by Nina Singh
“Let’s get you to the couch,” Rinna suggested. “Theo’s gone back out for more pictures. Can you try to stand without putting any weight on that foot?”
She didn’t get a chance to answer. A deep masculine voice sounded from behind the three of them.
“I’ve got her.”
A set of strong, muscular arms suddenly wrapped around her waist and under her bottom. The next instant she felt herself lifted into Reid’s masculine embrace. Heaven help her, she took a moment to simply inhale the scent of him. The same mixture of citrus and sandalwood combined with mint, somehow still present despite the river water soaking his skin. Without giving herself a chance to think, she rested her forehead against his broad chest, taking comfort in the warmth of his skin against her cheek. Reid nuzzled his jaw against the top of her head. She didn’t dare try to read anything into his action. He probably just felt bad for her.
“Does it hurt badly?” he asked, his voice smooth above her head.
“No. Not really. Just a little achy.”
“Sorry about all this,” he spoke low into her ear as he carried her farther inside and toward the couch.
Great. Now he was trying to take responsibility for her fall. “I’m not sure why you’re apologizing.”
“You’re only here in the first place because of me.”
“That may be. But I fell into the water on my own. Due to my own carelessness.”
He exhaled deeply as he set her down on the couch. “Anyone ever tell you that you can be stubborn?” he asked.
Was it her imagination or did his hands linger around her body just a bit longer than was necessary after he set her down on the cushions? She looked up to find the smallest hint of a smile on his face.
“As a matter of fact, I do hear that from time to time.”
The smile grew. “I’ll bet.”
A strange sensation tugged at her heart. The warmth of his touch still lingered over her wet skin. The man did something to her insides she couldn’t recall feeling with anyone else ever. Not even the man she’d been prepared to marry.
Rinna appeared from behind them with a couple of pillows. She placed one behind her back and the other under the offending foot. Reid leaned over her. “May I?” he asked, gesturing to her leg.
She reluctantly agreed and he ran a gentle finger along the arch of her foot and around her ankle. Then he went up higher, toward her knee. Totally innocuous as it was, tingles of awareness rippled up her skin at his touch. Full-out kisses by other men had elicited less of a reaction from her than Reid simply examining her sore ankle. She had to suppress a shudder of reaction.
“It doesn’t appear to be broken,” he announced. “Just a sprain.”
“You think so?”
“I’d place a wager on it if I had to.” He nodded and gave her a teasing wink. “I’ve broken enough bones in my lifetime to be able to speak with some authority on the subject.”
Celeste thanked the other woman for the pillows and allowed herself a groan of frustration. What a burden she was being to these people. And Reid, for that matter. All because she had been a careless klutz. She had no one else to blame but herself. Truth be told, she’d been distracted and dazed since that first day when she’d gone to find Santa only to discover Reid Evanson in his stead.
“Do you have any ice?” Reid asked Rinna.
“We do. But we can do even better than that. Momma has gone out to gather the plants she needs to mix up a medicinal balm.” She laughed and shook her head. “I’ve had it applied to my various scrapes and bruises countless times over the years. She’ll be back to prepare it soon. You’ll start healing in no time,” she reassured.
Celeste resisted the urge to ask if Uma might be able to come up with a balm to ease the ache in her heart.
CHAPTER TEN
THEY ALL ATE in the living room so that Celeste could remain lying on the sofa with her foot propped up. True to Rinna’s word, Uma had wrapped a cloth around her ankle after applying the homemade poultice. Whatever the concoction was, it smelled heavenly. Miraculously, her foot started to feel better within minutes. Celeste didn’t think it was the placebo effect. She could feel the swelling go down and the throbbing sensation had almost completely stopped. Between the filling meal and the relief from pain, she found herself drifting off into a comfortable sleep.
When she opened her eyes again, she was shocked that two hours had passed. She slowly roused herself to a seated position. Reid sat across from her at a wooden dining table, typing away at the keyboard of a laptop. He appeared to have showered and had changed into clean clothes. Oh, to be so lucky.
He glanced up when he realized she’d awakened. “You’re up.”
“It’s dark out.”
“That it is.”
“Shouldn’t our car have been here by now?”
“I asked for it to be delayed.”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “You looked like you could use the rest. I didn’t want to disturb you.”
Great. Yet another misstep she could feel guilty about. “But I know you had to get back to the resort.” And to finally meet whoever had been due to arrive earlier, she added silently.
Reid motioned to the computer in front of him. “It’s okay. Theo was nice enough to lend me his laptop so I could get some stuff done remotely. How does your foot feel?”
Celeste wiggled her toes and moved her ankle from side to side. The pain had mostly subsided. Only a slight ache remained in the joint. “Much better. Rinna was right. Uma’s potion has some sort of magical healing properties.”
She huffed out a breath. “I feel so foolish for going and hurting myself like that. It must have been a terrible inconvenience for them to have to take care of me this whole time.” And for him, too.
“Accidents happen. You’re not at fault.” He stood and walked over to stand in front of her. “If you’re up for it, I can call for the car to come for us.”
