A man was by the beach. Though she knew Ryan and Kayla had other friends they’d invited constantly, she was under the impression she was the only one there this time.
She couldn’t see his face. His back was to her where he sat on the sand. After a moment he stood. He tugged off his white T-shirt. She gasped. He was scarred. So many scars. Her nails dug into the palm tree. She wanted to reach out and offer some comfort. It wasn’t that she hadn’t seen that many before. It was that she was caught off guard. Then she remembered the first rule of her job. No pity.
He turned sideways to glance up the beach. She caught his profile. Whoa. Forget the scars. The guy was hot. Her gaze did a swift sweep down his body. He had brown, short, spiky hair. Clearly he was one of Ryan’s friends. Jessie knew all of Kayla’s friends, and she would not have forgotten him. He had a body toned with muscles. He was pale though. Probably didn’t get out into the sun often. The front side of his body was scarred too. That didn’t take away from how good he looked overall. Besides, she had scars too. Only hers were internal.
He had flat, washboard abs. And—oh, dear God—muscular legs and arms. Her throat went dry. She wanted to run her fingers down his abs. Her brain short-circuited thinking of what it would feel like to have his stomach muscles tightening under her palm. Oh lord. This was one of Ryan’s friends, not some guy looking to get felt on by a woman who had been too stressed to have sex in so many months she couldn’t remember. Her toy drawer hadn’t been used in so long she was afraid the vibrators wouldn’t work anymore. That was the reason she’d brought some with her. To try to really relax.
The sexy man ran for the water. He did a single dive. Perfect. So he was also a swimmer. Carajo! She watched the water for long seconds. Panic started to build inside. Where was he? What if—? He surfaced further out in the ocean. She bit her lip, looking at the clear blue water with concern. If something happened, she wouldn’t be able help him. She couldn’t swim. Kayla and Rissa had taken her to classes, but she was just too afraid. There was too much damn water surrounding her. The waves overwhelmed her and freaked her out.
He continued swimming, and the fear inside slowly dissipated. She took a glance up at the beach. Even if she was tempted, she wasn’t going to stand there and watch the guy do laps. That was stupid. And very stalker-ish. The leather straps from her sandals bit into her palms, deciding for her. She made her way through the trees, up the beach.
*
The sun had started to set when she reached the house. Martha, Kayla and Ryan’s housekeeper, stood at the entrance waiting for her.
“Hi, Martha. I didn’t see you when I first got here.” She embraced the elderly woman in a hug. She’d always been nice to her.
“I was at the other house getting some things for dinner.”
She raised her brows. “Oh? Is dinner something special tonight?”
“But of course, ni?a.” Martha patted Jessie’s cheek. She loved calling Jessie and Rissa children. Not that she referred to Kayla any different. “Dinner is very special tonight. Ryan and Kayla have asked for you to please join them at the patio at six.”
Shit. She glanced down at her watch. Time had slipped past her. She’d been out for so long. Now she only had a half hour to shower and dress.
“Okay.” She rushed past Martha. “I’ll be there.”
She dashed to her room. It was fine. Really. She worked well under a deadline. Usually she had more than thirty minutes, but she’d make it happen. Her gaze darted around the room until it landed on the suitcase. Two seconds later, the navy suitcase lay in the middle of the king-size bed. She rummaged through, trying to decide what to wear. A sparkly, purple strapless dress caught her attention. How had that gotten in there? She could swear she’d left it behind. The more she stared at it, the more she wanted to wear it. The soft cotton material would be perfect for the hot weather. And the style was flattering for her curvy body.
Not normally a fan of dresses, because they tended to make her look bigger than she already was, she stayed away from them. The purple dress had been an impulse buy when Rissa had talked her into going shopping. After a bunch of disappointments with clothes that were supposed to be her size but for some reason she couldn’t fit into them, she’d found that dress. The fit had been so flattering. For once she didn’t feel like a cow.
Once she’d taken the world’s fastest shower, she shimmied into the dress and slipped her feet into some sandals. She’d just reached the door before she ran back and grabbed her perfume off her dresser and sprayed it a few times on her wrists and neck. Now she could go.
Lanterns surrounded the gazebo in the patio where dinner was being served. Wow. Martha had gone all out. A soft gold tablecloth covered the table with a large pitcher filled with multicolored flowers in the center. The setting caught her attention. She frowned. It was set for two.