Redeeming Her SEAL (ASSIGNMENT: Caribbean Nights Book 9) (10 page)

“Great,” Hannah snapped as Carly sighed. Audra shushed them both, mortified.

It wasn’t this lady’s fault that Jared’s normally competent admin had screwed up. If that was indeed what had happened and this wasn’t actually the result of another attempt to manipulate her by the man who could teach Machiavelli a thing or two. She wouldn’t put it past Jared to have done this on purpose as a point to show how pissed off he still was at her for breaking up with him. Or for filing the report.

The lady typed rapidly on her keyboard and brightened. “Ah. We do have room at our sister property. The penthouse suite is available, and we’d like you to have it at Mr. Anderson’s expense. I’m putting it in your name now, Ms. Reed, and we’ll be happy to provide a water shuttle to the property.”

Sister property?
Oh, God, no
. Jared only owned one other resort within water shuttle distance to Freeport.

Dread bloomed in Audra’s stomach as the clerk printed the confirmation and handed it to her.
Duchess Island Resort
marched across the page in bold, black font. Yep. She was definitely going to throw up.

“The penthouse!” Carly clapped, and she and Hannah started chattering to each other about their fantastic luck.

Yeah. Some luck. What were the odds of being given the exact same room she’d stayed in with Charlie two years ago?

“Right this way.” The clerk beamed at them as a porter gathered their luggage and escorted them to the dock. The sea breeze blew Audra’s hair behind her as she glumly followed her sisters to the speedboat that would ferry them to the same island where Charlie now lived. And worked.

After a year of avoiding each other like pros, she was walking into his territory. For the first time in two years, she’d be voluntarily returning to the resort where they’d met. The way her day was going, he’d probably be the first person she saw upon reaching the dock at the resort.

But the fates smiled on her, and she didn’t run into Charlie. Thank God. She couldn’t have taken the real thing when his ghost was all over the penthouse suite. And the balcony—the scene of one of the most daring sexcapades she’d ever had in her life. Her entire body heated as she instantly recalled how amazing that whole day had been, which she and Charlie had jokingly referred to as the Day of Six Times during their sporadic Skype conversations.

Oh, God. A wave of nostalgia and regret and pure confusion rolled over her, nearly knocking her to her knees where the sleepless night hadn’t.

“What’s with you?” Carly threw over her shoulder as she pulled on a tiny purple and white polka-dotted bikini that should have been illegal and was definitely too mature for a seventeen-year-old.

But Audra wasn’t Carly’s mother. They were barely sisters. She wasn’t an idiot—the only reason they’d agreed to come visit her was due to the promise of a free ride courtesy of Jared. Every freaking thing in her life circled back to Jared freaking Anderson.

Even her job. Until she’d solidified her place at FARC, she’d worried that he’d pull the funding that paid for her research if she rocked the boat. Still worried about it every day.

But she’d worried about her sanity more. Her grief over Isaac became less of a living, breathing presence, and her need for Jared faded. Eventually she’d realized that he’d become a crutch and he’d slithered so many tentacles into her life that she’d started to become concerned. She’d had to get out from under his influence or she feared she’d never break loose.

“I’m fine.” Audra waved it off. “You girls go ahead. I’m just going to lie down for a little while.”

Exhaustion pulled at her, but when she fell into the bed intending to sleep for a couple of hours, it smelled like Charlie. Which was insane. It had been two years since she’d slept here with him. Her mind was playing tricks on her, that’s all.

But what a trick it was. Sleep was not going to happen. Too many memories zipped by of a time when she’d thought the world was full of possibilities and wonderful things in her future. Charlie had been such a revelation, and she’d put fragile trust in him, only to be crushed by his casual castoff.

No promises.

She’d suggested that compromise on Charlie’s last night in the Bahamas. He’d been headed into Iraq and worried about leaving her here waiting for him. No promises made perfect sense because, once upon a time, she’d been strong and independent, easily holding herself back from jumping headlong into emotional attachments. That had
never
been a problem before Charlie. She’d told herself she’d be fine if things didn’t work out.

Guess not.

