“He likes it. I know. I ran into him outside,” Wyatt said. “Nice job.” Something close to pleasure lurked in his green eyes and sent her heartbeat racing ten times faster than it had when she’d seen Frank Toliver’s bald head.
Don’t even consider wondering what he would look like if he ever flashed a full smile, she ordered herself. “Weren’t you even a little worried when you saw his head?”
He hesitated, as if studying the question. “I already had my fingers poised over my cellphone to order champagne shipped to his room.”
He sounded so disgruntled at even having to admit it that Alex couldn’t hold back a small chuckle. “Aha, so you were worried.”
Now the smallest trace of a smile lifted his lips. “If it makes you feel better, I did feel a twinge, but only a small one. Alex, in this business there are bound to be customers who have concerns now and then, but I hire good people. I expect them to do their jobs well, but in the end, I’m always poised to fix a few things. I’m the safety net. If you’re doing everything possible to give the customers the experience they have every right to expect, you’re doing what I require of you. Do we have a deal?”
He held out his hand. She stared at it, almost afraid to touch him.
And when she finally did place her hand in his, she knew that she had been right to be afraid. The heat and the energy and the sudden attraction whooshed in, making it hard to forget that Wyatt was a man who was impossible to ignore.
A loner of a man, she reminded herself. His words just then had confirmed it as much as anything Randy had told her. He was an island—or at least he was the lone protector of the personal island that this hotel represented.
He was waiting for her answer. “We have a deal,” she managed to choke out, but when he released her it was all she could do not to stare at her hand. It felt as if he had imprinted a part of himself on her.
“You’re free to go, Alex,” he said.
She frowned, confused.
“Lois is here for her shift,” he clarified. “You’ve survived your first full day.”
I’m not so sure, she thought as she walked away. She kept trying to tell herself that this was just a job, but her reaction to Wyatt made it feel more like a personal test.
Alex stared at her hand when she got back to her room. Sensation rushed through her, which was ridiculous. The man had merely shaken her hand, a brief brush of flesh against flesh, but the nerve-endings in her fingers had practically sizzled.
She was far too attracted to him, acting just the way Randy had predicted. Like an idiotic woman obsessed with Wyatt. Like those other women who had wanted him.
But she had one advantage over those women. She didn’t want to want him. He was the most potent and unattainable man she’d ever met, and darn it, she wasn’t going to do something stupid.
Alex took deep calming breaths. She counted to ten. “I’m strong. I’m not a slave to my emotions.”
Those words were important because, like it or not, she was once again in a position of helping a man achieve his goals, the very thing that had caused her to walk straight into heartbreak after heartbreak. Assisting a man created a rush of very temporary positive emotions, but when those emotions faded the party was over. The pain began.
Not happening this time, Lowell. Wyatt’s goals were part of her job, nothing more. When she was done she could run back to San Diego, set up her shop, and enjoy the rest of her life.
“I can be attracted to you without succumbing, Wyatt,” she whispered. “You won’t have anything to regret when I’m gone. In fact, you’re going to be glad you hired me, because I intend to help you surpass any competitors and win that prize.”
And she knew just how she was going to start.
WYATT prowled the halls of McKendrick’s, trying to shake off the feeling that he shouldn’t have shaken Alex’s hand. Ridiculous. He’d merely been trying to reassure her that she didn’t have to bear the responsibility for the success of the hotel. He hadn’t hired her for that.
What did you hire her for? he asked himself. Easy answer. He’d simply wanted a smooth transition between Belinda leaving and returning. Alex had seemed like a woman who could make that transition invisible for the customers and staff.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t invisible to him—a fact he’d noticed from the minute he’d set eyes on her. The second she’d put her hand in his energy and desire had zipped up his arm, practically consuming him.
Then don’t touch her again, he told himself. He didn’t intend to. But how he wanted to.
It was a new day, one that had so far gone smoothly. Alex hadn’t sent anyone to unknown locales. Nor had she followed her instincts and upbraided a man who had been loudly berating his wife about some nitpicky thing she had forgotten to do.
On the other hand she might have done that…if Wyatt hadn’t appeared. He had clamped one hand on the man’s shoulder and firmly if not gently shepherded the man to the side. Wyatt’s eyes had brooked no argument, his voice had been commanding, but he had given the man an out, casually drawing him into conversation about how vexing travel could be. When the story of a plane stranded on the tarmac for hours had spilled out, Wyatt had relented, called for a bellboy to deliver the couple’s luggage to their room and presented them with complimentary tickets to the spa for massages.
As they moved away, Alex could hear the man apologizing to his wife. “Nice,” she said to Wyatt. “But the man looked as if he would explode when you pulled him aside. How did you know he wouldn’t take your interference out on his wife?”
Wyatt stood very still, that cool stare trapping Alex in his sights. “You disapprove of my tactics, Alex?”
Alex was sure that she was blushing. “On the contrary. I’m glad that you took him aside and defused the situation. But…I was afraid he was going to hit you.”
Wyatt shook his head. “He wasn’t the type. I know the type.”
The way he said that…as if he’d met men who’d used their fists on him…
She remembered what Randy had said about not knowing much about Wyatt. She should keep that in mind. A woman who couldn’t handle men she knew well should definitely not tangle with men who were mysterious. Or dark. Or dangerous.
Slowly, so that he couldn’t see how he affected her, she took a deep breath. “I’d better get back to work.”
He tilted his head in acquiescence. “You should know that a few customers have complimented me on your helpfulness, and…”
“And?” She waited.
“And on your smile,” he said, as if he hadn’t really intended to admit that.
But his comment warmed her and emboldened her. “It never hurts to smile,” she said. “Even if you’re a McKendrick.” Because he didn’t smile. Not much.
And yet he looked amused. His eyes lost some of that fierceness. “I’ll keep that in mind,” he said. “Maybe I’ll even write it down on a blue notepad.”
Then he walked away. Had Wyatt McKendrick, he who kept his distance from his employees, just teased her?
He had. And that sent a tingle in a zipping, swirling course down her body.
Don’t be affected, she told herself. But she found herself looking for him when her day ended. Which made her angry. Whether the anger was because she was looking for the man, or because she was unsuccessful in her quest, maybe even wondering if he was with the pretty