by Taylor Hart
“Got it.”
Her bottom lip shook for a moment, and he wondered if she was using her actress skills, because he was kind of feeling bad for her. She turned away. “To describe how it feels now that he’s announced this engagement to my best friend would be like … like …”
“Walking into an IED?” he filled in for her.
“What?” She flung her head back to him.
“An unanticipated explosion,” he explained.
Her eyes fluttered, and then she awarded him a small smile. Not that he was trying to win anything. “Right.”
“Okay.”
“So I’m thinking the story could be that you and I have been dating since we met at the lake house nine months ago, right before my movie filming started in New York.”
“Really? That long?”
Scarlett’s head bobbed in quick up-and-down motions. “Yes.”
He shook his head. This poor girl. If he was getting the house, they were going to do this right. “No, I met you on your lake a couple of months ago.” He winked at her. “Saved your life, just like you said. Then, when I was in New York over spring break with my brother Grant, we went to an off-Broadway deal. You and I ran into each other, and we just couldn’t believe the coincidence.”
Her eyes fluttered even more. Her cheeks flushed, and she smiled. “It sounds romantic.”
He thought it did too.
“I like it.” She pointed at him. “Will you make sure Grant knows?”
“You bet.” Now that they were building their story, Walker was invested in this now. “You came to dinner with us after, and we hit it off from there. Since you’ve been in New York, I’ve been coming to see you every two weeks, but you’ve come here a couple of times, and I have taken you rowing out on the lake.” He thought of his peace and the sanctuary he would have after this little fiasco. “That’s where you fell in love with me.”
She chuckled. “Are you sure you’re not a movie writer?”
That thought made him smile. “That’s more Grant’s department.” It dawned on him that he wasn’t exactly sure where they were going. “Where is this wedding?”
“We’re going to Calamigos Ranch, outside of L.A. It’s supposed to be nice.”
“Great.”
“Yeah, a bunch of famous people got married there.” She started listing off all the people and what their weddings were like.
“I don’t care,” he said quickly.
“What?”
“I don’t care about who does what with whom. Just so you know, I won’t be your gossip friend.”
She frowned, then shook her head. “Good thing I don’t need you for that.”
He was glad she agreed, and it felt like it was all working out.
She continued to tell him way too many facts about the ex and ex best friend and how they had betrayed her. He got it. They were awful, and he would treat them accordingly.
Next, she moved on to her controlling father. Man, it was a lot. He felt bad for her, but after a while, he started to tune it out just focused on her.
He stared at those pale green eyes, her porcelain skin, and her perfect red hair. Not to mention her perfectly shaped eyebrows. Unable to stop himself, he pointed at her eyebrows and asked, “Are those real?”
She glowered at him. “You’re asking if my eyebrows are real?”
With a shrug, he said, “Sorry, I was distracted by how perfect your face is.”
Scarlett’s mouth fell open slightly. “Oh.”
He grinned at her, thinking she was different from most women he’d been around. Granted, she was rich. And proper, even in the way she spoke. But she was also feisty and frail and vulnerable all at once. “For a movie star, you sure don’t know how to take a compliment,” he teased.
“Humph.” She let out a breath. “Well, you’re not the man I expected to give it.”
He chuckled. “Not bad boy enough for you?”
She shook her head. “I actually didn’t even think of that until you said it last night. But,” she said, sighing. “I feel bad because … I kinda do like the idea of sticking it to my dad, of ticking off my ex.”
He laughed, then gestured for her to continue. “Keep going. Tell me all the stuff I need to know to be an acceptable fiancé. Or, I guess, unacceptable fiancé, right?” He winked at her.
Frowning, she put a hand to her forehead and massaged it. “I don’t know what else to tell you.”
“Tell me about the bridezilla.”
Scarlett let out a small laugh. “Hey, she’s not bridezilla, I like Charlene. She and my brother grew up together and have been together forever, but she looks at him in that way, ya know?”
“No, I don’t know. What way is that way?” He found he actually liked talking to this woman.
“I don’t know, like he’s her hero, like she wants to sneak off and make out with him.”
He grunted. “Hmm, not sure I’ve ever seen that look.”
“Really?”
“No, but maybe you can practice giving me that look, so we can make sure everyone is buying it.”
“You can’t fake the look. You just know it.” She wagged her finger at him. “Plus, your role is a jerk, so I don’t know how much I’ll be giving you that look.”
“Hmm.” Now he had to wonder what it would be like if she gave him that look.
They got to the airport and were ushered right to her private plane, just as Walker had suspected they would be. Being around all these flying machines made him yearn to fly.
As they boarded the plane and got situated, he went from window to window, checking to see if he could see any helicopters.
“What are you doing?”
“Checking for birds.” He continued around the plane, but was disappointed he couldn’t see any out by the private hangars. “Must not be any out today.” He settled next to her in a seat, and they prepared for takeoff.
“That’s right. You fly helicopters,” she said.
“Used to.” He didn’t want to talk about that.
She kept her eyes on him.
“What?” he asked, feeling a bit uncomfortable.
She flashed him a smile. “Maybe your life?”