Her carefully reconstructed insides threatened to crumble, and she couldn’t lie here in this bed wondering where she’d gone wrong any longer. Might as well relax down at the beach. Maybe the sun would lull her tired brain into shutting down once she was away from all of the Charlie in the suite.

She threw on a two-piece swimsuit and tied a sarong around her waist. If nothing else, maybe she could find someone to take her to Ilhota Rosa so she could check on the dolphins. Funny thing about finally achieving her dream of a doctorate in animal behavior psychology—she spent far more time holed up in her office analyzing reports than she did in the water.

This was her three-day weekend too. She deserved to have fun.

Sand squished beneath her feet and worked its way between her toes as she waded into the turquoise water.
Yes
. She should have done this the moment she hit the island.

The shush of the waves swept through her soul, balming it where nothing else could. Sounds of the other resort guests faded. Shutting her eyes, she let the peace of the ocean drain away everything until she thought she might be able to function as a normal human being for a while.

When she found her sisters farther down the beach, they were having a conversation with a shirtless guy who clearly spent two hours a day at the gym and none in pursuit of an education on how to guess a female’s age.

Shifting her sunglasses to the top of her head, Audra sized up the situation as she approached. Carly had a dreamy smile on her face, and Hannah was doing all the talking, her gaze firmly fixed on the guy’s pecs. Judging by the way he was flexing them for her benefit, he must be used to girls staring at his rather impressive physique.

“Hey,” Hannah finally said when Audra cleared her throat.

“Who’s your friend?” Audra said brightly and swallowed the bit she’d been about to tack on the end about whether they’d bothered to mention to the well-built creep that they were seventeen. If she embarrassed them, they’d never forgive her. But come on. This guy was at least twenty-five and had that player vibe that she could sniff out a mile away.

After all, Jared had been drenched with it. Which made it all the more confusing as to why he’d been such a rock for her when she’d needed him.

“This is Jace,” Hannah said. “He was just offering to take us parasailing on his boat.”

“Oh, he was, was he?” Audra offered her hand to the Adonis she was liking less and less the longer she stood here. “Where is this boat?”

Mythical, likely. An excuse to get unsuspecting girls away from the resort so he could take advantage of their innocence. He probably thought he’d hit the lottery when he’d stumbled over her naïve sisters.

The guy shook her hand with a firm grip that said his muscles weren’t just for show. “Around the corner. I run the excursion company that services the resort.”

Of course he did. Which meant he was one of the five ex-SEALs Charlie had brought with him when he came back to Duchess Island. The guy’s physique took on a whole different significance once you knew it had been built by the military.

Biting back the curse that had automatically formed, Audra snatched her hand back. “Aqueous Adventures. Right?”

Jace grinned. “I guess our reputation precedes us. That’s nice.”

“Not exactly.” Charlie’s voice slid down Audra’s spine as he spoke from behind her. “This is Dr. Reed. You might be familiar with her work on a report about an island and some dolphins?”

Jace’s face did a comical fish-mouth thing—or what would have been comical if anything about this situation approached funny. “No way.
You’re
Dr. Reed? For some reason, I had the impression from how Charlie talked about you that you were old. Like forty.”

Hannah and Carly both laughed, capturing Jace’s attention again, which Audra really needed to nip in the bud like yesterday, but Charlie’s heat burned across her skin as he joined her in the seventh level of hell.

But had she really expected to never see him? Charlie worked at the resort, and the odds of not running into him were slim unless she’d stayed in her room. Obviously that’s what she
should
have done, but it was too late now.

The last time she’d seen him, he’d spread her out and tongued her to a climax that had completely blown away the crick in her neck that she’d gotten by falling asleep at her desk. She never should have let him do that; it had opened up far too many desires she had no business entertaining. To say that had left things awkward between them was an understatement.

“Audra is old,” Carly piped up. “She’s almost
thirty
.”

“Speaking of ages,” Charlie said casually to Jace as if they were all here for a lovely chat. “Dr. Reed’s sisters are jailbait. Find some other tourists to hit on.”

