NOTES: Chapters 3-5 posted here are rated "Mature" per guidelines - they do not contain "detailed descriptions of physical interaction…" I have posted this fic over at Archive of Our Own, with the original Explicit versions of Chapters 3-5.

Lee woke up early, refreshed and invigorated. It was a 'day at sea' and he planned to take full advantage of the relaxation the ship offered.

Starting with a jog on deck, he ordered room service breakfast for Amanda - just coffee and fruit for him, and ended his morning tasks with a shower.

Lee emerged with just a towel slung low around his hips and droplets of water clinging to his well-toned chest. "Oh, hey. You're awake."

"Yep. Where'd you go this morning?" Amanda asked, her eyes flitting around while trying not to ogle any one particular part of him, yet wanting to ogle all the parts.

"For a jog." As he began, there was a knock and Lee went to the door as he spoke. "Then to order breakfast."

Still in only his towel, Lee took the tray and carefully walked it out to the balcony before dashing back to tip the steward.

"I'll get my things and shower so you can get dressed," Amanda said as she went to her suitcase.

"I thought we could spend some time at the pool today."

"In that case, you shouldn't get too dressed." Realizing that might have sounded more suggestive than she'd meant, Amanda clarified, "You should put on a bathing suit, I mean."

"Uh, yeah."

"Yeah."

With the sparkling Caribbean Sea as a backdrop, they lingered on the balcony long after breakfast was gone, enjoying the lazy morning, and occasionally letting their fingers idly play off one another's. The breather they'd taken the previous night had leveled their heads and they each felt reassured that whatever lay ahead was well considered.

Eventually they roused to gather their things for sitting poolside. Amanda wore a sarong and an open blouse over her swimsuit while Lee donned swim trunks and a short-sleeved button down shirt. Once on deck, they split up and scouted for couples that looked like they'd had enough pool time - hovering like vultures ready to swoop in on vacated lounge chairs. Lee's sharp eye and quick maneuvering scored two loungers between a pillar and a windbreak. It was an island of relative privacy on the packed pool deck.

"Nice catch!"

"Yes, I am," Lee said as he started to unbutton his shirt.

"Are we going to start that game again?" Amanda shook her head; there was no way he wasn't undoing those buttons that slowly on purpose.

"I got you to call me hunky, so… seems like a good game to me."

After getting mostly settled, Lee offered to get them drinks.

"As long as it's not blue. How about a club soda?" Amanda requested.

As Lee was returning, he saw that she'd taken off her wrap and shirt. She was stretched back in her semi-reclined lounge chair, wearing a high-cut navy blue one piece bathing suit and looking, well, 'hot as hell' was what immediately came to his mind.

After standing in place for a beat or two to recover himself, Lee approached. "Here you go."

"Thanks. What'd you get?"

"Heineken. Definitely not blue."

Realizing that she was nodding off as she read her book, Amanda adjusted her chair to lay flat. She positioned herself on her stomach, with her head turned toward Lee's chair. Eyes closed, she hummed a sigh of contentment.

Lee did his best to comprehend the sentence in his John le Carré novel while his eyes and brain preferred to focus on Amanda's gorgeous figure. Giving up, he put the book down and indulged in a slow rake of his eyes up her body. Just as he'd gotten to her backside, Amanda opened one eye and looked at him.

"Nice view?"

Startled out of his intense study, Lee opened his mouth, unsure how to respond.

"Keep lookin'. I'll get my turn later." She reached out her hand to his and closed her eyes again.

Lee gave a short laugh and lay back, continuing his admiring tour.

The heat of mid-afternoon peaked and they sought the relative cool of the pool. After sitting on the edge and dangling their feet, Amanda slipped in first. She dunked all the way under, touched the bottom with her toes, and propelled back up. She smoothed her hair back and held onto the side of the pool right between Lee's legs.

"Nice view?" he asked, looking down at her.

"I'll say."

"View's pretty great from here, too."

Amanda tugged at his feet and Lee let her pull him in. Encircling her with his arms, Amanda tilted her head and leaned in for a kiss.

"Phony?" Lee asked.

"Not even a tiny bit." Shook her head and kissed him again.

"It's getting pretty crowded," Amanda said thankful for the distraction. His strong arms, toned chest, and the way he'd been sliding his foot up and down her calf was dizzying.

Just as they were climbing out, she heard her name being called. A perky woman wearing enormous sunglasses waved.

"Amanda! Were you able to reach the zoo last night? Did the egg hatch yet?"

"No, not yet." Amanda ticed her head to the side.

"Fingers crossed it's not until you get back!"

"Ha! Yeah…. That's life in the penguin biz!"

When Amanda caught up to Lee, he was talking with an older couple who were staring at him with admiration. Lee shrugged and said nonchalantly, "Well… they don't diffuse themselves."

"Hello, dear." Amanda slipped her arm around his waist.

"Opps, here's the missus, I'd better get going."

Navigating the maze of sunbathers and lounge chairs, Lee and Amanda wove their way back to their chairs.

"Okay, I admit it, you were right," she said.

"Say that again."

"I said, you were ri-" Amanda gave him a look. "You heard me."

Lee swooped in for a kiss before she continued, he loved how easy the physicality between them was.

"I'm having a hard time remembering who I told what to. I almost forgot about the penguin egg. I might have to start claiming amnesia."

