Erin stepped out the open door of the stateroom and headed down the narrow corridor that ended in a set of stairs leading up to the next deck.

Still smarting from Ethan's desertion, she made her way down the narrow length, her steps slightly unsteady with the rolling motion of the yacht. The polished wood floor echoed her footsteps in a rather unsettling way and Erin wondered if she was the only one on the boat. She wouldn't put it past that arrogant bastard to leave her marooned in the middle of the ocean. It was the sort of petty, ridiculous thing Ethan Lachlan seemed to enjoy.

Another cringe ran through her as she remembered how easily she had given in to him. Granted the man could kiss like it was a talent, but that was no excuse for her appalling behavior.

Christ Lord Almighty! She'd acted like a hormonal sex starved teenager, letting him make love to her not just once or twice in the space of one evening. And now she ached in places she did not care to mention.

Her cheeks reddened at the memory of the second time they'd done it. She'd been the aggressor, straddling his luscious body and riding him, enjoying her power over him when he'd groaned her name out loud and grasped her hips, grinding their bodies together -or the third time when she'd taken him to the edge with her mouth and how he'd taken her with a savagery that'd sent her to sex heaven over and over again- and the fourth time in the shower....

"Stop it Erin!" Her sharp words reverberated in the corridor even as she ruthlessly squelched all memory of last night from invading her mind.

How stupid she'd been to assume that he found her as sexy and irresistible as she found him. Ethan probably viewed last night as just another conquest, a means to an end and like the fool she was, she'd fallen for it.

Well, if he thought he'd got the upper hand, boy was he in for a surprise. By the time she was through with him, he'd wish he'd never met her.

Reaching the top of the stairs, Erin found herself in yet another narrow corridor, one that opened up to what she took to be an open deck from the light that poured through the opening. Her steps quickened in hope. Maybe she could find the captain or whoever the hell was in charge and get off this blasted boat.

The brilliance of the morning sun momentarily blinded Erin as she stepped onto the deck and she shielded her eyes with her hands even as the wind whipped strands of hair onto her face. It was a good two minutes before her eyes adjusted to the light and she could make out the form that leaned against the rails, watching her intently.

Ethan held a cell phone to his ear and appeared to be listening to whomever was at the other end but his gaze was fixed on Erin, blue eyes glinting with an intensity that caused heated color to flood her cheeks.

He'd changed into a deep blue shirt- unbuttoned at the neck- and tucked into white pants. His hair was damp as though he'd just had a shower. He certainly did not look like a guy who'd gotten little to no sleep last night...

Stop acting like a newly deflowered virgin! Erin admonished herself, while surprised to find him still aboard. A part of her fluttered in joy but she quickly squelched the feeling. It was time to start acting like the woman she really was and not some love struck teen. She tore her gaze from his and looked around. The deck was quite large, though bare of any outdoor furnishing save a plastic table with an open laptop on it and two chairs right in the center and an inflatable lifeboat resting in a corner.

"Sure hun, I'll see you tonight." His deep voice floated across to her and she felt a surprising wave of jealousy run through her at the words.

So he had plans for tonight? Probably with that blonde he'd been at the restaurant with or was it some other woman? Did last night even mean anything to him if he was already making plans to bed another woman?

In spite of her resolve, Erin felt hurt. And with hurt came a longing to prove to Ethan that last night had meant nothing to her too.

"Good morning." Ethan tucked the phone into the pocket of his pants. His eyes never leaving her. "I was just about to send someone down to wake you."

No 'How are you feeling today? Or I enjoyed last night.' Erin noted bitterly. Well at least, now she had no illusions about his feelings for her or lack thereof.

A part of her wanted to have a go at him for hiding her purse and deceiving her into sleeping with him, but Erin held the scathing words back. Better to let him believe she was defeated and humiliated; it would make her revenge so much more effective.

Schooling her face to match his look of careless indifference, Erin shrugged. "Was there something you wanted?"

His eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second at her tone. "I thought you might be hungry so I had the cook prepare breakfast."

At the mention of breakfast, Erin's stomach rumbled. Other than the cup of coffee and croissants, she'd had nothing to eat.

"I'd like breakfast, thank you." The polite words threatened to choke her but she forced them out.

He studied her for a moment. Erin held herself still and met his eyes. Ethan broke the contact first, his eyes settling on an object behind her and he nodded.

"We'll eat out here Gianno." He spoke to a beefy guy with thinning blond hair who'd come up behind Erin.

"Sure boss." Gianno grinned, his tanned face crinkling as he shot Erin a wink before disappearing back down the corridor.

"You might want to sit, unless you want to eat on your feet." Ethan said dryly, crossing to the table and taking one of the chairs.

***

The sight of Erin standing on deck, one hand shielding her eyes from the glare of the sun, caused Ethan to lose his train of thought. Even in yesterday's clothes and with her hair in disarray, her very presence reminded him of the incredible night they'd just shared.

Damn, but Erin had blown his mind. In bed she was even hotter and sexier than he could have ever imagined and just thinking about how warm and tight she'd felt when he'd been inside her was enough to make his body spring to attention with the need to make love to her again.

He was still stunned at how one small woman- out of the numerous sex partners he'd had since he'd lost his virginity in a motel room with his high school girlfriend- could prove him completely wrong. Up until last night, Ethan had believed no woman could surprise him in bed, but Erin had proved him wrong last night.

God! He wanted her again already.

To distract his mind from that tempting thought, Ethan forced himself to concentrate on the email from his chief engineer. But try as he might, his mind constantly strayed to the woman standing stiffly, gazing into the horizon.

"What time is it?" Erin asked, still not looking at him. Her tone was flat, devoid of emotion.

Ethan consulted his watch. "It’s a couple of minutes to eight."

She nodded and moved to take the other chair, still not looking at him. "I have to be at the hospital in an hour."

"I'll drop you off after we eat." Her indifference inexplicably annoyed him, Ethan decided with a deep frown. He had expected some sort of reaction after last night- anger, insults, threats...even amazement dammit.

Not indifference, as though the sex had meant nothing.

Gianno returned with a pot of steaming coffee and another with tea, an assortment of diced fruit, scrambled eggs and warm, freshly baked bread.

"I wasn't sure what you'd prefer, so I made both tea and coffee." Gianno informed Erin with a grin.

"Coffee's good, thank you." Erin replied with a polite smile. "It smells wonderful."

The cook executed an elaborate bow. "Bon appetite"

The cook's departure brought back the silence between them, not the companionable silence of two lovers enjoying breakfast, but the terse, simmering silence of old enemies.

He watched as she poured a cup of coffee, adding milk and three sugars. Her brow was scrunched up as though she was thinking about something, but still she said nothing to him.

For the first time, Ethan caught himself wondering if last night had been a mistake. Her behavior now was so at odds with the passionate, sexy woman he'd bedded that he began to wonder if she had undergone some sort of personality change overnight.

"Erin..." Ethan set down his cup and leaned forward. Startled at the sound of her name, Erin glanced up, her expression carefully devoid of emotion and that infuriated him even more. He gritted his teeth in frustration. The damned minx.

"What?" Erin prompted when he did not speak.

"We need to talk about what happened." He replied, choosing his words carefully.

To his consternation, Erin merely shrugged, her tone still that annoying indifference. "Oh that - it's not important."

"I beg your pardon?" Ethan said, with an incredulous look. "What's not important?"

Brown eyes met his, a calculating glint in their depths as though she were considering her next words. "I assume you are talking about last night?"

Gritting his teeth, struggling to keep a lid on his temper, Ethan stared at the woman sitting across from him. "Yes, I am."

Erin sighed, shrugging those shoulders once more. "I don't think it's something to talk about. It was just sex after all. Nothing we both haven't done before, with different partners of course."

Just sex.