"I heard the comments from the guests as well. I am not a fan of Christmas. I am trying very hard not to let that show. I typically work at resorts where Christmas is low-key. Hawaii is a different sort of party. I appreciate you bringing the matter to my attention." The last words were said between gritted teeth. From his expression, I could see he heard it but didn't comment, which was just as well.
He cocked his head and licked his lips. "Wear the mistletoe hat."
My mouth twisted. "I'm not wearing the mistletoe hat."
Did we have to do this again? I would die before I would wear the mistletoe hat. No sane person would ever wear the mistletoe hat. He pulled it from his back pocket, as though he'd been carrying it with him every day since our first conversation.
"Phillip always wore the mistletoe hat. Everyone is talking about the distinct lack of hat," Alex pointed out.
I glanced at the offending hat and hissed, "I'm not wearing the hat."
Alex slapped it down on my head, probably ruining my bun. "It doesn't hurt. It will make the guests happy. Happy guests are our real job, Charlotte, and I know that you know that."
Charlotte. It gave me a pause as I reached to tear off the offending headgear. It was too big, being made for Phillip, and hung down over my eyes. "Charlotte" meant that Alex was serious. The guests wanted that stupid-ass hat.
I pulled it off, praying my hair was still in place. "I can't wear the hat." I glanced at him. "Here. You wear it. You're as good as I am as the face of Aloha Lagoon. Wear it with as much pride as anyone can muster with this ridiculous thing on their head."
His mouth twisted, but he complied with my request, snatching the offending thing from my hands and slamming it down on his own head. "Christmas means a lot to this resort, Boss. Don't screw it up for these people. They're counting on you to continue the traditions that could be lost with Phillip. And traditions are what keep bringing them back year after year. Think back. You've got to have a couple of happy holiday memories. Something you can pull out and enjoy. If you can't do that, put on a happy face and fake it, because these people need that."
His voice was low and serious, and it was clear he meant it. He knew what made this resort a place that people kept returning to year after year. That people chose when they could have been home with family in some snowy wonderland like Boston. Instead, they were here with us. Because the traditions and memories they held of Aloha Lagoon were also a part of their family. A part of their history.
I nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry. I have…negative feelings about Christmas. I need to keep them in check. I would appreciate it if there were some traditions of Phillip's that you would take the mantle for, including the mistletoe hat. I'm sorry, but I can't wear it. It's too big for me anyway, and I can't be the serious face of this resort while wearing it. I appreciate your compliance on this issue."
His lips tilted, the hat hanging over his right eye, the mistletoe half cocked, leaning to the right as well. "You appreciate my compliance in the wearing of this stupid hat. Thank you, Charlie, I appreciate that. You should have worn the hat."
I sighed. "And why is that, Alex?"
The grin kicked up a notch, sneaking into weaponized territory. My gut clenched. "Because now I'm dangerous."
He was always dangerous. Way too dangerous for my own good. I licked my lips. Did I even want to know? "We don't do dangerous at Aloha Lagoon. We do friendly, happy, and efficient."
"If I'm taking Phillip's mantle, and Phillip's ridiculous hat, I'm also taking the rules."
Why did it sound so dangerous when Alex said it? What could the rules possibly be? I shrugged. "You go right ahead with that. I recommend you start immediately. Somewhere other than my office."
"Oh, but I'm not done telling about the hat."
He was grating on my patience, and something about his expression told me I wasn't going to like his answer. "I'm not sure I understand what you're getting at. What are the rules exactly?"
"I get to choose the new rules."
I rubbed my eyebrow, praying to get through this conversation. "You get to choose what?"
"Phillip had only one rule. Whoever wears the hat gets to choose the rules. All the Aloha Lagoon employees are subject. For Phillip, his rule was that whoever he stood near, they get the mistletoe, because he got the hat."
The words were starting to sink in. "Are you kidding me? He made every employee subject themselves to kissing? That's sexual harassment!"
