Page 14 of Maneater (The Mavens #1)

I look around with wide eyes and put a hand to my chest.

“Oh my goodness, we’re so stupid.” I look over at Rory, who has a similar, dopey, embarrassed look on her face. “I’m so sorry. I got excited.”

“Well, now that you know, let’s get out.”

Rory gives me a silent, subtle nod, telling me we already have what we need, which is good since I can almost guarantee security on this spot will be increased as soon as we head out.

“Lead the way, my man,” I say, and then we follow Rowan in the direction we came. “It’s so wild you’re here. Rory, this is Rowan. Remember I told you about him? He works here.”

“Oh, wow, small world,” Rory says as if she hadn’t already put that together, and I nod in agreement.

Rowan holds up the caution tape for us, and he glares at me as I duck under his arm. I give him a guilty smile as we step off the beach and onto a patio.

“You know, I have a spa appointment in,” Rory says, turning to Rowan and looking at her watch. “Thirty minutes. Maybe since you already know each other, you could show Josie around the resort? We just got here, and she’s absolutely terrible with directions.”

“I don’t know—” I start, but Rory’s look and accompanying firm words stop me .

“You totally should. It’s good to have a friend here. Someone who knows the place well.” It clicks then: Rowan could be our first in and possibly the most valuable one, especially if he works in the corporate side of things, which is what my gut is telling me.

“You know, that’s actually a really good idea,” I say, turning to Rowan and smiling. “I can’t read a map to save my life, and you seem to know this place well. What do you do here again?” I ask, despite knowing he never told me.

“No,” he says, quick and easy, without even bothering to answer my question. I fight the urge to flinch, not because I’m hurt or disappointed, but because that doesn’t happen.

I don’t get turned down.

“I’m sorry?”

“I’m not showing you around,” he says, and my eyes narrow on him, and I put my hands to my hips, suddenly annoyed.

“Why not?”

“Because I have better things to do.”

Then, I blink at him and tip my head to the side.

“You’re kind of an ass,” I say without meaning to, but it seems to be the right thing to say regardless because, for the first time since he caught us, a smile spreads on his lips.

“Yeah, I get that a lot.”

Oh, there is no world where that should be hot. Not even the tiniest bit.

But with the smile and the way he said it, all low and sexy and accompanied by the knowledge of what his fingers can do to my body…it is. It is so hot.

Unfortunately, assholes totally do it for me. It’s why I’m still single, of course. For some crazy reason, I want a man who is an asshole to everyone but treats me like a princess. Unfortunately, it seems that man only exists in my imagination.

“You were so nice at the bar,” I say, my voice going soft. It’s a lie, but I tell it anyway.

As if without meaning to, his eyes move over my face, down my body, and back up again before smiling wider, like a predator sensing prey.

“I think that was an extenuating circumstance.”

I roll my eyes because it seems he is also a liar.

Unfortunately, unlike me, he’s not very good at it.

I step forward, closing the gap between us and putting a hand on his arm.

It’s covered in a thin, white button-down, too dressy for a casual beach resort, but I can still feel his warmth beneath my hand and his strong muscles flexing as I rest there. A rush runs through me.

I am a sucker for arms. It actually would be beneficial for my work ethic if he kept the business casual attire the entire time he’s staying here because if he bared them, I might actually have a problem.

“Well,” I start, smiling coyly up at him. “Maybe we can recreate those circumstances.”

He stares down at me with a look of impatience, and it’s then that I realize it’s not working .

Sure, he’s a bit distracted by my every curve being on display in this bathing suit, but beyond that, he’s either holding tight to some rope of restraint and professionalism, or he’s just not falling for it.

And in that same moment, I decide to make it my new personal mission to get Rowan to look at me with the same heat he showed me in that bar, to make him want me, even if I won’t cross that line now that things are different and this is for work.

It’s a point of pride, being able to have a man falling at my feet. And I won’t let Rowan Fisher ruin my perfect score.

“I don’t think that’s going to happen,” he says, and it almost feels like he’s saying it to my new plan, the side quest I’m about to take, and it just strengthens my resolve. I love a challenge, and he just presented me with the perfect one: crack Rowan Fisher once and for all.

And, of course, get whatever information I need from him along the way.

