“I’m pretty sure he’s harmless,” McKenna said while she stared at his profile, “he’s just a pompous ass.”
Tag jerked his gaze back to hers, the muscle in his jaw flexing violently. “I want you to stay away from him,” he demanded.
Before McKenna could comment, the waitress arrived with their food, setting the plates in front of them. She graciously waited for her to leave before she addressed Tag. “Why is that?”
“He seems to think he knows you, that’s all.”
“Well, I assure you he doesn’t. And you don’t have to worry about me. I’m a big girl; I can take care of myself.”
“I mean it, McKenna. Stay away from him.” Tag sat forward in his chair, paying no mind to the food in front of him.
His gaze was focused on her, and McKenna fought the urge to react and tell him exactly what she thought about his domineering attitude. Instead, she kept her cool and settled for a soft, pleasing, “Understood”.
She could play the demure, easily controlled woman when she needed to, but in no way did she like it. It wasn’t like Tag was going to be around long enough to worry about whether Crawford continued to harass her.
Focusing on her food, McKenna ate slowly until her appetite quickly returned thanks to the delectable meal. She was beginning to wonder whether Tag was some sort of food connoisseur because each restaurant he took her to seemed to be better than the last.
It didn’t take long before the anger that had been bubbling in her stomach disappeared, and she lost herself in the excellent cuisine which more than made up for her grumpy dinner companion.
~*~*~
Tag fully expected McKenna to bite his head off for that last comment, so he was completely taken aback to see her fully engrossed in her meal. It hadn’t taken long for her pleasant mood to turn to tolerant thanks to his shitty attitude, but he couldn’t seem to shake it.
Yes, his insistence that she stay away from Crawford may have seemed a tad over the top, but there was something about the man Tag didn’t like. And that was aside from his disrespect for McKenna.
As soon as he had a chance, he fully intended to have a long conversation with Luke and Logan about how the hell Crawford was approved for membership. They didn’t have to tell him anything, but he had some serious concerns about the man’s mental stability.
Forcing himself to eat, Tag did his best to pretend he wasn’t strung as tight as a virgin’s ass. Between his confrontation with Stephen, and the intense sexual tension between him and McKenna that no amount of anger could stifle, he wasn’t much in the mood to eat.
Along with Crawford’s crude comments, Tag had also allowed the casual conversation he had witnessed between McKenna and Travis to rub him the wrong way. He knew he could save himself a lot of heartburn if he just didn’t give a shit, but for some reason, it wasn’t that easy. Nor did he know how to address it which only pissed him off more.
It wasn’t like he could tell Walker to back off because McKenna didn’t belong to Tag, so who was he to interfere in her life. Although for now, at least for the next five days, he had the ability to control whom she did see. If he didn’t think it would piss her off, he would insist she stay away from the man. But that wouldn’t be very conducive to business because she was interested in an exclusive on the resort as much as she was on Club Destiny and truth be told, Tag only wanted her to be successful.
An hour later, Tag was leading McKenna back into his private room. Neither of them spoke much ever since she deceitfully conceded to his insistence that she stay away from Crawford. He didn’t know everything about her, but Tag damn sure knew McKenna wasn’t one to take orders well.
“I’m going to take a shower,” McKenna stated firmly as she walked into his bedroom, leaving him standing in the small, open kitchen. Ever since they left the restaurant, she hadn’t spoken more than a couple of words, and when she did, it was generally just a polite response to something he did, like opening the door for her.
He’d effectively pissed her off.
Well, she was about to get over it.
Following her, Tag made no attempt to be discreet about his intentions. He stood in the doorway of the bathroom, leaning casually against the jam. With his arms crossed over his chest, he stared back at the woman who ignited more than heat and flames inside of him.
She didn’t look nervous, nor did she look happy.
“You gonna watch?”
“Yes.” Amongst other things, but he didn’t say that out loud.
And watch he did.
McKenna slowly undressed, every movement apparently choreographed for his viewing pleasure. She took her time, removing each article of clothing, piece by piece, until she was standing before him the same way she had been the day before. Completely and beautifully naked.