Romancing the Rival (Accidentally Yours)

by Jennifer Shirk

  She shrugged a shoulder, wishing Lucas would stop looking at her as though she were on the witness stand. “I didn’t hide anything from Scott. I just never had the time to do any sketching when we were together.” Very true. Although, even if she’d had the time, she doubted she would have done any drawing in front of him.

  “Interesting.” Lucas held out his hand. “May I see them?”

  “Absolutely not. I’ve never shown my work to anyone so I’m not about to have you be the first. No offense,” she added with a smirk.

  He grinned back. “I understand. But you do realize that this only reinforces the fact that I was right about you and Scott.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Couples don’t hold secrets from each other, no matter how small.”

  “Come on, that’s not true.”

  “Oh, yes, it is.” He crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Admit it. You were worried about what Scott would think of them.”

  She looked away, unable to meet his bold, all-too-knowing stare.

  “You were, weren’t you?”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” she huffed out.

  “Ridiculously right, you mean.”

  She hated how his mind worked and how he thought he was so clever and knew so much about her. However…the more she thought about it, the more she realized he may have scored a direct hit with that quick assumption. And she hated that even more.

  Scott thought her working at The Harbor Light was beneath her and wanted her to find a more substantial job in the city once they were married. It was an area of strife between them. She loved working at the hotel and didn’t want to abandon her friend and manager, Kinsley. Plus, Cape Harmony was the only home she’d ever known. Her friends and the people in town were like family. The only family she had left, until she met Scott.

  She gathered up her drawings and pressed them against her chest. “I don’t need to hear any more of your relationship psychoanalysis. I’m going to bed and, if you don’t mind, I’m taking my doodles with me.”

  Lucas held up his palm. “Elena, I didn’t mean—”

  “Yes, you did. And you obviously meant every word you told Scott, too. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have said them.” To her horror, tears began to well up in her eyes again. But before they could spill and she’d embarrass herself in front of him, she turned away and dashed up the stairs.

  …

  With a needling mixture of guilt and disappointment, Lucas watched Elena disappear up to her bedroom. Dammit. Sometimes he really was a cold jackass. Just like his ex-wife had told him before she’d left for good.

  Elena seemed to hate his guts, too. Why he had to go and make matters worse, he had no idea. He often spoke his mind without thinking. Even Scott had taken what he had said about marriage too much to heart.

  Of course, Lucas hadn’t meant to hurt her feelings tonight. He was trying only to help her move past her breakup with Scott. To think logically. Like him. That kind of reasoning had always served him well in business. In relationships, however…maybe not so much.

  He was a little “detached in the emotions department” as his ex-wife had put it. But that’s what happened when your parents abandoned you. Kind of hard to invest your emotions in people when you weren’t sure when you’d be let down again. At least he knew how to charm women (with the exception of Elena) and have fun on the surface. That’s about as far as Lucas would let people in, which was why he now invested more time in his career, trying to become a partner in his firm. He had failed in his marriage, but he’d have victory in at least one thing in his life. And he’d do anything to make sure of it.

  He checked his phone. It was almost midnight now. Damn, time was slipping away. He really needed to get to work on that ad campaign. When he returned his cell to his back jeans pocket, he noticed a sheet of paper on the floor. Maybe Elena had dropped it in her haste to get away from him.

  He reached down and picked it up. It was one of Elena’s drawings. Curiously, he studied the color-penciled etching for a few beats.

  Hmm…not bad.

  Her own version of Santa Claus—a little thinner and more fit—and instead of a sleigh, he was on a Jet Ski. Kind of a fun, cool shore-town take on a classic figure. A little crude, since it looked freshly drawn, but still, the woman had talent.

  Lucas glanced back up the stairs. If Elena found out he’d seen her drawing, she’d probably poke his eyeballs out with her pencil. Or worse. He was about to carefully place the sheet down where he’d found it, but the rendering had his mind suddenly turning over with ideas for his ad. Surely it wouldn’t hurt to use it for inspiration. He’d make sure the drawing was put back exactly where it was when he was done, but first he wanted to study it a little while longer.

