“When are you heading home, Aubrey?” Ian asked.
“I was planning on leaving tomorrow, but…”
Hugh looked at her anxiously. “You think you’ll stay a few more days?”
She shrugged. “I’m not sure. We’ll talk about it,” she said with a wink. “Either way, Mr. Shaughnessy, it was so nice to meet you. You have a wonderful family.”
Ian smiled. “I certainly do. I hope we get to see more of you too, my dear.” He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek before heading off to find his jacket.
Quinn and Anna were the last to say good-bye, and Hugh decided to take a minute to speak with Anna in private. They were out on the front porch when he turned to her. “I’m sure you’re wondering what I’m going to do about the property.”
Anna’s eyes went a little big before she could stop them. “Oh…um…well, I know you need some time to think about it. I mean, of course it would be great if you just said yes, but I’m not that inexperienced, Hugh. I know how things work.”
“It’s a very big decision, Anna, and I don’t want you to get your hopes up. I don’t want to let you down. You know that, right?”
She smiled at him. “Hugh, I don’t expect you to build a resort you don’t want just so I don’t look like a loser to my colleagues. If you want the property, I’m here to help. If you don’t, that’s fine, too. Either way, we’re friends, right?”
He pulled her in for a hug and kissed her on the top of the head. “Always, kiddo. Never doubt that.”
They pulled apart when the door opened and Quinn and Aubrey stepped out. They all wished each other good night and Hugh took Aubrey by the hand, leading her across the yard toward the two-story structure that housed their guest suite.
They silently walked up the stairs in the moonlight. Once inside, Aubrey gently pulled her hand from his. “Your family is really great, Hugh. You’re very lucky.”
He nodded. “I know. I don’t always remember it when I’m away, but when I’m with them I realize how great they all are. It’s not often we’re all together, but even when it’s just a few of us, it feels good.”
“So you’re feeling good right now?” she teased.
“I am,” he said evenly, taking a few steps toward her. “But I could be feeling better.”
She smiled knowingly. “Really? You think?”
He continued to move toward her and noticed for every step he took, she took one backward, heading for the bedroom. Nodding, he said, “Oh yeah.”
“Hmm… Anything I can do to make that happen for you? You know, with feeling better?”
Hugh knew he would never be bored with Aubrey. It didn’t matter what they did or where they were, he loved her teasing ways, her smile, their bantering. Rather than rush the moment and simply scoop her up as he’d originally hoped to do, he continued their game.
“What are you offering?”
Aubrey pretended to think about it. “Well, I suppose I could…give you a shoulder massage.”
“Interesting. But my shoulders feel fine.”
Another few steps.
“I could fluff up the pillows and we can watch television in bed,” she suggested. “I’ll even let you pick the movie.”
Hugh shook his head. “I’m not in the mood for a movie.”
A few more steps.
“Boy oh boy,” she sighed dramatically, “you are a very difficult man to make feel good. How about I just…oh, I don’t know…” She stopped and pulled her shirt over her head, shaking her hair out. “Why don’t I just get naked? How would that make you feel?”
The bark of laughter came out of nowhere and Hugh felt lighter, happier than he could ever remember. “It would make me feel like the luckiest man alive.”
He closed the distance between them, but didn’t touch her until she was standing before him in nothing but white lace panties. Her breathing was ragged as her eyes met his. “How are you feeling now?” she whispered.
“Ready to take on the world,” he growled as he picked her up and tossed her on the bed.
* * *
The next morning, Aubrey awoke with a smile on her face. Hugh was wrapped around her—a favorite sleeping position for them both—and she could already see the first rays of sun coming through the blinds. She sighed with contentment. Maybe she didn’t need to leave today. Maybe one more day…
“Don’t go home today,” Hugh whispered sleepily from beside her, as if reading her mind.
“I thought you had all kinds of yard work to do today. I saw the list you left on the kitchen table.” The man certainly enjoyed making lists. It was detailed almost down to the minute how he was going to accomplish getting his father’s property cleaned up.
“I don’t have to. Not if you’re here. I can put it off until tomorrow. Or the day after.” He nuzzled her neck and Aubrey couldn’t help but stretch to give him better access.
“Oh please,” she said lightly. “No doubt you have tomorrow and the day after already planned out, too. If I stay, you won’t get anything done and then you’ll be grumpy.”
He lifted his head and looked at her. “I don’t get grumpy.”
“You sound pretty grumpy right now.”
He silenced her with a kiss. “Stay. We could go have a picnic on the beach or drive along the coast and find someplace nice to have lunch.”
She gave him a mischievous smile. “Or we could find someplace secluded and go skinny-dipping.”
“What?” he choked. “Why? Why would you even suggest that? It would be light out. The beaches around here are all pretty public.”
She shrugged. “I’ve never really done it. I thought it could be fun.”
“I don’t know about that. The last thing I want is to be caught naked out in public.” He shifted so his arm was around her, her head was nestled on his chest. “Can I ask you something?”
“Anything.”
