by Heidi Betts
Back to serious business mode, Eli said, “I guess I’ll have to let Diane go, then. Would you be willing to take over for her?”
Kara sat back slightly, eyes going wide. “You’re offering me a job? Her job?”
“If you’re interested.”
“I— You— But—” Brushing her hands over her face, she took a minute to collect her thoughts, then tried again. “I’ll be happy to help you out, you know that. But I can’t give up Prestige and leave Charleston to come down here and work for you. I’m sorry.”
“Of course not. I would never ask you to give up your business. You’ve worked too hard to get it off the ground and make it a success. I was thinking more along the lines of you splitting your time between Charleston and the island—at least to start. Then maybe hiring a few very capable employees to help you at Prestige so that one of them can come down here to work for the resort full-time.”
She must have taken too long to respond, because he prompted her. “You have been wanting to hire extra staff for Prestige Events, haven’t you? Someone to help you out so you don’t have to run things single-handedly.”
“I have,” she said, with no little bit of awe leaking into her tone. “I just didn’t know you knew that.”
He flashed her a grin.
“I know more than you think. Of course, it helps that I’m wildly intelligent, pay close attention when I need to, and am invited to Sunday dinner with your family every week.”
She smiled back. “There is that.”
“This would be the perfect opportunity to finally do it. You would oversee everything, but one of your employees could be here five days a week—or even three, if that’s all that’s warranted—to run things to your standards.”
It was tempting, very tempting. Gnawing her lower lip, she considered it from every angle. And then she realized that she couldn’t possibly make a decision like that right here, right now. She needed more time to really think about it and reach a smart, informed conclusion.
“I’m not saying no,” she told him after a moment, “but I can’t say yes, either. Not yet. May I make a suggestion?”
He quirked a brow. “I thought that was the whole point of this conversation.”
“Let Diane stay on. Let me work with her to plan a big summer to-do. A barbecue on the beach, maybe, or a lobster bake. Something substantial and seasonal and open to everyone. Use it to promote the resort, and show the world what kind of events can be held here, as well as the quality of care you offer when guests book special occasions with Ocean Breezes.”
“All right, I like that idea. Then what?”
“We’ll see if Diane rediscovers her enthusiasm for the job. It may simply be that she’s gotten into a rut, and having something new and unique to work on will put her back on track. If not, you can consider terminating her, and I’ll reconsider your offer to hire on extra help and station someone here on a semi-permanent basis. It will cost you, though,” she warned him.
He grinned. “I’d expect nothing less. But you get what you pay for in life, and I’m willing to pay for the very best.”
“You,” she said, waggling a finger at him, “are trying to butter me up with all this talk of taking over your event planning for the resort, hiring on employees for Prestige and having an unlimited expense account.”
“I don’t remember saying anything about an unlimited expense account.”
“Oh,” she said, glancing down at her nails as though examining her manicure and feigning innocence. “I could have sworn you did.”
“Nice try,” he tossed back, lips curled in a smile.
She lifted a shoulder. Chances were, if she did end up working for him on an extended basis, she wouldn’t even need an expense account; he would readily pay whatever she charged without argument. That’s just the kind of man he was. Especially since he knew how honest she was and that she would never cheat him out of so much as a dime.
“So what am I buttering you up for, do you think?”
“Sex.”
That caught him off guard, and she had the pleasure of watching his face go slack at her forthrightness. She didn’t imagine it was a feeling he experienced very often and nearly grinned that she’d managed to surprise him.
“You just want me for my body,” she added, curious to see what his reaction would be to that slightly loaded observation.
“You’re wrong about the ‘just’ part,” he told her in a low voice, staring into the liquid depths of her emerald-green eyes, “but I definitely want your body.”
“Sex on the beach?” she teased, running her fingers through his hair, along the curve of his scalp, down to his nape and up again. “I thought that was a mixed drink.”
He waggled his brows, sliding his hand from her waist to the underside of her breast. “How do you think it got its name?”
At that, he began to nuzzle her neck, running his tongue in featherlight strokes along her soft skin. She let her head fall back and gave a low purr.
“I’ve never had sex on the beach,” she murmured, her words beginning to slur as desire thickened her blood. “The act or the drink.”
With a chuckle against the silken flesh of her collarbone, he said, “We’ll rectify that, I promise. Sex first, room service later.”
“What if I want the room service now? I am feeling a bit parched.”
Eli knew darn well she was teasing him, but he happened to be in a good mood. Having a beautiful, willing, soon-to-be-naked woman in his arms had a way of doing that to a man.
“If you’re really thirsty,” he said, as he continued to dot her body with kisses, “I’ll call now. You’ll have a drink in your hand in ten minutes. Only problem is, by the time the waiter gets here, you’ll be naked and under me. Do you really want to risk that?”
She tensed a fraction, and he heard her swallow. “No,” she responded primly, “I don’t think I do. So sex first, drinks later.”
He nodded. “Smart decision.”
“I’m a smart woman.”
“Yes, you are. A damn sexy one, too,” he added, running his palm up her calf, the inside of her thigh, and past the hem of her skirt.
