❦ ❦

"So how was the dinner?"

I didn't need to look at Nathan's face to know that he was smirking at me. "Go away."

"Is that how you show your gratitude to me?"

"Gratitude for what?"

"For arranging the dinner so that you could swoop in and take my place." He let out a long sigh then frowned when he saw the screen of my laptop. "What are you doing?"

"This Kate's website. She's an interior designer." I tapped on the screen, showing him pictures of her work. "Look at these, she has a natural talent for interior designing."

"Very tasteful. I should fire my interior designer and hire her."

"Too late. I'm thinking of hiring her myself to work on the hotel in Bali."

Nathan looked at me in silence. "Be careful, Jason. She broke your heart once. She could do it again."

"This is just business. I'm not the same person I was 6 years ago."

"You flew back here from LA as soon as the deal with Alderman was finalized."

"So?"

"No man would fly 13 hours just to have dinner with a woman who didn't mean anything to him."

I frowned thinking over his words. I had flown to LA, signed the hotel deal and again got back on my jet and flown back to St. Lucia to have dinner with Kate. I wouldn't have gone to such extent for another woman.

"I just wanted to see her again. That's all." I shrugged, unwilling to think there was more to my actions. When he shot me a look of disbelief, I sighed. "Look, I won't pretend that I'm not attracted to her. Hell, I spent the whole dinner with a fucking hard on. But she is engaged. To an asshole by the sound of it but nevertheless she is off-limits."

"I don't think that's going to stop you."

"You have no faith in me, do you?" I scowled at him.

"If this was any other woman I would have believed you but it's Kate. She's the only one you've ever loved. After you both broke up, you've never been serious about a woman."

"Well then I'll just have to prove you wrong."

"So what did you both talk about?"

"What are we, two high school girls?"

He laughed. "Oh c'mon, after all I went through to set you up for dinner with her I think I deserve to know a little bit."

"Well, if u must know, Kate is appalled at the fortune you're charging me to carry my car on board."

"Did you tell her that you are not giving me a cent?"

"No." I grinned at the dirty look he shot at me.

❦ ❦ ❦

Hal woke me up in the middle of the night. I opened my eyes groggily. "This better be good."

"Jason Perez? You went to dinner with The Jason Perez?" His eyes were as wide as saucers.

"Nathan couldn't make it so he came in his place." I mumbled into the pillow.

"You have no idea how shocked I was when I saw him at the door. My God, he looks so much better in real life."

I sighed knowing Hal wouldn't shut up for the next hour. When he was excited about something he could go on forever.

"Hal. Let me sleep." I groaned hitting him with a pillow.

"Why aren't you excited? One of the most eligible bachelors in the world just took you out on a date."

"For the last time, it was not a date. Just dinner." I sighed in exasperation. "And I'm in love with Peter. I'm not looking for another guy. Why can't you understand that?"

"I didn't..."

"No, Hal. Listen to me. I know you don't like Peter. But we are getting married. You'll just have to accept that and be happy for me."

"I am happy for you but..." Instead of finishing the sentence, he exhaled slowly. "Let's talk about this tomorrow. Sorry I woke you up. Go back to sleep." He bent down and brushed his lips on my forehead before disappearing into the bathroom.

Groaning, I buried my head under a pillow. I shouldn't have been so sharp with him. I knew he had his reasons for not liking Peter but his constant attempts to try and get me to notice other men were getting on my nerves.

Besides, I had been in a bad mood when I fell asleep. After dinner with Jason, I had come to my suite and found myself unable to get rid of his thoughts. No matter what I tried, I couldn't stop thinking about him or our kiss.

I kept thinking I shouldn't have gone out with him. I was feeling guilty, like I had betrayed Peter and spent hours tossing around in bed before I fell into a restless sleep. And then Hal had woken me up and started talking about Jason again.

❦ ❦ ❦

The next morning, we were sitting by the pool after spending two hours swimming and doing a little bit of sight-seeing in St. Kitts. I was rubbing lotion on my legs, lost in thoughts when Hal cleared his throat.

"Something on your mind?" He was looking at me curiously. "You've been awfully quiet this morning."

I decided it was time to come clean to him. I needed some advice anyway. The look of disbelief on his face was comical when I told him the mystery man I kissed when I was drunk was Jason Perez. And then I told him about the second kiss as well.

