Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22220 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 111(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 74(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22220 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 111(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 74(@300wpm)
“Thrilling.” Her head turns back to the sand.
She starts twirling a lock of hair between her fingers as the other starts sliding down her body. It finds a place between her legs, making slow, inconspicuous movements. Any onlookers wouldn’t even be able to tell she’s pleasuring herself.
“What are you doing?” I feel my pulse quickening, eyes glued to her mesmerizing motion and the soft moans breaking her silence.
“Enjoying myself,” she answers. “But I must ask since the pool is out of the way up to our rooms. How did you know where to find me, Malik?”
She glances over at me, nibbling her lower lip. Her nose crinkles from what I can only assume is mounting pleasure. I take a long pause, enjoying the moment before I speak.
“Because I’m watching you,” I finally answer.
“Naughty boy.” My answer doesn’t make her stop, even knowing that my men may very well be indulging in this voyeuristic delight.
“For your safety.” And whereas it might have been that to start, it quickly devolved into me wanting to know her every move.
“So it wasn’t to find me here? Sprawled out and half naked? That’s a pity.” With that, her hand moves away. “Doesn’t feel the same when it isn’t your fingers. You’ll have to come and take over.”
Fuck. She has a direct line to the pleasure receptors in my brain. She knows exactly what to do, what to say, to drive me nuts. But I fight off my urges, as overwhelming as they are. Had it been anyone else, I’d take her right here right now. But if the boss somehow caught wind of anything happening here, there would be severe consequences.
“And I will, but first…” I tap the folder against my knee. “Henry’s waiting.”
“So bound by duty, it’s admirable. But don’t leave me waiting too long.” Melina lifts herself out of the sunbed and wraps a towel around her body. “Let me walk you up.”
“If you insist.” I stand, only to realize there’s a massive tent in my pants. I shove one hand into my pocket and grab onto it, doing my best to make it unnoticeable.
“So, tell me about yourself, Malik,” Melina says as we start to walk.
“There isn’t much to say.” Somewhat truthful, depending on exactly what she wants to know.
“Rubbish. I can’t believe you’ve been walking this world for what, thirty-five years, and there’s nothing you can tell me about.” She rolls her eyes. “You don’t have to play the cool, mysterious badass anymore. You’ve already won me over.”
“You know about my time in the service. Know that my life is dedicated to these oil fields. There isn’t much else to it. You’ll find, apart from my day job, I’m a pretty boring man,” I say.
“No family? No friends?” She almost sounds upset at the thought.
“Family life was hard, and it was easier to cut ties with them when I joined the military.” Born poor to lousy parents who didn’t want a child, growing up wasn’t easy. As soon as I was old enough to leave, I did and never looked back. But that isn’t a story for right now. Melina doesn’t need my baggage on her shoulders.
“Speaking of which, how did you go from a soldier to being Omar’s right hand?”
“Is this an interrogation?” Her prying questions make me chuckle. I said it from the start, I’ll never lie to these people with what I’m putting them through, but some things are better left in the past.
“No.” Her eyes widen, almost fearful of what she said. “I’m just curious. I’ll let you in on a little secret. You’re nearly impossible to find anything on. Apart from a few nicknames and service medals, my dad and I don’t know a thing about you.”
A secret I already knew. They’ve seen what I allowed them to see. But her admission bolsters my trust.
We enter the lobby, and I fall silent while we pass the guests. No way I’m talking about anything like this in front of liabilities. When we’re in the elevator heading to the V.I.P. suites, I finally answer.
“I was part of a special forces unit that dealt with internal attacks. Nasir was a soldier at the time, and he got himself into hot water with a terrorist organization.” I choose my words carefully so as not to give her anything to delve deeper into. My time in the force is best left a mystery. “After a two-day struggle, I managed to rescue him. His appreciation came a month later when he brought me to dinner with his father, who offered me a position as head of security.”
Her freckled cheeks raise in another brimming smile. “So you’re like a real-life hero?”
“Sort of.” I shrug it off. The things I had to do to save him were less than heroic. There’s more blood on these hands than I could ever wash off.