Bailey was afraid she was going to throw up. Or pass out. Or scream. Or maybe melt into a puddle or something. What on earth was Zack Elliot, the man she’d walked away from despite the pain it caused her, doing here on Mimosa Key? And at the Casa Blanca? Why wasn’t he in Nowhere, Alaska, immersed in his dream of a life of flying? And just like that, a truckload of memories slammed into her. She wondered if it would cause too much of a commotion if she just turned and ran from the lobby as fast as she could. Back to the villa. Back to…where? Naples?
Don’t be ridiculous.
She drew in a deep breath in an effort to calm her skittering nerves, and wet her lips.
“What a surprise to see you here. Aren’t you a long way from Alaska?” There. She sounded calm, didn’t she? Not as if her entire life had just been turned upside down and sideways.
He just stood there for a long moment, staring at her, apparently having as much trouble getting himself under control as she was.
“I, uh, flew a client here today.” He paused, as if trying to find the right explanation. “I had some time off and decided to check out the resort.”
“It’s a beautiful place.” She licked her lower lip again. “I’m sure you’ll enjoy yourself.”
He stared at her lower lip, as if mesmerized by the tiny movement of her tongue. Finally, he cleared his throat.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
Her muscles tightened at the harsh tone of his voice. “Uh—”
He held up a hand. “Scratch that. I didn’t mean it to come out like that. It’s just the shock of seeing you. Here. Are you vacationing here?”
She shook her head. “Business retreat with a little fun mixed in.”
He looked around and over her shoulder. “So, are you, uh, married? Is your husband here with you?”
“I’m not married.” Self-consciously, she shoved her hands into the pockets of her capris.
“Anyone in the picture?”
Damn, he is persistent.
“No one. How about you?”
He shook his head. “No. Me, neither. Not married, no one in the picture.”
He cupped her elbow, and every nerve in her body skittered, every pulse point pounded, especially the one between her thighs. She barely restrained herself from jerking her arm away, especially when he tugged on it.
“Come sit down with me, Bailey. Please? I’ve thought about you so much every day since I left I was sure I was seeing things. Please sit down and talk to me.”
She knew she should politely excuse herself and walk away. But, oh god. Seeing him took her right back to the past and then all the years without him. Even after all this time, she was hungry for every minute with him, every detail of his life.
She nibbled her lower lip, torn between walking away from him and avoiding any kind of problems and desperate to be with him again. In all these years, the emotions and attraction were still as strong as they’d been from the first day. What should she do?
Go for it, idiot. At least you’ve got the chance to have a couple of memorable days with him. If he’s interested, that is.
“Okay.” She looked at her watch. “But I don’t have a lot of time. I have something going on in an hour.”
The muscles in his face tightened. “A date? I thought you were here on business. What kind of business, anyway? I thought you wanted to be a lawyer.”
“I did. I am.” She could hardly think with him standing so close to her, his familiar scent of fresh earth and cedar tantalizing her senses. “The partners in my firm are having our annual retreat here this weekend. This year I’m in charge of it.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Partners? You’ve done well for yourself.” His lips curved in that killer smile that just did it for her. “But then, I always knew you would.”
“Well.” She shrugged. “Junior partner. Anyway, I have some time before I have to get ready.”
They both looked at the patio bar and then into the bar inside, both of them jammed.
“Let’s take a walk on the beach,” he suggested. “It’s too crowded in here.”
Bailey wasn’t sure that was such a good idea. The bar would be a better place. Safety in numbers and all that. She was shaking so much inside she wondered if she’d be able to walk, but she took a deep breath and nodded her head. Whatever she did, she had to keep the conversation neutral, and that would take a lot of self-discipline, something she’d seldom had where Zack Elliot was concerned. She led him along the path from the main building down to the sand. The moment they hit the beach, she stepped out of her sandals and hung them from two fingers.
Keep it light, Bailey.
“Come on,” she urged, grinning. “I think it’s the law here at Barefoot Bay that you have to take your shoes off when you get to the beach.”
“Yeah?” He cocked an eyebrow. “Are you sure?”
“I am. It’s the motto here. Kick off your shoes and—” She stopped herself abruptly. The saying was “Kick off your shoes and fall in love,” but she wasn’t about to tell Zack that.
“And what?”
“And, um, have a good time. Come on. The sand here feels great beneath your feet.” She waved at the water. “And this is, after all, Barefoot Bay.”
For a moment, she thought he’d resist. Then he stepped out of his shoes, bent to pull off his socks, and picked up the shoes with one hand.
“Okay. Let’s see if the beach is as advertised.”
They started down the beach, walking along the water’s edge, paying little attention to the sunbathers now clearing out at the end of the afternoon, or the kids reluctantly hurrying back to their parents. All she was aware of was Zack, as always larger than life. As it always had done, his presence overwhelmed and surrounded her. Twenty-four years of discipline were fading away, one year at a time.
