Page 80 of Juicy Pickle

Or is it?

And what did Bailey say?

The second person I notice is Viola. She glowers at me from the edge of the pool, even though she’s got some young buck I don’t recognize staring down her cleavage like it’s a magic mirror.

I would like very much to glower back, now that I know what she did to Bailey, but I have appearances to keep up at the moment. Viola will get her due all in good time.

I shake hands and accept a beer that is fetched for me. I’m tempted to drink the whole thing in one chug.Thatwould get the party started.

But I’m already stiffening up, hardening under the pressure of being the boss. They need me to be something I’m not. Real Rhett isn’t the right guy for the job.

What boss would compromise his former assistant when she couldn’t even go for help if she wanted?

In the light of day, among all the people whose livelihoods depend on me, I realize how bad this looks. Me, all over a woman I fired. Taking advantage of her, of our isolation.

My palms start to sweat. I make an excuse and head to the rail, hoping the wind and the view will distract me.

Sarah appears. “I’d keep those coming if I were you,” she says, gesturing at the beer bottle. “I would have fallen plumb apart if I got stuck on an island with anybody, must less someone I dismissed.”

I fix my gaze firmly on the water. “We’re all right. I need to look at the dailies. We did have a conversation about the marketing debacle. I got some information I need to check into.”

Sarah turns to me. “What sort of information?”

“Another employee who may have faked some documents.”

“Rhett! That’s serious. I’ve never worked anywhere that had issues like this.”

Right. Because probably at her last company, the boss wasn’t the owner’s incompetent nephew who got hired purely based on his name and not a whit for his ability to do the job.

Sarah is clearly distressed. “Maybe we need an external audit.”

I put on my best authoritative voice. It’s well practiced. “Let me follow the trail of paperwork. It’s in my room. It was always going to be my priority.”

Sarah braces her elbows on the rail. “Whatever you say, Rhett. But if this mess leaks to the clients, we’ll lose billing.”

I know it, but I take a swig of the beer and decide not to answer.

We stand there, watching the cut of the water where the yacht sluices through the waves. I want to find Bailey, see where we are with all that.

Finally, I push away. “I’ll see you and Caleb at dinner?”

“Of course.” Her gaze stays on me, her hair blowing in every direction. “You sure you’re all right?”

“Totally. Completely. Don’t worry about a thing.” I give her a nod and head for the closest crew member. I’m definitely not going to ask Gloria to take me to Bailey.

The woman in the blue uniform knows who I am. She agrees to look up Bailey’s room number and take me there.

I guess that’s one thing that’s good about being the boss—generally, I get what I want, whether I deserve it or not.

31

BAILEY

The knock at the door is clearly Rhett. It’s got too much authority, like he’s telling you to open up or face the consequences.

Old Rhett. The one I worked for.

Not the one on the beach, the lines crinkling around his eyes as we poured margaritas.

---