Page 10 of Save Me
A furrow wrinkles his brow. “You okay?”
“Huh?” I realize I’m staring at him. I’malwaysstaring at him. “Yeah. I’m fine. Just … today didn’t go as planned.” My entire life just swerved toward an unknown and chaotic road ahead.
“Your captain spilled?”
I frown. What is he talking about?
“Your tiki captain, Jeremy. Did he tell the others they got blacklisted from the hotel?” he clarifies.
“Oh. No.” I pause with the reminder. I hadn’t given that a moment’s thought since this morning. “Jer promised he wouldn’t say anything, but Cody probablywill. Who knows when.” Great. Now I get to worry about being pregnantandstaffless in high season.
It’s shady beneath the canopy of the trees and beside the house, and a chill runs through me from standing here in a wet bathing suit. I duck past Ronan and drape my towel on a hook before stepping into the shower stall.
“Wish I’d had a chance to punch that fucker in the mouth yesterday,” Ronan murmurs as he sizes up the bamboo walls and river rock floor and the brass taps that give the outdoor shower an upscale feel. Frank cursed those stones while he was installing them like Gordon Ramsay berating his cooking contestants, but the end result is one of my favorite parts of the entire thing.
“Consider yourself lucky. Knowing Cody, he’d sue you. He’ll do anything for a fat paycheck. Trust me, I know. He tried to sell this place out from under me.”
A troubled look flashes across Ronan’s face. “Yeah, well, his source no longer works for Wolf.”
“You fired her? I mean, you figured out who it was?” Which poor, foolish woman joined the ranks of those who fell under Cody’s spell?
“Wasn’t hard. And yes, I did.” More to himself, he adds, “At least I can do that much.”
“You didn’t have to.”
“I wanted to.”
Though it doesn’t change the reality that Cody can still ruin my reputation, that Ronan did that for me is … something. “Thanks.”
His gaze roams my face, settling on my lips. “You’re welcome.”
Any second now, I’m going to forget everything elseexcept how good that mouth feels on mine. Needing a distraction, I crank the faucet and wait for the water stream to turn warm before stepping under the rain showerhead.
“You use this a lot?” Ronan leans against the support post, pinning the bunched curtain with his shoulder. His pose suggests he has no plans on leaving.
“Probably more than the shower inside.” Everyone staying here does. There’s ample privacy. Normally I would peel my suit off, but doing so in front of Ronan is an invitation for a repeat performance of our last two encounters, and now is not the day for that.
I will admit, though, I like having his attention, and it is certainly rapt, his green eyes heated as he watches me. But what’s more, I’m happy he’s here, despite everything.
I reach for my loofah. “So, Henry Wolf arrived today, right? How’s that going?”
“It’s … going.”
“That good, huh?” A big part of me is curious about the billionaire CEO. Is he truly as indomitable as the newspapers and magazines make him out to be? Ronan doesn’t seem to like him much. Based on what Connor was saying on the cruise yesterday, it sounds like Ronan may have earned his plum job because of Henry Wolf’s wife. What is the dynamic there? How did he end up being such close friends with her?
And how does Henry Wolf feel about that friendship?
I havesomany questions.
Ronan’s throat bobs with a hard swallow. I may be out of sorts, but he seems on edge today too. That casual,detached swagger is missing. And that expression he wears now, he looks almost pained.
“Seems like you had a tough day too.”
“Yeah, I guess you could say that,” he answers gruffly.
Warm water sluices over my head as I turn away from him, afraid he’ll somehow read the secret on my face.Believe me, your day could get a whole lot worse with just two words out of my mouth.I close my eyes and let the salt water rinse off. I’ll have to have a proper shower later, when I don’t have an audience.
Keys jingle behind me.