They walked in silence, Bailey so hyperaware of Zack her skin actually buzzed. In all her daydreams, all her night dreams, all her moments of longing, she had never actually believed Fate would throw her together with Zack again. He looked so good. The polo he wore with Wallace Charters on the left side showed her how much his athletic body had filled out with solid muscle.
The high cheekbones and square jaw were still the same, but there were lines around his eyes, probably from squinting into the sun. His dark hair still had a slight curl to it, only now the ebony stands were sprinkled with gray. Age had been very good to him, and his success had given him a relaxed self-confidence she found to be a big turn-on.
Damn!
She was desperate to say something to break the silence, so she blurted out the first thing that came to mind.
“So how do you like Alaska?”
When he took a moment to answer her, she wondered if there was something wrong.
“I left Alaska,” he said at last.
“Oh?” Smart answer, Bailey. Duh! “But I thought it was everything you wanted”
He nodded. “It was, for a long time. Uncle Nate had bought a small charter company and steadily built it into one of the premier charter services in the state. God, Bailey.” His smile said it all. “You wouldn’t believe the places I’ve flown. Most of Alaska is accessible only by plane, so we were flying people and supplies into places so desolate, sometimes I thought I’d reached the end of the world.” His eyes got a faraway look. “It was like being as close to heaven as you could get. Sunrise on all that pristine snow was incredible.”
“So why did you leave?” Maybe she could just keep him talking about himself and not about the two of them.
He was quiet for a moment. “Four years ago, Uncle Nate decided he wanted to retire. Oh, he kept one plane and still flies, but mostly for recreation. He’s a registered MediFlight pilot, as well, and you can bet those are in great demand. Plus, he’ll take special charters once in a while. But he said he wanted to kick back and fly just for flying’s sake.”
“But you said you bought him out. You could still be running the service up there.”
He shrugged. “Maybe I was getting tired of the cold weather. Or the desolation of the landscape, which I thought beautiful for so many years. . The isolation of the area. I guess I just wanted a change.”
“Well. Are you sorry you left Alaska? It sounds like it was exactly the adventure you were looking for.”
“It was.” He blew out a breath. “Until it wasn’t any more. Finally got tired of the cold.” He paused. “Especially with no one to keep me warm.”
Bailey had no answer for that, so she chose to ignore it. Instead, she asked, “Where did you move to?”
“Atlanta.” Before she quite realized what he was doing, he had reached for her hand and enfolded it in his large one. “My uncle wanted out of the business. Wanted to go back to just picking and choosing his flights. After a year of owning the business myself, I decided I’d rather be in a big city for a while. We had a lot of clients from the Atlanta area, believe it or not, who came to Alaska to fish and hunt. I was usually the one who flew them. They told me there was a lot of room for another charter service flying people back and forth for business, and they were right. So here I am.” He sighed. “Can’t seem to get comfortable there, either. Maybe I’m just getting hard to please in my old age. What about you?”
“What do you mean?”
“How’d you end up where you are, and is your career all you thought it would be? I remember you always loved the law. It was your goal, and you worked hard on your grades to get into a top law school.”
So she told him about visiting her college roommate in Naples, attending a party where she was introduced to Warren Blake, and the offer he extended.
“I met with him the very next day,” she explained, “then with the other two partners. They made a great offer I’d have been a fool to turn down.”
“You like the firm?”
“I do.” This was something she could be enthusiastic about. “I enjoy working there, the senior partners are great, and, eight years ago, I made junior partner.”
“Yeah? I’m not surprised. You always were bright, Bailey, with an incredible mind. I can’t believe by this time you aren’t a senior partner.”
His praise warmed her.
“Thanks, but it takes a lot to make senior. I’m very happy where I am.” Okay. Should she go ahead and ask the next question? “I’m surprised you never married.”
“Never found anyone I wanted to marry except you.”
That was the last thing she’d expected him to say. The words made her heart squeeze painfully.
“Oh.” Holy crap, Bailey. Don’t you know more than one word?
“What about you? I know you said you aren’t married now, but how about before now?”
“I, uh, never married either.”
With an abrupt move, he swung her around to face him and moved his hands to grip her shoulders.
“Bailey, what the hell are we doing?”
Her stomach muscles clenched. “W-what do you mean?”
“I mean, we haven’t seen each other for nearly twenty-four years, but, before that, we were like one person. We loved each other, for god’s sake. Could hardly keep our hands off each other. Why are we talking to each other like strangers?”
She stared up at him, stupefied, and swallowed. Hard.
“But that’s all in the past, Zack.” And I have a secret I can never tell you because you will hate me.
“Is it, Bailey?”
