“Out!”
“I’ll await you in the hall.”
Another small poof of smoke and she was alone in the room.
She hoped.
43
Not like there was anyway she’d know for sure. She pulled the shirt over her head and slipped her arms through the holes. Only then did she take the rest of the bikini top off, sliding it out through the arm hole. Another few fancy maneuvers and she had her bra on.
Her bottom was another matter all together. Rather than risk exposing her white, naked ass to him, she slid the shorts over the bathing suit bottoms. It might as well be underwear for the amount of skin they covered. Once she was able to snap the button that held the shorts in place, Viola sighed. After wearing the revealing suit, the clingy T-shirt and short shorts didn’t seem so bad.
Her hair was another matter. The flat strands clung to her scalp like a shirt to damp skin. She tried scratching some life into it with her nails, but it didn’t seem to help.
Maybe a makeover wouldn’t be so bad after all.
Who was she kidding—this was going to be hell. She was nothing like the type of woman Bill normally gravitated to. Too smart for starters. And, as Jerod pointed out, not endowed enough for his liking. She should forget the whole thing, wish for ten million dollars and world peace like a normal human being and be done with the whole affair.
She could almost hear her mother in the back of her mind telling her to do just that.
That’s what she would do! Maybe she’d wish for her mom to be a happier person.
Though Viola doubted even a genie could fix that. No, there was no point to backing out now. If she didn’t go after Bill, learn what it takes to seduce a man, she’d always have doubts and regrets.
Armed with her room key and fresh resolve, Viola marched into the hallway, ready to take on the task of winning Bill. Jerod was leaning up against the wall when she came out. He smirked.
“You still couldn’t do it, even though I wasn’t in the room.”
“Do what?”
“Get naked.”
“How do you know that?”
“I can see through walls.”
44
She felt her face grow hot. “Jerk.”
“You are too easy to tease. We’ll work on that as well, help get you a thicker skin.
Shall we be off?”
He held out his arm and waited for her to take it. The desire to hit him, knock that smug look right off his face was almost overpowering. Instead she slipped her arm through his and proceeded to walk down the hall toward the elevator. She began to march full steam ahead, but Jerod held her back, slowing her pace. After a few minutes of silent struggle, she gave up and relaxed. The down button depressed magically by itself as they approached.
“Lazy,” she quipped.
When he didn’t say anything, she bumped him with her shoulder. Jerod sighed and Viola caught a glimpse of his naked chest under his vest. The man was too sexy for his own good.
“You need to change your appearance. People will stare at you.”
“You mean people will stare at
us
. Does that bother you?” She hadn’t thought about it before. Bill certainly liked to stare, but never at her.
She’d never really sought out the limelight. She was more comfortable doing her thing quietly in the background. But she wasn’t about to admit that.
“I’m fine with it. Love it in fact. I just thought you wouldn’t want to attract too much attention. Considering what you are.”
The elevator chimed its arrival. The doors slid open and they entered. Jerod met her gaze in the mirror.
“No one would fathom that I am what I am. They’ll simply think I’m your eccentric new boy-toy.”
“Boy-toy?” she laughed. “That doesn’t sound right coming from a…how old are you?”
“Three thousand, one hundred and thirty-seven years.” Viola opened her mouth to repeat his age but gave her head a shake. “That’s old.”
“I prefer mature.”
45
“You’re changing the subject.”
He shrugged. “I do need to keep with the times. Otherwise it becomes challenging to grant wishes. I have gone many years between masters, but can see the world change from within my prison. It only takes a little magic.” The elevator chimed their arrival on the spa level of the resort. A pile of giggling high school girls waited to enter, so Viola couldn’t question him further. She slipped past them quickly, but realized Jerod wasn’t moving as fast.
“Ladies,” he said and bowed his head as he sauntered past.
As he reached her side, she heard the girls whispering. The door started to close until one of the bolder ones held it open for a second and shouted, “If they can’t fix her up for you, mister, come visit us on floor eight.”
They all burst into laughter and disappeared behind the metal barrier.
Viola winced. Nothing like the brutal honesty of youth to put things into perspective.
This was a colossal waste of time.
“That was very rude.” Jerod scowled at the door.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve been told worse. Let’s go see if the hairdressers have some magic to rival yours.”
He didn’t move, focused intently on a spot on the ceiling.
“Jerod? Come on,” she said and walked a short distance ahead.
Only after he smiled did he join her. She suddenly had a very bad feeling.
“What did you do?”
He turned and gave her a look of pure innocence. Not that she bought it for a second.
“What makes you think I’ve done anything?”
Viola looked at the spot he’d been staring at and then back at him. “Lucky guess.
’Fess up.”
He shrugged. “I simply put a rat in their room.” Viola’s hand flew to her mouth as she tried to not giggle.
“You didn’t.”
“They need to learn about karma. It will help them later on in life. Shall we?” 46
Jerod held out his arm and waited for her to take it. Viola shook her head and slipped her arm through his. “Remind me not to piss you off.” They walked through the beveled French doors that led to the spa. Most of the basement level was occupied by the massive beauty operation. A light perfumed mist filled the air, and a festive Mexican song played over the sound system. Several women walked between rooms with a strange array of green, black, and beige mud slathered on their faces. They all wore white, fluffy bathrobes and were sipping drinks.
“Welcome to Paradise!”
A tall, skinny man in his late thirties approached them. His bald head caught the light and shone bright in the dim room. Viola smiled despite herself when he reached out, grabbed her hand and began to poke at her cuticles.
