Secret Weapon Spouse - By B. J. Daniels Page 0,59

and dark. His gaze locked with hers and a bolt of desire ricocheted through him, but he didn’t move, barely breathed as he watched her.

Slowly, she unhooked the end of the towel wrapped around her. It dropped to the floor with barely a whisper.

She smiled at his intake of breath and was already leaning toward him as he threw back the covers and pulled her down on top of him.

THE STORM PASSED, leaving devastation in its wake. Everywhere there were downed trees and power lines. Once the hurricane farther south had come ashore it spawned high winds and tornadoes. One tornado had touched down not far from where they were staying.

As Alex drove them to the airport in the new rental car he’d procured, they passed some of the debris. Samantha found herself wishing they didn’t have to go back to their real lives.

And that surprised her. Her two jobs had been everything for so long, she’d never believed anything else could fulfill her the way her work did.

But that was before she’d met Alex Graham.

He’d grown quiet, as well. For a while they’d escaped everything, but those many hours together couldn’t last and they both knew it.

Eventually, they’d known they would have to return to Miami. Samantha feared that would change everything. In Tennessee in a motel with Alex, she hadn’t been a wedding planner or a special agent. She’d just been a woman.

ALEX HAD CALLED Caroline the minute the plane landed in Miami. His sister was doing much better. He hadn’t talked to her that often over the years, so when she came on the line, he didn’t really know what to say to her.

“Pres called,” she said. “He feels so badly that he is out of the country and unable to return but he’ll be home soon.”

Alex knew she was lying, but he said, “Good. That must be a relief to you. I know about the baby, Caroline.” Silence. “Hell, I’m ready to go out and buy a football. Or some dolls. It doesn’t matter. I can’t wait to be an uncle.” He heard her crying.

“That’s all I’ve ever wanted, Alex. For us to be a family. You’re going to love Pres. I planned to tell you about him the other day at Weddings Your Way…before the accident. I was just afraid you wouldn’t understand. You know, about the baby and all.”

“You know I’d love to talk to this fiancé of yours,” Alex said. “Congratulate him and welcome him to the family. You have a number for him?”

Silence. Then, “He said the phones are terrible where he is, can’t get calls in but he’ll be calling me again soon and I’ll tell him. He’ll be glad and it won’t be that long before you’ll get to meet him in person.”

Yeah right. “What country did you say he was in?”

More silence, then a weak laugh. “You know I didn’t even ask. Somewhere in South America, I think he said. He moves around so much, who can keep track?”

It broke his heart to hear his sister try to cover for the man. How long did she think she could keep this up?

“Okay, sis,” he said. “You just take care of yourself. I’ll see you real soon.” He had ended the call, anxious to get back to Miami, afraid for his sister even with an added guard on her room.

He understood that she’d lied about Pres because she loved the man. He understood love, maybe now more than he ever had before, he thought, looking over at Samantha as they walked through their terminal at Miami International Airport.

“Caroline says she’s heard from Pres.” He raked a hand through his hair. “I can hear the love in her voice for this guy. It kills me.” He saw her expression. “I know you still want to believe in this guy, but if you’re wrong about him, it doesn’t mean you’re wrong about me.”

SAMANTHA HOPED that was true as she smiled and took his hand in hers. “I still believe he loves her.” She couldn’t have been wrong about that.

She wanted Presley to be innocent of any wrongdoing even more now that she’d met his family. She wanted him to be like her—the one who’d escaped that life, made good, prove it could be done. She needed that reassurance.

“If what you say about your father is true, he would never have accepted Caroline marrying Presley Wells of Tennessee,” she said, trying to convince herself as much as Alex that that was the reason