Sketching my vision of the exclusive resort, I grimace at the lines on the page. This is a huge undertaking for McKenzie Holdings and I need to be focused on it. But today, it can’t hold my concentration after the night and morning I’ve just spent with Brooke. She could create complications because she isn’t the daughter Mitchell wants me with. She’s certainly the daughter who has my attention. Three times now, I’ve been lost in my imagination about her, and three times, I’ve drawn something in the wrong position. So, hours later, I’m slightly behind on what I’d planned to get done today. With the excitement of seeing Brooke this evening, I can’t muster enough annoyance at myself.

The view I have from my desk is something I don’t think I’d ever get enough of. The ocean is so blue it looks endless with the cloudless sky above it. The cliffs to the right are treacherous, but a sight to be seen. The ocean waves crash onto the beach just off in the distance making the sudden yearning to have Brooke with me while we thrash about in the cool water.

“Someone is distracted,” Carrie drawls, snagging my attention as she walks into the room.

My jaw tightens in annoyance at her interruption. “I’ve asked you not to come waltzing in here while I’m working.”

She rolls her eyes. “I didn’t see any work being done, more like wool gathering.”

Sighing heavily, I ask, “What do you want Carrie?”

“I want to know what my sister has that I don’t. She certainly doesn’t have the body I do.”

Stunned at her question, I lean back and that’s when I realize she really is jealous of my attraction for her sister. I frown. “Your sister is a beautiful woman with curves that make a man’s mouth water. Mine hasn’t stopped.”

“My sister,” her face tightens, “has no idea what to do with a man like you.” Her face creases in an ugly scowl.

Standing, I face the mean woman. “After spending the night with her, I’d say that she knows what she’s doing.” I don’t stop there because I’m angry that this woman would put down her own sister. “Why do you think I’m so distracted today, huh? I can’t get her out of my head.”

My eyes widen in surprise when Carrie laughs.

“What would you say if I told you she was only with you as a dare?” she throws the words at me.

“I’d tell you to stop with the lies and to get out of my office,” I reply. I grind my teeth and fight the anger I’m feeling...Carrie has been a thorn in my side for months, well before I even arrived on the island and actually met her...but I can honestly say that I’ve never been this angry with her before.

She sniggers. “You can say I’m lying, but the truth is, it was a dare. I,” she emphasizes the word, “dared her. She wouldn’t have come to you on her own. You’re not that interesting enough, but once I dared, she accepted it.” Her smile is nothing but evil. “Cat got your tongue?”

No way was Brooke dared to be with me…was she?

“I can see the wheels turning in that simple little brain of yours, so why don’t you ask her.” She turns to walk away. “I think you have a misconception about my sister. She is expected to marry Sinclair.”

Five minutes later and I’m still standing where I was when she left wondering if there is any truth to Carrie’s words. The woman has a vindictive streak, which I’ve seen since I’ve been here, but would she direct it toward her sister, I just wasn’t sure.

The initial encounter in the shower had shocked and surprised me, but I didn’t stop to think of why she was there. Now though, I can’t help wondering what had driven her to my villa. Was she a virgin, or was it something she’d said as part of the game?

You promised to love her in the morning if she was still in your bed…she was still there…

She was still there, and just as eager. I didn’t detect any hesitation and she really did seem happy.

Groaning, I run my hands through my hair and decide that the only way I’ll get the truth is by asking her.

No way did she come to me on a dare. No way in hell could she do that. Not my Brooke.

Dropping into the chair, I gaze off into the distance, the work on my desk forgotten as I let the doubt take over. After one night, do I really know Brooke well enough to be sure of anything?

Sighing, I focus my attention to the drawing board in front of me, and the design that is now starting to take shape. My personal life, which I didn’t have much of yesterday, sure has gotten complicated. My sister, Sirena, would cry from laughter if she were here now, so I guess I should be thankful that she arrives tomorrow with her husband, Garrett, and their son, Elias.

* * *

Tonight should be my date with Brooke, instead of getting ready, I’m still dressed in the shorts and shirt I’d thrown on this morning. While I sit in the dark, I wonder whether or not she’ll actually turn up, or whether her sister has told her that the cat’s out of the bag.

I swirl the whisky in the glass and hear the gentle clinking of the ice cubes. My eyes search the amber liquid for the truth, which I offer a mirthless laugh at. No answers other than numbness, or a headache, have ever been found in a bottle of whisky.

