I walked into Hank’s after six. Kaitlyn said she and Cole would be on the terrace. The bar where the locals gathered after work had grown on me, kind of like the rest of the island.

Carter had called on my way over. The Thomas Corporation bid had been accepted. Tia must have been a shark at the table. My instincts were right to send her in. We outbid the competition without going over our budget. Our application was in with development services. I couldn’t think of a better time to have a few beers to celebrate.

“Look what the cat drug in,” Hank taunted me. Like the rest of the locals here they had started to accept I was a part of the Padre landscape. The Dunes was reason enough for me to travel to town.

“Funny stuff.” I tapped the bar. “Kaitlyn and Cole here?” I asked the bartender.

“Yep. They’re out there.” He pointed to the sound side of the bar as he tossed a towel over his shoulder.

“Thanks, man.”

I strolled toward the sundeck.

“You made it.” Kaitlyn jumped from her seat and hugged me.

“I wouldn’t miss it. I’m always up for a beer.” I smiled at her.

Cole was sitting at the table. “How’s it going?” he asked.

I sat across from him. “Good. How about you?”

“Good.”

Kaitlyn started to laugh. “Wow. You two really know how to have a conversation.”

“Darlin’ we’re both here. That should be good enough.” Cole squeezed her hand, and she smiled.

“It is.” She hadn’t taken her eyes off him.

I cleared my throat. “So tell me what’s going on at the Dunes. Are you ready for me to move my stuff out? Do you have a buyer for that end unit? I hope you’re asking top dollar with that view. Best damn view on the beach.”

Kaitlyn shook her head. “No. We are not talking about work. No talk about the Dunes. I don’t even want to hear about your latest conquest. This is drinks and dinner only.” She looked at both of us sternly.

I expected Cole to mutter something under his breath like he usually did, but he didn’t argue. Maybe he had learned when to accept defeat. He wasn’t the easiest man to read. My biological nephew was ex-military and his personal life was like something on a CW show. Messy. Complicated. Off limits.

“All right. Tell me about the twins. How are they doing?” I asked.

Cole looked at me. “You realize you have opened Pandora’s box?”

I laughed. “I just want to make the girl happy.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He tipped a cold bottle to his lips.

Kaitlyn handed a beer to me out of the bucket on the table. It was icy. “Can you believe how fast they are growing? Time is flying. Flying,” she repeated.

“It does seem quick,” I replied.

She spoke hurriedly as if she expected Cole to argue with me. She wasn’t completely off-base. We argued a lot. It was hard not to with our history.

“Ever since they were born it seems like all we’ve done is baby stuff. Sasha has been amazing helping me, but still, I wasn’t really sure what I was doing.”

“I need to see them soon. I’m travelling a lot. I have a trip back in North Carolina soon,” I explained.

“They would love to spend time with their uncle. What about Mary Ellen?” Kaitlyn slowed her words. “Are you planning on seeing her while you’re in North Carolina?”

“We always had a good time together. You know that. But I don’t think I’m going to call. I’m there for work.” Kaitlyn couldn’t help that my ex was her best friend, but this line of questioning was transparent.

“And that’s it, Aiden?” she pressed.

“That’s it. I’ve moved on. I’m sure she has to.”

Kaitlyn crossed her arms. “Of course she’s moved on. Why wouldn’t she move on? But the question is who have you moved on with? Someone in Dallas?”

I took a sip.

Cole interrupted. “I’m going to go ask Hank something. I’ll be right back.” He pecked Kaitlyn on the cheek and walked inside the bar.

“So? Who is she?” Kaitlyn leaned forward, her eyes lighting.

“I didn’t say there was one girl,” I stated.

She slapped my arm. “You’re such a prick. Hooking up with a bunch of different women doesn’t count as moving on.”

“It does for me.” I raised my eyebrows and smiled, knowing she was about to slap me again.

“I don’t get why you and Mary Ellen broke up.”

I sat my empty bottle on the edge of the table and reached in the bucket for a second round. “Sweetheart, Mary Ellen is a great girl, but it wasn’t going to last. She wants what you and Cole have, and it wasn’t fair to her to drag it out. I was trying to do the right thing.” I twisted the top off the beer and tossed it on the table. “Did you want me to lead her on?”

Kaitlyn huffed. “But what if you run into each other?”

I placed my hand on top of hers. “That’s not going to happen. I’m a drama-free kind of guy, right?”

She finally smiled. “You are. If you could patch up things with Cole I guess I shouldn’t worry.”

