Taming Lily (The Fowler Sisters #3)(6)

“You probably saved her life,” he points out. “She might want to thank you when she comes to.”

I shrug. I need to be as good as gone when she comes to. She catches a glimpse of me and there will be questions. Questions I don’t want to answer. And I’ve blown it enough today, ogling her like I did. “If she asks, tell her I’m glad she’s okay.”

“But I don’t know if she really is okay. That gash on her hand is pretty bad.”

And this kid who’s supposedly on duty for the safety of hotel guests is also pretty bad. It’s just a cut on her hand. Not like she’s going to die. “It’s not a life-or-death situation.” I almost say the word * but restrain myself. I don’t need to piss this kid off. “She’ll be fine. A couple of stitches and she’s good to go.”

I take off before he can say another word, needing to get the hell out of there. The kid calls after me but I don’t look back. Just keep my head bent and my feet moving, kicking up sand as I propel myself farther and farther away from the temptation that is Lily Fowler.

I don’t even think she realizes who grabbed her out of the water. At least, I hope she doesn’t. And that’s how I need to keep it, because no way in hell do I want her to try and thank me or talk to me.

Not yet.

Bad enough I sat near her cabana earlier while I spied on her. I think she had me figured out after a while, so that’s why I left. I didn’t want to be too obvious, but damn it, I needed to get close.

More like I wanted to get close.

Swiping a hand across the back of my neck, I head for the hotel, practically stomping my feet in the hot sand. Never before have I let a woman affect me like this, especially on the job. I don’t know why I react to her so strongly. I usually know how to play it cool and calm. I don’t let anything get in the way of my job.

But one glance of Lily sitting on that lounger, her skin glistening in the sun, those big designer sunglasses concealing most of her face, adding an air of mystery to the intriguing puzzle that she already is, and I wanted to get closer. Just once.

You’re a f*cking idiot.

Yeah, can’t deny that. I’ve done enough things in my life to more than prove that description as accurate.

My phone rings and I answer it, knowing exactly who it is on the other line.

“Where is she?”

I decide to offer up the truth. “Laid out on the sand, unconscious.”

Loud laughter fills my ear and I pull my phone away so I don’t have to listen to the brunt of it. “What, you already knocked her to the ground? You work fast.”

“I don’t abuse women,” I mutter.

“That’s too bad. A good smack might do her wonders.”

Jesus. My client is a world-class, top-grade *.

“She almost drowned,” I stress, glancing around to make sure no one’s listening to me. This is a conversation best kept private, even one-sided.

“Yeah, well she probably deserved it, the little witch.” More laughter. Disgust fills me. I don’t like this woman. She’s not nice. Not by a long shot. And I’m still confused over exactly why she wants me to follow freaking Lily Fowler around and grab that goddamned laptop, though my client claims it belongs to her. But I’m starting to wonder if that’s a lie. And I wonder if Lily doesn’t have something big on this woman.

Interesting thought, and not what I would consider far-fetched, either.

“Listen, it doesn’t help, you calling or texting me every couple of hours, checking up on my ass,” I mutter into the phone as I draw closer to the hotel grounds. I’m near the pool and it’s loud. A little chaotic, what with the Hawaiian music playing overhead and guests milling about everywhere. I need to get the hell out of here and back to my hotel room so I don’t have to deal with this shit. Lily Fowler will be laid up for at least a few hours, so I should probably try and grab a nap.

“If I’m not checking up on you, who will? I paid you a lot of money to get this job done and done fast,” she reminds me. “It’s my right to call or text you whenever I want.”

“Yeah, well, you’re messing with my strategy. I’ll report in once a day, got that?” I’m not going to let this woman boss me around. She may have paid me a fat chunk of change that made taking the challenging job more than worth it, but I’m still in charge of my own f*cking business.

“Not good enough,” she says with a dark finality that I can’t help but admire, at least momentarily. This woman has balls, I’ll give her that. “Twice a day. Once in the morning, once at night.”

Hell. I scrub my hand across my face. “Deal,” I tell her. “Want your report now or later?”

“Now.” She sounds eager. “Tell me how she ended up unconscious. I want every dirty detail.” She also sounds downright gleeful at the thought of Lily being hurt.

So I give her everything as requested, from my watching Lily while she lazed around in her cabana and drank two alcoholic beverages before noon, right down to her fainting in my arms and me leaving her with the scared hotel employee while they waited for a medic to arrive.

“So you just left her there?” she asks after I finish.

“What was I supposed to do? Introduce myself and let her know I work for you?”

She gasps. “My God, no. That would be a disaster. Bad enough that she ruins everything she puts her filthy hands on.”