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Waiting on the beach beneath the chapel, Andrew raked his fingers through his hair. Somehow, he had to make Clara believe he would never do anything to hurt her. Did he dare tell her he loved her? At this point, would it make a difference?
As though he sensed her presence, he turned.
Clara made her way across the beach toward him. She wasn’t smiling. As she drew nearer, he noticed her eyes reflected her distinct displeasure at finding him there. His body tensed. He hoped she’d give him a chance to explain.
“Hello.” He attempted to smile, but the motion was stiff and forced. “Thanks for meeting with me.”
“I don’t have time for this. I need to be doing damage control.”
“I’m really sorry about how things went down with the wedding.”
She frowned at him. “But not enough to enlighten me about the real wedding. Do you know how inept I look to my associates—to potential clients?”
“I told the press— I told everyone associated with the wedding preparations—that this change of plans was done without your knowledge.”
Her gaze narrowed. “You shouldn’t have gone to the press.”
“Someone had to apologize on behalf of the bride. Tula sure wasn’t going to do it. And since hiring your company was my idea, I figured I should do some apologizing.”
“And they believed you?”
He nodded. “Everyone I spoke with agreed you’re great at your job, and they assured me they’d be happy to work with you again.”
Her voice grew soft. “But why did you lie to me? Even if it was a lie of omission?”
“I didn’t. I swear. I had no idea about the backyard wedding.”
“Are you going to tell me the man in the photos, the one who looks exactly like you, is your long-lost twin?”
“No. Of course not. I thought I was going to Hugh’s birthday party. I wanted to take you with me, but you’d asked for time to think about things with us, so I didn’t want to pressure you.”
The expression on Clara’s face was unreadable. Was he finally getting through to her? If so, he couldn’t stop now. He had a feeling if she walked away now, he’d never have another chance to tell her exactly how he felt about her.
“Please believe me. I know it looks bad, what with those pictures on the Internet. But the truth is, I was as surprised about the wedding as all of the other guests.”
Silence was her only response. She didn’t believe him. He supposed those photos taken out of context would look bad. But he wasn’t giving up. Not yet.
He pleaded with his eyes for her to believe him. “When I figured it out, I tried to speak with Tula, but she wouldn’t listen to a thing I had to say. You know Tula. She’s very determined to have things her way. When my brother found out, he wasn’t happy. They had heated words, and then my brother left her standing at the altar.”
“He did?”
Andrew nodded. “He said they were over once and for all.”
“Your brother didn’t know about Tula’s sneaky plan?”
Andrew shook his head. “He didn’t have a clue. He was so angry. I was worried about him. I wanted to come to you right away, but first I had to make sure he was all right.”
“Of course. Is he? All right, that is?”
“Upset that he was fooled into thinking Tula had changed.”
“That must have hurt.” Her gaze met his. “I’m sorry I jumped to conclusions and doubted you.”
“I have to admit the pictures looked bad. Anyway, I wanted to let you know what had happened. But you weren’t home last night. I waited around for a while, until your neighbors started to give me strange looks.”
“You came looking for me?” Her tone no longer had a sharp edge to it.
“Not before I told Tula what I thought of her callous actions. I know how much you were counting on that wedding to further your career, and I feel horrible because I’m the one responsible for arranging it. But don’t expect an apology from her. From all I can tell, she never apologizes to anyone. But I promise I’ll make this up to you. I don’t know how, but I’ll figure out something.”