I’m more than disappointed in Brooke because I really like her…liked. Her smile lit me up inside. The curves revealed once she had no clothes on made me want to sin. I loved talking to her. Most of all I loved the way she’d look at me, as though I was everything to her.

Sighing, I run my hands through my short hair feeling more disappointed than angry. I know I didn’t imagine this morning or her reaction to me. Actions don’t lie, right? I wish I knew.

Draining the glass, I resolve myself to go and seek her out, needing answers to the question heavily on my mind. Was I really a dare?

Hearing a soft knock on the door to the villa, I clamber to my feet, feeling weary, and tug it open. Beautiful Brooke stands there looking sweet and innocent. Her hair shines and looks so soft my fingers twitch to tangle in the long strands. She wears nothing more than a long, pale pink sundress with narrow straps and a smile...one that warms me more than the whisky warmed my gut. The smile looks real...but it was a dare, whispers in my head making me doubt everything.

“Are you going to invite me inside?” she asks, her tongue slipping between her lips, which I realize is a nervous habit.

I nod and step away from the door, allowing her to follow me inside.

Her smile falters when she looks me over in my rumpled clothes and a frown appears. “Um, we are still going out?”

“That depends.” I mumble, holding her gaze.

Her fingers start twitching as she glances around the room. I watch her deeply inhale, hold it for a long moment before she slowly exhales. “I need to tell you something,” she quickly mumbles, as though she needs to get the words out before she has second thoughts.

I search her gaze, and say, “Let me ask you something first.” When she nods, I ask, “Did Carrie dare you to sleep with me?”

Her eyes widen in surprise before they fill with unshed tears. “Yes, but…it’s not what you think,” she mumbles as a tear escapes down her cheek.

I hold my hand up to stop the flow of words. “Carrie told me that she dared you to spend the night with me.”

Her eyes widen in surprise before they narrow. “That…that…lying…ugh!” She strides straight up to me and shoves me in the chest with a finger. “You believed her,” she accuses. “Yes, she dared me. You want to know why?” She steps into my space. “I’ll tell you why, although I don’t feel I need to. She dared me because she saw the attraction between us. But this isn’t the first time she’s dared me...it’s just the first time I accepted the dare. I’ve always ignored her dares so she assumed that, last night, would be the same as all the rest...except it wasn’t.”

Unable to stay unaffected any longer, I cup her tearstained face between my hands. “Finish, Brooke. Tell me.”

“I knew if I didn’t accept that she’d be the one going to you, and I was jealous. If I hadn’t wanted you, then I never would have gone near you, dare or not.” She dips her head, but I tilt her face so she’s looking into my eyes.

“It hurt me Brooke. Thinking you were only with me because of a dare…” Her hand covers my mouth.

She shakes her head slowly, removing her hand. “It was the dare that made me bold. But I was with you because I wanted to be. Badly.” Her cheeks flush. “I’m here now because I want to be. Everything that happened between us was real, Michael.”

Gazing into her eyes, I search and find her hopeful, which is what I am, so I make a snap decision. “Then let me quickly change and we’ll walk into town.”

Her smile lights up her face. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, and I’m sorry. If I’d stopped to think, I never would have been upset after your sisters visit.” I place a quick kiss to her lips. “Don’t move.”

Backing away until she’s out of sight, I turn and quickly toss my clothes off. Smelling under my arms, I grimace and head for the shower. The water sloshes over my heated skin but knowing she’s waiting for me, I’m quick and to the point.

Five minutes later and with a smile on my face, I walk out of my bedroom and find Brooke waiting for me. She raises a brow and I chuckle. “I can be quick in the shower when I don’t have company,” I answer the question I see on her face.

Slipping a hand around her waist, I admit, “The next time my dick gets happy will be with you.” I laugh and sling an arm around her shoulders.

“Carrie isn’t going to stop. You know that right?” Her voice sounds tired as she tells me this. “She won’t like that you listened to me, and that we’re now heading out on a date.”

“What is it with her?” I ask, walking through the garden.

Brooke sighs. “She’s always been the pretty one. The one who everyone wants to spend time with.” She shrugs. “I’ve always been the plain one.”

“Don’t ever put yourself down in front of me again.” I tug her to a stop, becoming angry on her behalf. “You are beautiful. You caught my attention from the moment I laid eyes on you.”

She offers me a small smile. “Thank you for that.” Her arms go around my waist and her head rests against my chest. “This is my first date,” she whispers.

My arms tighten around her shoulders, as my heart takes a leap toward hers. “Then lets make sure that it’s special.”