He cupped her face in his palms and brought his mouth down on hers, softly at first and then with a bruising pressure that forced her to open for him. His licked her lips, swiping over the soft skin before sweeping inside and claiming her with fierce possessiveness. The familiar taste of him invaded her system, seeping into every part of her, and she shocked herself by kissing him back with as much hunger as she felt from him. Oblivious to anyone or anything around them, they fed from each other like starving people.
His body was firm and warm against hers, a wall of solid muscle. But it wasn’t just the hard plane of his chest or his muscular arms she felt against her. Through the fly of his jeans, she easily felt the thick ridge of an erection. At once, moisture flooded her panties, and the muscles in her inner walls quivered and flexed. She was transported back to their tiny apartment and the double bed where they’d enjoyed such spectacular sex.
Only it hadn’t been just sex. Not even in the beginning. The emotion between them was always so strong. They were always so tuned in to each other that sometimes they didn’t even need words to communicate.
She had no idea how long they stood there like that, bodies glued together. For Bailey, it was like a homecoming, and she wasn’t sure she ever wanted to let go. When Zack broke the kiss and lifted his head slightly, his very blue eyes looking directly in hers, all she could do was stare up at him, her fingers wrapped around his wrists.
Then reality intruded.
“What are we doing, Zack?” The words came out in a whisper. “We don’t even know each other anymore?”
“And whose fault is that?” he demanded.
Bailey pushed his hands away from her and took a step back. “I knew this was a mistake. I need to go.”
“Wait!” Zack reached out and grabbed her wrist. “I’m sorry. That was uncalled for.”
“Not if it’s how you feel,” she pointed out.
“Please.” When she tried to pull away, he kept his fingers around her wrist. “Give me another chance to at least talk to you.”
Run, Bailey. Get away from his as fast as you can.
But her mouth obviously wasn’t listening to her head.
“I—”
“Have dinner with me. And talk.”
“I’m having dinner with the members of the firm here for the retreat. Kind of a way to kick off the weekend.”
“Then, after dinner. How late will you be?”
So he just was not going to give up.
“Nine thirty. No, ten. But no later than that.”
“Have a drink with me after that.” He shook his head. “But not in the bar. I want us to be someplace private. How about my suite? The thing’s big enough to hold your entire firm, I think.”
Now it was her turn to object. “I don’t think that would be a wise move.”
“Well, the beach was great, but I’m a little too old to be sitting on it at night to have a decent conversation with a woman I haven’t seen in more than two decades. So, where do you suggest?”
The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them.
“I’m staying in one of the larger villas. Give me your cell number, and I’ll text you when we’re done with dinner.”
“So you don’t want to be alone with me in my suite, but your villa is okay?” The corner of his mouth kicked up in a trace of a grin. “Aren’t you afraid to be alone with me there?”
Bailey forced a calmness she really didn’t feel. “We’re two adults. I think we can behave ourselves. If not, I have Luke McBain on speed dial.”
She knew it sounded stupid. What was the difference, after all? In his suite, she could always walk away.
But, crazily, in my villa I feel I have more control. Stupid. I should just walk way altogether.
Zack frowned. “Who’s he? Someone you’re dating?”
“Oh, for god’s sake, Zack.” She was starting to think again this was a bad idea. Or maybe it was just her guilty conscience.
Guilty? But I was doing the right thing for him at the time. Wasn’t I?
“Well?”
“Luke runs the security for the resort. That’s it. So, be prepared to behave yourself when I see you.”
Now he gave her his full-blown wicked, pantie-melting grin. “I’ll do my best.
“We better head back.” She checked her watch. “I have to change. There are a couple of interesting places to eat in town, but the chef at Junonia, the resort’s restaurant, makes food a religious experience.”
“Then I’d better take you up on your suggestion. I haven’t had much religion in a long time.”
They were back at the short steps of the beach, now. Both of them brushed off their feet and slipped on their shoes.
“I’ll text you when I’m done,” Bailey reminded Zack and started to walk away.
He grabbed her arm. “Hold on a sec.”
She frowned. “For what?”
“For this.” He pulled her into him and kissed the life out of her. “Now you can go get ready.
Thoroughly shaken, Bailey watched him walk away. She touched her fingers to her swollen lips, still tingling from the impact of the kiss, knowing she’d be thinking about him all through dinner. She suspected that was exactly what he’d intended.
Was it stupid of her to invite him to the villa? Probably. But she couldn’t walk away without talking to him, at least once more. To clear the air.
Yeah, right, Bailey. Fool yourself much?
So there she’d be, alone in the romantic villa with the man she’d cut out of her life without ever telling him why, knowing she was still as much in love with him as she’d ever been. And he wasn’t going to stop pushing her until he had answers.
Oh, god. What did I let myself in for?