by Taylor Hart
Now, after all the times he’d watched out for her, she couldn’t make it to Nebraska when he’d come halfway around the world to see everyone. What a disappointment. Stupid tears budded in her eyes.
As she left the pool area, she entered a huge cobblestone area. Tiki torches surrounded what appeared to be a dance floor complete with a stage for a band. Walking through, she relaxed, happy to be getting away from the crowd of people in the pool area. Looking up, she saw a huge mansion just across a wide expanse of lawn. The house was surrounded by tall, white iron gates. Truly, the house looked like a southern plantation with its wrap-around porch, large pillars and black shutters around the windows.
Hesitating, London stared up at it for a few seconds. She noticed steps on the side of the house that led up to the roof and was perplexed by it. The steps seemed odd and out of place. Turning, she looked at the hotel grounds behind the conference center. There were lush areas with newly planted smaller trees and what looked like the start of an English looking maze.
She began heading toward the grounds that were obviously for the guests. Then she paused.
She needed a hot tub.
She saw one right there over the white, wrought iron fence.
Could it be his house? Cooper’s?
No. Would he have his house right next to his convention center? No way.
Before she could pull herself away, she noticed a gap. She moved to the crack and pushed the gate completely open.
The sun was setting, filling the sky with colors that reflected off the water.
London didn’t know what was happening, but her feet were being pulled to the hot tub. The one on the property. Maybe it was part of the retreat facilities, she rationalized.
Somehow, she knew it wasn’t, but like Goldilocks in the three little bears’ home, she couldn’t prevent herself from rushing toward the beautiful hot tub. It had a waterfall behind it and was lit up. It was bubbling and gloriously unoccupied.
A pang of naughtiness went through her. Yes, she would probably get kicked out. She was probably being watched by some camera. Or maybe not. The thought thrilled her.
She dropped her towel, kicked her flip-flops off, and slid into the hot tub, loving the way the warm water instantly soothed her. It felt like silk sheets sliding against her skin after a long, hard day.
Leaning back against the edge, she stared at the beautiful sky. Pink, orange, and light blue blended together as the sun gently set behind the mountains.
Breathtaking. That’s what it was. For the first time since walking into Marcia’s office the day before, London realized she was finally relaxing.
Not only was she alone in the hot tub, she couldn’t even hear the convention center over the sound of water falling behind her.
Closing her eyes, her whole being went still. Her mind was blank.
It was like being in her five a.m. Pilates classes when the room had been scrubbed with sage and all that flickered was the light of candles and the breath of the other participants as they held a pose.
Stillness.
It was perfect.
Then she felt someone there.
Flicking her eyes open, she saw a bare-chested man in a swimsuit. He was tall, not overly buff, completely toned, tan, and clean-shaven.
If he was Cooper Harrison, he didn’t look anything like the shaggy bearded guy she’d seen on the back of the book.
“Uh,” she stuttered.
Instantly, he put his fingers to his lips and dropped a towel next to hers, sinking into the water with her. He had piercing green eyes and blond hair shaved on the sides and longer on top. He wore a grin a mile wide. “Let’s not alert anyone to our presence.”
Her heart raced, and it felt awkward. Exciting. She felt paralyzed. Who was he? It dawned on her. “Did you come through the crack in the gate too?”
Hesitating for just a second, he nodded. “Yep.” He was still whispering.
Relaxing, she leaned back again, closing her eyes. “This is heavenly. I feel bad for the schmucks back there, but let’s face it. It’s a meat market. A total hook-up fest.”
“Complete schmucks.”
London felt the brush of his arm and opened her eyes to see him right next to her.
Her heart picked up a notch as she stared into those perfectly green eyes. Then she blinked and scooted over a bit. “H-hi.” It came out awkwardly.
“Sorry.” He didn’t move. “You have the best spot to drown out the noise next to the waterfall.”
Her heart calmed a bit and she relaxed. Of course, he wanted a reprieve, too. “Right.”
He grinned and nodded toward the conference center. “Schmucks might be a bit harsh, wouldn’t you say?”
Then it dawned on her how she sounded. “Not that they’re schmucks. I mean, we’re all here for the same reason. I just can’t believe the flagrant way they look at you and hit on you.”
The side of the guy’s lip went up, and his eyes opened. “C’mon, is it that bad?”
She got defensive. “I had a guy just tell me his name was Dante and he could help me find the seven circles of love.”
Mr. Green Eyes paused, then sputtered. He gave her a gentle splash. “You made that up. Seven circles of love?”
She splashed him back and was surprised to find a genuine grin on her face. “Nope. Just happened. Why do you think I snuck back here?”
The smile stayed on his face and she realized, as they stared at each other and her heart fluttered, this guy was cute. And there was some sort of connection forming between them. London caught herself and looked away. “So why did you sneak in here?”
“Me? Oh.” He looked out of sorts for a minute then shrugged. “Same thing, ya know, needed some peace.”
Feeling slightly embarrassed and not knowing why, she wiped beneath her eyes, hoping there wasn’t a black trail running down her face from the steam.
“You look fine,” he said softly almost as if he could read her mind.
