Zach stood on the deck of the lifeguard tower at Ho’okipa Beach with binoculars, scanning the waterline. Movie extras still littered the sand. The sun was setting—finally. Normally, he could stay out here all day and night, but today, filming couldn’t end soon enough. This had been the longest-ass day of his life, and the hardest part still waited ahead.

“Two, one…” Keith’s voice sounded tinny over the bud in Zach’s ear and refocused his mind like a laser. “And…action.”

Zach started the countdown in his head. Three, two, one. He plunked the binoculars on the railing, turned, and rushed the steps, taking them two at a time. At the bottom of the tower, he grabbed the board leaning against the stairs, chucked it under his arm, and sprinted toward the ocean.

His movements were automatic and familiar. He’d done this countless times as a lifeguard along the Southern California coast in his youth—sans cameramen gliding alongside him on a mechanical arm and filming his every move, of course.

He entered the water as effortlessly as breathing. A couple of steps in, he thrust the board out in front of him and immediately followed, hitting the surface of the water as one unit. His progress was filmed at two angles, one from the sand, one from the water. CGI and editing magic would eliminate any identifying characteristics from the film so Ian could take all the glory of Zach’s hard work and skill.

Zach drove his hands into the water over and over, driving through the waves as if someone’s life depended on it. His injured shoulder ached, and he did his best to fake the use of that arm. Since this was fiction, he could give all he had while he let his mind go. Tonight, he could even ignore the Sea-Doo running alongside him with a driver and a cameraman documenting his every move.

His thoughts turned to Tessa. And Sophia. Here, on the board, in the ocean, he had an outlet for his nerves and dug harder at the warm water, dragging himself over the waves.

What if Sophia didn’t like him? What if she never warmed up to him? What if he made a fool out of himself with her? Worse, what if he made a mistake? What if he ruined the kid? What the hell did he know about any kid, let alone a little girl?

Nothing, that’s what. One big fat donut of nothing.

“Zach.” Keith’s voice sounded in his ear again. “Are you swimming to the Kiwis? You can stop anytime.”

Which was when he realized he’d missed the director’s “cut.” When he noticed the Sea-Doo was already headed back toward shore. When he noticed the throb in his shoulder.

Zach stopped paddling, crossed his burning arms on the board, and rested his forehead there, catching his breath as the ocean’s undulations lulled his stress.

“Great work today,” Keith said. “It’s a wrap. We’ll film the rescue scene this time tomorrow.”

With no mic, there was no need for Zach to respond, but he still muttered, “Halle-fucking-lujah.”

Zach pushed himself upright, letting his legs dangle on either side of the board while he stared out at the sun setting over the ocean.

His thoughts jumbled and tangled like they always did. Insecurities leapt into the fray and his heart skipped. God, he was excited and terrified all at the same time. His whole future had swung a U-turn on a dime.

“Zach,” Keith said in his ear. “Chamberlin’s here with Tompkins. Come on in.”

Zach’s heart skipped. His current boss and his future boss waited on the shore. And the miniature person who Zach had no doubt would quickly become the boss of his heart waited in a condo across town.

“Welcome to your new reality, Ellis.” He turned his board and watched the waves, choosing one to ride to shore. “No more freedom for you, dude.”

When a wave swelled in the distance, Zach paddled to catch it, then popped to his feet and rode the slope into the beach. The easy swoosh and glide of the surf felt good tonight. Familiar. Comforting. Right now, he’d take what he could get because he wouldn’t be getting what he wanted—which was to go back in time and relive that night with Tessa. Before his life flipped like a board caught in the surf. When his biggest challenge had been getting her to see him again.

He tucked his board under his arm and shook out his hair on the way up the beach muttering, “You’re not in Kansas anymore.”

Chamberlin and Tompkins wanted to talk about the new part, and between filming, Tessa, and Sophia, Zach hadn’t had a chance to recruit another agent. And he’d barely scratched the surface with the attorney.

“Hey, Zach.”

