“I’m sorry,” he said.
“Don’t be.” She smiled at him. “It’s like we talked about. This trip was a pretty great silver lining to my wedding falling apart.”
She propped herself up on one elbow, her hair waterfalling down to tickle Lucas’s cheek as she leaned in to kiss him. He pulled her on top of him, returning the kiss and sliding his hands along the curve of her back. She smelled like flowers — like jasmine.
All rational thought disappeared from Lucas’s mind then. He stopped thinking about how he should put distance between them. He forgot that they wouldn’t see each other again after the end of the week. All that mattered was that he was with Kendra, and she was with him.
The next daybrought more activities. They took a class on making cocktails, which Lucas was surprisingly good at, hiked on a nearby trail so that Kendra could take pictures of wildlife and plants, and shared another romantic, candlelit dinner. At night, they fell into bed together, and Lucas found himself once again in awe of the fact that he was sharing a honeymoon with this beautiful woman.
He didn’t even check his phone once.
He woke the following morning with Kendra curled up beside him. Her head rested on his shoulder, and one hand was flat over his heart, as though she’d fallen asleep listening to his heartbeat. He stroked her hair and planted a kiss on the top of her head.
“Lucas?” Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled at him.
“Good morning.” He smiled at her. “How did you sleep?”
Kendra rolled onto her back, her auburn hair fanning across the pillow as she stretched. “Perfectly. How aboutIget us breakfast in bed today?”
“Excellent idea, milady.”
He lay in bed while she got dressed, came back to kiss his cheek, and practically skipped to the door. Then he got up, pulling on a pair of boxers and a T-shirt, and went to the closet. Kendra had mentioned a few days before that her wedding dress was here, and he wanted to see it. This was the first time he’d been alone in the room since she’d told him.
He looked in the back of the closet, behind the ironing board, and saw something white and lacy. When he tugged it, the dress tumbled out. It had been folded messily and shoved in, but it still looked beautiful when Lucas laid it on the bed.
He didn’t know much about wedding dresses, but he knew that this one was stunning. It looked like something a princess would wear in an animated movie. The skirt was long, and the neckline dipped just the right amount. It was all too easy to imagine Kendra in the dress, her eyes shining and her cheeks pink.
Don’t imagine her like that. This is just for two weeks,he reminded himself.Five more days, then you have to go back to being yourself. And she’ll go back to her life.
He ran his hand over the lace at the bottom of the dress before picking it up and putting it back in the closet. That dress was who Kendra was: beautiful and elegant and romantic and full of hope. In real life, he wouldn’t be good for her. He’d drag her down with his all-consuming focus on business. He could make a good show of being spontaneous and romantic while they were here, but in real life, he worked all the time and had little energy left for anything else. Even if they stayed in touch when they went back to LA, he would end up breaking her heart because of Omegron.
Thinking about business reminded Lucas that he needed to check for news about Omegron. The thought wasn’t as all-consuming as it had been just a few days ago, but he still needed to know. He went to the sitting area where his phone was charging.
Before picking it up, though, he hesitated. Looking at news about Omegron would probably upset him, and he didn’t want to burst the beautiful bubble he’d made with Kendra. Even though the bubble they’d formed would pop when they went back to LA and their real lives, he didn’t want to think about the outside world yet. The wedding dress had been enough of a reminder that this was only temporary, and he didn’t want another one. He was tempted to leave the phone for one more morning, maybe even until the end of the trip.
With a sigh, he picked up his phone. He was being silly. Just because he was having a great time with Kendra didn’t mean that the rest of the world was on pause. Glancing at the door to make sure she wasn’t back yet, he unlocked the screen. His eyes widened as he saw a half dozen texts from Tony, his assistant, as well as several missed calls. There were also emails from several Omegron board members and his legal advisor.
His stomach turned as he clicked on the first email. He’d barely scanned the first line, though, before his phone rang. Tony was calling. He swiped to answer without thinking and sank into the chair.
“Tony? Talk to me.”
And Tony did.
CHAPTER 18
KENDRA
As she stepped out of the elevator, Kendra hummed under her breath, a song fromThe Nutcrackerballet that always made her smile. She was balancing a tray in her hands, which was filled with two cups of coffee — Lucas’s black, and hers with milk and sugar and even a sprinkle of cinnamon —several pastries, and fresh fruit. There was, of course, plenty of cantaloupe.
She was already looking forward to today. Susie had told them about their agenda, which included a whale-watching trip and another massage. This massage should be a lot more fun than the first one, now that she and Lucas were… whatever they were.
It wasn’t like she thought they were dating. Obviously, whatever was going on between them was only temporary (even if that thought made her heart ache), but she had five more days to enjoy it without questioning her own happiness. Lucas made her heart flutter and her knees weak. He made her laugh and think. When she was with him, she felt like a better, less nervous, more fun version of herself. For now, that was more than enough.
She reached their room and balanced the tray on her hip while she opened the door with her key card. Carefully adjusting the tray, she edged her way inside and saw Lucas sitting on the loveseat. He held his phone in one hand and was absentmindedly tapping it against his leg. His expression was distant.
“I haven’t seen you there in a while.” Kendra smiled as she set the tray on the table in front of him. “Is there any news from your company?”
“Yes, actually.” There was a note in Lucas’s voice that Kendra couldn’t place, and he wouldn’t look at her. Her heart gave a nervous flutter, but she forced herself to stay calm.
