Four Beautiful Letters (Desire Island 4)

Chapter 4

Nick whistled as he dressed for the evening. He’d gone snorkeling that afternoon with a small group led by Dylan, a man of many talents, apparently. While it had been a lot of fun, Nick was looking forward to seeing Sophia again. They had agreed to meet for dinner that night in the main dining room, and to go from there to the dungeon party.

He hadn’t meant to restrict himself to just one woman while on this unique vacation, but somehow no one else he’d met held nearly the appeal Sophia did. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d so enjoyed scening with someone. He sensed in Sophia a willingness to go as far as he was able to take her. The prospect was both exciting and a little unsettling. Who would be the first to draw the line?

He was just buttoning his shirt when his cell phone rang—the special ring reserved for his business partner, Brian. What the fuck? He’d told Brian he wouldn’t be available this week. Whatever it was, the guy would need to handle it on his own. He let the call go to voicemail.

He was just about to leave the room to head down to dinner when his cell, which he’d decided to leave behind, rang again with Brian’s signature tone. It vibrated insistently on the desk beside his laptop as it rang, refusing to be ignored.

With a sigh, Nick went to the damn thing and looked at the screen. He saw there were several missed text messages and calls from earlier that afternoon when he’d been down on the beach. “Fuck,” he muttered. “What now?” Without bothering to listen to the voicemails or read the texts, he punched the call back button.

“Oh, thank god,” Brian said when the call connected. “Where the hell have you been? I’ve been trying to get you for hours.”

“I’ve been on vacation, Brian. You know—that weird thing normal people who don’t work eighty hours a week, fifty-two fucking weeks a year do. You should try it some time.”

“Lucky for you I’m still on the job, Kincaid, because all hell is breaking loose with the Cabot apartment project. Two of the investors have pulled out because of some unanswered questions about the funding. Cabot is throwing a fit. I’m scrambling to get this handled, but you know the numbers side isn’t my strong suit. I need you back here to take some of the heat off.”

Nick blew out a breath as he sank down into a chair. Brian, younger than Nick by five years, was great at finding the deals, but not as good with bringing them to fruition. “Calm down,” Nick said, trying to remain calm himself. He did not want to cut this vacation short. “I’m sure we can fix this. We’ve worked too hard and too long on this deal to let it fall apart now. I still have five days on the island, but then I’ll be back and we can get this worked out. You just need to stall him for a little while, okay? Tell him I’m out of the country—whatever you need to do. Meanwhile, send me the details and I’ll work on it later tonight, okay? A few days isn’t going to make that much difference.”

“I know it’s your vacation, but we’re talking a couple of million bucks here, if this pans out. Then you can take a lot more vacations.”

“Chill, will you? Send me the stuff and I’ll have a look. Meanwhile, call Cabot and see if you can’t smooth his feathers a little. Tell him we’re on the case and we’ll get it sorted.” Before Brian could protest further, he added, “I’ve got to go now. I have a dinner date.”

Nick spied Sophia at a small table in the corner of the dining room, an untouched glass of red wine on the table in front of her. Her curly dark hair fell in ringlets around her face and over her shoulders. She was wearing a sexy low-cut black leather dress that hugged her breasts, emphasizing their cleavage. There was a small, secret smile on her face as she stared into the middle distance. Was she thinking of him?

He grinned at himself, shaking his head. He felt more like twenty than forty—a boy with a crush. It was both delightful and a little disconcerting. He reminded himself it was the intensity of the situation as much as anything. There were probably tons of budding romances on this BDSM resort island, where kinky sex drove most of the activities, and pheromones zipped and buzzed through the air like a swarm of bees. Folks no doubt connected all the time, passion flaring between them like a wildfire. Whatever might happen afterward, it made for a great vacation.

She saw him, her face breaking into a radiant smile, her dimples visible even from a distance.