The female voice brought his head up. Zach focused on the two women swaying toward him. They wore bikinis like Playmates of the month and each carried a board at her side. Kerry and Candy. Oh, yeah, that had been a wild couple of weeks. Week one: surf by day, hookup by night. Week two: hookup by day, surf by night.

Until Zach’s interest had waned. They hadn’t been pleased.

Hard to believe that had been over six months ago.

“Ladies.” He paused even though he wished he’d seen them coming and altered his path. The security team had obviously opened the beach again. “Nice night for surfing.”

“A full moon always brings out our wild side.” Kerry, the blonde with barely covered double D’s and the more dominant of the two, stepped closer to Zach and gave him that I-know-you-want-me grin. She reached out and pressed the tip of her index finger to the center of his chest, then slid it down his torso. “Remember?”

Instead of his time with Kerry and Candy coming to mind, Zach’s memory pulled up Tessa. Tessa and the way she swung her hair over one shoulder, smiling at him like a sweet kitten. Tessa and the way she scraped her lower lip through her teeth when the pleasure intensified. Tessa and the way she looked when she finally gave herself over to the passion between them…

“Grab a quick ride with us,” Candy added, stepping up beside Kerry with an equally enticing smile. “Or…ride all night. We’ll leave that up to you.”

Zach was horny. He wanted sex. Badly. And he could easily maneuver some time to get busy with these two out in the dark water. But that wasn’t what he wanted. What he wanted was in direct conflict with what he shouldn’t want—Tessa.

“Sorry,” Zach said. “I’ve got some people waiting.” He started past the women with “Stay safe out there.”

He continued toward the crew in various stages of breaking down and packing up their equipment and found more people waiting than just Jax and Tompkins. Josh was there too. With Grace and Lexi and Tucker.

Zach handed off his board to a crew member, accepted a towel from another, and dried his head and chest on his way to the group. He greeted the women first, leaning in to accept a kiss on the cheek from both.

Lexi’s million-dollar smile gleamed in the low light. “I hear congratulations are in order…Dad.”

Zach’s stomach flipped, and his heart fluttered. He laughed to cover the inner turbulence. “Man, that’s going to take some getting used to.”

“Hey, Zach.” Tompkins came up and shook Zach’s hand. “I understand you’re not working with Marshall anymore.”

“No, I’m not.”

“I’m sure you’ve heard our interest in having you come on board. I’d like to sit down with you and talk it over. Jax here is more than welcome to sit in and advise you if he’d like. He’s got more experience than Marshall ever did anyway. Can we talk over dinner?”

“We’re going to try the new BBQ place in Kaanapali,” Grace told him, slipping next to Josh as he curled his arm around her. “And there’s a bar next door. We can have dinner, then you and Bill can talk business over drinks.”

“Sounds like the perfect plan,” Josh added.

“It does sound good,” Zach said, “but I’ve got something really important I’ve got to do tonight. I’ll have to take a rain check.”

Tompkins’s gaze sharpened. “The studio wants to get this contract nailed down. If you’re not going to take the part, we’ll need to search for a replacement. Which may also change the writing. That all takes time.”

“I understand, and I really do want to discuss the part. I just can’t go over the specifics tonight.” Zach glanced at Jax, hoping he’d read the please-work-your-magic-here-bro look in his eyes.

If he didn’t see it, Lexi did. She hooked her arm through Tompkins’s and drew his attention with the reputation of the Hawaiian BBQ restaurant while leading him toward the parking lot and a waiting car.

When they were out of earshot, Jax asked, “What’s going on?”

“I’m supposed to meet Sophia tonight. I’m already a deadbeat dad. I don’t think canceling on a date to meet my kid would look real good in court. You know what I’m saying?”

Jax nodded. “Right. We’ll take care of Tompkins tonight. Tomorrow, we’ll find you an agent.”

“I’ll pull some names together for you,” Grace offered.

“Until you find one, I’ll take care of you,” Jax told him.

“You guys are the best.”

“Text us when you’re free,” Jax said. “We’ll get together and hash things out.”

Zach agreed, and Jax, Lexi, and Josh started toward the parking lot. But Grace stayed behind.

