minerals in the water."

I nodded and swam into the vast blue expanse. Colin kept pace with me, the tan skin of his arms slicing through the water. The muscles in my shoulders loosened with each stroke.

My God, this was perfect. Magical. I could allow myself to relax here.

"There are supposed to be drinks and other things for us at the swim-up bar over there. Follow me."

We swam several strokes to a small, wooden hut. There, on a smooth, flat rock, was a wide silver tray with champagne in an ice bucket, two flutes, and an assortment of tiny cups and dishes. I peered at everything, then picked up one folded card near a bowl of berries.

"Enjoy the native blueberry," I read aloud, setting the card on the tray and popping a berry in my mouth. "Whoa. That's a flavorful berry."

"Bilberry," Colin corrected, taking a berry. "A close cousin to the blueberry."

Indeed, the card said bilberry. I ate more. "How are you so knowledgeable about Icelandic produce?"

He scooped a few more bilberries in his hand. "I did some cursory reading about the place while you were napping today."

"Hmm." I paused, my eyes scanning the other things on the tray. "Please enjoy these complimentary silica mud masks," I read aloud, then made an appreciative coo.

"So that's what gets a rise out of you. Cosmetics. Bath products. Spa stuff. I'll remember that." Colin grinned.

"It's true." I sniffed the mud and wasted no time in slathering the white goo on my face. Laughing, I wagged a finger at Colin. "Your turn."

"As you wish."

He stood close, and my heart sped up. I stood on my tiptoes, my breasts almost brushing his chest.

"You're too tall."

"Here." Stepping back a few paces, he leaned against a stone wall and sank onto a ledge. The water lapped at his chest muscles, and I tried not to stare. I failed.

"Is this better?"

I nodded, coming closer to him. Underwater, my thigh bumped his knee. With my index finger, I spread the mask on his forehead. He closed his eyes, those lashes taking my breath away. I moved closer as I traced his cheekbones with the mask. His lips curled into a smile, and I leaned closer.

He shifted, and somehow, I was straddling one of his legs. I smiled at the bawdy flirtatiousness of it all and carefully avoided his bow-shaped mouth with the mud. The skin on his cheeks was baby-soft.

"You look cute with the mask on."

His eyes fluttered open. The blue-black combination popped even more against the white mask. I liked that he was secure enough in his masculinity to do something feminine.

"Probably not as cute as you do."

We grinned at each other. Although he seemed so serious, Colin obviously had a hidden silly streak, and I liked that.

"Champagne?" He stretched an arm to the bucket.

I slid off him, not wanting to be too eager to sit in his lap. "Absolutely."

He stood and poured, and I dunked most of my body underwater, everything except my head. I couldn't take my eyes off him. Colin's back was to me, and I studied his back muscles.

"When do you have time to work out, being a busy developer and man-about-town and all?" I asked in a teasing voice.

He turned and handed me a plastic flute of champagne. I straightened my body—the water was right below my breasts when I stood—and fought back a coy grin when I saw his eyes dip toward my chest.

"What?" he asked when I finally laughed out loud.

"I'm in a bikini, drinking champagne in a hot spring while wearing a mud mask with a strange man. In Iceland."

"Oh, I'm not so strange anymore, am I? We've been through a lot together over the past twenty-four hours. A near-plane crash. A volcano. Sleeping together." He cocked an eyebrow.

Thank God for the mask, otherwise he'd see me blushing deep.

"I guess we're old friends, yes. Cheers." I held up my glass.

"Here's to old-new friends. And to answer your question, I play racquetball with my brother two times a week. I also try to run regularly."

We clinked glasses and drank. The bubbles slipped down my throat and were a delicious inner contrast to the warm water on my skin and the mud heating my face. Colin poured me another glass, and we chatted about the beauty of the water and the physics behind geothermal baths. Real sexy stuff.

"Where did you learn all about geophysics?" I asked

"It was my minor in college."

"And your major?"

"Economics. Yours?"

"Design at Fashion Institute of Technology in New York."

"I'm surprised you didn't remain there. Aren't all designers based in the city?"

I shrugged. This was a common question. "Most are. But a woman from Palm Beach took me under her wing. I'd received a scholarship she'd set up in her family's name, and she was so impressed with my designs in school that she invited me to Florida." I inhaled. "She gave me seed money to start my business, and then I fell love and got married to a man on the island."

One who'd nearly destroyed everything I'd worked for.

"Love can certainly change one's plans. Or so I've heard," Colin said breezily.

I shoved the memory of my ex out of my head and asked Colin about where he'd gone to college. He mentioned Florida State and the Wharton School of Business and some foreign study. He'd also attended an Orlando boarding school in high school and mentioned how his parents had bought him a Land Rover for graduation. I listened, happy to not have to talk about myself.

"Best gift of my life, that Land Rover. Do you remember your high school graduation gift? Where did you go to high school? Boston, where you grew up?" he asked.

My hand skimmed over the top of the water, as if I were caressing it. I hadn't thought of high school graduation in decades.

