Dangerous Paradise

by Debra Andrews

  He had been there supporting her when the double caskets had been lowered into the ground. “It’s best if you don’t see them,” he’d said, while wrapping an arm around her shoulders. The coroner told them her parents’ injuries had been more than traumatic. Robert had identified them for her, to protect her from that memory.

  Pushing away her sadness, she squeezed his hand. “You’ve been there for me since the day they died. Thank you.”

  Robert smiled warmly. “You’re welcome. Wouldn’t have wanted it any other way, Kelly.”

  “I wish we could reason with this monster,” she said wistfully. “Once we get out of the red, we can reimburse him and everyone else.”

  “Him?”

  “I know it’s silly, but I think of him as ‘Mister X.’”

  “Whoever it is, I’d like to shoot the bastard. I don’t like to see you frightened.”

  Kelly sighed. “Do you think David Lewis killed my parents?”

  At one time, Lewis had been her father’s associate and a client. He’d been one of the many whose investments with the firm had disappeared. While there were other clients who were angry because they’d lost money with her father, David Lewis was the one the police suspected, because of his violent criminal record, might actually have killed her dad.

  Exhaling a deep breath, Robert leaned back in his chair. “When the police tried to make an arrest to question him about your father’s death, he ran from them. It made Lewis look guilty, Kelly. However, it could be anyone threatening you now. Your dad left so many––”

  “Enemies,” she said, finishing his sentence with the truth.

  “I was going to say disgruntled clients.”

  A nervous chuckle bubbled in her throat. “That’s a nice way to put it. Thank you for believing in Dad. Not many people do. And now, so many people hate me because of what they believe Dad did.”

  “Don’t ever stop believing in your father. And none of this is your fault.”

  The wine steward stopped by their table. “Mr. Hillyard, our best bottle of champagne, as you requested.”

  After he departed, Robert lifted his glass for a toast. “To a new beginning.”

  She clinked her glass to his. “I certainly need one.” She sipped the expensive champagne. The bubbles exploded with a dry, fruity flavor in her mouth, while the warmth settled her stomach and nerves.

  “When I used to tease you about your braces and knobby knees, your father would joke that one day you’d be as beautiful as your mother.” Sighing, Robert twined his fingers with hers.

  “Do you remember?”

  She smiled. “And I, all of eleven, with this gigantic crush on you, told you that one day I was going to marry you.”

  He grinned. “And I said I’d wait for you to grow up.”

  “But you were only teasing me at the time. You don’t know how devastated I was when I left for college—which wouldn’t even have happened if you hadn’t helped pay for it. I owe you everything.”

  She chuckled and sipped her champagne, remembering how hard the crush on Robert had been to get over.

  Robert shrugged. “I had no idea things would change once you grew up. You’re a beautiful woman now.” He leaned across the table and brought her hand to his lips. “You are very dear to me. This might come as a surprise, but, Kelly, I want you to marry me.”

  She gasped softly, her glass pausing in midair. “You’re proposing to me?” How perceptive Aunt Kaye had been about his interest.

  His dark eyes held an intensity she had never seen before. “I don’t care what has happened in our tangled past with your family or the fact that until now we’ve just been friends. You must know I’m in love with you. All I want is for us to have a happy, long life together. Will you marry me, my dearest Kelly?”

  The man who had looked after her over the years patiently awaited her response, but it was the blazing passion she’d seen in Alex Drake’s smoldering blue eyes that came to mind. She blinked to clear her thoughts. How could she think of an obnoxious stranger like that at a time like this?

  “But, Robert, we’ve only had a few dates.” While he had brushed goodnight kisses across her lips afterwards, they’d not shared anything passionate, nor had they been intimate. However, she couldn’t forget those overwhelming teenage emotions she’d focused on him years ago. It was unbelievable that Robert saw her as anything more than a friend now.

  He squeezed her hand. “I know it’s sudden, but I’ve never felt more right about anything. You know your father would’ve approved. I’ll cherish and protect you. I’m not like that young Ben, that jackass you almost married.”