“That’s right. If we could go from trying to rip each other’s throats out to drinking beer at Hank’s, you should have a little faith in me. I can handle Mary Ellen. Any woman for that matter.”

I thought about where Cole and I had been years ago. I had walked into the Dune Scape office ready to tear it from his hands and demolish it into a pit of rubble. I had sued him for complete ownership of the motel. It wasn’t the best family introduction, but it was the only one I knew.

My father had betrayed both of us. He may have kept me hidden as the family’s dirty secret, but I had emerged on top.

I looked up from the table. Kaitlyn was watching me.

“I get Mary Ellen’s not right for you, so tell me your type.” She leaned on her elbows.

“Why? So you can set me up with one of these island girls? One of Sasha’s friends?” I shook my head. “Not interested.”

“You like blondes or brunettes better? Athletic? Smart? Oh, what about someone in the business world? You could hash out business negotiations together. That sounds like you,” she teased. “Late night spreadsheets. So hot.”

I shook my head. “That is not happening.”

“Then who? Who are you looking for?” The smile dropped from her face.

“All I’m interested in is a little fun. I have enough to keep me busy.”

“Come on, Aiden. You are working yourself to death. Driving between here and Dallas, flying all over the place. You need someone in your life. You need more than fun. You need a woman.”

“What I need right now is for this project to go through.” I looked around for Cole. He might be the only who could save me from her inquisition.

“Sailor’s Cove?”

“The one and only. It’s my next project. The deal was accepted before I walked in here. Now I have to get through the red tape.”

“Congratulations. If that’s what you wanted. I guess the good part is that we’ll be seeing more of you. I know you’ll stay close by if the deal is that big.”

“You don’t give up, do you?”

“No. You are the only family Cole has. And even if it’s unconventional, I think you two need each other.”

“I’d say it’s unconventional. I’m his uncle, and we’re the same age.”

She pulled another beer from the ice. “Family is family and neither of you are responsible for the choices your parents made. What matters is you know you’re family. That’s not going to change. I think spending time together is a good thing for both of you.”

“Then why is my nephew spending all his time in there while we’re out here?” I turned to see what was taking Cole so long.

I spotted Cole.

“Damn it,” I whispered. “She’s as bad as you are.”

“Who is that?” Kaitlyn was staring at Cole and the gorgeous brunette standing next to him.

“That is a problem.” I took a swig of beer and stood from the table. “I’ll be right back.”

I left Kaitlyn sitting at the table and walked toward the bar where Cole was talking to Veronica Strickland.

“Miss Strickland, third time today?”

Cole took a step back, shoving his hands in his pocket. “I was explaining to your friend here that I’m not a part of your business or company.”

I patted Cole on the shoulder. “Thanks. I can handle this. I’ll be back out there in a minute.”

Cole took the hint and rejoined Kaitlyn at the table.

I faced the reporter who had been hounding me all day. “I think this may qualify as grounds for a restraining order.”

Her face turned a shade of white. “I’m not stalking you. I’m trying to do my job.”

I chuckled. “Are you sure about that?”

“I did some more research and found an article from last spring about your condo conversion at the Dune Scape and thought I’d talk to Cole Thomas, who I discovered is also your nephew? That is crazy confusing. But true?”

I crossed my arms. “My family is off limits. Stories about my family are off limits. Cole doesn’t work for Thomas Corporation. He is not involved.”

“But he’s one of your business partners, right?” she asked. “I have the right to ask him questions about your business relationship.”

I grabbed her upper arm and moved her closer to the door. Hank was watching us.

“Ouch. What are you doing?” she squeaked.

I lowered my voice. “For the last time. I do not grant interviews. My family life is not your concern. You should leave.”

I expected her to turn for the door, but instead she rose on her toes, her nose almost tapping mine. “I have a right to be here. And I have a right to ask questions. Have you ever heard of the first amendment?”

I could feel the heat of her breath rush over my cheek. I fought the instinct to kiss her pouty lips. I could wipe that defiant look off her face.

“I don’t give a shit about the first amendment, Miss Strickland.” My pulse quickened. She wasn’t backing down. Her lips, the full ones I had been studying all day, were within inches of mine. Her eyes fired with hints of amber.

“Then you have no comment on Commissioner Costas’s press release?” she taunted.

“What press release?” I didn’t want to sound surprised.

This close to her I could study her eyes. Her lashes were long and silky. Her eyes were almost green, but they looked dark under the bar lights. The hazel colors blended together. I swallowed hard, fighting the urge to touch her. She might be even prettier when she was backed into a corner.

