All Bottled Up (2 page)

“Hello?”

“Beth, I have to work late.”

“That sonofabitch. I told you he would pull this shit.”

“It’s not like he’s doing it on purpose. He just trusts me. I think he might actually be coming around and starting to notice me more.” Beth sighed. “I don’t know where your idol worship of the man came from but he doesn’t deserve it. You can do better than Bill.” Viola closed her eyes and listened as her friend continued her tirade of Bill bashing.

After a minute of near solid swearing, she laughed.

“You always make me feel better.”

11

“Hey that’s what a best friend is for. Anything I can do to help? Want me to come in?”

“No, it’s your day off. Besides I don’t think there’s a good excuse for you to come in and check up on me.”

“A quality analyst doesn’t need an excuse. But okay. What about William?” Viola’s feet hit the floor. “Oh my God, I won’t have time to take him to the doggie hotel. And I haven’t finished packing yet.”

Beth’s chuckle grated for the tiniest of seconds. Viola took a deep breath and tried to calm her racing heart. It was only an all-expenses-paid trip to a five-star luxury resort after all. Nothing to freak out over.

“I’ll tell you what. I’ll bring William to my place. We can keep each other company while you’re away. And I’ll throw the rest of your clothing into a bag for you. That way you can grab and go, baby.”

Her fingers spun one of the file folders around on her desk. “Not unless I get these cases closed in time. You don’t mind?”

“Consider it done. I’ll head over now and bring your pouting pet back with me before he sees you.”

“This is going to be so strange traveling alone.” Viola sighed and nudged a file folder with her finger.

“You won’t be alone for long. The guys will be all over you.” Viola rolled her eyes. “Sure they will.”

Beth’s sigh came through loud and clear. “How many times do I have to tell you, you’re an attractive woman. Give yourself a chance.”

“I’m short.”

“You’re five-seven. That’s not short.”

“I have gross hair.”

“You have blonde hair and hazel eyes. People would kill for that. All you need is a haircut.”

Viola closed her eyes. “Okay, enough. I give up. I’m a goddess trapped in baggy 12

clothing and who needs a haircut.”

This was an old conversation that never ended well for her. One couldn’t argue with Beth and actually win. Safer for all involved to roll over and die before things got scary.

“Call me when you get to the airport so I know you’ve made it in one piece.”

“Will do. You are the best.”

Beth laughed. “And don’t you forget it.”

She hung up with a click of the receiver and picked up the first file. If things went her way, she might just finish up on time. Viola kept her head down and her mind focused, lost in the reams of facts and details of Bill’s reports. It wasn’t until she heard a cough above her that she looked up. Brian, her trainee, stood there tapping his watch.

“What the hell are you still doing here? You should have left forty minutes ago. No, make that an hour and forty minutes, because I thought you were leaving early.”

“What!” She looked at her clock. “Shit, I’m not finished.”

“Not finished what? Did Bill dump another project on you?” A quick scan of her desk and she realized she’d only gotten through four of the six files. And now she was late. In rush-hour traffic, she’d barely make her flight.

“Give.”

She looked up at Brian. “What?”

He didn’t wait and snatched them from her hands. “I’ll finish them.”

“Brian, he wanted me—”

“He wanted you to be late. I’m not going to let that happen. You deserve that vacation. Bill knows if you miss your flight, you forfeit your prize and he’ll get to go in your place.”

“He wouldn’t do that. Bill respects my work.” Whether or not she wanted to admit it, it sounded like something Bill could do. She had to relax her clenched fingers.

“Bill’s an ass and you’re too naïve to see it. Go, have fun and don’t even think about this place. I’ve got your back.”

Viola hesitated for a second before she stood, tightened her ponytail and grabbed her 13

purse and her plant.

“Okay.” Her heart was pounding at the idea of her tiny rebellion. A wide grin crossed her face. “Okay, I’m leaving.”

Brian smiled. “Good for you. Don’t worry about these, I’ve got ya covered. I’ll ask Beth if I have any questions.”

Viola hugged Brian as best she could with full arms. “Thank you.”

“Have fun.”

She grabbed her coat and bolted for the door.

