.

hell I did. When I walked out of his office, he was smiling. He’d blown me off in a matter of ten minutes and he was glad to do it.”

      “You’re lying. Don’t try to deny it. You told him about sleeping with me, didn’t you? That was part of the plan, wasn’t it? You wanted to buy him out and you’d stoop to hitting below the belt to do it. You’d use any means to get what you wanted.”

      “Your father wasn’t a saint, Laney. He cheated me out of a deal I’d worked on for two years. I wasn’t feeling overly generous toward any Royal when I saw you at the Wind Breeze bar, drinking away your sorrows. When you didn’t recognize me, I figured, what the hell. You were beautiful and lonely and looking at me like I was the last man on earth.”

      “You’re modest, too, I see.” Laney blinked away that vivid memory. It was true. She must have looked like a little lost lamb, just waiting to be slaughtered by the big bad wolf, and Evan Tyler charged in for the kill, right on schedule. Oh, she’d been such a fool.

      He ignored her gibe. “My original plan was to rub Nolan’s nose in the fact we’d been together on the island. But, no, he never knew. I didn’t tell him.”

      “And I’m supposed to believe you?”

      “It’s the truth.” He stood firm.

      “You wanted to rattle his cage. Weaken the enemy. Right? So, if I’m to believe you, which I don’t, what would have changed your mind?”

      Evan looked into her eyes. Then he glanced at her mouth. At one time, his direct appreciation, the hot look in his eyes, would’ve heated her body to smoldering. But now all she felt was disdain.

      “You. You changed my mind.”

      She shook her head. “I’ll never believe that.”

      He didn’t try to convince her. “I’m in the hotel business. I knew about the problems at Royal. Anyone doing an ounce of research would know that the hotels were having problems.”

      “But that didn’t stop you from questioning me.”

      “You volunteered the information.”

      “You seduced it out of me!”

      Evan’s dark eyes took on a hard gleam. “I never heard you complain.”

      Laney closed her eyes briefly, fighting for control of her fury. “You had an agenda. You used me to get information. I was your ace in the hole, the weapon you planned to use against my father.”

      “Listen, you only confirmed my suspicions about Royal. I’ll admit that. But you can’t deny we had a good time on the island.”

      Laney didn’t want to think about being with him on the island. She was certain every word that came out of his mouth was an out-and-out lie. “I can’t recall. I’ve blocked out those memories.”

      Ty scoffed at that, his mouth twisting into a crooked smile. “Now who’s lying?”

      Laney calmed herself. She took in oxygen and sat at her desk, keeping her chin held high, refusing to give him any more satisfaction than she already had. When her head continued to throb, she sighed with impatience. “What do you want?”

      Evan took a seat across the desk from hers. “I want what I’ve always wanted. To buy out The Royals.”

      “No. Meeting over. You may show yourself out.”

      “You’re not cut out to run this company.”

      “Don’t tell me what I can or can’t do, Mr. Tyler.”

      “Damn it, Laney. I’ve seen you naked half a dozen times. Call me Evan.”

      Laney inhaled sharply and frowned. “So kind of you to remind me. But it doesn’t change anything. I’ll never sell the company.”

      “It’s in trouble, Laney. You know it and I know it. Your father couldn’t fix it and I doubt you’d get even close. It’s not a reflection on you personally. It’s just plain fact.” He stood then, his shoulders broad, his eyes focused on hers and she met his stare with a hard one of her own. She disregarded his handsome face and the truth to his claims. “Don’t be a fool, Laney. The hotels are losing money. They’ll go under if you don’t do something soon. I’m offering you a way to save them.”

      “My answer is no.”

      Evan shook his head as if she were a schoolgirl misunderstanding an easy mathematical problem. “I’m leaving my offer on the table. I’ll be back.” He strode to the door, then turned to meet her stare, an unexpected earnest look in his eyes. “And just for the record, I remember everything about the island.”

      Four

      Laney watched Julia scoop up a pile of fries and wolf them down one by one without blinking. They sat at a seaside café on Saturday afternoon. Her stomach squeezing tight, Laney looked at her veggie sandwich and wondered if she could manage it.

      “You haven’t taken a bite yet, Laney.” Julia picked up her patty melt oozing with Cheddar cheese and finished it off. “And I’m all done. You’d think I was eating for two.” She laughed. “Me and you.”

      Laney closed her eyes briefly and put a hand to her stomach. “No, you’re not eating for two. I am.” She glanced at her friend and tried to smile.

      Julia’s face paled. She put the down the Diet Coke she was about to sip. “W-What?”

      Laney pushed her plate aside. “I think I’m pregnant, Jules.”

      Shock registered on Julia’s face, which she tried very sweetly to hide. She leaned forward and lowered her voice. “You think you’re pregnant, but you’re not sure?”

      “I have all the symptoms. I’ve never felt like this before. Not even when I ran away from the wedding and Justin. The queasiness, the lack of appetite, and there’s the fact that I missed my period. I made an appointment with my doctor for next week.”

      “Oh, I thought you and Justin had decided to, uh, refrain, before the wedding. Are you going to tell him?”

      Laney shook her head. She abhorred thinking about Justin. She hadn’t had sex with him in the weeks prior to the wedding. She’d been so busy with the final arrangements, the wedding planner and spending time with her bridesmaids, that she and Justin had decided to spend their last few weeks apart before the ceremony.

      Now, Laney could add Evan Tyler to her list of men she’d rather forget. Both men had deceived her. She popped a Tums in her mouth. It helped with her shaky stomach and other rocky emotions. “I would, if it were his baby.”

      This time, poor Julia couldn’t hide her shock. Her sculpted auburn brows rose, making four crinkle lines appear in her forehead. Lines, she’d normally go to great lengths to avoid creating. Julia opened her mouth, but no words came forth.

      “It’s pretty bad, I’m afraid.” Then Laney unloaded the entire story to her friend about her time at the Wind Breeze Resort and the mystery man who’d turned out to be a scoundrel and her father’s competitor. She left nothing out. A lifelong friendship meant spilling it all, even the smallest of details.

      “Oh, wow.” Julia gazed out to the Pacific Ocean trying to come up with something positive to say, Laney presumed. But they both knew this was as hopeless, as hopeless could get.

      “I know. Believe me, I’m just as shocked. We used protection.”

      “So, what happened? I mean, how did it happen?”

      “Well, there was this one time, in the shower…and, damn it, we really were careful all the other times.”

      Julia sank deeper into the tall wicker throne seat, her arms braced on the rests. This had always been their favorite beachside café. As young girls, they’d lean back and pretend they were island queens—eating lavish foods, sipping exotic drinks, with the world at