  Kelly’s chin shot up. Two years ago, ‘jackass’ Ben had broken their engagement the night before their wedding when he had discovered Cochran Investments was near bankruptcy. Her romantic dreams had lain like ashes on a dead fire. Ben’s exact words before he walked out had been, ‘Now you’re not only as cold as a fish, you’re as poor as one, too.’

  The next day, with tears burning her eyes, Kelly had told Robert every humiliating detail. He had enfolded her in his arms, reassuring her that the right someone was out there for her. Later, she realized how lucky she’d been to learn the truth about Ben and his motivations before they married.

  “Didn’t the louse marry someone else?” Robert asked.

  She cleared her throat. “Yes, an heiress to a chain of department stores.”

  After Ben, all her dates were disastrous. This afternoon, Alex Drake had been a bitter reminder that for some reason she brought out the worst in men. They either wanted the money they erroneously believed she had, or thought her body held an open invitation for sex.

  A year ago, she had slapped the last man she’d gone out with, a man who had groped her breasts on the way to dinner—on their first date. That was when she had given up dating, though she never quite understood why she attracted such creeps. Just that she did.

  However, Robert was nothing like those men. Every other man had betrayed her in one way or another—even her father. He had broken her mother’s heart by having several affairs with actresses . . . Had he stolen money, though?

  No. She wouldn’t believe it. He may have cheated on her mother, but she knew he was innocent of stealing. She and Robert would find a way to prove her dad hadn’t embezzled Cochran Investments’ funds.

  She clenched her hand on the champagne glass. These past few years had been filled with loneliness and despair. Why shouldn’t she take this chance at happiness? She could easily fall for Robert. Heck . . . she was halfway in love with him already. He just told her he loved her, and she trusted him more than she trusted anyone.

  She would never find a man who’d risk his life for her, as he had when he crashed into her apartment to save her. Her attacker could have had a gun, but Robert had loved her enough to dismiss the danger to himself. Not only that, but for years she had wanted him to see her as a woman, and now it was obvious he did. She was so weary of the jerks she always met and tired of the loneliness. After enduring so much pain in her life, she desperately wanted some happiness––and to be loved.

  Despite the knot squeezing her stomach, she blurted out, “I’ll marry you.”

  Relief lit his face. “You’ve made me the happiest man in the world.”

  He retrieved a black velvet box from his suit pocket and flipped open the lid to display a ring with the largest diamond she had ever seen.

  “Oh, my! I can’t accept it, Robert. This ring would pay off a few of Cochran Investments’ debts.”

  He pushed the enormous rock onto her finger. “My wife-to-be deserves the best.”

  A little loose, the ring nearly slipped off. Sliding the ring back in place, she held out her hand and studied it. The huge diamond sparkled like fire and ice in the candlelight.

  “It’s beautiful, but I can’t.”

  “Yes, you can.” His smile widened with approval. “And to show you how much I love you, I’m forgiving the loan your dad borrowed from me. It will b
e tight, but when we return I’ll do the paperwork.”

  She rested her palm on her pounding heart. “You’d do that for me?”

  “I’d do anything for you.”

  “But that’s nine million dollars. With that off the books, we can save the company and start a repayment plan for a number of our ex-clients.” She sighed and leaned back in her chair, thinking of all the possibilities. She’d also been so worried about several of the employees who had invested with the company.

  “All I’ve ever wanted was for you to be happy.”

  “Thank you, Robert, for being so generous. But,” she said, shaking her finger at him, “I intend to somehow repay you every cent of that money.”

  “We’ll be husband and wife,” he said with a shrug. “Now, I don’t want you worried about anything. Let me do the worrying. In the morning, I’ll arrange for the captain to marry us on Saturday.”

  She choked on the champagne. “You want to get married on the ship?” She had expected a longer engagement so she could get used to the idea of them being a romantic couple. “This is so sudden. What about Aunt Kaye? She’d want to be at my wedding.”