The stress of the fourteen-hour trip came to a thunderous halt when Viola dropped her suitcases in a heap on the floor of her suite at the Coral Reef Palace. Thank God she’d made it in one piece. She needed a shower. And a drink. Preferably more than one. The charming girl at the check-in desk promised to send up a pitcher of their famous rum punch, which couldn’t get here soon enough for Viola. If she’d known about the insanity of flying, she would have thought twice about coming.

Viola kicked her bags away from the door so she could open it with little effort. Her energy reserves completely used up, she fell back onto the bed, only to bounce against the hard surface.
How the hell am I going to sleep on this?
A remote-control-like object on her pillow caught her attention. She had to read the card three times to figure out what to do with it.

“What’s a comfort number? How the hell do I figure out what mine is? All I need is rum and a cabana boy.”

Ten minutes later she was testing out comfort number fifty when a light knock on her door got her attention.

“Room service.”

Like a bolt she was at the door. She yanked it open, and practically grabbed the rum punch from the cute attendant. She barely had the presence of mind to shove a few bills into his hand for a tip.

14

“
Gracias
.” The man smiled and nodded a bit too enthusiastically.

Damn.
She must have given him too much. Not that it mattered. She was officially on vacation. Grabbing a glass, she shifted her attention to the large double doors that led outside. Viola couldn’t stop the grin that spread across her face as she walked to the room’s balcony, pouring a large glass of the fruit concoction.

Fresh ocean breeze and delicious sunshine rolled over her. It made every twinge of stress melt from her body.
Thank God I slept on the plane.
She didn’t want to spend any more time than necessary in this room. She had a date with her book and a beach chair.

And later, she planned on trying every dish on the menu. Work was picking up the tab after all, so why the hell shouldn’t she enjoy herself?

Swallowing the last of her punch, Viola went back inside to grab her bathing suit.

Beth had been a life saver. It’s not every friend who would pack for you. Viola pulled the suitcase over to the bed and unzipped it.

She felt the blood drain from her head and settle into the pit of her stomach. Her legs grew weak and she had to fight against the urge to sink to the floor.

“Damn…you…Beth.”

A surprising air of calm momentarily flowed through her. Viola stood straight, made her way over to the punch, and poured herself another glass. She downed the contents in a single gulp before pouring another. Despite the quaking of her knees, she found the edge of her bed and sat. The bright flowery comforter did little to cheer her sinking spirits as she stared at the cause of her shock.

A tiny red bikini.

She fished an ice cube out of her glass and gnashed it with her teeth. At least there was real fruit juice mixed in with the rum. She could pretend that it was a breakfast drink.

Upon closer inspection of her suitcase, she realized the rest of her clothing was different too. Gone were her oversized T-shirts and baggy shorts. Instead, Beth had filled her suitcase with tight-fitting tops and short shorts that showed more than they covered.

Beth must have emptied out her own closet in an attempt to spice up Viola’s wardrobe.

At least she had her big, floppy-brimmed sun hat. She’d need extra sunscreen to protect 15

all that exposed skin.

Now, she knew she could survive the seven-day trip with the other outfits. It would take some creative uses of her beach towel, but she was sure she would find a way to cover her ass. The bathing suit was going to be a problem. There was no way in
hell
she’d put that tiny piece of floss on her body. If it would even fit her. There had to be a store nearby where she could get a new one.

Out of the corner of her eye, Viola noticed a folded piece of pink paper tucked between the cups of a lacy black bra. She sighed, picked it up, and flipped it over. She really didn’t need to read it to guess the gist of what Beth wrote. She did anyway.

Right now you’re probably pissed off at me. I’m okay with that. You need
to relax and enjoy life. Stop hiding behind your fabric armor and let
people see the real you.

Go find a man and have some fun. And get laid!

Love, Beth

Yup, pretty much what she expected.

Viola let the note fall to the floor and watched it fold over as it landed. Panic clawed at her. Basically she had three choices—hide in her room for her seven days in paradise, go shopping and pray she’d find something that was less revealing, or put on the damn bikini and hit the beach. None were appealing at the moment.

Plus, she was almost out of punch.

She ran her hands over her hair, smoothing down the fuzzies that had escaped her ponytail.
When did I get so old?
Beth teased her that she acted older than her twenty-nine years all the time. Until this very moment, she’d never believed her.

Old and alone.