“Are you ready to meet her?” she asked.

Zach picked up a T-shirt and pulled it over his head. “Hardly. It’s not like I had nine months to prepare, you know?”

“Just be yourself, Zach. I know they seem foreign to you now, but to be honest, kids aren’t all that different from men—at any age.”

Zach laughed, wrapped the towel around his waist, and stripped out of his board shorts to pull on a dry pair. “Interesting perspective.”

“Did you get her anything?”

He pulled the towel free and piled it with a bunch of others. “Who? Tessa?”

“No, but that couldn’t hurt. I meant Sophia. Kids always love getting presents. Nothing big, just a stuffed animal or a game you could play with her. You know, to break the ice?”

“Shit, I didn’t even think of that.” Hands on hips, he frowned at Grace. “Really? I should do that?”

“Yeah. You know, it’s sort of like bringing flowers to a first date.” He must have made a face, because she said, “Zach, you have brought a woman flowers, haven’t you?”

He ran a hand through his damp hair. “Not in a damn long time. Maybe never. I don’t remember.”

“Oh my God. Boy, you need some lessons.” Laughing, Grace turned him toward the parking lot. “I’ll meet Josh at the restaurant. You and I are going shopping.”

* * *

Tessa scrolled through the various emails she’d received from contacts at a dozen different special interest groups and took notes on their requests. She was tired from stress and fear and lack of sleep. “I swear this is like herding cats.”

“You ought to be good at that by now.” Abby stood in the doorway to the balcony.

“You’d think.” When Tessa looked up, she saw the shadows beneath Abby’s eyes, attesting to the lousy sleep she’d gotten the night before. But she was still dressed to go out for the evening wearing one of the cute Hawaiian-print sundresses she’d picked up on the trip and sparkly flip-flops.

Tessa glance at the time on her computer screen. Zach would be there soon, but he’d said he’d text when he was on his way, and hadn’t yet. “Are you okay?”

“No. And I won’t be until this is over and Sophia is all yours again.”

Tessa closed her laptop with a rock weighting her heart. “I’d love to believe that’s a possibility, but we both know it’s not. Holding on to that belief is only going to hurt everyone in the end.”

Abby glanced behind her where Sophia was playing with Legos and watching Frozen in the living room, then stepped onto the deck and sat on the edge of a chair facing Tessa. “He’ll never be able to handle her on his own.”

Abby mirrored every one of Tessa’s fears. This struggle was incredibly in-your-face real, and Tessa had the war of the century battling inside her.

“We need to give him a chance, Abby. He’s not a bad guy.”

“You don’t know that.”

Tessa sighed. Abby was taking this almost worse than Tessa. “He’s her father, and he has legal rights whether we approve of that or not. Besides, it’s in Sophia’s best interest to get to know him.”

“Fine. Let him see her a couple of times a year. But he’s not fit to share custody, and there’s nothing about uprooting her that’s in anyone’s best interest but his.”

“Mommy.” Sophia appeared in the doorway. “I builded a house for Frankie. Come see.”

“Wow.” Tessa set her laptop aside. “I didn’t realize we brought enough Legos for that.”

“Come see, come see.” Sophia bounced back into the living room.

“I’m not giving her up.” Tessa stood and put a hand on her nanny’s arm on her way past. “I’ll never give her up.”

Abby met her gaze with a pout. “Well, you don’t have to go out of your way to make it easy for him.”

Her statement wasn’t as much an accusation as a suggestion. Either way, Tessa understood where it was coming from. She also knew Abby was right. Tessa’s nature revolved around pleasing others. That made her good at what she did—pulling everyone together for a common cause. She was still struggling over whether or not she should use it to smooth the path between Sophia and her father.

“This isn’t going to be an easy transition on any of us.” Tessa squeezed Abby’s arm before she headed inside.

She was still oohing and ahhing over the haphazard little Lego building when a knock sounded on the front door.

Tessa’s heart jumped to her throat. It could only be one person.

Sophia turned that direction, and Tessa met Abby’s gaze.

