by A. C. Arthur
He tried blinking repeatedly, hoping that when he focused his gaze again, he’d be mistaken, but that hadn’t worked. Now the air froze in his lungs, causing his chest to constrict, and one strangled word tumbled from his lips. “Grace?”
She took a step back, her mouth opening slightly, then closing without a word. That’s how they stood for the next...he didn’t even know how many seconds had passed, and he didn’t dare speak again. As if she’d figured that out, she cleared her throat and finally spoke. “Hello, RJ.”
No, this couldn’t be. Was he sleepwalking? Hadn’t he just thought about his past relationship? Yes, and he’d pushed that memory way back to the place he’d buried it for the last ten years. Only now, it was right here, just a couple feet away from him.
Grace Hopkins. His Grace.
The first and only woman he’d ever loved, the woman he’d wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Dragging a hand down his face, RJ shook his head as if that were going to clear all this away. She was still standing there wearing very short shorts that showed off the rich mocha complexion of her long, gorgeous legs. A white T-shirt fit perfectly against the curve of her breasts and a gold heart pendant dangling from a choker necklace brushed over the hollow of her throat.
“It’s good to see you again,” she said when it seemed she might be the only one capable of speaking at this time.
Memories tangled and fought inside his mind. Grace had been his everything. She was the first and only woman to claim his heart. A heart she’d held so tightly in the palm of her hand that she’d been able to crush it with one, simple word—no. Muted pain rested in the center of his chest.
He hadn’t seen her since that awful night years ago, but now she was here. It was Grace’s voice he heard, her smile he saw as her lips tilted slowly. She eased an arm from behind her back to wave her hand at him as if they were long-lost friends. He didn’t know what to say or do, which was uncharacteristically strange for him. Trying to get his mind right and act like he had some semblance of brain function, he gripped his phone tightly in one hand and nodded.
“What are you doing wandering around out here in the dark?” It wasn’t the most pressing question at the moment, but he was still working up the nerve to ask the other one.
She shrugged, shifting her weight from one foot to the next, and dropped her arms to her side. “Going for a walk, which actually seems like the same thing you were doing.” He should’ve expected the quick and snappy response. It was her signature and matched her ambitious and flirtatious personality perfectly. She loved to talk. Where some women might like cuddling after sex, Grace had been a talker. Those were the nights he’d learned so much about her. Unfortunately, the one time he’d needed her to be chatty, she’d clammed up and walked away from him for what he thought was going to be forever.
He had to ask her. It made the most sense that this next question come, he just didn’t know how he was going to feel about her answer. “It’s been a long time.” He dodged the bullet again.
“Yeah. It has.”
“You look...um...you look—” He noticed something else that made this entire scenario stranger. “Is that a vibrator?”
CHAPTER TWO
GRACE DID THE exact opposite of what he expected. She lifted her arms, extending them in front of her so the vibrator—he now had no doubt of what it was—was pointing directly at him. “This? Um, yeah. It is. But it’s not what you think,” she said in an obviously flustered tone.
This night couldn’t possibly get any more confusing. Not only was he standing there staring at the woman who’d turned down his wedding proposal, but that woman was also holding a vibrator in a way that had his dick pulsing with need. If he weren’t suffering from mild shock and experiencing a steady buzz of arousal, he might’ve laughed.
“Did you find that out here?” If she had, he was going to have some strong words for the management at Marina Bay.
“No.” She huffed, this time reaching her free hand up to tuck strands of hair behind her ear. “Like I said, it’s not what you think.”
“What exactly do you think I think?” Every question he asked caused some level of anxiety because he wasn’t sure if he really wanted to know the answer.
She tilted her head, giving him a knowing look. “That I’m out here looking for pleasure.”
He lifted a brow in question, and he had to shift his stance a bit when his dick jumped at that salacious thought, but he wasn’t going to state the obvious. “You’re out here holding a vibrator.” Okay, he’d just stated the obvious. “Is it yours? How’d it get out here?” And can I please watch you use it? Those words floated dangerously in the forefront of his mind.
