Kyle swished through practice swings with lanky grace. The workout fiend was always in motion, keeping in shape for his military career. “Damn, bro, thanks to you we can’t do anything together anymore without it turning into a photo-op.”
Matthew dropped a new ball on the ground. “I figured leaking this outing of ours would take some heat off Ashley for the day.”
Kyle shaded his eyes against the harsh summer sun as he peered off in the direction of the press. “Giving them something else to talk about?”
“Pretty much.” He swung…Watched…The ball landed on the green. “It’s not like we haven’t been dealing with this kind of coverage for most of our lives. I figured you could handle the heat.”
Matthew climbed into his golf cart, Sebastian settling in beside him while their other brothers drove along behind. He guided the vehicle past rolling dunes with sea oats blowing in the muggy breeze.
Sebastian reached for his soda can in the holder as their clubs rattled in back. “So this woman’s really gotten to you, then.”
“I’m engaged to her.” That in and of itself was a step he’d never expected to take again.
“Ah, come on. Be real around me, at least.”
“Who says I’m not being real?” There had been more than a few moments with Ashley where he’d forgotten they were playing roles.
“You’re actually going to marry her?” His brother peered over his Armani sunglasses.
“I didn’t say that.” Yeah, he was quibbling but this wasn’t a conversation he was comfortable with. Not after a night that had jumbled all his carefully made plans. “I simply said we’re engaged. She’s a special, honest person who doesn’t deserve how things went down.”
“Bro, you are so toast.” Sebastian shook his head, humor fading from his face as he replaced his drink in the holder. “Just be careful. Don’t rush into anything until you’re certain.”
Hell. He should have seen where this was going given Sebastian’s recent separation from his wife. They’d married too young, grown in different directions and it was tearing them both apart. Now that Matthew looked closer, he could see that his brother had lost weight in recent months, his angular face almost gaunt. He’d gone so long without a haircut, he would soon be sporting Jonah’s length.
And he still wore his platinum wedding band.
Sebastian served as a great big reminder for how badly two well-meaning people could hurt each other in the end. Matthew hated that he couldn’t do a damn thing to make this right for his younger brother.
He clapped his hand against Sebastian’s shoulder. “I hear you and I’m sorry for the hell you’re going through.”
“I hear you, too, and I’m not trying to interfere, only adding my two cents from the hard knocks side of the romance world.”
Matthew gripped the steering wheel as they whirred past a pelican perched on a wood pole. Damn it all, he’d been so caught up in his campaigning, he hadn’t been there for his brother the way that he should have during what was undoubtedly the most painful time of his life. And how was that for a kick-in-the ass wake-up call about ill-advised marriages born of out-of-control emotions? “How much longer until the divorce is final?”
“This fall,” Sebastian answered, his voice flat.
“A lot could happen between now and then.” Look how quickly his life had been turned upside down.
“Too much already happened between now and then. We both simply want to move on without sacrificing any more blood in the process.”
“I’m sorry, damn sorry. I really hoped you two could beat the odds.”
“Me, too, bro. Me, too.” Sebastian nudged his sunglasses firmly in place and looked away.
Message received loud and clear. Back off.
Silence stretched between them, broken only by the ever-present rustling of creatures in the underbrush that remained after the golf course had been hewn out of the wild area.
Finally, Sebastian’s face spread into a smile, a little forced, but obviously where he wanted the tone to go. “Enough of this heart-and-guts bull. Let’s get back to the game and I’ll show you who’s going to blow the odds to hell and back.”
Matthew stopped the cart and retrieved a club from his leather bag in back. “I’m starting to think Mom has it right.”
Kyle loped alongside them. “What do you mean?”
“The way she picked a friend to marry the second go round rather than signing on for all that roller-coaster emotional crap.
Maybe we should all learn the lesson from her.”
Jonah stopped short, a hank of curls falling over his forehead. “Are you flipping blind? Mom’s absolutely crazy about the general.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Matthew waved aside his youngest brother’s comment. “I know they’re—God forgive me for saying this—
hot for each other. Remember, I was there with you guys when we accidentally walked in on them in bed together.”
Matthew shuddered right along with his brothers. What a day that had been catching their sainted mother in flagrante delicto with her longtime friend-turned-lover, a man she had since married.
Even their playboy brother Jonah looked rattled by just the mention of that brain-stunner of an event. “I really would have preferred to go through life believing we were all four immaculately conceived.”
Sebastian made a referee T with his hands. “Okay, let’s not go there again, even in our mind. But I think Jonah has a point,” he continued in his naturally lawyerly logical tone, “Mom isn’t just attracted to him, she really loves the general.”
