"Ladies first," Miles said moments after he released Maria's hand.
She bit her lip, avoiding his eyes, shy to completely take off the mesh skirt over her bikini but also tempted to feed the anticipating hunger flickering in Miles' gaze.
Vanessa appeared at her side with a polite smile, clearly to collect the clothing.
Maria exhaled, reminding herself to stay confident and not mind.
She pulled at the tiny rope holding the skirt wrap together, and the fabric split as she removed it.
She placed it in Vanessa's waiting hands, still deliberately avoiding Miles' gaze as she turned and walked slowly to the pool's edge.
She paused before the silver handrails, eying the short, darker blue stairs that descended into the clear water spread across the turquoise-tiled pool.
"You like to swim?" Miles' voice came from where he stood, and she turned.
Maria could not stop her eyes from drifting up his strong legs to the outline of his core pressed against his swim shorts, up the veins and lines of his stomach, and the vast strength of his chest and dark nipples.
How was one even supposed to resist such a man?
Her gaze flickered briefly to his amused face before she looked away again, back to the pool.
"I don't do it all the time," she answered. "Only when I miss it."
Maria inhaled as she gripped the silver handrails and stepped into the water, enjoying its warmth against the cold sea breeze.
Dim blue lights illuminated the pool from below.
Miles began to approach, and she moved to the other side of the pool as he stepped in as well.
He smirked as their eyes met. "The view is perfect on the other end of the pool."
Maria calculated quickly. The shallow end was here, while the far side dropped much deeper.
She wasn't fully confident in her swimming ability. She had never properly learned as she got older.
She sighed internally at her lack of skill in sports.
"Okay," she said, because otherwise meant proximity—and proximity meant him.
"Race you there," Miles said, then dived in, swimming beneath the water fluidly.
"I'm not agreeing!" She called out as she carefully tiptoed down the slope of the pool floor.
As the water reached her neck and the floor began to disappear beneath her feet, she began to tremble, still flailing slightly for balance.
The water got higher. So did her panic.
Her vision blurred as she saw Miles rising at the edge before she began to sink, giving in to panic.
Her breath hitched, bubbles escaping as her arms weakly struggled beneath the water. She should have admitted she couldn't swim.
Now she would die because she tried to avoid Miles—she would be too embarrassed to even stay alive after a moment like this.
Familiar hands gripped her waist, and instinctively she clung to him, wrapping her legs around him as he pulled them to the surface.
Maria gasped for air, holding onto him tightly.
"Oh my God! Oh my God!" she choked out. "I didn't know it was that deep, I think I slipped."
"You're welcome," his deep voice vibrated through her, their chests pressed together.
Her neck tilted briefly toward his breath before she caught herself and leaned back, loosening her legs slightly.
They were still in the middle of the pool.
"S-sorry, sir," she breathed, unable to tear her eyes from his lips.
"Swimming is a leisure sport," he said.
Maria flushed. "Coaches judge me before they know me," she muttered.
"Excuses, excuses," Miles murmured, moving a hand up her waist and pressing her closer.
Maria looked away from him even as her arms wrapped around his shoulders.
"I could stay at the shallow side. I'm sure the view isn't that bad from there too."
"We'll reach the edge," he said. "I'll take you there."
Maria hesitated, tightening her hold. "I'm not sure you could—"
"Trust me Maria," he whispered, slanting his body slightly with hers, drifting toward the deeper end of the pool.
Sax music picked up again in the background
Panic—now softer—made Maria bury her face into his chest and close her eyes.
Then he slowed and turned.
Her back met the warm pool wall. Slowly she opened her eyes and raised her head.
His arms loosened and she sank slightly, the bulge at his groin brushing against her core, making her flinch.
"I won't let you fall," he said again, his grip firm but controlled around her waist.
Her heart fluttered and she almost said it, almost called him out.
Almost told him of boundaries—of what they were supposed to be.
Transactional. Right?
"But how would you see the fireworks," she said, "If you're focused on holding me?"
"I've seen them many times," he replied. "This time, I'll see them in your eyes."
Maria's cheeks warmed as she looked down and bit her lip.
This trap for her career was the kind of temptation the devil himself would design.
"It also means you can't look away from me," he said.
Her eyes met his again.
He leaned in.
She leaned back instinctively, thinking it was a kiss—but his hands slid down her bare curves instead, steadying her in place.
Still, the contact alone sent a sharp reaction through her, her thighs tightening around him, responding before she could think.
**
Miles held back the urge to sink his fingers into the fullness in his palms.
The firm tips of her full breasts pressed against him, soft and warm.
Her resistance slowly turned into conflicted anticipation across her face.
He grew harder beneath his trunks, pressed between her thighs.
