"I'm so glad I talked you into coming," Sue teased, watching his jaw drop. "It would have been a shame to have missed this," she said, sweeping her hand out over the open water they were currently gliding through. "I think I could easily stay right here and not move a muscle, ever."

He took in her relaxed form reclining on the deck chair, watching the way the breeze tempted strands of hair from her ponytail, then twirling them in the air when successful. They'd been under way for a half hour and she showed no signs of any misgivings. Reaching over and tapping her nose, he asked her, "Wouldn't you be more successful in your sunbathing if you were undressed?" At her raised eyebrow, he thought back over his words, realizing his faux pas. "I...I...meant, wouldn't it be better if you weren't wearing that?" he said, fingering her gauzy cover-up. "Wh...what I meant was...shouldn't you just be wearing your swimsuit?"

Sue laughed delightedly, enjoying the tables being turned for once, and Jack being flustered. He was trying so hard to make her feel at ease after the mishap with Scott yesterday that she felt a moment's hesitation at her enjoyment, but that didn't last long. She was having too much fun to stop. "What I think is maybe you've had too much sun. Do we need to go inside, into the shade? Are you too hot?"

"It's hot," he admitted, "But not because of the sun," he muttered under his breath. "Maybe I just need something cool to drink," he said, making to rise.

"I'll get it," she told him with a hand to his chest, pushing him down. "You've done everything on this trip, the least I can do is get you something to drink. What would you like?"

"Something fruity," he said. "Non-alcoholic," he added, knowing she leaned more toward non-alcoholic drinks.

"Okay. I'll be right back. Save my seat," she said with a wink.

He watched her disappear from sight before closing his eyes and plopping his head back on his cushion. He couldn't remember having a better day and it had nothing to do with his location and everything to do with his company. They'd had no trouble keeping up a conversation and had enjoyed times of companionable silence. He'd kept her hand in his most of the day on the pretext of being able to get her attention quickly should he need to, but the reality of it was, he craved contact with her, however slight. He knew she was confused by his behavior, but her quiet acceptance of each situation strengthened his resolve to move forward, growing bolder by her lack of resistance.

She returned several minutes later, handing him a tall, frothy glass full of red slush. "It's an island smoothie, made from fresh fruit. It looked too good to pass up and you did say something fruity, didn't you?"

"It's perfect," he told her, taking a long sip and sighing with pleasure. "It tastes wonderful. What are you drinking?" he asked, watching her take a long drink before she totally distracted him by licking her lips.

She laughed a little self-consciously. "Tea. But it's a specially brewed tea," she hurried on, hoping she didn't sound too boring.

He laughed at her embarrassment. "Why did you say it like that? There is nothing wrong with drinking tea. It hits the spot on a hot day."

"True," she agreed, taking another sip, "But it doesn't sound very glamorous."

"Who needs glamour?" he wanted to know.

"Not me," she said, using the convenient side table to hold her drink while she began unbuttoning her blouse. She could feel his eyes on her which made her fumble with a couple of buttons, but she was determined to act as if nothing was out of the ordinary. Slipping the material from her shoulders, she draped it on her chair before settling back in her recliner. When she summoned the courage to look back at Jack, he was draining his drink.

"You're going get brain freeze," she warned, suppressing her laughter.

"Too late," he groaned, pressing his hand to his head. "Why didn't you warn me earlier?"

"Because I didn't know you were going to swig it down in one gulp."

"Oh, well, I was parched. I hope we get to the swimming area soon. I could use a nice, refreshing dip."

"Do you think we're close?"

"I have no idea. Why?" he asked, watching her bite her lip in indecision.

"Because I'm going to need you to help me put sunscreen on my back before I get in the water."