Now, seven years later, that goal had been met, and the hotel also served as the corporate headquarters for all the Sutherland enterprises. They had offices in New York and San Francisco, as well; but Alleria was the home as well as the heart of their operations.
Logan smeared a fresh tortilla with a hearty spoonful of refried beans and a healthy dab of hot sauce, then wrapped it up and bit into a little taste of heaven.
Aidan sat back in his chair, patting his stomach. “That’s it for me.”
“I’ll be done after this last bite,” Logan admitted.
“Good,” Aidan said. “Then we can talk.”
“We’ve been talking all night,” Logan said, gazing at his brother with suspicion as he took a sip of his drink.
“Yeah, but, funny thing, this subject never came up,” Aidan said, stretching his legs out to the side of the table. “You see, Ellie was talking to Serena day before yesterday and she mentioned a certain new cocktail waitress you’ve been spending time with.”
It was a good thing Logan had swallowed his margarita or he would’ve spewed it all over the table. And that would’ve been a waste of good alcohol. His eyes narrowed on his brother. “So now you’re listening to employee gossip?”
Aidan shrugged. “When the source of the gossip comes from the management level, I’m willing to pay attention.”
Just his luck, Logan thought. Serena was manager of catering which included the cocktail lounge and the various restaurants throughout the hotel. And Ellie was one of her best friends. “So what’s the problem?”
“Dude, you’re dating an employee?” Aidan said. “Are you out of your mind?”
“She’s not really an employee.”
Aidan snorted. “Interesting that you’d say that since she’s on the payroll. And, according to Serena, she actually does work in the cocktail lounge. Sounds like an employee to me.”
“Temporary employee,” Logan said.
One wary eyebrow shot up. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Logan pushed his plate away and sat back in his chair. It had only been a matter of time before the subject of Grace came up, so he figured he’d better deal with it here and now and put a stop to the gossip.
He explained to Aidan how the new cocktail waitress had come to the island under false pretenses and how he’d fired her, then spelled out the circumstances under which he’d allowed her to stay on.
“Okay.” Aidan nodded agreeably. “I get how she arrived and I’m willing to go along with her staying, if you think it’s justified.”
“It is.”
“But I haven’t heard how all that turned into you dating her.”
“Because she’s…”
Aidan leaned forward. “Sorry? I didn’t catch that. What’d you say?”
Logan scowled. “None of your damn business.”
“Ah.” Aidan nodded, his mouth twisting in a grin. “So she’s hot.”
“Shut up.”
Aidan chuckled. “I’ll take that as a yes.” His smile faded and he said, “Look, when we talked the other day, I heard something in your voice I don’t remember hearing before. So sue me for being concerned.”
“Nothing to be concerned about.”
Aidan studied him for another long moment. “I’m not convinced.”
“Tough. It doesn’t matter anyway. Grace doesn’t expect anything from me but great sex. Besides, she’ll only be here for another few weeks and then she’s leaving.”
“You sure she’s leaving?”
“Yeah. She’s leaving.” Saying the words aloud brought a frown to Logan’s face. Strange, but he didn’t want her to leave just yet. He was still having a good time with her. Why break it off when they were having a good time?
Okay, yeah, Grace was unlike any woman he’d ever known; so, yeah, he could admit he was, well, sort of captivated by her. Who wouldn’t be? She was a beautiful woman with an amazing brain and an even more incredible heart. He liked her.
But that’s all this was. It wasn’t like he cared for her. He didn’t care for any woman. It was just that she was…unique. Funny. Smart. And sexy as hell. They’d been having fun together and that would continue for as long as it lasted. Then she’d go home. Things would be over between them and that would be the end of it. No harm, no foul.
But Aidan had been watching him carefully and now he shook his head in disgust. “Crap, man. You’re falling for her.”
“What?” Shocked at the idea, Logan snorted a laugh. “That’s a load of bull. I’m not falling for her.”
“Yeah, you are.”
