She seemed pretty sharp for a twenty-eight-year-old, and he figured she rarely missed anything. It would be hard, if not next to impossible, for a man to run a game on her.
He could vividly recall the first time he’d seen her rushing into the church for Uriel’s wedding rehearsal. She’d been late since her plane had had mechanical problems.
Like all the other men, he had simply stared at her—the woman with all that dark brown hair flowing around her shoulders, hazel eyes, striking cocoa colored features and a body to die for. The last thing he’d expected when he’d tried coming on to her later was to be told she wasn’t interested. He would admit it had been a blow to his ego. That incident had been almost two years ago, and if the way she’d been sizing him up moments ago was anything to go by, it seemed she was pretty interested now.
He knew he should let go and move on, but so far he hadn’t been able to do that. And whenever he saw her they had a tendency to get on each other’s last nerves. If the truth be told, he had a mind to pay her back for rebuffing his advances that day. He could seduce her, make love to her and then walk away and not look back. Yes, that would serve her right.
“Well, that’s that,” she said, reclaiming his attention. He saw the way her lips quirked in amusement as well as the gleam of triumph shining in her eyes. He gathered she’d made a purchase she was pleased with.
They continued walking again, side by side, and he wondered how long she would continue to ignore him. He decided to stir conversation and asked, “When was the last time you talked to Ellie?” He eased the bag containing her fruit from her hand once again.
Darcy glanced over at York and decided that she would allow him to carry that bag since he seemed hell-bent on doing so anyway. She would keep the bag with the four bracelets she’d purchased from the peddler at a good price. “We’re best friends, so I talk to El practically every day,” she said. “But she hasn’t called since I arrived here. She’s going to be busy this week.”
“Doing what?”
She wondered if he thought everything was his business. “She’s hosting several holiday parties.”
“Oh.”
“It is the holiday season, you know,” she reminded him.
“Yes, I know.”
She didn’t say anything and for a moment regretted bringing up any mention of the holidays. She’d heard from El that a woman York had been dating and had begun caring deeply about, and who’d been a fellow officer when he’d been a cop with the NYPD, had gotten gunned down on Christmas Day while investigating a robbery. That had been over six years ago. After that, he’d sworn never to get seriously involved with a woman again, especially one in a dangerous profession. She knew all about the Bachelors in Demand club, one he formed along with his bachelor godbrothers who were all intent on staying single men forever. She had met all six of the godbrothers and got along with each of them … except for York.
“So how are your parents?” she asked, deciding to change the subject. She had first met the Ellises at Ellie and Uriel’s wedding and had run into them again when another one of Uriel and York’s godbrothers, Xavier Kane, had gotten married earlier in the year.
“They’re doing fine. I visited with them a couple of months ago.” He glanced back over at her. “So what do you plan on doing later?”
She glanced up at him from under the wide-brimmed hat. “I’m resting up for the big beach party the hotel is hosting tonight. I hear it’s a real classy black-tie affair. You are going, aren’t you?”
“Hadn’t planned on it.”
“Oh, well.” She should have felt relieved that he wouldn’t be there, but for some reason she felt a pang of disappointment in her chest. Why was that?
“Behave yourself tonight, Darcy.”
She lifted a brow. If he was being cute, she wasn’t appreciating it. “Let me assure you, Mr. Ellis, that you don’t need to tell me how to behave. And just for the record, I don’t plan on taking your advice. The reason I’m here is to have a good time, and a good time is what I will have—even if it means misbehaving.”
He stopped walking and stared at her, and she could see anger lurking in the dark depths of his eyes. She knew it was probably bothering him that she was standing there, facing him and looking nonplussed. Her two brothers were dominating males, so York’s personality type was not foreign to her. But that didn’t mean she had to tolerate it or him.
She glanced around. They were now standing in the plush lobby of the hotel. “I guess this is where we need to part ways, and hopefully we won’t run into each other again anytime soon. You didn’t say how long you intend to visit here.”
He smiled at her. “No, I didn’t say.”
And when she saw that he had no intention of doing so either, she released a sigh, took her bag from him and said, “Goodbye, York.” She then turned and headed for the bank of elevators.
Darcy drew in a deep breath with every step she took, tempted to glance over her shoulder. But she had a feeling he was still standing there, staring at her, and she didn’t want to give him the impression that she’d given him another thought … although she was doing so.
A few moments later, she stepped on the elevator and turned. She’d been right. He was still standing there. And while others joined her on the elevator their gazes held. At that moment, she felt a pang of regret that the two of them had never gotten along. Too bad. She was too set in her ways to make any changes now. Besides, she didn’t want to make any changes. For some reason, she much preferred that she and York keep their distance. The man was temptation personified. She could deal with temptation but not when it included an extreme amount of arrogance.
The elevator doors swooshed shut, breaking their eye connection. She released a deep breath, only realizing at that moment she’d been holding it. He was staying in another section of the hotel. It was a humongous place, but their paths might cross again and she would be ready and prepared. She had no intentions of letting York Ellis catch her off guard again.
Chapter 2
Damn, the woman was too beautiful for her own good, York thought, watching the elevator door close behind Darcy Owens. Beautiful with a smart mouth, a delectable looking mouth. More than once he’d been tempted to kiss it shut and to demonstrate just what he could do when his tongue connected with hers.
But then he had to remember that Darcy was too brash and outspoken to suit him. He didn’t want a “yes” woman by any means, but he didn’t want a woman who would dissect his every word looking for some hidden meaning. For some reason, she couldn’t take things at face value when it came to him, and he couldn’t understand why.
If he had the time, he would put it at the top of his list to seduce the smart-mouthed Darcy Owens just for the hell of it. If she wanted to misbehave, he could certainly show her what misbehaving was all about. But he had to remember she was the best friend of his godbrother’s wife, and Ellie probably wouldn’t take too kindly if he seduced her best friend just for the hell of paying her back.
He was about to head over to his side of the hotel when his cell phone rang. He pulled it off his belt and saw it was Wesley Carr, one of the retired police officers that he used as part of his investigative team. It had been his father’s idea.
Jerome Ellis had retired a few years ago as a circuit judge. He was a firm believer that retired police officers could better serve as more than just bailiffs at the courthouses. Most had sharp minds and loved the challenge of working on a case. York had taken his father’s advice and hired three such men at his firm and never regretted doing so.
“Yes, Wesley, what you got