And there was very little doubt that she was earning her keep on a regular basis. She’d had that just-fucked look about her, gazing up at Ian with almost sickening sweetness, and the looks that passed between the pair of them were nothing less than smoldering. Oh, no, Ian was enjoying her thoroughly and often, definitely getting his money’s worth from that hot, ripe body. The satisfied look on the prick’s face as he held Tessa tightly against him made Jason long to shove a fist into his jaw.

Charlotte had been predictably oblivious to the thick tension in the air when both Ian and Tessa had barely acknowledged him. It had been left to Charlotte to do most of the talking, and Jason had almost cringed when she’d happily babbled on about the four of them getting together for dinner soon, or inquiring if Tessa would be joining the family later in the year in England for the holidays. Ian had smoothly changed the subject each time Charlotte hit on something awkward, and the ninny had naively never even sensed there was anything wrong.

Jason had drank steadily during the evening, his fury building each time he happened to glance over in the direction of Ian’s table. It made him sick to his stomach to see the way that blonde whore fawned over Ian, touching his arm and gazing at him in adoration, like he was the fucking king and everyone else here in the room his doting subjects.

‘Fuck the pair of them,’ Jason had thought darkly. ‘He was probably screwing her the whole time she worked there. That’s why he shipped you off to bloody Scotts Valley, because you dared to poach on his territory.’

He’d thought often of filing a complaint against Ian, or at least blowing the whistle on his amorous activities with one of his staff members. But every time he’d considered the idea, Jason knew it was virtually useless. Tessa had very conveniently resigned recently, removing any obstacle to her having a relationship with Ian. And since Ian reported directly to his father and uncle, both of whom had been fully apprised of the situation, there wasn’t a chance in hell he’d be disciplined for any of his past activities.

‘No,’ Jason had told himself firmly. ‘You’ll have to figure out a different way to get back at them. And they will pay for what they’ve done to you.’

***

Tessa had just pulled on a sheer green cotton cover-up over her emerald green bikini when a knock sounded on the front door of the suite. She frowned, for the butler was usually off duty at this time of the afternoon, and Ian would have used his card key to gain entrance. As the knocking persisted, however, she heaved a little sigh and walked over to the door.

It had been an especially hectic morning, the last full day of the manager’s meeting, and Ian had insisted she take the afternoon off and go relax on the beach. Even Andrew had shooed her off, confirming that he and Shelby could easily handle the rest of the afternoon’s scheduled events. Still feeling more than a little guilty, Tessa had nonetheless returned to the suite and changed into her beachwear.

“Who is it, please?” she asked, unable to see anyone through the peep hole.

The voice on the other side of the door was the familiar Australian accent of the private butler assigned to the owner’s suite. “It’s Geoffrey, Miss Lockwood. I have a delivery for you and Mr. Gregson.”

Tessa still thought it a bit odd that Geoffrey was on duty at this time of the day, but supposed the rest of the staff was busier than usual because of the manager’s meeting. She unlocked the door and opened it slowly.

And then gasped as Jason rushed past her into the room before she could stop him, grabbing her by the wrist and yanking her along with him as he kicked the door shut.

“What the hell are you doing here?” she demanded. “What’s happened to Geoffrey?”

Jason snickered. “Most likely enjoying his afternoon break, I assume. I happened to notice him leaving this suite the other day, chatted him up a bit. Did you know I lived in Australia for a time, picked up the accent in no time?”

Tessa tugged on her wrist but his grip was like steel. “Let go of me, Jason. You don’t scare me anymore. And Ian will kick your ass if he finds you here.”

“Oh, but he won’t, sweet thing. When I snuck out of that god-awful boring meeting, he was about to start droning on about some budget bullshit. He’ll be there for hours yet. More than enough time for you and I to have a little chat.”

Tessa forced down the sense of panic that threatened to overtake her. “We have nothing to say to each other.”

“Then fucking listen, you little bitch.” His voice was filled with venom, and he twisted her wrist hard enough to make her yelp in pain. “You and your lover screwed up my life big time. He banished me to that stinking hotel, demoted me, all because I dared to put my hands on you. And all the time the fucking hypocrite was banging you himself.”

Tessa shook her head vehemently. “No, no. You’re wrong. We weren’t together then. Ian didn’t know I was separated from my husband at the time and he wouldn’t have -”

“Fucked a married woman? Oh, yes, noble, honorable Ian, never doing the wrong thing, always the perfect gentleman,” spat Jason. “Well, maybe he wasn’t tapping you then, sweet thing, but he sure as hell wanted to. So he sent me away like I was a naughty child who’d tried to play with his favorite toy.”

Tessa wished fervently that she wasn’t barefoot, wasn’t quite so scantily dressed. She gave another experimental tug on her wrist, which only made him tighten his grip, and she knew her skin would already be starting to bruise.

“What do you want, Jason?” she asked with a calm she certainly didn’t feel. “Your insults aren’t going to change anything. And your being here is only going to make things worse once Ian learns about it.”

“He can’t fire me, if that’s what you’re thinking, sweet thing,” replied Jason arrogantly. “My father-in-law won’t leave the father of his grandchildren without a steady income. Besides, you and your lover owe me big time. And now it’s time for me to start collecting on that debt.”

Jason shoved her up against the wall, pushing his leanly muscled - and very obviously aroused - body against hers. Tessa turned her head to the side in revulsion as he ground himself against her.

“Come on, you hot bitch. Don’t pretend you don’t want to get fucked. Look at you,” purred Jason. “Mmm, I’ll bet Ian likes to take you for a good, long ride every night. But it’s time for that greedy bastard to start sharing a little. I mean, he’s got it all, doesn’t he? Money, power, prestige, and the hottest, sweetest piece of ass I’ve ever seen. I might not get my fair share of all the rest, but I’m damned sure going to take my share of you.”