She shook her head. “Not unless there’s a lot of turbulence.”
“I’ll tell the pilot to avoid it,” he said.
“Is that like fries?” she asked. “I’d like a burger with fries. I’d like a smooth flight with no turbulence.”
He chuckled. “I never thought of it that way, but yes, maybe. Have a seat. Are you hungry? Thirsty?”
“The attendant already asked me what I wanted to drink,” she said, sitting down. At that moment, the perky attendant brought out chilled bottled water for both Emma and Damien, and juice for Damien.
“Would you like breakfast?” he asked her.
“I grabbed a bagel before I left home.”
He nodded. “I’ll take my regular,” he said and sat down.
Curious, she leaned toward him as she sat across from him. “What’s your regular?”
“Breakfast is two scrambled eggs, bacon, whole wheat toast, grape jam and breakfast potatoes.”
“Lunch?”
“If I take it, club on whole wheat, salt and vinegar chips, dill spear.”
“Dinner?”
“Filet mignon, rare, baked potato, broccoli, Caesar salad. Scotch.”
“You reward yourself if you have to travel at night,” she said.
“Damn right.”
“I’ve learned more about your diet in the last two minutes than I have the entire time I’ve worked for you,” she said.
“Some people say that flying eliminates boundaries that concrete emphasizes.”
“In what way?”
“You’re secluded above the atmosphere with one other person. No distractions unless you invent them. No interruptions. Just time with little space separating you from that one other person,” he said.
The expression in his gaze sent a montage of hot visuals through her mind. This was way too early in the morning and during the trip for her to be thinking about Damien…that way. Taking a quick breath, she deliberately tried to break the hum between them that seemed to grow louder with each passing second.
“Except when you’re stuck in the center seat with a child on either side of you,” she said.
He chuckled. “That’s when noise-canceling earphones are required.”
“That won’t stop bathroom trips and spills,” Emma said.
“You say that as if you have experience,” he said.
“I do. I’ve had to take a few last-minute flights that were packed.”
“None of that today,” he said.
Emma relaxed slightly into her leather seat. “So true.”
The attendant peeked into the lush passenger area. “The pilot says we’re ready for takeoff. Please fasten your seat belts.”
A few hours later, the jet landed in Miami and a limo pulled alongside the plane. Although Emma had made the travel arrangements herself, she couldn’t help but appreciate the efficiency. Within forty-five minutes, they’d checked into the resort they were to evaluate, and she was wandering around her private suite located next door to Damien’s. The lavish suite featured a sitting area with a wall of windows that opened onto a balcony that overlooked the resort’s three pools, Jacuzzis and the turquoise ocean. She took a deep breath of the ocean air and enjoyed the breeze as it played over her skin. Hard to believe this waswork.
“What do you think so far?” a voice said from the balcony beside her.
She glanced over to find Damien looking at her. He’d already changed out of his business clothes and wore a tight black T-shirt that emphasized his broad shoulders and well-developed chest and biceps. She couldn’t seem to stop her gaze from following down the rest of his body to lean h*ps encased in swim trunks. Her mouth went dry and she licked her lips. What had he asked her?
“Pardon me?” she said in a voice that sounded strained to her own ears.
“What do you think of the place so far?”
“It’s beautiful. Check-in was smooth and the bellman was friendly. So far, my suite appears immaculate.”
“Same here,” he said. “It’s almost as if they knew we were coming.”
Emma felt a twist in her stomach. It was likely the staff had indeed known because she’d told Max about Damien’s plans.
“We’re just getting started. I haven’t had time to review my checklist, but I will—”
“Later,” he said. “We’re burning daylight. Put on your swimsuit and meet me downstairs.”
“Uh—” She started to protest because she had actually planned to conduct a thorough inventory of the suite, but he was the boss. “Okay. Give me just a few minutes,” she said and walked inside the suite.
Even though Damien had been a perfect gentleman, she couldn’t escape the barely hidden predatory watchfulness in his gaze. Try as she might, she couldn’t ignore the simmering attraction between them.
Unpacking her swimsuit, Emma told herself she would just have to push her curiosity about Damien aside. Holding up the black string bikini her mother told her she must buy in order to fit in with the other tourists, Emma had second, third and fourth thoughts. Grabbing her sunscreen, oversize sunglasses, baseball cap and checklist, she told herself this was just business.
