She inclined
her head toward his palatial beachfront home. “It seems to be
working. Looked to me like you were having fun.”
“I guess I was…
until you showed up.”
“Sorry to have
spoiled your fun,” she muttered, stepping away from him.
Knowing he
couldn’t risk touching her again, he decided to try to prevent her
escape with brutal honesty. “You ruined it for me,” he said,
raising his voice, “because I couldn’t get you out of my head after
we met.”
She stopped
walking but didn’t turn around to face him.
“I was mad as
hell when Mitch told me he was coming over here.” He took a few
deep breaths to ease the apprehension clawing at his chest. “I laid
awake most of the night wondering what was going on.”
She turned to
face him. “Nothing was going on. We just talked.”
Relieved that
she hadn’t told him to mind his own business, and even more
relieved by the truth in her eyes, he said, “I’m glad to hear
that.”
“We fell asleep
in the lounge chairs, waiting for the sun to come up.” She smiled,
the first genuine smile she’d treated him to since they met, and it
took his breath away. “I told Mitch I never woke up early enough to
see the sun rise here, and he told me I didn’t know what I was
missing.” She laughed. “He said we had to stay awake to see it.
Unfortunately, neither one of us made it.”
Justin was
secretly glad. He wanted to be the one to share that experience
with her. “Mitch is right; it’s definitely worth losing sleep to
see.”
She smiled
again, making his chest tighten. “Maybe I’ll make a pot of coffee
and try to stay up to see it tonight.”
“If you want
some company…” he said, returning her smile.
“You’ll send
Mitch over?”
Justin knew she
was teasing him, but that convinced him the island wasn’t big
enough for him and Mitch as long as they were both interested in
the same woman. “Not a chance,” he said, giving her a lop-sided
grin.
She snapped her
fingers, feigning disappointment. “Damn.”
“So, are we
okay?” he asked, gesturing between them.
She looked at
him carefully. “My father and brother told me you’re a pretty cool
guy.” Folding her arms over her chest, she said, “Of course, I have
yet to see it, but I trust their judgement.”
Tongue in
cheek, he asked, “Does that mean you’re willing to give me another
chance to make a better impression?”
“Well…” She
tapped a fingernail against her full lower lip. “Since we’re
neighbors and all, I’ll think about it.”
“You’re too
kind,” he said, grinning.
“That’s what
they tell me,” she said, rolling her eyes. Walking backward across
the beach toward her house, she lifted her hand in a brief wave.
“Later, neighbor.”
***
Justin knew his
conversation with Mitch wouldn’t be easy, but he didn’t see another
way.
“Hey,” Mitch
said, sliding his finger across his iPad. “I saw you talking to
Anna down on the beach. What was that about?”
Justin poured
himself a glass of orange juice before responding. “I was just
apologizing for the way I acted last night.”
“Huh, what did
she say?”
“I think she’s
willing to give me another chance.”
“What does that
mean?” Mitch asked, lifting an eyebrow.
Justin didn’t
respond at first, but he didn’t have to. He and Mitch had been
friends for fifteen years. Each knew what the other was
thinking.
“Jesus, you’re
really into her, aren’t you?” He shook his head when Justin didn’t
respond. “Man, when was the last time we competed for a woman?”
Justin couldn’t
compete with his best friend for a chance with Anna. Nothing had
happened between Mitch and Anna yet, and he wasn’t willing to give
their relationship a chance to evolve. It was his little piece of
paradise, which meant he chose who, if anyone, shared it with
him.
Mitch narrowed
his eyes. “You want me outta here, don’t you?”
Justin winced.
He and Mitch had been through a lot together, and he had been a
great source of support since the accident, but Justin needed to
find out if Anna could help him overcome his performance anxiety
and get back to the normal, healthy sex life he’d enjoyed before
the accident. “Listen, this girl does it for me, if you know what I
mean.” Mitch was the only person who would understand. Aside from
his medical team, Justin hadn’t shared his condition with
anyone.
“Damn,” Mitch
whispered. “Of all girls, she has to be the one?”
