This was going to be bad.

Oh, it was going to be very, very bad.

Dylan said something else, but Kaitlin didn’t hear the words.

In response, Lindsay leaned closer. It looked as if she was answering.

Kaitlin stayed still and waited. But the shouting didn’t start, and the insults didn’t fly.

Instead, Dylan reached out and stroked Lindsay’s cheek. Then he butted his shoulder against hers and left it resting there.

For some reason, she didn’t pull away.

Suddenly, Zach grasped Kaitlin’s arm and turned her away.

“Huh?” was all she could manage to say.

“They don’t need an audience,” said Zach.

“But…” She couldn’t help but glance once more over her shoulder. “I don’t…” She turned back to stare at Zach. “Why didn’t she kill him?”

“Because they’re flirting, not fighting.” Zach leaned on the rail, gazing into the setting sun. “Just like you and me.”

The breath whooshed out of Kaitlin’s chest. “We are not-”

“Oh, we so are.”


“So far, so good?” asked Dylan, parking himself next to Zach at the rail of the deck after dinner. Lights shone from the windows of the Gilby house. The pool was illuminated in the yard below. And the twinkle of lights from Zach’s house was visible in the distance.

“I think so.” Zach motioned to the three women inside, where Ginny was playing right into his plan. “She’s showing them photographs from when she and Sadie were girls.”

“I dropped a hint to Lindsay,” said Dylan, taking credit. “She immediately asked Ginny if there were any pictures.”

“Good thought,” Zach acknowledged. Ginny and Sadie had grown up together on Serenity Island. And though Ginny’s short-term memory was spotty, she seemed to remember plenty of stories from decades back. She was in a perfect position to give Kaitlin some insight into his grandmother. And it had the added advantage of coming from a third party. Kaitlin couldn’t accuse Zach of trying to manipulate her.

The thought that Zach could execute a master plan through the eccentric Aunt Ginny was laughable. Though, he supposed, that was exactly what they were doing.

“Lindsay’s a fairly easy mark,” Dylan added. “Mention a pirate, and off she goes like a heat-seeking missile.”

“I notice you’re protesting a bit too much about the pirates,” Zach pointed out. Sure, Dylan was sensitive about his background, but Zach had never seen him pushed to anger over it.

“It sure makes her mad,” Dylan mused.

“Our ancestors were not Boy Scouts,” Zach felt compelled to restate.

“And the British monarchy was not a corrupt regime.”

“There were a lot of beheadings.”

Dylan shrugged. “Different time, different place.”

“Yeah? Well, good luck getting Lindsay into bed with that argument.”

Dylan’s expression turned thoughtful. “Don’t you worry about me. Lindsay likes a challenge. And I’m a challenge.”

“That’s your grand scheme?”

Dylan quirked his brows in self-confidence. “That’s my grand scheme.”

Zach had to admit, it was ingenious.

“Now let’s talk about yours.”

“Zachary?” came Ginny’s imperious voice as she appeared in the doorway.

Zach glanced up.

“Over here,” she commanded.

Dylan snickered as Zach pushed back to cross the deck.

Ginny beckoned him closer with a crooked finger.

“I need your help,” she whispered, glancing into the great room.

“Sure.” He bent his head to listen.

“We’re going downstairs for some dancing.” Ginny had always been a huge music fan, particularly of the big bands. And dancing had always been an important part of social functions on the island.

“No problem.” He nodded.

“You ask the redhead, Miss Kaitlin.” She gave Zach a conspiratorial nod. “I have a good feeling about the other one and Dylan.”

“Lindsay,” Zach prompted.

“He seems to have a particular interest in her rear end.”

“Ginny.”

She gave a short cackle. “I’m not naive.”

“I never thought you were.”

“You young people didn’t invent premarital sex, you know.”

Okay, Zach wasn’t going anywhere near that conversation. “Dancing,” he responded decisively and carried on into the house.

“Kaitlin,” he called as he approached the two women huddled together on one of the sofas, their noses in one album and another dozen stacked on a table in front of them.

She glanced up.

“Downstairs,” he instructed, pointing the way. “We’re going to dance.”

She blinked back at him in incomprehension.

He grinned at her surprise and strode closer, linking her arm and swooping her to her feet.

“Ginny’s matchmaking,” he whispered as they made their way to the wide, curved staircase. “I’ve been instructed to snag you as a partner so Dylan will ask Lindsay.”

“She’s very sweet,” Kaitlin disclosed, sorting her feet out underneath herself.

“They’re a family of plotters,” said Zach.

