Trust in Us

by Altonya Washington

  But that wasn’t quite fair, was it? What about his friends and their behavior? Couldn’t she just as easily back away from him in light of what she’d been witness to?

  “Mmm... Aly, it’s too early in the day for all this heavy thinking.” Besides, she’d done enough of that with Clive. Satisfied, she rested with her eyes closed while she inhaled the floral air and treated her ears to the sounds of rushing water, wind and birdsong.

  “Looks like Clive made a sale....”

  Smiling, Alythia added the sound of Gage’s voice to her list of soothing elements. “You bet he did. I’m gonna hire people to run the shop and just spend my days out here.”

  Gage took a seat on one of the accompanying lounges. “Sounds like the workaholic’s getting tired of working so hard?”

  “Can you blame me?” Aly took a long, indulgent stretch. “Honestly? Who could think of working with a view like this?”

  * * *

  Tell me about it. Gage knew the view he had in mind had nothing to do with the sand and waves. He could have watched her all day but the watching would definitely lead to a desire to touch and that was what was causing all the...issues that were presently revealing themselves. Wouldn’t she expect him to fall in line with his friends and make a play for her? Hadn’t he done that already? They’d kissed more than once and she’d seemed to enjoy it as much as he had. Was there any more to it? he wondered.

  The only thing he was sure of was that he didn’t want to stop seeing her after the trip. Problem was, she might not be so interested if his friends and her friends kept butting heads. If he took her to his bed only to have things go awry... A voice chimed that at least he’d have had the pleasure of her in his bed. He lost himself in a study of the length and shapeliness of her legs bared beneath the knee-length hem of her dress. He finally tuned in that she was calling out to him and he saw her watching him inquisitively.

  “Will you come dancing with me tonight?” He roamed the length of her legs again. “I planned for us to do that last night but, well...”

  “We didn’t even get through the eating part of our date,” Aly laughed. “Do you really want to test fate again?”

  “I’m willing.” Gage leaned forward, resting his elbows on the khaki shorts covering his thighs. “I promise you’ll have a good time if you let me show you one.”

  “I could use one.” Alythia pushed a hand through her hair, held it there. “I could use a lot of things—another nap, breakfast...”

  “You didn’t have anything?”

  Her smile was sad. “Breakfast with the girls got a little out of hand.”

  “Yeah...” Gage slumped back against his lounge, tossing a leg on either side and planting feet adorned in Crocs in the sand. “Jay came down on Orchid pretty hard last night.”

  “He did?” She pushed herself up to prop on an elbow and watch him expectantly. “Maybe that’s why she came down so hard on Jeen this morning. Myrna must’ve missed Jay getting on her case about it last night when she and Dane stopped by. She said Ork didn’t have much sympathy for our friend.”

  “That part’s true.” Gage tented his fingers above his abdomen, intermittently bumping them. “How much do you know about their relationship—Jay and Orchid’s?”

  “Not much.” Aly rested back on the lounge. “Just what I told you before. It was all very sudden. What, um...what do you know?” she asked hesitantly.

  “The wedding’s for show, Alythia.” He closed his eyes for a moment or two. “To secure some deal between Jay’s family and hers.”

  “That’s insane! Orchid wouldn’t even go for something like that. Do families still even do that?”

  “You’d be surprised how well a company’s stock can do by a good run in the press. Everyone loves a wedding.” He gave Aly a resigned smile. “It’s all for show. According to Jay, Orchid’s father threatened to cut her off if she balks.”

  “My God...” Aly was sitting up straight in the middle of the lounge, hand over her mouth.

  “It’s probably a good idea to keep this to yourself. Jay only told me after Orchid went to bed and Zeke left with Dane and Myrna.”

  “That explains all the overwhelming affection....” Aly shook her head, still incredulous. “And why she’s so hell-bent on everybody getting along.”

  Gage watched Alythia cradle her head in her hands, the wind whipping her hair into disarray. The last thing he’d wanted was to upset her.

  “Let’s get you some breakfast,” he suggested.