I sigh as if I’m put off before smiling. “Fine. Can you at least take me back to my room? Like Rory said, I’m shit at directions, and I wouldn’t want to stumble on a crime scene.”

“Again,” he adds.

“Exactly.” I smile. “If there’s trouble, I’m sure to find it. Been that way since I was a kid. Probably best you make sure I get back to my room safe and sound, so I don’t create chaos.”

He looks like it’s the biggest burden he could imagine before finally, he lets out another deep sigh and nods. Not completely immune to my charm, after all , I think, with a satisfied inward grin.

“Fine.”

“Don’t sound too excited, now,” I say.

“Trust me, I’m not.”

I roll my eyes, then shift my attention to Rory.

“Okay, well, I am pretty good with directions, so I think I can get myself to the spa with no problem. See you later, Josie. Nice meeting you, Rowan,” she says with a smile, and then she walks off.

“What’s your room number?” Rowan asks brusquely once she’s gone.

“4819.”

He nods before he starts moving toward the hotel without a word. I take a few quick steps to catch up, then have to almost jog to keep up with his speed and his long legs.

“So, a work emergency, huh? Was that the emergency?” I ask as we walk into the lobby of the hotel. “Having to come to paradise?” The silence continues to hang between us as he takes a left turn.

“What do you do here?” I try a new question, trying to play it casual.

Usually, whenever I hook up with someone, I conduct a thorough investigation into their life story, but for the first time, I didn’t with Rowan.

Not with my knowing him as long as I have, and then the morning after receiving our assignment. I’m deeply regretting it now.

“VP of Operations,” he says succinctly, and I can’t decide if that’s amazing news or absolutely horrific.

It’s good because he’s probably not our guy, considering he was in New Jersey just two days ago and only came to this location because of the sabotage.

Bad because, well, he works for the company.

In fact, he doesn’t just work for the company; he’s high up the ladder.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes,” he remarks simply, continuing to give me nothing.

“God, you’re so talkative,” I say with a laugh.

He just glares at me, and I let out another giggle.

It’s not even part of my mask, part of the act I’m playing to lure him in, either.

I just find his frustration hilarious. “You were much more amenable in the bar.” I reach over and barely graze his pinky with my own.

It’s the barest brush, chaste, even, but it still sends a bolt of heat through me.

Well, that might be a problem.

“Like I said, different circumstances,” he says.

“So you’re back to thinking I’m some pretty little gold digger?” I expect him to brush it off, but to my surprise, he looks over at me with a fierce look.

“Now I think you’re trouble, and I don’t have the time for trouble.”

I smile then because I’m considering it progress before he rolls his eyes and averts his gaze again.

I take in our surroundings as he walks quickly to the other side of the resort where my room is located, making note of people and places and things to explore later with Rory before eventually catching sight of a sunny area through a set of French doors, flanked by tons of foliage.

“What is that?” I ask, looking to the right through large glass windows. I can see the glittering ocean far off and a few chairs, and my steps stop. The area looks like a dream, and suddenly, I want nothing more than to check it out.

“A lookout,” he says, blunt as ever, continuing to walk but a bit slower as the gap between us grows.

“Can we look at it?” I ask.

He stops moving then, turning to look at me with a glare. “I thought I was taking you to your room. ”

“Would a detour kill you?”

He stares at me, but before he can tell me that a detour would, in fact, kill him, as I’m pretty sure he wants to, I take off in that direction, my intrigue piqued as I push open a door.

The area is empty, just a couple of chairs on the far side of the large area that lines the side of the building, taking in the sun.

The entire area is gorgeous, with a glass wall that overlooks the beach and the ocean straight ahead and a sharp drop-off of the cliff the actual hotel is built on.

To the right is the wooded forest, a few hiking trails I saw on the brochures visible through the leaves.

The area is absolutely breathtaking, with pots and planters filled with flowers and greenery everywhere alongside the most spectacular view.

“Oh my god,” I whisper, looking around and deciding that tomorrow, Rory and I will spend at least an hour here, even if we get zero intel while doing it.

“This is why we picked this location,” Rowan says, seemingly reluctantly, coming up behind me, waving an arm in the direction of the sparkling ocean with bright, crystal-clear water.

I look over my shoulder at him and see his face cast in confusion like even he can’t discern why he’s sharing this with me.

“There’s no one out here,” I say, looking around.

He shrugs.