“Welcome to Echo Island.”
I smiled at the man before me. He was dressed in a crisp white shirt and blinding white boating shorts; he almost looked like he was ready to go yachting. He shouldered my bag, insisting that he take it and then unloaded my suitcase too. His native tongue, a sweet but lilting thick accent, made it difficult to understand him at first, but I kind of guessed what he was saying anyway.
“Thank you, the island is gorgeous.” He inclined his head and pointed to the shell path that led to the cluster of buildings down the shore.
“Pretty island for the pretty lady. This way, please.” I blushed and followed him, my excitement hard to contain. The sun was beating down on my skin, the heat already prickling the surface, and I was glad for the amount of sunscreen I’d brought with me.
A slight breeze danced and played around the hem of my skirt and as we walked the palm trees offered a nice shady path to the huts. I was itching to see the place that would be my home for the next two weeks, where I could enjoy the solitude and read the massive stack of romance novels that I’d loaded onto my e-reader… not to mention the couple of paperbacks I hadn’t been able to resist in the airport bookstore. What could I say, I was a hopeless romantic. Along with those essentials, I’d brought a few swimsuits and bikinis, a couple of tank top and short combos, and some daytime dresses. I’d even, at the last minute, thrown in a couple of my best evening wear dresses… just in case there did happen to be some eligible men on the island. But looking around now, spying a couple walking hand in hand down the beach and another up near the main building, I doubted I needed half the stuff I’d brought. I was going to be the odd one out.
My guide started down the series of wooden walkways to a door, and set down my suitcase and extra bag just inside the hut.
“I hope you enjoy your stay. Let me know if you newlyweds need anything—night or day.” I gave him a confused and awkward smile, not sure I’d heard him correctly. Newlyweds? Surely a slip of the tongue, he was probably so used to all the married couples arriving and hadn’t thought twice about changing his welcome speech.
He nodded and started back the way we’d come, leaving me to puzzle over his words, but they were soon forgotten as I took in the little house that was to be all mine. By the side of the front door, I looked over the wooden banister at the crystal clear water below. The calm waves looked so inviting, and if I wasn’t so excited about seeing inside the hut, I would have jumped over the side fully clothed.
With a giddiness that I hadn’t felt in a long while, I stepped over the threshold. My mouth dropped open. I knew it was going to be lovely from the photos in the brochure, but seeing it in real life was beyond what I was expecting. It was gorgeous; gleaming wood floors were present throughout the entrance hall and living space, and gave way to a huge viewing window with sliding doors at the far end. All I could see for miles and miles, out the window, was a thousand shades of blue.
Breathless, trying to take everything in, I tore my eyes away from the view. Dark lacquered wood wrapped around the room, but veils of cream fabric draped over the walls gave it the light it needed to balance against the glossy wood. In what would be considered the living room, right before the comfortable looking sofa, was a flat screen TV then a small but impressive writing desk. I spun around and let out a laugh. It was so perfect. I would definitely have to send Connor that thank you note.
From my vantage point, I could also see a massive king sized bed beyond a pair of sliding wooden doors, with mosquito netting and rose petals on the bed which reminded me of who the hut had been prepared for. Oh well. It would just have to be a one-woman honeymoon, then. I walked towards the bedroom and ran a hand over the luxurious, kitten-soft sheets. There was another window on this side of the hut and I loved that the bed was positioned so that I would be able to wake up every morning and stare out into the water, the beautiful mountain-like ranges of the collection of islands over in the distance. I was going to be an extremely happy camper.
Grabbing my bags from the hallway, I walked back into the bedroom and placed them on the bed amongst the rose petals. The flight was draining and long, but I was looking forward to some time in the water before a nice long bath and dinner. I unzipped my suitcase and pulled out my swimsuit before pulling my shirt over my head and stripping down to my underwear. My hands reached for the clasp of my bra then flung it across the bed… maybe I wouldn’t need my swimsuits, I thought mischievously, biting my lip. No one would see me out on my little deck.
A door opened behind me and I whirled around without thinking, my boobs bouncing, half expecting to see a staff member. My jaw dropped for a second time that day as I registered the face grinning back at me. I stood stunned as we stared at each other, before I remembered I was half naked and covered my breasts with my hands.
The man was naked before me, his tanned body glistening with water as he rubbed a towel behind his neck, leaving all of his very glorious manly parts on display. His chiseled abs were that of perfection, his neck and shoulders thick and lickable, and his tapered waist gave way to a very prominent part of him that was currently standing at attention. My mouth went dry, and realizing I was staring at several inches, long and thick, that would rock anyone’s world, I jerked my head back up to his grinning face. I didn’t need the sun to burn me lobster pink; the man before me was doing that all himself, effortlessly. As the flush of embarrassment coated my face, I tried desperately hard to scowl and put on my angriest voice.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
8
CONNOR
This was going to be so much fun.
I watched as surprise, then a hint of impressed desire flittered across her face as she took in the whole nine yards, only to be quickly replaced with embarrassment, and then of course anger. Casually toweling off my hair, I waited for the blow up to commence. I’d let her shout and scream at me but soon she’d calm down and be putty in my hands.
