by Robyn Neeley
“So what should we do tonight, boss?”
“We’re stuffing invitations,” she replied without hesitation.
Miles frowned. “Kate, we’re in Hawaii. We are not spending your first night in paradise licking envelopes.” He laughed and linked arms with hers. “Not when I’m sure there are more interesting things on this island to lick.”
She laughed. “Oh, Miles. What would I do without you?”
“Give me a raise, and you’ll never have to find out.”
“We’ll see what we can do.” Kate looked toward the ocean. The view from the boardwalk was breathtaking. It would be nice to have a relaxing cocktail on the beach and sink her toes in the sand. “So if we did finish early, what did you have in mind?”
“Now we’re talking! I think we need to crash a Luau and do some hula dancing under the stars.” He unlatched his arm from hers and swayed his hips. “The hotel has nightly hula dancing lessons on the beach. We’ll start there and see where the evening takes us.”
Kate bit her lip. What he was suggesting could be fun. A little hip swaying might even negate all the tasty calories she just consumed. “Okay, I’m game. But you have to promise me the night doesn’t get too wild. We’ve got a big day tomorrow. Neither one of us can afford to be off our game.”
Miles jumped up and down. “Yippee! I promise, you won’t wake up on the other side of the island.”
Within minutes, they arrived back at the Aolani and sailed through the revolving door.
“All right, boss. I’m going to book a private room in the restaurant for tomorrow’s tasting with our bride and groom.”
“Terrific. I’ll go confirm our dress fitting appointments. Do we know if Lauren’s mother likes to drink wine or champagne?”
“Champagne. I called Lauren’s assistant after lunch and asked.”
“Fabulous! Champagne it is. This will assure the morning goes smoothly.”
Miles laughed. “Get the mother of the bride tipsy. Love that tactic. See you in a couple of hours?”
Kate shook her head. “Bring the invitations up to Suite seventeen twenty-four. We’ll start stuffing.”
“Aye, aye, captain.” He saluted.
Kate said goodbye to Miles and took the elevator up to the seventeenth floor. She was wiped. It had certainly been a long day, and her body hadn’t fully acclimated to the time difference. Entering her room, she went straight to her bed. A quick power nap might do her wonders.
She lay on the bed and closed her eyes. Why did she agree to go out with Miles tonight? She hated to let him down. Perhaps after they finished stuffing invitations, he would see how exhausted she was and let her off the hook.
She rolled on her side and curled up in the fetal position. “You’re being silly. He works for you.” Her thoughts drifted to tomorrow as she closed her heavy eyes. Helping her brides find their perfect wedding dress was normally one of her favorite things to do.
Her eyelids flew open. Speaking of white dresses … Kate needed to check on hers before she took a nap.
She sat up and reached for the phone beside her bed. It was after four o’clock. Where was her dry cleaning? She’d spent nearly half her paycheck on that dress. There was no way she was throwing in the towel without a fight.
“Aloha.”
“Aloha. She swung her legs over the bed. “This is Kate in Room seventeen twenty-four. I’m checking in on my dry cleaning. They said it would be delivered by four o’clock. I’m guessing it was a pretty tough stain.”
“One moment.”
She tugged down on the side zipper to her dress. She’d have enough time for a long bath and a short nap before Miles joined her with the invitations.
“Ma’am, it was delivered to Room seventeen twenty-five an hour ago.”
“There must be a mistake. That’s the wrong room. I’m in seventeen twenty-four.”
“Is this Kate Ashby?”
“Yes.”
“Your boyfriend called earlier and asked us to deliver it to Room seventeen twenty-five.”
She pulled the phone away from her ear and cocked her head. Was she hearing things? “My boyfriend?” she asked.
“Yes. I talked to him personally. He said you had made a mistake and you’re in Room seventeen twenty-five. Is that not the case?”
Kate frowned. Why would someone pose as her boyfriend and then steal her dress? Was Miles playing a trick on her? Maybe teaching her a lesson for not letting him take care of it? “There must be a mistake. Can you tell me who is in that room?”
