Scandalous Engagement

Traveling from Green Valley, Tennessee, back to Sandpiper Cove, North Carolina, had only been an hour’s flight. Those were the perks of owning your own plane and being your own pilot. He’d taken the time going both ways to think about all that had happened…he still didn’t have a clear picture or any answers.

He’d gone to Hawkins Distillery a few days ago and met with Sam Hawkins and Nick Campbell, the two men who were supposedly Reese’s half brothers. Nick’s late mother had apparently wanted to leave behind a deathbed confession by distributing letters for the three men about their true paternity. She was the one who had mailed the letter to Reese.

They all shared the same father—Rusty Lockwood, billionaire mogul of Lockwood Lightning. Everyone knew the world-renowned moonshine company, but not many knew the man behind it…including Reese.

A week ago, he’d hired an investigator to dig up everything that wasn’t easily accessible to the public, and Reese had also been doing his own online research. On paper, or the internet as the case may be, Rusty appeared to be a saint. The man owned the largest moonshine distillery in the world and donated thousands of dollars each year to Milestones, a charity for children with disabilities.

Unfortunately, last week, Rusty had been arrested for skimming from that same charity, and according to Sam and Nick, Rusty was the devil himself. Both guys had dealt with Rusty for years and neither one had a kind thing to say. They weren’t happy with the knowledge that Rusty was their biological father.

Reese didn’t know what to believe, because all of this had blown up in his face so fast and come without warning. He didn’t like being blindsided by anything, especially not a revelation that meant he might have been betrayed and lied to his entire life.

The letter had arrived while his father was in the hospital, but once he was released, he and Reese’s mom had gone on a relaxing vacation with the doctor’s blessing and Reese didn’t want to mess up their time away.

There had just been so much all at once… His father’s health, the shifting responsibilities of the business, the letter claiming Reese wasn’t his parents’ child…

But by the time his parents got back home, Reese hoped he would have a solid plan and some much-needed answers.

Should Reese confront them? Or did he just let this knowledge go and ignore the past? What was the actual truth in all of this? There were so many questions and part of him wished he’d never learned the truth, but the other part of him wanted to know the history…his history.

Reese refolded the letter and sat it on the nightstand before coming to his feet. He hadn’t gotten much sleep last night, mostly because this wasn’t his home and he wasn’t used to that cushy bed with all the pillows.

Josie might be very strict and straitlaced when it came to her fashion sense and her career, but she did love a cozy-feeling home. Granted, everything in her house was either white or gray. She really did lack color in her life, but he wouldn’t change her for anything.

Especially those damn curves.

Who had known how well she’d fit intimately against his side? Just that simple gesture had conjured up a night of fantasies he shouldn’t have allowed himself when it came to his best friend. Didn’t he have enough going on in his life without adding an unwanted sexual attraction to Josie?

Reese rubbed a hand over his bare chest and padded from the room and down the hallway toward the kitchen. He needed coffee, because this was the time of day when it was actually acceptable to have a cup. It was too damn early, but he might as well get his day started.

He’d visited here so many times over the years, but he’d never made coffee, so he searched through her cabinets, trying to be quiet because he was positive she was still asleep. He hadn’t heard a word from her this morning, and he also knew she wasn’t an early riser.

He, on the other hand, had too much to do, including following up with his assistant about the RSVP to the new restaurant opening in Manhattan in two weeks.

Conrad’s was moving up the East Coast and opening a big new space in New York. Reese couldn’t wait to get into his favorite city. Manhattan had always been a goal of his.

He’d grown up here in Sandpiper Cove and he absolutely loved the beach. Loved it so much, he’d purchased his own private beach with his home, which was not far from Josie. His yacht was docked at the end of his own pier and he didn’t want to lay his head down anywhere else.

But this new restaurant in Manhattan would be all his. He’d inherited his father’s string of upscale restaurants from Miami up to Boston, but this was his first venture on his own and he had a few changes in place that he was excited to test.

“Good heavens.”