Uma entered the room at that precise moment. “It’s much too late to try to make that drive,” the older woman argued. “You two stay here for the night. We have an extra room.”
Reid gave Celeste a questioning look. He was waiting for her to make the decision. “I don’t want to inconvenience anyone,” Celeste said to the room in general.
Uma waved her hand in dismissal. “It’s not a bother. Everything is ready for you. The bed stays made as we have overnight guests quite often. And the sofa down here is large and comfortable enough for you to sleep on, Reid.”
Reid turned from the older woman to address Celeste. “Uma’s offer makes sense. I’d feel better if you stayed completely off that ankle at least for the night. Also, I’d hate to make the driver leave his house this late just to drive us across the island and then have to drive back home again.”
Well, how could she argue with any of that? She’d already been enough of a burden to the people currently under this roof. She certainly didn’t want to further inconvenience the poor nameless driver.
“Thank you, Uma. You’re far too kind,” she told her, vowing to come up with a way to thank the woman at some future date. She’d never experienced such hospitality from strangers she’d met only hours before.
“That settles it then,” Reid announced before turning to Uma. “We’ll take you up on your generous offer. Thank you.”
Uma patted his cheek and left the room. Celeste made an effort to get up off the coach. Reid was by her side in an instant. “Whoa there. What do you think you’re doing?”
Embarrassingly enough, she needed to use the washroom, for one. “Uh, I could use to freshen up a little.”
He wordlessly leaned down and lifted her off the sofa. It was hard not to savor the feel of being in his arms again, despite the circumstances that had led her there. He carried her to the nearest bathroom.
“Just holler when you’
re done.”
Celeste shut the door and took a moment to study herself in the bathroom mirror. She looked as if she’d gone toe to toe with some kind of swamp creature. Her hair was a tangled mess, dark circles framed her eyes and her clothes were in a wrinkled state of disarray. Oh, yeah, compared to the gorgeous models and actresses Reid was used to dating, she would definitely fall far short.
With a resigned sigh, she cleaned up as best she could, helping herself to some of the mouthwash sitting on the bureau behind her.
She may not look great, but by the time she opened the door, she at least felt better. Reid remained in the same spot, waiting for her.
“All set?”
She nodded, trying to maintain her balance on the one foot. With what seemed to be little effort, he picked her up and carried her once more. “This can’t be good for your back,” she commented.
“You wound me. Are you questioning my masculine strength?”
She had to smile. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
To her surprise, rather than plant her back on the sofa, he walked toward the front porch.
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.” Kicking the door open with his foot, he took her out onto the porch.
Once they stepped outside, the sight before her took her breath away. The lights that Theo had referred to earlier were now lit up. The whole garden looked like a magical holiday light display. Several Christmas trees, a few bushes decorated like presents, glowing lights along the path leading to the river. She couldn’t help her squeal of delight at the festive scene.
“It’s beautiful, Reid! I’m so glad I got to see it.” She knew it was silly, but part of her was almost grateful for the accidental fall that had led her to be able to be here for this sight.
Reid set her down gently on one of the outdoor patio chairs then took a seat of his own. The night was balmy with just enough wind to offer a refreshing breeze once in a while. A silver-gray moon floated above them in a velvet navy blue sky. Celeste couldn’t guess how long the two of them wordlessly sat there simply admiring the view.
Her awareness of the man next to her was near tangible, so she felt it instinctively when his mood seemed to shift. A tenseness suddenly appeared in the set of his shoulders. His chin hardened. His shoulders slumped ever so slightly, yet enough for Celeste to notice. No doubt he was thinking of all the responsibilities waiting for him back at the resort.
“I’m sorry we got stuck here. Due to my carelessness.”
He turned to her, surprise flickering in his gaze. “Don’t apologize, Celeste. You had an accident.” He gestured around him. “Besides, how can I possibly be upset about spending time here amidst all this beauty and calm? I dare say I needed the peace and quiet for an evening.”
Did that include spending time with her? Silly question.
“But you seem quite distracted. I imagine you’re thinking of all you need to get done.”
He shook his head, turned back to stare at the navy blue horizon in the distance. “Just thinking about a phone call I have to make when I get back.”
“Must be some phone call.” The tension was practically vibrating off his skin as he talked about it. “Business or personal? If you don’t mind my asking.”
He crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Both. That’s the problem.”
“Want to tell me about it?”
He shrugged. “I have the very unpleasant task of dispelling the notion my father has that he can retake control of Evanson Properties.”
Celeste didn’t know much about Reid’s company, nothing beyond what she’d read in the business papers. But his statement confused her, based on those reports. “I don’t understand. I thought the company was on the brink of bankruptcy until you took over as CEO and turned it around.” He’d done so in an astonishingly brief period of time, too.
“He’s not exactly thinking straight. His motivation has more to do with an outside party. A woman.”
Understanding dawned. She’d also read about the messy, bitter divorce of the elder Evansons. “I see.”