Justin didn’t
want to dwell on his friend’s inference. He wasn’t looking for
love. He was just looking for a woman who could help him feel
normal again. “I know you’re into her too, but-”
“It’s okay,”
Mitch said, raising his hand as he slid off the breakfast stool. “I
get it. Say no more. I’ll rally the troops and get out of your
hair.”
Dozens of
bodies still occupied his guest bedrooms, and Justin knew they
wouldn’t understand why they were being asked to leave so soon, but
he didn’t care. Suddenly, wild parties didn’t hold as much appeal
as watching the sunrise with a beautiful woman in his arms.
***
Anna picked up
the phone to return her cousin’s call. Settling into the oversized
sofa, she tucked her legs under her and prepared for a long overdue
chat with one of her favorite people.
“Finally, she
gets around to calling me back,” Lauren said before allowing Anna
to get a word in. “What took you so long, girl?”
Lauren had
called the night before while Anna was out on her jog and, given
her late night / early morning with Mitch, Anna hadn’t had time to
return the call. “Sorry, it took so long. I kind of met someone
last night.” Laughing, she said, “Actually, I met two guys.”
“Okay, slow
down. You’re on a freakin’ island with one other house and a
caretaker’s cottage, and you manage to meet not one, but two guys?
Damn, I knew I should have taken some time off work to come with
you.”
Anna laughed.
“You can’t say you weren’t invited.”
“Okay, gimme
the detes. Are they hot? Are we thinking ménage or what?”
Leave it to
Lauren to go there
. Rolling her eyes, Anna said, “Don’t be
ridiculous. I didn’t even say I was into either one of them.”
“You didn’t
have to say so. I can tell. So, which one are you into? What does
he do? Is he single? Have you two-”
“Slow down!”
Anna laughed. “You’ve, uh, probably heard of one of the guys.
Justin Hunt?”
“Shut the hell
up! Justin Hunt is not your neighbor!”
Anna pulled the
phone away from her ear when her cousin shrieked. “Didn’t I mention
that?”
“Uh no, don’t
you think I would’ve made time to come out there with you if you
had?”
Lauren was
probably more Justin’s type. Sexy and fun, flirtatious and
beautiful. As much as Anna loved her cousin, she was suddenly glad
she had ended up vacationing alone. “His friend, Mitch, is cute
too. I think he works in his pit crew or something.” Anna had never
been to a car race. She couldn’t understand the appeal of watching
grown men drive around an oval track trying to oust each other in
their bid for supremacy.
“Do you have
any idea how much that guy makes a year?” Lauren asked.
Perhaps because
she’d grown up around money and celebrities, wealth didn’t impress
Anna. Tearing at a catch in her nail with her teeth, she said, “I
haven’t got a clue.”
“Thirty
mil.”
“Huh.” Anna
couldn’t deny that was a lot of money, but that didn’t make him any
more or less appealing than he’d been an hour ago. The jury was
still out on Mr. Justin Hunt. Was he the player she’d met last
night or the sweet guy who’d come clean with her on the beach? She
didn’t know, but she couldn’t deny she would like to find out.
“‘Huh?’ That’s
all you can say?”
“What do you
want me to say? I figured the guy was rich. His house is twice the
size of ours, and you know this house is way too big.”
“So, is he
nice?”
“No.” Nice was
the wrong word to describe Justin. He was sexy, edgy, confusing,
abrasive at times, but he’d also shown her a vulnerable side she
found appealing. She just couldn’t be sure which facet of his
personality represented the real Justin. “He was a real jerk when I
met him.”
“Awww, that’s
too bad. I was kind of hoping he might be the one to help you
forget that boring old Tom.” She yawned. “Just thinking about him
makes me sleepy.”
Anna couldn’t
help but smile. Her cousin had made no secret of the fact she
thought Tom was all wrong for Anna. According to Lauren, Anna
needed someone who challenged her to step out of her comfort zone
once in a while. Instead, Tom had discouraged her from taking
unnecessary risks. “I didn’t come here to meet someone. I came to
the island because I wanted a little alone time.”
“How’s that
working for you?”