Irritated by his brother’s scrutiny, Logan grabbed his margarita and chugged it down. “How stupid do you think I am? I haven’t forgotten that she lied and manipulated her way onto the island, so why on earth would I ever trust her, let alone fall for her? So let it go.”
“You’re sleeping with her.”
“So what?”
“You of all people should know how women are.” Aidan sat forward with his elbows resting on his knees and shook his head. “Once you’re sleeping with them, they think they’ve got you by the balls. And, damn it, what do you really know about this woman? She comes here under false pretenses with this bizarre story about spores, which is damn strange to begin with, by the way. I mean, really. Spores? Is she into biological warfare or something?”
“They’re good spores,” Logan muttered.
“Oh, I feel so much better, thanks.” Aidan shook his head. “So, anyway, once this woman gets here, she latches onto you faster than a tic on a hound dog and now you’re falling for her. How did that happen?”
“I’m not falling for her,” Logan repeated through gritted teeth. “It’s nothing like that. And seriously? Tic on a hound dog?”
“I just spent two days on the phone with Tex,” Aidan said with a shrug. “I’ve gone country.”
“Good to know.”
“Okay, now look,” Aidan said slowly. “I understand if you have feelings for this girl.”
“You don’t understand squat.”
“No really, there’s nothing wrong with that.”
“You’re completely off base,” Logan said. “Just drop it.”
But Aidan was on a roll. “I’ll drop it as soon as you hear me out. Has it occurred to you that she’s after your money?”
Logan barked out a laugh, then laughed harder at the very idea. Grace? A gold digger? Come on. “You’re so wrong it’s not funny.” He relaxed in his chair. “Look, you don’t know her, so I’ll give you a pass on that. But trust me, it’s impossible. She’s not like that. Her whole world is wrapped up in her research. You should see her room. She’s got a microscope and all this equipment and reams of notes. There’s no way she’s…”
Aidan continued watching him as Logan mentally replayed a few conversations he’d had with Grace. “Well?”
Logan shook his head with firm resolve. “Nope. Absolutely not.”
“I think you’re not looking at her from an objective point of view.”
“Duh.” Logan glared at his brother. “Just because I’m not being objective doesn’t mean I’m some naive idiot, either.”
“Fine. Prove it to me, then.”
“Yeah? How?”
Aidan smiled and his eyebrows lifted high on his forehead. “Easy enough. I say we need to pull the Switch.”
Logan leaned forward and pounded the table with his fist. “No way. Don’t even think about it.”
Over the years, the brothers had occasionally pulled the Switch on women, usually just for fun or when one of the brothers seemed to be getting too serious about a woman. Aidan had always called it a test, implemented merely to see if a woman was paying attention to which brother was which.
The last time they’d employed the Switch was when Logan suspected that his wife, Tanya, was being less than faithful to their marriage vows. He’d asked Aidan to pull the Switch on her. Tanya didn’t pass the test.
“Fine,” Aidan said, holding up his hands in surrender. “You
win. But I still want to meet her. Let’s just swing by the lounge on the way back so you can introduce me to her.”
“You’re not meeting her.”
“You know how stupid you sound?”
Logan clenched his teeth together, then blew out a heavy sigh. “Yeah, I’m pretty clear on that. Fine, we’ll swing by, I’ll introduce you, you’ll say hello, then you’ll shut up and leave.”
Aidan grinned. “You’re not doing yourself any favors here.”
“I know,” Logan muttered. What was wrong with him? It was no big deal if Aidan met Grace. But there was no way he’d allow his brother to pull the Switch on her.
“So what’s her name?”
He hesitated, but his brother’s expression switched to one of such abject pity, he finally blurted, “Grace. Her name’s Grace.”
Aidan smile in satisfaction. “Pretty name. Where’s she from?”
Logan rolled his eyes. “Minnesota.”
“Ah, a farm girl,” his brother murmured.
“No, a scientist,” Logan said flatly.