"Phillips Academy in Massachusetts," I said.

Colin whistled. "You really are a New England blueblood. You must think I'm just a Florida cracker."

I laughed, because he seemed so sophisticated. And because we were getting to know each other while our faces were covered in mud. "Hardly."

"And your graduation gift?"

"A summer-long trip through Europe," I said softly.

He grinned. "The grand tour," he said. "I took it as well."

"I'm sure you did."

He tilted his head. "Why were you on a scholarship in college if you went to Phillips?"

I paused. "My parents disowned me."

A frown spread on his face. "Because?"

"They wanted me to study law at Yale. I switched schools and majored in fashion."

"You do seem like you'd be a better lawyer. You have a seriousness about you."

I narrowed my eyes, attempting to look fierce. With the mud mask on, I probably just came off as goofy.

"I like your seriousness," Colin said quickly.

"Yeah. Well, my parents thought I'd be a better lawyer, too. After my first semester at Yale, I enrolled at FIT and paid with my credit card. They cut me off and disowned me. Everything I have, I've achieved on my own, not from my parents' wealth."

I'm not sure why I felt that an explanation into my background was needed. My success, which didn't come from family money, was integral to who I was as a person. If he said anything snarky about me or my frivolous occupation, that would be the end of my attraction to him.

I held my breath, waiting for him to say something.

"When was the last time you talked to your family?" I detected a hint of pity in his voice.

"I talk to them all the time now. They accepted me back into the fold when I became a success. Because success and tradition are all that my family cares about. Which is why I stay in Palm Beach and don't see much of them, except for my sister. My parents, especially, don't love me for who I am."

"Jesus, Samantha. I'm sure that's not true." His eyes widened and I was silent. The whole lagoon was still. "You seem pretty loveable to me."

I shrugged and sipped my champagne, feeling a rush of happiness from his words.

He changed the subject seamlessly, mentioning that his sister had gone to school in New York—Columbia—and she was now pregnant with a boy. Obviously he had the good manners not to probe into my life any more.

I exhaled. "Is this the sister with anxiety?"

He ran a hand through his hair. "Yes. Her wife Sarah couldn't get pregnant, so Laura is carrying the baby. I'm worried about her emotional state. She's doing pretty good, though, with her panic. She seems healthier than ever now that she's pregnant."

The way Colin's eyes softened when he talked about his family left me wanting, wishing I could be in his inner circle. Wishing I was that close to my own family. "I'll bet you're an excellent uncle."

He grinned. "I'm the fun uncle."

By the second glass of champagne, I was fairly tipsy—goodness, I was drinking a lot on this trip—and wondered if it was a smart idea to be in such hot water with alcohol.

"Are you single?" I blurted.

Oops.

He grinned. "Yes. Is that what you wanted to hear?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. Seriously, why haven't you gotten married?" Although I didn't want him to pry into my business, I didn't have any qualms about asking him questions.

He shrugged. "For a long time, I thought marriage was pointless."

"Aha. Now we're getting somewhere."

"I have a backstory."

"Ooh. Intriguing. Mysterious. Do tell."

Colin chuckled. "Maybe later. If you're good."

I nodded, reveling in our flirtation. I hadn't flirted in a long time. I hadn't done a lot in a long time. We were silent for a while, sipping our champagne and slowly bobbing up and down in the hot water. Normally I felt awkward if I conversation lagged with a man on a date. But this wasn't a usual date, and Colin wasn't a typical man. For one thing, we still had the mud masks on and we looked goofy.

"This," he said.

"What about it?"

"The silence. It feels comfortable between us, doesn't it?"

I gazed at him, surprised that he'd read my mind. "Absurdly comfortable, yes."

He grinned and put a finger to his cheek and tapped. "How long should we leave this stuff on?"

I shrugged. "Probably not much longer. It's starting to sting."

Colin reached for my flute and set both on a rock. With nary a ripple, he plunged all the way underwater. I did the same, scrubbing my face with my hands, feeling my hair suspend and float in the strangely heavy water. Whatever the mud had been made of, it made my skin feel sublime. When I came up for air, I slicked my hair back and laughed. Colin took a step toward me.

"Wait, you didn't get it all off." He moved closer and, with his thumb, brushed my cheekbone, then my temple. His touch left streaks of fire on my skin. After the second swipe, his hand remained on my face, and his eyes burned into mine.

"I've been wanting to do this since I saw you in the airport," he said, leaning down.

And he kissed me.

As the steam rose around us, as the milky blue water lapped at our skin, he kissed me. Hard and urgent. He smelled like the steam and the forest and something I couldn't quite comprehend.

I gasped and my eyes went wide. It was my first kiss in years, and the world hadn't imploded. Instead, it had burst open with possibilities.

"What? I'm sorry. Do you not want to kiss me?" Colin's lips murmured against mine. His lids were half-closed, which tugged at something deep inside me.

"No, I do. I just... I just..."

