His Secret Temptation

“And it’s been fun, hasn’t it?” he prompted when the silence stretched between them.

“I’ve spent the last three days lying to your family for no reason. That isn’t my idea of fun.” She’d loved being embraced by his parents and his siblings. Leaving that behind would be so hard.

Plus, she was indebted to him for her tuition for no reason. She should have listened to the little voice that warned her not to take the easy way out of her troubles. Things like that always backfired.

“We specifically discussed roses when I placed the order.” Elizabeth’s voice preceded her down the back stairs. She rounded the corner from the front parlor, her tone betraying her frustration with the person on the other end of the line. “Imagine my surprise to find carnations in my arrangements instead.”

She stopped when she spied Caroline and Simon and frowned. Caroline wasn’t sure if she picked up on the tense scene she’d stumbled into or if she was reacting to something the florist said. Either way, Caroline needed to escape Simon and figured this was the perfect opportunity, but when she made to slide past Elizabeth and escape upstairs, Simon’s mother held up her finger, and then made a shooing gesture at Simon.

“Of course you’re going to come out and fix it. When I pay for roses, I expect roses.” With a snort of disgust, Elizabeth disconnected and turned her attention on Caroline. “I need your opinion on something.”

“Me?” As much as she longed to vanish and sort through the tornado of thoughts and emotions whirling through her, she’d always found that busy hands kept the demons of doubt away. “Sure, whatever you need.”

For the next two hours, Elizabeth kept her occupied with organizing the buffet table and supervising the arrangement of the tables and chairs in the ballroom. The task provided the perfect distraction, but all too soon she’d smoothed out the last detail and it was time for lunch.

As she stood beside the door that led from the kitchen to the terrace, balancing a plate of chicken salad, Caroline realized what a good actress she’d become. No one had any idea her heart had been broken that morning. She laughed and teased right along with the rest of the family, but as soon as she could, she escaped out the front door for a long walk and to put everything in perspective.

She wanted to cry. Tears might have released some of the pressure in her chest, but her eyes remained dry. Hands jammed in her pocket, she walked across Forsyth Park and confronted her truth. Two nights ago everything had changed. She’d taken a gigantic step forward with her life. She’d made love to Simon with an open heart and an awareness that how she felt about him was not necessarily the way he felt about her.

For a planner like her, surrendering to the moment had been liberating. Too bad what had made her feel so in charge of her own destiny was now tainted by regrets.

A tear slipped down her cheek, leaving a wet trail that she dashed away. Resentment flared. She hadn’t surrendered to self-pity once in the last ten years. She was not about to do so now. She had fallen in love with the wrong man. She would have to live with that. Setting her chin at a determined angle, she retraced her steps.

Simon met her in the foyer when she entered the house. His worried frown made her heart cavort in an exasperating display of delight. Hadn’t she just spent the last hour telling herself he wasn’t the man for her? Why, then, did his concern make her feel cherished?

“Where have you been?”

“I went for a walk.”

“Alone?”

“Yes.” She unbuttoned her coat and let it fall from her shoulders. “I’m not used to being around this many people all the time.”

“I thought maybe…” His voice trailed off. He took her coat and hung it in the hall closet. “Dane disappeared around the same time. I thought you two were together.”

And if they had been? So what? Dane had a fiancée, and Caroline was nothing like Francine. She wouldn’t trade one brother for another. She wouldn’t trade Simon for anyone. That last thought snagged her attention. Well, apparently listing all the reasons she was better off without him hadn’t convinced her that was the case.

“What time does the party start tonight?” She hoped changing the subject would prevent her from dwelling on what had leaped out of her subconscious mind.

“Five.”

“Great, I’m going to grab a quick nap.” Her words brought up the reason she was so tired. She averted her gaze from Simon, but not quick enough to miss the way his eyes lit with his own memories.

Half-afraid he would offer to join her, Caroline dashed up the stairs. By the time she reached the bedroom and put her back against the closed door, her heart was pounding hard enough to damage her rib cage.

After her encounter with Simon, Caroline knew sleep wouldn’t be an option, so she ran hot water into the tub. Soaking in a bath was a luxury she rarely had time for, and the tub in her apartment was too short to allow full immersion. Not so with this one. Up to her chin in fragrant bubbles, she exhaled long and slow. She’d almost finished emptying her lungs when the door opened.

“Hi.” Hannah entered and closed the door behind her. While Caroline watched in stunned surprise, Simon’s sister pulled the vanity chair beside the tub. “Oh, I forgot you grew up an only child.” A cheeky grin curved her lips. “You’re not used to living in a no-privacy zone. Well, if you’re going to marry my brother, you’d better get used to it. We’re all in each other’s business.”

“So, I can expect Dane to join us any minute?” Caroline groused, a dim spark of amusement firing at how Simon would handle that. “You guys aren’t as involved in each other’s business as you might think. For example, your brothers think there’s something going on with you that you’re not talking about.”

Hannah’s face lost all trace of animation. “I don’t want to worry anyone.”

“Isn’t that what family’s there for? To support you when times are tough?”

“Yes, but not right now. It’s not anything Simon or Dane can fix and they will just drive themselves crazy worrying.”

“And your mother?”