“Still want a cheeseburger?” I asked him, reaching for the room service menu on the console table behind the sofa.
“And a beer. Make that two.”
Cary followed the manager into a bedroom on the left side of the living area, and I picked up the vintage rotary phone to place our order.
Thirty minutes later, I was fresh from a quick shower and dressed in my pajamas, eating chicken Alfredo cross-legged on the area rug. Cary was plowing through his burger and looking at me with happy eyes from his position on the opposite side of the coffee table.
“You never eat a massive pile of carbs this late,” he noted between bites.
“My period’s coming.”
“I’m sure the workout you got on the way here helped, too.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “How would you know? You were passed out.”
“Deductive reasoning, baby girl. When I went to sleep, you looked irritated. When I woke up, you looked like you’d just smoked a fat joint.”
“How did Gideon look?”
“He looked the same—tight-assed and hot as hell.”
I stabbed my fork into my noodles. “That’s not fair.”
“Who cares?” He gestured around us. “Look how he puts you up.”
“I don’t need a sugar daddy, Cary.”
He munched on a French fry. “Have you thought any more about what you do need? You’ve got his time, his rockin’ bod, and access to everything he owns. That’s not bad.”
“No,” I agreed, twirling my fork. I knew from my mom’s many marriages to powerful men that getting their time was the most important thing of all, because for them, it was truly the most valuable thing in their lives. “It’s not bad. It’s just not enough.”
*
“This is the life,” Cary pronounced, while lying like a god on a lounger by the pool. He wore pale green trunks and dark shades and caused an unusually large volume of women to walk on our side of the pool. “The only thing missing is a mojito. Gotta have alcohol to celebrate.”
My mouth curved. I was sunbathing on the lounger beside him, enjoying the dry heat and occasional splashes of water. Celebrating was habitual for Cary, something I’d always considered quite charming. “What are we celebrating?”
“Summer.”
“Okay, then.” I sat up and slid my legs off the lounger, tying my sarong around my hips before I stood. My hair was still damp from an earlier dip in the pool and pinned atop my head with a lobster clip. The scorching sun felt good on my skin, a sensual kiss that was nearly enough to make me less self-conscious about the water I was retaining—thanks to my period starting.
I headed over to the pool bar, my gaze raking the other loungers and cabanas through the purple tint of my sunglasses. The area was packed with guests, many of whom were attractive enough to warrant second and third looks. One couple in particular caught my eye, because they reminded me of myself and Gideon. The blonde lay on her stomach, her torso propped up on her arms and her legs kicking playfully. Her very yummy dark-haired man stretched out on the chair beside her, his head propped on one hand while the fingers of the other hand stroked up and down her spine.
She caught me staring and her smile instantly faded. I couldn’t see her eyes behind her Jackie O shades, but I knew she was glaring at me. With a smile, I looked away, knowing just how she felt about finding another woman checking out her man.
I found an empty space at the bar and gestured at the bartender to let him know I was ready to order when he was. Misters attached to the ceiling cooled my skin and lured me to slide onto a suddenly vacated bar stool while I waited.
“What are you drinking?”
Turning my head, I looked at the man who’d talked to me. “Nothing yet, but I’m considering a mojito.”
“Let me buy you one.” He smiled, revealing perfectly white but slightly crooked teeth. He extended his hand to me, a movement that brought my attention to his nicely defined arms. “Daniel.”
I placed my hand in his. “Eva. Nice to meet you.”