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She hesitated, then nodded, and said, "Yes. I give sailing lessons and run private boat charters."
"So being lost at sea didn't make you lose your love for the water?"
"The sea is the one place where I never feel scared. I trust the ocean to do what it's meant to. People are much more unpredictable."
Her cryptic words were tinged with pain and bitterness, maybe even a little anger, but he didn't think all of her emotions were about his unexpected appearance. "I can't just walk away, Ria. Not like this."
She let out a frustrated sigh. "Look, we had an incredible night together, Drew. I'll never forget it, but it's not going to happen again. I'm not that woman anymore, and I never will be again."
"Why not? What happened to you? What changed? "
"Everything," she said with a wave of her hand. "My whole world is different now. And there's no room for you in it. I'm sorry if that hurts your feelings, but that's the way it is."
"This isn't about hurt feelings. If you're not interested, I can take it."
"Then why are we still talking?" she challenged.
"Because your behavior is odd, and your explanations don't make sense. I feel like you're saying one thing with your words, but your eyes tell another story."
"That is crap," she said angrily. "You are reading way too much into my desire not to speak to you anymore. I'm leaving."
She spun on her heel, and he knew she was three seconds from disappearing out of his life for the third time.
"I have your necklace," he said abruptly.
Her step faltered. She turned slowly back to face him. "What did you say?"
"The gold chain with the heart entwined around an emerald. You said it belonged to your grandmother. I have it."
"Where did you find it?"
"In the sea, near the site of the explosion. It floated right past me when I was looking for you. For a few minutes, I had renewed hope that you were close by, but that hope eventually died."
She put a hand to her neck, as if she could still feel the chain. "It came off when I jumped overboard. I felt it slip away, but I couldn't stop to look for it. I had to get away from the boat."
"Do you want it back?"
"Yes."
"Then we'll have to meet again. When?"
"You could leave it for me at the yacht club."
"Do you really think you're going to get off that easy? You want the necklace, Ria, you'll have to talk to me. Can you meet me tonight?"
She shook her head. "No."
"What about tomorrow?"
She hesitated, indecision in her gaze. "I'm teaching most of the day. Weekends are busy. But if you want to meet me here at five o'clock, I should be done by then."
"All right. I'll meet you at five. And just so you know—even though you're not happy to see me, I'm very happy to see you. I'm glad you're not dead."
"I am dead, Drew. Ria Hastings, the girl you met, died in an explosion off the Isla de los Sueños. I'm Tory Harper now. New name, new start, clean slate. After tomorrow, we say goodbye, and we move on. Okay?"
"Why do you need a fresh start?"
"I can't tell you why. But it's important. So do we have a deal?"
He could see impatience in her gaze, a need to lock him down, have him make a promise not to threaten her new life, but he wasn't quite ready to do that. "I'll let you know tomorrow."
It wasn't the answer she wanted. She bit back something, then turned and strode away, her body as stiff as a poker. She was furious, but more importantly, she was also scared. And it was the fear in her eyes that wouldn't let him say goodbye or promise not to ever bother her again. It was ingrained in him to help people who were in trouble. And Ria was in trouble.
"Drew?"
The irritated voice of his brother, Burke, drew his head around. Aiden and Burke were walking toward him. He'd forgotten all about them, all about the boat. He'd seen Ria and everything else had vanished.
"Where the hell did you go?" Burke demanded, anger in his blue eyes. "We've been waiting ten minutes for you."
"I saw someone I knew," he replied.
"Yeah, you almost broke your neck getting off the boat," Aiden put in. "Who was that woman?"