The clock flashed 10:13. She had to make a decision before the entire day was wasted sulking, making her a complete and utter loser.

She set the glass down on the nightstand, stood up and stripped. She stood there naked for several minutes, careful not to look at her reflection in the mirror, before she snatched the bikini top. It took several minutes of naked wrestling with the cunning piece 16

of clothing before she was able to finally slide her arms into it and secure it into place.

The bottoms were more straightforward and it only took a few minutes to tie the side straps that held it in place. The moment she dreaded arrived as she turned to face her reflection.

Skinny, bony knees? Check. Enormous mole three inches above and to the right of her belly button? Check. Hips that were a bit too big for the rest of her body? Smallish chest? Oh yeah.

Status quo.

At least she had her hat. Viola lathered her body with sunscreen, slipped on a pair of sunglasses and her sandals. It changed her. She didn’t look like herself. Hell, if she had a scarf that she could drape around her neck, she’d almost look like a movie star. Viola smiled at herself and went in search of her makeup bag. She pulled out and applied her bright red lipstick.

After checking her appearance in the mirror one last time, she spun on her heels and marched out of her room with her head held high. To hell with what people thought of her. She was on vacation after all.

First one in three years, damn it.
If she couldn’t make a complete ass of herself amongst a bunch of strangers, where else could she do it?

Maybe Beth was right and all she needed was to give in to her wild side. She knew it existed, and had the transcripts of some of her steamier phone calls to her customers to prove it. Maybe putting on the red bikini and lipstick were the first steps to becoming a sex kitten. Show the world that Viola White was as sexy as any of the little tarts Bill brought into the office. She squashed her embarrassment at the thought of doing something sexually adventurous, even in a place where no one would ever see her again.

Viola sighed and closed her eyes as she waited for the elevator.

She really did need to get laid. The question was how?

17

Viola was able to mostly ignore the air-conditioned chill in the air as she traveled down the elevator, though it required some strategic placement of her arms across her chest to cover up the evidence. When the doors dinged open, she dropped her arms to her sides and walked out into the lobby of the Coral Reef, swinging her towel as she marched purposefully toward the door.

As she stepped out into the sun-drenched heat, Viola stopped. Every inch of her body heated and tingled as the chill was chased away. She sighed.
Heaven indeed
. A group of young men to her right stopped talking and turned to stare at her. She ignored them as best she could, but she couldn’t help blushing when she heard one of them say “nice ass” as she walked past them down the path to the beach.
You’d think they’d never seen a pale
Canadian before. Or bony knees.
She did wiggle her hips a little bit more as she walked, though.

It being off season, the resort had considerably fewer people than capacity. This also meant fewer people wandering on the beach. The majority hung around closest to the resort. Jet skis and parasailing were the main attractions besides lounging on the white-powdered Mexican sand.

The idea of being social wasn’t overly appealing, especially since she felt a bit woozy after the three rum punches. What she really wanted was to read her book under one of the large beach umbrellas near the water. Of course, in her burst of sexual liberation, she’d forgotten to bring it with her. She had to double check to make sure she’d taken her room key. It would have been typical for her to have left it behind, but she had it.

Well, now what?

Teenage boys to the left of her. Teenage girls sunbathing in front of her. Potential 18

male stalkers sitting at the bar.
Choices, choices.

Viola threw her towel over her shoulder, turned and wandered up the beach to a section that looked deserted except for the occasional strolling couple. After ten minutes, she found a secluded spot where she could still see the resort, but was far enough away no one would accidentally wander up to her.

For the next hour, she took great delight in digging for sea shells in the sand with her toes. She waded out into the gentle ocean waves to catch a glimpse of the tropical fish as they darted close to shore and around her feet.
A mask and snorkel, that’s what I need to
get a better look.
A Catamaran with a group from the resort roared past her, blasting music out of some large speakers, the occupants cheering. They must be heading out for a scuba-diving excursion. Something else she’d always wanted to try. Maybe she’d be able to sign up for some lessons while she was here. Now that would be an adventure even Beth would approve of.

“Tomorrow,” she looked up and said to a small seagull that had landed on the water a few feet away from her.

Viola waded out into the ocean, her eyes still focused on the disappearing ship. She wasn’t paying attention to the water as she smashed her toes against something hard.

“Sonofabitch!”