Colin kissed me again, almost as hard. He slipped his tongue between my lips, and I tasted him. His mouth had bite, cool and brilliant, like the champagne. I was curiously thirsty for more, my inhibitions and fears slipping away by the second. I went in for another kiss.

I moaned when he broke away.

"You just what?"

I backed away an inch and tried to catch my breath. "I haven't been kissed like that in a long time."

I shuddered in a breath.

Colin took my face in both hands and held it firmly while staring into my eyes. "Kissed like what?"

"Like you mean it. Like you'd die if you couldn't kiss me." I ran my fingers through his wet hair, over the top of his head, allowing my hand to rest on the back of his neck.

The sides of his mouth quirked. "I do mean it. And I might die if I don't kiss you again. I'm serious. I've been waiting a long time for a kiss like this."

"So it's best if you do, because I don't want you to die on me. Kiss me again."

He let out a little growl and pulled me again to his lips. I wrapped my arms around him, feeling shivers of electricity surge through my body. His arms were around me, pulling me closer, until I had no other option but to fold all my limbs around him.

I wanted to be as close as possible to this man because I needed more of him. More of his delicious smell. Whatever I was getting from him was not enough—and I wanted to find out what was beneath that cool, unflappable exterior.

My legs circled his waist and I was glad his grip was so firm, because the more he kissed me, the dizzier I became. Not nauseous, amusement-ride dizzy, but lightheaded, slip-away-into bliss dizzy.

I kissed him back, giddy, kneading his thick black hair in one hand. Several long minutes passed, and we robbed each other's breath, smiling and laughing and worshipping at each other's lips.

He stopped kissing me and put his forehead to mine. "Good God, Samantha."

"What?" I murmured.

"I want you. Right now."

I sucked in a breath and went in for another kiss. Maybe he was smitten, obviously enough for a lusty fling. That's all I was up for. A wild, private fling in our Icelandic fantasyland.

I didn't have long to muse on how long our fling should last because he kissed me again. It was tender and soft, his lips a whisper. The kiss was disarming and languid, somehow more intense than the fierce kisses, so intense that it took my breath and my thoughts and left me with nothing but pure, white light in my mind. I dissolved into him and the water, and it was as if I'd lost myself to something greater.

His hands slid from my face, slowly over my neck, then down to my chest. We stared at each other as he cupped my breasts, the intensity between us explosive, hotter than the geothermal water. Ever so slowly, his fingers slipped deftly under my bikini top and pushed the cups aside. I gasped.

Colin closed his eyes and smiled. "That noise you make. The surprised, gasp-moan?"

"Mmhmm?" I thrust my chest into his hands, not caring that I was half-exposed in a public place. I was throbbing and melting in places that had been icy for way too long.

"That noise—your noise—turns me on. Immensely." He took one hand off my breast, leaving my nipple erect and exposed, and grabbed my hand. Put it between his legs, and I squeezed, like I had in my dream. I looked at him with big eyes, but his gaze was on my nipple.

He sucked in a breath. "Samantha Pumpkin, tonight you're going to be mine."

Dear God. His voice. His touch. Caring and firm and possessive. His hands were back at my breasts, his thumbs circling my skin. My nipples tightened. My body tightened. My heart pounded so hard I thought I would break.

"Perhaps we should take this back to the condo?" His voice was still low, but more gruff and serious. He tugged the bikini top over my breasts, covering me.

I nodded, barely able to speak. What had happened to me here in this odd, blue water? I was a multimillionaire businesswoman. Someone who'd gone from riches-to-rags, only to forge her own path in the world of fashion from Palm Beach, Florida, not New York City or Paris. A divorcee who'd vowed never to capitulate to a man again.

One who wanted a weekend of fun, for once.

And only once.

Here I was, breathless and speechless by this one man, this one moment, this one kiss, this one touch.

"Then let's leave. Unless you want to stay longer," he said.

We started to swim back to the steps, and I stopped when the water was to my waist. I stood, blinking at Colin, shaking from the cool air on my chest. "I don't want to stay longer. But I do want one more kiss before we get out of the water."

He turned to look at me, the water streaming off his beautiful body.

He grabbed me by the shoulders, crushing my chest into his. Underwater, he cupped my bottom in his big hands and roughly ground me toward him.

"I'm powerless when you look at me like that, with those eyes of yours. You're fucking gorgeous. Do you know that?"

His erection pressed against my stomach, and I wiggled closer.

"You're beautiful," I whispered.

He smiled. "As are you. And I'm going to discover exactly what makes you tick, what turns you on, and what makes you come undone, Samantha."

We kissed and I shivered more. He skimmed his hands over my shoulders and arms and tugged at my bottom lip with his teeth. This made my entire body pulse and hum, and I moaned when he broke away. I needed him. I wanted him. Most of all, I loved that he'd told me exactly what he wanted to do with me.

"Let's get you inside and into some warm clothes. Don't forget to dry your hair. Put on those boots you bought, too, and let's head somewhere warm."

I knew exactly where that somewhere was.

____