  “My appetite is suddenly gone.”

  “Then let’s find it.” He stood, offering a hand, and pulled her from the lounge when she accepted.

  “I could just get room service.” She slapped her hands to her sides. “Turn in after I eat.”

  “I don’t trust you to do that.” He reciprocated her gesture. “I do trust that I’ll get you to eat and then put you to bed myself.”

  She rested a hand against the white tee he wore beneath an unbuttoned denim shirt. “Are you trying to save me, Gage Vincent?”

  “No.” He pulled her arm through his. “But I do like taking care of you.”

  Together they left the courtyard.

  * * *

  The Glow was located along the wing that housed the resort’s bars and dance halls. Gage and Alythia had planned to meet there instead of him picking her up at the suite.

  Aly didn’t see her date right away and took a trip to the bar for a drink—one drink. While more would be enjoyable, it wasn’t advisable. Besides, the early nap following lunch in the breakfast café located in the shopping villa had really hit the spot.

  Aly had barely taken a sip of her piña colada when a man who had taken the seat next to her at the bar offered her another round.

  “You should move on, sir. The lady isn’t alone,” the barkeep advised. He waited for the suitor to relinquish his seat and then acknowledged Alythia’s curious stare.

  “Mr. V’s on his way, miss.” He nodded.

  Rather dazed, Aly turned on the barstool to see that Gage was in fact making his way through a moderately heavy crowd. His expression was unreadable even though he pulled many hungry looks from single and attached patrons.

  His handsome face brightened when he saw her waiting. “Thanks for not standing me up,” he teased.

  “No problem.” She shrugged. “My other options weren’t very appealing.”

  “That’s good to hear.” He grinned, fingering one of the silver tassels dangling from the capped sleeves of her flare-legged powder-blue jumpsuit.

  “Mr. V.” The barkeep provided Gage with a drink.

  “Wow, that’s some gift. You didn’t even tell him what you wanted.” Aly propped her chin on her palm and watched Gage take a swig of a Samuel Adams brew. “Or is it that you’ve been here so often that everyone knows your favorite drinks?”

  “Li’l bit of both,” he said, throwing her a wink.

  “Bartenders looking out for your drinks, your date... Nice. He practically kicked out this poor guy who tried to buy me a drink....” She trailed off, having captured a glimpse of a muscle flexing wickedly along Gage’s jaw.

  “Boyd was just looking out for you, actually.” He cast a disapproving look around the bar. “Some places in Clive’s resort can be...a challenge for a woman on her own.”

  “In what way?” Aly smiled when another barkeep provided her with a fresh drink.

  “Usual.” He shrugged. “Same as with any other club—drinks spiked with more than extra alcohol, for instance.”

  Aly gave her glass a cautious nudge. “Does that happen a lot?”

  “Enough so that it’s a concern for Clive.” Gage turned to lean back against the bar and observe the establishment more fully. “The staff’s on high alert when they see a gorgeous woman on her own at the bar.”

  “I see.” Aly sipped her drink and then smiled. “And what if the gorgeous woman is the one doing the spiking?”

  Her question roused Gage’s laughter and Alythia soon join
ed in.

  “That would be interesting,” he said. “I honestly have no comeback for that.”

  “I’ll bet.” Aly laughed into her glass.

  Gage extended his hand. “Maybe I’ll think of something while we dance.”

  Playful skepticism brightened her expression. “Do you really think I can be trusted?”

  His warm stare made a quick heated dip to the subtle V-cut bodice of her suit when he invaded her space a little more. “I’ll trust you if you trust me. How’s that?”

  “I don’t know.... I still think you’re dangerous.” Her playfulness curbed when she noted the change in his eyes.

  “I believe I’ve been a very good boy.” Again he toyed with the tassels at her sleeves. “Compared to some,” he added.

  “That’s what makes you so dangerous.” She tilted her head, lashes fluttering slightly against his whisper-soft touch. “You’ve got uncanny control over your restraint.”

