“You agreed?” Kelsey asked with a grin.
I shrugged, knowing that the heat in my cheeks gave me away. “It’s only breakfast.”
Kelsey smiled. “I’ll run a background check. What’s his name?”
“He said CJ, but I don’t want a background check.”
“Ms. Montgomery, I don’t recommend—”
“We spoke yesterday at the pool,” I said, interrupting her, “and I purposely chose the treadmill beside him.”
Kelsey and I were alone in the elevator, the one taking us up to our suites on the top floor. Today’s workout wasn’t unusual. The two of us regularly spent our mornings in the gym. When in Missoula, that gym was in my home. When away, we continued the practice. I understood Kelsey’s job was to protect me, but I also believed she enjoyed the physical exertion. With my normal routines, my security spent a great deal of time standing and overseeing. The time in the gym was our break from the usual employer-employee relationship. Her use of my surname meant she was in business mode.
“He’s not a stalker,” I continued, and after a deep breath clarified, “My fish/candy stalker.” Not wanting to think about that, I added, “It could be said I was stalking him.”
Kelsey’s smile broadened only to fade. “A background check would be wise nonetheless.”
“No,” I replied definitively. “It’s only breakfast, and I don’t know his last name.”
“That isn’t a problem. He’s staying here. Adam can access the reservations.”
I contemplated Adam searching the resort’s reservation list. “If CJ brings a dead fish to breakfast, fine. Otherwise, for now, I’d like to pretend to be a normal woman who learns about a man from that man, not from my security team.”
“Normal,” Kelsey scoffed.
“Remember,” I replied as the elevator came to a stop, “you’re the one who told me to relax.”
We stepped from the elevator into the empty hallway. At this time of morning everything was still relatively quiet. Yet CJ was up and working out.
Kelsey spoke low as we passed closed doors. “I’d still feel better if we did a quick check.”
“I’ll decide after breakfast.”
Together, we walked to the door of my suite. As I unlocked the door, Kelsey waited. After the door was opened, she nodded and walked past me, entering the suite. The increase in my pulse as I waited in silence thumped in my ears. I’d blame the onset of nervousness on the mental reminder of the dead fish. It wasn’t until Kelsey returned and announced that everything was clear that I finally released my breath.
“Thank you.”
“Breakfast by the infinity pool at eight thirty,” she confirmed, recalling what I’d told her of CJ’s invitation.
“Yes.”
“Adam will escort you.”
I turned, meeting Kelsey’s stare, and straightened my five feet, six inches to its full height. “He will watch from afar.” I wasn’t asking.
The idea of being escorted by Adam to a breakfast with CJ didn’t sit well with my ambition of being a normal woman. I imagined the conversation.
Who is that?
My bodyguard.
Who are you? Why do you have a bodyguard?
Yep, not happening.
“Remember what happened—”
I didn’t let Kelsey finish. “My mind is made up. I believe you and Adam work for me.”
“Yes, we do. It’s our job to keep you safe.” Kelsey took a deep breath. “Please keep your watch on.”
“Of course.”
My watch was a tracker. It wasn’t some amazing spy technology. It was simply an Apple watch, the same as half the population wore. I thought about her comment a few minutes later as I unfastened the band and laid it on the vanity.
Once I’d rid myself of my damp workout clothes and drank a bottle of water, I stepped under the spray of the shower, washed away the perspiration from my workout, and began to think about what was to come.
Why did I agree to breakfast?
It was out of character.
There was something about CJ that made me want to be out of character.
Being completely honest with myself, I agreed to breakfast because I wanted to. I wanted CJ to come over to my lounge chair yesterday. That wasn’t like me. I’d stopped waiting for men to make the first move a long time ago. And yet I wanted to see if he would.
Yesterday, as I ate my lunch, my thoughts continually went back to him, to his turquoise stare and his wide shoulders, the same shoulders and muscular back I noticed when I entered the gym. All afternoon I’d wanted to lean away from the shade over my lounge chair and see if he was still there or if he was talking to another woman or a man.
It was a bit of neediness I didn’t recognize in myself.
Maybe it was basic, wanting to know that I was still a woman. That for a sliver of time, I wanted simple basics—a woman and a man. No knowledge of who I was, no knowledge of what I did. Just girl meets boy.
Well, if girl was forty-three and boy was…
My age was irrelevant.
Girl.
Boy.
Did I want more than that?
I didn’t. I couldn’t. My life was too full to have more.
A week of being a woman.
That was my wish.
That absurd thought made me smile. A wish was defined as a strong desire for something that is not easily attainable, something that cannot or probably will not happen.
Lena Montgomery didn’t make wishes. She got shit done.
This felt different.
Maybe for one week…I could be a normal woman, a woman with a wish.
As long as CJ didn’t have a dead-fish fetish, it was worth a try.
Why did I agree?
The simple answer was I wanted to. I chose the treadmill beside CJ to give him another chance. I almost slid into the Lena mode and made the first move. Why? Because, holy shit, when he turned my way, his handsome face took my breath away. His smile with one dimple. His hair was pulled back as it had been yesterday. I almost blurted out my name, but then he spoke, and I wanted to see where it would go.
As he spoke, I fought images of pulling the hair tie and releasing his dark mane. Thoughts of his unshaved cheeks on my sensitive skin caused my insides to twist. Thank goodness for the sports bra. My nipples would probably have been a dead giveaway.
The loofah sponge caressed my skin, filling the shower stall with the scent of my eucalyptus bodywash. Closing my eyes, I imagined CJ.
How long had it been since I’d been with a man?
It would seem as if I should recall.
I couldn’t.
I didn’t consider myself loose. I was a modern woman who enjoyed physical pleasure. The giver didn’t matter as long as they didn’t work for me. Honestly, there were a few friends with benefits in my life. Most likely the last time was with one of them. Our relationships didn’t revolve around sex. Sex was a biproduct of the relationship. Men had long had similar relationships, why couldn’t a woman?
As I stepped from the shower, I realized what I hadn’t been doing. I hadn’t been thinking about Architech, Montgomery Holdings, the giver of dead fish, or even my sister. Without more than an invitation to breakfast, CJ had accomplished what I hadn’t been able to do in months—refocus my thoughts.
As I readied for breakfast, I made a decision. This week was about resting, relaxing, and taking a break from all the balls I had swirling in the air. Jeremy assured me that Montgomery Holdings would survive without my constant oversight. That said, I knew if I was needed, he wouldn’t hesitate to get ahold of me.
The truth was I needed a break—wanted one.
A break from being the Lena Montgomery.
CJ said he didn’t know who I was.
I didn’t know him.
After smashing my lips together to coat them with lip balm, I grinned. Pitching from right to left, I watched as the flowing blue sundress with large blue flowers swung. It was like nothing I’d wear to work. The same could be said for the rhinestone sandals on my feet. I’d bought them on a whim.
The woman in the mirror wasn’t the powerhouse in the boardroom. My lips weren’t painted red, nor had I spritzed my usual Creed Royal Service perfume. With only mascara, lip balm, and cheeks pink from yesterday’s sun, I would spend this week simply being Lena.