Authors: Altonya Washington
“But you’re sure he’s the lead in all this?”
“Well, nothing’s for sure.” Jeena leaned against the wall. “Unfortunately, none of my clients are members of his inner circle regarding the thing, so I decided to take a stab at talking to Gage directly.” She studied her manicure and shrugged. “Once Orchid and Jay announced their engagement, I figured...one mutual friend looking out for another mutual friend and all that jazz....”
“Right...” Aly dropped down onto the arm of a nearby chair, her thoughts on the building she herself was hoping to secure lodgings inside.
“Right.” Jeena’s smile was sour yet easy. “I’m gonna go and book that flight.” She tugged Aly into a hug. “Thanks, sweetie.”
Alythia watched Jeena until she had disappeared into a small crowd gathered in the elevator bay.
“Margarita sampler, ma’am?”
Alythia tuned in to a smiling young woman who was garbed in a metallic blue bikini with a stark white wrap tied asymmetrically over the bottom. On her palms, she balanced a round tray of margarita shots.
Aly took one of the shots and downed it. “Forget the samples and lead me to the nearest pitcher,” she said.
* * *
Aly’s midmorning meeting with Clive Weeks was two parts laughter and light chatter and one part business. She’d all but camped out at the seaside bar that the helpful waitress with the tray of margaritas had guided her to. When she’d asked Clive if he would mind moving the meeting there, he’d been all too pleased by the location change.
Another pitcher of margaritas later, the two had shaken hands on the deal. Clive had even spoken to his lawyer about the preliminary paperwork to set things in motion. When Clive and Aly had parted ways, she maintained her comfy spot on the cushiony peach sofa that occupied one corner of the terrace. After several long moments of people and view watching, she called Marianne to share news of the Anegada boutique and then breached the subject she’d really called to discuss.
“Well, info about who the decision makers are is being closely guarded but...” Marianne’s sigh came over her end of the line “...rumor is that Vincent is the ‘top dog’ just like Jeena said.”
“Rumor? Do you think that’s all it is?”
“So far? Well, yeah...but a person wouldn’t have to do much homework to put something like that together. It’s no secret that he’s leasing several office spaces in that building. It stands to reason that he’d go about acquiring the rest and just own the building outright. Everybody knows the man is as smart as he is patient. It’s one of the things that makes him so successful.”
Aly felt a sharp chill and began to curse the shorts she’d donned that morning. “Is there any way to make sure, Mari?”
“Well, there’s always a way. I’ve heard some of our competitors for the new space have already...reached out, sending bribes to some of the top folks.”
“Money?”
“Money, sex, promises for sex.” Marianne ticked off the list.
“Great.” Aly feathered fingers across her brow.
“You all right, hon?”
Aly smiled and shook her head. “I’m good, but I’d feel a lot better if you could find out who we’re really looking to go into business with.”
* * *
Feeling depleted and defeated following her chat with Marianne, Alythia decided that an escape to the beach was in order. She certainly couldn’t get into any trouble there. At least, that was what she hoped when she made her way to a surprisingly quiet strip a ways down from the beachfront bar.
Armed with one of the bar’s fruity drinks and a tote bag of top picks from her reading list, Alythia set out for some hopefully uneventful time to herself. Inspired by the margarita-promoting waitress from earlier that day, Aly had slipped into her most daring two-piece for her quiet escape. Still, she kept the lavender bikini hidden beneath a cover-up until she’d reached a more private stretch of beach.
“Hiding?”
“Is it that obvious?” Alythia pulled off her floppy straw hat and looked up at Gage, who stood just a few feet away.
“Just a little.” He took a couple of small steps closer to her, shuffling the fine sand beneath his black sandals as he moved. “Not a very good spot, you know?”
She smiled, staring out over the serene and utterly striking blue waters. “I really didn’t expect it to be completely foolproof.”
A teasing wince narrowed his liquid brown stare. “Ouch.”
Alythia winced, as well. “Gage—”
“Would you come with me?”
“I— Come...where?”
“A better hiding place.”
Alythia gave a little shrug, following Gage’s eyes faltering to the valley between her breasts, which were emphasized by the cut of her bikini top. “This one looks pretty good to me.”
“You’ll disagree with that soon enough.”
