“Turner, I think we made it clear that I’m actually not very good at that,” I said, giving him a laugh. He grinned and lowered his voice.
“Well, I thought it was clear that my enjoyment came less from watching you succeed, and more from watching you splash around in a bikini.”
Oh.
What was left of my smile was stiff as Turner and I simply stood there for a moment, wearing amiable expressions for each other to maintain the guise of a seamless meeting.
But I had expected this at some point. I had prepared myself for Turner to get handsy and inappropriate, and I wasn’t afraid. We were baiting him, after all, and this was expected. All I had to do was maintain pleasant enough to keep his ego stroked and his attention still piqued. Once the paperwork was in progress, my job as a professional seductress would require much less tolerance for Turner. Once the paperwork was finalized, I could very well tell him to fuck off if I wanted to.
We were close. And I was confident.
That said, I was still somewhat relieved that the weather took a turn when it came time for our surf and boating trip. We’d waited it out for a half hour, but with the rain still going, we canceled our beach outing and opted for what was originally scheduled for tomorrow – a tour of the spa.
It was an oasis hidden in the very center of the resort with brilliant white pillars, sparkling pools and Turkish baths, as well as views of the sweeping coast. I had barely finished talking about what had been added during the renovations when Turner decided he needed a massage.
“My back is stiff from the flight,” he said, wincing as he reached over his shoulders and rubbed himself.
He locked his eyes on me as he did so. I cocked an eyebrow, and he grinned in response. I didn’t know exactly what he was saying, but I had a feeling it was lewd, and that feeling was confirmed shortly after.
“Sara looks like she needs a massage,” Turner announced, his eyes still on me as he interrupted his advisors. “Maybe we should get a couple’s massage. You look like you’re probably very tight,” he said with a smirk.
“Jesus, Turner,” one of his advisors laughed nervously as Julian offered an easy smile despite the fire I caught in his eyes.
“Turner. Let’s get you an hour-long Swedish massage. Shall we?”
“Trying to get me out of your hair, Hoult?”
“Absolutely,” Julian said to the raucous laughter of the advisors. “Come on. Let me introduce you to our spa manager.”
I was initially hesitant about staying at the spa while Julian went on to talk with the advisors, but he said
he preferred some time alone with them, and I’d have Colin with me as well.
“Sara, he’s paying us to get massages right now. Come on,” Colin laughed under his breath as Julian waited for me to relent.
“I just want you to have some time to enjoy yourself while you’re here,” he murmured, ushering me aside. “And I do like keeping elements of my business to myself. I hope you understand.”
I nodded though I didn’t quite.
But then I remembered how Julian had associated Liz with the success of his first billion-dollar business, and how that had too positively skewed his perception of her. I chewed my lip as I considered that by excluding me from this meeting, Julian was trying to put a barrier between his career and me. I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. I felt like it was possibly the latter, but I told myself not to think about it too hard.
So I distracted myself with the tranquil music playing as I got undressed in the women’s locker room, eventually emerging in a robe to find a girl named Anaïs waiting for me.
For someone so small and petite, the woman was strong. Incredibly so. I had still been vaguely bothered by Julian’s request before entering the dim massage room, but barely a minute later, I was mentally thanking him for the treatment. It struck me only then that, save for the complimentary shoulder rubs at the manicure place, I’d never had a massage before in my life.
And it felt amazing.
My skin was slathered in natural coconut oil, and slippery enough to make it easy for Anaïs to rub the heel of her palms against as she massaged my back then my legs. Even the pads of her fingers were strong.
God, this chick is good. I honestly wished I could afford her on a daily basis, just to help massage away all the stupid, overanalyzed thoughts in my head. Forty minutes into the massage, and she had yet to get tired or lose an ounce of strength.
I was practically asleep from the deep relaxation when a knock sounded at the door.
“Oh.” I could actually hear Anaïs frowning. She sounded as surprised as I was by the sudden interruption, quickly apologizing to me before slipping out of the room.
Soon enough, I could hear a low, male voice joining hers just outside the door.
It was a mutter I couldn’t quite make out, but it sounded too low to be Colin. Lying naked on that table, I stiffened at the thought of who it might be. My stomach tightened with a dark suspicion, but before I could analyze further, the door slid slowly back open.