Turning back to him, she noticed him just staring at her. If that was attraction she saw in his eyes, it definitely went both ways. With his sun-streaked blond hair and tan skin, he looked like an outdoorsy guy.
He cupped some water and splashed his face. “Man, it feels good in here.” Then he pulled his wrist up. “Shoot.” He took off the watch around his wrist and tossed it on the side of the hot tub. “I hate it when I get it wet.”
Trying to relax and stop this crazy reaction she was having to him, London put her head back.
He looked at the book next to the hot tub and nodded at it. “Have you read it yet?”
She guessed, since they were all here to hear Cooper Harrison speak, he would have read it. “Nope, is it good?”
His eyebrows went up, and he shrugged. “Yeah, it’s okay. Better than I thought, but sub par compared to the greats like Tony Robbins.”
“Really?” That intrigued her. “Why?”
“I was actually surprised his biggest point is ‘high value.’ If you make yourself a high value kind of person, you’ll attract the same type of person.”
“So only rich people and supermodels are worthy of love?” Maybe the week would turn out to be totally shallow.
“No, not at all.” He sat forward, obviously enthusiastic about the topic. “He’s not just talking about physical beauty or wealth. What I find most intriguing is how high value starts in your mind—with the way we see ourselves.” Lifting a hand out of the water, he brushed it over his face. “The way he breaks it down is sort of interesting, you’ll have to see what you think.”
For a second, she only stared at him. He appeared to be smart and gorgeous. It unnerved her. “So, uh, what do you do?”
He grinned and then pointed to the book. “The book says we shouldn’t define ourselves by what we do. Ask a different question.”
She frowned. Oh brother, was he the type who couldn’t answer a simple question?
He pointed at her. “And, yes, I do have a job. I’m just trying to go a
long with why we’re here, ya know.”
She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Single people paid a lot of money to come and get to know each other, so she should play along.
He laughed. “I can tell you’re excited.”
She let out a breath. “Okay, I’m willing to play the game. Fine, give me a different question.”
He hesitated for a second. “What do you think of yourself as doing?”
She paused, and then decided to tell the truth. “I think of myself running a nonprofit.”
His eyes narrowed. “Really.”
Unable to stop herself when she got talking about it, she continued. “Did you know, even though human trafficking is illegal in all countries, one hundred and fifty billion dollars of illegal profits are made each year? Did you know the two most common forms of human trafficking are sexual exploitation and forced labor? And this also includes exploitation of children and minors?”
He stared at her for a couple of seconds then swallowed. “No, I didn’t know that.” His face took on a pained expression.
His reaction encouraged her to continue. “This isn’t something the media is covering, but it happens at alarming rates. I want to bring attention to it. There’s a task force this guy has put together of past military guys who are trying to make a difference, but they can’t operate under the US government for political reasons and need fundraising.” Under the water, her legs were fidgeting. “So that’s what I would do.” She felt her face turning red, feeling instantly self-conscious. “I mean, you asked.”
He blinked and seemed to be evaluating her. The side of his lip turned up. “I like it. A lot.”
“Anyway.” She was on the verge of more nervous talking, so she pushed the question at him. “What would you do?”
Only hesitating for a second, he grinned, gesturing to her. “I’d do whatever you needed me to.”
She laughed, not expecting that. “Right, you would work for me?”
Giving a firm nod, he grinned. “Sounds like a cause that deserves some attention.”
More blushing. “Thank you.”
He narrowed his eyes. “So you have a website?”
She shrugged. “Yeah. I wish I had more. I’m just not great at fundraising, but I’ve been researching it like crazy, and I have some ideas.”
He grinned. “I’m sure you do. That’s really cool.” He coughed. “Not the human trafficking part, but the part where you want to help stop it.”
He didn’t speak and neither did she.
Then she felt that thing. That connection she’d rarely ever felt with anyone. She had only felt it a couple of times with Dillon. It was that feeling that passes between two people when they are completely on the same page.
He cleared his throat and looked away, grinning. “So, uh, anyway, what do you really do?”
“I work as a personal assistant for a diva.” She thought of Marcia and grinned. Now that was the truth.
The side of his lip cocked up. “Nice.”
“What do you do?”
Cocking his head to the side, he made a face. “Invest. I’m an investor.”
“And you like it?” She asked sarcastically.
He grinned. “It’s fine.”
For a moment, she didn’t know what to say, and it felt awkward.
She nodded to the book. “So overall, did you think it was a good book?”
He shrugged. “It’s okay.”
Her blood stirred. She always liked a good debate. “Just okay? Why?”
Putting up a hand, he took on the gesture of a college professor. “The book totally discounts that sometimes there’s a spark. Something intangible between two people. Something that can’t be measured. That’s what a relationship feeds on. It doesn’t matter how much you try to quantify the relationship. It just works. Doesn’t matter if the couple fights, has different backgrounds, sees nothing the same way. Even if they don’t understand the basic laws of attraction, for some reason they are attracted to each other. Because of that, it works.”
Electricity passed between them, conducted easily through the burbling water. “Oh.”
“Do you agree?”
“With what?”