“One moment.” Within seconds, the woman came back on. “The dress was delivered to Drew Cannon.”
Kate’s mouth dropped.
“Ma’am. Are you still there?”
“Um … yes,” Kate stammered. “Thank you.”
She hung up the phone and began pacing. Why that arrogant son of a — . He said he was her boyfriend. What the hell? What game was he playing? “Well, let’s find out.” She grabbed her room key and barreled out the door.
Standing in front of seventeen twenty-five, she made a fist and raised her hand. “I do. I do. I do,” she repeated her calming mantra. When that didn’t work, she counted to ten and knocked.
It swung open. Standing in front of her was her in-flight companion wearing nothing but a crisp white towel around his waist. His wet hair slicked back.
She tried to speak but her throat took her words hostage. “I … um … you have my,” she stammered.
“Kate, I was expecting you.” He chuckled and pointed to her side. “Do you need some help with that?”
Kate looked down in horror. She had forgotten to zip up her dress! Her lacy blue bra and matching thong strap were visible. She yanked up the side zipper. “You have something of mine,” she said icily.
“Your dress from last night. Here it is.” He pulled back the closet door and handed it to her. “Looks like they were able to get the tomato juice stain out. Good as new.”
“Thank you.” She clutched the dress and turned to leave. On impulse, she spun back around. “You know. You’re an ass.”
He smiled down at her. His smile was just as warm as it had been last night. “I’ve been called worse. Listen, Kate, we need to talk. Let me get dressed real quick. Why don’t you come in and have some champagne.”
Kate peered in. Next to him was a bottle of champagne chilling in an ice bucket and a glass plate of chocolate covered strawberries.
“I sent those to you and Lauren. There’s nothing to say. You, Drew Cannon, are my client. I don’t know what last night was about, but we will not be clinging champagne flutes unless it’s at your wedding!”
“Kate, you’ve got this all wrong. This isn’t what you think.”
“You commandeering my dress and posing as my boyfriend isn’t what happened?”
“Well, yes, but come in. I’ll explain everything. I think you’ll find it quite amusing.”
“There is nothing funny about my client being a lying, cheating schmuck.” She turned and headed back to her room.
The door slammed behind her.
“Kate, please stop. If you would just listen — ”
She put her hand up to block his words. “Don’t follow me. I am only going to pretend to be nice to you because you are my client, and your wedding is going to catapult me to partner. I need this wedding to go off without a hitch.”
He swore under his breath.
“You don’t have to get nasty.” She pushed her keycard in and unlocked her door.
“No, it’s not you. I locked myself out.”
“Not my problem.” Kate entered her room and slammed the door.
“Kate. Come on,” he pleaded from the hallway. “At least let me borrow your phone to call housekeeping. You can’t leave me out here in a towel.”
“Consider it payback!” she yelled and peered out of the peephole. He had turned around. His beautifully sculpted backside was exactly as she had imagined. No tattoos, no scars. Pure perfection. Her nails would have
a heyday …
Frustrated, she turned around and leaned against the door. So he has to go to the lobby in a towel to fetch a new key. He’d probably get some suggestive looks from women anxious to find out what was underneath it. That’s not payback. Her lips turned up in a devilish smirk. “But this is.” She gripped the door handle and flung it open.
“Thank you, Kate.” He started to enter. “I knew you wouldn’t leave me out here. I’ll only be a minute.”
“Not so fast.” She rested one hand on his chest and yanked off his towel with the other, leaving him naked. “I’ll just have this dry cleaned for you.”
She slammed the door and rolled up the towel, shoving it in the wastepaper basket. Now that was payback.
Chapter Six
Luke sipped his Mai Tai at the hotel’s outdoor tiki bar and stared out at the dark ocean. He wasn’t one for fruity drinks but after being left in the hallway naked for twenty minutes earlier this afternoon, there wasn’t much left of his manhood. Thankfully a maid spotted him and came to the rescue, letting him into his room before anyone else saw him.