Viola tried to grab her toes as best she could while maintaining her balance in the light current. She slipped and fell sideways into the water. Re-emerging, she coughed out the water she’d swallowed. Her eyes stung from the salt and her lungs burned as she continued to cough.

“What the hell…?”

Peering down through her waterlogged eyelashes, she managed to catch a glimpse at what had caused her near toe amputation and drowning. A beam of sunlight cut through the water to glint off the tip of something metal sticking out of the water. It was hard to see exactly what it was because of all the sand her fall had stirred up.

“Shit, I’ll probably need a tetanus shot.”

Since she was already wet, she dove under the warm water and dug at the object to 19

free it. It took three trips under before she was able to get a good grip on the tip with her hands. She gave it several hard tugs in an attempt to free it from the tightly packed sand.

It refused to move. She was about to give up, but something in the back of her mind told her to try again. This time, after she finally cleared the surface, Viola couldn’t believe her eyes.

A bottle.

Its ornate golden metal stopper had been the offending part to hurt her toe. But it was only a fraction of the bottle’s beauty, which was covered in jewels. Viola ran her thumb over the sapphire gems that had somehow been secured to the bottle. The glass seemed to melt around them, impossibly binding them to the smoky dark blue glass embossed with gold strips. Its color prevented her from seeing if there was anything inside. It must be worth a small fortune and here she found it completely on a fluke.

Maybe there’s a note
. She’d always wanted to find a message in a bottle. It was one of her many silly childhood fantasies. The top didn’t want to come off, no matter how hard she yanked and tugged at it. She’d have to wait until she could get it back to her room to see.

With her eyes locked on the bottle, she slowly made her way back to shore. Sand clung to the smooth glass and she had to rinse it in the water and rub away the quickly drying salt from the smooth surface. It was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen. She was so taken with her discovery she didn’t notice that someone was standing behind her.

Until he snapped the elastic strap of her bikini top.

“What the hell!”

Viola spun on her heels, ready to unleash hell on the unwelcome juvenile delinquent.

Her mouth dropped open when she came face-to-face with the most amazingly handsome man she’d ever laid eyes on.

“Good day,” he said and bowed deeply from the waist. “My name is Jerod. And what is the name of the goddess who awoke me from my slumber?” The sound of his voice sent shivers of pleasure down her spine. Despite the warmth of the sun and water, goosebumps rose on her skin.

20

“Pardon?”

Her brain felt like mush.
He called me a goddess?
He must be drunk on the rum punch. It was pretty good stuff after all. She gave her head a shake and tried to place his accent. Mediterranean? Italian? Not Spanish though. She really needed to become more worldly, especially if there were men like him out there.

His eyes were crystal blue, so light she’d almost swear he wore contact lenses. His hair was pitch black, as was his goatee. He wore no shirt, but instead had a midnight blue satin vest that did little to hide the perfect six pack and firm pecs. He stood with his hands on his hips, drawing her attention to the mysteries below his golden belt. His pants were made of the same material, which hugged his thighs nicely. He stood barefoot as the water lapped at his toes.

Perfect and very yummy.

“Do I meet your approval?”

She snapped her eyes back to his face and prayed she wasn’t drooling.
Shit, I’m
acting like Bill.
Viola felt her face heat and she wanted to crawl under a large beach towel and hide. Face-to-face conversations weren’t her strong suit. That’s why she loved working in a call center—she was braver when faceless.

Beth’s words began to ring in her ears—
get laid
. Viola straightened, looked this snacktastic man in the eyes and smiled.

“I’m sorry, that was rude of me. You surprised me. What did you say your name was?”

“Jerod.”

He looked amused, like someone who was initiating a new member into a secret club. Viola found her gaze constantly slipping over his body, checking out every inch of his half-naked body. When he chuckled, her brain finally kicked past her libido and she held out her hand.

“I’m Viola. It’s very nice to meet you, Jerod.” Instead of taking her hand, he nodded his head, keeping his eyes locked on hers the entire time. The urge to squirm under the intensity of his gaze was strong. Instead she 21

buried her toes into the sand and kept staring back.
Think sexy.

Viola licked her lips and looked up at him with what she prayed was a smoldering glance. Of course, she felt a blush heat her cheeks but she did her best to ignore it.

