Xander was offering her a chance to have everything she’d ever wanted. And he’d done everything to show her how invested he was in this relationship. Now it was time she met him halfway. It was time she took a chance with the island and most of all, with her heart.
As soon as she arrived at the office, she called the number the woman had left her. It went to voice mail. Lea didn’t really want to leave this information in a voice mail.
She attempted to work, but her mind just wasn’t into it. She was so excited about what the future held. Teaming up with Xander would be interesting. She believed that there was nothing they couldn’t do together.
Just before ten o’clock in the morning, Lea gave up the pretense of working. She planned to swing by the bungalow and switch into more sensible shoes before she went to track down Xander at whatever project he’d gotten involved with this time. With Joseph laid up for a couple of months, there was more work than ever to be done.
Lea stepped through the doorway of the bungalow, surprised to find Xander at home. He was video-chatting with his back to her. She slipped off her shoes at the door and walked softly across the floor, not wanting to disturb him. But she had to pass by the table in order to get to her room.
As she neared him, she heard a woman’s voice. It was a familiar voice. Wait, she knew that voice. She couldn’t quite place it.
It was best to keep walking, ignoring the woman’s voice. But an uneasy feeling chewed away at her insides. Was there another woman in Xander’s life?
And then the woman laughed. It was a warm, jingly kind of laugh. Xander replied softly to her, making it impossible for Lea to make out the words. The feeling in her gut turned to red hot jealousy. It was unmistakable. But she refused to let Xander know how she felt. She kept walking, but she couldn’t resist a quick glance at his monitor.
Gasp!
Lea stopped. That was the same woman that had been interested in purchasing the island. But how could that be? Was Xander plotting against her?
Xander turned around. Surprise was written all over his handsome face. “Lea. Wait.” He turned back to the computer. “I’ll call you when I’m on the plane.” And with that he closed the laptop.
By then Lea had recovered enough from the shock to get her feet to move. She thought about leaving, but then realized this was her home. She wasn’t going anywhere. Xander was the one who was leaving. Hadn’t she heard him say something about a plane?
She headed to the kitchen. She could hear his footsteps behind her. She steeled herself, refusing to let him see just how deeply his betrayal had hurt her.
“Lea, it’s not what you think. That was my sister—”
“Stop. I don’t want to hear whatever you have to say.” She turned on him. Her shock morphed into anger. “What I think is that you and your sister made a fool of me. And now it’s time you leave the island.”
“No one made a fool of you. And no one set out to hurt you.” He stepped closer to her.
She held her arm straight out, blocking his progress. “Just stay away. Don’t try and charm your way out of this.”
“Lea, don’t do this. We can work everything out. I... I just need to take care of something first.”
What could possibly be more important than this? And then she realized the foolishness of her question. It had to be business. It always came back to his business, whether it was trying to sweet-talk her out of the land or sending his sister in to do his dirty work.
“Just go.” She turned her back to him.
“Lea, please believe me. I would never do anything to hurt you, but if I don’t go, my company will be put in jeopardy from a large lawsuit. Please say you’ll wait here for me. And then we can talk.”
She turned back to him. “I’ll be here. I’ll always be here. But you won’t be welcome.”
She didn’t need to hear anything else he had to say. He’d been keeping things from her, just like her parents had kept information about her family and her heritage from her. And they all had their excuses, but none of them were reason enough to keep Lea in the dark.
“I’ll be back. I promise.”
His words fell on deaf ears because she refused to believe anything he had to say from here on out. If she needed any further proof that he wouldn’t change—that he would always put business ahead of his family—this was it.
Frustration, pain and anger churned within her. After Xander left, she needed to do something, anything. But she couldn’t concentrate enough to go back to the office. Instead she started to clean out her kitchen cabinets. She’d been meaning to do it for a long time now but had put it off for one reason or another.
She’d inherited all of this stuff. Some of the dishes were in amazing condition. Others had most definitely seen better days. She kept working, pulling everything out and sorting out the keepers and those that could go.
When her phone rang, she considered ignoring it. If it was Xander, she had absolutely no interest in talking to him. And if it was Popi, she didn’t want to get into this with her, not yet. But she realized that it could be island business and that was something she couldn’t ignore. And she refused to think how her priorities were similar to Xander’s.
She glanced at the caller ID and her heart stopped. It was her mother. After an entire year, her mother was calling her. Was she returning her call? But it has been so long. Or had something happened? Was her father ill? Please say it isn’t so.
Lea knew that all she would have were unanswered questions unless she accepted the call. Not giving herself time to think of all the reasons that this was a bad idea, she pressed the answer button on her phone.
“Hello.”
“Lea? Is that you?”
“Yes, Mom. It’s me.” Her insides shivered with nerves. “Is something wrong with Dad?”