A dangerous mix of temptation and consequence—his brother, his reputation, and Maria's career.
Even knowing the damage, he couldn't stop.
He was baiting himself as much as her.
"What has been your favorite part about Mapla since you arrived?" he asked, sensing the slight tension in her body as they waited for the fireworks.
"It used to be people minding their business," she murmured.
"Used to be?" he said as she relaxed slightly into him, her body settling into his palms.
His fingers pressed in faintly.
"Yes," she sighed. "That was a misconception before I came here."
"If you do questionable things," he said. "You invite gossip."
"So it's my fault I'm getting gossiped about?" she snapped, pulling back with a frown.
He pulled her closer again, so their faces remained inches apart.
"How about ethics not to date your boss?" he murmured, watching her reaction.
She flushed and quickly avoided his gaze. "Daniel wasn't like this...then."
"And the morals you keep pushing at me," he said calmly as his fingers sank further into her rear, almost caressing.
She shifted in his hold, the water rippling around them as she tried to avoid him but unable to—not just because she couldn't swim.
"M-My relationship with Daniel is per—"
"It's interesting," he cut in, "that you notice changes in him so clearly…for someone who insists everything is fine."
"My earlier statement was a slip of the tongue, sir," she said quickly.
"In my experience in Jellas," he began. "I prefer Mapla nights. Maybe it's because it's familiar here."
Her face relaxed again, "You don't like it in Jellas?" she asked.
"Used to," he replied. "Freedom turns into boredom. Boredom leads to instability, then the mind seeks familiarity to stabilize life in general."
"You missed Mapla," she said softly.
"I didn't know I'd have to come here," he replied, gaze dropping to her lips. "To find what I've been looking for."
"Mr Miles," she whispered. "We are supposed to be transactional. Daniel or anyone else wouldn't know about us."
His fingers dug into her buttocks this time, making her flinch and hold onto him tighter as he leaned forward, now just an inch from her face.
"You're better off appearing single," he said quietly, "than provoking me with your involvement with Daniel."
The threat in his voice was more apparent than he wanted to allow.
"He employed me," she replied. "No one would stay naive if you protect me from being dismissed by him…especially your mother."
Miles paused. "My protection extends through the project, a valuable employee isn't dismissed easily."
She met his eyes, skeptical.
It made no difference how she reasoned their situation. He had made up his mind to have her and enjoy the already thrilling experience of their bond, even if, for now, Daniel still had leverage over her that Miles had to make sure he got rid of.
"But…don't you care how Daniel would feel?"
"I'm not negotiating, Maria," he said. "And I expect proof. He doesn't touch you in public—least of all in front of me."
She shifted slightly in his hold. "I don't want our agreement like this, sir. I should have my…my terms."
"I just defined them," he murmured, meeting her eyes and slowly wearing down the resistance in them. "Your project launch opened doors for you, not just within the company but beyond. I'm the only one who has the power to close those doors, not Daniel."
She stilled, her eyes flickering with surprise and subtle frustration.
"Any moment from now," he said—
—and the fireworks began.
Lights burst behind him, warm orange and gold reflecting in her eyes as they lifted to the sky.
Her expression softened, caught between awe and everything she was trying not to feel.
Miles didn't care, he wasn't going back on what he was asking for.
The final burst reflected clearly in her eyes—HAPPY WEEKEND MAPLA blazing in bold gold colors across the sky.
"It's beautiful," she whispered.
He leaned closer to her face, making her eyes snap back to him in surprise.
"Indeed," he replied softly.
But he wasn't looking at the fireworks.
His hands moved again and he began kneading her curves as he drew her against his unrelenting bulge between her thighs in the water, unable to restrain himself anymore.
**
Maria didn't like this.
She wanted to say no—to stop him, to define her own terms, to reclaim even a fragment of control—but her body had already betrayed her beneath the surface of the water.
Her nipples tightened further against his chest as his palms moved over her rear, pressing, molding, pulling her closer.
The last spark of the fireworks faded from the sky, narrowing her focus back to him.
"S-sir," she breathed, her voice unsteady. "C-can I at least think about it?"
His grip tightened, lifting her slightly higher against him, forcing her closer to his face, to his body, to the undeniable evidence of what she was doing to him.
She clung tighter, her legs tightening around his waist, a tremor passing through her as the depth of the pool pressed into her awareness again.
"I don't take lightly to being disobeyed, Maria," he said, narrowing his eyes at her.
Confusion twisted inside her. She thought he wanted her body.
So why did it feel like he was taking her choices too?
Was this worse than what she had with Daniel?
It had to be.
Because Miles didn't just have influence—he had reach. Power that stretched beyond one corporate space and across companies.
