“Don’t start, Rafe,” Damien said in a low voice with inlaid steel.
“I’m much more fun than he is,” Rafe grumbled. “Let me show you around.”
Rafe instructed one of the staff to get their drinks, then led them on a tour of the yacht, the upper level, below deck which included bedrooms, a well-equipped kitchen, an elegant but comfortable living area with a large-screen TV, and last, but not least, a game room with a pool table.
“I’m always trying to get your boss to come down and take some time off, shoot some pool, but he’s married to the job,” Rafe said.
“He just can’t stand it that I beat him last time,” Damien said.
“You’re afraid of a rematch,” Rafe goaded him.
“You always did have a vivid imagination,” Damien said.
Rafe laughed. “Come on. Let’s take this lady for a ride.”
Out to sea they went. Damien made sure Emma sat in a perfect chair so she could enjoy the sun sparkling on the turquoise waters. A waiter or staff member, she wasn’t sure which, made sure she was never without a drink. Damien sat with her for a while, then excused himself to chat with Rafe.
Suffering from a lack of sleep from her previous active night, Emma dozed. When she woke up, she immediately looked for Damien, but he wasn’t close by. Rising from her lounge chair, she went in search of Damien and overheard him talking with his brother.
“How did you wind up with an assistant who looks like that?” Rafe asked.
“I don’t know. Maybe De Luca was hoping to distract me.”
“The man obviously doesn’t know you,” Rafe said.
“She’s different,” Damien admitted.
“I haven’t heard you say that about a woman before,” Rafe said.
“It doesn’t matter,” Damien said. “Her first loyalty is to MD.”
“And her loyalty should be to you instead?” Rafe asked. “When you’re not paying her salary and her entire future is tied up with MD.”
“When you put it that way…”
“Yeah?”
“When you put it that way, it seems difficult for her to possibly choose to be loyal to me.”
“Do you think De Luca has any idea who you are?” Rafe asked.
“He’s too busy covering his own interests to see me as anything other than the person who is taking some control of his company away from him.”
Emma’s mind whirled from the exchange between the brothers. So Damienknew she was loyal to Max. Yet, he’d made love to her. He’d held her on the balcony and she still thought he may have somehow been behind that Tesla Roadster. Yet, he’d been determined that she didn’t know it was him. Confusion twisted through her. Why?
Damien glanced up and caught her gaze. “Emma, too much sun? Or did you get bored?”
She hesitated a second, unable to read his expression hidden by his dark sunglasses. “It’s too beautiful to be bored.”
“No seasickness?” Rafe asked.
She shook her head.
He smiled and the sun glinted on his wavy hair and white teeth, making him look like a movie star. She wasn’t affected in the least.
“Good sailor. Good sign,” he said.
“In what way?” she asked.
“A woman who can handle rough waters is a keeper,” he said. “Are you sure I can’t talk you into working for me?”
“Rafe,” Damien said in a warning tone.
Rafe lifted his hands. “Can’t blame a guy for trying.”
“Once,” Damien said. “That makes twice. More than enough.”
“Cranky SOB,” Rafe muttered and headed down below.
“You’re a little hard on him,” Emma said.
Damien slid his arm around her back and led her to the railing. “Rafe is one of those people that pushes as far as you let him.”
“Even as a kid?” she asked, enjoying the warmth and weight of his arm around her.
“Even as a kid,” he said, a smile playing on his lips. “He told wild stories to get out of trouble. He was the charmer, so he did okay with his foster parents. He only went through two before they stuck with him. They weren’t wealthy, but they helped him through college. He wheeled and dealed and got into this business. Not too shabby,” he said.
“No. He likes having you around, though, doesn’t he?”
Damien nodded. “Yeah. For all his charm, he feels things more deeply than you’d expect. When my father died and my mother put us up for foster care, we were all just a little too old to blend in. We couldn’t help wanting to go back.”
“What about your brother in Georgia?”
“He’s an overachiever, too,” Damien said. “He feels guilty because he was the one who was supposed to have been riding that train with my dad. Survivor’s guilt. Sucks. He drowns it in work.”