“Um...no, he’s fine. I’m returning your call. I’m so sorry we missed it. My battery died just after we left on an Alaskan cruise so we had to rely on your father’s phone.”
“Dad has a cell phone? I thought he was opposed to them as they are a nuisance.”
Her mother sighed. “A lot has changed since you left.”
“A lot has changed here, too.” It wasn’t until she heard her mother’s voice that she realized how much she missed speaking to her.
And as much as she’d worried about how things would go when she finally spoke to her mother again, they quickly fell into a comfortable conversation. It was almost like nothing had happened. And Lea opened up about the baby, Xander and the island being in trouble.
“You have a lot on your shoulders,” her mother said. “I’m sorry about adding to your worries. Neither your father nor I meant to hurt you. We honestly thought we were saving you from more pain by being rejected by my family. I know what it feels like to be turned away and told I was dead to them for marrying a man they didn’t approve of.”
That was more information than Lea had gotten before, but that might have been because she’d been so upset with her parents that she hadn’t let them say much. Lea told her mother that she regretted leaving Seattle in such a huff and not calling. Her mother apologized, too.
“But what will you do about Xander?” her mother asked. “Will you hear him out?”
“I... I don’t know. I trusted him and he hurt me. Can you imagine him asking his sister to come here pretending to be a prospective buyer?”
Her mother was quiet for a moment. “I know you don’t want to hear this, especially after what happened between us, but is there a chance he had good intentions?”
“Mom...”
“Wait. Listen to me and then you can ignore everything I say.” Her mother paused as though waiting to see if she had Lea’s attention. “Perhaps you were expecting him to let you down because other people, especially me, have let you down in the past. Could that be part of it?”
Lea heard
her mother, and as much as she wanted to disagree with her, she remained quiet. She had a lot of thinking to do because there was a baby relying on her to make the right decision—for both of them.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“I’LL MEET YOU in Rome with the car and all of the documents.”
Xander stood at the airport listening to Roberto, his second in charge, go over everything that needed to happen to head off the possibility of his sister losing her entire life’s savings and putting his company in jeopardy—the company that he’d worked all his life to make the biggest and the best.
But as Roberto continued to speak, Xander’s mind was not on business. It was on the devastated look he’d seen on Lea’s face when he left. And then the truth of the matter struck him with the strength of a lightning strike, nearly knocking him off his feet and into a nearby chair. He’d done everything wrong.
His heart just wasn’t in this business deal or heading off a business bully. In the past, there was nothing he’d have liked better than proving to a business opponent that they were wrong. But now, things had changed.
His heart was back on Infinity Island with Lea and their baby.
“Xander, did you hear me?”
He hadn’t heard a word the man had said in the last couple of minutes. “Listen, Roberto, we’re going to change things.”
“Change things? Now? We don’t have time.”
“We always have time to do the right thing.”
Roberto paused as though confused. “We are doing the right thing. We’re right and they are wrong. We just have to prove it and quickly.”
Until this point, Xander had always taken a hands-on approach with his business. Until now, he hadn’t imagined ever letting someone else be in charge of his company—not even long enough to take a vacation. Until Lea, his life had been his work. And now all of that had changed.
As Roberto talked in his ear, Xander realized that he had a very competent and eager number two. Due to Xander’s need to be in control of everything, big and small, Roberto hadn’t gotten a chance to spread his wings. Until now...
“Roberto.”
The man stuttered to a halt.
“I appreciate all the work you’ve done. Over the years and most especially on this project. You appear to know all of the details. And you understand what I hope to accomplish.”
“Uh... Thank you, sir.”
Xander realized he’d really held onto the reins of the office too tightly. He noticed how Lea ran the island with a much more relaxed attitude. Perhaps it was time he did the same, especially if his plans worked out.
“Call me Xander.”
“Yes, sir. Erm, Xander.”
Xander smiled. He could tell this transformation was going to take time for everyone to adjust to. And then Xander went on to tell Roberto that he was the one going to Italy to represent the company.
“Are you sure?” Roberto asked.
“If you’d asked me that question a year ago, even a month ago, I would have said no. But a lot has changed to open my eyes. You’re ready for this—you’re more than ready. You probably know the facts and figures of this project better than I do at this point.”
“Where will you be?”
“I’m heading back to Infinity Island. I left some unfinished business there.”
He just hoped Lea would hear him out. He should have made more of an effort to tell her about his sister. He’d never meant for her to learn the truth the way she did.
And he had no idea what he was going to do if they couldn’t work their way past this.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
ONE MINUTE SHE was certain they had no future.
The next moment, she missed him with all her heart.
Lea expelled a huff as she paced back and forth in the bungalow. With each pass, the walls felt as though they were closing in on her. She needed to keep herself occupied.