This is it.

“Who’s at the door?” Sophia wanted to know. “Are you going on a date, Abby?”

Her nanny turned toward Sophia, crouched, and pulled her close. “No, princess. Just out with some friends. Be good for your mum, okay?”

“I will. Who’s at the door?”

“A friend of mine, sweetie,” Tessa told her. “Someone I want you to meet.”

“Why?”

Tessa rolled her eyes before she closed them, took a second to collect herself and headed to the door. With her hand on the knob, she paused and took a breath, but that didn’t loosen the knot in her stomach.

She opened the door to Zach and he turned from looking down the hallway. He wore a surf-company T-shirt, jeans, and flip-flops. And he was holding two gifts.

Tessa’s heart constricted a little. “I thought you were going to text.”

“Yeah, sorry,” Zach said. He wasn’t smiling, and his body language was tight. “I, um, I forgot. Is this still a good time? I had a couple of things to do after filming—”

Sophia squeezed past Tessa and peered up at Zach. “You’re mommy’s friend. Zach.”

Tessa put her hand on Sophia’s head. “That’s right.”

“Wow,” he breathed the word, looking uncertain. “Good memory.” His gaze was fixed on Sophia, his face had lost its color, and he was fidgeting like he wanted to come out of his skin.

Tessa stepped back from the door, but Sophia moved toward Zach, eyeing the presents.

“Are those for me?” she asked.

“Sophia,” Tessa said. “That’s not polite.”

She glanced over her shoulder. “Sorry,” then looked at Zach again. “But are they?”

Zach cracked a smile. A small one. “They are.”

“Oh, goody.”

Before Sophia could reach for them, Tessa put her hands on her daughter’s shoulders and pulled her backward. “Zach is a guest, Sophia. How do we treat guests?”

Sophia pulled from Tessa’s grasp and moved toward Zach again. He stepped back, looking at his daughter like she might bite him.

But Sophia had no fear and didn’t notice anyone else’s. She tried to wrap Zach’s hand in hers, but it was way too big. Still she pulled him toward the condo by one finger. “Come in, come in. Come see the house I builded for Frankie. It’s all Legos and really cool.”

When his gaze lifted to Tessa’s, she saw a plea for help. Tessa pulled her lips between her teeth against a smile, but it still bubbled in her chest. And, dammit, she didn’t want to be happy about any part of this.

By the time she closed the door, Sophia was going on and on about her Lego house, then started running around looking for Frankie, calling the stuffed turtle’s name.

“Zach,” Tessa said, gesturing to Abby. “This is Abby. Abby is Tessa’s nanny.”

With the presents tucked under his arm, he offered the other hand to Abby. “Hi.”

But Abby’s arms were crossed, her hip was cocked, and that British ire of hers creased her face into a condemning expression. By now, Sophia was yelling for Frankie in the bedroom. And Abby took the opportunity to set the ground rules.

“Tessa’s a better person than me,” she told Zach, ignoring his hand to the point he had to retract it. “So she probably won’t tell you how much she’s sacrificed for the benefit of this family and Sophia’s happiness—”

“Abby,” Tessa warned.

“But it’s more than most parents would even consider sacrificing. So don’t think you’re just going to walk in and tear down what it took years to build. Sophia is the happiest child I’ve ever met. And if I have anything to say about it, she’ll stay that way no matter what—”

“Abby,” Tessa said again, louder and more forcefully. When her dark eyes cut to Tessa, she said, “Don’t keep your friends waiting.”

Abby fumed a second, then gave Zach another glare before she passed him and kissed Tessa’s cheek. “I won’t be late, love.”

“Have fun,” she told her, closing the door once Abby had started down the stairs.

“Frankie.” Sophia’s bubbly voice floated through the condo as she looked for her turtle. “Where are you?”

Tessa took another steadying breath and faced Zach. “I’m sorry about Abby,” she told Zach in a low voice. “She’s been with us from the beginning. This is a huge…struggle…for everyone.”