“You sound sure of that.” She visored a hand to her brow to study him more accurately.
“I’ve got every reason to.”
“So? Where is this oasis?” When he simply looked toward the water, Alythia frowned his way for a second before she followed the direction of his gaze. She hadn’t noticed the sailboat before and wondered if he had orchestrated the navigation to coincide with his response.
“A jet and a boat, Mr. Vincent. I’m impressed.” Aly appeared anything but as she returned her attention to the book she’d been reading.
“I’ll keep that in mind when I buy a sailboat.” He nodded toward the sea. “That one belongs to Clive.” He circled her slowly, retrieving her cover-up from where she’d tossed it over her tote bag. “Come with me. You’ll be able to read a lot more out there than over here.”
“Oh?” She closed her book. “Because we’ll be all alone out there and uninterrupted?”
“There’s that.” He smiled, sparking the deep single dimple as he rubbed her cover-up between his fingers. “Aside from the crew, we’ll be on our own but I was referring to the sun.” He squinted toward the gorgeous skies above. “You wouldn’t want to risk damaging that skin.” His expression was blatantly appraising as his eyes trailed her body.
Alythia couldn’t deny his point. She had brought a folding seat but hadn’t thought to bring an umbrella. Gage then offered his hand. Aly regarded him only a few more seconds before she accepted his hospitality. Gathering her belongings, she stood. Gage relieved her of her things, helped her into her cover-up and escorted her in the direction of the pier.
* * *
“Incredible.” Despite her hesitation, Aly couldn’t fake nonchalance and act as though the view from the bow of the boat wasn’t extraordinary.
“Thanks,” she said in reference to both the refill on her mojito and the hour of solitude she’d enjoyed aboard the boat.
Gage gave her a mock toast with his own glass. “Thanks for coming along.” He sipped of his mojito and then turned his back on the view to study her instead. “I wasn’t sure where we stood after this morning.”
“Do you mind if we don’t...?” Aly set down her drink and returned to the two lounge chairs covered by a massive umbrella.
“Not a problem.” Gage swallowed back half of his mojito and joined Aly.
“Clive’s really created something special here, hasn’t he?” Aly drew her legs up to her chest and regarded the expanse of blue sea and sky as far as she could see.
“Yeah...he’s, um...he’s got a habit of spotting that kind of thing.”
Alythia looked over her shoulder, intending to ply Gage with an agreeable look. The raw hunger she saw in his eyes froze her instead. When he moved to close the distance between them, she shook her head.
“Gage—” Surprise had rendered her speechless, incapable of finishing her statement. He’d taken her by the waist and placed her in a straddle across his lap, relieving her of her cover-up as he did. He settled her beautifully and Aly could feel herself melting when he was nudging the middle of her bikini bottom with the obvious erection beneath his denim shorts. He fondled one cheek while his other hand disappeared into her hair, drawing her into his kiss.
Aly could hear herself moaning even before their tongues engaged. Her nails rasped across the silken whiskers darkening his gorgeous face as her full lips suckled his tongue. She withdrew from the kiss, biting her lip on a moan when his thumb drifted to her thighs and he began a stunning assault on the nub of sheer sensation above her femininity. She shuddered, overwhelmed by wave after wave of delight as he worked the nub with greater intensity.
He laid her across the two chairs, slowly relieving her of the bikini top with long tugs of the ties that secured the garment. She was barely halfway out of the top when his face was buried between the pert, dewy globes.
For a time, he nuzzled his face in her cleavage, sighing her name as he did so. Alythia arched sharply when he helped himself to a ravenous suckling of her firming nipples. Then, incredibly, she was being treated to another marvelous caress when his fingers grazed the petals of her womanhood. Just barely did he venture inside her walls. Alythia hungered for him. She desperately circled her hips on his slight caress.
“Gage...”
She could say nothing further, but apparently the sigh of his name was enough to cool Gage’s hormones.
“You’re right,” he said, pressing a last kiss to the valley between her heaving breasts. Withdrawing his fingers, he drew her top back into place and smiled down. “This isn’t the place.”
“No.” She shook her head. “No, Gage, I didn’t mean—”
He silenced her with a soft kiss. “We should head back anyway. The crew is discreet but we shouldn’t push it.”