Reese turned from the coffeepot to find Josie standing in the doorway, her hand over her chest, her eyes fixed on his. But his eyes immediately locked on the tiny shorts and tank she wore. The outfit left little to the imagination…and last night he’d done plenty of imagining.

“Could you put some clothes on?” she grumbled as she shuffled in.

Reese couldn’t help but grin as she made her way to the cabinet and pulled down a mug. Her hair was all in disarray, like she’d had a fight with her pillow all night, and those pj’s, black of course, weren’t covering much, either. The simple tank dipped too low and the shorts literally covered the essentials and nothing more.

His body stirred in response.

There were some things he could control, like not telling her he’d like to strip her down and pleasure her beyond anything she’d ever known. But there were other things, like his arousal, that weren’t quite so easy to hide.

Damn it. He had to get a grip. This was Josie. He couldn’t risk a quick romp just because suddenly his hormones had woken up and realized she was sexier than he’d known.

They were friends…nothing more.

“You’ve seen me in swim trunks. This is hardly any different,” he replied, taking the mug from her hands. “Go sit. I’ll get this for you.”

She shoved the hair from her face and went to the bench at her kitchen table. “Trunks are one thing, but boxer briefs are another. If you’re staying here, put some damn pants on.”

Reese poured two cups of coffee, leaving hers black to match her wardrobe and her bleak mood.

“I don’t recall you being this grouchy in the mornings,” he told her as he sat across from her. “I know you’re more of a night owl, but this is a new side.”

She curled her hands around her mug. “This is my only side before caffeine. Be quiet so I can enjoy it.”

Reese sipped his hot coffee and waited on Little Miss Sunshine to perk up. Clearly, she’d had a restless night, too. He didn’t even try to hide the fact that he was staring at her. She looked like a hot mess, which irritated the hell out of him because his boxer briefs were becoming more and more snug. There was going to be no hiding anything in a few minutes.

“Shouldn’t you be lifting weights or jogging or going to some meeting where you fire people?” she asked around her mug.

Reese laughed. “Glad to know what you think of a day in the life of Reese Conrad.”

She merely shrugged, causing one slinky shoulder strap to slip down her arm. Reese’s eyes landed on that black string and he barely resisted reaching out to adjust it.

Hands to yourself.

A physical relationship would certainly change things between them, but the main question was—would they be better or worse?

Wait. What?

Why was he even letting his mind travel to that space? He needed to get control over his wayward thoughts and keep himself in check.

“You don’t have to stay here, you know.”

His focus shifted back to her face. She stared at him over the rim of her mug. Those dark eyes never let on to what she was truly thinking…just another way they were so alike. Both held their emotions close to their chest.

“How many times did Chris text you last night?” he asked.

Josie’s eyes darted away as she mumbled something under her breath. He thought he heard a staggering number, but even one was one too many at this point. Beyond the fact that they were divorced, she’d blatantly told Chris no and Reese had mentioned they were engaged. A lie, sure, but Chris didn’t know that. The man should back off.

“All the more reason for me to stay for a while,” Reese replied.

Maybe his presence would keep Chris away, maybe it wouldn’t. Reese really had no idea. He did know that he obviously enjoyed a round of torture before breakfast because he was in no hurry to move away from his newly appealing best friend and get going on his busy day.

Did she always sleep in something so damn…sexy?

Maybe they did need to set some clothing boundaries now that they were temporarily living together.

Their friendship was solid; it was perfect. They completed each other and there was nobody else he would trust with every aspect of his life. But he wasn’t quite ready to open up about that letter. He still wasn’t sure what to do with the truths it had revealed, and the strange things he was feeling since announcing their fake engagement weren’t helping him figure it out.

Only a week ago, his main worry had been about his Manhattan opening and now…well, that opening was the least of his worries. He and his selected launch team had a good handle on the upcoming momentous day and Reese truly believed the opening would be nothing short of a smashing success.

“How’s your father?” she asked as she set her mug down. “Still doing good?”

