Page 59 of A Taste of Paradise
She fooled herself from the get-go, but now with him standing across from her in this light, the smell of his cologne swimming in her head, there was no denying it. She was seriously attracted to this guy. And that was not good.
‘Mack …’
He interrupted her. ‘Don’t get me wrong, you’re a force of nature, Erin.’ He stepped closer. ‘I’ve seen you try to coerce me into a partnership with this place and then try even harder to fix your mistake. I’ve watched you take on a mountain like you were taking on the world and even potentially put yourself in harm’s way by tackling creatures you know nothing about. I’ve seen you go above and beyond to do nice things to help others – like those two awkward New Yorkers the other day – when most people wouldn’t have cared, and those cranky honeymooners too. I’ve seen you do and do and do for this place, yet you never seem to ask for anything in return. The question is, what do you want? For yourself?’
‘That’s irrelevant, this is my job …’ The conversation was getting dangerous.
‘Let me finish,’ he silenced her gently. ‘People try to manipulate me all the time, be it in the corporate world or day-to-day life. A never-ending parade of people hoping to utilise me for their own gain.’
Erin felt a stab of remorse as she realised she’d been one of those people too.
‘But you …’ Again she felt the tickle of his fingers behind her ear, smoothing her hair behind it. ‘You actually care, don’t you? About people.’
‘It’s my job to care,’ she countered, honestly feeling like a bit of a fraud under this bout of unexpected praise.
‘No, there’s doing your job and then there is truly caring. What you did for Molly and Trevor was cute. Plus what you did for that couple on the beach. And making things that little bit easier for your staff too …’ When she looked up at this, surprised, he added, ‘Like I said, I’ve been watching …’
The beating in her ears was threatening to drive her mad as once again he stepped closer. She looked up at him in anticipation. She didn’t know what she hoped he’d say next.
‘And having seen you in action over the last week or so, I’ve been thinking a lot … about what you and I would be like together.’
There had to be some conflict of interest surely. The problem was, Erin didn’t think she cared at that point. She looked up at him, a rush of expectation flooding through her as she waited for Mack to say that he too had been feeling what she’d been feeling. That he was as attracted to her, as she was to him.
‘The two of us working side by side would make a good team.’
Her heart dropped into her stomach.
‘You mean … you’ve changed your mind about partnering with the resort?’ she croaked, trying to swallow down her disappointment, though of course this was great news too.
‘Let’s just say I’m … in a better frame of mind to be persuaded.’ He grinned noncommittally and Erin felt more confused than ever. But it was a good thing, wasn’t it? Grant would be over the moon. ‘I was supposed to leave tomorrow and check out Breezy Shores next, but I’m going to stick around a little while longer,’ Mack told her, grinning mischievously. ‘There’s this big sunset party I keep hearing about and I’m looking forward to seeing what you’ve got planned. Sounds like it could be interesting.’
Chapter 40
Greg was working again and by now Naomi had tired of asking when he’d deign to join them for dinner. Her parents had taken to eating in their suite in the evenings, preferring the resort’s simpler in-room dining options to the changeable variety of buffet and restaurant choices. As for her sisters, Naomi had no idea where or how they were this evening, and in truth she didn’t care.
Mom-guilt aside, it seemed that Sam was about the only one in their ragtag group enjoying herself on this trip and Naomi was once again grateful to her best friend for always having her back.
That evening, once they’d finished eating, Sam headed off to bed early so Naomi wandered out onto the beach, reluctant to head back to the room. She was still more than a little … unsettled by Greg’s explanation for his so-called business meeting, or more to the point, whether to believe it.
‘It wasn’t a business meeting as such,’ he’d said when back at the room Naomi had queried him about it. ‘It was this couple I met in the restaurant while getting lunch. We got talking, they told me what they did for a living and gave me a brochure they had with them. I was just being polite but really didn’t give a damn one way or the other, which is why I left the brochure behind once they’d left.’
It kind of made sense on a surface level but for some reason …
As Naomi made her way along the shore, she could still hear the hustle and bustle of the resort in the background and catch the delicious aroma of the food being prepared at the various restaurants, but right then nothing but the sound of the ocean held her attention. The water was only steps away and if she were a more spontaneous kind of person, she would have stripped off her dress and dived in to enjoy a late-night swim.
But she wasn’t that kind of person and she was also pretty certain she wasn’t alone.
‘Care to join me?’ Will’s voice drifted across the sand in her direction as he waved a greeting. She thought she’d seen him sitting on a lounger a little way ahead, but hadn’t wanted to intrude. He looked so peaceful there, stretched out beneath the cloudless night sky.
Naomi sighed as she looked up. The stars were so bright and brilliant, they shone like jewels against a canvas of black. She almost felt as if she could reach up and pluck several down to wear around her neck, but like so much in her life lately, they seemed out of her grasp.
‘Don’t mind if I do,’ she replied as she headed in his direction and took a seat on the lounger beside him. ‘Where’s Holly? Didn’t she want to see the night sky again?’
‘Babysitter’s keeping an eye on her for the evening. I’m taking a breather tonight.’
She could see the fatigue on his face as he lay there, arms behind his head and knees propped up on the lounger. His gaze like hers, was on the sky.
‘I can’t imagine it’s easy,’ she ventured.
