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I realize it’s simply that my heart has made a decision before my head has gotten a chance to catch up.
The obvious answer to everyone’s problems is clear as day.
I pull my black card out of my wallet and toss it on the counter. Rotating my pointer finger, I gesture around the bar. “Pay everyone in this bar’s tab. On me. And give yourself a one hundred percent tip. If anyone asks, don’t tell them who it was.”
“Wow, thank you. That’s generous, but”—she nods towards the bikers, still line dancing with Lennox—“do you want to see the bill first? You realize those guys have been here drinking since three, right?”
“Pretty sure I can handle it,” I say before I throw back the bourbon in two gulps. The first one burns. The second goes down smooth, coating my throat like honey. I point to my card. “I’ll be back for that.”
“Where are you going?”
I slide out of my bar stool, eyes locked on Lennox. “To close a deal.”
11
Dex
Three Years Earlier
Las Vegas
Iswear on my life, she wore that sexy black bikini to torture me.
I emerge from the locker room shirtless with two fresh towels. One for me, one for Lennox, who is sitting at the edge of the pool, lazily stirring the water with one foot.
She watches me approach, and when I’m close enough, she exhales heavily. “Dude, I’m exhausted.”
“Breath control will do that,” I say, then throw my thumb over my shoulder, pointing to our discarded regulators and tanks resting behind us. “And the equipment is heavier than you think.”
She says, “Thank you,” as she reaches for the towel, but she sets it aside and continues to disturb the pool water with her toe. She even goes as far as kicking against the water line and splashing me across my chest.
I plop down next to her. Leaning forward, I scoop a handful of pool water, lobbing it at her exposed stomach. “You don’t want to play that game.” I nod toward the deep end of the pool. “I’ll drag you right back in.”
She smiles and rubs her eyes like a sleepy child. When she opens them, they look slightly red. “Hey, let me see,” I instruct her, leaning closer to her face. “Your eyes look irritated.”
“It’s the saltwater,” she says. “I’m used to chlorine pools.”
I squeeze her shoulder. “I know. But saltwater pools are better for practicing your buoyancy. I have some eyedrops. Let me go grab them.”
She seizes my forearm as I try to rise. “I’m okay. Just sit with me for a bit.”
I do as she asks. Lying backward and flattening myself against the ground, I tuck my hands behind my head, creating a makeshift pillow. From this angle, I can admire Lennox’s silhouette from behind. The way her waist narrows before her hips curve outward. It takes every ounce of restraint not to reach up and yank on the black bow of her bikini top. Because fuck… I can’t stop thinking about her. It’s been three months since I met her. The fantasies won’t cease. Her smile…her laugh…her naked. I’ve never been in this position before. Usually, it’s about three dates with a woman before I realize the sex isn’t worth the company.
I could fall asleep talking to Lennox. That’s how comfortable I am with her. It’s a different kind of love, I suppose. Friendship. Something you don’t risk by getting sloppy in the sheets. What would happen? When Lennox finds out what I’m worth, either she’ll change, or our friendship will. It’s what always happens. The moment the word billionaire is floating around…people change. I like the way things are.
“So, what’s next?” she asks, resting her elbow on her knee and cupping her chin.
“You know what’s next,” I quip back.
She narrows her eyes, one corner of her plush lips curling into a smile. “Right. I need more practice on the test where I lose my mask in the water and have to find it. I panic when I can’t see. I should work on that.”
I close my eyes and shake my head. “Nope, you’re solid. It’s natural to be nervous when you’re blind underwater. And you recover very nicely.”
“What about learning to use a dive watch?”
“Those are most helpful when you’re diving solo or mapping out a dive. You’re not ready for either of those things.”
“Well, maybe next week we could?—”