by Eliza Boyd
Maxwell had done just that. He’d gone on to have a billion dollars in his bank account by age thirty. Two years later, he’d doubled it. He was smart with his money and knew how to get what he wanted.
Right then, he wanted Alexis.
She wasn’t something he could throw money at, but he’d figure out how to get her anyway.
Maxwell let a grin pop up on his lips. He’d been doing that a lot lately. Alexis brought smiles out of him, and they were addicting. He hadn’t realized how little he’d smiled until then, but being around her made him do it more often. And he wanted to hold on to that. He hoped he could.
As he thought about her and how she made him feel, the beach fell away from his vision. A few steps later, pain exploded in his shoulder as something solid collided with it and knocked him to the ground. On his back, staring up at the sky, he grabbed his shoulder, rubbing it to ease the ache already building. But then laughter bubbled up throat as he speculated if this was some kind of cosmic payback for what he’d done to Alexis. It was a wonder she’d even spoken to him again after he’d smacked her with his car door. Instead, they were on the verge of starting a new relationship.
It was an entertaining and memorable story he could one day tell his own grandkids, perhaps—just like he’d imagined everyone else at this resort having.
Memorable, absolutely. But the entertaining part flew out the window when he realized what had ran into him.
It was none other than Gabe.
“Sorry, man,” he said, coming up to Maxwell as he sat up and brushed the sand off his body. “I must not have been watching where… Oh, hey.” As he reached a hand toward Maxwell to help him up, he said, “Aren’t you the one who gave Lexi a job this week or whatever?”
Maxwell took his hand and hoisted himself up. “That would be me,” he said, barely able to keep himself from gritting his teeth. He dusted his hands off and then lifted one in a wave, intending to leave. This run hadn’t worked its magic, so all he wanted to do was get back to Alexis.
“Wait,” Gabe said, jogging to catch up with him. He fell into step as Maxwell strode back to the resort. “I actually wanted to talk to you.”
That made Maxwell stop. He pointed to his chest. “Me?”
“Yeah. Look.” In front of Maxwell, Gabe put his hands on his hips. “I don’t know what she told you about me and what happened with us, but I wanted you to hear the truth. You know, just in case she…” Tilting his head, he gave him a knowing look.
But Maxwell wasn’t following. He narrowed his eyes, folding his arms over his chest. “In case she what?”
His head swayed back and forth like he wasn’t sure if he should say it. Ultimately, he did in a low tone, one corner of his lip pulling down. “In case she’s already hit you up for money.”
The crease in Maxwell’s brow deepened, and he solidified his stance. That was the last thing he expected Alexis to do. He’d tried to offer her money and she’d refused, so what would make this man think she’d do that? “Come again?” he asked, incredulous.
Gabe’s hands flew up into the air. “I don’t want to be the one to tell you this, but man to man,” he said, waving one of those hands between them, “I feel like I should let you know before you make the same mistake I did.”
Those same alarm bells Maxwell had heard in his head the first time he’d heard Gabe speak went off again. This time, though, he wasn’t sure if they were warning him against Gabe or Alexis.
“What mistake?” he asked cautiously, part of his prejudicial wall against this man crumbling in case any kernel of the truth might come out.
Was this the story Alexis was going to tell him? The only way he’d find out is if he heard Gabe out. Even if the truth burned like fire.
After a long, drawn-out sigh, Gabe looked Maxwell in the eye. “Basically, she’s a gold digger. She just wanted me for my money, and when she found out my business was going under, she bailed because she knew I wouldn’t have any anymore. The only reason she got with me was because she was my assistant, doing my books, so she knew all the bank balances—even my personal ones. She knew exactly how much money I had and what I could offer her.” Shaking his head, he rubbed a hand over his chin. “In fact, she’s even here on my dime. This was supposed to be our honeymoon, but the moment she knew I was losing everything, she dumped me. But she managed to still use the tickets we bought for this trip. I didn’t even know until I got the confirmation email when she checked into the honeymoon suite.”
Maxwell’s skin buzzed as this new information hit his ears. This couldn’t possibly be true. The Alexis he knew, the one who’d turned his money down and offered to work for him for free? She wouldn’t have done this. She wasn’t this person. His gut screamed that at him.
But was his gut right? He’d had gut feelings about Emily once upon a time too. And then his gut had told him not to look for love again. So he hadn’t, and he hadn’t been hurt by doing that, either.
Gabe was still yammering on. Maxwell’s hearing had gone fuzzy as tunnel vision took over. But one thing caught his ear.
“Then I get here and she’s not wearing any makeup. That lipstick was her favorite because I liked how much she looked with it on. Now, she’s stopped wearing it. Maybe it’s because she can’t afford it anymore, but maybe it’s something else. Who knows with her.” With a shrug, he finished.
Maxwell’s fists clenched as he thought that detail over. He’d told her that he liked when she didn’t wear it. Then he’d found it in the trash. Had she thrown it away to make herself more appealing to him?
“I don’t know, man,” Gabe went on. “I just thought I’d tell you the truth, seeing as you’re her new boss or whatever. And if you have a significant amount of money, Lexi might have already tried to sink her claws it. It happens to the best of us, but I thought I should warn you.”