Good lord. Phillip hadn't seemed like that kind of man at all. I was sorely disappointed and a little bit sick. I would need to call every employee into my office so we could discuss their experiences and what kind of repair would need to be done.
Alex laughed. "Not if you had seen it. A peck on the cheek. That was all. But now I have the hat."
My mouth dropped. All I could picture was him tonguing every single female employee in the place. Well, I could also picture them enjoying it.
"Alexander Cho, I will not have you laying one on every employee in this place. I don't care what Phillip did. It's highly inappropriate, and the fact it was just cheeks barely makes it outside of the realm of completely unforgivable. Don't make me report you to corporate, because I don't want to."
I didn't want to. And I didn't want to address the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach that Alex was so twisted he would actually do that. Whatever I said about him, I had expected better.
His smile shifted slightly. "I would never do that, Charlie. I would hope you know me better than that."
His expression made me want to apologize. "You're the one who said it," I nearly shouted.
"I said Phillip made the rule, and it was cheeks. Phillip made the rule whoever had the hat gets to choose. I only said those weren't my rules. It's my hat now. And I make the new rules."
This was ridiculous. A confusing conversation that was starting to really upset me, though it shouldn't have been. Phillip's behavior wasn't acceptable, but it wasn't exactly completely condemnable either. No doubt the staff had been compliant because it was meant in fun, and if anyone had cared, Phillip would have stopped. At least, I hoped he would have. I had never actually met him while in life.
"Phillip shouldn't have made people kiss him, Alex. It's inappropriate. They're your employees, not your personal harem."
"I know that. I don't appreciate your suggestion that I can't tell what's completely inappropriate and what's not." The smile was completely gone now. "I only meant I'd switch it around. That anyone can kiss me if they want. I'm game. Honestly, I…I'm not sure what to do with the knowledge that you think I'd take the hat as a free ticket to feeling up our employee base."
I licked my lips again. My mouth was unbearably dry. "I didn't mean that. I was talking about Phillip."
He pinned me with a hard glare. "I would never press myself on someone who didn't want me. And I would never take advantage of an employee, even one who did want me. I had no idea you'd take my teasing seriously, but I can't help but appreciate this insight I have now into the type of person you think I am."
I shook my head. This was out of control, and I freaked when things slipped out of my control. "Stop. That isn't what I said."
Because even when I'd pictured him kissing the employees, I hadn't pictured it as harassment. Most of them had made it clear that they would be very into getting some mouth-to-mouth resuscitation from Alex Cho. He always humored them, but he never made a move. Not on any of them. Not in all the time I'd been there. The realization was a bit shocking. Girls were always hanging on him, but he was never hanging back. I'd never followed the behavior of the others through to processing the behavior of Alex, a person who always behaved as a boss among our staff, not as a man.
"Some things you don't have to say, because they're just very clear on your face and in the words you do say. After six months, I thought…I had hoped you at least respected me as a fellow member of your management staff. I'm troubled, and frankly I'm…I just… Excuse me. I have work to do."<
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He turned to leave, the disgust rolling off him in palpable waves, completely at odds with that stupid, damnable hat, still perched on his head. I blinked, my heart pounding into my throat. I'd lost control of this conversation completely. I had no idea what to do next. That was a prospect with which I had absolutely no familiarity. I always knew what to do next. Except when I accused an honorable person of planning to sexually harass our entire staff, and I did it completely by accident.
"Alex, please stop." I was afraid the words wouldn't come out of my rapidly constricting throat.
For a moment, I was sure he wouldn't listen. The voice I'd used wasn't as his boss—it was as a person, same as he was. It was begging for a brief reprieve from the censure I most certainly deserved for the message I hadn't even meant to convey.
But he did stop, his hand on the doorknob, the line of his body rigid with whatever emotion I'd invoked by accident. I swallowed hard, torn between begging him to look at me and appreciating the fact he wasn't.
