ZenithRising Read online

  It was after noon when they got back to the hotel’s pristine beach so they had a cold lunch at the outdoor Quartz Café.

  “What’s next?” Maggie asked as they finished.

  “We still have the towers. I want to take a walk on each floor, twenty-four in all. But after the energy field thing I’m rethinking my insistence on not reading any of the material ahead of time. So I thought maybe we could go back to the room and do a little…research.”

  “Hmmm, I think a little research with you would be very nice,” she said, adding a lascivious eyebrow wriggle. “But I just remembered something. I’m supposed to check in with Human Resources. Something about filling out forms. Would you mind getting started without me?” She felt herself blush. “I mean with the research, the book research.”

  He grinned. “You’d better go before you dig yourself a hole I won’t let you out of.” She rose but he caught her wrist before she could walk away. He drew her close then scanned the area around them. Holding on to her wrist, Noah lowered his other hand to her ankle and very slowly slid up her inner calf then continued beneath the full skirt of her dress. When she tried to move he tightened his hold on her wrist. “Stand still.”

  “Noah!” she whispered. “Someone might—” Her next words were lost as his fingers continued their leisurely trip up her inner thigh and found their way beneath the crotch of her thong. She could barely breathe let alone move as he scraped his fingernail back and forth over her clit then slipped his fingertip into her opening and swirled it around.

  A moment later he removed his hand and, holding her gaze, sucked that same finger. He had shocked her but she wasn’t beyond reciprocating. She leaned down with her lips close to his ear and eased her hand over his zipper. When she found his erection she molded her fingers around it and whispered, “You will pay for that.”

  She straightened up slowly, making sure he got a close-up view of her cleavage and smiled. “That history book I mentioned is on my nightstand in case you want to look at it. You have my permission to enter my personal space anytime, as long as it goes both ways.” Then she walked away with an emphatic hip wiggle.

  * * * * *

  Maggie was practicing her patience but it was getting thinner by the minute. She wanted to get back to the suite. To Noah. The research. Noah. Every time she recalled what he’d done to her at the café, she got aroused all over again and she couldn’t stop herself from recalling it. She needed something else to think about but she was being kept waiting without anything to distract her.

  Even though she had shown up without an appointment, that was Lillian Davenport’s request. And when she told the assistant she would be glad to schedule a specific time for later, she had been politely but firmly asked to wait just a few minutes for Ms. Davenport to get out of her staff meeting. That was nearly a half-hour ago.

  Finally the executive office door opened and four people exited with notepads in hand and concerned expressions on their faces. Maggie’s guess was that they’d all been handed assignments they were none too thrilled about.

  A perfectly groomed, statuesque woman with ash-blonde hair stood in the CEO’s doorway. Despite her high-level position, her smooth complexion suggested she was barely forty. However, her confidence and air of authority were easy to identify. This had to be Lillian Davenport.

  “Ms. Harrison,” she said with a smile that revealed beautiful white teeth. “Thank you for stopping by. Come in please.”

  Maggie hurried to follow her into the inner sanctum. Rather than an elegant executive office or a Tommy Bahama interpretation of one, the room was efficiently furnished and impressively neat…which could have been the reason her gaze was drawn to the collection of framed photographs on one bookshelf. They appeared to be mostly family portraits but Maggie’s vision caught one in particular. It was a photograph of a younger Ms. Davenport and a ruggedly handsome man sharing an intimate moment. They looked happy and very much in love. Engraved across the bottom of the silver frame was the phrase, Lilli & Kent, 2/14/96.

  As Ms. Davenport moved to her position behind the desk, Maggie hurried to sit in one of the chairs on the opposite side. It immediately established each of their positions for this meeting.

  “I’m sure you have a lot to do for Mr. Nash so I’ll only take a minute. Our human resources department speaks very highly of the It’s Only Temporary agency and I trust that you are as responsible as all the other temps they have provided us in the past. I understand the agency’s owner, Cory Servwell, explained that your assignment here was different from the norm. Your services are being utilized by Mr. Nash and he will be charged the agency’s usual rate but the Davenport is the official client.”

