Page 18 of Claiming His Virgin Mate

“Oh, Charley, he didn’t have to do that.”

“Hey, none of that now. You’re Pack, Mags. And Pack is family!”

Maggie sighed and grabbed a bottle of fizzy water before heading outside. She was waiting for the roofers to arrive in the hotel lobby and going over the bookings they received for the upcoming holiday weekend.

Memorial Day was the official summer kickoff down on the Jersey Shore, and for the first time in many years,Oasishad managed to sell out of every single room.

The only thing was, it was three weeks away, and the place looked like crap. Alex had been nothing if not thoroughly responsible in his duties. He remained professional throughout every meeting they’d had, insisting that the merger was just that. He’d showed her the papers he’d had drawn up naming her and Joelle the owners, with ISP Inc as the backers of the establishment with equal creative powers. But really, it was just a formality. He let her have her way each and every time, except when it came to how much things cost.

Alex refused to allow her to pick from anything but the best. He insisted it was for the overall bottom line and told her to ignore the money for now. It was his job, after all, he’d said time and again while remaining courteous.

Infuriating professional courtesy, she admitted to herself if no one else.

Never once had he attempted to get familiar with her. Not since backing her against the wall. After Jo-Jo had rushed in, he’d stepped away and pretended interest in their vision board.

At least, she’d thought it was all pretend. The next day, he’d returned with Taylor ham, egg, and cheese sandwiches on everything bagels from the bakery in the center of town, and the second thing he did after joining her and Jo-Jo at their crowded table, was take the vision board to the office.

“My office,” she muttered, recalling how he’d commandeered it.

That wasn’t quite true either. He’d very generously split the space equally. Even refurnished it first with two space-saving desks, brand-new computers, a multifunction scanner, fax, and printer, and everything else an office could use.

He’d even gotten her a soft and cushiony pink office chair with lumbar support and a foot swing beneath the desk that she adored.

Of course, that was after the floors had been redone. The old, carpeted floors had been the first to go throughout the entire hotel. And next, he’d had new AC units installed.

Alex insisted on cleanliness and overall health, refusing to tell her about their budget. He insisted she pick everything, but she had to choose from the high-end commercial tiles and samples books only. So she did. Falling under his spell and Jo-Jo’s enthusiasm, especially once he announced the hotel would henceforth be called theOasis Beachside Resort.

Maggie could not fight with that. Sigh. So, she’d chosen a luxury vinyl tile that looked like white oak flooring for the rooms and office space. The pool tiles were exchanged for some high-quality non-slip tiles with lovely teal on white designs.

The overall look was beautiful and clean. Plus, the new flooring was a dream to maintain. She’d been thrilled with it after his army of employees had installed both floors within twenty-four hours.

Next had been wall repairs and new paint. The palate was clean and fresh, but representative of the familiar beachside motel. It was a place families would feel at home in. Exactly the kind of advertising she’d wanted to explore with her app.

That was the other thing Alex did that frustrated the pants off her. She wished. But seriously, once Joelle had let it slip that Maggie was actually a software developer and was working on an app for smaller motels and hotels to advertise to their clients on an intimate basis, he’d been intrigued.

Once she had his attention, he wanted to know everything about it. Then he’d gone and pitched the idea to ISP who’d offered to be partners in her endeavor with an enormous bonus check for signing on.

The fucker had made her professional dreams come true. But first, she wanted to get theOasissquared away. Joelle had chosen most of their palate, and in a matter of weeks, it would be finished.

It was mostly clean whites and creams, with bright teal accents, and various shades of slate gray to go with the flooring. It was stunning. The true miracle, however, was the amount of work they’d pulled off in such a short time.

But all work and no play made Maggie a very dull girl.Yesss. She shook her head at the insistence of her inner voice.

Her dang alter ego was going bananas lately. Hell. She’d been going nuts ever since he’d appeared on her radar.

Maybe she should try to find some time alone later?But nope. Not even her not-so-virginal toys were appealing. What good was cold silicone when she had a real live, flesh and blood man just a room away?

No! Bad girl. Besides, she didn’t have anything. Alex was not hers. What the heck was wrong with her? Sure, her libido had been put on hold since forever. Coming home and taking her position as her sister’s guardian took up lots of her time the last year. And then there was the hotel.

But, to put it quite frankly, sex had always been the last thing on her mind. She had a drawer in her bedroom full of her favorite adult toys. Plenty of book boyfriends to satisfy those occasional needs.

But even herWomanizerand favorite steamy paranormal romances by literary goddesses like Julia Mills were letting her down.

And yes, fine, she could admit it. After all, Maggie was an adult. It had been that way ever sinceherolled in and disturbed her orderly life with his stupid hot body and unwavering sapphire stare.

It wasn’t helpful that he was also good at everything he did. The SOB had actually managed to get them fully booked for their opening weekend. Plus, he was adding a private infinity pool on the rooftop for exclusive clientele.

In fact, the entire top floor design was on a need-to-know basis, and apparently, Maggie did not need to know. Even Jo-Jo was invited to see upstairs. Not Maggie. Just her baby sister.

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