This felt too close for comfort, but he had to give her something.
“For research,” she said pointedly.
He sighed. “I bet you already know most of it. Grew up with five brothers, Dad passed away serving in the military when I was nine. My mama was a nurse.” He frowned. “Passed away from breast cancer last year.”
Her hand covered his. “I am so sorry to hear that.”
“Thank you.” He shrugged. “My wife died three years ago.” It surprised him how he could barely talk about this.
She didn’t press it.
He moved on. “There’s not much else, you know I was dishonorably discharged last year.” It didn’t feel weird to tell her this. Of course, everyone knew, but he usually never talked about it. “Got onto the Titans and the rest is history.”
She studied him. “How come I don’t believe that?”
“What?” He peeked out of the window and looked again to see if there were any helicopters.
“Nothing. It just seems to me like you might miss flying helicopters.”
He grunted. “Yeah, sometimes life just doesn’t work out.”
“You could fly commercially.” She offered.
He gave her a look that said back off. “Just like you don’t want to talk about those pills, I don’t want to talk about flying helicopters.” He didn’t like using something he knew about her to make her back off, but he didn’t like being pushed about certain things either.
She put up her hands. “Okay, but maybe you’ll be glad to know, after we hit the LAX airport, we’ll be taking a helicopter to the resort.”
“Hmph,” he said, trying not to feel excited about this.
She grinned at him. “The helicopter will stay with us at the resort. Maybe I can get you some fly time.”
&nbs
p; “Maybe,” he said noncommittally, but his fingers itched to hold the wheel again.
It wasn’t long before the plane lifted into the sky. Walker leaned back and thought about spending the next couple of days with a rich heiress and being her bad boy. The fact that he might have a helicopter at his disposal was encouraging. If he could get through the next four days, he would have his lake, his canoe, and his peace of mind. And heck, maybe he would buy his own helicopter and keep it at the lake house too.
Chapter 10
As the helicopter landed on Calamigos Resort, Scarlett turned to Walker. “Are you ready?”
With his reflective sunglasses, his leather jacket, his blond hair longer on top and ruffling into his eyes, and his calm attitude, Walker looked ready for anything. It gave her confidence. The side of his lip twitched up and he said, “No time like the present.”
The helicopter door opened. She got out, and he followed.
Unsurprisingly, her father and brother both met them on the helipad. The Powerses didn’t go anywhere around California, except by helicopter. “Why wait on traffic?” her father would always say with a look of disdain for the people below them in cars.
Her father, wearing khakis and a polo shirt with his salt-and-pepper hair, took a step toward her in his polished black shoes. Even on the island, his casual still looked like he should be at the country club, not on a beach.
Liz, the model wife, stood next to him, wearing a red summer dress and hat.
Her father moved to her, opening his arms. “Scarlett,” he said tightly. “Welcome.”
She went into his arms because she’d been trained to be polite. “Father,” she said, keeping her voice steady. She inhaled his scent of mint and pipe tobacco. Her father still smoked cigars late at night with his scotch, and the scent clung to him.
He held her for an extra moment. “I’m so glad you brought your fiancé.” He pulled back, and she ignored his anger.
She nodded at Liz, not moving to hug or shake hands or anything. “Liz.”
Sunglasses hid Liz’s face and expression, and she didn’t try to reach out to Scarlett. “Scarlett, good to see you.”
A rush of nerves washed through her. They had to keep their story straight to be believable in everyone’s curious eyes. They should have drilled more.
Her brother, Brent, opened his arms, and she went into them willingly. She always looked at her brother, even now, as her playmate. “Hey.” She squeezed him. He smelled like suntan lotion, and that made her happy.
“Thanks for coming, Scarlett.” He gently kissed her cheek and pulled back.
Turning back to Walker, she was surprised to find him reaching for her hand. She took his. It was warm and comforting, and she was grateful.
“Walker Kent.” He put his other hand out to her father first.
Her father took his hand. “Tyrone.”
Scarlett gestured to her brother. “This is my brother, Brent.” She coughed and made a motion at her stepmother without looking. “This is Liz.” Finally, she turned back and flashed Walker a smile. “And this is Walker Kent. My fiancé,” she added ceremoniously.
Walker kept his face neutral and nodded, shaking Brent’s hand. “Nice to meet the both of you.”
“I’m Liz.” Her stepmother pulled off her sunglasses and dramatically reached out her hand like a queen would, like he should kiss the back of it.
Irritation wove through Scarlett. Neither of them pretended to like each other very well.
Walker didn’t kiss it, only nodded, then dropped it.
Inwardly, she smiled. He wasn’t a play-nice kind of guy, and that made her absurdly happy.
Her father wasn’t making any bones about evaluating Walker, a look of uncertainty showing on his face. “I was surprised when Scarlett said she was engaged.”
Walker let out a soft grunt and turned to her, taking her hand. “I would have been happy to tell everyone, but …” His lips stretched in a slow grin. “Scarlett said she wanted her privacy. I was surprised when she announced it at the auction.”
Scarlett considered how real this felt between them. It was probably his hand in hers. She wanted to drop it, but she kept their fingers intertwined. “Sorry to keep it so secret. We wanted privacy to let the relationship develop.”