  Once he had his fill, he went over to his bag and pulled out the files he’d brought with him, then went to the dining table and sat down. In his mind, phrases and scenes began taking root, and his creative juices flowed.

  Maybe running into Elena up here wasn’t such bad luck after all. In fact, maybe it would turn out to be the best thing that could have happened to him in a long time.

  And with that in mind, he found a pen and got right to work.

  Chapter Three

  Elena’s eyes sprang open. What the hell? Her face felt like it’d been resting in a snow cone. Who turned off the heat? She huddled tightly together in her blankets and shivered.

  Probably that Lucas Albright’s fault. Like he hadn’t made her suffer enough already by breaking off her engagement and then showing up here when she was trying to forget all about that and him. Now he was plotting her death through hypothermia.

  What had she ever done to him?

  She reached for her phone on the nightstand and looked at the time. Oh, for Pete’s sake! And it was five a.m. too! He really was the Spawn of Satan.

  She flung the covers off and stepped out of bed. Brrr… The wood floor felt like she’d stepped onto an ice skating rink. She pulled a sweatshirt out of her suitcase and put on an extra pair of socks before heading downstairs to confront the Snow Miser himself.

  As she came down the steps, she saw Lucas was awake, too, and already had a fire burning in the fireplace. It figured he’d be enjoying a warm fire while she froze her ass off. Although the temperature downstairs was much better than her room, it still wasn’t what she would call toasty, all things considered.

  “What’s wrong with you?” she said as she walked in front of the fire and held her hands out to warm them. “Are you that psychotic that you’re trying to freeze me out?”

  Lucas turned to her with raised eyebrows. “Hey, as soon as I noticed the electricity was out, I started building you a fire. How is that psychotic?”

  “The electricity is out?” She glanced around and saw lit candles strategically placed in the room. “Oh.”

  “Yeah, that’s why the heat isn’t on. The snow probably took down some power lines. And getting this fire going was not an easy feat, either. Most of the wood was left outside and unprotected, so it got wet from the snow. Luckily I found a few dry pieces.” He pointed to a kettle sitting above the flames on a hook. “I’ve got some coffee heating up. Should be ready in a few minutes.”

  She lowered her arms and blinked, suddenly feeling—of all things—a little thankful she wasn’t here by herself. After all, Lucas had built a nice fire and even had the resourcefulness to make coffee for her. If she were alone, she’d still be freezing and without caffeine. “Thank you,” she muttered.

  Lucas took a plate from the dining table and held it out to her. “Bagel?” he offered.

  He had food, too? She hesitated.

  “I kind of noticed you didn’t bring too much in the healthy-food department,” he said with a sardonic grin.

  She jammed a fist on her hip. “Hey, I’m on vacation. I’m not supposed to eat healthy. I’m supposed to indulge my sorrows. In case you’ve forgotten, I was supposed to be married this month.”

  Lucas sighed. “No,
I haven’t forgotten.” He held the plate out closer to her. “If it helps, they’re chocolate chip bagels.”

  Good grief. Not only did he have food, but chocolate food. He was slowly killing her in a different way now. Why did he have to be so nice to her? It was terribly hard to keep hating him when he acted like that.

  She reached out and took one. “Thank you,” she said again quietly.

  He cocked an eyebrow. “Wow, you do realize you’ve now thanked me twice in less than five minutes. Maybe you’re seeing that I’m not such a mean guy.”

  She snorted. “All I’m seeing is that you’re really pushing your luck.”

  “Fair enough,” he said, his eyes lighting with humor. “Maybe I am, a little. But I don’t want there to be bad blood between us.”

  “Look, I’m sorry, Lucas, but don’t try to be my friend right now. Please. Because you’re not and never will be. Just don’t say anything else.” She took a bite out of her bagel and turned away. She was starving and the bagel was soft and delicious, but it went down her throat like a lump of clay.

