“Welcome to the world of big business. Just remember that your head—the one on your shoulders—and your gut are the only body parts you need to consult with to get the job done.”
Laughter then flooded both ends of the phone line.
* * *
Alythia had planned to spend the day on her own before she remembered that Orchid had arranged for the group to have breakfast together that morning. She’d spent half the night debating on doing exactly what she’d told Myrna she couldn’t do. Hypocrite indeed, she acknowledged.
Still, accepting that the trip had been a bad idea and booking a ticket on the first flight out of paradise seemed like a fine decision. As bad as things had already gotten in the two days they’d been there, Aly couldn’t help but believe they were going to get even worse and she couldn’t put a finger on exactly how. She could only hope that the next uproar wouldn’t be between her and Gage. They certainly hadn’t spent much time together. Perhaps that would work in their favor and keep them away from each other’s throats.
Yet that was just where she remembered being the night before, her face cuddled into his neck as they danced. He had asked her to come to bed with him.
Alythia stopped just short of the patio reserved for the group’s breakfast. Gage had been the first to arrive and she watched him chuckling into the phone at his ear. He’d asked her to come to bed with him...and she’d accepted. She’d so wanted to go with him. Still did.
That one loses interest very fast once he’s gotten the panties.
So what? she reasoned. They had only nine more days counting that one and she certainly wasn’t looking for the soul mate Myrna had hoped to find.
Gage was done with the call and dropped his mobile to the rectangular table covered in white silk and set for eight. His eyes settled on Alythia and he stood.
“How’d it go last night?” He slipped a hand into the back pocket of his denim shorts and looked as though he was trying to predict her reply.
Aly didn’t make him guess. “Not well.” She trailed her fingers along the table’s edge. “How’s Dane?” He didn’t respond and she didn’t need him to. Judging from his sour look, it was clear to see that Dane Spears hadn’t received a reassuring hug.
“Wonder if anyone else will even bother to show up to this thing?” She hissed an inaudible curse. “Why did Orchid have to get us all tangled up in this mess?”
“I’m kinda glad she did.” His tone was soft, matter-of-fact. “We both work too hard to have met any other way.”
Aly strolled the patio, seeking to draw calm from the blue sky above that was dotted with puffs of white. “I’m pretty sure the fun you and your boys are having on this trip is a far cry from what you’re used to.”
“You don’t want to know what we’re used to, Alythia.”
“Why so glum?” She mimicked his stance, shoving a hand into a back pocket on her black denim shorts. “Sounds like you’ve all got successful love lives.”
“Sex lives, Alythia. Major difference.”
“You’re right. A lot less headache.”
“Don’t be so sure.”
“There’s no reward in anything more.”
“You’re wrong. There’s the truest reward.”
“What do you want from me, Gage?”
Jayson and Orchid arrived before more words could be exchanged. Orchid appeared in high spirits, rushing over to Alythia and tugging her into a fierce hug.
“We need to get out and do something, Aly,” Orchid was saying as she led her friend away from the men. “Maybe sightseeing or shopping, stopping off for a drink...”
“Orchid?” Aly dragged her feet. “Didn’t you hear about last night? With Myrna and Dane?”
“That airhead.” Orchid waved her hand. “Just what she asked for....”
“Orchid! That’s a little harsh, isn’t it?”
“It is what it is.”
“So why is it so important for us to stick around when we aren’t getting along?” she asked, hoping the woman would confide in her.
Orchid’s smile possessed coyness. “Oh, we got along pretty well to start.” She gave Aly a look. “Most of us, anyway.” She shrugged, unmindful of her sundress straps easing down her arms. “Jay and I are very close to our friends. We need you guys here—marriage is a serious thing.” She rubbed her arms then, briskly, and eased the sundress straps back in place.
“We need our friends around us, Aly, and if everyone’s getting along, even better.”
“And if we can’t get along?”
“Well...” Orchid reached out to tug the hem of Aly’s striped Henley tee. “As long as my most levelheaded friend isn’t makin’ an ass of herself, it’s all good.”