His father. Those two words sounded so odd now, so foreign. He had no idea how he felt about the changes in his family, except maybe a little deceived that the people he’d loved his entire life had lied to him from the beginning.

“Reese?”

He blinked and focused on Josie. “He’s fine,” Reese replied. “His doctor has checked on him every day since they’ve been gone.”

“That’s great. Your mom and dad have worked so hard and then for him to have heart surgery right after retiring—he deserves some downtime.”

Which was one of the reasons Reese had been holding on to this letter, this secret. When the letter came, it had been with a stack of mail that Reese hadn’t gotten to immediately. He’d been so swamped with taking over the Conrad restaurants, plus working on the launch of the new one, that if something didn’t seem pressing or like an emergency, he’d put it on the back burner.

Josie sighed and came to her feet, bringing his attention back to her.

“I have to finish my article before my noon deadline,” she told him. “I’m just going to grab a quick shower first. Feel free to use the guest bath or head on home and get ready there. We can meet up for dinner later if you’re free.”

She sashayed out of the room…and that was the best way he could describe those swaying hips beneath that flimsy material. It was driving him out of his mind.

He was going to need a shower, too. A very, very cold shower to get control of this new reaction to his best friend, one he should ignore.

Reese cleaned up the few dishes in the kitchen and headed to the spare room to throw on his clothes from yesterday and head to his house for a few things.

As he moved toward his room, he heard a thump from one of the other guest bedrooms. Then a string of muttered curses followed and Reese let his curiosity get the best of him. He circled back to the nearly closed door and tapped his knuckles on the frame.

“You okay?” he called.

The door flung open and Josie seemed even more frazzled than earlier. A strand of inky black hair fell across her face and she blew it away.

“What are you doing?” he asked, trying to peek over her shoulder.

“Nothing.”

Because she tried to slip out the door, Reese took it upon himself to put a hand on the wood and ease it back open.

“You know you’re a terrible liar.”

He stepped around her and into the room. Simple furnishings with whites and neutrals, a white rug on the hardwood, a sturdy white chair in the corner with a black-and-white-striped pillow.

“Is this where you keep all your journalism secrets?” he joked. “Cocktail recipes or dinner party themes? Am I close?”

“Funny,” she mocked, crossing her arms over her chest. “I don’t have secrets and even if I did, you would already know them.”

The closet door was open just enough for Reese to see a slash of red. Interesting, considering he never saw her in an actual color, let alone something so vibrant.

He moved to the closet and revealed a walk-in space full of the widest variety of colorful clothes he’d ever seen. There were two rows of hanging clothes…all with tags dangling from the sleeves. Boxes of shoes lined the perimeter of the floor and the most insane number of designer handbags in all colors and patterns topped off the high shelves.

Reese glanced over his shoulder, turning his attention to Josie, who glared back at him.

“Opening a department store, Jo?”

She tipped her chin in that defiant way of hers. “No.”

“What’s with all the brand-new clothes?” he asked, glancing back to the closet that clearly held thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise. “And all this color? Are you giving yourself a makeover?”

Josie’s eyes darted to the open room, then down for just a second, but enough for him to see her vulnerability.

“Want to talk about this?” he asked.

She shook her head. “Nothing to talk about. I come in here every morning before I get ready.”

“Trying to find something to wear?”

Why was she not just saying whatever she was thinking? For someone who wore black like it was her job, she certainly had a hell of a lot of funds tied up in a brand-new, not-black wardrobe.

“I can’t be her,” she murmured.

What? What did that even mean? Who couldn’t she be?

Forgetting the lame joke he’d been going for when he first saw this shocking surprise, Reese took a step toward her, wondering what she’d been hiding and why she seemed so sad, so…almost helpless.

She’d just told him she didn’t keep any secrets, but that had clearly been a lie because all of this was obviously something she wanted to keep to herself. How long had this closet full of color been here? And who couldn’t she be like?

