In fact, he was banking on it.
Still, she hadn’t called to thank him or so much as acknowledge the spa day he’d arranged for her. An image of her lying on a massage table with only a narrow towel draped around her luscious curves flashed in his mind.
His partner was staring at him expectantly. Oh, yeah. He’d asked him a question, hadn’t he?
Something about what he and Celeste were working on together. Reid decided to stick the truth. For the most part, anyway.
“Things are complicated between Celeste and me,” he admitted, rubbing his forehead. “There’s a bit of a history.”
“I see,” Alex responded. “And is that the only complication?”
“Absolutely,” Reid lied. It wasn’t an egregiously big lie however. Because he’d made something of a decision last night. As he’d lain there thinking about Celeste and the way she’d felt in his arms, he’d come to the conclusion that his dealings with her had to change.
From this point forward, he would maintain a safer distance. He would be at his utmost professional as they worked together. Though not technically his direct employee, Celeste was indeed doing work for him. He would treat her like the contractor that she was. No more touching, no more teasing. And definitely no more imagining her naked on a massage table or in the shower.
“Good,” Alex interrupted that risky train of thought. “I’m interested to see what the two of you come up with. What’s next?”
If Celeste didn’t withdraw from the project altogether, they were due for a rather sublime activity tomorrow. “We’re scheduled to visit the flower garden in St. Anne’s Parish.” An activity that would require no physical contact whatsoever, Reid thought with no small amount of gratefulness. The family owned and run botanical garden attracted tourists from all over the world to admire the striking flora that graced so much of the island. After a tour of the flower beds and exotic plants and trees, the excursion included some light shopping and a home-cooked meal.
Surely, he could get through something like that without laying his hands on Celeste’s tempting body?
Piece of cake.
To make matters even better, they’d be fully clothed. No swimsuits involved for this outing. He wouldn’t have to force his gaze away from the tiny dimple in Celeste’s luscious thigh. Or the way her suit fit her like a glove and accentuated all those glorious curves.
“You just drifted off again, my friend.”
Reid uttered a small curse. Thank heavens Alex had no idea exactly where his mind had drifted off to.
Who was he kidding? Celeste wasn’t even here and he couldn’t get her out of his head. He had his work cut out for him if he was going to maintain a professional distance tomorrow.
“Sorry. I was just mentally going over my to-do list.” Another fib. He hadn’t been this slippery with his friend and partner at any other time before this. He was behaving uncharacteristically in so many ways, he’d lost count.
Alex suddenly stood, apparently giving up on any kind of productive meeting given the state of Reid’s mental sharpness at the moment.
“I should go get started on mine,” he said, then turned to leave. He stopped at the door and turned back with a playful smile. “You sure you won’t reconsider the Nutcracker gig now?”
“I’m sure, my man. No one needs to see me in tights.”
Alex released a bark of laughter before exiting.
Reid turned to stare out at the glass wall behind his desk. In the distance, the ocean sparkled like a sea of precious gems. The sun shone bright in a clear, azure-blue sky. Another beautiful day in paradise.
The building that housed the spa could be seen at the edge of the property. Was she there now?
Reid stood and closed the lid of his laptop. Nothing wrong with taking a walk in that direction. He hadn’t even been outside yet today. Some fresh Caribbean air would do him some good right now. He definitely wasn’t trying to seek Celeste out. And if he did run into her merely by chance, what would be wrong with that?
No harm, no foul, he reassured himself. He’d simply be checking on a contract employee. Fifteen minutes later, after catching no sign of her, Reid resigned himself to acknowledging that their paths would not be crossing this morning. He also had to acknowledge the disappointment he felt.