He smiled. It was true. Usually, sports commentators would give him a little praise for a good pass or a long run, but then quickly turn their attention to rumors of his after-hours life. No matter how much effort he put in, his athletic career seemed to always be overshadowed by his partying.
“Okay, okay,” he said. “I’m in, but—”
“There’s a ‘but’ to a vacation in the Bahamas?”
“But…I’d like you to come with me,” he replied.
“Athletes don’t usually bring their PR agents on—”
“Would you come anyways?” He gazed meaningfully into her eyes. “I get that it’s unusual. I also don’t particularly care.”
“Why? Um, I mean, why do you want me to come?”
Well, that was a loaded question. He decided to tell her part of the truth, the part that wasn’t about how he was hoping to see that body in a bikini.
“Honestly,” he said with a small crack in his voice, “I don’t have many friends I can trust nowadays. They all just send anonymous tips about me to Page 6. I’m done with that life, with being surrounded by people preying on me for my fame, or money, or whatever. And I know you won’t do that.”
“Yeah, you pay me to not do that.”
“That’s true,” he laughed. “For real, though. I feel like you’re my friend. I know it’s kind of soon to say that, but who gives a shit. And I’d like you to come with me.”
She hesitated. He held his breath, nervous that she’d refuse, or worse yet, say it was an inappropriate suggestion. Whatever happened on the trip, Bradley intended to be her friend. If it turned romantic, Jesus, that would be nice. No, it’d be beyond nice, but the English language didn’t have the words to express just how far beyond ‘nice.’
He decided that he’d wait until—or if—she signaled an interest in something more.
“Okay,” she said at last. “Let’s do it. On one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“I think we both need a vacation, stat. Are you good with leaving tomorrow?
He nodded, flashing a smile that seemed to light up the whole room.
“Pack a bathing suit,” Bradley said.
Chapter 9
Heidi
I can’t believe you’re doing this, Heidi internally scolded herself, giving her suitcase a final once-over. This is a very, very bad idea.
She rifled through her bag, making sure she had all the essentials—toothbrush, sunscreen, etc. At the last minute, she’d also thrown in some wildly scanty lingerie, reasoning that preparedness never hurt anyone.
She didn’t have any more time to reflect on whether or not this was a brilliant move for her career, especially given that Bradley was her only client right now and the only acquisition that would help her establish a new firm. No, there was no time to back out of the trip. She would just have to make sure to keep her lustful thoughts entirely to herself.
Professional, she repeated, as if it was a personal mantra. Even in the face of daunting hotness, you’ve gotta be professional.
Already running late, bag in hand, she flew out the door and into a taxi, telling the driver to get her to the airport ASAP. To his credit, he got there in just under twenty minutes. She tipped him generously, and ran to meet Bradley at the agreed-upon lounge on the outer ring of the airport, before the TSA checkpoints.
With all that hustling, she arrived only seconds after their set met-up time. She spotted his enormous frame from across the lounge, and moved briskly in his direction.
“Sorry,” she apologized, when she at last brought her bag to a halt in front of him. “I’m usually early for everything; I don’t know what happened this morning. Are we going to be late?”
“Private planes,” he said, “don’t usually leave until both passengers are on board.”
A look of total surprise took over her face.
“Did you—”
“Get us a charter? Yeah. Figured it would make the trip just that much nicer. Why vacation if you’re not going to do it right?”
She grinned and smacked him on the arm.
“You’re spoiling me,” she said. She almost immediately regretted the playful touch, but the wolfish look in his eyes made it hard to be very remorseful.
Before long, a golf cart picked them and their luggage up from the lounge, and drove the pair to a private airplane hangar, where a small seaplane waited. Heidi eyeballed the plane nervously; it looked even more cramped than Bradley’s fancy sports car.
She reflected that he probably hadn’t thought anything of the tight space, even though she’d personally been on edge that entire drive. And, in his booking of the plane, he seemed to have similarly not considered the packed quarters, wherein they wouldn’t be able to avoid brushing up against one another.
Did that mean he wasn’t feeling the same way, wasn’t feeling the sparks that seemed to fly between their bodies?
Bradley turned to her, picking up on the nervous look clouding her normally sunny expression.
“I know it’s on the small side,” he said regretfully, “but it’s just an hour long flight, and this plane is designed for short ocean crossings.”
“No, no,” she responded hastily, anxious to not look ungrateful. “Are you kidding? Any private plane is a good private plane. I’m overwhelmed by how thoughtful this was.” She paused, and then tacked on a lie to sell her story. “I’m just a nervous flier.”
She most definitely wasn’t a nervous flier, but she had to say something to explain her expression.
“Hey, that’s okay,” he said. “I’ll protect you.”
The two shared a smile. Obviously, he couldn’t protect her from a failing engine, but for a fleeting moment, she pictured him as a superhero, picking her up in his arms and jumping from a burning plane as trails of smoke came off its wings. Who was to say he couldn’t leap from the sky and land, cat-like, on solid land?