Her lips curved in a wide grin. “I’m glad you think so. I think you’re pretty damn sexy yourself.”
“Together, we made a damn sexy couple,” he quipped. His fingers toyed with the elastic edging of one leg opening of her panties, threatening over and over again to delve beneath. “Who are about to have damn sexy sex on a very private beach.”
“Mmmmm.” She rolled the sound around in her mouth, letting her head fall back as his mouth trailed the valley between her breasts. “I’m becoming less and less interested in the drink by the minute.”
“Good. Now let’s see if I can get you more and more interested in the act.”
Thirteen
Early the next morning, Kara was reconsidering her decision to turn down Eli’s offer of a full-time position at Ocean Breezes. The resort was gorgeous. The island was gorgeous. The people were friendly and accommodating.
Could anything be better than waking up in the morning to the sound of the ocean lapping against the shore? Or the smell of the tangy salt air? Or the sight of the sun rising on the far side of the water, slowly turning it from onyx black to sapphire blue?
It was paradise, pure and simple. Heaven on earth.
Or maybe that was the happiness talking. As often as she’d cautioned herself not to get caught up in the romanticism of this weeklong getaway with the man of her dreams, it seemed she’d fallen and fallen hard.
A picnic on the beach. Gulls floating overhead. A gorgeous man sitting across from her. Delicious food, amazing surroundings, better company.
He’d flattered her, romanced her, listened to her, laughed with her. And then he’d closed the distance between them and kissed her, caressed her, made love to her.
Right there on the beach, where anyone could have seen. Except no one did because he’d cordoned off the area ahead of time with
warning signs and threats of shark attacks.
And he’d delivered on his promise of letting her try a Sex on the Beach—the cocktail this time—soon after they’d enjoyed the real thing.
How could any woman resist?
She certainly couldn’t. And she was getting tired of trying.
After returning to their room from the picnic dinner and sandy-but-worth-it seduction, they’d both needed showers. She hadn’t voiced a word of protest when he’d started the water running, stripped her of her clothes and then his own, and climbed in with her.
Less than a week ago, she would have screeched, slapped at his hands and fought him every step of the way. Not because she didn’t want it, but because she didn’t think she should want it. Or had the right to another woman’s man—her sister’s man.
Somewhere along the way, however, her guilt over her possible betrayal of her sister had started to fade away until all she was left with was want and need and love for Eli Houghton. She’d also started to believe that he might have true feelings for her. Not just a need for hot and dirty rebound sex, not just a desire for revenge against Laurel, but actual romantic and serious emotions for her. It warmed her, made her feel fuzzy and cozy like a comfortable old sweater.
She laughed to herself, glad no one else was around to hear her as she wandered through the hallways at the rear of the resort’s main building. Comparing her newfound adoration for Eli to an old piece of clothing might not sound very poetic, but it was apt. There were some items in her closet that she absolutely loved and wore on days when she was feeling sad or nostalgic. She would never get rid of them, and if anything ever happened to them, she knew she would probably cry.
And just as she suddenly had an urge to go home and climb into her favorite cable-knit sweater—which would have been perfect for the beach; she really should have brought it with her—she had a sudden urge to see Eli. See him, touch him, talk to him. Just to be close to him and ask how his day was going so far.
Never mind that they’d been together less than an hour ago. She’d awakened wrapped in his arms, pressed like cellophane to his hard, hot body exactly as they’d fallen asleep after a final, incredible bout of lovemaking that had nearly sent her eyeballs rolling back in her head.
And then they’d made love again. She’d never realized how much she enjoyed morning sex, but with Eli, she was practically a nymphomaniac. Morning, noon or night…bed, floor, sofa, sandy beach or the backseat of the car… Anywhere he wanted her, she was more than willing. And if he didn’t approach her first, she was more than happy to initiate.
But as much as she might want to track him down and jump his bones, she wouldn’t. She would maintain her composure, act like the lady her mother had raised her to be and wait until they were alone again, likely much later that night. Sigh.
She would fill the hours until then doing what she’d set out to do when they’d parted ways the first time—tour the resort buildings and grounds, and familiarize herself with both the layout and the leisure interests it had to offer. She knew most of the details already, but if she was going to be working at Ocean Breezes with Diane Montgomery to arrange a Fall event—she and Eli were contemplating August or September for the barbecue, a month when most people’s summer vacations would be over, but the weather would still be nice and warm—then she wanted to be sure of her options.
So far, she was contemplating a number of activities for the event—tennis lessons, spa treatments, sailing and jet or water skiing, beach volleyball, possibly even horse-drawn carriage tours of the resort grounds and island. She just had to be sure that everything was both adult- and child-friendly.
Legal pad in hand, she headed for the same ballroom Eli had shown her when they’d first arrived, trying to get a feel for the sizes of the different indoor areas at her disposal and then wanting to get a closer look at that gazebo again.
“Ms. Kincaid!”
With her hand on the door, ready to push it open, she turned at the sound of her name being called from down the hall.
