32
Mila
My session for the afternoon wrapped up, and I went about putting the room to rights after the resort guests left. Erotic massage definitely seemed to be a hit with these people. I’d assumed it would be popular and appreciated knowing I’d hit the nail on the head.
Of course, whatisn’tthere to enjoy about having your lover’s hands gliding over you, stroking away the stress…replacing it with something else far more enticing.
A sound at the door interrupted my reverie and had me looking up from the mats I’d been wiping down.
I spied Liam and winked at him. “Want a one-on-one lesson in erotic massage? You came to the right place.” I sure wouldn’t mind getting him naked, oiled up…underneath me as I slowly straddled him. The thought played haywire with my heartbeat, and I resisted the urge to fan myself.
He moved deeper into the bungalow, and that was when I saw the rigid set of his face.
Well, so much for the idea of introducing him to erotic massage, I thought absently as I got to my feet. Uneasiness curled in my belly as he came closer.
“What’s wrong?”
“I was at the bungalow a few minutes ago,” he said, his voice brusque. His face was as hard and unreadable as I’d ever seen it and that only added to my unease. “Somebody got inside and tore the hell out of your place, Mila.”
I blinked at him, the words not making sense. “What?” I asked, shaking my head.
“Your bungalow was trashed,” he said, coming closer. He held out a hand.
Without thinking, I placed mine in his and let him draw me closer. “I left the security team going through everything. I wanted to be here to tell you.”
“You’re checking up on me,” I said wanly, recognizing the protective look in his eyes.
“I’m also checking up on you.” He brushed my hair back from my face. “Are you okay?”
“Am I okay?” I parroted back. I shook my head. “I’m not entirely sure. How much damage is there?”
“Enough.” He looked like he was debating on how much to tell me.
It had better beallof it.
“I didn’t do any poking around because I didn’t want to risk contaminating the scene, but the furniture was overturned, the mirror in the living area broken, and your clothes were dumped out all over the place. Somebody wanted to cause a lot of damage in a very short period of time from what I could tell.” He shook his head and added, “But I’m no professional at this. The security team is still there, going over everything.”
“Who would want to tear up my things?” I asked, bewildered.
Liam was quiet for a moment before he said softly, “Your dad was worried enough about you to hire security guards to watch you. And I haven’t seen a single guard around you since I got here.”
I broke away from him and paced over to the nearest window, staring outside. “I told my father I wasn’t accepting any more security guards.” Tired, with the beginnings of a headache starting to pulse inside my skull, I rubbed the line between my eyebrows. “I had you with me for weeks, and nothing happened. He was exaggerating things like he always does.”
“But somebody got into your place and tore it up. If it wasn’t connected to your father, then what do you think happened?”
“How would I know?” I gave him a weak shrug even as my mind spun, trying to come up with some plausible explanation. “Maybe there’s somebody on the island that doesn’t like that Millie is leaving – I don’t know. But it seems kind of far-fetched to me to think that this is related to my dad in any way. It’s been over a month, Liam. And nothing happened until now.”
“You no longer have a bodyguard watching over you all the time. It could be that the man behind this just now discovered his chance.”
“That’s…” I thought about it, then said, “No. It still doesn’t make any sense. I’ve been back in New York, and it would be a lot easier to try and scare me there than it is here.” I shoved my hands through my hair and turned back to face him. “Does my grandmother know?”
“She arrived not long after the security guards did. I assume one of them tipped her off.”
“Okay.” Blowing out a breath, I tried to gather my scattered thoughts. “I should go talk to her. She’ll be worried.”
“Aren’t you?” Liam asked as I went to turn off the lights.
“Of course I am.” I was worried, and my hands were sweating, my mind spinning in dizzying circles as I tried to make sense of what Liam told me. But I wasn’t about to let all of that spill out of me. What would it help?