Chapter 60

Rainey

“I can’t believe how much I ate,” I said, pressing my hand against my stomach. The whole night had gone well and the after effects of the glass of wine I had held large a part in my relaxation. Initially, when Michael wanted to have dinner with me, I had reservations. I wanted to keep this trip purely business. Keeping away from him under the guise of relaxation hadn’t worked. He wanted to experience the island for his “client” and that included the more touristy part as well.

I wasn't sure what to expect with the restaurant but knowing Michael’s expensive taste, I had a feeling I wasn’t going to be disappointed. Every view around the island was spectacular, but the restaurant upped the ante with its fabulous menu. Seafood was their specialty, so Michael and I tested two of the meals on offer, also two appetizers and desserts. I blamed Michael for my stomach ache, but really, I had been a glutton that night. He wanted to explore the island for his client, and I bought into that idea and went a little above and beyond what I normally did.

Michael was a perfect gentleman at dinner. He acted like the boss I wanted from the beginning. We stayed on friendly terms with polite conversation. He even asked me more about Tanner, which was another thing that platonic employees and employers would talk about on a business trip. There was no indication of him flirting or adding any sexual innuendo to his words.

And frankly, it pissed me off. Here we were in a romantic, secluded location at a beautiful restaurant overlooking the sunset across an endless ocean and we were playing the friend game. If anything, this would have been the time and the place for Michael to want to touch and flirt with me as he did in the office.

That wasn't fair to him at all. I knew that. I was the one who wanted to keep things professional between us. And he was giving me exactly what I wanted. But deep down, I still wanted more. If there was any place for him to break the rules, it was here and now.

I should have been glad. I tried to focus on that as we walked up to our fantastic house for the weekend.

Michael allowed me to walk into the main room first. With the sun gone for the day, the lights from the pool sparkled over the slow moving water. I walked into the room and stood on the threshold, looking at the back part of the house.

“Want to go for a swim?” he asked.

“No,” I said. If we went swimming together, I’m not sure I could reserve myself enough to not jump on him. More than once I had almost lost my reservations when Michael took his shirt off. But I did want to cool down. “I’m going to take a shower before turning in for the night.”

“Are you sure? Could I make us some drinks? It’s beautiful out here.”

I glanced over at him, not wanting to meet his eyes. Of course, I wanted to stay out there with him. But the boundary line had been drawn, and he had complied all night. I wasn’t going to cross it when we were doing so well.

“I’m sure. Good night.”

“Night, Rainey.”

He walked through toward the pool, and I had to tear myself away before I changed my mind.

The rooms were air conditioned, so when I went into the closed part of the house, the air clung to my sweat and made me shiver. Initially, I wanted a nice, refreshing shower, but now I was looking forward to a nice hot one. It would ease my tense muscles, and hopefully, I’d be able to put all thoughts of Michael to the side and focus on the task at hand. It was a shame since the place seemed wasted on a business trip, but that was my job, after all. One that I almost lost. Keeping my professionalism would work in my benefit to secure my position. Besides, there were more trips to come in the future. I couldn’t fall in love with every place I saw. Michael’s clients had way more money than I ever would, I couldn’t continue to feel star struck after each one.

Inside my room, I went to the window with that thought in my head. The moon’s light danced over the water, and I stood there for a moment, allowing myself to fall in love just for a few minutes. The person who would see this view on a regular basis was one lucky person.

I only hoped that it wasn’t Michael and his new girlfriend.

That thought snapped me back to reality. I went into the bathroom, undressed and stepped into the shower. It was an older tub, but pristinely clean. I closed the glass sliding door and turned the faucet. I leaned over to check the water temperature. The hot water took a few minutes to warm up. I wiggled my fingers under the stream of water, and when I felt the hot water, I lifted the small knob at the top to start the shower.

The pressure of the shower was intense. Not at all what I expected or what I was used to. I felt as if I were receiving an intense back massage more than a shower. I closed my eyes and stood there for a minute while the water deliciously pummeled my back.

The shampoo and conditioner in the corner of the shower were in clear bottles. I wondered if they were left over from the previous tenants. They were filled to the top, so it was possible that it was an off-brand formula. When it came to what rich people did, I didn’t question that it was probably shampoo and conditioner from some boutique shop overseas.

I flipped the cap of the shampoo and brought it to my nose. With the steam from the water, the floral scent enveloped me. I let out a little moan of pleasure. Wow, these people did have good taste.

As I finished with my hair, the water suddenly turned cold. I jumped away from the stream, and when I turned back around, it had warmed up again.

I shivered and warily stepped back under the stream.

That was odd. Maybe it was some glitch in the water system.

I hadn’t been in the shower that long, but maybe there were a few hiccups since the owners of the house hadn’t lived in the house for some time.

I finished rinsing and turned the knob to shut off the water.