“Thanks.”
Orchid reciprocated Alythia’s playful smirk and turned to observe the men talking across the patio. “What I want to know is what’s taking you so long to seal the deal with Gage? I want to know if he’s as damn good as he looks.”
Aly gasped and then dissolved into a wave of laughter. Not long after Alythia burst into a fit of giggles, Orchid followed suit.
“How do you know I haven’t ‘sealed the deal’?” Aly asked once they had calmed somewhat.
“Sex changes things.” Orchid looked across her shoulder again. “He still looks at you like he wants to devour you. He’s so intense. The intense ones are usually the freakiest.” She turned in time to witness Alythia’s reaction and laughed.
Equally amused, Aly took her by the arm and led her to the buffet spread on the patio. “Lack of food has you light-headed. Let’s eat.”
* * *
Breakfast was a hearty affair and the food disappeared much too quickly, especially once Dane and Zeke arrived. Jeena and Myrna had not graced the group with their presence. Still, Alythia and Orchid used the occasion to make plans for the rest of the trip—time with just the girls. The guys were rolling with laughter over something at their end of the table when one of the two missing guests made an appearance.
“Jeena!” Alythia stood to welcome the woman to the table.
Despite her plans to hop the resort’s clubs with her friends, Orchid offered the barest hint of a smile when Jeena approached. Jeena continued her trek toward the end of the table where the men sat talking and laughing over the remains of their breakfast.
Alythia read Jeena’s intentions a split second or more before they were put into action. Later she would wonder if she’d withheld her warning out of surprise or spite.
“What the—” Dane’s outburst collided with the thunk Jeena’s fist made when she landed her blow to the center of Zeke’s nape.
The punch sent Zeke face-first into an unfinished bowl of oatmeal. The cereal enhanced by cinnamon and honey had grown cool and had adopted a gummy texture. What remained of the oatmeal was either forced from the sides of the bowl to make way for Zeke’s face or it clung to the man’s skin, as was evident when he regained control of his faculties and sat upright.
Fearless, Jeena bent to speak directly into one of Zeke’s oat-spattered ears. “Think about this the next time you insult somebody, you jackass.” She slapped the back of Zeke’s head, grinning while she turned away.
Pandemonium erupted before Jeena had even taken a few steps. Orchid, who hadn’t given her girlfriend a second’s interest, was the first to jump in front of her.
“Dammit, Jeen, what the hell!” Orchid raged, sending Jeena back a few steps with the quick tap she applied to her shoulder. “If you got such a problem with people telling the truth about what you do for a living, then maybe you should stop doing it!”
“Go to hell, Ork! It’s not me who’s got trouble with truth!” Jeena moved closer to speak in a voice heard by only her, Orchid and Alythia. “Does your soon-to-be hubby know who you came running to for cash after Daddy cut you off? Now are we still in the mood to discuss the truth about how you earned that loan money, Ork?”
“Why are we still friends?” Orchid sneered.
Jeena was equ
ally livid. “That’s a question I ask myself daily.”
“Well, maybe we shouldn’t trouble ourselves with the question anymore.”
“Fine by me!”
“Guys—” Alythia tried to make a stab at maintaining order but it was hopeless.
Any attempts at peacemaking could scarcely be heard once Zeke recovered and felt up to defending the blow to his ego. He barreled away from the table, intent on going after Jeena. It took the combined efforts of his friends to turn him from that course of action.
“Let him go!” Jeena refused to retreat and beckoned Zeke forward. “Let the bum-coward go!”
Zeke howled his rage, threatening to break the hold his friends had on his arms and midriff. Through the melee, Gage and Alythia found each other’s eyes. They shook their heads in regret and then focused on separating their friends.
* * *
Jeena was bolting through the restaurant with Alythia at her heels. “I don’t want to hear it, Aly! Not this time. I’m takin’ the first flight the hell out of here.”
“I’d ask you to book me a ticket, too, if I didn’t have this last meeting with Clive.”
