Chapter 4
CHAPTER
FOUR
TESSA
Two Weeks Later…
I let out a long breath as we taxi toward the tiny yellow terminal nestled at the end of the runway. The sun is blasting through the porthole windows, warming my face, and I can’t help but stare out of the one next to me as we come to a stop. A gentle breeze rustles the leaves of the palm trees on either side of the low, red-roofed building.
It’s everything I’d read about, and more.
The seatbelt sign turns off and everybody stands up in the tiny airplane.
“Ready?” a voice asks me.
“Yeah.” I nod at Linc. He’s wearing a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt that hugs his chest. And I can still smell the aroma of his cologne despite us both having spent hours traveling. Our first flight was from JFK to Nassau, and it was fully booked, which meant I didn’t have to sit anywhere near Linc for the first three and a half hours of our journey.
Then we had a two hour layover before this flight, which was only forty minutes in the smallest of planes.
Luckily he fell asleep. And I stared out at the ocean below us.
As soon as we’re through immigration and customs we make our way outside to be picked up by the hotel limo. The driver greets us with his hand out, shaking mine first and then Linc’s. He tells us his name is William and before we’ve even made it out of the airport he and Linc are chatting like they’re old friends. And I realize I actually like it. Traveling with Lincoln Salinger has been better than I expected.
Because he does it so much, he knows all the tricks and shortcuts. He’s a member of the best business lounge in JFK, and he knows the bartender well enough to get the best champagne.
Even in Nassau he bumped into two people he knew working at the check-in desks. And for the first time I relaxed.
Maybe being in the Bahamas for a few days with this man won’t be so bad after all. Most people would kill to be here.
These islands really are beautiful. Even after all the research I’ve done on the area in the past few months, I didn’t expect the beaches and trees and sea to be so stunning in person. Maybe Gold was right. Being here is worth a hundred hours of research.
And for the next five days I get to really experience what the Exumas have to give. We’re due to give our final presentation to Gold the day before we leave. Which means we have four days to record material, rewrite the presentation, then show him exactly what we can do on the fly.
William pulls out of the service road. They drive on the left here, a hangover from
when the Bahamas were British colonies. It takes some getting used to, especially as I’m sitting on the right side of the backseat.
The ocean is so blue it looks like somebody has dyed it just for us.
“Nice, huh?” Linc asks me.
“It really is,” I agree, putting my straw hat on to protect my face from the sun.
“Why are you wearing that?” Linc asks, nodding at it.
“I haven’t put on any sunscreen,” I tell him. I don’t want to get sunburn.”
“It’s three strides to the hotel lobby, Carmichael. I think you’ll be okay.”
I lift a brow at him. “Skin cancer is no laughing matter. You get burned if you like, but I’m taking precautions.
He rolls his eyes as William helps us out of the car and a porter appears to take our luggage.
“Welcome to the Grand Exuma resort,” he says. “Please go inside and take a seat. Emma will be with you in just a moment..” He points at a pair of sparkling glass doors with GR frosted on the front, and we walk inside, the air-conditioned interior of the reception building cooling my skin.
Within a minute, we’re served drinks. Luckily, these are non-alcoholic because I’m already feeling a little wobbly on my feet to tell the truth. I drink the refreshing lemon-based soda drink, closing my eyes because it tastes so good.
And when I open them, Linc has his phone trained on me.
“Are you recording me?” I ask him.
“Thought I’d get a few shots in. For our presentation. We want to capture the entire experience, right? Including check in.”
“True.” I nod.
“Miss Carmichael, Mr. Salinger,” the receptionist says, walking over with a clipboard. “We have you all checked in. We just need your signatures.” She passes Linc a pen. “And Mr. Gold sends his apologies that he’s not here to greet you himself. He’s flying in on Friday.”
“That’s fine,” I say.
“And he’s given us a list of the things he’d like you to include in your presentation. So I’ve booked you for some of our trips. Now William will take you down to your accommodation.” She smiles widely. “With an ocean view, of course.”
William has already taken our cases and loaded them up on the white golf cart with Gold Resorts emblazoned on the sides. He leads us out, and Salinger climbs into the front seat next to him, while I slide into the back.
He keeps up a steady chat about the resort. He used to work for another hotel, but since this one opened last year, he’s been happier than ever. He tells us he saw the resort being built a couple of years ago and assures us that we’re going to love the stilted cottage that we’ve been upgraded to.
“Cottages,” I correct.
He turns to look at me. “No,” he says. “Cottage. For the both of you.”
I look over at Linc, expecting him to laugh. But he looks as confused as I am. I widen my eyes at him and he shrugs, then turns to look at William.
“There’s been some miscommunication,” he says. “We need separate beds. We’re not a couple.”
