Win a Filthy Bad Boy: A Bad Boy Romance (9 page)

Later that evening, the cameras caught Bonnie as she sat in the ship’s dining hall. She glanced around the tables filled with couples. Dinner was well underway, but there was no sign of Chad.

To make matters worse, she was early as usual. Punctuality was a habit she adopted from being a journalist. It allowed her to feel comfortable and in control. Showing up before an event would allow her to observe and assess things. Chad, however, was frustrating her routine.

“Would you like to be served now, Miss?” the waiter asked with a smile.

“Five minutes; he's just a bit late.”

The waiter bowed and left.

Bonnie bit her bottom lip and put on a brave face but, all too aware of the cameras, her smile went a little crooked. A few hours ago, Bonnie spent two agonizing hours hunched over the toilet with seasickness. No one mentioned the ship would be so rocky. Now, in the restaurant, she regained her composure and even tried to appear upbeat. But, after humiliation had set in and her optimism faded away, Bonnie felt deflated.

The cameras were at a distance and pretty much out of sight, but that didn't help Bonnie to relax. It was as if everyone in the restaurant were looking at her, feeling sorry for her. The dinner between her and Chad was organized for them to get to know each other, after which they were supposed return to their cabins and give feedback about their first impressions.

“Chad, are you fucking kidding me?” Bonnie muttered. Her faced turned hot from rage.

She imagined Jill’s voice:
Easy tiger, try not to be on edge. Don't show you care.

However, it was just as easy to imagine Jill’s voice taking another tone:

Then again… he is Chad DeMarco, Mr. Fucking Steel. What are you doing girl? You should be on your knees worshiping his…

Bonnie got up made her way back to her cabin. She was prepared to spend the majority of the evening brooding in silence in her room.

As she walked through the hallway, the cameras followed her, capturing her every expression: hurt, anger, humiliation.

Leslie asked Bonnie to follow her. They entered a large fawn-colored cabin room and walked into the middle of a phalanx of cameras that awaited them.

“Just tell us how you feel about being stood up,” Leslie whispered.

Bonnie groaned inwardly; she had already given an introduction about herself earlier. She spoke about never dating in high school or college, her break up with Henry, and her life as a journalist. Now she had to talk about being stood up by Chad.

“Why don’t you just tell me what you want me to say?” Bonnie said, looking over at Leslie. The camera hadn't started rolling, regardless. Bonnie was speechless. Thanks to Chad’s no-show, she must have looked the fool in front of the entire world.

“Okay, hold on a second here, folks,” Leslie said. “Look, sweetie, just read off this.” She put extra emphasis on
sweetie
, punctuated it with a forced eye roll, and handed Bonnie a sheet of paper.

Bonnie read aloud. “I’m not in the best of moods right now. Chad didn't even make the effort to show up to our dinner date… Somewhere in the back of my mind, I imagined we could get to know each other… I love bad boys, but right now…” Bonnie fell quiet and went on reading. She finished. “Really?”

“Trust me, viewers will love it.”

They started filming. Bonnie made the best possible attempt at regurgitating the words. Then she got up and left.

Walking back through the corridor to her cabin, Bonnie was deeply lost in her own thoughts. She swore she would endure the cruise and stop her Chad obsession, cold turkey. She knew his kind: entitled, self-centered, and egotistical. Earlier, when Chad showed up to the cruise terminal looking hung over, it was evident that he couldn’t give a shit about the show.

Well, that was it
, Bonnie reasoned. If he was going to play the bastard, she would just have to play the bitch! As she moved toward her cabin, she was so resolute and determined, making plans to ignore him, she stared off into the middle distance, and paid little attention to her surroundings.

She walked to her cabin, then stopped, as Chad came into sight, standing by her door. Shirtless, his tattooed-covered chest came into her view. Bonnie paused, caught off guard by his gorgeous muscles and tight looking body. His thick arms folded across his chest, his finger resting on his round, full biceps. And he smirked.

She was hit with a thought that made her heart stop. It rang out in her mind that he was so handsome, so undeniably sexy, that if she were careless, her libido would be calling the shots, again. A storm of anticipation built inside of her. Recalling his lips, as they melted with her own, made her stomach tingle with butterflies.

Bonnie’s eyes locked on the man standing by her door in the brightly lit hallway. Both wore opposing expressions, he smirked and she frowned, but they stared at each other with an all-consuming focus that neither had expected.

Bonnie shook in her head, waited for her heart to start beating, and fought the urge to turn and flee. She then thought,
no way
, and continued on ahead.

Chad's lips parted, causing a thrill of excitement to skate up her spine. As she reached her door, he automatically stepped in front of her. Not a word was uttered.

When it was clear he wasn't going to move, she relented.

“Excuse me,” Bonnie said. When he didn’t move, she repeated herself. “Excuse me, I want to get into my cabin.”

“You're going to bed already?” Chad asked, sounding surprised.

Bonnie's lips curled. Was he mocking her? “Yes, as if it’s any of your business. I’m about to turn in.” Her lips nervously trembled as his gaze fell on them. She reached out and put a hand on her door.

“Come back to my cabin. We can order something to eat,” Chad said, raising his hand to lean against her door, effectively blocking her escape. “I was hung-over all day, and now I'm dying for a midnight snack.”

“We had a dinner date, and you flaked on me, remember?” Bonnie said, unable to control the rising emotion in her voice.

