Page 30 of Maneater
I look at Rory, who smiles sweetly and nods before we shift around the table closer to our new “friend.”
“Horace.”
I grip his offered hand and give it a dainty shake. “Josephine. You can call me Josie, though. And this is my friend Aurora.”
I’m pretty sure Rory corrects me and tells him her nickname, but I’m unable to pay much attention because I just watched Rowan Fisher walk into the room and greet a woman one table over from us before sitting down with a wide, gracious smile.
Dinner with a guest.
It’s interesting how he said he couldn’t have dinner with me because it would be considered fraternizing, something he doesn’t do.
I force my body to remain relaxed, not to let the brewing jealousy I’m attempting to ignore show on my face. Jealousy, I certainly have no right to feel. He is nothing like me, and I am currently working on winning over another man. I don’t think Horace would notice, if we’re being honest, since he’s rambling on about his watch collection, grabbing his phone to show each one. Still, I need to stay focused on why I’m here and what my mission is: uncovering who is sabotaging this resort.
With that reminder, I manage to push the distraction of Rowan down, and thirty minutes later, I’ve nearly forgotten about him. Horace has shown us dozens of photos of all the many luxuries he has, while Rory and I oohed and ahhed at each one, fluffing up his ego.
“Is this your first time here?” he asks, finally shifting the conversation back to us, andRory nods.
“Yes. We’re excited to experience everything this place has to offer. You?”
Horace shakes his head. “No, no. I’ve been to many of the Daydream resorts, though this is my favorite.”
“Oh yeah? That’s so cool,” Rory says. “What line of work do you do to allow for that?” She twirls a lock of her blonde hair around her finger and makes doe eyes at the man. He falls for it, of course.
“I work in aviation,” he says, then thinks on it before giving us a condescending smile. “That’s airplanes.”
Rory’s fingers dig into my thigh with irritation, and I bite back a groan of pain. Rory is not great at this part of the game: playing stupid for arrogant men who can’t quite see past your tits, the ones who think you have barely two brain cells to rub together, so they have to spell things out for you like a toddler. It’s not for her, with her master’s in cybersecurity and a brain as powerful as a supercomputer.
But me? I’m used to it. In fact, I thrive on it: using people’s shortsightedness against them and manipulating people to get whatever I need from them. It brings me a unique kind of joy.
“Wow, that’s so amazing! I’d love to hear about the other locations you’ve been to,” I say. He rattles off a list, and I try to take note of them, though I know Rory and her computer brain have probably already memorized each one.
“I’ve been kicking around opening my own resort, so it’s important to know how the good ones are run.”
I look at my partner, who gives me a look.
“I actually was interested in this location before it was bought out from under me.”
My eyes go wide with shock, and my lips form a pitying pout. “Oh no! What a bummer!”
“Yes, I thought it would be perfect for a resort. Had a golf course in mind, instead of those ridiculous hiking trails. Who wants to go out into the woods when they’re on vacation?” He sighs and rolls his eyes,shaking his head. “A beautiful resort, don’t get me wrong, but it could have been magnificent if I’d had my way.”
“I’m sure it would have been amazing,” I say sympathetically, despite the fact that I hate golf and enjoy hiking.
“So, what are your thoughts on all of the chaos happening around here? We’ve heard some whispers about a fire?” Rory asks, tipping her head to the side and twirling a lock of hair on her finger. She leans in, arms pressing her cleavage together, and Horace’s eyes slide right there before he speaks to her tits.
“Well, I think it wouldn’t be happening if I ran the place, that’s for sure.” I let out a small laugh, and he shrugs. “Who knows? Maybe it’ll get worse, and they’ll sell the place to me for cheap just to get it off their hands.”
My leg shifts, brushing Rory’s in a silent conversation. Horace Greenfeld is most definitely a suspect, with means, motivation, and opportunity all in his favor.
But my mind can only hold onto that for a moment when he looks over my shoulder, his face splitting with a grin before raising his voice a bit. “Actually, let me introduce you to the man who outbid me. Rowan!” he calls, and my back stiffens. Rory’s foot knocks mine under the table, though I can’t tell if it’s in an annoyed or panicked way. “Rowan Fisher, my man. How are you?”
I refuse to look over my shoulder to check if he’s approaching, though I don’t have to: I canfeelhim.
In moments, Rowan’s presence is at my back, and then his hand rests on the back of my chair, reminiscent of so many other investigations he’s crashed, reminiscent of just a few nights ago. If I concentrate really, really hard, I can imagine them against the curve of my shoulder, grazing the skin there like a taunt.
“Horace. A pleasure to see you at one of our resorts, as always,” his deep voice says.
Rory’s fingers tighten on my leg. I’m grateful for it, for her keeping me grounded. I don’t look behind me, not even when I actuallydofeel his fingers grazing the skin at the back of myneck. It’s probably an accident, but it jolts through me all the same in an incredibly concerning way.