The project was the reason she had even gotten Mrs Ashford's attention in the first place and it all tied back to Miles, the CEO's influence.
"Y-yes sir," she whispered, lowering her gaze.
But he didn't allow distance—not even that small escape.
He leaned in, closing the space again until their noses brushed, forcing her attention back to him.
"Don't worry," he murmured, his eyes fixed on her lips. "I know exactly what's good for you, Maria."
Her helplessness didn't properly register before his lips met hers.
Not harsh, not forceful.
Gently seeking entrance and just like she had no choice at the moment as to how her life was going.
Maria parted her lips and the moment she did, he deepened the kiss, taking full control of its pace and direction.
Her arms tightened again around his shoulders as she followed, her body yielding where her mind still struggled.
His palms resumed kneading her curves, pressing her closer against his erection.
Her core pulsed in response, heat building beneath the thin barrier of her bikini.
She hated it and she wanted more.
The contradiction burned through her as she lost herself in the sensation—the pull, the pressure, the way he felt her in his hands like she already belonged to him.
He could just take what he wanted, Maria thought as she gradually got lost in the moment.
Her thighs shifted around him, brushing against the taut waistband of his trunks beneath the water.
She felt it, knew it.
He could keep going, and a dangerous part of her wanted him to—even here.
Even like this.
Then he stopped and pulled back, breaking the kiss, both of them breathless, her body leaning into his before she caught herself.
Their eyes met.
And the faint amusement in his expression made heat rush to her face—slightly embarrassed at how she had accepted and reacted to his touch despite everything she had done earlier to resist it.
"The sail," he said, his voice now steady, "isn't long enough for me to take my time with you. Even if I wanted to."
Her gaze dropped, shy that he had read her thoughts.
She felt exposed, seen too clearly.
Then bit her lip again when his mouth brushed her neck—light, deliberate—followed by the warmth of his voice in her ear.
"We're almost at the shore," he murmured. "Congratulations on the project…once again. Maria."
Something in her chest tightened.
Maria held back tears threatening to rise, forcing them down as reality settled heavily over everything that just happened.
She had thought and hoped tonight would end differently, not like this.
But instead, it felt like a reinforcement of the after party only this time there were no illusions.
Miles' motives with her kept getting clearer.
Painfully clear.
His lips continued their slow, almost absent kisses along her neck as she thought of how she should have stayed away from the beginning.
Why had she listened to Jenny instead?
Even Jenny wouldn't have expected this—wouldn't have imagined her caught in a choice like this.
A choice between the CEO and her boyfriend, his younger brother.
**
Rhea exhaled, closing the Zoom meeting on her laptop as the last of the staff from headquarters signed off.
It had been an emergency session—one she handled efficiently, without needing to involve Miles.
She leaned back into her chair, her damp hair falling loosely over her shoulders, freshly washed.
She sat in a white robe wrapped around her frame before the reading table, a warm lamp glowing over it right beside the swell of cream pillows and brown sheets on the bed.
The cooling air from the air conditioner matched the quiet of the room, one rented by the company for her stay here in Mapla.
For a moment, she allowed herself to relax.
Then her thoughts shifted.
Maybe she should have been bolder with her intentions from the start.
She regretted being so professional all these years. Maybe he had been interested at some point, but she was too locked in to notice.
Her mind convinced her delusion.
Maybe that was why Maria's seduction worked faster.
Rhea scoffed softly and sat up, folding her arms.
Maria was actually brilliant, but not as she was.
She was certain she could excel in exceptional ideas more than Maria's for the company if she worked in that department.
Maria had just gotten to Miles easier.
Then she frowned.
But was it enough—enough for him to sponsor a project for her?
Her phone buzzed beside her laptop.
A notification message from Miles' official mail.
She picked it up. The time was ten p.m.
Maybe a late message.
Her brows pulled together slightly as she typed in her passcode and opened it.
Subject: Docking Confirmation – [Private Yacht]
Dear Mr Miles Genova,
This is to confirm that your private yacht has successfully docked at our facility at 10:00 PM.
Thank you for choosing our services. It was our pleasure to assist you.
Kind regards,
[Mapla Seas Limited]
Rhea frowned, Miles was out on his yacht this late. Why?
When had he even brought it in?
Why didn't he tell her to make arrangements for him?
Did he lend it out?
Her curiosity deepened, her thoughts shifting, almost unwillingly, toward Maria.
If Miles' chauffeur weren't so annoyingly tight with words, she could have asked him when Monday arrived.
She now hated the fact that he had even honored his visit to family here in Mapla.
They should have stayed still in Jellas.
And things wouldn't be changing this fast like they were, here in Mapla.