The Billionaire Op - Lori Ryan Page 0,22

and see if that makes you feel better?” Say yes. No, say no. This is a bad idea… But, please say yes.

Before Jennie could answer, a fish jumped out of the water and splashed back in. Chad assumed it was trying to catch a bug skimming the surface of the water. Jennie must have assumed it was an attempt to eat her, because she was up and running off the dock in a heartbeat. So much for Jack’s theory that Jennie Evans wasn’t afraid of anything.

Chad pulled himself out onto the dock, trying not to laugh too hard—and losing that battle. He scooped up their beach bag and towels. The items quickly became crucial parts of Chad’s ensemble as he followed Jennie back to the villa.

Watching the sway of her sweet ass as she hightailed it through the resort had his dick harder than he’d care to share with the other guests. With their belongings held casually in front of him to hide his predicament, he let himself enjoy the show. He’d have to shower with ice water when he got back to the villa, but it was worth it.

Jennie had the sexiest ass Chad had ever seen. That ass in a bikini?

Deadly.

Chapter 12

The first week of their working vacation passed fairly quickly. They stuck to the pools instead of the ocean so Jennie didn’t have any more run-ins with the terrifying fish of the Florida coast. And they kept an eye out for the nephews.

Jack wasn’t in any hurry for their assessment and rarely checked in with them. That struck Jennie as a little odd, but she brushed it off. She and Chad were having more fun than she thought they would. They spent their days in the resort where she managed to befriend a few of the employees.

Most of the employees seemed to feel that the Masters brothers didn’t have much to offer. They were careful not to badmouth them too much, but Jennie didn’t miss the undertone of what people weren’t saying. No one respected the brothers. The brothers were dead weight on the resort and none of the employees would be sorry to see them go.

People liked and spoke well of Jonathan Masters, the owner, but they said he rarely came there anymore. From what Jennie could see, the managers were running the show and, it seemed, running it very well. The place had an incredibly relaxing atmosphere with attention to detail and customer service that left guests feeling pampered. It was exactly what a tropical vacation should be.

At night, they went to dinner and then played cards or talked and laughed back in the villa. They talked and laughed a lot, actually. More than she had thought they would.

Even though it was hard to ignore the sexual undertones that always sparked between them, Jennie really enjoyed being with Chad on this new level.

The night before, they had gone to one of the restaurants that had dinner and dancing. Jennie was stunned to find out Chad could salsa, rumba—you name it, he could do it on the dance floor. As he whirled her around, making her breathless, she had to laugh. She never would have pictured her tough soldier-man boss as a dancer.

“Where did you learn to do this?” she had asked when they sat down for their entrees.

He shrugged a shoulder and grinned at her. “I have my secrets.”

She shook her head at him, to which he’d just winked.

“If I tell you, I’ll have to kill you.”

She stuck her tongue out at him.

This afternoon, they lay in lounge chairs by one of the pools, pretending to be a couple in love. They were fairly sure they had found out all they needed to know about the Masters brothers. They’d booked a boat tour the next day to see if they could find out more about the marina and how it functioned. For now, there was nothing to do but relax.

“Hey, Boss Man,” Jennie said, cracking her eyes open to peek at Chad while she swirled her empty drink at him. “Wanna swim over to the bar and get me another daiquiri?”

After three strawberry daiquiris, she was a little tipsy. She was probably being a little too uppity with her boss, even for her, but they had both let down their guard quite a bit.

He lowered his sunglasses and leaned over her on the lounge chair. His body almost entirely covered hers and his face was right in hers. She could feel the heat coming off