"You have never been anything but completely appropriate to our employees. I'm sorry. I didn't mean you wouldn't be. Not even for a moment. I was just surprised that Phillip would have started a tradition like that. I don't…I don't believe you'd ever take advantage of someone under your command that way. It just…it was just confusion. I…"
This was hard. Probably much harder than it needed to be. Alex left me twisted in knots, no matter what the subject was. But the fact he believed I would see him like that, that he believed I would accuse him of molesting people who relied on him for his livelihood. That was hard to come back from.
He finally turned, his nostrils flaring. It was his only show of emotion, next to the rigid posture he displayed. "You…"
My breath came out in a shaky rush. "You're an excellent manager, Alex. You could have taken control of this resort six months ago without a single hitch. Corporate sending me here caused more problems than it ever could have solved. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry I'm here, and I'm sorry you believed I would accuse you of something like that. I never would. You are the perfect person to run this place. I don't know why I'm still here, but corporate made a mistake. This office should be yours."
I was trembling once the words were out, almost heady with the relief of admitting the truth of our situation. Alex was a better manager than I was. At least of Aloha Lagoon. There. I'd said it.
Alex looked at the ground for a long second, the bill of the hat completely concealing his face. When he slid it off and threw it on the chair, I could see some of the anger in his gaze had gone, replaced with some repressed emotion I couldn't identify. "I never wanted this office."
I threw up my hands. "Who cares about the office? I'm saying you deserve nothing but respect for the way you handle this resort. I respect you, Alex. You're a truly talented leader who understands how to get people do what needs done without using force or coercion. That's a gift. Not many people have it."
He blinked at me wordlessly, and I blinked back at him, deer caught in a headlight. Why wasn't he saying anything? Or at the very least doing something? The urge to force him to respond itched under my skin. I had never forced anyone to do anything. At least not physically. There was no way I was going to start now.
But didn't he understand what I was saying? He was more than my equal. He'd exceeded me at my own game. If I'd considered it ever happening, I would have expected I'd be bitter. Or grudging. Or something. All I felt was the electric power of his presence that always pressed around me when we were stuck together in a small space. I was unbearably aroused by knowing he'd spanked me at my very best skill, running resorts.
I stepped in his direction anyway, the smell of his skin teasing my nose. "I just…I…why aren't you saying anything?" I blurted the words out when I got close enough that I could have touched him. His dark eyes burned into mine, never wavering. He was so dangerous. This was why I fought with him. To avoid this very thing.
"Charlie," he didn't continue. I had no clue what he was going to say. I couldn't even think straight. The heat of him was weaving around me, stealing my ability to breathe. Why didn't he speak so we could leave this room? It was much too small. He closed his eyes. "Stop looking at me like that."
The words were hoarse. Not at all what I'd expected him to say. I had no clue what he meant by that. Words barely made sense at all. The urge to touch that Adam's apple bobbing in his throat with each hard swallow was almost unbearable. I bit my bottom lip to stop myself from leaning forward and pressing my mouth to that spot, running my tongue over the rough hairs of his afternoon shadow. What had happened to my brain? I'd had one once, and I really wanted it back. But I couldn't remember where to find it.
I managed to control myself enough to keep my mouth to myself, but my fingers had other ideas, running softly over his Adam's apple, the pads tickled by the growth on his skin. His labored breaths, short and harsh, burned my skin.
"Charlie." The word was another pant, hot against my face. Was I really that close to him? Why had I disliked the name Charlie so much? There was something so sexy about that word, the way he growled it between clenched teeth, like it was torn from his body, as unwilling to say it as I'd been to hear it.
I didn't even remember moving, but I was incredibly aware of the moment when I felt his mouth brush mine. His skin was molten hot, his lips giving under mine, letting me slide an exploratory tongue against the smooth inner skin of his bottom lip. I had no idea if the raspy breathing and the trembling between us was him or me, but it was definitely me that tangled my fingers into his thick, dark hair and pulled his mouth down hard over mine.
