Chapter 1
Hunter Hamilton sat at the Dunes' long bar with three of his buddies, staring at the TV mounted to the wall, and almost choked on his peanuts. The entertainment news showed a clip from a movie, and a reporter provided the voiceover, touting the erotic flick as the next big hit. But he barely listened to the words. He only had eyes for the woman on the screen. The woman who, half-clad, lay in the arms of a shirtless man. He knew her. But to him she wasn't the actress who'd made quite a name for herself in the last few years. To him she was Ashleigh Welsley, the first and only woman he'd ever truly loved. She would always be Ashleigh, the one who'd got away. And he only had himself to blame.
"That girl is smoking hot," Michael commented, pointing to the screen.
The comment didn't surprise Hunter. Michael, one of the four remaining bachelors of the Eternal Bachelors Club, was nothing short of a hound dog.
"Did you guys know that she's originally from the Hamptons?" Daniel asked.
Both Paul and Michael glanced at him with raised eyebrows.
Daniel lifted his beer. "Swear to god. You know my mother knows everybody in the area." He jerked his thumb to the screen. "She's Welsley's daughter."
"From Welsley Construction?" Paul asked. "I thought they lived in Princeton."
Daniel shrugged. "They have property here and in Princeton."
Hunter knew only too well, but he stayed out of the conversation. The less he said, the better. None of his friends knew that he and Ashleigh had once been an item. It had all happened before he met Daniel and the others. It didn't concern them, and besides, he had no intention of opening up old wounds.
"So, a local hottie, then," Michael said. "Maybe your mother could make an introduction for me?"
Hunter growled deep in his throat, but he kept himself in check and instead said casually, "I doubt you're her type."
Michael jerked his head in Hunter's direction and pointed at himself. "I'm not her type? Buddy, she so totally looks like she's into the tuxedo and caviar type. And that's me." He chuckled triumphantly.
"As opposed to blue jeans and polos?" Paul cut in, pointing at Hunter.
"Nothing wrong with polos," Hunter replied as if he couldn't care less about Ashleigh's taste in men.
"I'm not saying there's anything wrong with jeans and polos. Just saying no one will ever mistake you for a Forbes most eligible bachelor. You're just not selling yourself right," Paul said with a wink.
Hunter lifted his beer mug in a salute. Unlike Hunter, Paul exuded wealth. "I'll leave that up to Michael." He motioned to him, but kept his gaze on Paul. "He seems to like the press."
Michael lifted his hands. "Hey, if you've got it, flaunt it."
Hunter refrained from rolling his eyes. "I hear they're calling you the homeless billionaire now. What's that all about?"
Michael shrugged, flashing his teeth in a smile that could melt any woman right out of her panties. "I came up with it myself."
Paul shook his head. "I would have never let you move into my pool house if I'd known you'd exploit the situation so shamelessly," Paul joked.
Everybody laughed.
They were all rich beyond their wildest imaginations. And they were best friends, and along with four others, Wade, Zach, Jay and Xavier, members of the Eternal Bachelors Club—though Paul and Daniel weren't members any longer, since they'd gotten married. Jay and Zach had both gotten engaged recently, and would be thrown out of the club soon. Which only left four. And while Hunter could see that eventually the others would find the right women too, he didn't see that particular event in his own future. He'd already found the right woman—his eyes flicked back to the screen, and to those luscious, pouty lips—and lost her. End of story.
Michael grinned. "The reporters love the moniker. I might even give one of them an interview. A good-looking, sexy female reporter, of course."
"Sounds like a good reason to be homeless to me," Hunter said.
"Hear, hear," Michael agreed. "But I have the feeling I'm cramping Paul's style. Hunter, you mind if I crash at your place in Princeton while you're here? I have a project I'm working on and need some quiet."
Paul raised an eyebrow. "You're trying to tell me the baby's crying is getting on your nerves?"
Michael shrugged. "Your son is an angel." Then he turned his head back to Hunter and made a grimace only Hunter could see, negating his earlier words. "So, how about it?"
Hunter chuckled. "Sure. The place has been empty for a few months. I'll call Carlotta and have her get it ready for you."
"Thanks."
"Seriously, though." Paul gestured with his mug toward Ashleigh talking with the reporter. "If she's from here, why don't I remember her? I rarely forget a pretty face."
"Do you remember me?" Hunter asked, wishing the subject, or the channel, would change. Even after all these years, talking about Ashleigh was painful.
"Barely," Paul said.
"Sure you do; we called him the polo guy," Daniel said, and they all laughed at that.
Michael held up his empty mug. "And then you had one of the best jobs ever."