“Gage?” She pushed herself up on the lounge when he left her.
Chapter 9
A
s flavorful tropical drinks with charming umbrellas had kept Aly in a calm frame of mind for much of the day, she figured, why tinker with what was working? She took a late lunch in her suite, refusing to acknowledge the voice that cried “coward” in her mind.
She’d told Clive that she’d be leaving early and the man insisted on treating her to dinner before she vanished. A phone call to Jeena proved to be the bright spot when the woman shared that she wouldn’t be leaving until 11:00 a.m. the next day.
Alythia talked her friend into getting dolled up and meeting for drinks before her dinner with Clive. Jeena was in so long as drinks were involved. Aly was glad Jeena hadn’t asked why she wasn’t trying to spend the evening with Gage. Though Aly still needed confirmation on whether Gage was connected to that building.
But didn’t she have that already? And why did it matter? She hadn’t done anything wrong. It wasn’t as if she’d been trying to seduce him into accepting her bid.
No. She
hadn’t
been, but she hadn’t had all the facts, either. What would it mean for her to have them and not tell him? Especially if their relationship became more...physical? She wished herself luck with that and refused to think of what had happened between them earlier on the boat. Besides, if the man was as smart as he seemed, then he’d simply write her off as another wild woman, given what he’d seen over the two and a half days they’d known each other.
Then was not the time to think of that, though, Aly decided. Not with another fruity drink calling her name. Still, she checked the clockface visible beneath the bracelets adorning her wrists.
“We hear you’re leaving us, miss,” a bartender noted when Alythia had claimed a spot at the L-shaped glass bar in the restaurant where she was to meet Clive.
“Word travels fast.” Aly didn’t hide the surprise from her face.
“Friends of Mr. Weeks’s get our highest attention, of course.”
“Of course.” Aly smiled.
“On the house.” The man presented a glass of wine.
Smile widening, Aly raised the glass in toast. “Thank you.” She sipped, relishing the cool and subtly fruity taste of the blend against her tongue before she swallowed. She turned on the stool and observed the area and was energized by all the bodies moving to the affecting rhythms produced by the band that had come in from St. Croix to perform that evening. She had tried to encourage Jeena to stay a while longer and enjoy more of the band, perhaps do a little dancing, but Jeena was obviously in no mood to try her luck with another member of the opposite sex. Alythia celebrated her friend’s decision, her smile waning when Dane Spears came into her line of sight.
“Don’t go, please.” Dane raised his hands, seeing Alythia preparing to scoot from the barstool. “I just want to apologize.”
“You don’t owe one. Not to me.”
Dane’s lips thinned as he accepted her meaning. “I’m still sorry that things got so out of hand.” He shrugged, sending a quick ripple through the snug crimson crew shirt he wore. “Once it all started to go off track, nobody knew how to get it right again.”
“Dane—” Aly sighed impatiently and then deigned to give him a quick glare “—just because we have mutual friends about to marry doesn’t mean we’re obligated to be friends.” Again she made a move to leave.
“Please.” Dane moved before her. “I really do feel bad about all this.” He dropped a hand to her shoulder, left bare by the flirty swing dress she sported.
Aly gave a pointed look toward his hand, which he promptly removed. “It’s in the past.” She slipped off the barstool, leaving him no choice but to back away. “The resort’s a big place with more people coming in every day. I’m sure we’ll all make new friends soon enough.”
Dane nodded, his gaze appraising. “I see why G’s so attached to you.”
Alythia smiled, resisting the urge to roll her eyes.
Dane moved closer. “Things might’ve been nicer had I met you first.”
“Ahh...Dane...I don’t know.” Her smile becoming more genuine, Alythia retrieved her drink from the bar. “Slapping and punching necks really isn’t my speed. I like to aim for places a bit more memorable.” With that said, she threw a sultrier element into her stare and let her gaze drift below Dane’s waist. She waited until his expression confirmed that she was understood and then left him standing alone at the bar.
Despite Alythia’s underlying threat, Dane had apparently not taken full benefit of the hint. He looked ready to follow but instead ventured in the opposite direction.