He squinted at her and was going to ask about the egg, when he darted his eyes over her shoulder. "Oh, God, there's Dixie and Tad."

"Bjorn! Amanda!" Dixie called as they approached.

"Gaman að sjá þig aftur."

"Little warmer than Iceland, huh Bjorn?" Tad teased.

Lee nodded his head and looked sad. "Ja."

"Hey, you guys aren't leaving are you? If you are, we'd love to take over your spot - it's sure crowded out here."

"Please, take our chairs. We were just heading in," Amanda said decisively.

"I was counting on them being in their cabin the rest of the cruise. I might have to brush up on my Icelandic. I'm running out of phrases," Lee groused.

They whiled away the rest of the afternoon playing shuffleboard (very badly), skeet shooting (Amada refused, Lee won a few friendly bets), and dozing off on their balcony as they held hands and talked.

After she'd finished pinning up her hair, Amanda stepped into her shoes while also trying to fasten the clasp of her necklace. Sensing Lee behind her, she glanced back as he silently connected the ends of her necklace, and brushed his fingers across the exposed skin of her neck and over her shoulders, which felt as silky smooth as they looked.

"Okay, you're good now." Lee turned her around. "You look fantastic."

"Thanks."

"Ready for dinner?"

"Yep."

In the hallway, a couple brisked by them calling out "Buonasera!"

Lee pinned Amanda with a questioning look.

"Um, we're a nice Italian couple hoping to bring Chicago deep dish pizza to Napoli?" She fiddled with his bow tie and gave him a peck on the cheek.

Lee shook his head. "Let's hope we can score a table for two at dinner."

They ended up sitting with a charming older couple from Ohio. Herb had been a widower, and Alice a widow. A mutual friend played matchmaker and it was a second chance at love for them both. Lee and Amanda didn't tell one single lie about themselves. Except the one about working for International Federal Film.

"What's the show tonight?" Lee asked after dinner, positive that Amanda would know the schedule.

"The Magical Musical Stylings of Morris Maderling at... " She consulted the ship's daily newsletter. "8:30 and 10:30. I'm thinking…"

"No?"

"Definitely no."

They opted for dancing in the lounge again, which was a lot more crowded than the previous evening.

Joining the other couples on the floor, Lee looked at her appreciatively as they came together. She was wearing the same white dress from two nights ago - he'd noticed then just how temptingly gorgeous her body looked in it.

Amanda loved how he held her close - his arms leading them around the dance floor and his chest, warm and solid against hers. With Lee's body pressed snugly to her and the way they were dancing, there was a sensuous friction between them.

"Amanda…" Lee began after clearing his throat. "You knew Miles and Jillian were frauds and you figured out that Lady Bromfield didn't love her husband. Where'd you learn to read people so well? It's not a Junior Trailblazer badge, is it?"

"Oh, I don't know… I've just always found people fascinating. I read a few books about body language and then did a lot of people watching." Amanda shrugged. "It all made perfect sense to me. You know… the way people physically interact depending on their feelings. Most of the time they don't even realize it, it's just instinct."

"Like that couple over there." Lee gestured to the left with his head. "I wouldn't place any bets on their marriage lasting - they're barely touching."

Amanda watched them. "It's not just that. There's no eye contact and their postures are stiff and awkward. They should at least be moving together in time with the music."

Taking the lead in their dance, Amanda spun them around. "See those two, over my shoulder? Same pose - maybe even farther apart, but their bodies are in tune with each other, they're moving like one."

"Yeah," Lee agreed, thinking that was just how he felt dancing with her.

"And they're looking at each other like no one else in the universe exists. There's magic there; that's love."

Amanda looked at Lee and felt his green-hazel eyes draw her inexorably in.

"Magic, huh?" His voice was low and breathy. He would gladly drown in her gaze forever.

The world around them seemed to fade and their senses registered only one another.

"Yeah."

Lee felt more than heard her reply as their lips met.

Fumbling a few times with the key to the suite, Lee and Amanda came crashing through the door and resumed kissing immediately. Amanda kicked a leg back to shove the door shut and Lee reached around her, securing the lock before getting both of his hands back on her.

Sliding his jacket over his shoulders and down, Amanda broke their kiss to hang it on the back of a chair. Seeing Lee's expression, she assured him she wouldn't stop to hang everything up. "Just the jacket - it's the hardest to press."

He huffed a little laugh and pulled her close again, his hands on her waist. Amanda slid the knot of his bow tie loose, and used the ends to pull him into a kiss.

Lee's hands roamed her back while she worked at undoing the buttons of his shirt. Lee closed his eyes and breathed deeply.

When Amanda undid the final button on his shirt he opened his eyes and bent forward to kiss her neck. She reached to cup the back of his head and sighed as she tried to divest him of his shirt, which got stuck at his wrists.

"Cufflinks," they said at the same time.

While Lee undid on one, Amanda made short work of the other. Lee pocketed the pair, Amanda tossed the shirt and tie on the floor.

"Amanda…" he said between kisses. "Shall we take this somewhere more comfortable?"

"Definitely."

She took his hand and led him to the bed…

After they made love, Lee and Amanda slept in each other's arms through the night - waking occasionally to kiss and shift positions before falling peacefully back asleep.

END CHAPTER THREE

END NOTES: Apologies to bomb squads, zoo keepers, penguin specialists, and Italians with a love for deep dish pizza.