"Yeah, filling your beer mugs," Hunter said, remembering the first time he'd met the guys. He'd thought of them as overly privileged and without substance. And then they'd formed that Eternal Bachelors Club. He'd never dreamed he'd one day be a member, but here he was. And now they were his best friends.
"Now it's my turn to pour your beer," the bartender, Steve, said, wiping down the bar with a towel. "You all ready for another round?"
Michael pushed his empty mug toward Steve. "Bring it on."
Hunter chanced a glance at the screen while the others weren't looking. Ashleigh was dropping her silk robe, the light from the moon playing over her damp shoulders. He remembered the smoothness of those shoulders, their softness. Sheer perfection. If he closed his eyes, he could still remember the way they felt, the way she smelled. His cock stirred, and he bit back a growl. How would he ever stop thinking about her this time?
"Here." Daniel shoved another beer in front of Hunter, causing him to rip his gaze from the screen.
"Thanks." He lifted the beer to his lips.
"Did you hear that William Welsley is in the hospital? My mother mentioned it this morning," Daniel said. "It's rumored he's had a stroke."
"Yeah, I heard. Real bummer."
Even more so because Hunter owed the old man a lot. William Welsley had given him his first opportunity, and he could honestly say he wouldn't be the man he was today if not for Welsley.
But he didn't want to talk about that either. Instead, he changed the subject to the reason he'd asked them all there. "Before I forget, I wanted to talk to you guys about my sister."
Michael looked wistful. "Long, glowing, golden locks, crystal, sea-blue eyes…"
"Jill needs help, and I told her all of us will do whatever she needs," Hunter said, grinning.
"Absolutely. I'll be happy to help her. Right into my bed," Michael said.
Hunter punched him on the arm.
"Hey!"
"Sister. Off-limits."
"Yeah. Right. Okay," Michael said and rubbed his shoulder. "What does she need?"
"Yeah, how much?" Paul pulled out his wallet.
"Put your money away. She needs your labor. Brute-force hard labor," Hunter said.
Paul shook his head. "I'm not sure I like the sound of that. I don't think Holly would like calluses on these hands."
Hunter looked at the calluses on his own hands. "Oh, I'm sure she won't mind. They never seem to bother any of the women I've slept with." Just because he wasn't in a relationship, didn't mean he had to forgo physical pleasures. After all, he was a virile man and had needs. His gaze strayed back to the screen. Needs that suddenly seemed to surface with a vengeance.
"What kind of labor are we talking about, and when? I'll be sure to come back for it," Michael said, but his words were nearly drowned out by a loud group of women sitting at a large table behind them. Hunter looked at them. There were at least ten. They were celebrating something and were getting more rambunctious by the minute. Several of them looked over to Hunter and his friends, trying to make eye contact.
Hunter pulled his eyes away from a blonde with a pixie who kept smiling at him. She wasn't bad looking at all; she just seemed a little too eager. "Jill's heading up the rebuilding of outer Beach Road."
"That fire last year was nasty," Paul said.
"They've cleaned off the debris from the lots and are rebuilding the block, but they need as much help as they can get."
"Count us in," Paul said.
"Us too," Daniel added. "Sabrina is a sucker for charities, especially ones so close to home."
"You think she'll let us borrow you for the auction?" Hunter asked, smothering his grin.
Daniel gave him a suspicious look. "What kind of auction?
"A bachelor auction. We are going to sell each of you to the highest bidder."
Paul laughed. "Oh, no."
"Oh, yes." Hunter had to admit, he was going to enjoy this.
"This bod is only available to my wife," Paul insisted, tapping his chest.
Hunter patted him on the back. "Then you'd better make sure Holly doesn't forget her checkbook."
"Unless you're worried she might bid for somebody else instead?" Michael added with a big grin.
"Not on your life," Paul growled.
Hunter laughed. "Well, no worries. Maybe I can convince Jill not to put you on the block if you're married, but you still have to come. We can use you for something else."
"Well, that's a relief," Daniel said. Then he chuckled. "But I'm worried about you, buddy. Do you think anybody will be willing to lay out the big bucks for you?"
Hunter tossed him a you're-shitting-me look.
"Yeah, you don't usually date the types who come with their own money," Michael added, nodding toward the blonde from the party table.
Paul gestured toward the screen. "Maybe we can get Leigh West to come and bid on him."
Hunter choked on a mouthful of beer. Paul's suggestion hit a little too close to home. "I'm sure she lives in Hollywood and isn't interested in flying out here for some little bachelor auction." He knew very well where she lived, had followed her career closely. But only from afar. It was too late to try to make amends for what he'd done to her. Even if he could.