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NESTLEDAMIDSTTHEswaying coconut trees and cut into an irregular clearing was the hotel swimming pool. It was small, but then so was the hotel, and was thoughtfully designed to blend in with the surroundings. Instead of the usual blue-tiled bottom and scattering of deck chairs, it was shaped to mimic a natural body of water, with a small, gurgling waterfall at one end and shallow steps carved to resemble a smooth, rocky incline down into the green, still water.
It was five in the evening, still light but with the sun beginning to dip, and it was certainly still hot. Humid and muggy and without the slightest whisper of a breeze.
Even the usual orchestra of insects seemed to have gone into hiding.
Nico was listening, the general manager talking to him, his voice low and urgent, but his eyes were absently on the figure in the swimming pool.
When he had airily told his secretary to have a day off, to enjoy the town, the scenery, the extraordinary beauty of the place and to think about buying herself some more appropriate clothing, he had half expected her to ignore everything he’d said. Years of working closely together had taught him that, underneath the controlled exterior, Grace had a mind of her own and, when it came to non-work-related issues, she would do precisely what she wanted to do even if she remained ultra-polite as she dug her heels in.
Being here on the island had confirmed that suspicion, had made him realise just how much fire burned beneath the cool, composed surface.
But she had done as asked. She had taken a few hours off two days ago, had explored the town with his driver at her disposal, had gone to a couple of the beaches on her own and had visited the limited supply of shops where she had bought...yes...more suitable attire.
Colours. Stuff that wasn’t in varying shades of bland. Light, colourful clothes far better suited to the searing heat, which not even the overhead fans in the conference room of the hotel in the town they had used for meetings could temper.
The swimsuit, he noted as he continued to gaze in her direction, had sadly and clearly remained the original one she had brought with her. A black one-piece ideally suited for no-nonsense competitive swimming. Nothing frivolous there.
Yet she was still so crazily sexy in the damned thing that Nico was having trouble focusing on what Steve, the general manager, was saying.
He wasn’t sure whether it was the fact that they were not in their normal habitat or whether it was because he was seeing sides of her for the first time that tantalised him, or whether it was a mixture of both, but he was finding his concentration slip far too often for his liking.
Eyes drifting to the slight push of her breasts against her light cotton tee shirt...thoughts turning to what lay underneath that light cotton tee shirt...and dreams in which disjointed images of her made for restless sleep.
He tore his eyes away with some difficulty and firmly focused on the matter in hand.
‘Look at the sky.’ Steve gave a curt nod in the direction of the indigo blue yonder and Nico frowned.
‘I agree it seems more humid than it has been for the past few days...’
‘You need to know this part of the world, Mr Doukas, sir, to see the signs. Hurricane coming. No announcement yet, but we know how to read the signs. Not just the humidity, Mr Doukas, but you hear this silence? The insects gone into hiding.’
As far as Nico could see, nothing much was that different, but he was willing to bow to greater local knowledge and, after fifteen minutes, he walked towards the swimming pool, towards Grace, who was doing lengths, her slender body cleaving through the water with surprising speed.
He stooped by the side of the pool. There was no decking. Instead, the pool was built into the earth so his loafers sank a little into the damp grass that inclined down. He watched her swim to him, oblivious of his presence as he waited for her, and he noted the widening of her eyes as she abruptly stopped and clung to the side.
‘Oh. Hi.’
Grace had sneaked out to the inviting pool, very much aware that she was overreacting because even if Nico was around, even if he was sitting on one of the rattan chairs dotted in the beautiful clearing under the shade of one of the trees, there was no reason for her to be uncomfortable.
The day had been non-stop. They had gone from hotel to offices and at lunch time had interrupted the schedule with a private plane to Nassau so that they could get signatures on paper for the fishing business. She was exhausted.
That said, she had been relieved when Nico had told her that he planned on carrying on with some bits and pieces in the manager’s office at the hotel, which he’d had adapted to use as their on-site office.
But he was here now, and she felt exposed as she trod water. ‘I thought you were working,’ she said a little breathlessly.
‘I was until Steve showed up. You need to come to the office. There’s a situation.’
‘What? What situation? What’s going on?’
‘I’ll wait for you inside. Don’t be long and...apologies for spoiling the party and dragging you out of the pool. I realise it’s been a hellishly long day for us.’
Grace watched as he vaulted upright, his expression thoughtful, before striding off back towards the hotel. It was so unusual for Nico to reveal any sign of urgency about anything, however stressful things might be, that her heart was pounding with anxiety as she hurried out of the pool towards the office to meet him.
Should she go change? She slipped on the cotton shorts she had worn over the swimsuit and slung her towel over her shoulders.
The hotel had gradually shed more of its guests, people whose time there had come to an end and hadn’t been replaced with new intake, so there were relatively few people around. She headed straight for the manager’s office to find Nico standing with his back to the door, staring out of the window, and he didn’t immediately look around when she entered, not until she coughed, at which point he slowly turned to face her, face grave.
‘Sit down, Grace.’
