Lost in Paradise (Paradise Club #2)(18)

“I’m happy I met you too.”

“Who knows, maybe we will be in-laws if whatever is happening between our siblings takes off.” She chuckles.

“Does that mean we can’t keep hooking up if we become family?” I joke with her.

“Might make Christmas lunch interesting, that’s for sure.” Ivy giggles.

“My family has a large home with some secret passages, we might accidentally get lost at some point,” I add.

“Sounds like fun.” She chuckles as we fall into a comfortable silence again. “What were we talking about?” she asks, shaking her head.

“I asked how your morning was.”

“Oh, that’s right, yeah. Do you have a host where you’re staying?” she asks.

“Sure do.”

“So, you know that they do extra stuff, right?”

“I do,” I answer slowly. I have a suspicion I know where this is headed.

“Have you used yours?” she asks, looking at me through her long lashes. I could lie and tell her I haven’t indulged, but she would see through that bullshit a mile away, and that might ruin the budding friendship we have going.

“I have, yes. As a silent partner in the resort, it’s my duty during this soft launch to make sure everything works,” I tell her, giving her a sly smirk, which has her smiling back at me.

“Taking one for the team. You’re so selfless.”

“I truly am,” I reply as we continue driving around the island. “Shall I assume from your questions that you, too, have indulged in this area?” The tiniest pang of jealousy hits me.

“I may have. Thought I’d help out, to, you know, see if there were any areas for improvement before opening.” She giggles.

“And was there?” I ask, genuinely curious now.

“No. I think you’ve got that all covered pretty well.”

“Really now. Tell me more,” I tease.

“What! No. You don’t want to hear about that,” she says, swatting my arm playfully.

“I’m curious, though.” Her eyes narrow on me, unsure whether she believes me or not. “Not going to lie, I’m a little jealous that your host got to do things with you, but that’s just my male ego. I also want to know if I should up my game for next time,” I tell her honestly.

“You think there’s going to be a next time?” She chuckles.

“Sure hope so,” I say, looking over at her.

“Me, too,” she adds quietly under her breath which makes me feel good. But I can’t be pushy now I know she wants to have fun with me but also her host. She wants to explore what the island has to offer, and I must let her have that.

“So, what happened?” I ask.

“Well, my sister surprised me with a special wake-up call. I almost died because I had no idea what was going on. I woke up to a man’s face between my legs,” she says, chuckling awkwardly.

My hands instantly tighten around the steering wheel—if that host stepped over a line, I will have him fucking fired.

“I gave the guy a heart attack, poor thing. He assumed as it was ordered through my tablet, that I had organized the call, not realizing my sister decided to help me in my pursuit of letting loose and had organized it.”

My hands slightly loosen that it was a prank organized by her sister, but I am still not happy about it.

“He then suggested after my surprise that maybe I should have a massage. I have needed a massage for months, but have been so flat out with work that I haven’t had time to organize one. It was fantastic. Did you know they have happy-ending ones too?” she explains.

Why yes, yes, I did know that. My own host gave me one when I arrived. It was a perfect way to release stress after a day of traveling.

“Of course, you know this. It’s your business,” she says, waving her comment away.

“Don’t let my brother hear you say that. But, in all honesty, it has nothing to do with me. I only gave him some cash. This is all his hard work, his ideas … he came up with everything,” I tell her.

“He’s kind of brilliant,” she adds.

“Yeah, he is,” I state, feeling proud of my brother in this moment. It’s nice hearing from someone outside of our circle appreciating his hard work. “Anyway, I had a fantastic massage this morning … that’s what I’m getting at. And I’ve organized for another tomorrow,” she says, biting her bottom lip.

“It’s hard to find a good masseuse.” I give her a wink which makes her laugh.

“So true,” she says with a smile. “Have you explored much else since you’ve been here, other than your room and the club we met at last night?” she asks.

“Not really. I flew in late yesterday afternoon. I had a meeting rescheduled which meant I was able to turn up for the soft launch. I thought I was going to miss it,” I explain to her. She nods in understanding. “My best friend from home, Jasper, arrived this morning. I just dropped him off at his beachfront villa when I ran into you,” I say.

“Perfect timing,” she says.

“How did your friend go with Axel? Did they sort out their issues?”

“She texted me this morning saying she was with Axel and not to worry. They were sorting through some things,” she says with a shrug of her shoulders.