“I think we both know, I'm not the least bit interested in food,” Chad said. He angled his body closer, getting within a few inches of Bonnie. His hot breath caressed the corner of her mouth. They were so close. Too close.

“You’re the only thing I want to eat tonight.”

It was a whisper. His deep voice sent a shudder through her body. Suddenly, her knees turned to melted ice cream. But he didn’t stop there. He slowly stroked his fingers along the door, down onto her hand. The mere contact with his skin rocked her to the core. She withdrew her hand, as if she’d touched something scalding hot.

His words were so brazen, so direct. Bonnie's face grew hotter and hotter.
Damn him
. She exhaled a breath she didn't know she was holding. She tried to ignore her longing, yearning, and overwhelming urge for his touch. Bonnie closed her eyes, attempting to simmer her boiling lust.

“Let me show you a good time,” he said. “I say, fuck the show. Fuck it.” The way he said
fuck
in his sexy voice, gritty and thick, caused a release of hormones to rage inside her. Bonnie almost reeled from the shot of adrenaline into her bloodstream.

“Good night, Chad.” She fought to stop her hands from shaking as she struggled to open her door.

“Wait… how about we go for a drink?” he asked.

“I don’t think so, sailor. Looks to me like you can’t hold your liquor,” she said. Then calmly, she walked into her cabin and closed the door.

Shutting the door, she put her back against it, shut her eyes, and listened to her heart thud. She needed to regain control as lust pulled at her solar plexus, every cell in her body wanted him. The aching between her legs was unbearable. And yet, this night felt like a triumph.

How'd you like that, Chad?

***

The next day, Bonnie wrote by the poolside.

“I'm writing an article for
The Daily Journal
,” Bonnie said to the camera. “It's about the show.”

Earlier that morning, the camera followed Bonnie, capturing her as she stepped outside on to the deck, lured by the salty sea air that wafted through the hallway. It filmed her at breakfast, meeting and talking with passengers, and alone at the poolside, writing.

The sea and sky were so beautiful and serene.

Then Chad arrived through the entrance on the opposite end of the pool. He was dressed in blue swim trunks and the sun gleamed off his impressive body.

The camera caught his lopsided grin as he spotted Bonnie. Seeing him, Bonnie frowned, lowered her head, and went back to writing. However, her indifference didn’t appear to discourage him.

Slowly, he lowered his swim trunks, removed them, tossed them aside and just stood there, his impressive manhood on display for the whole world to see. Fortunately for him, Bonnie wasn't paying attention, allowing him to quietly climb into the pool and swim across to her.

Although Bonnie kept her eyes down, she was aware that he was lingering. What was he planning? She wondered. The grin she had seen on his face screamed trouble. And she was right, as a sudden splash of water left her soaked. Bonnie hugged her MacBook and screamed, turning away from him. She shot to her feet at the sound of his deep belly laughter.

“You asshole!” she yelled. Catching sight of his nakedness below the water, Bonnie gasped and clapped a hand to her mouth. She narrowed her eyes, shooting him the look of death.

Chad threw his hands up in surrender. “You need to lighten up and join me. Get naked.”

“Are you insane?” she asked. “I’m not getting naked in front of the cameras.”

“If you're shy, you can start small. The hint of a breast. Ignore the cameras, get in here, and we’ll take it from there.” He winked. “Trust me.”

“Trust you? Never.” Seeing his trunks, deflated, by the poolside, she picked them up, ran to the railings, and threw them overboard. Next, she stomped off. Beyond pissed, beyond angry, she choked on rage. Had she stuck around a second longer, she might have killed him. He almost ruined her computer.

Stomping towards the exit, intending not speak to him for the rest of the day, she slowed her march and made an effort not to slip in her sandals. A heat rose to her cheeks as she felt his eyes on her buttocks region. Was Chad watching her ass? She ignored the temptation to turn and check, as she didn't want to give him the satisfaction.

Walking through the hallway, she came across his cabin and sure enough, the door was left ajar. She stared through the slight opening and focused all of her attention in his room. Taking a few steps towards his cabin, she stopped to think. All his cocky comments and his endless teasing, the way he hunted, charmed, and owned her. The way he made it so that she was constantly reminded of his rippling muscles, his hot breath between her thighs, the merciless thrust of his heat inside of her. Ever since he drove himself into her and rode her from one orgasm to the next, she suffered an onslaught of wet dreams.

This propelled her onward to get revenge. She pushed open the door.

Payback!

Chapter Eight

A few hours later, Bonnie sat writing in her cabin, feverishly typing out her thoughts on Chad, when an earth-shattering banging made her leap into the air. Someone was at her door.

If that’s him, he's pissed
.

Collecting herself, Bonnie got up and answered it. Chad stood at her door—naked. Startled, Bonnie tried to close the door, but he jammed it open with his arm.

“Just wait a minute,” he said.

Bonnie opened the door enough to see Chad and spot the cameraman behind him. She couldn't prevent herself from glancing down. Her face flushed warm, a blush seared her cheeks. For a split second, she forgot about the cameraman filming them.

“You’ve got some explaining to do, darling,” Chad said. He turned to the camera. “I hope you're enjoying this.”

Bonnie was amused—
he’s pissed
. “What's the matter, Chad?”

“Oh, can't you tell?” he asked. “Perhaps you were in the sun too long. Maybe I should come in, help cool you down a little. Before I get you hot.”

“Wow, okay. Why don’t you go and put some clothes on instead?” Bonnie suggested, playfully.

“I'm looking for them. I've been running around naked for the past few hours.”