The house was everything he was told it would be. It was beautiful, spacious, secluded and near the water. The house sat far back from the road and was surrounded by trees, mostly pine. He removed his sunglasses and took in a deep breath of the enticing scent of the sea and the fragrant scent of evergreen. For once he had listened to his friends and family back in Illinois, and he was glad he had. It was his brother’s idea that he take some time off. It was his sister-in-law’s notion that he needed to go out of town and his friend Ayanna had given him the keys to her family’s vacation home on Hilton Head Island.
“You’ll love it down there,” she’d assured him. “Daddy was an architect and he not only designed the house, he built it himself. It’s right on the beach, and it’s kinda secluded so you’ll get some rest and relaxation. My mother is in Africa right now and my sister Emily is off with her youth camp, so you can run around naked all day if you want to,” she had teased him.
Todd had laughed and said he might just do that. Now, as he looked at the greenery surrounding the modern but rustic-looking home that awaited him, he grinned. Maybe running around without clothes was a possibility. The stitches were out and there was no reason to stay covered up anymore. Besides, Ayanna had said something about an outdoor hot tub that had sounded pretty good. He didn’t bother to get his bags. He decided to take a look around and get his bearings first.
The exterior had a porch that extended around three sides. In the back there was a deck with a broad overhang that protected the hot tub Ayanna had mentioned. Todd had mounted the stairs and was standing on the deck when he realized the back door was open. The screen door was closed and locked, but the wood-and-glass door that opened into the kitchen was wide open. He sorted through the keys on the ring he was holding and found one that was labeled for the kitchen screen door. He opened the door and stepped into the kitchen, announcing himself so that he didn’t scare whoever was in the house.
“This is Todd Wainwright, a friend of the family. I’m invited to use the house so I have keys,” he said in his low, mellow voice.
He didn’t get an answer, so he kept moving through the downstairs, looking into the great room that adjoined the kitchen, the living room and the media room. The house was even better on the inside. Everything was paneled in gleaming oak. The living room had a cathedral ceiling, and all the rooms had black ceiling fans that looked elegant instead of kitschy. The furnishings were simple and casual, yet the rooms exuded a touch of elegance. It looked like a layout from a House Beautiful magazine, but lived-in.
Todd kept walking around, repeating his original statement a couple of times but still getting no answer. He was at the foot of the stairs when he thought he heard something. Climbing the stairs to the second story, he continued to try to alert anyone who might be in the house. “I’m not a burglar, I’m not a pervert, and I was invited here by Ayanna. I got in with the keys she gave me,” he said in a soothing voice, or what he hoped was soothing. He heard water splashing and followed the noise to what appeared to be a bathroom. The door was open, and the warm moisture in the room was heavy with the scent of flowers. And standing in the bathtub covered with creamy foam was Ayanna’s sister Emily—naked as the day she was born, singing at the top of her lungs as she swayed under the spray of a handheld shower.
Todd’s heart leaped to his throat and stayed there, lodged right next to his Adam’s apple. He wanted to say something to let her know he was there, but he couldn’t get a word out. He’d met Emily on a few occasions, but he couldn’t currently make sense of what he was currently staring at. Her golden-brown skin gleamed with the droplets of water cascading over it. She had an amazing body, now that he could see it without clothes. Her back was to him, and he could see the perfect globes of her behind, her firm thighs and her long, curvy legs. Her long hair was full of shampoo, and she was using the shower attachment as a microphone. He’d never heard a version of “Single Ladies” as off-key and tuneless as the one Emily was wailing, but her beauty more than made up for it. Todd knew he had to get out of there fast or things would get real ugly.
He backed out of the doorway and silently made his way back downstairs. Damn, that was close. He couldn’t have explained his actions in any way that would have made sense. He knew that Emily would’ve been angry and embarrassed about being spied on. And she’d have been completely justified, too. He knew better than to sneak up on a woman like that, even if it was an accident. Once she dried off and dressed, he could explain everything to her. In the meantime, he decided to sit on the porch and enjoy the breeze for a few minutes. He took a seat in one of oversize chairs with comfortable, thickly padded seat covers and propped his legs on a matching ottoman. He fell asleep almost at once, lulled by the soft wind and the chirping of the birds in the trees. He would have stayed that way for a long time, but a strange voice made his eyes pop open.
“Sir, do you care to explain why you’re here?”
The first thing Todd focused on was a tall South Carolina state trooper who was watching him intently while he repeated his question. “Sir, I asked you why you were here.”
Now that he was aware that the man’s partner was also present, Todd answered him. “I was invited to stay here by the owner of this house.”
“Well now, that’s a funny thing. The owner of the house is the person who called us and reported a B&E. She doesn’t seem to know you.”
“There’s been a big misunderstanding. I’m a friend of Ayanna Walker, uh, her married name is Phillips now. Anyway, she gave me the keys to the house and said no one would be here. But her sister Emily is home, and I was just waiting for her to come downstairs so I could let her know I was here.” His words sounded bungled and inane even to him, but he figured it was better to tell the truth.
“Okay, sir, that sounds plausible, except for the part about your being a friend of the family, because Ms. Emily is the one who called us and she claims to not know you.”
Just then a female head popped out of the door. Emily was fully clothed with her still-soapy hair draped over her shoulders in long tight ringlets. Her long-lashed eyes peered at him with suspicion. “Todd, is that you? When did you cut your hair?”
In a short time all the misunderstandings were ironed out and the troopers left, although the younger man was still giving Todd the side eye. Emily had felt totally foolish when she realized that it was indeed Todd and not some random stranger who had invaded her home. She had thrown on clothes hastily as she was calling 911 and was now attired in faded denim shorts with frayed edges and an equally faded T-shirt, complete with holes from years of wear. Her feet were bare and she should have looked like a typical tomboy, but she didn’t. She looked quite sexy, as a matter of fact, but she wouldn’t have believed it for a minute. Emily was much too down-to-earth to categorize herself as any kind of femme fatale.
“Well, come on in,” she said. “You want some lemonade or sweet tea?”
“Sure.”
They went into the kitchen and she poured him a glass of lemonade, offering him some fat sugar cookies to go with it.
“I’m really sorry,” Todd said again. “I had no idea you were here, or I wouldn’t have come. In fact, if you tell me where there’s a hotel, I’ll get out of your hair.”
Emily ignored his comment and looked at him intently. “Speaking of hair, you never said why you cut yours,” she pointed out.
Todd ran his hand over his head, which was shorn down to his scalp. The last time she’d seen him, he’d had long braids that came way past his shoulders. Now he was almost bald with a shadow beard and moustache.
“I cut it because I met a patient who was starting chemo. She came into the emergency room during a crisis, and I treated her before she was admitted. Cutest little girl you ever saw,” he added. “Anyway, she knew she was going to lose all her hair, so I told her I’d shave my head so we’d match.”
Emily smiled. “That was really sweet of you. What did she think?”
Todd laughed. “I went to see her after I did it, and she said