“Oh, right, the spores. Tell me more.”
“They’re rare spores only found on Alleria. Grace is studying their replication patterns in hope of curing diseases and saving lives someday.”
“No kidding?”
“Yeah.”
Aidan folded his arms across his chest. “Seems to me you know a hell of a lot about spores all of a sudden.”
“Yeah, I do,” Logan said, taking a long sip of his drink. “We’ve got miracle spores on Alleria and I’m swollen with pride over that.”
Aidan choked on a laugh. “Damn, it’s good to be home.”
“I’ve missed you, too,” Logan said dryly.
“Right.” Aidan grinned. “You sure you don’t want to reconsider the Switch? It’s always worked for us before. And wouldn’t you rather know the truth for sure?”
Pissed off now, Logan flopped back in his chair. Knowledge was power, even when the truth sucked. Besides, he had more than a sneaking feeling that Aidan would carry out the Switch whether Logan approved or not. And there was the added fact that once Aidan had met Grace and seen how sincere and real she was, he’d back off and leave Logan to enjoy her for the short amount of time he had with her.
“Fine,” he said, lifting his margarita glass in a toast. “Give it your best shot. But if you hurt her, I’ll have to kill you.”
“Fair enough,” Aidan said with a laugh, and called for the check.
Eight
“Hey, babe,” he said from close behind her, his tone warm and intimate. “I missed you last night.”
Grace whipped around and laughed with joy. “Oh, Logan, I missed you, too. I’m so happy to…” Her voice faded and she smiled curiously as she studied him more carefully.
He’d called her late last night after he r shift had ended to let her know he couldn’t see her. He’d sounded as disappointed as she’d felt, so Grace hadn’t worried too much that he was losing interest or whatever equally foolish scenario she could’ve dreamed up in the moment.
And now, just knowing that he’d come looking for her this morning and that he knew her well enough to know she’d be walking on the beach toward the palmetto grove, was sweetly heartening.
Would it be too outrageous if she dragged him off to the shelter of the rain forest and had her way with him? Her body tingled at the thought.
But…something was wrong. Logan wasn’t… Hmm. She gazed at him, trying to figure out what was different. Was it his ears? Was it…?
“Babe,” he said, his handsome smile fading to a look of concern. He reached out and lightly gripped her upper arm. “Are you all right?”
Yes, she was all right, but he was…different somehow.
“Ah,” Grace said slowly and her smile broadened. “You must be Aidan. Hello.” She reached out and took his hand in a warm handshake. “How do you do?”
“Babe, that’s crazy.” He took a half step back. “I’m not-”
“I’ve often wondered what it would be like to be a twin, especially an identical twin. It must be fascinating to look at another person and see your own face staring back at you.” She took her time and circled all the way around him, trailing her hand along his waistline as she examined his posture, the fine laugh lines around his compelling eyes, the shape of his head, the way his chiseled jaw met his strong, square chin. All of it was so appealingly rugged. “Well, it’s extraordinary, isn’t it? You look exactly like Logan.”
“But I am Logan,” he insisted, scowling now.
“Oh, that’s so funny,” she said, laughing at his joke as she patted his arm. “I’ve always found the concept of twins so interesting. You two must’ve been able to play the best tricks on people.”
“We don’t play tricks,” he ground out as his forehead furrowed in annoyance.
“Really? I certainly would’ve if I had a twin sister.” She sighed at the thought. “We could have practiced smiling the same way-unless you do that anyway? Do you? I mean, you and Logan of course. Do you instinctively do things in the same manner or was it learned behavior? You know, they do twin studies all the time and identical twins are in high demand. Have either of you ever thought of donating some time to scientific exploration?”
“Scientific…” He sounded confused.
Well, Grace was used to that kind of reaction, but not from Logan, she realized, and that made her smile even brighter.
