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“I don’t know why you’re mad. From where I’m sitting, I just gave you a pretty mind-blowing orgasm.”
“Itwasamazing. And not the point. I want you, Zane. All of you.”
“I can’t give you that. Not now.”
A deep grumble was forming at the base of her throat. “Then when? Later tonight? Tomorrow morning? Please don’t tell me we’re going to leave this island without having sex.” She wanted to applaud herself for truly putting it all out there.
“I’ve thought about it, and it’s not a good idea. We’ve already gone too far.”
She knew what that really meant. “You’re going to let my brother come between us here? Nobody needs to know about this, Zane. Nobody. I don’t kiss and tell. And I certainly wouldn’t kiss and tell about you to him.”
Zane turned away from her and stalked over to the French doors. His heavy steps were born of frustration, which seemed like an awfully good argument for him getting back in bed with her. But apparently not. “Iwould know it had happened. That’s all that matters. I can’t violate that trust.”
“I would like to know where in your friendship agreement it says that you can’t sleep with your friend’s sister, when she’s a consenting adult and so are you.”
He whipped around, his eyes full of an emotion she couldn’t put a label on—it wasn’t anger and it wasn’t hurt. It was something in between. “It’s a guy thing. Plus, you and I both know that this would be nothing more than a hookup. Is that really what you want?”
“Are you saying that because it’s all you’re capable of? Hookups? Why is that, Zane? Why do you seek out one-night stands with women, but never actually commit?”
“Now is not the time for us to discuss the rest of my personal life.”
“Oh. Right. Because you’re always beyond reproach.” She was so angry, it felt as though her blood was boiling. She hated that this was her reaction, but it was the only thing that made sense right now.
“That’s not what I was saying. You just came off a breakup, Allison. You told me yourself that it was bad. I’m not the cure for that. The cure for that is time.”
Allison jumped off the bed and wrapped her sarong around herself, tying it at the shoulder. Her breakup had been a distant thought until then, and she didn’t appreciate him bringing it up or, worse, using it against her. “I don’t need to be cured. I need the chance to move on.” She stormed past him into the living room. Out of habit, she picked up her phone from where she’d left it on a side table. She had a text from Kianna. Nothing of paramount importance, but she replied. She watched as the bar moved across the screen, then she got an error message.Not delivered.That was when she saw she had no bars. “Service is out.”
“You said you were going to turn off your phone.”
“Well, I didn’t.”
Zane’s eyes went wide with disapproval, and Allison was struck with a horrible realization. This really was all a mistake. Zane still saw her as a kid. He’d always see her as Scott’s little sister. He’d never think of her as an actual woman.
“I love how you just come out with it,” he quipped.
“I’m being honest. I told you I’d turn it off because I knew that it would be the sensible thing to do on a vacation where you’re supposed to truly relax, but the reality is that Kianna and I are just barely keeping our heads above water with our business and we have an important new client that could turn into a long-term retainer. I need to be able to work.”
“Oh, give me a break. That guy you were talking to yesterday? That was not work. If it was, you wouldn’t have sneaked off into your bedroom and closed the door. It’s not like I know a single thing about your company or what you’re doing.”
Allison’s heart was hammering in her chest. She’d thought it would seem reasonable that she’d want some privacy during a work call, but she had to admit to herself that it was solely because she was working for the one person on the planet Zane would hate forever. “It actually was business. I owe it to my recruits to exercise discretion. I’m sometimes going after very high-level people who already have important positions with big companies. I’m sorry if it’s my regular practice to conduct those phone calls out of earshot of anyone. It’s nothing personal.” Except that it was, because the conversation was about Black Crescent. She regretted tacking on that last comment. Everything before it had been nothing less than the truth.
Zane reared his head back and held up his hands in surrender. “You don’t have to get so angry, Allison. I’m sorry. If it really was work, I’m sorry I said anything, okay?”
She knew then that she’d overreacted, but it was only because she was so deeply frustrated. “Do you want to know why I’m so mad?” She felt her entire body vibrate from head to toe. Could she really come out with it? Tell him about the feelings that were tucked deep down inside her? These were things she’d never told anyone. Not her mom or Kianna. The pages of the diary she’d kept in high school were the only place where she’d ever come clean about Zane. And maybe that was part of her problem. She felt as though Zane needed to let go of his feelings about his past. Maybe she needed to set loose the things that kept haunting her, too. “I’m angry because over on Mako Island, and back there in my bedroom, I was so close to what I’ve wanted for fifteen years, and you decided to yank it all away.”
Zane stood there, frozen, blinking like he had far more than a speck of dust in his eye. “Hold on a minute. What did you say?”
She couldn’t suffer any more humiliation today. She’d had more than her fill. “You heard me. And you can feel free to go now. I just want to be left alone for the rest of my trip.” She stormed off into the kitchen. That was when she saw a note on the counter. Even from across the room, she could tell it was Angelique’s handwriting. She beelined for it.
Dear Allison,
I’m not sure where on the island you are, and I couldn’t get a text to go through, so I’m leaving a note. Hubert was having chest pains, so I’ve taken him to the doctor in Nassau. Don’t worry. This has happened before. I think it’s stress. I considered staying on Rose Cove, but I wanted to be with him, and our remaining guests have opted to leave because of the weather. I don’t think the storm will hit the island, but we will feel some of its effects. I would not leave if I didn’t think it was safe for you and Zane to be here. You have lived through many storms at Rose Cove and know what to do. Stay safe and hunker down if necessary. I’m sure Hubert and I will be back on the island tomorrow.
Love, Angelique
Zane hadn’t left her cottage as Allison had asked. In fact, he was standing right behind her. “Have you looked outside? The sky is getting menacing. I guess we didn’t notice it since we walked back inland in the shade.”
“The weather can turn on a dime here.” Allison handed him the note from her aunt. “And we were busy for a little while after that, too.” She watched as Zane scanned the note.