He glanced around. A gorgeous redhead, wearing a skimpy black dress with gold hoop earrings, checked him out from the other end of the bar. He looked away. Not tonight — or any night for that matter. There was only one woman on his mind.
He sucked on a pineapple wedge. Only one problem. She hated him. Well, technically, whom Kate really hated was his brother.
He had planned on coming clean about being Drew’s twin. It was the reason he had the dress delivered to his room. In his mind, they’d have a good laugh and he’d ask her to dinner.
Once he opened his door, however, he knew that wasn’t going to happen. He had watched as sparks between them flew left and right. There was no doubt about it. She wanted him bad … er … Drew.
He needed a plan. The logical thing to do was tell her the truth. All of it.
But then he’d have to explain the plane ride and how they had duped her. She’d probably forgive them, but what if she didn’t look at Luke the way she did when she thought he was Drew? What if her sparks took aim for Drew?
His brother slid into the empty seat next to him. He motioned for the bartender. “I’ll have what he’s having, put it on his tab.” He pointed to Luke’s drink. “Hey, Lauren.”
Luke scooted his stool over, giving his brother some room. “What? I like fruity drinks with rum.”
“No judgment here. Looks like you might have a fan.” He nodded to the redhead.
She shot over a suggestive smile. Someone was having a fantasy about twin brothers. Luke turned to Drew. “Is Lauren upstairs?”
“Yep. She’s getting her parents settled in.” He grinned. “Hey, you’ll never guess who my wedding planner is?”
“Kate from the plane. I know.”
“How?”
“We had an altercation this afternoon.”
“Altercation? What about?” Drew thanked the bartender and took a drink.
Luke sighed. “We kissed last night.”
“Whoa!” Drew put his hand up to his ear. “Did I hear that correctly? You made out with my wedding planner? When?”
“On the plane.”
He slapped Luke’s back. “Way to go, man. She’s smokin’ hot.”
Luke frowned. “The only problem is she thinks I’m you.”
Drew cocked an eyebrow. “Come again?”
“You told her your name when you first met, and I didn’t correct her.”
“Dude. Why not? I only told you to pretend to switch seats; you didn’t need to with her, too.”
“I know. I just felt bad for tricking her. Honestly, in her frightened and intoxicated state, I doubt it would have computed anyway. How was I supposed to know she’s planning your wedding?”
“No wonder she seemed so bent out of shape at lunch.”
“What happened at lunch?”
Drew shook his head. “Yeah, when she saw me she looked like she’d seen a ghost. Then she spilled her drink all over her dress. She’s hot but a bit of a klutz.”
Luke laughed. His brother never minced words. He was right. She was a hot mess. However, he also suspected there was more to Kate Ashby than either of them knew. He wanted to know everything.
“Hey.” Drew slapped his arm. “Look who’s out and about.”
Luke followed his brother’s nod to an area of the beach where a small group had gathered to hula dance. He spotted Kate in the center of the crowd. It wasn’t hard to do. She had on a short pink dress that showed off her toned legs. Her silky brown hair flowed over to one shoulder, secured by a matching pink flower.
Her hips swayed to the Hawaiian beat while a young man next to her, mimicked her movements.
Drew jumped off his stool. “This is easy to fix. Let’s go tell her that you’re the one who sat with her last night. Once she sees there are two of us — ”
“Wait.” Luke grabbed his brother’s arm, motioning for him to sit back down. “Not so fast.”
“Why not? Are you worried about that guy?” Drew pointed to the man who now stood behind Kate and had his hands on her hips, guiding them as they swayed. “He’s her assistant, Miles. I met him at lunch.” He chuckled. “I’m pretty sure she’s not his type.”
Her assistant. Luke exhaled. What a relief. Although, he still wanted to punch the guy for having his hands all over Kate. He motioned for Drew to sit down. “I think I have a better idea. I need you to do me a big favor tomorrow.”
“What?”
“I need you to pretend that everything happened the way she thinks it did.”
