with great-looking men who already knew her name. When she turned, her fair complexion had gone bone pale, her green eyes as flat and dimmed as if someone had reached inside and turned off her switch.
“Hello, Oliver.” And she didn’t seem the least bit surprised to see this man, whoever he was.
“Zoe.” He said her name on a long, soft sigh, breaking into a huge smile, searching her face like a starving man being dragged past a banquet. “What are you doing here?”
She held up the condom box and attempted a funny face. “Stocking up.”
He barely smiled, giving her with a look so intense even Lacey could feel its power. “I mean, in this hotel?”
“Visiting a friend.” She gave him a tight smile and tapped the green Kiss of Mint box on her cheek. “Obviously, a good one.”
“Obviously.”
“Oliver!” The woman he’d come in with called from the front. “I’m ready.”
He held up a single finger to the woman without taking his eyes from Zoe. He looked like he wanted to say something but no matter how deep he dug, the right words eluded him.
“Your wife is waiting,” Zoe said in a voice that was no louder than a whisper.
“Zoe…”
“As I recall, she doesn’t like to wait.”
He closed his eyes like she’d kicked him in the stomach. “It was… I can’t believe—”
“Oliver, I told the limo driver we’d be right there. Hurry, sweetheart.”
“Bye!” Zoe said with completely false brightness, using the condom box to give a stupid little wave.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered, the words so soft Lacey wasn’t sure she heard right. “I’m so sorry.”
Zoe’s brightness flickered for a second, but that wasn’t joy. It was hate. “Go. I have nothing to say to you.”
Without so much as a glance at Lacey he pivoted and returned to the front, where the woman grabbed his arm and nudged him toward the door. “What were you doing back there where they keep the sex toys, you animal?”
Zoe stood transfixed, watching them leave.
“Who was that?” Lacey asked.
Zoe just closed her eyes and collapsed into a heap of fallen condoms, no doubt preparing a punch line she’d deliver with impeccable timing and sarcasm.
Instead, she quietly started to cry.
Chapter Fifteen
Clay only half listened to his sister’s account of her latest dating debacle as he strolled through the waters of Barefoot Bay. His other ear was trained on the road that led to the beach, hoping the sound of Lacey’s little VW would be the next he heard.
“Do I have a loser magnet hanging around my neck, Clay?” Darcie asked. “I mean, is it me or is it just that all men are assholes who only want sex and games, with no strings attached?”
A little guilt tweaked him, but he shoved it away. “It’s all men.”
“Not you.”
Yes, him. Now, anyway. “Just be careful, use protection, and don’t get your hopes up. It’s hell out there.”
“Great advice, oh cynical brother. Aren’t you ever going to get over your heartbreak?”
He snorted. “First of all, I’m honest, not cynical. Second of all, nothing broke except my career. And third, I’m over her, Darcie. I was over it long before the day they got married.”
Darcie was quiet for a minute. “He’s actually been really good with little Elliott.”
“Nice to hear. Change the subject or I’m hanging up.”
He heard her sigh softly. “How’s it going down there? Getting what you want?”
“Working on it,” he said with another glance at the road. “I was right about the job; it could be big. It looks like I’m going to get it from planning to finish, which would be exactly what I need to take to the AIA for certification.” He waited a beat, debating how much to tell her. “The owner’s nice, too.”
“Nice? What do you mean, nice? Like he won’t go looking for references or digging up dirt?”
“I mean nice, like she’s pretty hot and we have good chemistry.”
“Ohhhh.” She dragged the single syllable out to a full chorus of multiple notes. “Well, use protection and don’t get your hopes up.”
“Touché.”
“And be careful, Clay.”
“Don’t worry. I’m not going to get hurt again.” He wasn’t that stupid.
“I mean professionally,” Darcie said. “If Dad finds out—”
“He won’t,” he assured her. “This place is completely remote. I’m not going to file anything official with my name on it that could get on the Internet. Once I finish the job, I’ll claim it with the board and fight for a chance to sit for those exams. No one can stop me if I’ve finished designing and building