“Good. I’ve
been writing, painting, experimenting with new recipes, jogging,
swimming... I’ve even managed to do a bit of knitting and read a
few of the books I’ve been meaning to get to for the longest
time.”
“Stop, you’re
making me jealous.”
Anna knew her
idea of a good time differed greatly from her cousin’s, who was the
epitome of an extrovert, but the solitude suited Anna just fine. “I
found what I came here looking for: peace, quiet, and a chance to
figure out where I go from here.”
“I hope you’re
not still thinking about Tom. Trust me, he did you a favor when he
accepted that job offer.”
Ending her
engagement hadn’t been easy for Anna, but she knew her cousin was
right. She had been going through the motions with Tom for a long
time. A relationship shouldn’t settle into quiet domesticity until
after
the vows. “No, I think I made the right decision
giving the ring back.”
“I’m so glad to
hear you say that,” Lauren said. “I was worried that you’d get out
there and start having second thoughts.”
“Not about Tom,
but about some other things.”
“Such as?”
“I’m thinking
this might be the right time to seriously think about trying to
find a publisher for my books.” She’d been writing and illustrating
children’s books for the past several years. She was passionate
about it, but Tom chastised her for wasting her time on a hobby
that was unlikely to evolve into a lucrative career opportunity,
and would likely distract her from her
real
job, being his
wife and the mother of his children.
“I think that’s
a great idea.”
“Nothing may
come of it, but I feel like I should at least try.”
“That’s Tom
talking, not you,” Lauren said. “I hated that he didn’t support
your books. You’re so talented. You really need to share that
talent with the world.”
Anna had been
surrounded by world class musicians her entire life. Thinking of
her stories and illustrations as a special talent was difficult.
“Whatever you say.”
“I’m serious. I
think you need to pursue this. I know you love being a teacher, but
like you said, when you get married and have a family, you want to
be a stay-at-home mom. Your books may allow you to do that and
maintain your own sense of identity.”
Anna did want
to be a mother and wife, and Lauren was one of the few people who
knew how much that meant to her. It may seem old-fashioned, but she
couldn’t help but feel as though that was her true calling.
“Maybe. We’ll
see how it goes. I’m here for a few more weeks, so maybe I’ll put
some feelers out there and see what happens.”
“Good luck.
You’ll let me know how it goes?”
“Of
course.”
“Cool, and do
me a favor?”
It always made
Anna nervous when her cousin asked for a favor. “Depends on what it
is.”
“Keep an open
mind with the race car driver. Maybe it’ll be nothing more than a
summer fling, but that could be exactly what you need.”
It could never
be more than a summer fling. Anna would never allow herself to fall
for a guy stalked by paparazzi on a daily basis and who put his
life on the line for a living. “I’ll keep an open mind. I
promise.”
Justin couldn’t summon
the energy to feel guilty as he waved to his friends. His boat was
taking them back to the mainland where his private jet would take
them back to Charlotte.
Finally, he was
alone with a beautiful woman on their private island, and he
couldn’t wait to find out what the coming weeks had in store.
Anna jogged up
wearing a brightly colored tank top and black running shorts.
“Hey,” she said, taking the buds out of her ears. “Some of your
friends are leaving?”
He turned to
face her. “Actually, they’re all leaving.”
She held her
hand over her eyes, watching the boat fade into the distance. “Even
Mitch? He didn’t even stop by to say good-bye.”
“He wanted to,”
Justin admitted begrudgingly. “But I told him I’d say good-bye for
him.” He surprised her by pulling her into his arms. “He asked me
to give you a hug for him.”
“Oh.” She
tipped her head back to look him in the eye when he released
her.
“Would you
believe me if I told you he asked me to give you a kiss too?” She
felt so right in his arms. The last thing he wanted to do was let
her go.
“No,” she said,
smiling as she stepped back. “Nice try, though.”
“You can’t
blame me for trying, Anna. You’re a beautiful woman. Any man in his
right mind would want to kiss you.”
A blush stained
her cheeks as she burrowed the toe of her running shoe into the
sand. “You’re too much. I never know when you’re being
serious.”
He placed a
finger under her chin. “Trust me, I’m serious. I’d give anything to
kiss you right now.”