God, would he just stop being so on top of everything? It was not fair that he was standing there with his spiky blond hair blowing in the sea breeze and mirrored sunglasses like he wasn’t even affected by her presence. Didn’t he remember this was the beach where he’d kissed her for the first time? Because she sure did. It was doing funny things to her already-unsettled stomach.

Obviously all the awkwardness was on
her
side. Maybe she wasn’t supposed to care that there was still so much unsaid between them. Maybe she wasn’t supposed to want everything to be magically fixed so they could really pick up where they’d left off, right here, right now.

Jace’s brows came together. “I was just drumming up business. Jeez.”

“Uh, huh.” Charlie crossed his arms over his Aqueous Adventures T-shirt, totally unconcerned about the malevolent vibes Carly and Hannah were shooting in his direction.

Perfect. They could be mad at Charlie for ruining their flirt-fest with a man who was not only too old for them but a former SEAL, which judging by the mouth on Charlie, most likely meant he had stamina and prowess in a department better suited for grown-up women.

“Nice to meet you, Jace,” Audra said with a small smile that was almost genuine. She liked him a whole lot better when he gave her a two-fingered salute and told the girls he’d see them around, then loped off.

Carly and Hannah turned their glares toward Audra, and Hannah said, “Thanks for nothing. Why didn’t you stay in the room?”

“Because I like the beach,” she commented mildly. “And I also like you. Find some boys your own age to hang out with. They’re probably all at the pool.”

That’s where Isaac had spent the majority of his time when she’d brought him here two years ago. And with Charlie by her side while she wore a bikini and a sarong, it was starting to feel so much like déjà vu, why not continue the trend?

The girls thankfully took her advice and flounced off in the opposite direction of Jace, though she wouldn’t put it past them to circle back around and seek him out. Hopefully, Charlie would scare them off if they started panting after Jace again behind her back.

“Thanks,” she told Charlie who hadn’t moved and was watching her. She could feel his ice-blue eyes on her despite the sunglasses covering them. “How did you know they were underage? They both do their best to look twenty-five, and I’m sure they’re disappointed you clued in so fast.”

Asking how he’d known they were her sisters would be ridiculous when they all had red hair and similar features.

“I can do math,” he said, his voice much flatter than it had been when speaking to Jace. “Isaac was fifteen two years ago, and it’s not a stretch to assume that triplets have the same birthday.”

The fact that he remembered such details about her life sat on her nerves. And Isaac was a subject better left unexplored, especially when she felt so off-balance all at once. “I’m not stalking you, I swear. The girls came down for spring break, and Jared’s other resort was booked.”

Charlie’s jaw flexed. “You’re staying at the resort then? For how long?”

“Until Sunday.”

Look at that. They
could
have a civil conversation when they ran into each other. They could smile politely, and no one would guess that her insides were doing somersaults as she waited for the next volley in the game she and Charlie were playing that had no rules and no clear prize.

He nodded, cool as a cucumber. “If your sisters want to go parasailing, I’ll have one of the other guys take them. It’ll be my treat.”

“That’s nice of you.”

Parasailing was how they’d met, and instantly she recalled the easy smile he’d worn all the time back then. She missed it. Missed the way they’d been and guilt rose in her throat.

She liked it better when she’d been ignorant to the fact that Charlie still cared enough to be hurt by her relationship with Jared. What was she supposed to do, apologize? It wouldn’t change anything.

Her chest on fire with anguish and regret and a burning need to fall into his arms, she let that internal battle play out as she stared at him. He’d dumped her without explanation, stayed away from her for a year. But his sincerity yesterday in her office, the emotions bleeding from him as he’d kissed her so intimately—she couldn’t erase that from her mind. Nor could she forget the devastation in his gaze when he’d relayed to her the conversation with Jared where Charlie had learned about their relationship.

Nothing felt right about this situation. Except when Charlie was holding her. That part had surprised her, and she wanted to crawl into him with a fierceness that nearly brought tears to her eyes.

Could anything change this horrible dynamic between them?

Not if they kept doing what they
had
been doing, that was for sure. But what if they could both forget about their grievances for a little while and find something a whole lot better between them than civility and awkwardness? Was that even possible? She’d never know if she didn’t try, and she wanted to find a way through this quagmire with an intensity that scared her.