  Maggie furrowed her brow both to show attentiveness and lack of complete understanding. Miss Davenport either didn’t notice or didn’t care as she continued on with a speech that sounded somewhat rehearsed and left no pauses for questions.

  “We welcome the potential publicity that Mr. Nash could bring to the Davenport if he lets it be known we were the inspiration for his next bestselling novel. I’m sure you’re aware of the effect Stephen King had on The Stanley Hotel. This property has always been a source of conjecture when it comes to its past but with all the increased interest in the paranormal we have seen a correlation in the number and types of guest reservations, especially in the off-season. In other words, we have accepted the value of all the rumors of ghosts and portals to other dimensions, though we will continue to deny the validity of such nonsense.”

  So far Maggie still had no idea what she had been summoned for but she forced herself to remain still.

  “There is really just one area that we would prefer remain, shall we say, off-limits. Our concern is, if we specifically demand Mr. Nash to avoid that area, he might be tempted to focus on it when it wasn’t what he had planned on writing about to begin with.”

  Despite the confusing statement Maggie noticed Miss Davenport’s repeated use of the plural pronoun and wondered if the “we” referred to the group that she saw leaving a few minutes ago or if this woman just used the word to deflect responsibility away from herself. As the CEO finally got to her point, Maggie bet it was the latter.

  “You see, among all the rumors and ghost stories, there is one we absolutely will not tolerate being exploited for the thrills and chills of the masses. There is to be no mention of my grandfather’s death, either using his name precisely or by implication. This is an area of great sensitivity to my family and there is no amount of publicity that would make a mockery of his life acceptable.”

  It had taken a while but the woman had finally made the purpose of her summons clear. “I understand,” Maggie said sympathetically. “I’m sure I would feel the same way. However, I’m not sure why you’re telling me this.”

  Miss Davenport’s smile did not reach her eyes. “I am telling this to you because part of your assignment here is to report on Mr. Nash’s progress and how his story seems to be developing. You will make these reports directly and only to me, at least once a week, and not alert Mr. Nash in any way.”

  Maggie felt a rush of acid flood her stomach. She was being ordered to spy on and lie to Noah. Even if she didn’t care about him, subterfuge was not in her character range. Something made her glance at the framed portrait on the shelf. It was hard to believe the happy young woman in the photo was now the cold-blooded executive sitting behind the big desk.

  “I understand you and Mr. Nash were previously acquainted.”

  An alarm sounded in Maggie’s mind. “That’s correct. It was back in high school. But he barely remembered me.” The lie slid out more easily than she expected.

  “Good. If I thought you were too close to him, I would have to ask for a replacement.”

  Maggie wasn’t worried. Noah wouldn’t accept a replacement. But Ms. Davenport wasn’t finished.

  “Also, I was told you and Cory Servwell are very good personal friends. So let me add this—if Mr. Nash’s book includes even one sent
ence about my grandfather and you fail to warn me of that possibility in time to take preventive action, I will see to it that all of our staffing needs are taken away from It’s Only Temporary…permanently.”

  * * * * *

  All the way back to the suite Maggie wondered how she was going to get out of the spider web she’d just gotten caught in. It would be different if she didn’t know Noah was already thinking of using Robert Davenport, or at least the idea of him, in his new book. If she didn’t tell Noah about her secret orders, she’d feel like she was betraying him. She couldn’t be sure where their relationship was headed but starting off spying on him didn’t seem to lay a good foundation for the future.

  On the other hand, if she told him about it and he purposely avoided a particularly good plot idea to make things easier on her, she’d be guilty of interfering with his creative process. Also not a great beginning.

  If that wasn’t complicated enough, she and Cory had been close for some time and she loved working for her agency. Davenport made up most of Cory’s business. If they pulled out, the firm’s reputation would be severely damaged and it could take her friend a very long time to recover, if at all.