“Yeah? Well, you’re a fine one to talk.”

Zach couldn’t disagree.

They reached the bottom of the stairs, and the huge party room widened out in front of them.

“Wow,” said Kaitlin, stepping across the polished, hardwood floor, moving between the pillars to gaze at the bank of glass doors that opened to the patio, the pool and the manicured lawn. She tipped her head back to take in the high ceiling with its twinkling star lights. She put her arms out, twirled around and grinned like a six-year-old.

Not that she looked anything remotely like a child.

She wore sexy, high-heeled sandals and a pair of snug black pants. They were topped with a metallic thread tank that shimmered under the lights. While she moved, she reached up, raking her loose hair back with her fingers. It shone, and she shone, and he couldn’t wait to hold her in his arms.

A member of the staff was working the sound system, and strains of “Stardust” came up to flow around them from a dozen speakers.

Ginny, Dylan and Lindsay arrived, laughing and joking as they spilled onto the polished floor.

“You need a partner, Auntie,” Dylan declared, snagging her hand. It was obvious to Zach that Dylan knew exactly what his aunt was up to.

“Oh, don’t you be silly,” a blushing Ginny said, then slapped his hand away. “I’m far too old to dance.”

Zach moved toward Kaitlin. She was definitely the one he’d be dancing with tonight. He took her easily into his arms, and moved them both to the music, swirling them away from the others.

“It’s been a while since we did this,” he murmured, as her body settled tentatively against his.

“And the last time didn’t end so well,” she pointed out. But she picked up the rhythm and ever so slowly relaxed into his lead as he stepped them toward the bank of windows.

“It could have ended better,” he agreed. It could have ended with her in his bed. It should have ended that way.

He pulled back and glanced down at her beautiful face. Why hadn’t it ended that way?

“Ginny said she was your grandmother’s best friend when they were girls.”

Zach nodded his concurrence. “Back then, my grandmother Sadie was the caretaker’s daughter.”

Kaitlin relaxed a little more. “Ginny said Sadie grew up here, married here and died here. All on this island.”

Zach chuckled at the misleading description of Sadie’s life. “They did let her off once in a while.”

“Those are some really deep roots.”

“I guess they are.”

“Yours are even deeper.”

“I suppose,” he told her absently, more interested in paying attention to the way she molded against him than in talking about his family history.

She’d relaxed completely now. Her head was tucked against his shoulder, one arm around his back, their hands clasped and drawn inward, while her legs brushed his with every step.

As the song moved on, she eased closer. Their thighs met snugly together, her smooth belly and soft breasts plastered against him. Her heat seeped into his body, and he could smell the subtle scent of her perfume. It had to be her regular brand, because he remembered it from Vegas, from the yacht, from his office.

The song ended, but the sound of Count Basie immediately came up. “It Could Happen to You.” Ginny obviously wasn’t giving Dylan any opportunity to escape her planned romantic web with Lindsay.

Fine with Zach. Wild horses couldn’t pull him away from Kaitlin.

“I was thinking-” he began.

“Shh,” she interrupted. “What?”

“Can you please not talk for a minute?”

“Sure?” But curiosity quickly got the better of him. “Why not?”

Her voice was low and sweet. “I’m pretending you’re someone else.”

“Ouch,” he said gently, ignoring the sting of her words. Because she had pressed even closer, closing her eyes and giving herself up to his motion.

“I’m pretending I’m someone else, too.” She sighed. “Just for a minute, Zach. Just for this song? I want to shut out the world and make believe I belong here.”

His chest tightened.

He gathered her closer still and brushed a gentle kiss on the top of her head.

You do belong here, he silently thought.

Seven

Kaitlin had never in her life seen anything quite so magnificent as the Harper castle. And it truly was a castle. Made of weathered limestone, it had had both chimneys and turrets. It was three full stories. And there looked to be what she could only imagine was an extensive attic network beneath the steep-pitched roofs.

Inside, wood panels gleamed, while ornate, suspended chandeliers bounced light into every nook and cranny. It was furnished throughout with antiques. Rich draperies hung from high valences and thick carpets muted footfalls and gave a welcoming warmth to the cavernous rooms.

Each of three wings had a showpiece staircase that wound up through the three stories and beyond. The biggest staircase began on the main floor in the entry rotunda. From the rotunda, Zach had shown them through the great hall, a beautiful library, plus drawing and dining rooms. The kitchen was fitted with modern appliances, but stayed true to its roots through wood and stonework and the gleaming array of antique copper pots and implements hanging from ceiling racks.