  Elena hadn’t meant to sound so blunt and curt, but Lucas had to know that she couldn’t simply act as if everything was okay between them. Because it wasn’t. And it never would be.

  “I’m sorry you feel that way, Elena. And I’m sorry I hurt you, but I’m not sorry for what I said to Scott.”

  Elena sighed as she stared out the window at the beautiful snowy landscape. You had no right, she wanted to tell him. Best man or not. She and Lucas could go round and round on this issue and never agree. But she certainly wasn’t about to argue with him. Actually, she didn’t even want to talk to him anymore. Period.

  She just didn’t have the energy. She was tired, cold, hungry, and to make matters worse, her almost-wedding to Scott was now at the forefront of her mind again because of this man.

  Worst. Vacation. Ever.

  She had to get out of this condo. Get away from Lucas. Every minute she spent in his presence caused the knot of tension in her stomach to tighten.

  “Are the roads safe to travel?” she asked after a few beats of silence. When no response came, she turned to him. “Well?”

  He raised his brows. “Oh, now you want to talk to me?”

  “Lucas.”

  “Okay, fine,” he said, handing her a cup of coffee. “I checked my phone and the roads aren’t clear yet.”

  Oh, joy. More time with Mr. Know-It-All. She was hoping she could just finish her bagel, change, and go clear her car out so she could leave here—and, more importantly, leave Lucas and be home before lunch. If any more snow was in the forecast, she was not above attempting to ski home.

  She raised the mug to her lips and took a sip. Oh. Wow. The man obviously had many faults, but he made a heavenly cup of coffee. Not that she would tell him so.

  Lucas started straightening folders he had scattered on the dining table. When he caught her looking, he shrugged. “I was struck with some inspiration last night,” he said by way of explanation. “I have a deadline on Monday, which is why I thought I’d come up here to work.”

  “You were struck, huh? Too bad it didn’t leave a mark.”

  He stopped fiddling with his papers and grinned at her. “You know what? You’ve changed.”

  “Yes, I know. I’m single now,” she said, overly deadpan.

  He shook his head. “No, the Elena Mason I knew was always so sweet.”

  “Just to people I like.”

  “Aha. So at one point in our lives you did used to like me.”

  Yes.

  Ugh. Where did that come from? No. Absolutely not.

  Maybe.

  Okay, months and months ago, she might have liked him—as a friend. May have even thought he was quite handsome too. Yet another thing she would never tell him.

  “Not particularly,” she lied. “I was nice to you only for Scott’s sake.”

  “Ouch.” Lucas rubbed his heart as if he were pained. But she knew better. The man had no heart.

  “Not that I believe you,” he added. “The three of us had some fun times together in New York, like when I took you guys to that bar in Midtown that looked like a library. Remember how all the cocktails were named after books? And you were determined to drink every one you’ve read—and almost did—until I stopped you at Twilight. Plus, you’re just not that good of an actress to pretend to like me.”

  Yeah, those had been some good times. But things were different back then. Back before she realized how cynical he was toward marriage. Plus, she’d heard enough of Lucas’s know-it-all commentary. He presumed to have her completely figured out like some elementary school crossword puzzle. Ha! Well, he didn’t know her at all.

  She placed her coffee mug on the table, along with her half eaten bagel. “I’m going to go pack now.”

  Lucas frowned. “Pack? You didn’t even finish your breakfast.”

  “I’m finished.” Finished with you and finished with this disastrous situation. She turned and began walking toward the stairs. “Plus, with me out of your way, you’ll have plenty of uninterrupted work time.”

  “You know, I really don’t have that much more work to do.”

  “Mm-hmm.” She continued walking.

  “Elena, why don’t you finish your breakfast? I promise I won’t mention marriage or Scott again. Besides, it’s early and I don’t want to argue with you anymore.” He gestured to the sofa. “Please sit and relax.”