It had been very difficult to beat her here, the private jet arriving merely an hour before her commercial flight had. I’d cut it close, but I knew that if I hadn’t gotten here first, I would have missed this perfect opportunity to surprise her.
“What the hell are you doing here?” she cried, shock in her voice as she attempted to hide her magnificent rack, but there was plenty of side boob bulging over her hands. Her gaze had lingered on my cock a bit longer than she probably realized, and it wasn’t like I planned to be fully erect upon her arrival. It just kinda happened that way, and who was I to stop something as natural as that?
My cock pulsed at the thought of what we could be doing on the bed mere feet away… if only she’d drop her hands and just go with it. But I knew that wasn’t going to be the case, she was different, and I wasn’t going to push it yet, even if everything inside me was telling me to rip off the last remaining piece of clothing from her body and throw her onto the mattress and fuck her like she’d never been fucked before.
“Did you know you have magnificent tits?” I gave her a smirk and she merely blinked at me.
“What. Are. You. Doing. Here?” she asked again, enunciating every word through gritted teeth.
“I came to see you, of course. And boy do I like what I see.”
“You aren’t supposed to be here, though…”
I’d already planned what I would say when she saw me, how I would explain my presence, but that was all going out the window now. That mattress was looking even more tempting the longer I stood naked in front on her. I took a step forward, staring her down, fully intending on feeling her luscious body under my hands.
She matched my stride, only going backwards away from me. “Cover yourself up,” she said, her eyes darting to take another look at my cock.
“Like what you see?” I asked, grinning. She averted her gaze again and quickly began to retreat, her face no longer angry. Shit, I was coming on too strong, too used to women falling at my feet. My own grin slipped as I wrapped the towel around mysel
f and started after her. I could only imagine what she was thinking and I berated myself for thinking it would be funny to surprise her with the Full Monty.
“Wait, I didn’t mean to say that. Shit.” I caught her right before she opened the front door, slamming my palm against it to shut it back.
“Get out of my way!” she yelled, yanking on the handle. “You lied to me, you prick!”
“I didn’t do any such thing,” I replied, holding the door closed above her head. “Look, I’m sorry. Just calm down, I’m not going to hurt you, okay? I didn’t know you were going to come. Why didn’t you tell me?” I spoke the rehearsed words, little white lies really, hoping she would calm down.
“Tell you?” she asked, turning around to look at me. Her lips were inches from my chest and I realized how petite she was being this close to me, her head only making it in line with my pecs. Even in a nice, tall set of fuck-me heels, she wouldn’t tower over me. God, she was the perfect size and shape and everything. “You gave me the ticket. You told me you weren’t coming!”
“Well, I changed my mind, you were pretty adamant about not taking the tickets. I didn’t want the holiday to go to waste,” I said, with a shrug. “Listen, we can do this. And still both get what we want out of the trip.” Of course, I wasn’t going to tell her I had an ulterior motive behind this sudden arrival. I still had a bet to settle, and I needed her to stay if I was going to win and prove that I could commit, regardless that it was going to be a fake one with the little wedding planner here.
“Oh my god, I can’t believe this,” she fumed. “This was supposed to be my time, my vacation.” I stared at her lips as she shouted at me. All I had to do was claim them for my own. I wetted my own lips in anticipation, daring myself to do it, to shut her up for a moment and just take her mouth. “And you ruined it!” she said, dropped her hands for a brief second and slamming them into my chest, pushing me away.
“It’s not ruined,” I said, turning to watch her stalk back to the bedroom. “This can work out. I’ll sleep on the couch and you can have the bed. We don’t even have to talk to each other if we don’t want to.”
“I’m going to go home,” she said dejectedly. I sighed. This was not how it was supposed to go. I knew it was going to be difficult convincing her to stay, but it was like she hated me or something. I gave her a second before following her into the bedroom, and found she’d slipped her shirt over her head, and was pulling her skirt back on. It took so much willpower to pull my gaze away from her chest; she hadn’t managed to put her bra back on and I could see her perfect budding nipples straining through the material. She zipped up her suitcase.
“April, listen to me. So what if we have to share the space. This is a once in a lifetime trip and you know it. I can’t be all that bad?”
She paused, and I knew I had to talk quick and promise her the world to keep her from leaving. “I swear I will stay out of your way. You can do whatever you like. You won’t know I’m even here—silent as a mouse, I promise. But I’ll be honest, if you do stay, and I hope you do because you’ve been through enough and I know it’s all my fault, but if you stay we kinda need to pretend that we’re married. But only when we’re in public.” I mentally crossed my fingers, hoping that my honesty would gain me some much needed brownie points.
“What?” she asked, eyes wide. Thankfully, I didn’t see anger in her expression, but curiosity and wariness, which was a good start.