Heidi didn’t generally subscribe to the damsel-in-distress narrative, but when muscles like that were in question—well, her pride only went so far. Alternatively, she’d already dreamt several scenarios that would entail him picking her up. Those dreams also ended with roaring fires, but of a…different…variety.
The pilot came out of a nearby office and shook their hands. He gave them a little general information about the flight—ETA, wind condition, and weather—and Bradley thanked him graciously. The man led him and Heidi to the plane as an airline assistant scurried to load up their bags.
Sure enough, the interior of the plane was barely large enough to hold all of Bradley. Heidi laughed as he scooted down in his seat, attempting to keep the top of his head from brushing the ceiling.
“What’s so funny?”
“Nothing,” she replied with a giggle. “It’s just that you somehow make this private plane look doll-sized.”
He rolled his eyes and grinned, then leaned towards the cockpit.
“We’re all set,” he told the pilot.
Moments later, they were taxiing onto the runway. Heidi’s thigh was flush with Bradley’s, and she could feel her entire lower body pulsing with the sensation.
If I’m worried about lasting through a one-hour plane ride, she thought with apprehension, how the hell am I gonna spend weeks in a paradise with him?
“Professional,” she muttered under her breath.
“What was that?”
“Nothing, nothing at all,” she said furtively.
He raised his eyebrows, but dropped the subject.
The plane was in position to take off. Bradley rotated his buff torso to face Heidi; their chests were practically touching now. She had a sudden and unexpected insight regarding the phrase ‘heaving bosom,’ and how accurate it actually was.
“I wanted to say thank you.”
She interrupted, “No, you really don’t—”
He raised a hand, waving off her protestations, and held her gaze earnestly.
“You didn’t have to do this. Asking you to drop everythin
g and leave the country—well, it was a big ask. Any sane person probably would’ve turned me down.”
“Are you kidding? It’s the Bahamas!”
“Still. I’m sure you have other clients, and giving this much of your attention to me…it’s really generous, Heidi. Thank you.”
She turned away and peered out the window, hoping he couldn’t see the red burning through her cheeks. Through all of their texts, meetings, and phone calls, she’d failed to mention that she did not, in fact, have any other clients, or even that she didn’t work with Image-ine. She hadn’t lied, technically, but there were some pretty major omissions of truth that created a guilty lump in her throat.
“No worries,” she said lamely.
I’ll tell him soon, she promised herself. Once we’re settled in and everything, I’ll just casually mention it over a meal or on the beach. No biggie.
Hoping to change the subject, she reached across him to point out the abrupt change of color in a section of the ocean; it turned from sea-green to cerulean in a clean line, as though an artist had painted the waves and forgotten to blend them.
In the urgency of her gesture, she’d forgotten to keep the space between their bodies, and her breast accidentally brushed his chest. She lingered in this position, even after the stark line in the waters had fallen out of their view. Her heart burned as she felt the nipple pressed up against him go erect, and she wondered if he could feel it through her lace bra.
Professional, indeed, she thought sardonically as she withdrew at last.
Chapter 10
Heidi
The rest of the flight had passed smoothly, though even their easy conversation hadn’t released the tension in Heidi’s body, which remained on high alert. They disembarked at a sleepy airport, certainly the most deserted Heidi had ever been to; the few grounded planes were the same size as their own, if not smaller, and smattered over the runway like an afterthought.
All at once, the warm air hit her face and the smell of ocean water flooded her nostrils. An Edenix-branded shuttle had pulled up alongside their charter, and the driver promptly loaded their suitcases into the trunk.
“How long will the ride be?” Heidi asked the driver as she climbed into the backseat, Bradley moving in behind her.
“We’re only minutes from the resort, ma’am,” he replied. “Edenix facilities take up almost the entire island.”
“Wow, okay.” She turned to face Bradley. “You ever been to a private island?”
“Uh…”
“Oh, right, of course you have. Anyways, this is gonna be great. I can just feel it.”
He smiled at her excitement. “Agreed.”
As promised, the shuttle was in front of the vast hotel—which more closely resembled a small city—only moments after they’d finished buckling their seat belts.
Heidi had grown up in comfort; she’d been on nice family vacations to tropical destinations and various capitals of European countries. But though she was privileged, she wasn’t exactly this privileged, because there were only about 20,000 people in the whole world that were this privileged.
So, despite all the fancy trips, nothing could’ve prepared her for the soaring pillars that flanked a sweeping entrance, festooned in plumes of flowers and exotic fruit. It looked almost like a converted Parthenon, which was fitting inspiration for a place that had housed the world’s most elite athletes.
Their driver escorted them through the entrance, where they were greeted by a butler, who wore the traditional pencil-thin mustache of his kind. With a little bow, he introduced himself as Johnny.
“I’ll be your personal aide for the entirety of your stay at Edenix,” he said to the pair. “Have you downloaded the hotel’s app?”
Bradley nodded, and Heidi glanced at him in surprise.
“They have their own app?” she whispered in his direction.
“Yeah,” he whispered back with a grin.
Johnny interrupted, because apparently neither of them were very good at whispering.
