I shake my head, still stubbornly averting my gaze so he can’t see all the thoughts running through my mind. “Honestly, no. It’s been a long time since I was away from work.”
He hums and follows my eyeline out to where the sea meets the sky.
“You could stay here forever, couldn’t you?” I ask.
“Here as in on the yacht?”
“Here as in away from everything. The business, the threats, the constant looking over your shoulder.” I stretch my legs out on the lounge chair, letting the sun warm my skin. “It’s peaceful.”
Stefan shakes his head. “Peace is a luxury I can’t afford.”
Another beat passes. Seagulls cry and wheel overhead.
“My father loved this boat,” he says quietly. “He’d disappear for weeks at a time, sailing up and down the coast. Which meant my mother hated it.”
“Because she coul
