After Him: An Enemies-To-Lovers Romance (Virgin Island Series Book 1)

by L. L. James

  His mind made up, Marek stood up and turned to head back uphill. Reaching the rise, he spotted Carm standing on the grass searching for him. She had a hand lifted over her brow shading her eyes as she scanned the grounds for him. The light silhouetted her body, outlining her curves. A clutch in his chest caught him by surprise and Marek stopped in his tracks.

  What on earth was that?

  He shook off the odd sensation and took a shaky breath. His stomach rolled uneasily as he gazed up the hill at Carmen. Unwelcome feelings tried to vie for his attention, but he pushed them back. He and Carm weren’t meant to be. It had been one big mistake that he planned on remedying very soon. He had to remember that.

  It didn’t mean a thing, that ping around his heart. It was simply a reaction to the beauty of her standing on his land under the sparkling sun. That’s all.

  It had to be all.

  Muttering in French under his breath, Marek resumed walking the rest of the way up the hill. Women were the bane of a man’s existence, no doubt about it. Once they wiggled their way under a man’s skin there was no way to get them out.

  He watched a relieved smile flutter across her sweet face and cursed. Carm was one woman that could definitely get under a man’s skin. She’d work her way right on into a man’s heart without him even knowing until it was too late. The woman was that sneaky. Good thing for him that he had his eyes wide open and his guard up. She wasn’t going to slip past him.

  Marek stopped a few feet in front of Carmen and sighed. Looking down at his watch to gauge the hour, he calculated the time it would take for them to fly to St. Kitts. If they left now they had just enough time to get there and see his project before dark.

  Marek glanced at Carm’s questioning expression and smiled. “It’s your lucky day, sugar. We’re going to take a little trip. Grab your jacket and purse and let’s hit the road.”

  She turned and followed him back onto the patio and asked, “What do you mean? Where are we going? You haven’t told me what you’ve decided about my sister.”

  He kept on walking up the steps and into the house. He smiled to himself as he heard her swear and yell in exasperation from the lawn, “Marek, you asshole! Where the hell are we going?”

  A laugh took him off guard. The woman was so much fun to poke at. Laughter trailed him down the hall as he headed for his office.

  She caught up with him as he stood at his desk with the phone to his ear. Noting her look of extreme irritation, Marek held up a hand to silence her and spoke into the receiver, “Yeah. Can you meet us there in about a half hour? Oui? We’ll probably get a hotel. I’ll call and book us at the Sun Tropic Resort and put your room on my tab. Great, we’ll see you there in a few, man. Au revoir.”

  Marek placed the phone back in the cradle and turned. Carm stood with her feet planted wide, her arms crossed over her chest and a look of supreme frustration on her face. Blocking his path, she growled, “I’m not budging until you tell me where you think you’re taking me and what you’ve decided.”

  Reluctant admiration swayed him and he sighed in defeat. Fine, if she wanted to play it this way. “We’re going to St. Kitts where I have a new project I want to show you. I think it’ll help your sister and boost her business and keep her out of Mark’s reach.”

  Carm frowned at him skeptically. “So, you’ve decided to keep her on? Wait a minute, why do you have something going on on St. Kitts, why not here?”

  Impatient to get going, Marek pointedly looked at his watch and tapped a foot. “I don’t have time to explain right now, Carmen. We have to meet Landon at the airport in a few minutes. I promise I’ll explain everything when we’re in the air, but right now you’re just going to have to trust me. Let’s go.”

  She scoffed, “Trust you? I wouldn’t trust you as far as I can throw you. But if you’re going to help Kate then I’ll come.”

  “Wonderful, you honor me, cheri.” Marek drawled with sarcasm. Grabbing a jacket from a rack, he strode for the front door.

  Carm scrambled after him. “What about your housekeeper, shouldn’t you let her know you’re leaving? And your cat. If we’re staying overnight shouldn’t you have someone feed it?”

  Marek shot her a dry look over his shoulder. “You saw my cat, a missed meal wouldn’t kill her. And Mrs. Carrins has already gone home for the night. She’ll be back first thing in the morning, so stop worrying. We’ll be back before you know it.”