“No. I mean, yes.” She paused, shook her head and huffed again. “It is mine. It rolled off my balcony and I had to come get it.”
Her arm moved as she spoke, and he was barely able to focus on her words because he was staring at that toy and the way her nipples were now pressing against the material of her T-shirt. “So you were gonna use the vibrator in your room, but somehow it rolled off your balcony. I stepped on it and almost busted my ass, now you’re standing here holding it like—”
Like she was giving it a hand job, which made him uncharacteristically jealous.
“Yes,” she replied, and squared her shoulders as if trying to find some semblance of control in this very awkward situation. She licked her lips and RJ couldn’t help it—he groaned.
Her eyes widened and dammit, she licked her lips again. At least this time she figured out the error of her ways and dropped her gaze from him, looking down at the vibrator again. With a shake of her head she folded her arms across her chest. Now he could only see the globular top of the sex toy tucked between the warmth of her arms.
He swallowed, hard, and then cleared his throat.
“This is a crazy way for us to meet again.” Her chuckle sounded nervous, but Grace was the most courageous woman he’d ever known. “It’s good to see you.”
It was great to see her, too. He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed looking into her eyes until right this moment. When they lived together he’d spent his days at work looking forward to walking through the door into his penthouse and seeing her sitting at her desk typing, or lounging on the couch watching one of her favorite sitcoms, laughing heartily at some line she’d heard a billion times before.
“Yes. It’s really nice to see you, too.” After all this time...and after she walked out on him. He sighed. It was time to stop letting confusion rule this conversation. “Strange that we grew up in the same city, lived together for a year and now we’re running into each other here, when we’ve managed not to see each other for the last ten years.”
The memory of her walking away from him in that crowded restaurant was still so fresh in his mind. He gritted his teeth to keep the pain and irritation at bay. It annoyed him how quickly he could flip from heartwarming memories of their time together to simmering rage for the gaping hole she’d left in his heart.
She nodded. “You’re right. It’s been that long. And I’m still living in New York.”
“Yet we haven’t seen each other until now.” He knew he was repeating himself. It was hard not to. He was still grappling with everything that had happened in the past few minutes.
“Well, that’s not actually by chance.” She cleared her throat and shifted so that her arms moved a little. The action pushed her breasts up higher and his throat tightened.
“What do you mean?” It occurred to him then that Grace was a journalist. “Did you find out from one of your colleagues in the press that we were here?” Although, no one in the media was supposed to have that information.
“Not exactly. I’m writing a story and when I reached out for an interview, I was told you’d be here.”
Damn, this night just kept getting better. Standing a few feet away from his ex, who was still gripp
ing a vibrator, wasn’t going to be the worst part of this night. He could feel it in the lump that had just formed in the pit of his stomach. “You’re writing a story about what or who? And who exactly told you I was here?”
“Well, not you, specifically.” She tilted her head again, and strands of her hair brushed along the line of her neck, touching that soft spot just above her collarbone he used to love kissing. The jolt to his already burning desire wasn’t enough to keep his mind from churning over each word she was saying.
“Why don’t you just tell me specifically what you’re talking about?” Even though he had a sinking suspicion he wasn’t going to like it.
She dropped her arms to her sides and lifted her chin. This time his gaze focused on hers.
“I’m writing a story about the fashion house rivalry between RGF and King Designs.” His fingers fisted the moment she named his company. “More precisely, it’s a story about Ron Gold and Tobias King. I have an interview with Veronica King. She’s the one who told me this is where I could find the entire family in one place. To make it easier to speak to everyone integrally involved in the feud.”
RJ’s nostrils flared and the temper he was typically good at holding at bay was on the brink of implosion. “Are you serious? Why would Veronica tell you we’re here? She knows Chaz and Riley wanted the location of their wedding kept secret.” She couldn’t really mean what she’d just said. Of all the people in this world, Grace knew how he felt about the feud, and she knew how protective he was of his family. This had to be a cruel joke, like the manner in which they’d reunited.