“So, what can I do you for?” She tried to sound mysterious, and even lowered her voice a little as she spoke.

If she was doing a good job, Jerod wasn’t letting on. His amused half smile still played on his lips as he shook his head.

“The question is what can I do for you? You woke me from my slumber and freed me from my bottle. I am a genie and I’m here to grant you three wishes.” She blinked. Then she closed her eyes and groaned. “Oh crap. Is this part of a resort special event? I’m not going to have to dress up in a costume and go to some special dinner tonight, am I? I really just wanted to keep a low profile this vacation.” To his credit, Jerod didn’t break character. He kept his smile glued in place and continued.

“I assure you this is no trick. I am a genie.” How the hell did the resort find out she was from Way To Go? Someone from the office must have called up and planned this. Probably Beth. Her sexy act forgotten, Viola reached out and rubbed the hem of Jerod’s costume between her fingers.

“Well, you look like a genie. That costume is pretty slick. I’ll have to make sure I tell my customers about the interactive quality of the vacation packages. How long were you up there waiting?”

Viola held a hand up to her eyes and scanned the sand dunes behind him. The poor guy must have been out there all day. She should have brought some of the rum punch.

They could probably both use the drink.

“It’s been one hundred and forty-nine years since my last master found my prison.

As a reward, I have it in my power to grant you any three wishes you desire.” His voice lowered on the last as he took a small step forward.

Viola had read about it countless times, but it wasn’t until that very moment she truly understood the concept of swooning.

22

“Anything?” Her voice came out as an awestruck whisper.
God I’m lame.

Jerod’s smile spread from his lips to the rest of his face. This was clearly a man who was very comfortable with his sexuality and didn’t mind wielding his power on the female half of the population. Maybe Beth was right about the getting laid part. She wondered if he’d be allowed to sleep with a guest. Probably not, but a little harmless flirtation couldn’t hurt.

“There are certain rules, of course. Would you like me to share those with you now?” A small part of her was getting excited by the game, especially since she’d been lucky enough to get placed with such a cute guy. All she needed to do was relax enough to enjoy Jerod and the role play. She’d have to put a special note in the computer system about this place when she got back to work.

“Sure. Why not?”

He bowed his head again. “Very well. Rule number one. I cannot make anyone fall in love with you.”

Ah, a warning
. “I’m not looking for a
relationship
, so that’s an easy rule. Just a little vacation fun.” She hoped he got her meaning.

Ignoring her comment, he continued, “Rule number two. I can’t bring anyone back from the dead.”

“Eww. People would try to wish for that?”

“People try to wish for all things.”

The wind caught the edge of his vest and blew it open. Man, did they pick some good eye candy for this character. He probably got off on women drooling.

“Rule number three. There is no wishing for more wishes.”
Odd
. “What no
you-can-wish-for-whatever-you-want-as-long-as-it-can-take-place-on-the-resort-grounds
wish?”

For the first time, Jerod’s expression changed. The frown actually had the odd ability to make him more attractive than before. His down-turned lips were thick and very kissably appealing. The hair of his black goatee looked smooth, and she stopped her hand just in time to prevent touching him. Viola nonchalantly pinched her arm in a vain 23

attempt to snap out of her hormone-induced haze.
Sad, Viola. Really sad.

“I am not aware of the rule you mentioned. While there are other smaller rules, you needn’t worry about them. Most of my former masters used their wishes so quickly I rarely need to explain further.”

“Can I keep the bottle?”

She held it between them, hoping the little barrier it provided would help her get her concentration back. She didn’t like being out of control with her emotions. Bad things happen to people when they did that. On the other hand, Jerod seemed in complete control. She loved a man who could take charge of a situation. Especially a cute one.

Even more especially, a cute one who paid his undivided attention to her.

He reached out and brushed his fingers along the side of the bottle before he pinged it with his forefinger. Viola felt a nervous bubble pop inside of her as he looked up from the bottle, into her eyes, and smiled.

“For the time being. Once you have made your wishes, I will need to reclaim my home.”

“Do you always have to talk that formally? It must be hard to stay in character like that.”

Jerod closed his eyes. “This isn’t an act.”

He muttered something else under his breath. Viola strained to hear what he was saying, but couldn’t. “Pardon?”