Every imagining he’d had of Mandy wearing a bikini hadn’t prepared him for the sight of her stretched out in an army green scrap of nothing bathing suit. He had always pictured Mandy as thin and fragile, probably because she’d had the flu when they first met.

But she wasn’t thin and bony and untouchable. She was curvy and lush and delicious, with full breasts straining the tiny triangles and making his mouth water. So he’d pressed an excuse on her to rub his hands all over her back and shoulders.

And she was groaning.

He felt like doing the same.

Instead, he said, “Do you want to go to the buffet together tonight? The room service is really slow, and I need to get out a little anyway.”

Her head fell forward. “I’d love to. I’m sure the older couple I’ve been shadowing would like some time alone. Though they did say I remind them of their daughter Annie, who’s off at university. The one they told me in the next breath is something of a screw-up.”

Damien chuckled and refilled his hands with lotion. “Lift your hair and I’ll get your neck.” He leaned forward until his mouth was near her ear, his fingers tracing her clavicle bones. “I owe you an apology. I asked you on this trip impulsively and never considered the inconvenience to you.”

That was probably the first time ever that he had admitted a wrong to one of his assistants. But he knew it was true. He was harsh and inflexible sometimes, and thought only of himself.

Mandy’s elbows were out as she piled hair in a bundle on her head, and he spoke right over her shoulder. A little push forward and he could skim his lips along her jaw, kiss that dimple in her cheek that appeared when she smiled.

“While I accept your apology, I have to say it’s very relaxing, actually, which is something I really needed. I’ve been under a bit of stress lately.”

He paused. “I heard your boss is an ogre.”

She laughed. “That’s not what I meant. I like working for you, believe it or not. There’s just been some personal…issues I’m dealing with.”

Lord knew he could understand that. But she’d said she didn’t have a boyfriend or a husband, so before rational thought could intrude, he tugged on the tie that held her bikini top in place.

She grabbed the front of the top to hold it against her and made a sound of distress. “What are you doing?”