Liz let out a disbelieving laugh, her eyes trailing over Walker’s body. “This is a man that’s hard to keep secret, isn’t he?”
No one spoke. Scarlett wanted to slap her for being so cougar-ish.
Her brother smiled at them, clearly ignoring Liz. “Welcome, Walker.”
Her father’s face soured. “I guess we’ll go get you introduced to everyone.”
Walker smiled at her father, and she saw mischief in his eyes. “Look, we don’t have to pretend niceties. I know you all don’t care for my type, and I’m fine with it.” Reaching out an arm, he put it around Scarlett’s waist and pulled her quickly against him. “We’ve got each other, and that’s all we need.”
Her heart raced. Yes, this was the bad-boy thing she wanted, but being this close to him made her feel things.
Walker swung gaze around to meet hers. A wicked glint lit his eyes before he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.
It was startling, and at first she thought they’d freaking agreed that there would be no unnecessary kissing. Then she felt herself weaken and get lost in this kiss. For a brilliant moment, it was just them, his arm pulling her closer and her hands slipping behind his neck. He smelled like Irish spring and aftershave and—
Somebody cleared their throat.
She ripped herself away from Walker, stumbling at the abruptness of letting him go. Of course, he reached out and steadied her.
Annoyance rippled through her. What was happening?
Her brother laughed. “Turn it down a notch, kids.”
She turned and knew her cheeks were aflame. She knew she looked out of sorts, because that’s how she felt as she stared into Walker’s blue eyes.
Walker didn’t look out of sorts, though. He didn’t look bothered by any of it. Grinning, he moved his hand to her hers and pulled her closer.
Her father’s gaze rested on her heavily. “I guess the next couple of days will prove most interesting.” He turned and began walking. “Let’s get you both settled. We have all the men in rooms on the east side of the resort and all the women in cottages on the west side. Follow us.”
They walked toward the resort in silence. Scarlett’s heart rate kicked up a notch. She would have to reiterate the deal: no unnecessary kissing. Even if it was an amazing kiss.
The hotel staff had people to take their luggage for them, and Brent told the guys which rooms were theirs. “Walker,” he added, “some of the groomsmen and I are going to go drive some fast cars for a couple of hours while the women weave something.”
Walker glanced at her, and she saw his bad-boy persona fall away. “O-kay?” he said, giving her an unsure look.
Brent turned to her. “Can you do without lover boy for a couple of hours, sis?”
Her brother was teasing her, and she couldn’t help but smile at him. Whenever they were together, she always felt like a kid. Her cheeks were still burning from that kiss. “Yes, of course.”
Brent looked to Walker and lifted his eyebrows. “You in?”
A huge grin spread over Walker’s face. “You bet.”
Brent let out a laugh and nodded toward the parking lot. “Sis, I’ll have your fiancé back to you by dinnertime.”
Speechless, she watched them head off to the parking lot as Brent and Walker spoke animatedly about these fast cars. It was nice to have her brother look like he was having a good time, but she was unsure about Walker going with him.
The bad thing was she was left with her father. “Come on, Scarlett,” he said. “Let’s go to your room. I have some things to discuss with you.”
“I’ll see you at dinner.” Liz excused herself and walked toward the beach.
When Scarlett and her father reached
her room, he turned the key for her and held the door.
Carefully, so she wouldn’t brush against him, she moved past her father into the room. “Thank you.”
“Scarlett, we need to talk. I don’t like get blindsided from the press about who my daughter is engaged to.”
Her heart beat faster. She wasn’t good at confrontations with her father. Her therapist had helped her see that it was because she wanted to please him. Of course she did, she’d retorted to her therapist after her mother died. It wasn’t rocket science. It was Psychology 101. All children wanted to please their parents.
Jerking a thumb to the door, her father let his mask slip. His face turned bright red. “Why was he dishonorably discharged? My people could find nothing out about that, and our family does not need this kind of press.” He rubbed his other hand across his forehead.
This, at least, she could tell the truth about. “He doesn’t talk about it.”
He gave her a doubtful look, then sighed. “Look, Scarlett, I want to talk to you about some things.”
She turned to go the bathroom, feeling tired and worn out and knowing she had to endure four more days of this. “I’m going to freshen up. Then I’m going to find Charlene and help her with whatever craft project she needs me to help with.”
After walking into her bathroom, she heard her father swear. “This is not done. We are not finished.”
Her heart raced. For heaven’s sake, how come she still felt like a little girl around her father? Gripping the sink, she waited for the main door of her room to close. Only then did her breathing ease. He was gone for now.
She looked up at her image in the mirror. Slowly, she pressed her fingers to her lips. It was the second kiss she’d had with Walker Kent, and each one seemed to get better and better.
Chapter 11
Walker walked into the drinks-and-dinner party held in the hotel bar area. The bar opened up onto a deck lit with bright white lights. There were flowers everywhere, and tasteful music played in the background. The deck led to a dock and the beach. It reeked of wealth. Maybe that could really be bottled into cologne. He grinned to himself, amused by his own joke.