“I’m very serious about this and I don’t know why Veronica gave me the information instead of just granting me an interview back in New York. And listen, before you go off about this, I’m the best person to write this story and you know it. I know you and your family, and I—”
“You,” he said in a tone that was deathly calm, but as lethal as he’d ever sounded in his life, “will go back to your room, pack your stuff and get the hell off this island. And there will be no story. I’ll see to that.”
If he had to burn down whichever newspaper, magazine or other outlet had authorized it, he would do just that. Nobody was going to write about his family’s past for purposes of embarrassing or exploiting them in the media. Especially not the woman he used to love.
* * *
It was RJ’s turn to walk away from her, and he’d turned so fast, Grace almost let him go without saying another word.
“I’m not leaving,” she said before he could get too far away.
When he stopped, she knew this conversation was about to go as badly as was possible. RJ was not a man who took no for an answer, not easily, anyway. Even though he’d surprised her when he’d let her walk out of that restaurant ten years ago and never tried to contact her again. She told herself it wouldn’t have changed anything if he had come after her; she’d made up her mind, but for a while the realization that he hadn’t even tried had stung. She’d gotten over that, just like she’d gotten over him.
His shoulders were broad and looked strong in the tight-fitted shirt he now wore. His sweatpants, hanging low on his waist, had done nothing to cover the semi-erection she’d glimpsed before he turned away. It had her mind wandering to all the passionate nights she’d spent in his arms.
“This is my job, RJ, and it’s an important story, one that needs to be told.” He didn’t move, so she couldn’t see his face, but it didn’t matter—she’d never forget how he looked. His head was bald now, a new look from the last time she’d seen his photo in the media, but he still had the goatee, neatly maintained as always. He also still had thicker and fuller eyebrows than she could ever hope for, and his eyes were the deepest pools of dark brown she’d ever seen. Despite being an excellent swimmer, this was a place she’d drowned more times than she could count. She’d stared into RJ’s eyes on so many occasions, and into his heart. Those glimpses had made her fall in love with him in the first place, that rare access he’d given her to the man beneath the gruff exterior.
Why that thought made her chest ache now, she didn’t want to explore, so she continued, “What happened between Ron and Tobias set the stage for what the fashion industry is experiencing now for the first time. An intense rivalry and professional face-off between the top two designers in the game. The top two Black designers. You know that’s groundbreaking.”
“No!” he yelled, turning around, and she almost jumped back. It was exceedingly rare to see RJ this angry. He took his reputation and that of his family very seriously, so he always tried to maintain decorum, regardless of the situation. “That’s my family and you know I don’t tolerate any bullshit when it comes to them.”
“This is my career” was her firm and resounding retort. He wasn’t the only one who could be passionate about something. “Writing this story will give me the chance at a byline. I’ve worked extremely hard for this, and I’m not going to let you stop me from achieving it.” The same way she hadn’t let his marriage proposal deter her from going after her goals. It just wasn’t in her to back down, even though watching him look at her with disdain in his eyes was breaking something deep inside her.
He closed the space between them quickly, and she momentarily considered stepping back. But no, if RJ wanted to go toe-to-toe with her that’s what they’d do. She had just as much to lose here as he thought he did.
“That feud has been blown out of proportion for years and it’s none of anybody’s business how or why it started.”
“It’s everyone’s business if it became a blueprint for their success. Don’t you see that? What Ron and Tobias have done is historic and without that feud propelling the competitive edge that’s formed two fashion empires, it might never have happened. You can’t deny that.”
“I can’t condone anyone profiting from it and I’ll never consent to my family’s name being dragged through the mud.” He clamped his lips down tight and gave her a stony expression. “How can you do this? You know my family. I thought you cared about them. You were so close to them at one time.”