“Well, I’m curious. How did you end up working for your father?”
Lifting her head, Aubrey looked at him oddly.
“We never talked about it. From everything you’ve told me, it seems you never had a good relationship with your parents, so I was wondering why you’d work for him.”
“We really need to work on your morning-after conversation,” she said with a giggle, placing her head back on his shoulder.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”
She sighed. “No. It’s fine. It’s just… Well, I don’t come off very well in this particular scenario.”
“What do you mean?”
“I did it out of guilt,” she said simply. “He and my mother never let me forget how I let them down with my dancing…”
“You had cancer, for crying out loud! How could they blame you?” he demanded, but she ignored him.
“When I graduated and was looking for a job, my father told me they were looking for someone within his company.” She wrinkled her nose at the memory. “It wasn’t even like he was offering the job as much as he was silently telling me he’d paid for my education and now it was time to pay him back.” Then she shrugged. “I didn’t mind it so much, but it wasn’t my dream job.”
“I don’t think many people get to work their dream job.”
“Yeah, but most people get to have the freedom to choose. It took a while for me to realize he was controlling pretty much every aspect of my life. I’m not proud of that.”
“What would you have done differently?” he asked softly.
“Other than not working for him? I would have moved away, found another job, experienced life! They kept me in a protective bubble for so long I forgot what it was like to do anything. That’s why the things I’ve been doing these last few weeks have been so amazing. To some people they may seem normal or tame, but to me it’s all an adventure. I’ve never felt so alive!”
Hugh hugged her close. More pieces of the puzzle were falling into place. He couldn’t begrudge her recent escapades. She’d needed them. It didn’t mean he wasn’t going to worry about her or wish she’d choose safer hobbies.
“So…skinny-dipping, huh?” he joked.
Her entire face lit up. “Really?”
He shrugged, trying to sound as if he were completely comfortable with the idea. “Sure. There’s a small lake we used to go to back in school. It’s pretty private.”
“Hugh, you don’t have to. I can tell you don’t really want to. We can have a picnic or I can even help you with your dad’s yard—”
“No, no, no,” he interrupted. “I mean it. I don’t want you to have to work on your time off. Especially not around my father’s yard.”
“It’s really not that big of a deal. Once I go home, I’ll just be running errands, getting ready for our trip, and doing some stuff around my house. One is as good as the other.”
“Tell me about what you have to do when you get home,” he said smoothly, trying to change the subject a little bit.
“The usual. I’ll stop the mail, check in with my neighbors to make sure someone looks in on my place. I’m going to try to have lunch with a friend on Thursday, and I have a doctor’s appointment on Friday…” She stopped and thought for a minute.
“Doctor’s appointment? Everything okay?”
She nodded. “Just a routine physical. No biggie. I figure with all this traveling, I might as well get it out of the way. I was due for my annual next month but when I called to make the appointment, they said I could come in this week.”
He sagged with relief. “Oh. Okay. You have your passport and everything you need for the trip to Sydney?”
“Oh, yeah. I have to admit, that’s the leg of the trip I’m looking forward to the most. I’ve never been there but I’ve always wanted to go.”
“You may feel differently after the long flight. I still wonder what possessed me to build there because every time I go, the travel time almost always does me in.”
“Just more time for the anticipation to build.”
He laughed. “We’ll see.”
“I know it’s going to be quick…”
“And most of the time will be spent getting to and from there…”
“You’re really killing this for me,” she admonished playfully. “Hush.”
“Fine. But don’t say I didn’t tell you so. I don’t want you to be disappointed.”
Honestly, Aubrey thought it was sweet he was so concerned. She kissed his chest. “So it’s settled then. I’ll head home tomorrow to get everything in order and today we’ll spend the day helping your dad out together.”
“I guess,” he grumbled.
Now that they’d effectively discussed her—and her family—she felt like it was her turn. There were a few things Aubrey wanted to know and figured now might not be a bad time to bring it up. “So…last night wasn’t so bad, right?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I know you were having some issues with Zoe and the recipes. But everything was great. Everyone enjoyed themselves.”
He shrugged. “I know it seems weird. Or maybe I’m just being ridiculous. I don’t know.”
“It seems to have evoked a lot of good memories for everyone. Surely that can’t be a bad thing.”
He shrugged again. “Maybe.”
“How long has she been gone?” Aubrey asked softly.
“Too long,” Hugh replied. His voice was raw.
She hugged him close. “Tell me about her.”
“I was mad at her.”
That wasn’t the response she had been expecting, and Aubrey’s heart broke for him. “I’m sure that’s a normal response when you lose someone you love. You’re angry at them for leaving you.”
Hugh shook his head. “No. Before the accident. I was mad at her. I was grounded and I did everything I could to avoid being around her when I was home. I wanted to punish her for grounding me.” He gave a mirthless laugh. “She died knowing I was mad.”
“Oh, Hugh…no. She knew why you were lashing out. You were her son. She probably knew you better than you think. You can’t honestly believe she thought you were seriously angry with her. I imagine she figured you’d get over it and she was giving you space.”