  During the short elevator ride, she made the decision not to do anything for a few days. After all, she had a week before having to report to Miss Davenport again. Meanwhile she would not tell Noah about the warning. She would not tell Cory about the threat. And finally she would not ruin the time she had with Noah by fretting over the day when she would have to say something to someone.

  Before entering the suite, she brought back the memory of the last minutes she and Noah had spent together. That’s all it took to shake off her worries and put on a bright smile.

  “Hi—” That was all she got out before he gestured for her not to talk for a second but come closer. She walked over to the dining room table, which he had apparently chosen over working at the smaller, more formal desk. He was reading something on his laptop screen, papers were spewing out of the printer and books, magazines and printouts of articles covered every inch of the table. He clicked the print icon and turned to her with a delighted expression.

  Without a word he shifted his chair, sat her down on his lap and planted a firm kiss on her mouth.

  “I take it you’ve had a good time while I was out working,” she said teasingly.

  Rather than respond, he nuzzled her neck while fondling her breast.

  Ribbons of pleasure unfurled from each spot he touched. The silken strands slithered along her nerves and settled in her core. In mere seconds, her pussy awoke, more than ready to play. “Um, I’m a little confused. Am I still under orders to keep you focused on work or—”

  He cut her off with a full-mouth, tongue-twisting kiss that took her breath away. “I missed you,” he murmured as he pushed the strap of her sundress off her shoulder. He lifted the breast out of its cup and kneaded it to arousal while his mouth continued its exploration of her neck and shoulder. In between caresses, he whispered, “I missed your skin…your breasts…” He quickly repositioned her so she was straddling his lap and so he could unzip her dress and bare her other breast. Cupping both mounds, he lifted them and buried his face between, licking and kissing the soft flesh then suckling the peaks.

  Maggie felt herself melting into a pool of desire. It would be so easy to just let him service her again but a whisper of guilt demanded she treat him to a gift instead. She slipped her hands between their bodies, unbuttoned his jeans and lowered his zipper a few notches, but the head of his penis was all she could touch. It was fully extended and damp at the tip but she wanted access to every sexy inch. Despite how pleasurable his mouth felt on her breasts, she stood and tugged his pants and shorts down to his ankles without letting him rise. She was in charge this time.

  She bent down between his knees and closed one hand tightly around his erection. The other hand was more gentle as she cupped his balls. She felt his heat warm her fingers and flow into her body. At the same time as her lips enveloped the head of his cock her fingers strummed the sensitive sac at the base, gradually squeezing past to apply pressure to the nerve center just beyond. He jerked the first time she did it then shifted on the seat so she could do it again more easily.

  But she made him wait for the replay until she slid her mouth down his cock, wetting the length of him with her tongue and making him feel her teeth on the return glide. Down, hold, up, scrape. Again. And again. With the next upward stroke, she sucked hard and pressed her fingers harder against the little nerve bundle she’d found.

  His groan came from deep in his chest and let her know how much he liked what she was doing. And she let him know how much she liked doing it by repeating the move over and over until his whole body was tense and the grip he had on her shoulders was like a vise. She began raising and lowering the hand on his penis along with the rhythmic movement of her mouth and tilted her head so that he was bumping the back of her throat.

  She wanted nothing more than to give him an experience he would not easily forget. Little by little, she picked up the pace of her strokes. As she quickened the motion she sucked more aggressively until he was growling through clenched teeth.

  “I’m—” He tried to warn her but she tightened, pressed and sucked all at once and he came with a force that could not be held back.

  And she savored every last drop.

  As he gasped for breath she sat sideways on his lap again, took a few swallows out of his water bottle then gave him a soft kiss. “You were saying something about missing me?”

  He grinned. “I’d tweak your nose for that but I can’t lift my arms.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment.” She gave him another peck on the mouth. “I missed you too.”