  Stepping outside, Carm glared at him and huffed. Hiding a grin, he gestured to his jeep. “Climb in, sweetheart. Landon’s not a patient man.”

  Frowning as she passed by and climbed inside, Carm muttered when he joined her, “You know, your little nicknames are insulting and chauvinistic, so why don’t you knock if off. You’re not flattering.”

  Marek started the engine and grinned evilly. With a look of pure devilment, he quipped, “Whatever you say, cupcake.”

  Carm let out a feral growl and punched him in the arm. Laughing at her paltry attempt to hurt him, he gunned the engine and tore down the hill. He couldn’t help but rip through the thick mass of foliage when she gripped the dash for dear life and braced her feet on the floor. He knew it was childish, but a man had to have something, didn’t he?

  The rest of the drive went quickly and in silence. She spent the time alternating between muttering under her breath and scowling at him. Since he guessed her muttering wasn’t very flattering, he was glad he couldn’t make it out.

  Even as they pulled into the airport and made their way to the landing pad, she kept quiet. Marek knew he’d ticked her off with his little driving stunt when she asked Landon if he knew how to fly “like a responsible adult”.

  Marek couldn’t help but laugh at that.

  After they were seated, buckled and had their headphones on, he asked, “Have you ever flown in a chopper before?”

  She shook her head, her face a little pale. “No, I haven’t. I didn’t know Landon was a pilot. He has a license right? Wasn’t he the keyboard player in your band? Do all you guys have other jobs?”

  He flashed a smile and nodded, “Playing reggae doesn’t pay the bills, Carm. Don’t you worry about Landon, he’s the best pilot in the Caribbean. Before he came down here he was a chopper pilot in the U.S. Coast Guard. I trust him with my life.”

  Landon leaned around in his seat and grinned, “Just don’t trust me with the ladies, ain’t that right, bro?”

  Marek laughed. Landon was a smooth talker with the ladies, all right. “Get us in the air and stop embarrassing Carm.”

  He watched her shift uncomfortably as Landon turned his dimples on her and wiggled his eyebrows. The man was a menace.

  Landon turned back in his seat and said into the headphones, “Fasten your seatbelts, ladies and gentlemen. It’s time for takeoff.”

  Marek watched Carm closely as the helicopter lifted into the air. Her eyes were wide as saucers and she’d reached over and gripped his hand, hers trembling lightly. He could tell she was unnerved by the shifts and dips the chopper took as it leveled into the air. Hoping to turn her attention, he yelled, “It’s a beautiful flight, Carm!”

  She jumped and let go of his hand. Looking at him, Carm frowned and tapped her headpiece. “You don’t have to yell, Marek. I hear you just fine.”

  He feigned a look of sheepishness, as if he hadn’t done it on purpose. “Sorry about that, cheri. I thought you’d like a little tour guide.”

  She shook her head. “What I want is for you to tell me what we’re doing and when we’re going to fix our little personal problem as well.”

  “We’ll go see Big Bubba when we get back tomorrow. See what he knows and find out if his ceremony was actually even legal. He got ordained through the internet a year or so back so that he could make a few more bucks by luring drunken tourists into tying the knot. At least he said he was ordained. We’ll find out tomorrow if he’s legit or scamming everyone.” Landon laughed into the headphones, reminding Marek he could hear everything. He knew Landon wa
s enjoying himself on his behalf. He couldn’t really blame him because he knew if the tables were turned he’d be laughing his ass off right now too.

  He’d get even with him later though, but right now he had Carm’s full attention and he noticed some color had seeped back into her face. Marek wanted to keep her mind occupied so she wouldn’t freak out. When he saw her eyes drift out the window and her hand tightly gripped his again, he rushed to turn her attention back on him.

  “You wanted to know why we’re going to St. Kitts. It’s simple really. My father owned acres of unused land high up the mountain there. There’s some huge tax breaks given to companies that do business there, so I’ve taken advantage of it and the high elevation to start a new breed of organic shade-grown coffee there.”