I lost myself for a second, drowning in sensation of giving in to what I'd actually wanted from him from the second we'd been thrown together. That was the harsh truth I didn't want to face. Alex got under my skin. I wanted him. I respected him. I needed to stay away from him so very badly. But right now, I couldn't remember why. Oh, yes of course. Because I was leaving Hawaii. Because this was transitory. Because I didn't do complications, and I didn't do permanency, and Aloha Lagoon would be nothing but a memory, first chance I got. I was supposed to be a professional. That last part was the thing that finally got me.
I tore my mouth away from his and ran my hand over my heated lips. "I'm sorry, Alex. I'm sorry. I didn't…I'm in charge here."
Slowly, his eyes opened. The dark heat of his gaze burned me. For a moment, everything between us was still. Then he grabbed me by the waist, turned me around, and slammed me so hard against the door that it momentarily knocked the breath from my frame. It was his turn to do the aggressing, and he wasn't shy about it. Nothing like me.
He sipped at my lips, teased with his tongue, delved deep, aggressive and hot, before tearing his mouth away only the slightest hint of an inch. "I'm not."
I'm not. He was not in charge. He wasn't required to maintain professionalism at all times. And he was the one doing the aggressing. That. Changed. Everything.
I bit at his mouth, nipped his tongue, fought him with the same forceful press of burning flesh that he gave me. He hiked me up against the door, his hands touching every inch of exposed skin, with small teasing glances, leaving goose bumps in his wake. This was so dangerous. But I could do nothing to stop myself from tearing at his clothes, pulling his shirt until I could get my hands inside, running them over the tight muscles of his stomach.
I pushed at him, kissing deep, hot, on the verge of outright violence. He let me control him, pushing him across the small space of my office. We stopped suddenly, slamming hard into something. My desk, a tiny hint of sanity told me. He turned me again, pressing my butt against the hard ridge of the wooden top. We scrambled at the stuff on top, pushing away anything that prevented him from hoisting me onto the ridge, never tearing our mouths away from each other.
The clattering crash of whatever I'd been keeping there hitting the floor should have returned me to sanity, but it didn't. I didn't care about any of it. I just wanted to rip into Alex, to bite every
inch of him, to scrape my nails hard against his skin until every atom was somehow marked by me. Those thoughts should have alarmed me, but I couldn't find that much sanity. All I could do was melt deeper into whatever this was.
His hands pushed at my skirt, wrapped around my legs. I had just simply not known that anyone kissed the way he did, with such intent, with the burn of promises that I didn't doubt for even a second he could keep.
"What's broken, eh?" It took a second for the words to even sink through the haze of burning red lust that had covered my brain and left me without any of the faculties I prized so much. Ikaika's voice. Through the door. He rattled the handle. "You okay in there, miss? You lose a bookcase or something?"
Alex stilled, slowly pulling his mouth from mine, a sigh moving through his entire body, the heat of his breath teasing across the bare skin of my shoulder where he'd managed to work my shirt partially open. He was a mess, mouth swollen like he'd been punched. His shirt was completely undone. I didn't even remember doing it. The sheen of sweat against his tan skin sent another burning thrill through my body, my legs almost giving out beneath me.
When he caught my gaze, his eyes fell shut. I could feel his struggle to control himself riding hard through his frame. I didn't want to control myself, for the first time in my life. I wanted to get at him. Crawl into him, touch every single inch of all that he was, inside and out.
I couldn't find my voice. Ikaika had a master key. It worked even on my office. If I didn't answer soon, he would come in. That was something I definitely didn't want. I opened my mouth, but no sound emerged.
Alex pulled in a hard, slow breath. "All good, Ikaika." His voice sounded almost normal, the trembling of his words mostly concealed. "Some stuff got knocked off the desk. Please help Silas do a sweep of the beach."
Ikaika didn't respond, and for a second I feared he would push it, but he didn't. My frame slumped against the desk when he said, "Okay, Alex."
Mele Kalikimaka Murder Page 11