Before I left, Crystal hadn’t breathed a word about our broken engagement or the secret wedding, and was still holed up in the penthouse suite burning a hole in my damn pocket. And surprisingly enough no one else had said a word about it either. The ‘party’ had gone off without a hitch; nobody had even missed us, apparently, as they enjoyed what was to be the wedding reception. So far, I was in the clear, and out here in the middle of nowhere, I was virtually safe from any flack from my last minute decision of bailing on my wedding. All I needed to do was get April Matthews to at least pretend she was married to me and bam, I was done, I’d win the bet.
“We have to,” I said quickly. “The resort is only for couples and if they get wind we aren’t married, then we will both be sent home and I’d be out a small fortune. Non-refundable clause or some such jargon. And contrary to belief I ain’t made of money… and that wedding wasn’t cheap.” Her gaze narrowed and I held my breath for her answer.
Did she believe me?
9
APRIL
I stared at Connor, confusion clouding my thoughts. There were so many emotions swirling around my head and assaulting me from every angle that it was difficult to pinpoint which one I was feeling the most. At first I was upset to see him, not to mention surprised as well. But then as the moment passed, and the way he’d stared at me, his lingering gaze upon my body, he had me all hot and bothered. I didn’t want to leave, not really.
However, not once did I think he was going to cash in his ticket and go on a ‘honeymoon’ with a woman he barely knew, but apparently I hadn’t considered that he would actually do just that. Now he stood before me, clutching the tiny towel around his waist. The bad—and good—thing was that I knew exactly what was underneath that towel, and a naughty tingling inside me wanted to see it again.
Forcing my thoughts back to the present, I processed what he was trying to tell me. I didn’t want to leave this paradise, but could I survive two weeks in his presence? Could he really stay out of my way? Did I want him to? And could I actually pretend to be his—oh god, I didn’t even want to think the words—wife?
“Are you sure you can live up to your end of the deal and stay out of my sight for two weeks?” I asked hesitantly, seeing no other choice. After the seven hour plane ride here, I didn’t really want to get back on a plane anytime soon. I had nothing to go back to… no job, no partner, not even a cat!
“If at any time that you think I am bothering you, we can figure something else out,” he promised, giving me that thousand-watt smile that had my heart thudding once again.
I frowned at him, mostly because I didn’t want for him to see how much that smile bothered me. Plus, that tiny towel wasn’t hiding anything, not really. He was very distracting; his upper chest on display for me to ogle over, and for a second I almost wished I didn’t have any self-control and had more self-confidence. What would he have done if when I’d first seen him, I’d dropped my hands, revealing myself to him, and boldly sauntered over to him, my hand reaching, wrapping around his co—.
“April?” he asked, startling me from my daydream.
“Fine,” I finally said, turning away from him and his lickable body. “I’ll stay for now.” What choice did I have anyway?
I grabbed my swimsuit and marched past him, entering the bathroom that was heavy with his lingering scent and shower gel. I shut the door and leaned against it, closed my eyes and willed my heart to stop thudding. I was acting like I’d never seen a naked man before, and I wanted to beat my head against the door.
What on earth was I thinking? Was I that desperate for a vacation that I was willing to spend two weeks with the man who had ruined my career? Looking around the beautiful bathroom, complete with a glass-walled walk-in shower and a whirlpool sunken tub that could fit several of Connor’s teammates, I couldn’t drum up enough reasons to leave paradise. I would try my best to ignore the extremely hot, cocky, and downright annoying football player and enjoy myself.
That was why I’d come in the first place. It couldn’t be that hard, could it?
CONNOR
I walked out onto the deck and closed my eyes for a moment, soaking up the hot, tropical sun with relish. After a year of brutal games and all the constant drama I’d had to put up with Crystal, not to mention the wedding, it felt great to be able to get away from it all. At least here I could have some privacy out of the limelight and demands, all of the endorsement deals and the constant hounding of my agent, even though I loved him to bits. Jay was like the brother I’d never had, and partially a father fi
gure too. He looked after me.
My cell buzzed in my pocket and I groaned. Speak of the devil… how on earth was there cell reception out here? I answered the call and brought the receiver up to my ear.
“Tell me you didn’t,” Jay said before I could even say hello.
“Hello to you too, buddy.”
“Cut the buddy crap, Connor. Tell me you didn’t do what I think you did…”
“Knowing me, I probably did… what are you talking about?”
Jay groaned down the phone. “You’re there, aren’t you? On your fucking honeymoon?”
“Maybe.”
“With another woman!” he yelled, and I winced. Normally Jay was pretty cool about my antics, but he was pissed.
“Technically, it’s not my honeymoon, cause I didn’t go through with the wedding.”
“Yeah, well there’s a surprise. Can’t believe you did this. Who is she? Actually no, don’t tell me, the less I know the better. Do you realize what’s going to happen if the press gets hold of this?”
“It’s okay, Jay, calm down. If they do, it’ll all work out, I have you to smooth out the kinks, after all.”
“You’re making my job ten times harder, you know?”
I laughed. “You love a challenge, though, that’s what you said when you first took me on.”
Bad Boy's Wedding Page 5