With a hand on his shoulder, Maxwell ground his teeth. This couldn’t be happening. Alexis was not another Emily. He would have known. He would have seen the signs. But maybe she’d strategically denied that money originally to go in for the bigger kill.
Gabe’s confession had him twisted up. Could this possibly be true? The only way he’d find out for sure was if he asked Alexis herself. But in that moment, he couldn’t bear the thought. He’d just kissed that woman in the very water he was standing next to an hour earlier. He’d been having thoughts of turning their week-long flirtation into something more permanent and serious. He’d considered Alexis trustworthy and different, someone worth putting his heart on the line for. He’d felt an attraction to her unlike anything else he’d ever experienced.
That foreign feeling he’d experienced this week—it could have been love. At least the start of it. That magic people talked about when you met your soul mate.
That could have been Alexis. He’d been sure of it.
Now, he was anything but sure. About anything—her, his life, his business. He’d trusted her to help him during this week. But that’s what he got for hiring a woman he didn’t know and not letting Phillip dig into her past.
He got hurt.
He could ask Alexis, but maybe she’d lie to him. Perhaps she’d spin a totally different story about what had happened between her and Gabe. Honestly, who told the truth that they were just a gold digger anyway? He didn’t know what to believe.
Phillip’s information never lied though. So he brushed past Gabe with a mumbled goodbye and went to find the one person who could clear this up for him.
Unfortunately, when he found him, the only thing he received was confirmation.
Gabe’s business was indeed going under. He’d filed for bankruptcy two weeks ago. And Alexis had been working for him up until that point as his personal assistant. As such, she’d had access to all kinds of financial information—the kind that would have led her to break up with Gabe when he’d been about to lose everything.
A sour knot settled in the pit of Maxwell’s stomach as he sat in one of the cabanas near the pool with Phillip.
He’d been wrong. So incredibly wrong.
“I’m sorry, sir,” Phillip said to him, his no-nonsense tone slipping to show a little sympathy. “I wanted to tell you this morning.”
“But I didn’t let you.” Maxwell scrubbed a hand down his face and leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees. “I should have. So I’m the one who’s sorry.” Sorrier than anyone could imagine.
But not as sorry as his crushed and broken heart.
17
The next morning, Alexis was still buzzing from that kiss. Even though she hadn’t seen Maxwell all night, she could still feel his lips on hers, the way his beard felt beneath her fingertips. She reached that hand up to her mouth while she still lay in bed, hoping he had returned so they could talk.
She was ready. She’d open up, put her heart on the line. No more thoughts of avoiding. With one day left at the resort—one day left with Maxwell before she had to go home—she’d go full steam ahead. She’d tell Maxwell how she felt.
The door to the suite opened and closed, alerting her to his return. He’d texted her after his run to say he had some business to take care of with the resort and the other deal he was trying to land. He’d been a little short, but Alexis was used to that. Gabe hadn’t always given her his full attention, either. Business was important, and she didn’t want to get in the way of that. But she also wasn’t going to tolerate Gabe’s behavior with Maxwell. She wanted something different even if, on the outside, it seemed like she was doing the same thing all over again.
After hopping out of bed, she went to the mirror over the desk in her room. Her hair was a little messy, but they were on the beach. A quick braid would fix that. And she didn’t bother with any makeup. Maxwell seemed like her face fresh and clean. But that wasn’t the only reason why she did that. She liked her face that way too. It’d been a long time since she’d gone a week without makeup, but she was beginning to feel like the old Alexis again. She wanted to hold on to that feeling, so she left the makeup behind. Upon changing into reasonable clothes, she headed downstairs, a flounce to her step.
She was about to claim her man.
Except the look on his face when she reached the middle of the staircase had her screeching to a halt. She took the rest of the steps at a snail’s pace, carefully approaching a man she barely recognized as Maxwell.
“Is everything okay?” she asked cautiously. “Did something happen with the Hartford deal?”
Maxwell paced the foyer space while Phillip, in his usual suit and tie, headed up the stairs. He made eye contact with her ever so briefly before he passed her, the expression on his face serving as a warning of what was to come. That small interaction made her stomach sour. Something was wrong. Very wrong.
“Maxwell?” she said, her foot hitting the hardwood of the foyer floor. “Was there something wrong with my notes? Is there anything I should add to them about the resort?” On the last word, she flicked her gaze up the stairs.
At the top, Phillip had paused. For a moment, he glanced over his shoulder, that same look of disapproval etched all over his features. It caused a wave of worry to crash over Alexis, the intensity of it growing every second Maxwell didn’t answer her.
When she turned her attention back to him, he’d stopped pacing. Her heart hammered against her rib cage as she waited for him to tell her what was going on. The unease rose throughout her body until he opened his mouth to speak again.
“What would you do if you were me?” he asked, an edge she’d never heard him use in his voice.
Even though something told her that he wasn’t talking about the job he’d given her, that was all she could relate this question to. So she relaxed a little and answered him that way. “Well, I’d probably buy this place. It’s clean, modern, and fun. Lots of people seem to like it, so I—”
“Not that,” he replied sternly, shaking his head. His voice was low and deep.
