Page 8 of Hired By the Enemy
I’ve talked to my friend Andrew, who also came up with a tech idea when he was in college and turned it into a multi-million-dollar company, and he’s assured me it’s normal to sometimes feel like Frodo at the meeting of the Elves at Rivendell.
When I employed Paul, I’d hoped he could be Gandalf to my Frodo.
But instead, he’s turning out to be more of an orc.
Paul stops and blinks a few times as he takes in the sight of Liam sprawled on a lounger, surrounded by new devotees.
“Oh, I see we have a new arrival.” He plonks onto the spare lounger next to Liam and offers a hand. “Hi, I’m Paul.”
Liam gives him his trademark I-know-you’re-going-to-love-me grin as he reaches out to grab his hand. “Nice to meet you, Paul.”
Seeing my childhood nemesis shake hands with my malevolentemployee feels like two worlds colliding, not in a good way. I know from being an astronomy geek that when planets collide, a rapidly spinning, donut-shaped mass of vaporized rock forms.
I really hope my life won’t be vaporized by the result of Paul and Liam meeting.
Paul withdraws his hand from Liam and throws a look at me. “So this is the boyfriend you’ve been so cagey about, Matthew. Aren’t you punching a bit above your weight? You’re not having to pay him, are you?” He laughs after he’s said the words, but I still take a sharp breath.
My cheeks instantly heat, and Paul’s eyes zoom in on my face. Shit.
I can’t help flicking a glance at Liam. If he wanted to, this is where he could derail everything by informing the group that, yes, I am actually paying for the privilege of his company. It would be Liam making the final, triumphant move in the war between us.
“I think if there was any money exchanged, I’d be the one paying Matthew,” Liam says smoothly, and my eyebrows fly upward.
Paul’s eyebrows also shoot up. His gaze flies between us, and he pauses for a moment before plastering on a smirk. “You obviously get to see some sides of Matthew we don’t see just from working with him.”
Liam gives a saucy wink. “I really hope none of you get to see my favorite sides of Matthew.”
There’s a titter of laughter from everyone besides Paul. My shoulders unclench.
Okay, so Liam is going to keep his promise to act like a proper boyfriend.
I settle back on my lounger and tilt my face to the sun, allowing myself to relax under the warm rays.
We hang out at the pool for a couple of hours and Liam continues his charm offensive, even getting Paul and Paul’s wife, Annette, to laugh at his jokes. I didn’t think it was possible, but his game seems to have gone up another level since high school.
Liam’s effortless charm has always infuriated me, but now it’s for my benefit, so I’m a conflicted mix of irritated and grateful when we finally head back to the villas to get changed for dinner.
“So? Are you happy with my performance so far?” Liam asks as soon as we’re inside the door.
“You can be remarkably charming when you want to be,” I concede. “Which really is a testament to your acting skills. Think you can keep it up tonight?”
“You know I can, baby.”
Just hearing Liam’s smooth voice causes my hackles to rise. It’s the voice that taunted me throughout my childhood and teenage years.
I cling to that fact as he pulls down his bathing suit and stands stark naked without a trace of self-consciousness as he rummages through his luggage for something to wear.
My throat goes dry.
Because…shit…Liam naked.
I have to summon up every ounce of willpower to not glance at the most perfect specimen of masculinity I’ve ever seen as I gather my clothes to take into the bathroom. As I make my retreat, Liam snorts derisively. “Seriously? You can’t handle even getting dressed in front of me? I hate to remind you, but I’ve shared locker rooms with you, Matthew, and I’ve always found the power to resist you.”
I spin back to face him. Thankfully, he’s pulled on pants, so it’s easier to keep my voice even as I reply, “It’s more like I don’t completely trust being naked around you. Maybe it’s childhoodtrauma from the time you stole all my clothes at Bradley Elton’s pool party and I had to walk home in my underwear.”
Liam just stares at me for a few heartbeats before returning to buttoning up his shirt.
“If you want to talk about clothing pranks, you might want to remember the itching powder incident,” he says finally.
