“Training is certainly something I’m willing to invest if I take this on,” he said. He may have been brought up in wealth, but when his father almost lost everything because of his monumental mistake, Lucas had risen up to the occasion and not only saved, but grown the business, taking it to new heights.
“Wonderful. I scheduled us for an aqua aerobics class at ten.”
He suppressed a chuckle. “Are you serious?”
“Yes. They offer a class geared toward older guests and thought we could take part and see what it’s all about. Then, we’ll study the infrastructure of the hotel and take notes. We’re meeting the current owner for dinner, is that correct?” she said, slipping seamlessly into the competent PA role as if they’d never spent a night together.
“Yes. Eat up, you’ll need lots of energy,” he said, second guessing his choice of words the instant they left his mouth. He didn’t mean to add sexual innuendo into his voice. She raised her gaze to him, and for a moment, an undercurrent of desire flickered in her irises and she let her guard down again.
He held her stare, challenging himself to move and happy to lose the self-imposed battle. His heart expanded in his chest, and his pulse raced. Meu Deus, she was gorgeous. When she blinked and shook her head, the instant dissipated, with her glancing down at her food.
How come she had less to lose than he, yet she seemed the one with a level head about the tantalizing attraction? He knew her enough to know she’d decided to act against the pull between them. He had said he would, hell, he’d even proposed she sign an agreement to keep her silence. Why the hell couldn’t he shut down his body when it came to Crystal Fox?
* * *
“C’mon, guys. One more repetition,”shouted the overly enthused instructor, a petite female who wore cobalt shorts and a tight shirt with the resort’s monogram embroidered on it.
Lucas looked around. Besides the two of them, four other couples had joined the class. They looked anywhere from their fifties to late sixties except for a pregnant lady and her partner. Next to him, Crystal followed instructions, kicking and swinging her arms to the rhythm of the annoying pop song blasting from the outdoor speakers.
She wore a simple one-piece black swimsuit, and he wondered if she’d owned it prior to her shopping trip to the store back in New York. Surely, Felicia would have tried to persuade Crystal to buy something flashier, adorned with special beads or with a sexy cut that would accentuate her sinful form.
Lucas was happy she hadn’t.
If seeing Crystal in the modest swimsuit had raised the temperature several degrees, imagine what a skimpy bikini would have done to him.
“You on the left,” the instructor said jovially, pointing at him. “You can admire your girlfriend later. Now, let’s work out.”
The couple behind him laughed. He fixed his sunglasses in place, taking the comment in stride, and focused on mimicking whatever ridiculous movements the others made. He enjoyed running, playing soccer, fighting Jiu-Jitsu. This? Hell no.
During the rest of the session, Crystal didn’t dare to even look in his direction. Maybe she was as aware of him as he was of her. She went to the bungalow to shower alone, then he wrote some notes about the place and sent out a few emails. By the time he entered the suite, the moon had risen outside.
Crystal finished applying her make up, and he swallowed hard when he found her in front of the dresser. That was the first time they both occupied the same room since they’d had sex. He drew in a long breath, and could feel his heart pulsing in his damn throat.
A maroon dress hugged her curves just right. A couple of thin straps begged to come off on each side of the dress, and although it was long, hiding even her ankles, there was nothing boring about it. The sultry color brought out her eyes, complemented her pale skin color, and displayed her graceful neck.
“Ready?” she asked, turning to him.
Not for this. How the hell was he supposed to return to his work relationship with his employee when he’d screwed her? The darkness didn’t take away her moans, the feel of her soft skin on his, the crazy awesome sensation of screwing her tight pussy. “Yes, I’m ready.” Ready to bang you again.
* * *
“So,how did you two meet each other?” Marcela asked in a sexy voice that matched her looks.
For the past hour, Crystal had sat next to Lucas and across from thirty-something Marcella, the brunette beauty with a flawless olive skin and a green dress that emphasized her perfect body. Her husband, Carlos Lacerda, was obviously smitten by her. A man in his sixties, he looked good—fit for his age, but Crystal couldn’t help noticing Marcela’s attention on Lucas was excessive.
By glancing at him a beat longer than necessary or looking at him even when Marcela spoke to Crystal, Marcela gave out not-so-subtle hints of her interest in him. Every so often, her husband touched her elbow or whispered in her ear and she flashed him a smile, temporarily remembering she already had a man.
“Mutual friends,” Lucas answered, giving the universal reply whenever people didn’t really want to talk about how they met.
“How interesting,” Marcela said, her eyes on his. “That’s how we met too, isn’t it Lucas?”
Lucas smiled. “It’s a small world.”
Marcela gave Crystal a glance, then said dismissively, “And it keeps getting smaller.”
What the hell did she mean by that? That she should be happy she had landed herself a man like Lucas? Anger welled inside, but Crystal swallowed the lump in her throat. She’d been hired to play a part, and that didn’t include clocking another woman’s lights out at dinner.
Fight fire with fire. Crystal angled closer to Lucas, and put her hand on his. He immediately looked at her, his eyes widening. His warm skin sent a shot of arousal up her arm and everywhere else in her body.