“Jo—”

An alarm went off from somewhere in the house. Josie immediately turned from the room. Confused as to what had just happened and what the annoying noise was, Reese followed her. He was tempted to grab something from the newly discovered closet to throw over her excuse for pajamas to conceal that dark skin of hers. Granted, he wasn’t covered much, either, but she was a temptation he was having a difficult time resisting.

There was only so much a man could take, but the risk of taking what he suddenly wanted was too much. Their friendship was too special, too perfect the way it was. He couldn’t afford for his life to get any messier.

Reese found Josie back in the kitchen tapping away on her phone and thankfully killing that annoying alarm.

“Sorry,” she stated with a smile. “That was my reminder to check my planner.”

Reese stared at her as she continued to scroll. “You need a reminder to check your schedule? Isn’t that just a given?”

Her eyes darted to his and for the briefest of seconds, that heavy-lidded gaze dipped to his chest. Well, well, well. Even with the caffeine and a somewhat better mood, she wasn’t immune to his nakedness.

So now what? There was a sudden sexual pull that confused him, intrigued him…challenged him.

“I have an alarm to remind me about nearly everything,” she informed him, setting her cell back on the table and turning to face him fully. “A reminder to drink all my water, feed my plants, check in with my new assistant because she seems a little overwhelmed at times, and—”

Reese held up a hand. “I get it. I knew you were structured, but I had no idea it was to this extent.”

Josie smiled. “I can set up your phone so you are more organized with various reminders if you want.”

“I’ve got it all up here,” he said, tapping his head. “And my assistant is on everything before I can even think, so I’m good. I wouldn’t know what to do with that annoying alarm going off all the time.”

“Oh, I have different alarms for different reminders,” she countered with a scoff. “I can’t have one alarm, Reese. That wouldn’t make any sense.”

“Of course,” he mumbled, then shrugged. “What was I thinking? I guess it’s true that you never really know someone until you live with them.”

Josie shook her head as she rolled her eyes. “We’re not living together. You can go to your place at any time.”

“You coming with me?” he asked.

“I’m good here, and Chris is going to be a nonissue,” she stated with more confidence than she should have.

Why would Chris give up? Reese sure as hell wouldn’t. Josie’s ex had had the best woman in the world and he’d let her slip away.

“I’m really going to get a shower now,” she told him. “I’m already behind on my morning routine.”

As Josie started to pass, Reese took a step to block her. Her hands flew up and flattened on his chest, those dark eyes flashing up to his.

“What’s with the closet, Jo?” he asked, really needing to understand what she was hiding, because he’d seen that flash of vulnerability and hurt and he hated knowing she experienced both.

Though it was damn difficult to concentrate with their clothes nearly nonexistent and her hands on his bare skin. Reese had to respect her, respect their friendship and remain in control.

Crossing that invisible barrier into something more intimate would be a mistake. Where had this damn attraction come from? Sexy was one thing, but the ache, the need was frustrating.

“Don’t worry about the closet,” she murmured with a flashing smile. “Why don’t you worry about your upcoming restaurant opening instead of me?”

Reese smoothed her hair back from her shoulder, once again torturing himself with the touch of her satiny skin.

“Oh, Conrad’s Manhattan is in the forefront of my worries, but what kind of fiancé would I be if I didn’t add you to the list?” he joked.

Josie laughed, just as he thought she would, but her eyes dropped to his lips a fraction of a second before she took a step back and sighed.

“You’re not my fiancé, Reese. We’re just friends.”

She licked her lips and blinked as if those last two words were painful to say.

“Just friends,” she reiterated beneath her breath as she walked away.

Reese didn’t turn to watch her disappear down the hallway. He needed a minute because this morning had been so bizarre. Did Josie have stronger feelings for him than she was letting on? Would she be interested in exploring more with him? And what the hell was up with all of those colorful clothes hanging in the closet with tags?

One thing was certain: now that they were temporarily living together, Reese had to evaluate his feelings and try to figure out what the hell was truly going on between him and his best friend.