  Gage nodded as though her point hadn’t surprised him. “You know, that’s what I used to think.”

  They were close then. Alythia was without word or the ability to even produce one. She felt him squeezing her upper arm, patting her hip as he did so.

  “How ’bout that dance?”

  “That’s what we’re here for.” She eased down off the barstool.

  * * *

  Gage acknowledged the truth in his words moments into the dance. Yes, the restraint he’d once prided himself on having was in fact gone, but the realization of that forced another question. How much restraint had he ever truly had?

  His methods were—at least, he hoped they were—more refined than his friends’. Nonetheless, when it came to women, those methods were all meant to achieve the same goal: a new woman in his bed. Alythia Duffy was a beauty, no doubt, but beauty was what he tended to surround himself with. While her looks were what had first and shallowly beckoned him, they weren’t his primary thoughts when she came to mind.

  So what was it, then? Her concern for her friends? Dedication to her job? Or was his attraction more selfish—more about what she made him feel when he was in her presence?

  * * *

  What Aly felt then was calm, a stillness that had rooted itself someplace deep and was not budging. The music, while lovely and soothing, barely registered. She didn’t care if her stance, pliant and clingy, unnerved him. She planned to enjoy the moment, indulge in every bit of what he was making her feel.

  And how far was she willing to go in her desire to indulge? She inhaled from where her face rested in the side of his neck. Subtly, she arched, binding herself into his impressively athletic frame. She craved just a bit more of the incredible pleasure that his closeness provided.

  Gage released her hand, which he’d curved into his chest. Then he was smoothing his palms across her back and shoulders. He massaged them down again, cupping her hips and enfolding them to bring her closer and seal her in the circle of his arms.

  Somewhere the faint sound of shattering glass cluttered the air but the effect had no sway over the oasis sheltering them.

  “Alythia...”

  “Mmm...”

  He brushed a kiss to her earlobe, gave it a dry suckle before applying the same attention to the sensitive skin beneath. “Will you think less of me if I ask you to come to bed with me?”

  “Hmph.” Her response was more of a sigh. “Will you think less of me if I accept?”

  He straightened his stance then, curving a hand around the base of her throat. He kissed her hungrily, and she responded with equal fire, thrusting her tongue against his, rotating and stroking as if she was desperate for the friction.

  Alythia heard a gasp, understandable. Kissing the man was a definite treat with the power to send tingles to every nerve ending she owned. The only problem was that the gasp hadn’t come from her and had sounded more outraged than...sensual.

  Sounds of a commotion had followed the shattering glass, at last encroaching upon the sweet oasis Gage and Alythia had enjoyed.

  “They’ve got to be doing this stuff on purpose,” he murmured when he and Aly emerged from passion’s sweet spell to discover that their mutual friends were at the center of a lovers’ spat.

  “No...” Aly groaned. She felt Gage take her chin and squeeze.

  “Come with me,” he encouraged when her bright eyes met his warm chocolate ones. “We really don’t need to be here, do we?”

  His question was answered by Myrna Fisher.

  “Flaky backstabber!”

  Dane Spears wasn’t offended. “You should be happy to get rid of me. This place has lots more fools to screw and pretend they’re your man.”

  Myrna responded by throwing a sticky mixed drink in his face and shoving his chest before she stormed out.

  “We don’t need to be here, but we probably should be,” Aly said.

  Gage kept her near when she attempted to move from his side. “One day I hope to have a friend as good as you.”

  Alythia closed her eyes and smiled. “Me, too.”

  Then she was gone. Gage’s soft expression vanished the moment she moved through the chaotic crowd to reach Myrna.

  A storm brewed in Gage’s striking stare as he went to seek out his friend.

  * * *

  Alythia caught up to her girlfriend just as she approached the elevator corridor. Thankfully, the area was deserted. Myrna was so upset that Alythia didn’t have to probe her for details. Myrna shared it all in a stream of anger and pain. She told her that the man of her dreams had slept with someone else.