Matthew forced his ever-racing brain to slow and think back to his mom’s Christmas wedding to Hank Renshaw. Sure the event had been romantically impulsive, but could there have been something more in his mother’s eyes then? And now, as well? He thought of all the times her face lit up when her cell phone rang with the distinctive ringtone she’d programmed for only the general’s calls.
Aside from successful, high-power political careers, his mom and her new husband shared a lot of views in common and didn’t hesitate to take an hour from their busy schedules to sit on the porch swing and talk over glasses of wine.
Now that he looked at it from more of an analytical perspective, it seemed obvious. His mother and General Hank Renshaw were totally in love with each other.
How could he have been so self-delusional? Because he’d wanted reality to fit his need for low-key commitment—while still holding on to Ashley. Problem was, now he didn’t have a solution to the mess he’d made of his and Ashley’s lives. Although he did know one thing for certain.
No way in hell could he live without a repeat of what they’d shared the night before.
Back in the main house, Ashley stared out the guest bedroom window over the ocean, not too different a view than the one she’d grown up with at Aunt Libby’s. Lordy, but she’d never needed the woman’s support more than now when she faced the toughest decision of her life.
Even the ocean view and the soothing décor of the guest room’s delft-blue flowers accented with airy stripes did little to lower her stress level. Spending the afternoon with her foster sisters crunching the numbers and detailing the massive amount of work required to get Beachcombers up and running as a business again had been tougher than she’d expected. Once she rebuilt the place, it would be time to move on with her life—apart from Matthew. Even the thought of that hurt more than she’d expected.
However, continuing with this charade hurt, too. How long could she keep falling into bed—and tubs—with him without making a decision about their future one way or another?
Fantasizing about the man had been easy. Being with him was far more complicated and exciting. And scary. Why couldn’t he have been a regular, everyday kind of guy, with a regular everyday sort of life?
She stared down at her engagement ring and practiced pulling it off her finger. Her hand felt so blasted bare. She clenched her fist to resist the urge to put the solitaire back in place and to hell with the consequences to her heart.
Ashley held the diamond up for the sun to glint off the facets. So many angles and nuances could be seen depending on which way she looked at the stone. And wasn’t that much like her life? She had an important choice to make and her decision changed depending on which way she viewed the situation.
The air conditioner cranked on, swooshing a teasing gust over her neck almost as tantalizing as a lover’s kiss. Then stronger, warmer.
She shivered, reflexively closing her fingers around the ring.
Matthew’s lips pressed firmer against her skin. “Hello, beautiful.”
She tried to force herself to relax as she turned in his arms. “I didn’t hear you come in.”
He skimmed his knuckles over her forehead. “You were certainly caught up thinking about something important. Did things go all right with your sisters?”
She blinked quickly as she shifted mental gears. God, she hadn’t even been thinking about Beachcombers, which should totally have been her focus. “Everything went fine. There are lots of positives to focus on. The fire investigators tracked the problem to old wiring failing. Nothing we’re liable for, so our insurance payment will come through smoothly. We can start contacting contractors right away.”
He pressed a firm kiss to her mouth before hugging her. “That’s great to hear. I’m glad for all three of you.”
With his heartbeat under her ear and his musky scent all around her, the queen-size bed only five feet away seemed too enticing. “Let’s go out to the living room. I know we’re adults and all, but it doesn’t seem right for your mother to find us in here together.”
He winced. “Banish that thought here and now.” Matthew backed a step but stroked her arms. “Don’t worry, though. She just left, so you can relax.”
“I can’t do that.” The ring seemed to gain weight in her grasp. “Relax, I mean.”
He looked behind him and back again. “Are your sisters still here somewhere?”
“They left a half hour ago.” She gathered up her words and let them roll free before she could stop herself. She unfurled her fingers, the engagement ring cupped in her palm. “Actually, I can’t do this anymore.”
Any hint of a smile faded from his face. “Do what precisely?”
Ashley raised her hand holding the solitaire, her hand already shaking at the thought of giving it back. Aside from her own reservations, she couldn’t ignore fears of the opponent gaining momentum from her decision.
She would do her best to persuade Starr to step forward. Perhaps that would even encourage others who might have received the same treatment to open up.
Regardless, she couldn’t be a party to perpetuating a lie, even as much as breaking things off with Matthew tore her apart inside. “Pretend to be engaged. Lying to the press has been difficult enough. Lying to my sisters this afternoon was hell. They probably already suspect anyway.”