  “Really? I couldn’t tell.” He took a breath and wrapped his arms around her. “To borrow the expression of a great wordsmith…you are something else, Maggie Harrison. So, are you all mine for the rest of the day?”

  How about for the rest of my life? “Yep. And now I’m ready to find out what you learned while I was gone.”

  He traced the line of her jaw and trailed his fingers down to her nipple. “I’m thinking that could wait just a little longer…”

  She caught his fingers and brought them to her lips for a kiss. “As tempting as that is, I think it’s time for one of us to invoke the work rule.” She got off his lap and put her sundress back in place. Glancing at his rapidly softening sex, she asked, “Do you need help putting your toys away?”

  “You’re getting awfully bossy for someone who’s supposed to be working for me,” he said with a pout as he stood and redressed.

  She shrugged and sat down in a chair on the opposite side of the table. “Do you want to fill me in or give me a task?” He tried to look disappointed but she could tell he was actually pleased with her interest.

  He decided to save a review for after he’d covered more ground and instead showed her how to download the morning’s recording and perform edits. Since she needed to be on his computer to do that, he turned to the book she had brought with her.

  The next several hours passed in relative silence, other than Maggie’s typing and Noah’s scribbling on Post-It notes and attaching them to various pages. By twilight she had finished cleaning up the recording and he had finished perusing a stack of material including her book.

  “Hungry yet?” he asked.

  “Starved. But if you want to keep working I’d be good with room service.”

  “I had something a little different in mind.” He went into his bedroom, made a phone call that she couldn’t quite hear and returned. “All set. And don’t ask. It’s a surprise. But there is a dress code—a bathing suit, flip-flops and that robe you had on this morning.”

  “Do I have time for a shower?” she asked hopefully.

  His expression went from sly to pained. “Only if I don’t join you. Go on. They’ll wait for us.”

  A half-hour later she felt refreshed but somewhat self-conscious in t
he long robe. Until she saw he was attired the same way. She couldn’t resist taking a peek to make sure he was also in a bathing suit. “Very nice,” she said, noting the fitted black swim shorts.

  With feigned modesty, Noah reclosed his robe. “If you knew what was waiting for us, you wouldn’t risk waking the beast.”

  “Then tell me,” she said, dancing her fingers up his lapel.

  He grasped her hand and interlocked their fingers. “I’m pretty sure this is one of those cases where showing is definitely better than telling.”

  From the elevator he guided her to an exit door that allowed them to avoid the lobby. A few minutes later they were walking along the beach in the opposite direction they had explored that morning. She knew when they were nearing their destination by Noah’s big smile and expectant look. Just ahead she could see five striped tents. They were set up on the sand near the edge of the tide line and spaced at least a hundred feet apart.

  As they passed the first tent Noah explained, “I read about these cabanas today and, as luck would have it, there was a cancellation. Robert Davenport had the first tent put up when his hotel was overbooked and made it so unique and luxurious it became a very exclusive opportunity. Apparently a lot of famous people have had affairs in these over the years.”

  When he walked her around to the front of the last tent, Maggie’s jaw dropped. The flaps were pulled back to reveal a lavishly decorated interior befitting a sultan. A thick rug cushioned the base. Brightly colored scarves lined the ceiling and back wall and large comfy pillows were scattered around a low table. Interior lighting was provided by a lantern with an adjustable flame and as she took a breath, the seductive scent of freshly cut jasmine filled her nostrils.

  Maggie rushed inside and reclined dramatically on the double-wide lounge. But she was too excited to stay still and was instantly back on her feet with him outside. “Oh my god, Noah. This might just be the most incredible dining room I’ve ever seen. Just look at this view.” She waved at the ocean as though he might not be seeing everything she was. “And we’re just in time to see the full moon rising over the water. Geez, it looks like it’s casting a beam straight at us!” She vigorously rubbed her arms. “I’m covered in goose bumps.”