Zach nodded but didn’t speak. Sophia rushed out of one bedroom, stopped on a dime, held up her index finger, and said, “Don’t go anywhere. I’ll find him.” And zipped into the other room.

Zach looked at Tessa, eyes a little wide, and they laughed at the same time, diffusing some of the tension and creating what felt like a new bond between them.

“Yes,” Tessa said. “She’s always like this. She’s an extrovert, so meeting new people is like a sugar rush. But, beware, she crashes just as hard.”

“There you are, you silly little turtle.” Sophia came running back into the living room with her turtle clutched in her small hands, hovering overhead. “Found him.” She stopped suddenly in front of Zach, who had braced for a hit. “Frankie, this is Mommy’s friend Zach. Zach, this is Frankie. I got him at a museum.” She plopped down in front of the Lego house. “And this is Frankie’s house.”

Zach’s free hand stroked a restless pattern down the thigh of his jeans. His eyes darted between Sophia and the Lego house.

“Can you talk?” Sophia asked, drawing Zach’s gaze.

“Sophia…” Tessa exhaled and closed her eyes, rubbing her forehead.

“Is he shy, Mommy?” she asked Tessa. “Like Daniel?”

“Daniel is one of her friends at school,” she explained to Zach, then told Sophia, “No, honey, he’s not shy.” She walked into the living room and took a seat on the sofa. “He’s not talking because you haven’t given him a chance. Remember when we talked about being a good friend? You need to talk and listen.”

Sophia lifted both hands out to the side, tilted her head, and asked, “How can I listen if he doesn’t talk?”

Tessa couldn’t help but chuckle. She reached out and ruffled her hair. “You’re so silly.”

Sophia rolled on the floor, all drama. When she landed on her back, she looked up at Zach. “Can I open my presents now?”

“Sophia,” Tessa scolded.

“It’s okay,” Zach finally said with a little laugh and a shake of his head. He sat beside Tessa on the sofa, set the presents on the coffee table, and heaved a sigh. “I’m…I can’t quite get my head around this.”

Sophia hopped up and rushed to the sofa. She climbed over Tessa, wedged herself between her and Zach, and sat there like a puppy awaiting a treat.

Zach stared at her, his eyes scanning her face millimeter by millimeter while emotions flashed through the deep-blue irises until they glimmered with wetness.

Tessa’s heart folded. She couldn’t imagine what he was going through. Hell, she didn’t even understand what she was going through.

“Are you sad?” Sophia’s question dragged both Tessa and Zach back into the moment.

Zach huffed a laugh and dropped his gaze. “Maybe a little.” He offered the presents to Sophia. “Here you go. I hope you like them.” He cast a shy glance at Tessa before letting his gaze drop away. “The wife of a friend helped me.” Then a little grin hinted on his lips. “If it was left up to me, I’d have brought her a dartboard and a tool kit.”

That made Tessa laugh.

“Is it okay, Mommy?” Sophia asked over her shoulder.

Tessa nodded, and while Sophia put her presents on the coffee table and started opening one, Tessa imagined Zach shopping for a little girl he didn’t know. Her heart clenched while her stomach flipped. She reached over and gave Zach’s knee a reassuring squeeze.

He never took his eyes off Sophia, but he covered Tessa’s hand with his own and squeezed it back. “I can’t believe how beautiful she is.”

The emotion in his soft voice created a flood of mixed feelings inside Tessa—love, fear, frustration, affection. And she knew by the way Zach was looking at his daughter now that everything had changed. Tessa’s vision of the future crumbled.

She forced herself to pull her hand from Zach’s even though it was exactly where she wanted it to stay.

“Mommy, look.” Sophia held up a stuffed horse figure with shiny wings. “A unicorn.”

The “you” in unicorn pierced Tessa’s ears. She was used to it, but Zach winced a little.

“A unicorn has a horn on its forehead,” Tessa reminded her. “That’s a Pegasus.”

“Pegsis,” Sophia repeated. “She has wings.” Sophia proceeded to run around the room pretending to make the Pegasus fly. “Pretty, shiny wings.”