“Spark?”
The feelings racing through her made it hard to think. “Sure, there needs to be chemistry.”
Leaning closer, he shook his head. “No. I mean pure insight in the moment.” He furrowed his brow. “Honestly, this is the first time I’ve thought about it, but maybe there’s more to love at first sight than I knew.”
London’s heart raced. Spark was definitely happening.
He scooted closer and seemed so relaxed.
London was shocked to see him move so naturally into her space. He said, “I’ve never believed in immediate attraction, insight, or love. But now I’m rethinking everything.”
She blinked, her heart still hammering away in her rib cage like the seven dwarfs pounding away in the diamond mine. “I guess.” She couldn’t help but look at his lips.
He looked at hers. Then, without warning, he shook his head as if to clear it and pulled back out of her space, retreating back against the edge. “But that’s crazy. Right?”
It unnerved her that she was having this kind of reaction to a guy she’d just met. Hadn’t actually met yet. “I … guess.”
It felt like forever passed between them as they both stared into each other’s eyes.
Then he scooted back into her space.
She smelled faint cologne on him, and the intensity of the moment grew.
“Can I kiss you?”
She found it funny he would ask and even funnier that she wanted to say yes.
“Why are you grinning like that?”
Her heart beat at hyper speed. “Because I’m not this kind of girl.”
Gently, he reached up and drew a line from her ear, down her cheek, and to her lips. “What kind of girl is that?”
She was on fire, every part of her wanted to kiss him. “The kind that meets a random guy in a hot tub and kisses him.”
He smiled and leaned in. “I’m not this kind of guy either. Let’s test out my spark theory.”
When their lips met, it felt like more than a spark to her. It was a whole slew of Fourth of July fireworks.
Explosive and brilliant.
When he pulled back, he smiled.
London couldn’t stop herself from smiling too. Warmth filled her. “Wowza.”
He laughed. “Now that’s a good reaction to a kiss in a hot tub.”
She laughed too. Had he really just said that?
Almost immediately, embarrassment filled her. She pulled herself halfway out of the hot tub and let her feet dangle. She told herself to relax. It was stupid to be all flustered. “I cannot believe that just happened.”
Somehow his grin grew even wider.
There was the heart hammering again. Trying to ignore it, she put her hand out in a professional way. “I’m London by the way.”
The spark came back when he took her hand. “London?”
Letting out a nervous laugh, she shook her head. “London Bridge.”
One corner of his mouth turned up, but he couldn’t stop it there, and the other side came up for a full smile.
When she tried to tug out of his grasp, he tightened his grip. “Wait …” His eyes fluttered.
Ripping her hand back, she pushed herself back into the water, loving the way her body felt like spaghetti. “If you sing ‘London Bridge Is Falling Down,’ I’ll punch you in the nose. I’m not kidding.” She closed her eyes and slid down until the water was up to her chin.
A half laugh came out of him. “Wowza, London Bridge.”
She couldn’t help laughing at the way he mimicked her. “Right? My parents willfully did that to me. Believe me, my older brother was brutal in the teasing.”
Coughing and then clearing his throat, he visibly clenched his jaw shut.
London knew he was trying hard to keep some snarky comment in, an
d it didn’t bother her one bit. For some reason, she hoped the encounter wouldn’t end.
Both of them sat there for a few moments, and when she opened her eyes, he was staring at her.
“What?”
“Nothing.” But his gaze was intense.
“Something.”
“Tell me more about you.”
Without warning, thoughts of the beach and Dillon rushed into her mind. If she let this guy get closer to her, it would just open her up for pain.
Watching the play of emotions across her face, he let out a low whistle. “Seems like there’s an interesting story.”
Hesitating, she figured why not spill to a complete stranger? “No, not really. Actually, it’s quite cliché—girl meets boy, falls in love, plans wedding on a Hawaiian beach, and … boy doesn’t show up.”
Seeming to measure her revelation, he squinted. “Ouch.”
His reaction made her laugh. “To boot, I found out later he and my best friend …” She couldn’t even say it.
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
Waving her hand in the air, she grunted out a laugh and wagged her finger at him. “See, I wasn’t going to tell anyone that story this weekend.”
Not reacting for a second, he said, “Why not? Everyone has pain. Most of us wouldn’t be here if we didn’t.”
She hadn’t thought of that. She’d been focused on the meat market and hadn’t even thought about what others were going through. She squinted back at him. “So what’s your pain?”
She knew, from the look on his face, it was the wrong question to ask, but the journalist in her had to know. And, she admitted to herself, maybe it was more than just the journalist who wanted to know.
Letting out a breath, he put his hands up in surrender. “Nothing to tell.”
Suddenly London felt naked, and it had nothing to do with being half-clothed. She’d just bared her soul, and he hadn’t reciprocated in the slightest. She had a flashback to Dillon and the way he would never engage about personal things without drastic measures. “No, of course you don’t have a story.”
He snapped his head up. “What?”
“I sit here and tell you all about me …” She let out a derisive laugh. “Man, I guess I’m the emotional, needy one in my seven circles of hell.” She moved to get out of the hot tub.