She settled back on her heels. “Commissioner Costas released a statement at five o’clock announcing she is going to block any new development on the island. Would you like to respond?”

Fuck. I inhaled sharply. “I don’t comment on political stories. Not my concern,” I growled lowly.

“Good God. Don’t you comment on anything? You must have an opinion on something. She’s trying to kill the land deal you made today. You have to care about that,” she pushed for a response from me, but she didn’t get the one she wanted.

“I’ve never lost a deal.” I smiled.

“What if this is your first?”

She looked satisfied with her question, as if she had accomplished a moment of triumph.

“Excuse me?”

“Your first deal that goes under. Have you thought about the possibility that you may have spent millions that you’ll never be able to recoup?”

God, she was annoying. Sort of like a bee buzzing around my head, needling me for answers. Only she diverted my answers with those legs and lips, and the breasts that kept playing peek-a-boo behind the open collar of her shirt.

“Miss Strickland, I don’t make bad deals. I do my research. And if you had done yours you would know that I don’t grant interviews. I’m going to return to my table now, drink a beer, and try to forget this unpleasant exchange. Have a good night.”

“Wait.” I didn’t expect her to tug on my arm. “One quote. There must be something you want to say.”

“No. There isn’t.” I ignored the desperation in her voice, although it was getting harder to put it aside.

“Please. I can’t go back to my editor with nothing. She’s going to fire me.”

I turned to face her. The determined look was gone and had been replaced with utter hopelessness. She surprised me.

“Fired?” I questioned.

She nodded. “I’ve already missed my deadline. This story is going to cost me my job.” She sat in an empty chair. “I know you don’t care with your millions of dollars.” She threw her hands in the air. “I can’t get fired. I hate it here, but this is home until I move on to the next assignment. I mean until I get promoted or picked up for something better. If anyone can understand moving up, it should be you.” She looked at me. “You had an early start to your career once too, didn’t you?”

I sat next to her, fighting the urge to run my fingers through her hair. This woman was a total mess, but right now she was the most beautiful mess I had ever seen.

“I never had anything given to me.” The words sounded bitter on my tongue. I was the definition of a man who had pulled himself up from the boot straps. “I worked hard. I still work hard every day.”

“Maybe the people on the island should know that. That you’re like them—you’ve struggled for what you have. They could relate to someone like you.” She blinked back tears. “Please let me help you tell some of this story.”

Hank was no longer watching us. I felt the muscles in my shoulders relax.

What were the chances I would run into her three times today? And each time I reacted the same way. Thrown off by her body, but even more interested in how she didn’t back down. She challenged me without even thinking about it.

“Tell me something,” I demanded.

“What do you want to know?” There was a fire behind her eyes. Her words always quick as if she was able to guess my next move.

“How did you find Cole at the bar?”

Her lashes were damp from light tears. Her skin glistened and I felt myself leaning closer, anxious to feel her breath dance against my cheek again. Her voice in my ear. Fuck. I could imagine her moaning my name.

“I stopped by the Dune Scape office. When he wasn’t there I asked a couple at the pool. They said he always walked over to Hank’s Bar after work.”

I rubbed my jawline. My rule was getting crushed under her pouty stare. Torn to rumble. It was demolition at its finest. She didn’t know what she was doing, but I did.

“All right.”

“All right, what?” She chewed on her bottom lip, and I knew exactly how I wanted the rest of the night to play out. I had a way to turn this into a win.

“Come have a beer with us.”

“You want me to drink with you? But I thought you said it was family time.” She looked bewildered. It was fucking cute as hell.

“It will be fun. You’ve already met Cole. You can meet my niece-in-law. We can have a few drinks, then you can ask your questions. But no business-talk at the table. It’s a family rule. None. Agreed?”

She hesitated, considering the offer. “Why are you doing this? You feel sorry for me?”

I shrugged. “Maybe, but you have a point. I need this land acquisition today to be a success, and I need the people of South Padre to be on board with it. So, I’ll grant you one interview tonight. Only one, though.”

“Why don’t we go ahead now with the interview?” She reached into her bag and withdrew a pad of paper. “I can file my story and then we can have a drink.”

I took the pad from her. Her eyes turned frantic. “These are the conditions. One interview after we have some drinks with my family. Take it or leave it.”

I knew she wouldn’t walk away from this. I had never granted an exclusive interview. She knew she was sitting on the kind of scoop that could launch her career.

She paused. “I just need to make a phone call.”

I nodded. “Understood. I’ll see you at the table.”

I walked toward the patio, knowing I had broken my number one rule. What I hadn’t decided was whether I regretted it.