Three

Rain pelted down in sheets, right onto Reese. He seriously missed his garage for this very reason. He ran from his SUV to the porch of Josie’s beachside home. The second he stepped beneath the shelter, he raked the water from his face. He was absolutely drenched and his overnight bag with dry clothes was in the car because he hadn’t wanted to get that soaked as well. He’d just have to dry off and wait out the storm.

He rang the doorbell and glanced in through the sidelight. He didn’t see any movement, but surely she was home. He really should’ve taken that key she’d offered him a long time ago, but why would he have ever had a reason to be here without her?

He rang the bell again and waited. Finally, the lock clicked and the door flew open. Josie stood before him in a black tank and a pair of black shorts, but her hair dripped water droplets onto her shoulders and face and she swiped moisture from her cheeks.

“What the hell happened to you?” he asked.

“There’s a leak above my closet,” she growled as she turned to race back toward the guest room. “This damn storm.”

He closed the door and slid out of his wet shoes so he didn’t slide on the tile leading down the hallway. Reese followed her and realized the closet in question was the one with the hoard of colorful clothes. The contents were strewn across the room. Boxes of shoes lay haphazardly along the floor; dresses were in heaps over the chair in the corner and all over the bed. Handbags littered the space around the shoes.

Good grief, there was even more than he’d first realized. How had all of this fit in that space? Granted it was a walk-in closet, but still. Josie really could open a boutique with all of this variety.

Her muttered curse filtered out from inside the closet. Reese stepped in to find her strategically moving buckets beneath the drips.

“Every time I think I have it, another area presents itself,” she told him. “I do not have time for this.”

“Do you have more buckets?”

She shook her head. “I have vases. There are several on the kitchen island. Just dump the flowers in the trash.”

Reese raced from the room and headed to the kitchen where he came to an abrupt stop. The most obnoxious display of flowers covered her entire island. A wide variety of colors and blooms…all fresh and nothing Josie would ever purchase for herself.

No surprise to find cheesy notes attached. Reese made quick work of getting rid of the flowers, then he took armfuls of vases back to the closet.

“Want to discuss this?” Reese asked, holding a vase up and wiggling it.

“Nope.”

“You have thousands of dollars’ worth of flowers spread across your island.”

“Not my money,” she said, taking one vase at a time and looking at the ceiling for where to usefully place it. “And before you say anything else, I definitely realize Chris is an issue now.”

Well, at least that was something. Chris wasn’t going to just slink away. Reese truly believed the man thought he stood a chance at getting Josie back, but that wasn’t happening.

“Why did you marry him to begin with?” Reese asked, his thoughts coming out before he could stop himself.

Josie reached for another vase, her dark eyes locking on his for the briefest of moments. “That’s a conversation for another time.”

And definitely one he would circle back to, because he’d wondered this since the moment she’d dropped the bomb that she’d eloped at the courthouse. The courthouse, for crying out loud.

Josie deserved more than a quickie wedding. He remembered her always talking about wanting a ceremony on the beach, small and intimate. Her love of the beach was just another thing they had in common…granted, he wasn’t looking for marriage.

That engagement of his had been a mistake and one he’d likely have to answer for when they circled back to the topic later. Josie deserved an explanation, too.

Reese took the last two vases and looked around, but didn’t see any more leaks. He sat them aside and pulled out his cell. Getting his contractor out here as soon as this storm passed was imperative, before any more damage was done.

Minutes later, he disconnected the call and focused back on Josie.

“My guy will be here as soon as he can.”

Josie glanced from bucket to bucket to vase. “This place is a mess.”

“Have you seen any other leaks?”

Josie’s eyes widened and she pushed passed him to exit the closet. In her hurried, frantic state, he assumed that was a no. Whatever room she went into, he looked in another. It didn’t take long to find that there were two other small leaks, both in Josie’s bedroom.

“This is an absolute nightmare,” she sighed once the other vases were in place and they’d gone back into the kitchen.

“It can all be fixed,” he assured her. “My guy is the best and once this storm passes, we’ll get it taken care of.”