The copter touched down gently on the helipad and the pilot began the task of shutting down the engines. Erin leaned forward to peer out the window, wondering where they were. The wind and dust churned up by the rotor blades made it impossible to see out.

She leaned back against the seat and bit down on her lower lip to stop the flow of questions. There was no way in hell she would ask Ethan anything, she'd rather die of curiosity first.

Erin wondered what Todd would think when she failed to show up for their date. A flash of guilt churned in her gut. How could she have let one simple kiss scramble her brain and lead her into this trap? Deep down, Erin knew the answer to that question but she refused to acknowledge it.

She was extremely conscious of Ethan's disconcerting presence beside her, her pulse leaping to her throat when he suddenly leaned over.

"Let me get that for you." His words washed over her, setting already frayed nerves on fire as he reached for the harness around her waist.

"Don't touch me!" Erin snapped, shrinking away from his touch. She glared at him. "I'm not completely helpless you bastard."

An eyebrow rose in mild surprise at her vehement words. "I never said you were helpless Erin."

The pilot's voice came over the intercom. "We're at the marina boss, the yacht's ready to set sail."

"Yacht?" Erin's voice rose sharply in mild panic. She skewered Ethan with a look that could peel flesh. "Just what the hell are you up to?"

He shrugged, turning away to open the door. A warm salty breeze hit Erin's face, ruffling strands of her hair and she realized they must be close to the sea or lake.

"We are going to have a talk, then dinner." Ethan replied, his tone brooking no arguments.

****

The Serenity was a magnificent boat, screaming elegance and money from stern to bow. The interior was even more mind boggling, the furniture top grade and carefully chosen to exude comfort.

Erin sat on the bed in the stateroom, still fuming over Ethan's high handed behavior. Why this was tantamount to kidnapping, for every fiber of her being wished she were anywhere else. She could feel the rolling and swaying motion that indicated the boat had already set sail.

The door opened again and Ethan came in, the room seeming to shrink under his very presence. Erin rose from the bed and shot him a glare as he came further into the room.

"I hope you're happy with yourself." She said caustically.

The devil had the effrontery to grin widely. "Oh I am, immensely."

Her eyes narrowed and Erin folded her arms across her chest. "Tell me something Ethan," She snapped. "Just what do you stand to gain from kidnapping me?"

He chuckled, his mirth only raising her ire. Moving close till they stood face to face, his eyes mocked her assertion, silently daring her to say it again.

"It's not kidnapping if the 'victim' is willing. And you forget, I have witnesses who'll swear you left the hotel under your own steam."

"Yes, after you-" Erin broke off, unwilling to finish the sentence.

"After I what?" Ethan taunted, stepping even closer, causing her to back up until the back of her knees hit the bed. His eyes raked over her body, ice blue irises narrowed in challenge. His tone changed, softened and became deep, a warm caress over her skin. "After I kissed you and made you so hot for me you'd have followed me to the ends of the earth?"

He lifted a hand to lightly stroke her cheek, blazing a slow, fiery path down to linger on her full lips. " Tell me Erin, if I'd taken you back to your apartment, would you have stopped me from making love to you?"

"Yes!" The denial slipped from her lips though her heart told her otherwise. Ethan's laugh told her he didn't believe her either.

Cupping her chin, Ethan raised her lips to his, taking her mouth in a soul shattering kiss for the second time that day.

The kiss quickly spiraled out of control. One minute they were standing together and the next, Ethan's arm came around her waist, pushing her back onto the silken sheets. They fell in a tangle of arms and legs, mouths still melded together as their arms seeking each other, touching, feeling.

Erin moaned as Ethan's hands gripped her hips, tugging the hem of her dress to her thighs, rough callused hands stroking her smooth bare skin with such expertise, stoking the fires of lust within Erin till she feared she would spontaneously explode with need. Her own fingers frantically reached for the hem of his t-shirt, dragging the fabric up till she could touch his hot, firm abs.

She triumphed in the shiver that racked through his body at her touch, the gesture making her bold enough to rip the shirt off him, all the while conscious of his hands creeping ever closer to the source of liquid heat pooling at her core.

Erin cried out as his fingers slipped past the flimsy panties she wore and sliding into her. Arching off the bed from the force of the orgasm that racked her body, her fingers gripped his steely forearms like a lifeline while Ethan's mouth swallowed the sweet sexy sounds she made.

As the shivers subsided, she was conscious that he'd moved but only to divest himself of his clothing. Then he was back, taking her to heights of pleasure again and again with his hands and mouth until Erin thought she could stand no more. Then Ethan joined them in one swift hard thrust and the world soared out of control once more.

*******.

The insistent buzzing of a phone drew Erin from slumber. She stirred with a smile, her body still incredibly relaxed after.....

"Oh God!" Erin shot up from the bed as the memories came flooding back. Horror at what she'd done suffused her. What had she done? How could she even face Nicky or her family after this?

She glanced back at the bed, finding it devoid of Ethan's presence. The discovery stung worse than if he'd been there in the first place. The room was also empty of his presence and for the second time that day, Erin felt tears of humiliation prick her eyelids. She dashed them away with determined swipes of her hand, the other clutching the sheet to her body. Nicky's words of caution floated in her head and she groaned aloud. What kind of woman went to bed with the man who threatened to destroy her?

A fool. She was all kinds of fool for letting her body dictate her actions rather than her brain.

The phone buzzed angrily again, startling Erin from her self deprecation. Gathering the sheets around her naked body, she slid off the bed and padded bare foot across the surprisingly soft shag carpet towards the source of the sound.

A gasp of shock escaped her when she spotted her missing purse resting on the ornate bronze dresser.

"That bastard!" The words were a whisper of outrage as Erin realized he'd also manipulated her into coming here in the first place. He'd made her believe she'd forgotten her purse on the floor of the lobby, meanwhile the lying creep had had it with him. Fresh waves of anger and shame warred within her and she turned away from the offending object, seeking out her clothes. She found them lying neatly on an armchair, no sign of the previous haste with which she'd been divested of them.

Dressing hurriedly, Erin's mind ran through a whole gamut of emotions, ranging from anger to humiliation and finally settling to a cold simmer of revenge. Ethan was going to pay for manipulating her this way. She swore silently. He sought to destroy and humiliate her right?

"Well, I've got news for you Mr. Lachlan." She snarled into the empty room. "I can play this game too and when I play, I play to win."