“After that? I’m famished.”
He laughed and kissed her again, nearly setting off a chain reaction that would have delayed food another half an hour at least. She pushed at his chest.
“Seriously. I’m legit starving. I need some food.”
“Okay, okay, I’ll call right now.” He leaned over the side of the bed to find his phone from somewhere in that pile of clothes. Emily looked over so she might fully appreciate the fascinating way Ryan’s muscles flexed as he did that. At last he found the phone, tugging it from the pocket of a pair of jeans. “Hey, my brother called. I was supposed to get in touch with him this afternoon, and I’m sure he’s in a frenzy. Do you mind if I give him a quick call back after I order us some food?”
“Of course I don’t mind. Would you mind if I jumped in the shower?”
“Not if you don’t mind if I join you.”
“I’m never going to get to eat, am I?”
“I promise I will let you eat. What do you want?”
“Surprise me,” she said as she pulled on his T-shirt and walked toward the bathroom.
“I love a woman who lets me be in charge,” he called after her.
“Don’t get used to it,” she replied before shutting the door.
The bathroom was tiny, and the big floral pattern of the wallpaper made it seem smaller still. The shower was hardly big enough for her, let alone her and Ryan, so Emily decided to just rinse off quickly and then let him have his turn. She was in and out in five minutes, and she could hear him on the phone as she toweled off. She glanced in the mirror, wondering how much effort it was going to take to make herself presentable. She needed to get dressed and get back to Gigi’s place without her grandmother, and especially her daughter, realizing what she’d been up to.
“I tried to tell you that earlier, Bryce, but you were zoned out on Ambien. They’re just little old ladies. I think I can handle them,” she heard Ryan say. It seemed an odd statement, and she couldn’t help but lean closer to the door to hear what else he was saying. And then she wished she hadn’t.
“No, Dad’s drawings are for a three-story bed-and-breakfast right in front of the place Emily is working on.” He laughed at something his brother said, and added, “Yeah, the pink house with the old lady in it, but that’s why these Mahoney sisters are so anxious for us to build on it. I’ve talked to them myself, and they’d be willing to lose money if it would screw over the Callaghans. Some sort of old island rivalry.”
Emily’s heart, which only moments before had been thumping so happily at thoughts of Ryan, suddenly dropped down to the floor. What did he just say? A bed-and-breakfast right in front of Gigi’s cottage? The Mahoney sisters?
She had to be wrong. She must have misheard.
She finished drying herself off and wrapped the towel around her. Ryan was quiet for a few minutes, listening to his brother, and then she heard him speak again. “Yes, we already bought the property. Quite frankly, I can’t believe it’s still a secret, the way these islanders gossip. That’s why the Mahoneys are so insistent we not let anyone in Trillium Bay know that they’re our client. It’s all very cloak-and-dagger.”
He laughed again, and they continued with the conversation. Emily hadn’t heard wrong. He was working for the Mahoneys. How could he not tell her that? He knew she was interested in that cottage, but judging from what he’d said, his company already owned it. That didn’t make any sense. It didn’t make any sense at all. Humiliation washed over her like the hot water of the shower, and her breath went shallow. He’d completely misled her, and she could not think of one defendable reason why he might have done that. So all she could think about now was getting out of that room.
She came out of the bathroom, and he looked her way, his smile mischievous as he noted her towel. He was sitting in the chair near the window with his feet up on the sill. He had put his shorts back on, and she suddenly felt very vulnerable and very naked.
“I have to go now, Bryce. Better things to do than talk to you. Yeah, we’ll work out those details later.” He tossed the phone to the bed and stood up. “Hey, sorry that took so long. Bryce always wants to talk business.” He stepped toward her and kissed her neck, and she wanted to slap his face away. He should have told her about that property. Why would he not just tell her? But maybe she was still wrong. She had to be wrong. His words went round and round in her head as she struggled to come to any other conclusion.
“I know you Taggerts are all about business,” she said, noting the flat tone to her own voice. She couldn’t hide it.
Ryan stepped back and looked at her. “You okay?”
“Yeah. Fine. The shower is too small for two. I need to get dressed.”
“Okay, yeah. I’m just going to hop in there, then. Make yourself at home, and I’ll be out in a flash. I ordered us enough food for five people. You’ll need the energy.” He smiled again, but she just nodded. His smiled dimmed a bit. “It should arrive pretty soon. You sure you’re good?”
She nodded vigorously. She should just ask him, but she knew what she’d heard, and she didn’t want to listen to him spin it. She didn’t want to listen to him justify why it wasn’t personal. It was just business, but it felt personal to her. He knew what she’d poured into that remodel, and he was going to ruin it? Just so the Mahoney sisters could have a bed-and-breakfast? She had to be wrong.
She offered up a lame smile. “Yes. I’m good. Go take your shower.”
He closed the door behind him, and she pulled on her clothes as quickly as she could, her mind racing over random possibilities. She looked at the desk in the corner of the room. It was covered with papers, right out in the open. So what would be the harm in looking? She pulled her shoes on and found her feet walking her in that direction. There were some drawings of the interior of Gigi’s place with ideas he hadn’t shown her, and there were some sketches of the outside with a few modifications.
Some papers from the bottom of the stack were dog-eared and torn at the edges, as if they’d been carried around in a binder that wasn’t quite big enough. She thought of Ryan’s overstuffed computer bag and all the papers that had been sticking out of that when he’d walked into the Wawatam airport. She pulled them out to get a better look, and the stone that had been in her gut for the past fifteen minutes grew sharp claws. These were drawings of a three-story bed-and-breakfast, sitting right where the pink cottage was now. There were landmarks on the drawings, like the old lilac tree she’d pointed out to Ryan from the window of Gigi’s rental. There was no mistaking it.
She needed some air. She needed some distance to think. She pulled open the drawer of the nightstand to find a pen and some paper and quickly scrawled Ryan a note.