“Yes, and if you press this button on the app, I’ll come directly to wherever your pin is dropped on the map. Feel free to use it any time, day or night. I am completely at your disposal.”
Heidi looked to Bradley, stunned.
“I knew this place was good,” she said, “but I don’t think I expected it to be this good.”
He beamed and asked, “What shall we do first?”
“I think I’d like to put my things down,” she replied. “And then…I don’t know. Maybe the spa?”
“Perfect. Johnny,” he said, turning to the butler, “could you get us a ride over to our bungalow? Assuming that we’re all checked in, that is.”
The butler nodded, and preceded to explain that as soon as they touched down on the island, their check-in had been handled. Something about coordinating the plane schedule with the front desk, though she wasn’t exactly sure. Heidi was too preoccupied with the worry that, at any moment, she would wake up from this blissful dream.
Johnny had a golf cart pulled around front, promising the luggage would arrive separately, and Heidi and Bradley boarded. A quick drive through luscious palm fronds and hibiscus flowers, down a small wooden path over which the occasional lizard darted, and soon, they’d arrived in front of a little door. Whatever lay behind it was shielded by more verdant flora.
“This door?” Bradley asked Johnny. He appeared skeptical as to what could possibly lie behind such an unassuming threshold.
Johnny smiled, and replied, “Oh, sir, I think you’re going to like it.”
“Okay, then.”
“Here are your keys. If you have any questions, simply text me.”
“Thanks,” Bradley said with a nod. He turned to Heidi as the butler clambered back into the cart and drove off. “Shall we have a look and see if it suits our taste?"
“Um, hell yeah,” she returned, her voice breaking with shameless glee.
There’s no point pretending to be laid-back when you’ve stumbled into the absolute lap of luxury, she decided.
Bradley walked to the bungalow’s entrance, deftly maneuvered the key in his hand, and swung open the door.
Over his shoulder, he called back to Heidi, who was still standing on the garden path, “After you, Madame.”
She hurried up the remaining few steps, briefly paused on the threshold to share a smile with Bradley, and then excitedly crossed over into the room.
But ‘room’ didn’t fully encompass the splendor of this magnificent hideaway. It was tricked out in light wood, with carvings on every piece of furniture, and chic chandeliers tucked away in the rafters. Double-wide French doors led out into a secluded pool, and past that, what she knew from the hotel’s website, was their own private beach.
Gauzy white curtains hung from every window, and a breeze tickled the fabric. A vast white leather sofa had light, jewel-toned blankets strewn over its back. On the coffee table sat a bowl of fresh fruit and a bottle of champagne on ice, with a kind note from the manager tilted against the bucket.
“Bradley?” Heidi asked, turning to look for him.
He’d already entered the room, and was just behind her, waiting with a smile.
“Do you like it?”
“Like it? Are you for real? I love it,” she said.
He chuckled at her sheer giddiness.
“Glad to hear it. You’ve earned this room. Now, go check out the rest of the suite.”
She skipped through the bungalow like a kid in a candy store, stopping to nuzzle her face against a fluffy pillow or sniff at the fresh ocean air. Everything was absolute perfection; the hotel had overlooked no indulgence. Even the soaps were imported from France. Taking the grand tour, she found that there were two bathrooms, a workout room, walk-in closets, and—she stopped dead in her tracks.
Only one bedroom. With only one bed.
“Um, Bradley?” she called out in a strangled voice.
Moments later, he appeared at her side, having finished hi
s own stroll around the suite to ensure that things were up to snuff.
“Yes?”
“The bed… There’s…only one,” she said falteringly.
His face morphed from surprise to concern, at last ending on embarrassment.
“I’ll text Johnny right now.”
He moved away from Heidi’s frozen body and quickly typed something into his phone. He stared down at it, waiting, until a buzz answered in return.
“You look frustrated,” she observed. “Is something wrong?”
“It’s only that—well, he said the hotel is all booked up. Since it’s almost September, and as you know, the fall season starts soon. Apparently, there was a miscommunication in the haste of our arrangements yesterday. I think…” He cleared his throat. “I think they thought we were traveling as a couple.”
Heidi went pale at this remark.
“But,” he added hurriedly, “I set them straight. I’ve asked Johnny to bring me a trundle bed. You, of course, can have the regular one, in the bedroom—”
“No,” Heidi interjected, “please don’t do that. I’d feel just awful if you brought me on this incredible trip and didn’t even sleep in a proper bed.”
“Don’t be crazy. I’m sure a fold-up mattress here is better than a king-size bed almost anywhere else.”
She hesitated. She didn’t want to inconvenience him, that was certain, but she knew that he wouldn’t possibly agree to her taking the fold-up bed. Though, from the glint in his eye, she suspected he’d be happy to share the master bed with her. The thought had clearly passed through both of their minds, and seemed to hang in the air, notably unvoiced.
At last, he said, “That settles that. I’ll ask Johnny to have the staff send one up.” He tapped some more on the phone’s screen. “All set.”
Heidi hastened to fill the void that had opened up between them with the bed question.
The Baby Blindside (Baby Surprise Romance) Page 5