William stops the cart and turns to look at us both. “The cottage sleeps four. There are separate beds. One in the bedroom and a sofa bed in the living room.” He grins. “Unfortunately there’s only one bathroom.”
Linc turns around and our eyes meet. He lifts a brow and I shrug. There’s not much we can do about it now. The receptionist told us they were fully booked, and it’s not like we have to share a bed or anything.
Maybe it’ll even be useful, having a shared space to work in.
“It’s fine,” I say, my voice tight .
It’s Salinger’s turn to shrug, but he looks distinctly uncomfortable. “All good,” he tells William, who nods and continues the drive to the cottage.
The warm breeze lifts my hair as I climb out and look around.
Our accommodation is a low wooden cottage on stilts, built right along the beach, nestled among palm trees. It’s far enough from the other cottages to make you feel like you’re in your own private piece of paradise. My first thought is how much Zoe would love it, and I feel a little pang in my chest because I’m missing her already.
I can’t remember the last time I was away from her for this long.
“You okay?” Linc asks and I realize he’s already taken a few steps toward the cottage while I’ve been staring out, my head full of thoughts. I blink them away. If we get this contract my bonus will be enough for me to pay for the rest of the renovations in the apartment and take Zoe away during her school vacation.
“I’m fine. Sorry.”
William is already carrying our cases up the stairs. Linc follows him up and I trail behind, with my hat on again, suddenly feeling apprehensive. This man is big and built and the cottage is small.
The thought of sharing it with him – even for a few days – makes me feel strange. Just as I reach the bottom of the steps a tiny bird flies down and lands on the rail in front of me. It has a purple neck and a brown body with a long, thin beak. It turns to look at me as though sizing me up.
“Look at this,” I whisper to Salinger. He turns around and a smile plays on his lips as the little bird starts to hop up the rail like it’s walking up the stairs.
I hate the way I react to his smile. Like I’m one of his Hampshire PR girls .
“That’s a Bahama Woodstar,” William tells us. “A male, because he has that coloring.”
“He’s a little show off,” I say as he flutters is little wings. “Why is it always the men that have the brightest coloring?”
“Because we have to find a way to get the girl,” Linc says dryly.
I clear my throat, and the noise makes the tiny bird fly off. He disappears into the trees right as William opens the door to the bungalow and steps to the side so we can walk in.
The next five minutes are taken up with a tour of the cottage. He proudly tells us about the history of the resort, how he has lived in Exuma for the last fifty years, having relocated here with his family from Nassau where the tourist industry exploded. There’s a control pad by the door for the blinds and lights that he explains to us. Then he takes us into the bathroom and explains how the rainfall shower, complete with light effects, works, then shows us to the bedroom.
It feels very crowded with the three of us in here.
I try not to look at Linc. Instead I shift my feet. It’s his turn to clear his throat until I finally let my gaze rise up.
“You have dinner reservations at the beach restaurant at seven-thirty,” William tells us, after he’s shown us the sofa bed and explained that the maid service can make it up each night. “We will pick you up at seven-fifteen.”
“How far is the restaurant?” I ask him.
“About a quarter of a mile that way,” he says, pointing out of the window. I can’t see the building, but I’m getting the idea.
“Can’t we walk there?” I ask. Because I want to get to know the place. It feels wrong to have him driving us everywhere when we’re perfectly capable of using our feet.
“It’ll still be hot,” he tells us.
“I don’t mind if you don’t,” I say to Linc. He shrugs, easy going as always .
“Okay then.” William nods. “If you need anything at all, use the phone by the sofa. It will connect you directly to me.”
“Thank you.” I smile at him because he’s so very kind. “We appreciate it.”
William touches the tip of his white baseball cap and makes his way out, walking back down to the buggy before driving away.
And for a long moment neither Linc nor I say anything. I’m staring through the open doorway to the beautiful bed, made up with white linens. This cottage is lovely, but it’s not big enough for the two of us.
I’m not sure a whole building would be big enough for that.
“I guess I’ll be taking the sofa then,” Linc says, eyeing the white cotton sectional that looks way too small for his long, muscled body.
“No need,” I say. “We can toss for it.”
He lifts a brow at me. I take a deep breath. “Either way, can we just… try not to snap at each other while we’re here?” I ask him.
“I don’t snap,” he tells me. “You bite.”
I know I do. And I hate that. It’s not his fault he looks this good. Or that it’s been so long since I had sex that I’m actually finding him attractive in an annoying way. “Peace?” I say, looking at him. “Please?”
He runs his thumb along his jaw. “Okay, on one condition.”
“What?”
He takes the sunhat off my head. “You stop wearing this hideous thing everywhere we go.”
I snatch it back off him. “No deal. Being friends with you isn’t worth getting melanomas.”