  “She’ll understand. Your life is at risk. Announcing our marriage will warn that bastard who is trying to kill you that you are under my protection. Besides, I want to start our new life together now.” He caught her gaze. “But only if that’s what you want.”

  The waiter interrupted them with two steaming plates of lobster.

  She chewed a few bites. What should have been delicious, tasted rubbery tonight. Then the enormity of her decision hit her like a bucket of ice water. She would be Robert’s wife, with all the intimacy of marriage. She gulped her champagne. Would she have to get drunk for their wedding night? Rip-roaring drunk? A vision of lying in bed with Robert’s hands grasping at her breasts like lobster claws caused every muscle in her body to tense. She should have continued to see her psychologist. Would she ever be normal?

  Before they married, she needed to tell Robert one important detail about herself, but he spoke first. “Kelly, I have another surprise for you. I bought your family’s ranch when it was on the market. It will be our new home.”

  Tears welled in her eyes. The ranch had been sold years ago to repay some of her father’s debts. To be able to live there again would mean everything to her. In his usual thoughtful manner, Robert had known how much she missed her parents and the house where she grew up. And he’d secured it.

  “Oh, Robert, you are the most generous and thoughtful person I’ve ever met. Saturday will be just fine with me.”

  He kissed her hand. “Honey, our life together is going to be perfect.” He was romantic, kind, and the most wonderful man in the world.

  “I promise to make you happy and be a good wife.”

  * * *

  Later that evening, Kelly danced with Robert to a rock song thumping the walls in the Tropical Harbor Nightclub. The lights in the club swirled in an array of colors.

  When the band took a break, Robert ushered her to a small table, near potted palm trees decorated with tiny lights. “I didn’t think they’d ever stop.”

  “I was enjoying myself,” she said wistfully as she settled into the chair beside him. She didn’t know if Robert even liked to dance?

  He slipped on his reading glasses and tapped his watch. “It’s one o’clock. Let’s call it a night. I need to make calls to another time zone. You do understand I have business to handle on this trip?”

  She nodded. “Of course.”

  A movement at the door caught her attention. Robert’s assistant, Tammy Smith, maneuvered through the crowd. Around forty, and recently divorced, she looked attractive with her short, blond hair and wearing a slinky, black dress.

  “Robert,” she said when she approached the table. “I thought you planned to work tonight? And, Kelly . . . you’re here, too?”

  Kelly wasn’t surprised Tammy’s voice soured on her name. Her father’s ex-secretary, Tammy, had been aloof since Kelly had returned to work at the company. When Tammy’s gaze softened on Robert she radiated her feelings. Now, Kelly understood why she’d been so sour.

  “Yes, I had planned to work,” Robert said, waving his hand toward a chair. “Why don’t you join us?” Smiling, he placed his arm around Kelly’s shoulders. “You can be the first to congratulate us. We’re going to be married.”

  Her lips thinned as Tammy rose from her chair. “Don’t let me interrupt your celebration. We can work tomorrow.” She hurried across the floor and out of the nightclub.

  Kelly frowned. “That was strange.”

  Robert squeezed her bare shoulders. “Am I sensing a little jealousy?”

  To her surprise, she wasn’t. “Not from me, but I think she likes you more than just as her boss. She wasn’t too pleased.”

  “Whatever is behind her strange behavior, we don’t want to lose her. She knows our businesses inside and out. I’ll find out what’s bothering her.” He leaned toward her. “You trust me, don’t you?”

  She chuckled and kissed his tanned cheek. “If I can’t trust you, who can I trust? Go make your calls.”

  “Honey, no one is going to come between us. No one. And I won’t lie and tell you I haven’t had plenty of women in my life, but Tammy wasn’t one of them. I’ve never been interested in her.”

  Kelly could understand how any woman could be in love with him.

  “You don’t need to explain.”

  He stood and offered his hand to her. “I’ll walk you to your cabin.”

  “I think I’ll stay.” She rose beside him. “I want to enjoy the music and every moment of the cruise.”

  “All right, but if any of these studs come around, tell them you belong to me.”