“Wow,” Zach said, “she’s got a lot of energy.”

He leaned forward, spreading his thighs and resting his forearms on his knees. His leg pressed against Tessa’s. If he noticed, Tessa couldn’t tell. He was distracted by Sophia and didn’t pull away, which meant Tessa was tortured by the heat of him seeping through his jeans and into her bare thigh beneath the hem of her cutoffs, because she sure as hell didn’t have the willpower to pull away herself.

Her mind fell backward in time, to the feel of all his naked muscle moving against her body. The heat of him. The power of him. Wild lust stirred deep in her belly and made her sex clench.

As Sophia knelt again and set her Pegasus gently on the table to stand on all four hooves, Tessa forced her mind from the sheets.

Sophia tore into her next present. As soon as the paper parted, Sophia gasped. Not just a regular gasp, but a high-pitched gasp. Her face was utterly comical, eyes wide, mouth dropped open. “Mommy! Mommy, look.” She clumsily pulled off the rest of the paper and stared at the box, her gaze roaming over every detail. “I don’t believe it. Mommy!”

“Oh my God…” Tessa whispered and dropped her head, squeezing her eyes closed.

“What?” Zach’s shoulder pressed hers as he leaned in and whispered, “What’s wrong? Did I get something she shouldn’t have?”

But Sophia’s squeals made her cringe. She leaned toward her daughter and pressed her fingers to her lips. “Inside voice, please.”

Instead of screaming, Sophia curled her hands into little fists, pulled them close to her body, and jumped in circles with muted cries of “Sparkle dollhouse—Sparkle dollhouse—Sparkle dollhouse…” as she fought to keep her excitement in check.

“What’s she doing?” Zach looked truly confused. “Is she okay?”

Tessa couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s called a subdued version of jumping for joy.”

“Then why did you have the opposite reaction?”

She pressed her hand to her temple. “How are we going to get it home?”

As soon as the words were out, Tessa realized what constituted “home” for Sophia was now up in the air.

“Oh, man.” Zach covered his eyes and groaned. “I didn’t even think about that.”

“Mommy, can we open it? Can we build it?”

Zach covered Tessa’s hand with his. “I’m sorry. I’ll… I’ll…” he said, searching for a solution. “I’ll just take it apart and ship it when I need to…I guess.”

Tessa’s mind traveled down the path of sharing Sophia with Zach, and how impossible that looked. Anxiety collected at the base of her skull and traveled over her shoulders.

“Mommy…” Sophia said, “can we build it?”

Tessa rested her chin in her hand. “What do you say to Zach?”

Sophia jumped to her feet, ran straight for Zach, and threw herself at him. Lucky for both of them, Zach had quick reflexes. He caught her, falling back against the sofa. “Holy…”

“Thank you, thank you.” She had a death hug on his neck. “Thank you. It’s perfect.”

The sight of her little girl in Zach’s arms knotted so many emotions, Tessa couldn’t begin to understand them all. She only knew tears rose to the surface. And judging by the expression on Zach’s face, she was pretty sure he was experiencing the same. He tentatively wrapped his arms around Sophia and looked at Tessa with confusion and awe, as if she could help him understand the chaos inside.

She just smiled, even though a piece of her heart was breaking—the part Sophia would soon give away to Zach.

When he decided Tessa wouldn’t be giving him the answers to the little universe he held in his arms, he closed his eyes in a look of love so deep, it hurt. Tessa knew because she’d felt it enough to recognize it.

When Sophia pulled back, grinning at Zach, he grinned back and brushed her hair away from her face in a tender gesture that twisted Tessa’s heart. “You’re welcome. I’m glad you like it.”

“I love it,” she cried, punching the air overhead with her trademark fists.

Then she scrambled to the floor and ran back to the box while Zach laughed.

“You have no idea what kind of monster you just unleashed, do you?” When he grinned at her with a questioning look, Tessa said, “Who’s going to put all those pieces together?”

A millisecond passed before his face dropped. “Oh…” Then his eyes fell closed as he whispered, “Shit.”

And Tessa burst out laughing.