Jeena’s steps slowed. She smiled and turned back to Aly. “Least one of us got somethin’ out of this trip.”
“Honey, don’t worry about Ork.” Alythia gave Jeena’s upper arms a squeeze. “She’s got a lot on her mind with the wedding and all.”
“Aly girl, I don’t plan on worrying about Orchid Benjamin ever again. I’ve had enough of this freak show we call a friendship.” Jeena made a show of wiping her hands and then gave Aly’s cheek a soft pat. “When you start being honest with yourself, you’ll realize you’ve had enough, too.”
“We’ve been through worse.”
“Hmph.” Jeena leaned her head back and inhaled deeply. “You know our band of misfits would’ve busted up a long time ago if it hadn’t been for you always being the peacemaker.”
Aly hugged herself. “I’m no peacemaker.”
“You are, and so much so that I bet you haven’t even gotten to have much fun with Gage because of all this mess.”
“I didn’t come here for that.”
“Oh, come off it, girl. I’ve seen him, remember?”
Aly gave a teasing smile. “I don’t think he’s so impressed with me. I wasn’t even inducted into the mile-high club.”
“Consider yourself lucky. Look at where membership got the rest of us.”
Aly’s playful smile began to wane. “Mur says he’s a playa—the ‘hit ’em and quit ’em’ kind.”
“And it’s most likely true,” Jeena solemnly conceded. “What man wouldn’t use a face and body like he has to enjoy women and often? But I doubt Mur was looking out for you when she said it. She’s just upset because she never had the chance to go after him herself.”
“And what about you?” Aly smoothed a tuft of Jeena’s clipped hair behind her ear. “You were going after him, too, wanted him to become a client.”
“No, Aly, not that, never that!” Jeena laughed. “I want space in that new high-rise of his.” Her amusement doused suddenly. “It’s gonna be next to impossible getting him to take me seriously now, with him thinking I’d be running a brothel out of it.”
Aly led Jeena to a less trafficked area of the lobby. “So what are your plans for it?”
“A career placement office.” Jeena looked to Aly as though expecting her to laugh and nodded appreciatively when she didn’t. “I, um...I want to get some of my...escorts out of the business. So many of them wind up doing certain things out of sheer desperation and what they perceive as failure in the real world. A place like this could help.” She nodded then, more deliberately. “They wouldn’t feel self-conscious that the folks in my office would be looking down on them for any reason.”
“It’s a great idea, Jeen.” Aly squeezed her arm.
“Yeah...it would’ve been, but I can forget it now that Gage’s good buddy is probably back there putting the last nail in my coffin.”
“Well, don’t forget...you, um, probably had just a teeny bit to do with that. Don’t give up, okay?” Alythia urged once they’d stopped laughing.
“I won’t....” Jeena considered, working kinks out of her neck. “Gage isn’t the only one who makes the decisions anyway. There’s a long list of stuffed shirts that get to chime in and choose the best bid.”
“Bid?” Aly’s bright eyes narrowed. “For renting office space?”
“Not just any office space. Prime real estate in the heart of downtown.”
“You’re sure?” Aly felt her breath grow labored. “Sure it belongs to Gage?”
“No, and that’s the thing. He’s keeping his name out of the forefront.”
“Then how do you—”
“I come across a lot of info in my line of work. Gage Vincent may make all his money being the top dog, but he doesn’t make it by being the only dog. He’s very good at placing people right where he wants them.”
“But you’re sure he’s the lead in all this?”
“Well, nothing’s for sure.” Jeena leaned against the wall. “Unfortunately, none of my clients are members of his inner circle regarding the thing, so I decided to take a stab at talking to Gage directly.” She studied her manicure and shrugged. “Once Orchid and Jay announced their engagement, I figured...one mutual friend looking out for another mutual friend and all that jazz....”
“Right...” Aly dropped down onto the arm of a nearby chair, her thoughts on the building she herself was hoping to secure lodgings inside.
