TONY: Slow Burn (Raging Fire Book 1) by Kallypso Masters (the false prince TXT) 📕

back. “I recall something inflating at the same time you were supposed to be trying to deflate the balloon.”

“Glad you noticed.”

She didn’t know why she was bantering with him like this, but in a move that threw caution to the wind, she came to a decision.

“I heard you have some time off work this week. If you don’t already have plans, why don’t you join me in Turks and Caicos for some…diving?”

Crap! Did I just invite Tony along on my private paradise getaway?

Her heart beat a little quicker at the thought of her and Tony hanging out nude on the beach or poolside. After feeling the hard length of his penis pressed against her backside today, she needed to see this man naked.

Only fair. Hadn’t he seen her naked already?

Slow down, Carm.

Tony remained silent a long while, and she glanced over to see that he was no longer smiling. Had she crossed a line?

“Did my brothers or Marc tell you about my time off this week?”

His suspicious tone took her by surprise. That was far from the response she’d expected. A simple no she could understand, but not unbridled anger. This man’s moods could turn on a dime. He could use a vacation all right, but perhaps it shouldn’t include her.

“I overheard you talking to Rafe while we were cleaning up. Look, never mind. I don’t know what made me ask you to join me. I’m sure you already have something lined up.” Perhaps even with a woman, although he hadn’t mentioned that he was seeing anyone. Not that he’d tell her anyway.

They were silent as he drove the next block until he stopped at a light and turned toward her. “Sorry I snapped at you. I’m not angry at you. It’s Rafe and my family. I wish everyone would quit acting like I’m about to go off the deep end or something.”

What on earth was he talking about? Was he on a mandatory mental health break or something? Had he had some flashbacks or trouble coping with triggers from the bad call in June? She wanted to know more about what he meant but didn’t feel she should ask.

If he only knew how far from his well-being her thoughts had been when she’d extended that invitation.

“I’m sorry you’re having to deal with that, Tony.” She left it open to interpretation whether she meant his brothers or the aftermath of his fairly recent traumatic experience.

“Thanks.” The light changed, and he drove the rest of the way to her condo and parked, but neither made a move to get out of his truck.

Did she want to extend the invitation again?

Chapter Twenty

Carm had never been a glutton for punishment, but maybe she’d become one. “Listen, the offer still stands. If you can catch a flight, I’ve rented a huge villa. It has six bedrooms, four baths, a private beach, and a swimming pool.” She realized she was talking up a storm and that he wasn’t saying a word, but she took out her phone and forwarded the text from the realtor showing him the villa on Turks and Caicos. “Wait until you see the photos of this place.”

His phone pinged, but he didn’t reach for it to look at them. Still, he didn’t come right out and say he wasn’t interested.

“Seems a shame to let so much space go to waste,” she added, beating a dead horse apparently. “You’ll still have your privacy; we can go our separate ways most of the time.” Silence. “I just thought that maybe a change of scenery would be a nice break from…well, work and everything.” She hoped she wasn’t making this sound like a pity invite, because her intentions toward Tony were anything but pitying. Maybe she needed to sweeten the offer. “We could also do some dive excursions together. I’d prefer having you as a dive partner over some random person the dive crew assigns to me. Of course, I might get lucky this time and be paired with some hot guy who’ll keep things interesting next week.”

He wasn’t looking at her, but he tightened his jaw at the mention of her getting some action down there. Maybe that was how she could sell him on the idea. Of course, she’d never been on a group dive yet that included a single man looking for a hookup. Most of the unattached divers were women or old men. But Tony didn’t need to know that.

His head snapped toward her. “Why are you asking me to go?”

This seemed to be some kind of test. Should she tell him she wanted to get naked and make passionate love with him? No, that might be a little forward given they hadn’t really done anything more than kiss until now.

“Besides diving together, I’m feeling like it might be fun to have someone to go out to dinner with. We could try out some of the fabulous beach restaurants and maybe even do some sightseeing together.” Time to sweeten the deal. “It would be the perfect chance for you to speed up your diving certification schedule too.”

Tony’s continued silence made her wonder if she’d gone too far. Or not far enough. She wanted to take advantage of this rare chance to spend time with Tony and get to know him better without all the distractions of their work and family.

She unhooked her seatbelt and turned to face him, but his gaze remained straight on the windshield. “T.G., I’m going to be honest. If sparks should fly between us again like they did the night you kissed me,” she began, “I’d be open to exploring…whatever. I’m not extending this invitation because of your family or anything they said, though.”

Once again, he faced her. She read interest in his eyes, but not total belief. If he could have read her mind a couple of minutes ago, he might blush. Although she wasn’t going to throw herself at him if he wasn’t interested, Carm hoped she’d conveyed the fact that she