“Diane,” she said when she spotted the woman hurrying toward her. “I was going to drop by your office in a bit to discuss a late summer event Eli is interested in hosting.”
“Sure, fine, whatever Eli wants,” Diane replied with a distracted nod. “That’s actually why I was looking for you—I want to talk to you about why you’re here. I realize you might be feeling special right now, thinking Eli brought you here to take over my job.”
Kara cringed inwardly. She’d been hoping to avoid just this sort of confrontation and thought she had by convincing Eli to give Diane a second chance. She opened her mouth to respond—though what she planned to say, she wasn’t certain—but Diane barreled ahead.
“I can assure you, that isn’t the case.” The woman’s nose went up a good three centimeters. “I’m here because Eli loves me. We’ve been involved for years. Why do you think he created my position in the first place? It’s so that I would be here whenever he came down for a visit, without anyone knowing about our affair.”
She shook her blond hair, surgically altered breasts popping forward as her shoulders went back. “It was important to keep our relationship a secret so that he could go ahead and romance your sister. I can’t say I was happy about their engagement, but I certainly understood—Eli has always wanted to marry into a wealthy, influential Southern family to solidify his own growing fortune and reputation. Your sister was going to be a trophy wife. I’m the one Eli truly wants to be with.”
“Excuse me?” Kara choked out, feeling as though she’d been hit over the head with a two-by-four. She heard the words, understood them in a Webster’s Dictionary sort of way, yet couldn’t seem to put them in order or make logical sense of them.
“I have to admit, I was relieved when your sister called off the wedding. It meant we could carry on as planned. But then you came along, and I guess he decided to move forward with marrying into the prestigious Kincaid family, after all.”
Swallowing hard, Kara struggled to maintain her composure. No matter how much she might want to burst into tears or kick Diane in the shin with the toe of her pointy-pointy shoe, she wouldn’t give this woman the satisfaction.
“Why are you telling me this?” she asked instead, hoping her face was as blank and emotionless as she was trying to make it.
Diane shrugged again. “I just want you to know that—no matter what Eli might have told you to get you down here—there’s no way he’ll ever actually get rid of me and put you in my place. Even if the two of you marry and he gets the high society bride he’s always wanted, we’ll still be involved. But don’t worry…”
She fluttered her lashes and gave Kara a cold, calculating smile. “I’ll continue to take excellent care of him, in bed and out.”
With that, she turned on her heel and sauntered away. Kara watched her hips sway from side to side, her waist-length hair bob as her long legs in their four-inch heels ate up the carpeted hallway.
For long minutes, Kara stood frozen in place, feeling dazed, confused. It was almost as though she was having an out-of-body experience, her consciousness floating far above her form while she watched and heard everything like a third-party observer.
When her head began to spin, she realized she was holding her breath and made herself inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.
The sea air she’d so enjoyed earlier that morning now smelled stale and rancid, making her sick to her stomach, and despite the April temperatures that kept the entire island cool, she was fever-hot and starting to sweat.
Pushing away from the ballroom door, she forced her feet to move. Right, then left. One step, then another. She walked all the way back to Eli’s rooms without looking at or seeing anyone, without even remembering how she got there.
The suite was empty when she got there, thank goodness. She honestly didn’t think she could handle facing Eli right now.
She’d loved him and thought he might truly love her. She’d fallen for his charms, begun
to believe all his honeyed words and romantic gestures.
But all the while, he’d been playing her. Just as she’d feared, he’d come to her only after Laurel had broken things off. If he couldn’t tether himself to one Kincaid daughter by marriage, he’d take another; apparently, he wasn’t particular.
Guilt and humiliation swamped her. She’d gone away with him, fallen into bed with him, betraying her family, and for what? To feel like a first-class fool.
Retrieving her suitcase, she began to pack, her movements stiff and methodical. Tears clouded her vision, but she refused to let them fall.
Eli might have used and lied to her, but she’d been the one idiot enough to let him. She couldn’t fix it. She couldn’t go back and undo anything she’d done this week, and she certainly couldn’t un-feel any of the feelings she’d ever felt for him.
But she could stop them in their tracks.
She could stop being so gullible and easily swayed.
She could leave Seabrook Island and never look back, hoping that her family would forgive her for her sins and her stupidity—if she even had the courage to tell them what she’d done, how quickly she’d gone from being her sister’s maid of honor to sleeping with her sister’s ex-fiancé.
Pulling her luggage behind her, she traveled back downstairs, all the way to the car rental office. Half an hour later, she was speeding away from Ocean Breezes and home to Charleston, leaving the resort, the island, Eli and nothing but tainted memories behind her.
Fourteen
Such a small, inconsequential noise shouldn’t have the ability to strike fear in a person’s heart, but when the brass knocker sounded on Kara’s front door, that’s exactly what happened. In the middle of steeping a cup of hot tea, she jumped, sending the spoon clinking against the mug and water splashing everywhere. With a curse, she reached for a nearby hand towel to sop up the mess but didn’t make a beeline for the door. Mostly because she didn’t want to answer it. She didn’t want to know who was on the other side.