“Right.” Jeena’s smile was sour yet easy. “I’m gonna go and book that flight.” She tugged Aly into a hug. “Thanks, sweetie.”
Alythia watched Jeena until she had disappeared into a small crowd gathered in the elevator bay.
“Margarita sampler, ma’am?”
Alythia tuned in to a smiling young woman who was garbed in a metallic blue bikini with a stark white wrap tied asymmetrically over the bottom. On her palms, she balanced a round tray of margarita shots.
Aly took one of the shots and downed it. “Forget the samples and lead me to the nearest pitcher,” she said.
* * *
Aly’s midmorning meeting with Clive Weeks was two parts laughter and light chatter and one part business. She’d all but camped out at the seaside bar that the helpful waitress with the tray of margaritas had guided her to. When she’d asked Clive if he would mind moving the meeting there, he’d been all too pleased by the location change.
Another pitcher of margaritas later, the two had shaken hands on the deal. Clive had even spoken to his lawyer about the preliminary paperwork to set things in motion. When Clive and Aly had parted ways, she maintained her comfy spot on the cushiony peach sofa that occupied one corner of the terrace. After several long moments of people and view watching, she called Marianne to share news of the Anegada boutique and then breached the subject she’d really called to discuss.
“Well, info about who the decision makers are is being closely guarded but...” Marianne’s sigh came over her end of the line “...rumor is that Vincent is the ‘top dog’ just like Jeena said.”
“Rumor? Do you think that’s all it is?”
“So far? Well, yeah...but a person wouldn’t have to do much homework to put something like that together. It’s no secret that he’s leasing several office spaces in that building. It stands to reason that he’d go about acquiring the rest and just own the building outright. Everybody knows the man is as smart as he is patient. It’s one of the things that makes him so successful.”
Aly felt a sharp chill and began to curse the shorts she’d donned that morning. “Is there any way to make sure, Mari?”
“Well, there’s always a way. I’ve heard some of our competitors for the new space have already...reached out, sending bribes to some of the top folks.”
“Money?”
“Money, sex, promises for sex.” Marianne ticked off the list.
“Great.” Aly feathered f
ingers across her brow.
“You all right, hon?”
Aly smiled and shook her head. “I’m good, but I’d feel a lot better if you could find out who we’re really looking to go into business with.”
* * *
Feeling depleted and defeated following her chat with Marianne, Alythia decided that an escape to the beach was in order. She certainly couldn’t get into any trouble there. At least, that was what she hoped when she made her way to a surprisingly quiet strip a ways down from the beachfront bar.
Armed with one of the bar’s fruity drinks and a tote bag of top picks from her reading list, Alythia set out for some hopefully uneventful time to herself. Inspired by the margarita-promoting waitress from earlier that day, Aly had slipped into her most daring two-piece for her quiet escape. Still, she kept the lavender bikini hidden beneath a cover-up until she’d reached a more private stretch of beach.
“Hiding?”
“Is it that obvious?” Alythia pulled off her floppy straw hat and looked up at Gage, who stood just a few feet away.
“Just a little.” He took a couple of small steps closer to her, shuffling the fine sand beneath his black sandals as he moved. “Not a very good spot, you know?”
She smiled, staring out over the serene and utterly striking blue waters. “I really didn’t expect it to be completely foolproof.”
A teasing wince narrowed his liquid brown stare. “Ouch.”
Alythia winced, as well. “Gage—”
“Would you come with me?”
“I— Come...where?”
“A better hiding place.”
Alythia gave a little shrug, following Gage’s eyes faltering to the valley between her breasts, which were emphasized by the cut of her bikini top. “This one looks pretty good to me.”
“You’ll disagree with that soon enough.”
“You sound sure of that.” She visored a hand to her brow to study him more accurately.
“I’ve got every reason to.”
“So? Where is this oasis?” When he simply looked toward the water, Alythia frowned his way for a second before she followed the direction of his gaze. She hadn’t noticed the sailboat before and wondered if he had orchestrated the navigation to coincide with his response.
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