I kept turning, but nothing happened. The water temperature only went from hot to ice cold. I tried turning it the other way, but then the water became scalding hot. I slammed my shoulder into the glass sliding doors of the shower, trying to avoid burning my skin.

“Shit!” I said, shoving open the doors. I jumped out of the tub, my foot catching the rim. My balance was off for a moment before I found it. I whirled around, catching myself in the mirror. I looked like a drowned rat. The air conditioning turned the droplets on my body to icicles.

I reached into the shower and turned the knob again. It popped out of the wall and into my hand, the water now spurting from the shower head and where the knob was.

“Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” I said, closing the glass doors.

I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around my body. I needed help, and the last thing I wanted to do was ask Michael anything, but there was nothing else I could do. I wasn’t sure where to find the other staff at this hour, and I wasn’t going to traipse around the property in a towel.

I stormed out of the room, careful not to slip on the tile flooring. I couldn’t believe this! I glanced at the closet. There was a robe in there, but I didn’t want the bathroom to flood. The towel would have to be enough for now.

I jogged down the hall, clamping my hand around the corners of the towel, keeping my modesty. I stopped in front of Michael’s door and banged on it. I hoped he was inside and not still outside. If he was, I was screwed.

“Michael!” I called.

The door whipped open. Michael stood there with the same pants on from earlier but no shirt.

I swallowed hard, trying to keep my eyes on his.

His gaze wasn’t as polite. His eyes moved down my body, and a smile played on his lips. “Rainey?”

I shoved a chunk of my dripping wet hair off my face. “The shower. It’s broken. Can you help me?”

He came out into the hallway, and I started to my room. He knew where the shower was in my suite, but I needed to stay ahead of the situation. I hoped it wouldn’t be too bad when I returned to the room.

“I tried to turn off the water, but the knob broke off in my hand.” I hoped he wouldn’t blame me for breaking the shower. This was a nightmare.

We walked into the room and Michael went right for the shower.

I was somewhat glad to see that there wasn’t a mess on the floor, the water contained itself in the tub.

He slid open the doors and grabbed the pipe coming out of the wall.

“That’s where the knob was,” I said.

“Yeah,” he said with a grunt. His hand wrapped around the pipe, and it looked like he was trying to turn it. “Where is the knob?”

I gave it to him.

He tried to put it back on but was unsuccessful.

He whirled around, his eyes were wild and then strode out of the room.

“Where are you going?” I asked.

He didn’t answer me. Instead, he left my room without another word.

Rude!

I grabbed the robe from the closet and went out after him. He was already at the bottom of the stairs when I caught up with him. “I didn’t mean to.”

“I know,” he said. Though from his tone I had a feeling he didn’t fully believe me.

“Where are you going?” I asked.

“To find Paulo,” he said. “We need to turn off the water to the house until someone can repair it.”

“What if they are off for the night?” I asked.

“They’re never off for the night,” he said flippantly.

Michael would know. He did have a staff at his beck and call. It wasn’t something I was used to. Maybe I should have gone straight to Paulo.

We found Paulo in a small room off the kitchen. He was sitting in a chair, reading a novel. He jumped up when Michael burst into the room.

Michael explained the situation and Paulo went to turn off the water.

“Come, Rainey,” Michael said as if I were his dog.

We went back upstairs to make sure the water turned off, and there wasn’t any more damage. I started to feel like I was a little kid in trouble. Why was he so pissed at me? It was an accident.

The water was still flowing in the tub when we got back to the bathroom. Michael opened the doors and stood there with his arms crossed.

I stood next to him, acutely aware of the large breaths he was taking.

Water touched my toes, and I looked down at my feet.

“Shit,” I said under my breath. I looked around for another towel, but I didn’t see one. The water was coming fast now from some crack in the tub.

I turned slightly and opened my robe, pulling out the towel underneath. I dropped it to the floor and pushed the towel against the tub.

Then the water flow from the shower and faucet pipe slowed until it was barely a dribble.

I let out a relieved sigh.

Michael turned to me, and his eyes fell to my lips then down to my chest.

We were so close that I felt the heat coming off his body. I could have easily reached out to touch his bare skin. And the robe was so thin that it barely concealed my breasts now that the towel was gone. I felt my nipples perk up, betraying my feelings for him.

He licked his lips and moved closer to me, but I couldn’t force my feet to move.

The moment held between us and I could have sworn he was going to kiss me. I wasn’t sure I would refuse it either. I was relieved and elated that the situation was over and I was sure that was playing with my emotions. But with Michael in the bathroom, the space seemed to close in around us.

But before I could say anything, the moment vanished. And without warning, Michael side-stepped me.

“I’ll handle this. You should get some rest.”

And then he was gone, leaving my head and heart utterly confused. I had been right to keep us professional. From the way he acted just now, it seemed like he was completely over me or possibly that he never cared at all.