Page 25 of A Billionaire for Christmas
‘Don’t forget your phone.’ He nodded to the bench.
She’d never been so disappointed in her life, and it must have shown on her face. A half-grin tugged at his mouth. ‘I’m surprised you haven’t tried to get me in the hot tub. Or didn’t you notice it on your way in?’
Molly groaned. ‘Please don’t remind me. I’m already embarrassed enough.’
She waited a beat.
Was this him hinting?
Could the hot tub be an option? She was already naked under the towel. Practically halfway through the challenge already. ‘Unless of course you’d like to share a hot tub with me? I’m game if you are.’
She met his fiery gaze.
And like lightning, he was in front of her. His face was hovering close to hers. The electricity flying between them was unmistakeable. ‘Come with me.’ He reached for her hand and yanked open the sauna door, pulling her with him.
This was happening.
It was finally happening.
Molly followed him over to the shower.Yes, good idea, she thought.A hot, soapy shower together before doing the deed. Very spontaneous. Very romantic. Very hygienic.As soon as they reached the mosaic-tiled open shower, overcome with excitement, she flung off her towel expecting him to do the same. How had she ever had a problem with nudity? She looped her arms around his neck, pressing her hot skin against him, and stood on her tiptoes ready for his hungry lips to meet hers.
There was a moment of confusion as she followed Levi’s gaze to the huge wooden bucket above them. Before she had time to protest, he’d pulled the cord and drenched them both in icy water.
‘Are you crazy? This is so not what I thought you had in mind,’ she said, shivering, every nerve in her body tingling.
‘We could both do with cooling off,’ he said sternly, taking two new, huge fluffy white towels from the rack nearby and handing her one.
Molly took it from him and wrapped it quickly around herself as he did the same. He was still looking at her with an intensity she’d never experienced before. She bit her lip, thinking of what to do. What to say. Her mind was a complete blank. Slowly she came to her senses. ‘So, about the hot tub. Are we… Does this mean… Do you…?’
As she tried and failed to form a coherent sentence, her teeth still chattering, Levi put his hands on her shoulders. ‘Look, I don’t want this to sound rude but…’
He was giving her the brush off. He was giving her thebrush off!Hewas givingherthe brush off! Her whole being drooped. ‘Oh, you are way past rude, mister. Way past. You’re doing it again, aren’t you? OH. MY. GOD. What is wrong with me?’ She stepped away from him, her eyes full of fire. ‘How dare you! Can’t I have just one magical bloody moment in an effing hot tub to treasure without you ruining it?’
‘You work here. You’re off limits. Okay? It’s very simple.’ He looked her dead in the eye.
His words felt like a slap.
They stood staring at one another, neither speaking.
A disturbing pattern was beginning to emerge. Had he forgotten he’d already humiliated her, leaving her naked in his other hot tub? And now here he was, doing it all over again.
9
HELL HATH NO FURY
Molly woke in a blaze of fury. She had not managed to sleep one wink, plagued by dreams of Levi. She was furious with him, but she was more furious with herself. She’d thrown herself at him yet again.
After showering and dressing, she thumped through to the kitchen to check the notes Toby had left and to see what time the family were expected to arrive. Outside every window there was a blanket of white sweeping over the land, enveloping the glittering boughs of the pine trees that completed the picture-perfect wintry scene. Snow had fallen heavily during the night and was still coming down very thickly. There was no sign of Levi, but the fire in the living room was roaring, giving off a delicious heat throughout the open-plan lounge. Levi must have lit it before he left. At the thought of him, her chest twanged with disappointment. She felt like a prize fool. A naïve, stupid, infatuated idiot. She reached out to take the notes stuck to the front of the fridge and studied them. Levi’s name was first on the list, the rest of the family’s names below.Oh God.He would be staying here the whole time. There would be no escaping him. He would be a constant reminder of how she had embarrassed herself.
Her phone pinged with a message. It was Toby announcing that they would be staying at the resort again tonight due to the inclement weather. He made no mention of Levi.
Molly decided it was time for a bit of googling. She typed Levi’s name into the search engine, checking Toby’s list to make sure she got the correct spelling of their French surname.
‘Don’t bother,’ said Levi, coming up behind her. ‘The Wi-Fi’s been off all morning. Don’t bother with mobile either. The 5G keeps dropping out.’
She spun round, whipping her phone away. Like a hawk, he put two and two together, eyeing her phone with suspicion.
‘Googling me?’