Narrowing her eyes, she asked, “Then what are you talking about?”
“Tell me,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest. “Do you date all of your bosses?”
With that question, her blood turned to ice. Alexis had been wondering what could have gone wrong since she’d seem him last, but now, she knew: Gabe.
Gabe had gotten to him.
“It’s not like that,” she insisted.
But Maxwell appeared to have made his mind up already. “It’s not? Then why don’t you tell me what it’s like? Because I got an earful from your ex and it adds up, Alexis. You dumped your fiancé because he was running out of money, and now, you’re after mine. Just like my ex was.” He scoffed, shaking his head again. This time, it was in disbelief.
She wished it were that he didn’t believe Gabe. But that was not the case, and her heart sank to her toes as tears pooled in her eyes.
“Did you think you’d fool me? That I wouldn’t see through you?” he asked, pointing an accusing finger at her. “If you thought you could pretend not to want my money at first in order to get your hands on it later, you were wrong. I only wish I would have realized that before I—” He cut himself off before finishing that thought.
And the way Alexis wanted him to finish it only crushed her heart more.
Before all of this, she’d been about to tell him that she was falling in love with him too. It was clear on his face that he was regretting doing the same with her, but it was all for the wrong reasons. Now that she knew how he felt too, she wanted to make it right. But not if he could think that low of her.
Not if he’d believe the word of a lying sleaze ball like Gabe over hers.
Shaking, she willed her fingers to be still. She balled her hands into fists, holding herself steady as she sucked in a shuddering breath. “You got part of that right,” she said, her voice surprisingly strong. “I did dump Gabe. But not why you think. I had no idea he was running out of money.”
“You had access to all of his accounts as his assistant. So you can’t expect me to believe that,” he gritted out, his hands flying to his sides. They landed with a slap against his thighs.
“I didn’t expect you to believe my ex!” she shouted, emotions running high and getting the best of her. As a tear spilled down her cheek, she angrily wiped at it and took a deep, calming breath. She wasn’t calm yet, but it’d have to do. “I expected you to come back yesterday so I could tell you what actually happened and we could figure this”—she forcefully thrust a hand back and forth between them—“out after that kiss on the beach. I didn’t expect you to return with a head full of lies and ideas about me trying to steal your money.”
Her voice broke on the last word, so she scoffed to cover it up the best she could. “This is unbelievable. You go around tossing cash at every problem you encounter and think I’m the one with issues. Look around!” She gestured wildly around the suite. “You’re here to buy this place where people fall in love and kiss after they’ve just met, but that won’t help your real issue here. It won’t help you trust or have a full life, Maxwell. So go ahead. Make your huge purchase. Throw money on your real problem. But by all means, blame me.”
With that, she spun around, stomped up the stairs, and went back to her room. Tears streaked down her face, but the moment her door closed, she sniffled hard and held her breath, willing them to stop. She put her back to the door and pressed her hands against the wood, cursing her stupid, racing heart.
She wouldn’t stay in that suite with him for one more moment if that’s what he believed she was like. No way. She was gone.
Most of her things were neatly tucked inside her suitcase, so she threw the rest of her stuff in her bags and dug around in her purse for a specific card. Not the one Maxwell had given her. That one had proved to be useless. But she found both, removed them, and put the one she needed on top, setting them on the dresser. Then she dialed the number, looking forward more than ever to seeing a familiar face.
Thirty seconds later, Jeff promised to be there in ten minutes.
Alexis left both cards
on the dresser, not intending to need either one ever again. She managed to scoop all of her bags up in her haste. When she reached the top of the steps, Maxwell had disappeared. At the bottom of the staircase, she didn’t bother peeking around to say goodbye. She went straight for the elevator without looking back.
No matter how much her stupid, racing heart begged her to.
18
Maxwell had the worst night’s sleep he’d ever had in his life. After confronting Alexis, he should have felt better. He should have been able to concentrate on his business. The decision to buy this place after nearly a week there should have been easy.
So many should haves that weren’t.
His heart ached. His stomach churned. His body felt filled with lead. Something wasn’t sitting right. And he didn’t think it was the food he’d barely touched for dinner.
He tried to focus on his decision to buy this place. He already knew he wanted the resort in Vermont. That location didn’t have the memories this one now had. Perhaps that was why this decision had become so difficult. It wasn’t simply about dollars and cents anymore. It was about what he’d recall every time he went there.
The almost kiss near the shore.
The almost kiss in the ocean.
The actual kiss in the ocean.
Bottom line: He’d remember Alexis.
And then he’d remember her betrayal.
Tossing the covers off the bed, he swung his legs over the side and sat up. With his elbows on his knees, he wiped the sleep from his eyes. If he couldn’t concentrate on business, he’d go for a run—somewhere off the resort property, where he wouldn’t run into anyone he knew.
Not Gabe. Not Alexis.
Once he was dressed and his shoes were tied, he rose from the couch and started walking toward the door. But Phillip stopped him with an, “Excuse me, sir,” before he reached it. When he laid eyes on his personal assistant for the first time that day, he couldn’t believe what he saw.