  Carm looked at him in confusion, “Don’t you grow coffee on Tortola?”

  “I do, that’s the coffee your sister buys. This new coffee, however, will be very unique and exclusive. The higher the elevation is that the coffee is grown in, the better the quality. High elevation produces a better environment for the coffee and shade grown is better than sun grown, although some will argue that fact. I’m combining all the best elements with these new plants and will produce one of the most exclusive, high end coffees available on the market.”

  Understanding dawned on her and Carm nodded, “So you want to cut Kate in on this deal? Give her some of this coffee?”

  Marek affirmed his intent with a nod. Carm gave his hand that she was holding a squeeze and remained silent. He didn’t miss the moisture in her eyes, however.

  Giving her hand a responding squeeze, he turned his head and gazed out at the clear aqua water below them. That odd, aching clutch in his chest began again at the sight of Carmen’s unshed tears.

  It was almost enough to start a man worrying.

  Eight

  Carm set a shaky foot on solid ground and sent up a silent prayer thanks that she’d made it to St. Kitts in one piece. Never the best flier under the best of circumstances, it had taken all she had to keep from flinging to the floor in terror screaming, “We’re going down, we’re going down!”

  Needless the say the flight had experienced a few bumps of turbulence along the way. Of course it hadn’t fazed Marek. Oh no, of course not. He’d become unusually chatty on the trip and had passed the time telling her all about his business. Most of it she hadn’t heard over the roaring rush of blood in her ears.

  And when he had slacked off in the conversation, Landon had picked it up, yammering on about all manner of insignificant things. One thing in particular she recalled him discussing was the abundance of hot women that stayed at the resort on St. Kitts. If she didn’t know any better she’d think that was the only reason why Landon had agreed to charter them in the first place. Only in the hopes of picking up women.

  Not that Landon really needed much help. The guy practically oozed charm and charisma. Even with his slightly wild appearance there was something quite appealing about Landon Harper. There was more than met the eye, that’s for sure. He came off as a carefree beach bum, but Carm knew that wasn’t the whole story. Not if the guy had been a pilot in the Coast Guard.

  Carm took a step forward and felt her legs buckle. Before she hit the ground a pair of strong, tan hands gripped her elbows and steadied her. Like an electric shock, a zing shot up her arms and zipped through her veins. Without looking behind her she knew it was Marek who touched her.

  Jerking away from his unsettling touch, she continued on. She heard Marek chuckle, the sound rumbling low in his chest. Her heart responded to the provocative noise with a giddy skip.

  “You’re welcome, sugar. I’d have hated to see you fall on your pretty face.”

  He was incorrigible. He just couldn’t let an opportunity go by, could he? He had to needle her every chance that came along.

  Choosing to ignore him, she stopped and turned to search for Landon. She found him fiddling with something on the sleek dash of his black helicopter and yelled, “Aren’t you coming, Landon?”

  The pilot shook his dreadlocks and smiled, “I don’t think so, darlin’. Not my thing, but you go have some fun. I’ll meet up with you all later at the resort. I’ve got a friend round here I have an itch to see.”

  I’ll bet you do, you horny toad. And what is it with the men around here using those annoying pet names on me? Do I have a sign that begs men to talk to me like some dimwitted playmate pin-up?

  Plastering a big fake smile on her face, Carm spun around and started walking again. She couldn’t wait to get back to Tortola and hop on the first available plane out of here back to reality. She’d had about enough of pigheaded men and their sweet talk.

  She wanted to get home to Kate and some peace and quiet. Speaking of Kate, she’d be chewing her nails down to stubbs right now worried about what was going on. Carm had called her after Marek had left that morning and she had been near tears then. Thinking it might upset her more, Carm had avoided telling Kate about her little marriage screw-up and had spent ten minutes trying to reassure her instead. Kate blamed her behavior on hormones, but Carm knew it was more than that. It was that her life hung in the balance.

  Marek steered her to a waiting jeep and they climbed in. Lost in her own thoughts, she barely paid attention to her surroundings. Thick, tangling foliage dimly registered in her mind as she daydreamed. Her thoughts were firmly stuck on Kate and how thrilled she’d be when Carm told her the good news. At least she had that to thank Marek for.

