As soon as she laid eyes on him, her breath faltered, her heart hitched, “a-Viking-we-will-go” settled into her foggy brain. Eric Leif, the Red, that’s who he had to be—tall, broad-shouldered, muscular arms shown off by the fur vest he wore. No tux for this guy. In fact, she doubted he could find one to fit that kind of a build. Hoisted striped sails for a living on the Seven Seas, took damsels wherever he landed, the only thing missing was a broadsword to go with his broad shoulders. Eyes the color of the stormy blue sea studied her, his mouth as generous as the rest of him, slightly curved upward.
His gaze shifted to her, uhm, necklace, probably figuring it looked like a good piece to rip off if he was in the market for plundering. Or maybe his gaze shifted a bit lower. She fought jerking up the bodice of the gown, in front of him, but if she ever found that darned restroom…
“Armand told me to check on you.” The Viking cast a deadly glare at Jean Pierre, effectively telling him to cast off or he’d make mincemeat of him, probably with his bare hands.
Jean Pierre gave Tricia a little bow with his head. “Later, my dear.” His eyes sparkled with devilment as he looked back at the Viking, not intimidated, too much. Then he moved away.
“And you are?”
“Eric Leif.”
Her mouth gaped a little.
“For the masquerade. We aren’t really supposed to give our true identities, are we? Not until after the new year has begun.” He offered his arm to her. “Care to dance?”
“Vikings dance?”
Pearl white teeth gleamed in the chandelier light. “I have been here long enough to observe a few dances to know how it is done.”
Okay, she couldn’t resist. Her favorite romance heroes were roguish Vikings. Why not? With a roomful of dancers, she couldn’t go wrong.
She reached out her hand, but Romeo, uhm, Eric Leif, rather, pulled her into his hard embrace. She should have objected, she should have pulled away—after all, she didn’t even know him—but nah, he felt good, warm and the right kind of hard, and smelled like the fresh sea. She took a deep breath and relaxed in his arms and was swept away across the floor with visions of passions unleashed, until…
Oh, man! A VIKING? This is too good, Terry, I love the new twist! What is UP with this ship? I'm not sure I could be in a place with all three of these hotties. That's risking spontaneous combustion from hormone overload.
ReplyDeleteOkay, we've already got vampires, and now we've got vikings--will this man-fest never end? LOL! I'm doing an alien just as soon as my turn comes around again! Great job, Terry!
ReplyDeleteA cruise ship full of diverse and secretive guys... loving it :) You ladies never fail to amaze me!
ReplyDeleteLOL, ladies, I just couldn't resist throwing a Viking into the mix...you know, boarding a cruise ship, looking for treasure to plunder...hmmm-hmm. :)
ReplyDeleteFantastic! OK, I thought it would be Marcus to the rescue, or maybe even Mustafa, but A VIKING! Hilarious! Well done. Now, who is the lucky ones who have to put all these hunks into order?!
ReplyDeleteI love mixing them up, and then leaving it to someone else to sort out! :) Evil laugh!
ReplyDeletePerfect Terry!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteWe did need a viking there.
Linda
Excellent!! I love the Viking, Terry!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Linda, and Nicole! Yeah, now we need a hunky Scot! :) I know, I know, he was in the other story, but one per is a good ratio. :)
ReplyDelete