FORTY-EIGHT

 

A tentative knock on the door dragged Xan's attention from the lagoon, where no naked rock star swam this morning. Maybe he'd slept in, after all the drinking and dancing last night. If she was lucky, he'd have forgotten all about their kiss.

After waiting half an hour for a response that evidently wasn't coming, she'd switched off her laptop and stuffed it back in its bag. She'd check her email again later, but today she deserved a rest. The wedding had been hard work.

She squeezed past the dining table and unlocked the door.

Jason stood on the door mat, a strange intensity in his eyes that Xan couldn't remember seeing before.

"I'm looking for the lady who owns this rather remarkable shoe," he said, holding out one of her heels from last night.

Another line he'd stolen from a movie. Or a book. Xan couldn't remember. Were all the charming things he said and did borrowed from the books he'd read? Maybe none of it was him at all.

"I don't have any use for a single shoe. I have two feet."

"That's why I brought them both." Jason pulled his other arm from behind his back, showing her the pair she'd worn yesterday.

No wonder he hadn't been in the lagoon this morning. "You went swimming for my other shoe?"

He grinned. "Nah. The heel was caught in the jetty, like Cinderella was too busy fleeing the scene to free it before she took off. The other one was still on the beach where you'd left it, too. So I figured I'd bring them back to you. Especially as neither of them is a Target shoe." He held them up so she could see the brand name clearly on the insole.

Xan sighed. "No, they're not from Target. I bought them in Melbourne at one of those designer outlet places. They suited my dress, so I wore them."

"I didn't come here to talk about shoes, Xanthe. I'm here to talk about last night."

Last night we danced and kissed and it was so potent it infused my dreams, Xan thought but didn't say. Instead, she said. "What's to talk about? Your friend got married, we all drank too much, did things we regret and would like to forget, and now it's time to clean up the mess and go back to normal life. I should go see what the damage is to the new deck."

"You want to forget last night?" Hurt hooded Jason's eyes.

"Of course I do. Don't you? Weddings are like fireworks. One night when everything seems to burn a bit brighter, but it's just an illusion. In daylight, there's nothing there." Xan forced herself to shrug. She couldn't look at him. One more moment of looking into those eyes and she'd give in and kiss him again. She had to get away from him. And the resort. But mostly from him.

"Bye, Jason. Thanks for the shoes."

She pushed the door shut, then sank onto the sofa, her head in her hands.

Only an idiot fell in love with her boss. Last night she'd become that idiot. But she wouldn't stay that way for long. She'd run far and fast, somewhere he wouldn't come searching for her. Because that was what Jason did – he just forgot about his girl of the moment and moved onto the next. He didn't chase girls. Didn't even ask them on a date.

She'd be crazy to consider a relationship with him. That's why she was considering a job on the other side of the country instead. Much smarter.