From his sun bed, he glanced across at her. Kendall looked utterly gorgeous in the skimpy red bikini she wore. Occasionally, her stunning blue gaze would lift to meet his, their eyes and souls connecting for the briefest of moments before she stared unconvincingly at her trashy novel once more. He watched her flick over a page or two as though it were an interesting book, but Mac figured she hadn’t read a single word of the paperback she held folded in her hand.
What saddened him most was the fact the Kendall had retreated from him, both physically and emotionally. Sure, they still fucked like rabbits, but that was because he demanded sex from her and she complied as part of their business arrangement. The emotional connection that had been so evident when he’d made love to her beside the swimming pool and even when he’d first had sex with her in his office was now gone. Kendall kept glancing at her watch, and he guessed she was simply marking time until her ten days were up and her debt paid in full.
“Coming for a dip in the pool, honey?”
“No thanks, I’m fine where I am.” She checked her watch again.
Thinking about it now, she’d checked it at least a dozen times in the last hour and a half. Something was wrong, very wrong. Nobody was that obsessive about time.
“Are you expecting a call on your cell phone?”
“No. Why do you ask?”
“No reason, it’s just that you keep looking at your watch every few minutes. Is it busted? If it is I can buy you a new one.”
“No, it’s fine.”
“So why the constant checking?”
Clearly agitated, she stood from the sun bed and threw her paperback into the pool. He watched it float on the surface for a few seconds before it plummeted to the bottom. “Temper, temper.”
“Look, why so many questions, Mac? In less than five days my debt will be repaid, and we can go our separate ways. In the meantime, I’ll stick to my end of the bargain, so during that time you can do whatever you want with me. I won’t fight you.”
Kendall was frightened. The girl was shit scared, and he saw her visibly tremble. He was getting to her. He’d push just that little bit harder, because he sensed that whatever was bothering her so much, she had trouble keeping it to herself. With her breathing heightened and her usually translucent skin flushed bright red, she looked ready to explode.
Knowing what she thought of this Karl guy, he’d play the devil’s advocate. “And after the next five days I suppose you’re gonna go running to that boyfriend of yours.”
“Boyfriend? I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“Yeah, sure you do. You mentioned him the night of the storm.” Mac clicked his fingers together for theatrical effect. “What’s his name again? Yeah, I remember now. It’s Karl.”
Her mouth fell open, and her beautiful face turned purple with incandescent rage, and she launched herself at him with a venom and anger that surprised him. Her fists were clenched and her teeth bared as she went for him like a wild banshee. “You fucking bastard, Mac. Don’t you ever, ever refer to that piece of shit as my boyfriend.”
He was closing in on her now, finally getting to the truth, and he grabbed hold of her hands that beat against his chest, stilling them midair. “If he’s not your boyfriend, then who the fuck is he? This time I won’t take no for an answer. Understand?”
Kendall stood silent and wide eyed for a moment before he watched her crumble, falling apart at the seams before his very eyes. “Mac, oh, Mac, I’ve so wanted to tell you, but I’ve just been too scared. I’ve done something stupid, and now because of me, a woman, my best friend in all the world could be dead.”
“Kendall, shhh, shhh. Don’t cry. It’s okay. I’m right here, but you have to tell me everything. You can’t hold anything back. Do you understand what I’m saying to you?”
“Yes,” she sobbed. “I just can’t handle this anymore. It’s too big for me.”
Mac pulled her onto his lap and then wiped away her teardrops before tenderly kissing her lips. As she wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him as though her life depended on it, he felt the intimate connection they once shared start to return. He hated seeing her so distraught and unhappy. “Well, don’t you worry, honey, because whatever you’ve gotten yourself involved in, it ain’t too big for Mac Buchanan.”
“The money…” Her pretty brow furrowed with anxiety, and her big blue eyes appeared glassy as the tears streamed down her face. “I want you to know that I didn’t steal it for myself. I’m not the shallow money-grabbing bitch you think I am.”