“I’m Peter, the owner of Paradise Spa.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Viola.”
Peter patted her hand as he looked up and pursed his lips.
“Darling, I’m so glad you’ve come. Your hair must just hate this humid climate for it to be sleeping on the job like that.” He snorted a laugh. “Don’t fret, pet, I’ll get my best girls on the job and when they’re through, Mr. Yummy here will be eating out of your hands.”
The man gave a little growl toward Jerod and clapped his hands together.
“Val, sweetie, I have a special one for you.” Jerod cleared his throat. “Would Lisa be free?” Viola shot him a confused stare, but didn’t comment.
“Oh, Lisa’s booked solid right now. Sorry, love.”
“Actually my three o’clock just cancelled.”
A woman who could have graced the cover of any magazine she wanted strolled out from the side office. Her blonde hair and rich hazel eyes looked natural. She smiled at Viola.
“I’m Lisa. Nice to meet you.”
The women shook hands and Viola immediately liked her. She silently hoped Jerod 47
hadn’t done anything to cause that three o’clock appointment to cancel.
“Thanks, Peter. I’ll take it from here. She’ll be a few hours if you want to come back for her.” She said the last to Jerod.
Viola thought he would stick around to watch her transformation. Instead he surprised her by thanking Lisa. He took Viola’s hand in his and placed a kiss in the exact spot he had before. The tingle returned to take her breath away. Looking up, he grinned, showing every single one of his perfectly white teeth.
“I’ll return when you are done.”
And then he was gone.
“What’s with the pajamas?” Peter whispered once Jerod had left.
Her mind buzzed through the possibilities.
“It was a bet. He lost.”
“Oh, I get it,” Peter practically squealed. “Master and servant. Kinky. Enjoy your spa. Lisa, read her the fine print.”
Peter spun on his heels and disappeared into the office.
Viola faced Lisa. “He’s…”
“Interesting. I know. His heart is huge and we all love him, so not a word. Now, what can I do for you?”
Viola straightened. “I need you to make me drop-dead gorgeous. I know you don’t have much to work with, but anything you can do to make me more…”
What was the
right word?
“…more alluring, you’d have my undying love and thanks.” Lisa linked her arm into Viola’s. “What do you mean I don’t have much to work with? You just need a little polishing, hon. There’s good stuff under there.”
“I’ll take your word for it.”
For the next two and a half hours, Viola was at Lisa’s mercy. The first thing after the most amazing shampoo and head massage of her life, was a haircut. Her hair had hung straight down her back like a weighted curtain since high school. It’s not that she didn’t want to have something fun done to it, but she was scared shitless that she’d ask for the wrong thing and have a repeat of the bad perm when she was twelve. Plus, she’d never 48
been good with hair.
That didn’t seem to matter to Lisa.
“I can cut, color and style you based on what I think will make you look like a model if you want. Or you can choose your new glam from a book. But either way, your hair’s coming off.”
Viola took a deep breath. “I trust you. Go for it.” Lisa gave Viola’s shoulders a squeeze. “That’s a girl. Close your eyes if you want, but I’m going to be performing major surgery to get you the look you want. Okay?” Viola closed her eyes and prayed. “Okay.”
The scissors squeaked in her ear as they pruned her head. Lisa chatted away, occasionally needing Viola to respond, but mostly proceeded to fill her in on the sights around the island. When Lisa began to apply highlights, their talk turned to some of the older resorts around the island.
“Oh, most of the places get upgraded to better spots. This place was like that about ten years ago. Some others get torn down and the land is reclaimed.” Lisa smiled as she slopped another glop of the color on Viola’s hair. “There’s one spot though, that’s been converted into a bit of a shelter. Nice spot, but the building is falling apart.”
“Be nice to have a pile of cash to be able to give away enough to help people like that. Not that I have any myself.” Some days, it would be nice if she could save the world.
“Well, it will take more than money, from what I’ve heard. But I’ve never been there myself.” Lisa paused snipping for a second. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“Don’t take this wrong, but you said you have a crush on your boss, right?”
“Yes,” Viola said slowly. She didn’t like where this was going.
“So can I ask about the man who brought you here?” Her immediate reaction was to defend her feelings for Bill. God, she’d only known Jerod for a day, it’s not like she had any feelings for him. But if she was completely honest with herself, that wasn’t entirely true.
49
“I just met Jerod today. He’s more of a friend than anything.”
“Well, I’m just being nosy,” Lisa said, offering a sly smile. “I’ve seen a lot of vacation romances over the past few years, and you two look like you fit the bill. All I’m saying.”
Viola mentally chewed that over while Lisa proceeded to wash the dye out of her hair and blow-dry her to perfection. She couldn’t have any sort of relationship with Jerod, could she?
The switch from the dryer clicked off, leaving Viola’s ears ringing. She’d kept her eyes shut the entire time, not wanting to be freaked out by the process. Hopefully the end result would be worth it. She heard Lisa sigh when she spun her around.
“Are you ready?”
No!
“Hit me.”
“Open them.”
Viola’s heart began to pound as she first opened one eye then the other. Her hair, once reaching her elbows, now rested gently on her shoulders. Lisa had cut layers that gave it some bounce. The blonde and red highlights brought color to her face and somehow made her hazel eyes shine.
“Wow.”
Lisa chuckled. “I told you. Only needed a little polish.”
“Wow.”
Viola leaned forward and touched a strand that hugged her chin. The soft strands slid between her fingers with ease. Her whole head felt ten pounds lighter and she looked ten years younger, which was surprising, considering she wasn’t even thirty yet.