Page 8 of Cursed
Chapter Three
Edeena had been justifiably startled when the barely-dressed woman had sailed toward them, comfortable and confident despite the fact that she wore little more than a kitchen towel. But when the statuesque blonde had grasped Vince’s hands and embraced him so familiarly, her surprise had quickly turned to annoyance.
And now with the question. Vince’s sister. Not his girlfriend, his client, or his bestie, but his sister. Instantly relegated to the sidelines while Tall, Blonde and Glistening muscled in, smelling of coconut butter and salt.
Before she could respond to the woman’s question, however, Vince spoke in his cool southern drawl. “Miss Mulready, I’d like to introduce you to Countess Edeena Saleri, newly arrived from the kingdom of Garronia. She and her sisters are pleased to be exploring the Cypress Resort today.”
Edeena blinked at the fawning introduction, but the woman’s demeanor instantly changed. “Countess,” she breathed, her avaricious eyes glinting with new and patent interest. “Here with your sisters?”
Edeena had been about to announce that she was Vince’s fiancée, if merely to wipe the smug condescension from the woman’s face, but she’d forgotten the power of a title in America. Garronia’s entire noble class was made up of counts and countesses, the only other titles in the country being those assigned to the royal family. You couldn’t turn around without tripping over a count back home. But she wasn’t in Garronia, she was in Sea Haven, South Carolina. She needed to remember that.
“I trust you’ll find our resort meets all your European tastes and preferences,” the woman continued, then she peered more curiously at Edeena. “How did you two meet?”
Once again, Vince interjected himself smoothly to deflect the question with the simple truth. It was tidy and easy, and he did it with such calm assurance that he left no room for the oiled-up Miss Mulready to maneuver. “Countess Saleri hired my firm to provide them with security on the island.”
“Oh! Well, of course. You’ll be pleased to know that the Cypress Resort takes our commitment to security very seriously,” Mulready said, her honeyed voice modulating now to one of hushed confidence. “Here in this section most of all. We draw quite an exclusive clientele, you understand.”
“Oh?” Edeena’s gaze swiveled once more to the bachelorette party in the pool. She’d spotted her sisters immediately—well, one of them. Marguerite had found a one-piece swimsuit somewhere, its bright red color and spare cut making up for the fact that it wasn’t a bikini like most of the other girls wore. Caroline wasn’t in the line-up of brides-to-be, however.
“Oh, yes, indeed,” Mulready said. “We don’t have any royalty here at present, but we have several international travelers, most of them business professionals looking to unwind after work on the mainland. Then there are several prominent individuals from Washington D.C. and, of course, Atlanta, who’ve found our resort to be exactly the kind of respite they need.”
Edeena gestured more expansively to the pool area. “What’s the, um, competition that’s going on?”
Mulready beamed. “Just a little fun and games we put together to get everyone chatting. Would you like to join in? We can easily find you a suit.”
Edeena was spared from responding as a young man in a skin-tight muscle shirt and loose shorts approached, flagging down Mulready. The man gave Edeena a warm grin before turning away. “Sorry to interrupt, Janet, but suite forty-seven has arrived and you asked to be informed. You want me to entertain them?”
“You’re not the kind of entertainment they’re looking for, I’m afraid,” Mulready said with a leer of her own, and it was all Edeena could do not to wince. Everywhere she looked there were nearly naked bodies, and the sheer volume of undressed people in the small space made her head spin.
Mulready pivoted back to them. “If you’ll excuse me? I can have Josh show you—”
“We’re good, thanks,” Vince said summarily as the young man fixed his attention on Edeena. He really was good-looking in a blond surfer way, and she smiled back at him as Vince steered her off, leaving Mulready and the beefcake to chat.
“Caroline is out of the pool already at the bar,” Vince informed her, and Edeena quickly picked her sister out of the crowd. “Her assigned guard, Cindy Marks, is behind her to the left. You see her?”
“I do.” The woman wore a workout top that complemented her extremely buff physique, and loose trousers that had a beachy flair to them. “She’s a good choice for Caro, not too intrusive.”
“I switched out their assignments after meeting your sisters,” Vince said, and she nodded. She’d thought that’s what had happened. She remembered Caro having a male guard and Marguerite a female when they’d first discussed arrangements. But now . . .
Her gaze swiveled back to the pool. “I don’t see Rob, though. Who’s on Marguerite?” she asked. “And despite what’s happening in that bachelorette pool, I don’t mean that literally.”
Vince chuckled. “Your sister may not be safe from Southern Comfort, but she’s well protected otherwise. Rob’s right there, wearing the red skull cap.”
Edeena peered more intently. “Oh!” she said, when she recognized the bodyguard. “I can’t believe he’s in the pool with her. That’s outstanding.”
“Rob was the one who texted first when Marguerite got targeted by the rep from the Cypress. We’ve thought for a while that the Cypress sends out runners to draw in the new arrivals, so it’s something we’ll need to add to our briefings for new clients.”
“They would have found their way to the resort sooner or later.” Edeena shrugged. Then she glanced his way. “But who’s my bodyguard? Or did you decide I won’t need one after all?”
Not likely.Vince kept his gaze on Marguerite, now clambering out of the pool, apparently having lost her bid to be Bachelorette-Most-Likely. On the other side of the pool, Rob hauled his body out of the water as well. Good.
“You’re with me for the time being,” Vince said, not looking at Edeena as he made a quick scan of the pool area, noting anyone paying particular attention to the youngest Saleri sister, though she was merely one of many options for roving eyes. Nevertheless, he noticed a familiar face eyeing Marguerite with interest. Figured. Vince had been in the Charleston area security business long enough that he’d brushed up against Wyndham Masters more than a few times. The guy was a billionaire hotelier and all around pain in the ass, though he was rumored to be engaged, if Vince’s mother’s sources held any water.
Then again, Vince expected those “sources” were quite probably Us Magazine and TMZ, so he wasn’t holding his breath on that.
He realized Edeena hadn’t said anything for a while, and he looked her way. She was staring at him, irritation writ large on her face. He tried to remember what he’d said to piss her off, but couldn’t. “What?”
“I thought I was assigned a female guard,” she said, her cheeks once again tinged pink. “Meredith or something.”