Page 15 of Unwrapping Spring Break

Roomserviceknocksonthe door and brings in a cart with breakfast for two. I forgot about breakfast. Yesterday turned out to be different from the day I was hoping for. Frowning, I tell the attendant to take one of the plates back.

The thought of sending it to Lily’s room crosses my mind, but after what happened yesterday, I have to trust she can take care of herself and get her own breakfast.

Breakfast. It’s such a small thing. I was hoping to share it with Lily on the balcony today. Sending the plate back is an excellent way to start my day—a do-over. A reminder that I like being alone.

As I eat the scrambled eggs with bacon, sausage, and a side of toast, my mind drifts to the day’s business. Thankfully, we’re not wasting the whole trip. Alexander managed to locate two other potential vendors in the area. He called me this morning to inform me at least one was willing to meet today. My instructions are to take Lily and let her take the lead. The only thing I don’t know is if Alexander is going to come along as well.

His presence and Lily taking point doesn’t sit well with me. What would be the point of me being there if Alexander and Lily are doing all the talking? I would feel extraneous. There’s only one way to find out. And if Alexander plans to go, I’ll find something else to occupy my time today.

With that decided and the rest of my breakfast gone, I dress for the meeting and ruminate on what happened between Lily and me. Last night, I was tempted to follow after her. Find out what room she was in. Talk to her. Touch her. Then I realized there was no way I could have one night with her. I’d need more. Alexander made his opinion quite clear. I need to respect it for the sake of our partnership. For the sake of our friendship.

I waste no time getting down to the hotel lobby to meet Lily. The elevator doors open, and I’m floored by her stunning beauty. My cock stirs, and before she notices me, I take the opportunity to admire her for a brief moment. She wears a light pale yellow sundress, wedge sandals, and a large white sun hat. It’s hardly business attire, but she looks lovely. I want to tell her, but I must stick to my guns.

This is business and only business.

“A little underdressed, aren’t you?”

My attire, with consideration to the tropical climate, is truly business: a pair of khakis and a pressed eggshell-blue short-sleeved button-down.

She turns to face me as she pulls her sunglasses down the ridge of her nose, then looks me up and down as if she’s assessing my appearance. “Trust me,” she says. She gives me an award-winning smile and holds it with a bit of warmth. Then she saunters toward the exit, where our car waits for us.

With a sigh, I follow her to the car. As we approach, the driver opens the door, and I let her get in first, then slide in beside her. Once we settle, the driver gets back into the car and pulls away, leaving an awkward silence to linger inside.

I can’t be sure if it’s the same car we used yesterday, but it is undoubtedly the same driver. Still, being in the car reminded me of what transpired between us yesterday. I glance toward her, hoping to find her staring back at me. Instead, she gazes out of the window, intent on avoiding eye contact.

This is going to be a long day.

To pass the time until we reach our destination, I let my mind drift to the business at hand. While I’m not talking, it doesn’t mean I shouldn’t be prepared. I run over the numbers in my head from what little research Alexander gave me last night.

When the car comes to a stop, I look around at the marina. Not many people today. I get out of the vehicle without waiting for the driver to open the door. Glancing around again, I can’t help the frown that appears on my face. There are two docks with boats of various sizes moored to the shore. However, only one of the boats shows movement. It’s large enough to accommodate a few people but small enough that it’s not a double-decker party boat. With no other activity on the dock, it’s apparent this boat is the location of our meeting—something Alexander neglected to tell me.

Once the driver opens Lily’s door, she emerges from the car. Her hand flies up to her hat to keep the light wind from taking it out to sea. She turns to me with a broad smile and winks. “I did my research.” She starts toward the docks with a sassy sway to her walk. “Come on, Jax. What are you waiting for?”Oh, she did her research alright. And yet no one told me a damn thing.

After picking my jaw up from the ground, I follow her. She continues to surprise me, and I’d be lying if I said I was displeased.

I quickly catch up to Lily and match my pace to hers. She might be taking the lead today, but I’ll be damned if it looks like I’m her assistant following her around. My pride will only allow me to be demoted so far. However, I keep all the questions that come to mind locked tightly away. I need to act as though I know what’s going on.

A pair of deckhands meet us at the stern. One of them reaches for Lily’s hand to assist her onto the boat. They leave me to my own devices, but the other gives me a polite greeting. I nod, following their lead to the foredeck. My eyes scan our surroundings, keeping Lily in my sight. Yesterday will not happen again. Not on my watch.

There’s a sizable bar on the deck behind a couple of tables with four comfortable chairs each. It’s a decent-sized boat. Our host is easy to spot, being the only man not in uniform.

“Miss Summers.” The vendor walks toward Lily with a mimosa and a bright smile to match his green eyes. His white linen shirt and shorts, all neatly pressed, offset his russet reddish-brown complexion. He lifts Lily’s hand when he reaches her, then bends over to press a kiss to the back of it. “A pleasure to meet you.” Then he looks past her to me, and his smile dims a little, but he nods. “Mr. Griffin. Welcome.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Mr. Jones,” Lily says. A hint of flirtation lingers in her voice, mixed with business—a tone I haven’t heard from her before. A tone much different than yesterday.Damn, she does know what she’s doing.

“Come,” Mr. Jones says smoothly as he leads her to the closest table where a box of cigars lays spread out. “Join me in a mimosa while I show you my goods.”

A tinge of jealously creeps up, and I have to squash it back down before I do something.

I step up next to Lily so I can be the one to hold her chair while she sits down, then take a seat to her left. The deckhands from before appear again with glass flutes filled with a bubbly orange drink. I sit back as I take a sip. It’s going to be fun watching Lily work.

“Here.” Mr. Jones slides the box toward Lily with hands freckled with sunspots. His touch is delicate, as if the cigars were prized jewels. “I thought about showing you our best samples, but that’s cheating, or so I’m told.” He chuckles and then continues. “These represent the average quality of our product. The best represents what you would purchase from us.”

Good choice. Only some crops will be the best, as it is with most in production.

Lily gently plucks a cigar from the box, turns it over as she studies the wrapping, then lifts it to her nose. “Tell me about your process, please.” She hands the cigar to me before taking a sip of her mimosa. I begin my inspection while I wait for the explanation.

Mr. Jones takes another drink from one of his deckhands and nods. He hasn’t nursed the drink like one usually would during a business meeting. It makes me wonder how many he’s had so far this morning. Fortunately, he doesn’t seem intoxicated, or even tipsy.

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