Page 19 of Summer Heat

Brady

Iput one of my hands on the small of Greer’s back, intent on steering her as far from the party as I can as quickly as possible.

I’m not embarrassed about how the other half of the resort chooses to have fun, but I think I’ve fucked up enough this week without getting the boss’s daughter drunk or high or worse.

Greer follows me reluctantly, turning her head toward the staff cottage over and over.

“Is Drew okay?” she asks, and if I didn’t know better, I’d mistake her interest for genuine concern rather than the kind of curiosity that can only mean trouble for us.

I dismiss her with a shrug. “Eh, we work hard, and sometimes we play just as hard. Don’t worry, he’ll be okay. Breakfast will start tomorrow at seven without delay.”

She stops abruptly and turns around to face me, her soft chest colliding against me when I don’t budge.

Her tone sounds resentful when she lifts her blue eyes to look at me. “I didn’t mean it that way. I couldn’t care less about breakfast. I was just worried about Drew.”

Right.

I keep walking, trying to get us off the beach. The sooner I can deliver Greer safely back to the luxury of her room, the sooner I can go make sure that Drew is, in fact, okay. He looked like hell, and it felt like shit to leave him behind, even with Matt looking after him. “All I’m saying is that there’s no reason to worry your dad about a little party. Drew works hard, and a few beers won’t get in the way of that.”

We’re almost by the back of the kitchens, by the little side path that leads to the back entrance to her penthouse quarters, when she stops again.

This time there’s no resentment in her tone, she’s downright belligerent. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean? I’m so sick and tired of being treated like a spoiled little girl who’d snitch at the first chance she gets. I don’t go tell Daddy shit. I don’t care if you party, if you end surfing lessons early, or if you have something going on with my sister! I was just worried for the only person who’s been remotely kind to me since I set foot here.”

Whoa! There’s some fire in the sweet, little blonde princess. I have a defense ready on the tip of my tongue. “There’s nothing going on between me and your sister. She’s just a giant pain in my a—wait a minute! What the fuck do you meanthe only person who’s been remotely kind to you?”

She keeps her blue eyes trained on me. “I mean that Drew has always been nice to me since I got here yesterday. You’ve just accused me of being a snitch, and your friend accused me of trying to get him fired just because I was trying to help him with the bags.”

Goddamn, her hurt tone rubs me the wrong way. “Oh, really? Last time I checked, it wasn’t Drew who saved you from your drunk boyfriend! Or did Matt and I just interrupt your rich princess fucked-up version of foreplay on the beach?”

What did I just say? Fired. I’m so fucking going to get fired after this.

She takes a step closer to me, our chests almost touching, her eyes blazing with affront. “First off, Tristan isnotmy boyfriend! I didn’t know he even existed until yesterday afternoon, and I wish things had stayed that way. He’s here because our fathers are doing business together, and God help me if I understand why he’s so fucking obsessed with me when my sister is practically offering herself on a silver platter.”

My lips quirk up, half amused, half turned on by Greer’s reaction. I’m definitely turned on by her subtle scent of jasmine and the way her chest is heaving with the effort to contain her fury. My eyes drift down to the perfect shape of her tits, and fuck if I blame Tristan for preferring Greer’s soft, natural beauty and her sweet, fiery personality to Chelsea’s overly made-up, slutty brattiness and her fake tits.

“And just in case you hadn’t noticed,” she continues with her fists clenched at her sides, leaning closer toward me. “I’m not some damsel in distress. I was handling Tristan when you and Matt arrived. So thank you for helping, but I didn’t need two Neanderthals barging in to save the day!”

By the time she’s done yelling at me, our chests are touching, and I don’t even realize that my hands have closed around her biceps.

It’s very hard to contain my smile when I look at her bright eyes and flushed cheeks. “You’re right, you were handling it. I’m sorry, but thisNeanderthalcouldn’t just stand by and watch a drunk, rich douche trying to force himself on a woman who had obviously said no. Shit like that makes me furious.”

My words seem to calm her, and she releases a breath she’s obviously been holding, making her chest rub fully against mine. “Well, okay. Thank you.” Her words come out softly, almost in a whisper, as her eyes bore into mine. “And thank you for walking me back. Truth be told, I feel safer not walking to my room by myself just in case Tristan decided to wait for me here. He does look like a sore loser.”

My smile vanishes at her words. “You’re damn right. Hopefully the douche got the message to stay away from you. I’ll wait until you lock your door behind you, just in case. I want to make sure you’re alright.”

“Thank you, Brady.”

I don’t know if it’s the softness of her tone, the feeling of her body against mine, or the way my name sounds on her lips, but I close the distance between us and brush my lips against hers.

They are impossibly soft, softer than I imagined after I saw her this morning on the beach. I hadn’t even realized that her smile, eyes, and lips had stayed in my mind until now.

She doesn’t retreat and she doesn’t hold back. She kisses me back. It’s a little timid at first, but when I run my tongue against the seam of her lips, she opens for me without hesitation. Her tongue slides against mine with as much heat and passion as I’m giving her, and her arms close around my neck.

I hold her closer to me, exploring her mouth for a blindingly delicious moment, completely lost in her sweet taste—until I realize what I’m doing.

I’m kissing the boss’s daughter. I’m breaking the one rule that could cause me to fuck things up even more than I already did.

Mr. Manning’s words echo in my ears again. “The guests are off-limits.” I’m pretty sure when he saidguests, his daughter was at the top of the list.

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