She threaded her arm through Aidan’s and they walked along the shore for a bit before she stopped and squeezed his arm enthusiastically. “You do know that identical twins come from the same egg. Of course you know that. Why wouldn’t you? Oh, but what a thrill to imagine the fertile egg separating in the womb. To watch a zygote’s first cellular division as it becomes two living beings. What miracle of nature triggers the split? Do you often ask yourself that question? It’s incredible on every level, isn’t it?”
He stared at her as if she’d sprouted antennae, but again, she was used to that.
“Grace…”
“Oh, it’s all right, Aidan. I understand why you would want to play a trick on me! If I had a twin sister, I would want to test her boyfriends, too. In fact, I’m sort of thrilled that the two of you would take the time to plan this out. Makes me feel sort of special, you know?”
“You’re not mad?”
“Oh, no, this is fun.”
“It was my idea,” he muttered.
“Of course it was.” She grinned up at him. “I’m just so pleased to meet you. Logan speaks very highly of you, you know.”
“He does?”
“Oh, yes.”
His eyes narrowed. “Seriously, how do you know I’m not Logan?”
“What a silly question,” she said, smiling. “Walk with me, Aidan.”
They continued walking companionably and she gazed sideways at his powerfully built chest and muscular shoulders so clearly outlined by his T-shirt. With a sigh, Grace noted that Aidan and Logan Sutherland were simply magnificent-looking men. Staring up at Aidan’s handsome face, she smiled again. It was remarkable that he was so identical to his brother, yet, somehow, so very different.
Logan had never called her “babe” before. And despite their first confrontation shortly after she’d broken all those glasses and Logan had appeared so cynical and grim, Grace could see that Aidan had an even more sardonic wit than his brother.
There was more, of course. Though their features were identical, Logan held his head differently. And it might be her imagination, but his mouth quirked a bit higher on one side when he gave her that devastating half smile. And his eyes seemed to shine more brightly. His hair, she thought, looked thicker to her. More…touchable.
And yet, none of that took away from the fact that they were both ridiculously stunning specimens of masculinity.
But Aidan continued to stare at her and his mouth twisted in puzzlement. He stopped walking finally and turned to gaze out at the water as he let go of a heavy sigh.
“I’m…fine,” he mumbled, pushing his hand through his closely cropped hair. Even their haircuts were identical. “Look, Grace, it’s been great meeting you, but I’ve gotta get back to…you know.” He waved his hand in the general direction of the hotel.
“It was so nice meeting you, too, Aidan.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. “I hope we can talk again soon.”
“Yeah. Soon.” And he walked away, still shaking his head.
“Damn it, it’s not funny.”
But Logan threw his head back and laughed anyway. “She’s priceless. She took it down to the zygotes? You gotta love that.”
“It’s not funny,” Aidan repeated emphatically as he paced in front of Logan’s wide desk. “Nobody but Dad has ever been able to tell us apart before. I don’t know what it means, but it’s a cause for concern.”
“Grace is just more observant than most people. Cut her some slack.” Logan sat back in his office chair and asked the question he’d been stupidly worrying about all morning. “So, did you like her?”
Aidan thought for a moment, then shrugged. “Yeah. She was kind of sweet. And gorgeous, of course, but you knew that already. Damn, those eyes of hers. And that hair color is amazing. Do you think it’s real? Wait, I guess you would know the truth.”
“That’s enough.”
Aidan rolled his eyes. “Dude, you’re pitiful.”
“I’m pitiful? You’re the one making rude comments.”
“Sorry. But you know, when she first turned around and saw me, she looked at me like she wanted to eat me alive-in the best possible way, just so you know.” Aidan scraped his knuckles across his jaw in contemplation. “Of course, she thought I was you at the time. But within seconds she’d busted me. And after that, it was just weird to see her staring at me like I was something she might find under her microscope.”
“Hey, it’s your own damn fault for trying to trick her. At least she didn’t smack you, even though you kind of deserved it.”
“Huh,” Aidan said, as he studied him. “You’re taking her side. What’s up with that?”
An Innocent In Paradise Page 11