“All the others are for sale, Miss,” the woman told her gently.
Darcy couldn’t help but chuckle at the woman’s game and conceded it had worked. The woman had offered her two free strawberries to taste, knowing she would like them enough to buy the rest. And she was right.
“All right then, I want the entire basket. They are delicious.”
The woman’s face beamed. “Thank you. Would you like to try any other fruit?”
Darcy figured she might as well—anything to get her mind off the man across the street. Ellie liked York and couldn’t figure out why her best friend and one of her husband’s godbrothers could not get along. She had constantly told Ellie not to lose any sleep over it. Life wasn’t intended for every single person to live together in harmony.
She glanced back at York and saw he was still staring over at her. Data rushed through her brain as to how much she knew about him. He was thirty-four, had gotten a criminology degree from a university in Florida and had been a cop with the NYPD for a few years before going into business for himself as a security expert. Both of his parents were living, and he had a younger sister and brother.
She also knew that he and his six godbrothers had formed the Bachelors in Demand club, with each one vowing to remain single. Now it was down to only four since two had married. Uriel Lassiter had married Ellie and Xavier Kane had married a woman by the name of Farrah earlier in the year.
“Here are your purchases,” the woman said, handing her a huge brown paper bag containing the strawberries, mangoes and guineps. Darcy figured her next destination would be the hotel. Seeing York had practically ruined her day. She needed to revamp and get prepared for her night on the beach.
“Here, let me help you with that.”
Darcy turned her head at the deep, husky male voice who’d spoken close to her ear at the same time her bag was smoothly taken from her hand. She frowned when she glanced up at a face that was too handsome for his own good. “York, what are you doing here in Jamaica?” She all but snapped the question out at him.
He smiled, and she had to force her gaze from the curve of his mouth when he said, “Funny, I was about to ask you the same thing. Are you sure New York can handle things without you?”
“It will be a struggle, but they’ll manage,” she responded smartly. They both lived in New York but made it a point not to have their paths cross, which had always been fine with her—definitely preferable. “What about with you? Is the security of the city being tested with you gone?”
“Not at all,” he said smoothly. “And you never answered my question as to what you’re doing here in Jamaica.”
She glared up at him. “Not that it’s any of your business but I’m here vacationing for three weeks. I’ve earned the time off and intend to enjoy myself. And why are you here?”
“Vacationing as well. Funny we picked the same place to unwind and seek out relaxation.”
Darcy didn’t see anything amusing about it. Being on the same island with him was definitely not how she wanted things to be. It was bad enough that they lived in the same city. “Well, enjoy your vacation, and I can carry my own bag, thank you.” She tried tugging her bag from his grip and he held tight.
“Excuse me, but will you let go of my bag?”
Instead of doing so, he asked, “Where are you on your way to?”
She let out a deep, frustrated sigh. “My hotel.”
“Which one?”
“The Ritz-Carlton,” she said, without thinking.
His smile widened. “Now isn’t that a coincidence? So am I.”
He had to be joking, she thought. There was no way he could be staying at her hotel. As if he’d read her thoughts, he chuckled and said, “I guess this isn’t your lucky day, huh?”
She snatched her bag from him. “You’re right, it’s not.”
She turned and thanked the woman for her purchase and moved to walk away. Why wasn’t she surprised when York fell in step beside her? She stopped and turned to him. “And just where do you think you’re going?”
“Back to the hotel. Since we’re headed the same way, I figure we might as well keep each other company.”
“Has it ever occurred to you that I might not want your company?”
His answer was simple. “No, that thought has never occurred to me.”
“Like the time you rushed over to my place thinking I was a helpless female in distress?”
He laughed. “Hey, that was Ellie’s idea, not mine.”
He was right. It had been Ellie’s idea. She and Ellie had been talking on the phone late one night when Darcy had heard a noise downstairs. She put Ellie on hold to investigate, not knowing Ellie had panicked and called York, who lived less than a mile away. Ellie had asked him to go to Darcy’s house to make sure everything was okay.
It turned out there had been a burglar. Some guy had broken into her house, and she had caught him rummaging through her kitchen drawers. By the time York had gotten there, the guy had discovered just how well she could defend herself when she’d demonstrated the karate skills she’d acquired growing up and taking classes with her brothers.
York, who had arrived before the police, had gotten extremely angry with her, saying she had no business taking on the likes of a burglar. Of course, she had disagreed with him.
“Okay, your showing up at my place might have been El’s idea, but you had no right to scold me in front of those police officers.”
“You took your life in your hands when you should have called the police,” he said, and she could tell from the tone of his voice her actions that night last year was still a sore spot with him.
“Had I waited for the police, the man would have gotten away just to break into someone else’s home. I had no intentions of letting him do that.”
York frowned. “Does it matter that you could have gotten killed?” Anger laced his every word.
“Could have but I didn’t. I had sized up the situation and knew it was one I could handle. Not every woman needs a man for protection, York.”
“And evidently you’re one of those kinds.”
She wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but hell yes, she was one of those kinds. She didn’t need a man around to protect her. Her first husband had learned that the hard way when he began showing abusive tendencies. “I guess I am,” she finally said, smiling as if she was proud of that fact.
She began walking again, convinced he would decide he wouldn’t want her company after all. He proved her wrong when he picked up his pace and began walking beside her again. She decided to ignore him. The good thing was that the hotel was less than a block away.
York walked beside Darcy and tried not to keep glancing over at her. She looked cute in her wide-brimmed straw hat and sundress. He had noticed her checking him out, and when she’d removed her sunglasses and he’d seen it was Darcy, he hadn’t known whether to be amused or annoyed. She certainly hadn’t known who he was at first, just like he hadn’t recognized her.
But once she had known it was him, he could immediately see her guard go up. She had intended to put distance between them. At any other time he would let her but not this time. He wasn’t sure why, but all he knew was that was how it would be.
“Would the lady like to look at my bracelets?” a peddler asked.
She