  “The masseuse, of all people! I’m such an idiot.” Myrna punched the up arrow on the elevator’s panel. “I thought it’d be fun to have a couple’s massage. Dane decided to spend half his time in the sauna. He didn’t spend it there alone.”

  Alythia reached out. “I’m sorry.”

  Myrna shrugged off Aly’s hand when it touched her shoulder. “Go on and tell me you told me so. I just want to get the hell out of here.” She punched the up arrow again. “Forget this getaway, get-to-know-you—whatever the devil it is.”

  “Mur.” Aly stifled her instinct to move closer. “You can’t do that. Orchid’s really counting on us right now. It’s really important to her.” She pressed her lips together, annoyed that she couldn’t explain the particulars of why it was so important to their friend.

  Myrna slowly turned from the elevator to fix Aly with a scathing look. “Do you ever get sick of being such a hypocrite?”

  “Mur—”

  “So it’s okay for you to traipse off to handle business when our friends need us, but I can’t leave even after I’ve just been humiliated?”

  “Honey, I didn’t mean it that way.” Aly rubbed at her temples.

  Myrna snorted. “Yeah, right.” She turned back to the elevator.

  Losing whatever patience she’d thought she had, Aly flinched and then drew her hands from her face and gave a resounding clap. “You know what? Do whatever the hell you want—you will anyway. Do you really think Dane Spears came here to find a soul mate?” She laughed the words. “He didn’t care a bit more about that than any of the other dozens of guys you’ve taken to bed hoping they’d put a ring on your finger the next morning. Open your eyes, Mur. You’re better than this.”

  Myrna had turned from the elevator again and still regarded Alythia coolly. “Since we’re giving advice, Aly, I should tell you to keep your eyes open, too.” She moved closer, ignoring the elevator car that arrived just then. “If you think that Gage Vincent is such a golden boy because he hasn’t taken you to bed just yet, you can think again. From what I hear, that one loses interest very fast once he’s gotten the panties and the fact that he hasn’t taken yours yet isn’t a token of how good he is.” Myrna gave her a sulky once-over. “He’s just trying to make it last. We are gonna be here for nine more days, you know?”

  “Let me guess.” Aly brought her hands to her hips. “Your soul mate told you this?”

  Myrna stiffened but she didn’t c
ower. “Just because you’ve got your face stuck in spreadsheets and faxes all day doesn’t mean the rest of us don’t have a clue about what’s going on. Charlotte is still a small place. People talk—even about men as powerful and discreet as the great Gage Vincent.” She left Alythia with another quick once-over and then turned. “You have a good night, Aly,” she threw over her shoulder, and then disappeared inside an elevator that opened at the end of the bay.

  Chapter 8

  “An entire day, boss? Nice. I was up yesterday at six a.m. waiting for your call.”

  Gage forced a smile at Webb’s tease. “Sorry I disappointed you.”

  “Pleased by your progress, sir,” Webb Reese raved, and then cleared his throat noisily. “I hope you’re in the mood for discussion, ’cause I’d love to know which way you’d lean on this bid thing.”

  “Nice try.” Gage celebrated his urge to chuckle. “I only called to see if you were in any state of mind to answer your phone. Things must be going pretty well if you’re able to manage that.”

  The sound Webb returned then was a cross between weariness and amusement. “Deciding this stuff is murder. Folks act like they’d either kill or sign over their firstborn to win out.”

  “It’s not a game for the fainthearted.” Gage shifted in the chair he occupied on the patio. “But if it helps, I always find it a good practice to carefully view all the information at hand and then just go with your gut.”

  Webb forced out another weary chuckle. “Going with my gut could be dangerous. Especially when the rest of my body’s weighing in on it.”

  “Being propositioned already, huh?” Gage sipped OJ to muffle his laughter. “Webb, I’m impressed.”

  “Hmph. Thanks, sir, but it’s nothing like that. Unfortunately.”

  Gage continued to chuckle.

  “Some of the women are real go-getters, though,” Webb mused. “I’ve yet to be so unforgettably propositioned, but I’m sure there are some who might not be against the idea.”