Damien lounged by the pool, responding to messages on his BlackBerry as he waited for Emma. He was counting on making this trip a turning point. By creating some distance between her and corporate headquarters, he planned to increase her sense of loyalty to him—mentally, physically and sexually.
Glancing upward, he spotted a pale woman wearing a baseball cap, huge sunglasses and a mesh cover-up that didn’t conceal a tiny black bikini or the voluptuous body beneath it. Spotting her silky brown hair swinging over her shoulders, he realized it was Emma. Since she always hid herself beneath tailored suits, he’d only been able to imagine her naked.
Swearing under his breath, he took in every delicious inch of her. Her baby-pale skin would fry in this sun, he thought, immediately deciding to get an umbrella to shield her. Her full br**sts bounced with each step. Her h*ps swayed invitingly.
Then she stopped suddenly as if she were looking for him. He caught her nervousness as she licked her lips then bit her upper one. He withheld a groan while he mentally stripped her of those tiny pieces of fabric.
Damien stood and moved toward her. She immediately caught sight of him. “Hi,” she said breathlessly. “It took me a little extra time because I had to put on sunscreen.”
Damn shame, he thought. He would have loved to apply it himself. “No problem. I thought we’d go out to the beach since we don’t have much time left today. We can check the pools and hot tubs later.”
“Sure,” she said and followed him to the towel hut. Holding the wooden door from the pool area for her, he took a lingering glance at her backside as she stepped in front of him.
Uh-huh. He had plans for her.They walked onto the beach and one of the beach staff approached them. “May I help you?”
“We’d like a cabana with two lounge chairs,” Damien said.
“Right away, sir,” the beach staff said and led them to a cabana, brushed sand off chairs and situated them underneath.
“Thank you,” Emma said.
Damien nodded and tipped the man.
“Excellent service,” she said, sitting down on the chair.
“Yes. Like I said, it’s almost like they know they’re being evaluated. But that couldn’t be possible, could it?” he asked, studying her face.
She looked away. “Maybe they’re always conscientious.”
“Maybe,” he agreed, but he already knew that Emma had informed Max about the trip. Ultimately, it wouldn’t be his loss. It would be MD’s loss because they wouldn’t get an unbiased view of the resort. “Of course, here comes the cocktail waiter. What would you like?” he asked Emma.
“Something from the bar?” the waiter asked.
“I don’t need anything. I brought water,” she said, pulling a bottle from her bag and taking a sip.
“You must order something,” he said. “How can you comment if you don’t try everything?”
“You order for me, then.”
“Beer for me and Sex on the Beach for the lady,” he said and met her gaze dead-on.
Emma made a little choking sound. Damien took the opportunity to rub her back and gently squeeze one of her shoulders. “Okay?”
“Fine. Just fine,” she said in a husky voice, leaning back in her chair. She covered her face with the cap from her head.
The waiter quickly filled the order and Damien drank half his beer while he urged Emma to polish off her mixed drink. He pulled off his T-shirt and baseball cap. “Would you like to go in the ocean?”
She sat up, but paused. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been in the ocean.”
“How long?”
“I live in Vegas, remember, so ten or more years.”
He grabbed her hand. “Then we need to fix that right now,” he said and led her toward the water.
“There’s no rush,” she said with a slight protest in her voice. “I don’t have to do everything the first day.”
“This isn’t everything. This is just a little dip.”
“Yes, but I think I might prefer the pool.”
“It’s been so long. How would you know?” he asked, tugging her into the surf.
“Whew! It’s cool, isn’t it?”
He smiled, finding her shyness appealing. “Are you afraid of the water?”
“Oh, no,” she protested, but continued to grasp his hand like a vise.
“No problem. We can take it as slow as you want,” he said, coming to a stop. He felt her gaze on him for a long moment, but couldn’t read her expression because of her sunglasses.
“I can go a little further,” she said in a low voice that had Damien visualizing her n**ed and beneath him again.
Oh, heaven help me, I’m standing next to Damien and he’s half-naked.How in the world did he maintain that body? She shuddered at what he might think of her body. No one would call her reed-thin. A man like Damien must be accustomed to dating women with model-perfect figures.