And she didn’t feel like going to the office. However, she did feel like some good old-fashioned hard work—like cleaning. It’d been quite a while since she gave the place a thorough spring cleaning. And with the kitchen done, she might as well keep going.
Lea started toward her bedroom to strip her bed and throw the linen in the wash, when she came to a pause outside Xander’s room. Not that it was actually his room. In fact, it was as good a time as any to clean away any lingering memories of him.
She opened the door and stepped inside. Her gaze took in the pastel green and purple walls. What in the world?
There was a new light fixture. New windows and curtains. There were even new closet doors that worked, unlike the old ones. And inside the closet, she found shelves above the clothes rod. Plenty of room for the baby’s things.
Lea’s vision blurred and she quickly blinked away the tears. She turned and took in all of the baby furniture. It was the wooden cradle that called to her. She walked over and ran her hands over the smooth lines of the wood. It was beautiful. She didn’t see any store tags like the ones visible on some of the other pieces in the room. As she examined it more closely, she started to suspect that it might be handmade. By Xander?
She recalled how he’d been absent a lot lately. He was always going here or there. Could this have been what had him so preoccupied? Was he creating all of this for their baby?
The impact of his actions caused an emotional lump to swell in her throat. Tears stung the back of her eyes. If the baby meant this much to him, why had he left? Why did he leave so much unsaid between them?
As the questions crowded into her mind, she moved out of the nursery, pulling the door closed behind her. Staying here wasn’t going to help her. She needed to get away.
Lea went to her room, a room where they’d made love so recently. Memories of Xander were everywhere. She had to get away.
She pulled a duffel bag from the back of her closet. She grabbed random articles of clothes from the closet and tossed them on the bed. Her movements were abrupt, causing her to almost trip over her own feet.
She couldn’t get out of here fast enough. It felt like if she stayed here any longer the memories would suffocate her. That was it. Different scenery and some fresh air would hopefully give her a clear perspective. If she could get away from everything that reminded her of Xander, she’d be able to breathe easy. But she wondered if that place existed.
Knock. Knock.
Xander?
Lea’s heart raced. Had he come back? What should she say to him? She had no answers.
“Lea?” The front door creaked open as Popi let herself inside.
Lea’s heart slowed and she expelled a pent-up breath. “I’m back here.”
It was good that her friend was here. It would save her a trip over to Popi’s place. But how did she explain all of this to her?
When Popi appeared in her bedroom doorway, her gaze landed on the clothes scattered on the bed. “Going somewhere?”
“Yes.”
“With Xander?” Popi glanced around as though searching for him.
“No. By myself. Xander is gone.”
“Oh. Um... Do you want to talk?”
Lea shook her head. She didn’t think she could speak of Xander without breaking down in tears and that was the last thing she wanted right now. If she could just get away from the place where she’d spent so much time with Xander, she’d be okay.
Without meeting her friend’s gaze, she said, “I need you to handle things for a few days.”
“But where are you going?”
Lea hadn’t stopped to think about that. Her mind was in a tizzy. She could leave the island altogether and head for the mainland. There were plenty of places to lose herself there. But she wasn’t up for sightseeing and she really didn’t want to deal with people.
And then a thought came to her. When she’d first arrived on the island, she’d done a lot of e
xploring, even stumbling upon an abandoned cabin. In that moment, she knew where she could go. The secluded spot would give her a chance to formulate a plan. Because even though she’d spoken to her mother and they’d started the process of patching up their relationship, Lea realized this island and the people on it were now her home. There had to be a way to save it that she hadn’t thought of yet—even if it came down to an internet fund-raiser. She would not lose the island.
CHAPTER TWENTY
WHERE IS SHE?
It was late when Xander returned to the island. Still, he’d only been gone for not quite twelve hours. How far could she get?
He inwardly groaned when he thought of the answer. Lea could have gone quite far. He’d searched every room in the bungalow and her office. She was nowhere to be seen. And that was when he realized the one person who would know where to locate her—Popi. They were as close as two friends could be.
He knew it was late but that didn’t stop him from approaching Popi’s door. Surely she would understand the urgency. The longer he let this thing linger, the further Lea slipped away from him. The thought of losing Lea forever had him urgently knocking on the door.
When the door didn’t immediately swing open, he started to worry that Popi wasn’t home. But where else would she be on the island? It didn’t exactly have a night life unless there was a wedding. And he knew from his work on the island that there was none scheduled for the evening.
He knocked again. “Popi! It’s Xander. I need your help.”
The door swung open. Popi stood there with her hair mussed up as she clutched a short white robe around her and glared at him. “What’s going on?”
“I’m really sorry to disturb you this late.” And he was sorry, but that didn’t stop him. He had a feeling that if he didn’t find Lea soon, she would plan a new life that didn’t include him and he wouldn’t have a chance to change her mind. “I need to find Lea. She’s gone.”
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