Oh no, he was not going to guilt her. Becoming part of his family back then had been easy and heartwarming. Knowing she’d been leaving them the night she walked away from RJ had been crushing. “Don’t insult me like that. I did care about your family, and you—although now I’m wondering why, considering you’re acting like a domineering brute right now.”
He looked at her incredulously. “I’m acting like a man who’s been blindsided. Again.”
This was turning out to be more difficult than she’d thought. She knew reuniting here and under these circumstances wasn’t going to be simple for either of them, but she had hoped for cordial and with the least amount of emotional impact as possible. That may have been too optimistic.
“You’re acting like a guy not used to getting his way.” And that wasn’t as easy to say as it should’ve been. She didn’t want this to be about their past, but there really was no way of doing this without walking that path. “If you’re still angry with me about the proposal, that’s one thing. But don’t try to stand in the way of my career as retaliation.”
He came even closer, his gaze following the strands of hair resting on her shoulder. Her body was a traitorous trickster, immediately forgetting the anger and instead letting the sneaky tendrils of need ease down her spine. She didn’t want to yearn for RJ again, not for one second. But there was no denying the attraction was still there between them, as strong as ever. How was she supposed to get this job done if all he had to do was look at her and her mind filled with memories of how great things had been with him?
When his eyes moved from her hair to her lips, she sucked in a breath. Her breasts ached with need for him to touch them and her fingers tightened around the vibrator she still held. The memory of how she’d planned to use it was still fresh in her mind.
“You shouldn’t have based yo
ur climb to success on my family.” His gaze dropped and he stepped away before her mind could register that he was no longer near her. Unfortunately, her body had gotten the message and protested the loss of warmth with a shiver that made her teeth chatter. Before he turned to leave, he said, “You’d better come up with a plan B for your career, Grace, because I’m going to kill this story.”
CHAPTER THREE
WELP, THE VIBRATOR was done.
She dropped it—along with her optimism about a polite reunion with RJ—into the trash can the moment she returned to her room. The base where the batteries were inserted was cracked—maybe from RJ stepping on it—so that the batteries wouldn’t stay in. After closing the patio doors with a thud, she moved through the space, yanking off her clothes and tossing them into the bag she’d designated for her dirty laundry. It wasn’t the patio’s fault. It was Eddie’s fault for calling her with that nonsense about her ability to write an unbiased story. Of course she could—that’s precisely what she’d been doing her entire career. The audacity of him to think that just because she’d slept with RJ ten years ago...
Damn, even the thought of that man being inside her induced a reaction from her body. A flush of warmth spread throughout her as she recalled watching his eyes go dark while staring at the vibrator in her hand. She’d tried to convince herself it was the obvious erotic mood created by the presence of a sex toy, but the moment he’d stepped close to her, she’d known that was just an excuse. There’d never been another man who sparked the intense and immediate physical response in her that RJ did. It had been foolish to believe that the years they were separated might’ve proved that statement false.
Just as foolish as thinking that because she’d convinced herself she’d done the right thing by refusing to marry him, the deep emotion she’d felt for him would somehow vanish, the way she had from his life. She didn’t call it love anymore; she couldn’t. It wouldn’t make sense for her to still be in love with the man she knew she couldn’t have. Her career had to come first. She’d needed to become Grace Hopkins the journalist before she could ever accept being Grace Hopkins Gold, a member of the fabulous Gold family. RJ was an all-in kind of guy, and family was extremely important to him. She knew not only from witnessing him with his parents and siblings, but also because of the talks they’d had in the wee hours of the morning about the future home and family they’d create. Things Grace knew she wanted at some point in her life, just not when RJ had proposed. His proposal wasn’t a total surprise to her, and it hadn’t been totally unwanted. The timing had just been off. But she’d been sure that wasn’t what RJ wanted to hear. His career had been decided and approved by his family; there was never any struggle to find his place. For her, it was the opposite, and he wouldn’t have understood if she’d tried to offer her explanation. Now they were here.