"I need a moment to process all this." Hal said dazedly when I finished.

"There's more." I sighed. "Remember I told you about the guy I dated in high school?"

He scowled instantly. "Yeah. The bastard who broke your heart. What about him?"

"Do you remember his name?"

"No. You never talked about him again after that first time you told me. What's going on?"

I couldn't help smiling, knowing he was going to flip out in a second. "Nothing much except that I went to dinner with him last night."

He stared at me blankly for several seconds before his eyes widened. His mouth hung open and he was looking at me as if I had suddenly grown two heads or something. "You mean to tell me your asshole ex-boyfriend from school is the Jason Perez?"

"One and the same."

"No fucking way." He stood up, rubbed a hand on his face, and sat down again, the look of shock still on his face.

"Are you done freaking out?" I asked grinning.

"Never. This is huge." He shook his head. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"It didn't seem important back then. I'm sorry I kept it from you."

"I can't believe this." He grinned suddenly. "You dated Jason Perez. That is great."

"Great?" He was definitely out of his mind. "You're forgetting that he was a liar who broke my heart."

"Well, yeah. But that's the past. And if I remember correctly, you told me he apologized and admitted that despite the bet he made with his friends, he really liked you. He didn't want to break up. It was you who dumped him." He continued, his voice high with excitement. "And now he's back in your life taking you out to dinner and all. I mean, he wouldn't do that unless he's interested in you."

Now it was my turn to stare at him as if he had grown two heads. This was not how I expected him to react.

"It's like destiny." He continued. "Both of you coming here on this ship, together after all these years – it's like the universe is giving you both a second chance."

"You're out of your mind." I shot him a glare, dismissing his words. "Why are you suddenly on his side anyway? I seem to remember you telling me that if ever you came face to face with him, you would kick his ass for hurting me."

"Yeah but I didn't know his identity then."

"So just because he turned out to be a hot shot billionaire, you suddenly change your mind?" I shook my head. "Your loyalty to me is admirable."

He grinned, tugging on my hair. "I am loyal to you. As your best friend, it's my duty to make you see things you're too stubborn to see."

"And those are?"

"Well, for one, you're attracted to Jason. Which you're too stubborn to admit." When I opened my mouth to protest, he continued smugly. "Don't even try to deny it. The moment he appeared back in your life you came on to him."

"I was drunk." I said defensively.

"You weren't drunk the second time."

I bit my lip as a wave of guilt resurfaced again.

"Don't beat yourself up over it." Hal said reading the emotions on my face. "Even a straight man would have fantasies about him. He is that gorgeous."

"That's no excuse for me to turn to a puddle of hormones every time he is in the same damn room as me." I muttered feeling disgusted. "Peter doesn't deserve this. I can't even imagine how he would react."

"Wait. You're going to tell him?"

I stared at Hal in surprise. "Of course. I'm not going to deceive him."

"Or you could just let this go and not make a big deal out of it."

"That's absurd. I can't do that." I was horrified. I couldn't do that to Peter. I wasn't that person.

"What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas."

"We are not in Vegas." I rolled my eyes.

He winked. "Vegas or Caribbean, the same rule applies."

"You have no morals at all. Why am I even friends with you?"

"Holy fucking Hell." Hal was looking over my shoulder with an awed look on his face. "Your lover boy is heading this way and he looks absolutely yummy."

"He is not my lover boy." I snapped and ignored the sudden urge to check my hair. What was wrong with me?

"I think I need a drink." Hal grinned getting up from the lounger.

"Don't you dare leave me alone with him." I hissed panicking but Hal was already walking away. I should really start looking for a new best friend. I scowled at his retreating back.

A shadow fell over me and I looked up. My heart was already beating too fast but when my gaze collided with Jason's gorgeous face, my heart beat sky rocketed. His hair was sexily windblown, eyes covered with blue mirrored sun shades. Dressed in a pair of green and blue striped swim shorts and a white short sleeved shirt, he looked as if he had walked straight out of an expensive beach wear advert.

He cleared his throat, a smirk tugging on his sensual lips and my face heated immediately, embarrassed to be caught checking him out again.

"Mind if I join you?" He asked, and then without waiting for my answer, seated himself on the lounger next to me.

"Looks like you already have."