“Come again?”
“Let her continue to believe that you were the one who kissed her.”
“Whoa. Let me get this straight. You want me to pretend that I made out with my wedding planner on the plane?”
“Well, technically you didn’t know she was planning your wedding at the time.”
“Dude, you’re insane. She could tell Lauren.”
“She won’t. Trust me. You’re an extremely important client to her. She told me this afternoon that her promotion hinges on this wedding. She’s not going to do anything to jeopardize it, trust me.” He let out a sarcastic laugh. “Well, beyond leaving you out in the hallway in your birthday suit.”
“Sorry?”
“Nothing. Never mind.”
“I don’t know, bro.”
Luke thought carefully. His plan could work and would give him a fresh start with Kate. He took a deep breath. “Tomorrow you’ll be taking Kate to the airport.”
“Why would I do that?” Drew picked up his plastic cup. “Dude, I’m not firing her. Lauren would kill me.” He took a drink. “Then she’d kill you for looking like me.”
“Calm down. No one’s getting fired. You’ll be picking up your twin brother, Luke.” He motioned with his pointer fingers, aiming at his face.
“Man, are you going to Maui tonight? Why didn’t you invite me?”
“No, idiot. I’m not going anywhere. We’re going to pretend that I just arrived to Waikiki.”
Drew looked puzzled. “Why would we do that?”
“Because I don’t stand a chance with Kate if she believes she had this amazing connection with you. I’ve got to show her that the chemistry she has is with me, not you.”
“Seriously?”
“She thinks she has some serious feelings for you. I need some time to show her they are really for me.”
“You always were the romantic.” Drew threw back his drink and set it on the bar. “Okay, I’m in. Anything for my big bro, but if she even hints at blabbing to Lauren, I tell her everything.”
Luke glanced behind his shoulder and watched Kate slowly moving her hips to the Hawaiian rhythm. Her hip action was quite good.
It would be dangerous for his lower half to watch anymore. He turned to Drew. “She won’t tell. I need you to leave now. Meet Kate in the hotel lobby tomorrow at noon. You’ll drive to the airport and pick me up at arrivals. First set o
f doors. I’ll be waiting.”
Drew smirked. “Care to share with me what she and I will talk about on the drive to the airport? It might be a tad awkward in the car to rehash our sharing a kiss that technically didn’t happen.”
Good point. Luke would need to come up with not only a good reason for Kate to go with Drew, but some safe conversation topics. “I’ll think of something tonight and text you. Now get out of here. I don’t want to risk her seeing us.”
“I hope she’s worth it, bro.” He slid off his stool and disappeared into the crowd.
Luke ordered a second drink. She most certainly was. He knew it sounded silly since he barely knew her, but she’d managed to stir up feelings in him that no other woman had.
He swiveled in his stool to face the hula dancers. The lesson had apparently finished and Kate and Miles were headed to the bar. Perfect timing. He was glad he had gotten rid of his brother when he did. Time to pretend he was Drew one last time.
“Kate! Miles! Over here,” he called.
They approached. Kate gave him a wary smile. “See you found something to wear,” she said, coolly. Luke was pretty sure he could see tiny icicles hanging off her lips.
“You both looked great out there,” he offered.
“My boss can sway her hips.” Miles winked.
Kate sat down on the stool previously occupied by Drew. “Where’s Lauren?”
“She’s upstairs nursing a migraine.”
Miles grew impatient trying to wave down a bartender. “How does one get some service?”
Luke pointed. “You might have better luck on the other side.”
“You’re probably right. Kate, what would you like?”
“I don’t know. Something tropical. Surprise me.”
“You got it.” Miles shimmied his way to the other side of the tiki bar.
Luke laughed.
“What?” Kate narrowed her eyes.
“Your assistant is quite … jovial. Looks like he’s on the prowl for a good time tonight.”
“How do you know we’re not together?” He caught the agitated expression she threw at him.
“So you two are dating?” He raised an eyebrow in mock surprise.
“Maybe.”