He let out a grunt of a laugh. “My future stepmother has made it clear to him that she fell in love with a CEO, so she’d fully expected to marry a CEO.”
“Sounds like a compromise might be difficult.”
His eyebrows drew together. “Compromise?”
Celeste nodded. “There has to be a way for both you and your father to come to some kind of agreement.”
He blinked at her. “Why would I bother? This is the man who let an uninformed, inexperienced outsider talk him into all sorts of bad investments. Everything from hiring social media influencers who simply took advantage of complimentary stays at our hotels, to investing in a failed music festival which resulted in countless lawsuits.” He inhaled an agitated breath. “Lawsuits I’m still dealing with.”
The underlying hurt in his tone was as clear as the flickering neon lights before them. His father’s business failings were the least of the complicated scenario Reid was dealing with. No wonder he dreaded talking to the man.
“You feel betrayed,” she supplied.
“How can I not? Evanson Properties was founded by my grandfather, it employs countless employees all over the globe. The Evanson name has been associated with luxury hotels for nearly a century. My father nearly destroyed all that with a few strokes of his pen. And for what? A midlife crisis?”
“But that’s not all, is it?” she prompted.
“What else?”
Celeste bit the inside of her cheek. There was a chance she was overstepping here. But Reid was staring at her with expectation for an answer. “You also feel betrayed as his son.”
* * *
Something seemed to have dislodged in his chest, some type of tight knot he hadn’t even been aware of. He hadn’t sat down and really discussed the disastrous events of the past couple of years or the hurtful actions of his father with anyone before this. He certainly wasn’t about to burden his mother with any of it, she was a big part of the reason he’d worked so hard to rectify it all.
And his relationship with his closest male friend was far too strained and had been for the past three years. Unloading some of it simply by talking about it with Celeste felt like a bit of the burden being lifted off his shoulders.
You feel betrayed as his son.
He hadn’t been able to come up with a response when she’d uttered those words. Her demeanor told him no response was needed.
Now they were both sitting in the balmy Caribbean air, enjoying a comfortable silence. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d simply sat outside, chatting with someone. Someone who wasn’t afraid to tell him what he needed to hear.
But it was getting late. And Celeste had had quite a day. Uma, Theo and Rinna had bidden them good-night several minutes ago and explained that the light display would turn off soon based on the timer system running it. Looked like the evening was coming to an end. And he’d already said more than he probably should have shared with her. He stood and stretched out his back.
“Guess we should head inside, huh?” Celeste asked.
“Guess so. Here, I’ll help you upstairs to the spare bedroom.”
Even in the relative darkness he could see her grimace. She didn’t like being indebted to anyone. She might have read his thoughts based on her next statement. “I hate that you have to carry me, Reid. And I hate that you felt you needed to jump in after me when I fell.” She inhaled deeply, her chest rising. “I’m not used to being dependent on anyone. It makes me uncomfortable. I’m afraid that’s why I...lashed out...after my fall. I regret that. And I’d like to say I’m sorry for the way I behaved.”
Huh. Reid couldn’t recall the last time someone had directly come clean and apologized to him after making a mistake. Certainly not his father after the countless times he’d jeopardized the fa
mily business empire. And certainly not any of the women he’d dated in the recent past after a quarrel or spat. He’d always been the one to take responsibility and accept fault, regardless of whether it was deserved or not.
He checked his thoughts. It was way too late and the day had been way too long to become this pensive.
“Well, if it makes you feel better, you’re probably one of the least dependent people I’ve ever come across,” he told her with absolute sincerity. In fact, based on what she’d told him after the incident with the ATV, she’d made herself responsible not only for herself, but also for those she cared for. He hadn’t known her that well three years ago, certainly hadn’t been aware of the situation with her sister and mother. The knowledge now definitely shed some light on some of the mysteries he’d wondered about when it came to Celeste. In fact, if he’d been a betting man like his father, he would guess Celeste’s family had been the real reason Jack had ultimately got cold feet over marrying her. He wasn’t one to share. And he wasn’t the type to appreciate a woman who came with that kind of baggage. Even a woman like Celeste.
Jack really could be incredibly selfish.
Reid couldn’t help feeling somewhat sorry for him. The man had no idea what he’d had then foolishly lost. If Reid were in any kind of position to be with a woman like her, he’d hold on tight and refuse to let her go.
“Thank you for that,” Celeste said. “It means a lot to hear you say so.”
“You’re welcome.” Walking over to her chair, he cradled her in his arms and lifted her up. “Now I’m gonna get you to bed, beautiful.”
He felt more than heard her sharp intake of breath, and couldn’t decide whether she was reacting to the endearment or the loaded statement. He hadn’t meant either, truth be told. He certainly hadn’t meant to sound so provocative. “I’m sure you’re ready to get some sleep,” he quickly added.
Using his toe to nudge the door open, he carried her inside the house and up the stairs. He could get used to this, the feel of her in his arms. She was light and soft against his chest. Her shapely legs draped over his arms. The scent of her filling his senses. She belonged there, snuggled into him up against his chest.