* * *
Gage was relieved to see Dane walking away from the bar area, since his friends were the last people he wanted to see. He was too busy hoping his scheme with Clive, albeit contrived, would work. He’d played a hunch that Alythia would want to catch the first flight back to Charlotte following another disastrous exchange between their friends.
Once Clive had confirmed that, the two put their heads together and had come up with the goodbye dinner to celebrate the beginning of their new business alliance. What Alythia didn’t know was that Gage would be her dinner partner instead of Clive. Gage could only hope that evening would fare better than all the rest.
When he arrived at the restaurant and set eyes on his intended date, Gage could only chuckle over his new stream of rotten luck. Alythia had taken a place on one of the four long rust-colored sofas that had been situated to form cozy seating in the clearing that separated the restaurant’s bar and dining areas.
Of course, the area being located in virtually the middle of the place made it impossible to miss anyone seated there—especially any
woman
seated there alone and most especially when she looked like Alythia Duffy.
Apparently the man cozied up next to her had decided to stake a claim instead of merely observing.
“Having your usual, Mr. V?” a bartender inquired when Gage propped an elbow on one of the high-backed chairs. The man was already placing Gage’s favorite brew on the counter.
“How long’s Miss Duffy been here?” Gage asked, still watching Alythia across the room.
“About fifteen minutes, sir. She was talking with Mr. Spears a little earlier.”
“Hell,” Gage grumbled too low for the barkeep to hear. “Is he still around?”
“I saw him not long ago. I’m sure I can track him down for you, sir.”
“Don’t bother.” Gage threw back a swig of the beer, dropped several bills to the bar and stood.
* * *
Alythia laughed over conversation from the man seated a bit too close to her. That laughter curbed when she saw him straighten and appear less amused as he stared up over her head. She turned, following the line of the man’s gaze, looking back and up.
“Gage?” She didn’t mask her surprise at finding him next to the sofa. “What—”
“Clive asked me to join you guys for dinner.”
“Oh...” She blinked and then waved toward the man seated at her right. “Roger Harrison, Gage Vincent.” She waited for the men to shake hands. Her eyes widened a fraction when she noticed Roger wincing when Gage squeezed his hand.
“Nice to meet you.” Gage coolly released his hold on Roger’s hand to take Alythia’s arm and guide her up from the sofa.
“Uh, Roger, it—it’s nice talking to you,” Aly threw over her shoulder while she was unceremoniously escorted away.
“We’re leaving?” she queried, noticing the restaurant exit in their path. She received no answer and wasn’t too surprised. Aly waited until they’d taken an elevator and had ascended a few floors before she fixed Gage with a smug, narrowed look.
“Tsk, tsk, Mr. Vincent. Using business to secure your pleasure. Not very professional,” she gibed, studying the twinkle of lights on the panel while the car traveled up.
The words had only just passed her lips when he came to stand before her and blocked everything from her sight.
“Neither is this,” he said and filled her mouth with his tongue moments later.
Alythia lost the power to command her legs and simply rested back on the paneled siding of the car. She took Gage with her, curving her fingers lightly about the collar of his shirt, wanting him close while she swayed.
Gage braced a hand on the wall to steady himself, while the other maintained a firm grasp about her neck. His thumb positioned beneath her chin, keeping it propped and perfectly aligned to receive his tongue, which outlined, filled and stroked her mouth. Deft, exploring lunges forced telling moans from her throat.
Aly moaned anew at the sound of the elevator dinging to announce their arrival. The moan was one of disappointment. It gained volume when Gage broke the kiss to rain more along her neck and collarbone.
“Stay...” she begged him, raking her nails through the sleek cap of dark brown crowning his head and on to the silky whiskers beginning to roughen his strong jaw. She didn’t want to leave the confines of the car, truly fearing their moment would end.
Gage returned no reply. Instead, he kissed his way down her frame. In the process, he hit a button on the elevator’s control panel, prolonging their exit.
“Gage...” She swallowed, biting her lip and giving in to the strong waves of arousal as he went to his knees before her. “Cameras in the elevator—”
“Not this one,” he said, interrupting her gasp.
Powerfully crafted hands roamed her long legs, beautifully shaped and accentuated by a pair of dazzling glasslike sandals. His touch journeyed upward and back toward her thighs in the wake of his mouth. Anticipation ruled Alythia’s actions and within seconds she felt a warm rush of moisture collecting on her palms.