He took a steadying breath. “But I’ll never know. I’ll never be able to make it right. There will never be a time when I can go to her and say I’m sorry for what I did and how I acted and how disrespectful I was. And because of me…” He stopped.
Aubrey raised her head and saw the anguish on Hugh’s face. She stroked his cheek as tears began to fall down her own.
“I should have been the one in the car,” Hugh said, his voice cracking. “It should have been me.”
“What are you talking about?”
Sitting up, Hugh climbed from the bed. “It’s nothing. I…I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” He reached for the jeans he’d discarded the previous night and pulled them on. “I’m going to make us some coffee and see what there is for breakfast, okay?”
More than anything, Aubrey wanted to call him back and say the hell with breakfast. But she stared at his retreating back, knowing the moment was gone.
Flopping back on her pillows, she sighed. In all her life, Aubrey couldn’t recall ever losing anyone. Her parents and grandparents were all still alive. She couldn’t imagine what it must have been like for the Shaughnessys to lose their matriarch so tragically and so young. The fact that Hugh somehow felt responsible seemed unbelievable. If he wasn’t willing to talk about it, Aubrey had no idea how she’d find out what had really happened—or how she could help Hugh deal with it.
More than anything, she wanted to help him have some peace. Was that why he was so regimented? So careful with the way he lived his life, because of his mother?
“Eggs or cereal?” Hugh asked, popping his head back into the room as if they hadn’t been discussing something earth-shattering just moments ago.
“Cereal is fine for me,” she said, pasting a smile on her face as she sat up. “I’m just going to throw on a robe and I’ll be out to join you.”
Hugh smiled and walked away, and Aubrey wondered what she could possibly do to draw the man out and help him face what was probably the biggest demon anyone should have to face.
Chapter 9
Six weeks later, she still didn’t have any answers.
Or a clue.
After her time visiting with the Shaughnessys, Aubrey had gone home with every intention of coming up with a way to draw Hugh out. During her short time at home, she had devised multiple ways to bring up the topic of Lillian Shaughnessy’s death, and had even gone so far as to do some research on how the death of a parent affected their children.
None of her knowledge came in handy.
When she and Hugh had met up again to begin their whirlwind resort tour, she had all the confidence in the world about how she was going to rescue him—much like he had rescued her.
Never had the chance.
They had traveled, they had worked. Aubrey had met more people than she could remember and creatively, it was the most exciting trip of her life. Every place they traveled to, all of Hugh’s resorts seemed to bring out a side of her she couldn’t believe existed. For so many years, she had allowed herself to be content to blend into the background, and now it was hard to keep out of the spotlight.
Not intentionally, however.
There was something about Hugh and the people who worked for him that brought out this side of her. For the first time since her days studying dance, Aubrey felt like she fit in with a group of people.
She became engrossed in learning about all aspects of running these luxury resorts. They would arrive and she’d meet up with the team of people Hugh had assigned to help her, but
once she had her plans mapped out for the galas, she would find herself getting involved in other things—cooking, menu planning, directing activities. At one point in Vermont, she even jumped in when they were short on housekeeping staff!
Hugh had a fit at that one, claiming she did not need to be cleaning rooms or filling in for his staff. But he thought she looked cute in the uniform and they made a game out of it as soon as they were alone.
Aubrey blushed at the memory. The man was magnificent in so many ways. He took her breath away on a daily basis—in and out of the bedroom—and yet there was a side of him he kept closed off from everyone.
Even her.
So many times over the course of their trip, she would be laughing and joking and an idea would hit her, and while Hugh would always patiently listen, he didn’t get excited about it or make any sort of commitment. The only time he would comment one way or the other was if she talked of changing something.
It didn’t take long for her to catch on to the fact he didn’t enjoy making changes at his resorts, no matter how inventive or exciting the idea.
Then there were times she’d finish work early and go to seek him out in hopes of getting him to play hooky and go sailing or swimming or—on one particularly adventurous day—jet skiing, but he never went. There was always a very reasonable excuse, but it was as if the man didn’t want to have fun.
She sighed and shook her head. No, that wasn’t right. Hugh could be a lot of fun. They laughed more than she thought humanly possible whenever they were together, and they had eaten at some of the finest restaurants and gone dancing together, but it was just…controlled fun. Wait, was that even a thing? Something like structured playtime? The thought made her laugh out loud.
Or maybe she was just seeing things that weren’t there.
Hugh was a good man. Hell, she’d even call him a great man. So he didn’t like to do anything remotely adventurous. So he was a little reserved and lived his life by his day planner. It wasn’t a crime.
Boring? Yes. Criminal? No.
She was back at home, working out of the small office she had made for herself there. Hugh was down in Florida. He had offered Aubrey the chance to go with him, but she felt tired and a little traveled out. Going from one luxury resort to the next had been great at first, but living out of a suitcase had quickly lost its appeal and she missed being home in her own space. Hugh had grumbled and done his best to persuade her to join him, but she’d held firm.
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