  She stood there, debating. She supposed she could endure his company just a bit longer and finish her bagel at least. On a sigh, she walked back over to her plate and sat with it on the couch.

  “So what are we going to do?” she asked after a minute of silence.

  He poked the logs around in the fireplace then turned to her. “Do? Why do we need to do anything? I thought you were on vacation.”

  “Well, I am on vacation. It’s just that I usually like some sort of…”

  “Structure?” he finished for her.

  “I— Yes, how did you know that?”

  The corners of his mouth flickered. “You can learn a lot about people when you observe them.”

  She almost choked on her bagel. “Wh-why would you be observing me?”

  “Maybe because you’re so interesting to watch.”

  She swallowed. Hard. “I don’t know what you mean,” she said, brushing off imaginary crumbs from her pajama bottoms and avoiding his piercing blue gaze. “I don’t do anything out of the ordinary.”

  He folded his arms, his eyes sparkling with amusement. “Oh, you don’t? Well, what would you be doing if I wasn’t here?”

  She thought for a second. “I’d probably draw for one to two hours, then I would shower for about ten minutes, then forty-five minutes later I would—”

  He held up a hand and chuckled. “How about we deviate slightly from those tight-knit plans of yours, shall we?”

  “H-how do you want to deviate?”

  “Well, nothing as remotely fun as what you’re obviously picturing.”

  Her cheeks caught fire. What had I been picturing? “What do you have in mind then?”

  He picked up a deck of cards off the table beside him and started shuffling. “Do you like games?”

  “I love games.”

  “What’s your favorite?”

  “I’m great at Pictionary.”

  He chuckled. “Gee, why am I not surprised that the artist would like a drawing game?”

  She gave him a self-deprecating grin. “I just like to draw. I’m hardly an artist, Lucas.”

  “I beg to differ.”

  “You’ve never even seen my drawings.”

  He opened his mouth, looking about to correct her, but instead placed the cards on the table. “Cut the deck.”

  She did as she was told and he picked them back up again then shuffled some more. She watched him silently, mesmerized by how skillfully he handled the cards. “Do you gamble a lot?” she blurted.

  His hands stopped and he gave
her a questioning look. “No. Why would you think that?”

  “You shuffle the cards like a professional.”

  He shrugged. “Just played around with them a lot in my room when I was growing up. I bring a deck with me whenever I travel for business. It’s one of the few things you can do on your own to entertain yourself. I find it pretty relaxing, too.”

  She nodded. “I know what you mean. That’s exactly why I draw. I can tune out the outside world and just…let go. Be free. It’s the only time I feel I can.”

  Smiling, she looked up and noticed Lucas had stopped shuffling and was now staring at her. She had no idea what was going through his mind, but she had the awkward feeling that she’d shared too much with him, and perhaps he had realized it, too.

  “Um, maybe you should just deal now,” she suggested.

  “Right.” He cleared his throat. “Ever play poker?”

  “No.”

  “Gin rummy?”

  “No.”

  “Ever play any card games?”

  “I played Old Maid in kindergarten.”

  He raised his gaze to the ceiling and sighed deeply. “You can’t play Old Maid with a regular deck of cards. How about I teach you something simple. Like Crazy Eights.”

  “Ooh! I have played that one.”

  “Thank God. I was about to question your upbringing.”

  The question of her upbringing brought to mind her parents, so his joking comment fell flat to her ears. She must have done a poor job of hiding her feelings, too, because Lucas automatically reached for her hand.

  “Hey, what happened just then?” he asked in a surprisingly soothing tone. “One minute you’re smiling, then the next it looked as if you saw a ghost.”

  Her heart started pounding. From his touch or the topic, she wasn’t sure. “It’s nothing,” she said, pulling her hand away. “Just deal.”

  The last thing she wanted from Lucas Albright was any comfort. It was because of him that she’d be facing the holidays by herself—Christmas being the absolute worst. There’s nothing like having all your friends tied up with their own families to remind a woman she had no one in her life.