Gage’s head had disappeared beneath a swath of dress material. The sight of him there sent quivers through her body, forcing her flush into overdrive. Aly felt him there at the crotch of her panties and bit down hard on her bottom lip when she heard his grunt. His nose was nudging the fragrant moistness clinging to her lingerie.
“Gage, I—I’m—” She heard his muffled chuckle and knew he’d correctly guessed that she was about to apologize for her loss of control.
“Will you say you’re sorry every time you come apart on me?” Though muffled, his words resonated on the commanding chords of his rich voice.
Alythia couldn’t answer and he didn’t press, preferring to take her reaction to what he subjected her to as a response. Using the tip of his talented tongue, he traced the stitching along the crotch of her underwear. All the while, he inhaled deeply of her natural fragrance. Aly maintained a desperate hold on his shoulders. The crisp black shirt he wore did nothing to mask their breadth or power. Her fingers flexed into the fabric, fortifying her grip until her hands lost the ability to grasp anything.
Soon her fingers were splayed out along either side of her against the car’s paneling. She shouldn’t have been concerned about losing her balance. Gage had her secure in his palms, cradling her ample bottom as he intensified his exploration of her body. One hand slipped, gliding around her thigh to allow his thumb a more intimate sampling.
Alythia’s lips formed a dual bow when they parted in relish over the touch. She pressed her head against the wall, moving it back and forth out of sheer enjoyment of the curious thumb stroking her femininity outlined against the silky fabric of her lingerie. Then the digit was venturing inside, stroking the slick flesh without the barrier of material.
“Gage—” She’d hoped to choke out more than his name, needing to explain that she was then wholly incapable of controlling her body’s reactions. The explanation died on her tongue when his seeking thumb rotated just inside her puckered entrance and then eased in farther.
* * *
Gage rose to his full height, keeping his hand and stroking thumb in place. He watched Alythia taking what he gave her, loving the small helpless sounds she shared each time he deepened the stroke or changed its direction. His hypnotic liquid stare never leaving her face, he hit another button on the car’s control panel. Only then did he deprive Aly of his touch to swing her up into his arms.
There were no other guests in sight as they exited the elevator car and arrived in a bedroom.
“Oh.” She gave a mild start, blinking in wonder at her surroundings. “My room doesn’t do this....” Her voice was small as she studied her surroundings.
“Only two of them do,” he explained, carrying her deeper into the room. “The other belongs to Clive in his apartment.”
“Clive’s very nice to his friends.”
“Yeah, he’s a peach.” Gage reengaged the kiss as the last word silenced on his tongue. He continued a deep exploration of her mouth.
Alythia kissed Gage with an unmasked hunger that gave him the impression that she had no interest in spending their time talking. With a flex of her toes, she angled her foot to maneuver out of the strapless sandals. She arched into his chest when her shoes hit the floor. A smile curved her lips. In moments, Gage swiftly turned Aly so that her back now cushioned the bed that seemed to occupy the entire side of the room.
Their disrobing was frenzied. One quick tug at the row of fastenings below her arm took Aly from her dress to leave her clothed in the sheer panties he had kissed his way through moments earlier. He pulled her hands away when she would have helped him from his clothes. Pressing her wrists to the bed, he gave them a warning press to instruct her to leave them there.
Then he was settling back on his haunches, taking his time to observe her, study her covered by only the scrap of panties. He looked as though he couldn’t decide which part of her he wanted to help himself to first.
Again Aly bit down on her lip. Tentatively, she moved to stroke his thigh, hidden but no less potent beneath the dark material of his trousers. She smiled when he permitted the action. Gage took her hand then, lifting it, turning it over to tongue her palm. Aly used her free hand to tug at the tail of his shirt, already conveniently outside his trousers.
Then she was the one taking inventory of what he bared to her view. Aly reached out, intending to stroke his rigid pack but became distracted by the pronounced ridge beneath his zipper.
Wonder filling her eyes, she applied the lightest strokes to the bulge. He let his head slope forward and she grew bolder with her touch. Gage let himself be pleasured for only a moment. He’d wanted her since he’d seen her and having her there threatened to dissolve all that was left of his restraint. He squeezed her hand and left the bed.