“I see a common thread,” she said.
Damien shot her a sideways glance. “I’m taking time off,” he said. “I’m here, not doing the report, not doing assessments, with you.”
His gaze shook her down to her bones. “Rough assignment, isn’t it?”
His mouth slid into a sexy grin and he cupped her jaw, drawing her toward him. He slid his mouth over hers in a kiss that made her feel far dizzier than the motion of the ocean ever had. “When did you get to be so ornery?”
Good question, she thought, as she felt her knees turn to water and her mind to mud.
Emma gave into temptation and shared the rest of the time in South Beach with Damien in his suite. Every minute seemed to sparkle, so how could she possibly have any complaints about the resort?
She reviewed the resort with Damien on the return flight. “I’m trying to find something to criticize,” she said. “Was it just me or was everything perfect?”
He met her gaze. “We’re expected to prepare a report despite the fact that someone was obviously told that we were coming.”
Emma felt a sliver of guilt. “Were the beds too soft? Too hard?”
“You sound like Goldilocks,” he said with a chuckle.
“Okay, the food,” she said. “What was wrong with the food?”
“Nothing,” he said. “Breakfast was served promptly. Food was hot and prepared to order.”
“Beach service?” she asked.
“Fine. Not too intrusive,” he said, his gaze falling over her and making her warm.
Emma cleared her throat. “So, our recommendation is to buy.”
He shook his head. “Our report is that the resort is extremely well-run under current management.”
“Any recommendations?” she asked.
“Unfortunately, since the staff was obviously alerted to our presence, I can’t offer any. Can you?”
Emma felt another stab of guilt at his question. “I guess you’re right.”
“I usually am,” he said in a low voice that was far more resigned than cynical.
After they returned to the office, Emma struggled with her feelings for Damien. Behind their locked and closed doors, it was easy for him to come up beside her and stroke her hair. Sometimes he would call her into his office and would simply kiss her. This morning a dozen blush roses mixed with blue forget-me-not flowers arrived for her. No card, but she knew he’d sent them.
“Let me take you to dinner tonight. You’ve worked hard. I’d like to reward you. I need another hour to wrap things up. Does that work for you?”
The way he looked at her made her heart skip over itself. “I’m not sure it’s a good idea for us to be seen in public. We don’t want to give people the wrong idea,” she said.
“Tell me. What’s the wrong idea?” he asked, lifting her hand and sliding his mouth over the inside of her wrist.
It was all she could do not to press herself against him. “What’s happened between us,” she said.
“Happening,” he corrected. “It’s not over.”
“It’s temporary,” she said. “I’ll be here after you leave.”
“And you don’t want people to know you’ve been fraternizing with the hatchet man,” he said, his gaze never leaving her face.
She pulled her hand away. “If you’re asking if I’m concerned about my reputation, the answer is yes. Like I said, you won’t be staying. I will.”
“I could offer you another option,” he said.
“What?”
“You could come to work for me. I take care of my people. Ask my employees.”
“The same way you’ve taken care of me?” she asked.
His jaw hardened. “No. I already told you there’s something between you and me neither of us wants to pass up. I don’t know why you continue to fight our relationship.”
“It’s just so complicated.”
“It doesn’t need to be. I want you, and I believe you want me.”
She couldn’t deny it, but she said nothing.
“I’m ordering dinner for two from Allister’s and having it delivered to the office.”
She gasped. Allister’s was one of the finest restaurants in town. “That’s ridiculous. Delivery alone will cost the earth.”
“Hope you like champagne,” he said with an infuriating hint of a grin just before he entered his office and closed the door behind him.
Eleven
Emma’s moan of satisfaction immediately made him hard. Even though the source of her pleasure at the moment was chocolate hazelnut mousse, he could easily recall hearing that same sound when they’d shared his bed. Taking a sip of Dom Pérignon, he watched from below the rim of his flute. The more time he spent with her, the more he wanted from her. He wanted more than her sexual acquiescence; he wanted her affection, her trust, her loyalty. The strength of his desire surprised him.
“Hated the dessert, did you?” he asked, in a mock-serious tone.