He grinned, making my mouth go very dry. Those dimples should be illegal. It was lethal enough to stop any woman dead in her tracks and by the sudden heat coiling deep in my belly, I realized I wasn't as unaffected as I was pretending to be.

He leaned over and reached for the book on my lap. As he took it, his knuckles brushed against my bare thigh and a jolt of awareness rushed through me. I inhaled sharply and his scent filled my senses. It seemed as if he had splashed on some tanning oil or sun block because he smelled faintly of coconut oil and cocoa butter with a hint of citrus undertone. Like a delicious summer treat.

"Recipes in a jar?" He looked surprised as he read the title of my book. "You hate cooking."

So he remembered that about me. "I don't but it's time I learned."

"Because you're getting married?"

"A wife should know how to cook." I shrugged, my mind going to Peter. He wanted me to learn cooking before we got married. And even though, I hated cooking, I wanted to do it for him.

"It isn't a gender specific skill." He said with a small smile. "I think everyone should know the basic cooking skills to survive. If a wife is expected to know how to make a good meal then the same goes for the husband."

"Well, my cooking skills are limited to spaghetti. I don't think any man would want that three times a day."

"I wouldn't mind." He grinned and my heart beat started galloping. Wouldn't I ever get used to his smile?

"Says the man who is used to eating at the fanciest places."

"Nothing beats a homemade meal." He handed the book to me. "Have lunch with me."

"I-I don't think that's a good idea."

He looked amused. "Why not? I'm not asking you on a date."

I felt my face getting red. How could I tell him that being close to him affected me more than it should?

"I just want to talk to you about something."

"We are talking now."

"Alright." He shrugged. "I went through your portfolio last night. You've done some amazing work."

"Thank you." I was immensely pleased he liked my work. The Perez hotels and resorts were known for their luxurious and grand designs so coming from him, the words meant a great deal.

"I just bought a beach hotel in Bali." He continued. "Usually I hire Moretti Interiors to work on any new additions to the hotel chain but this time I'm thinking of hiring a fresh new talent."

His words took a moment to sink in. My eyes widened as I stared at him. Was he implying that he wanted to hire me? No. That couldn't be. Moretti Interiors were the world's leading interior design firm and he couldn't possibly be thinking of choosing me over them.

He smiled seeing the look on my face. "Like I said, I like your work. If you're interested, then this project could be yours."

I opened my mouth to respond but nothing came out. I was too shocked. Finally, I cleared my throat, finding my voice. "You're not serious."

He chuckled. "I am. Take some time to think over it." He stood up, intending to leave.

Still in shock, I got to my feet as well. Even though his eyes were covered with the shades, I could feel his gaze move over my body and I suddenly felt hot under the yellow bikini I was wearing.

He was still, except for the subtle movement of his jaw clenching and unclenching. Then he stepped back from me. "I'll be in the Crown Lounge after dinner tonight. Find me when you've decided."

Just then Hal sauntered up to us. Glad for the distraction, I quickly made the introductions.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Perez." Hal said without even bothering to hide the fact that he was checking Jason out.

"Call me Jason, please. It's good to meet you too." He grinned and I saw Hal blink. I hid a smile. So it wasn't just me who was affected by Jason's smile.

"My God, he has a killer smile." Hal said as soon as Jason left.

"Seems like someone got a little crush." I teased.

"Seems like I'm not the only one." Hal shot back with a smirk.

"I don't have a crush." I muttered taking his drink and drinking half of it in one breathe.

"Well, aren't you thirsty."

"It's hot today."

He wriggled his eyebrows. "It is. But the man who just left is hotter. Sure your thirst doesn't have anything to do with that walking sex God?"

"Shut up." I glowered at him.

He grinned but to my relief dropped it. "So what did he say?"

I quickly filled him in on my conversation with Jason.

Hal looked ecstatic. "That's wonderful. Please tell me you're going to accept."

"I don't know." I said with a sigh. "Designing a hotel is my dream but we are talking about a Perez hotel here. It's the most luxurious hotel brand in the world. It's way out of my league. I don't have the experience for it."

"You can do it." Hal said simply. "I'm not saying this because I'm biased but you are extremely talented and I know you can achieve anything if you put your mind to it and work hard for it."

"But..."

"No buts. You're doing this." He said firmly. "At least, go and talk to him about it. No harm in discussing the project. And after that, if you think it's not for you, then you can decline his offer."

I thought over his words and decided he was right.