  When he brushed his lips briefly across hers, she compared his chaste kiss with the fire of Alex Drake’s and silently cursed herself.

  “Don’t stay up too late,” he said, flicking her chin. “We’re going to do a lot of shopping over the next couple of days. I can’t wait to spoil you.”

  “Don’t forget I have the dive trip on Friday.”

  “That was before you found another threatening letter. You shouldn’t go out alone, Kelly. Cancel it.”

  She frowned at what sounded more like an order than a request.

  A plump, young woman with freckles and short, red hair approached the table. “Hello, if you’re leaving, may I have your table?” she asked, in a soft, British accent.

  Kelly gave her a welcoming smile. “I’m staying, but you’re welcome to join me.”

  Robert kissed the top of Kelly’s head. “Enjoy yourself. We’ll talk later. Goodnight.”

  After he departed, the young woman grinned and shook Kelly’s hand in an enthusiastic handshake. “I’m Susan Wright.”

  Kelly introduced herself and waved her hand toward a chair. “Now, at least I won’t look like I’m sitting here waiting for a man to pick me up.”

  “Your father wouldn’t like that?”

  Kelly twirled her engagement ring on her finger. With their age difference, she’d better get used to this. “Robert is my fiancé. We were engaged tonight.”

  “Oh, best wishes for your happiness.” Susan beamed a toothy grin and seemed completely at ease with her error.

  The returning band members leaped on stage and soon a rock song filled the air.

  Susan raised her voice over the blaring music. “With a looker like you off the market, I’ll have a chance tonight. You must have had your pick of men.”

  “Me?” Kelly asked with a laugh. “Thanks, but except for my fiancé, I’m a magnet for lechers, losers, and liars.”

  Susan giggled. “Well, at least you attract them.” She chattered on about how she had arrived with a business group from London. “I’m the secretary, or I couldn’t have afforded this expensive trip.”

  Kelly glanced toward the nightclub’s entrance and saw Alex Drake enter. She sucked in her breath, unprepared for how breathtakingly handsome he was in a black
tux. Women’s heads turned when he ambled with casual, masculine grace through the crowd.

  Susan waved across the crowded room. “My cousin is here.”

  When Alex waved back, Kelly sank in the chair. “That man is your cousin?” How fast could she escape to the nearest exit? She had hoped never to see him again, which was probably ridiculous since he stayed in the cabin across the hall.

  Susan beamed with pride. “Yes. His name is Alex Drake. He’s an actor. Have you heard of him?”

  “No.”

  “Isn’t he handsome?”

  Ridiculous to deny the obvious, Kelly nodded reluctantly. She refrained from adding he was obnoxious and conceited, too, and despite her reaction to his kiss, she’d like to think he’d taken advantage of a frightened woman when he’d kissed her.

  “Maybe he’ll stop by our table, if he can get through the crush of women. They’re always coming on to him. He’s becoming famous in England. His first American film, a suspense thriller, will be released in a couple of days. If The Spy is a success, he’ll only have more problems. He’s perfect in the role as a humorous, James Bond type.”

  Kelly silently agreed as she watched him proceed through the crowd, practically accosted by women. A few reached for his arm. Others bent their heads and whispered excitedly to their friends. Grudgingly, she had to admit he had some justification for his earlier assumption about why she’d entered his cabin. He lingered at a few tables and spoke to the occupants before heading in their direction.

  Kelly frowned. “Susan. I have to go.”

  Before she could get to her feet, Alex strode up to their table. Like expensive champagne, he intoxicated with his dark blond hair, which contrasted with the crisp whiteness of his shirt and black tie. With shoulders broad in the tuxedo, he looked the epitome of the handsome movie star.

  “Hello, Susan,” he said, but his gaze rested on Kelly. Her heart lurched, and she berated herself. She shouldn’t have this reaction, not when she’d just become engaged to another man. Was she more like her Casanova father than she realized? She winced.

  “Kelly, this is my cousin Alex,” Susan said by way of an introduction.