  She broke out of her daydream as they climbed high into the mountain. She’d noticed on their flight in that the mountain was so tall a ring of clouds surrounded it in a dense fog at the top. As they climbed higher over rough, primitive tracks, a mist started to settle around them.

  Glancing uneasily at Marek, Carm tightened her seatbelt. He caught her action and laughed. “Did you have a nice trip just now? You looked like you were pretty far away. And if you’re worried about my driving, don’t be. I’ve traveled this road many times. It leads right to the field where my plants are. I have a number of other fields, but I haven’t plowed them yet. This is the only one so far and the most accessible.”

  She noticed the mist was turning into a soft rain. “I don’t have a coat, Marek, and it’s raining.”

  He didn’t take his eyes off the road when he answered, “They don’t call it the rainy season for nothing, sugar. Actually, it’s probably more due to the fact we’re so high up the side of the volcano. We’ll be there soon, cheri. It’s just around the next big curve. There’s a small shack I built there that should have some rain ponchos so you won’t get too wet.”

  She had forgotten that Marek had said St. Kitts’s mountain was actually an inactive volcano. He’d also mentioned that the soil conditions were perfect for growing coffee.

  The jeep hit a particularly jarring rut that shot Carm out of the seat and almost whacked her head on the roof. Letting out a small yelp, she whipped her arms up just in time and her hands smacked it instead.

  “Sorry about that. Forgot that rut was there.”

  Sure he had. He’d probably aimed for the blasted thing. Carm wouldn’t put it past him. And just when she was starting to soften a tiny bit toward the jerk. At least he had the presence of mind to actually look contrite. Marek sent a sheepish smile in her direction and bit his bottom lip.

  Oh no you don’t. You don’t get to play cute with me.

  As the rain settled back down, a thick blue mist surrounded the jeep as they finally came to a stop. Turning off the engine, Marek reached for the door handle and said, “I’ll be right back. I’m going to jog over to the shack and grab those ponchos.”

  She nodded and watched as he loped around the front of the car and off to her right. She caught herself admiring the powerful way he moved and chastised herself. The last thing she needed was to fall for him. He was so far from being her perfect Mr. Right it wasn’t funny.

  He just looked like it.

  “Damn it, Carm. Get a hold of
yourself and stop acting like a teenager with a crush.”

  He returned to the jeep and knocked on her window, startling her. He’d already put on his bright yellow poncho and was holding an orange one out to her. Opening the door, she took it from him and quickly draped it over her head.

  Before she stepped out of the car, Marek held up a pair of rubber boots. He pointed down to her feet and grinned, “You don’t want to mess up your pedicure, do you? I thought you might need these.”

  He was right. She’d completely forgotten she wore her favorite sandals. Carm made quick work of putting on the boots and stepped down.

  Marek reached behind her and closed the jeep door. For a tense moment he remained close to her, his breath hot on her neck. A shiver crept down her spine at the caress and she froze in place.

  Slowly lifting her eyes to his face, Carm found Marek staring intently on her mouth. Heat shot through her as his tongue slipped out and moistened his bottom lip. She couldn’t help but stare at his sensual mouth as his teeth scraped along his full bottom lip.

  She wanted more than anything to feel that mouth hot on hers. To feel it feed greedily on hers.

  A small moan escaped her when he lifted a hand and cupped her chin, tracing his thumb along her the seam of her lips. Helpless to do otherwise, her lips parted in invitation.

  Carm saw heat flare in his green eyes, turning them an intense, wild green. Caught up in the current of them, she swayed toward him and closed her eyes. She wanted his mouth, wanted him.

  That realization hit her like a bucket of cold water. Jerking back, Carm yanked her eyes open and gasped. She wanted Marek like she’d never wanted anything before.

  And it scared the hell out of her.

  He muttered an oath and released her. She stood shaking as he raked his hands through his hair and took a deep breath. Finally, he looked at her and spoke, his voice harsh and raspy, “What the hell kind of game are you playing, Carmen?”