Feisty (2 page)

When she pivoted and their eyes met his heart went
ka-plump
. But it was the drop-dead smile she flashed him as she tossed the ball to a teammate and headed his way that made his pulse take off as if it had entered a dead-heat race. Much to his surprise and disappointment, the gorgeous redhead winked, but strolled right passed him. He spun around only to see her walk right into Leo Caan’s arms.

Something inside Devon died. Sahara Caan…Leo’s sister.

Dammit. One thing Devon didn’t do was a friend’s sister. He remembered when he discovered Tabby and Reece had been intimately involved. That day he’d almost lost a life-long friend and a sister. After a moment he squared his shoulders and approached them.

As he drew nearer, Devon offered her his hand. “This must be Sahara.” When her silky skin met his, a jolt of electricity zinged through him. He jerked away. After he realized what he’d done, heat crawled up his neck. His embarrassment was met with soft laughter. He wasn’t sure whether she was laughing at him or she’d felt the same flow of sensation still burning inside him.

Leo’s brows pulled together as he glanced from Devon to Sahara. “This is Devon Taylor, Tabby’s brother.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,
Devon
.”

The sensual way she spoke his name felt like a summer night breeze stroking across his heated body. “The pleasure is mine.”

Pleasure was exactly what was on his mind when his gaze drifted to the thin string that ran between the small scraps of material cradling her breasts. With one tug he could have her bared and in his hands.

His groin tightened.
Well fuck
.

Devon shifted his feet, doubting his change in position hid his growing interest. The sexy way she slid her tongue across her bottom lip didn’t help as the subtle move directed his attention to her full lips. He forced his gaze upward, knowing immediately it was the wrong move when their eyes met. She had the prettiest fuck-me eyes he had ever seen. From the corner of his vision he saw Leo frown.

God help me
.

Devon couldn’t remember who spoke last or if there was an unanswered question hanging in the gentle breeze. “Uhm… Leo tells me you’re here to help with their wedding.” Where he found his tongue he didn’t know, but he was thankful, until Sahara began to speak.

“Yes, but I also wanted to see for myself what it was about this town that has my brother mesmerized.”

With each slow, seductive word Devon felt as if she began to weave a spell around him. It got worse when she stroked him from head to toe and back again with a sexy sweep of her gaze, which ignited every nerve ending in his body.

She inhaled, raising her delectable breasts as she added, “I think I’ve discovered the allure.”

Whoa! Wait a minute!
Did Leo’s sister just hit on him?

Sahara lowered long, thick lashes and peered up through them at him. “Maybe you could show me around town tonight?”

Yep
. The hot, gorgeous woman was hitting on him.

Leo chuckled. “Sis, you might as well have ‘I’m new in town’ stamped on your forehead. The first beach party of the season in Whispering Cove is an all day-all night affair.”

Devon cleared his now parched throat. Now why did the word
affair
bring to mind her perfect golden body lying against white silk sheets—lying against him? When his vision smiled up at him again, he mentally shook his head in an attempt to dismiss his wayward thoughts. “Of course, the evening is for all the diehard partiers.” He attempted a laugh, but it came out a little weak.

“I guess I’ll have to wait until tomorrow.” She cocked her head and nibbled lightly on her bottom lip, clearly expecting Devon to respond.

“Tomorrow? Uhm. Well. I have to meet a client.” It wasn’t a lie.

Devon had promised Reece he’d speak with Alexis Miller, the woman who had purchased Ol’ Lady Landry’s home. She planned on modernizing the old Victorian house. But it was a heritage home and without permits, she couldn’t move forward, and he seriously doubted she’d get them with the changes she had in mind. Reece was a licensed preservation contractor, the only one in town, if she chose to change her mind and restore it to its original condition. Even if she decided to preserve the place, and wanted to hire them, they were keeping their schedule light in case Tabby went into labor. This was a courtesy meeting. He could move the time to earlier in the morning, and Lord knew he wanted to, but this was the perfect excuse to gracefully bow out of hanging with Sahara. There was something about this woman that messed with his mind—made his body go haywire. He didn’t need this.

“Hey, Red? Are you going to play?” Cordell Farr hollered. The local veterinarian, who worked with Jacob Collins, struck the volleyball and it flew over the net.

Sahara turned her dreamy fuck-me eyes to Devon. “Do you
play
?”

It was difficult for Devon not to read things into what she said, but it was the sexy way she said it that had his heart beating a little faster. Then there was the way she drank him up with one look, sending his mind reeling. He tipped his head from left to right, listening to his tight muscles and tendons crackle and pop.

“Sure.” He kicked his sandals off and reached for the hem of his T-shirt.

Sahara watched as Devon unveiled firmly sculpted muscles and dark golden skin. Female appreciation touched her lips as she visually skimmed across his defined six-pack. What she would give to reach out and touch his bulging biceps, trace those sensual veins in his arms with her fingertips. A light sprinkle of dark hair graced his broad chest, thinning as it slipped south to disappear into his boardshorts. Although loose, the material didn’t hide the fact he had nice muscular thighs.

Oh yeah
. She planned to have a piece of him tonight. Thankfully, she didn’t have to worry about Jake, her fifteen-year-old nephew. Errol Mitchell had taken a liking to the boy and he’d hired him over the next couple of weeks to work around his home. When Errol had offered to let Jake stay at his house, Leo had thought it was a good idea. The boy couldn’t stand all the girly wedding stuff going on at Leo’s place.

She scanned the area looking for her nephew. Jake was tossing a football back and forth with a man who had been introduced to her as Sam Doherty. She wasn’t sure what her eldest brother and his wife Sandy were complaining about. Jake had been a perfect angel since they’d arrived. Not the hellion Neal had said the boy had become.

Hopefully, Neal’s business trip would wrap up in time for him to attend the wedding. Leo had been disappointed that his brother wouldn’t be standing up for him, but business was business. Neal was traveling offshore more than he was at home these days. Perhaps contributing to why Jake acted out.

When she glanced back at Devon, she realized it had been too long since she had let down her hair and had some fun. Even longer since she had woken up in a man’s arms. Between public functions she was expected to attend with her family and her own job as a real estate developer, she was busier than a one-armed paperhanger.

“Want a beer?”

She nodded and Devon quickly left her side. Enjoying a thorough examination of his backside, she hummed, “Not bad—not bad at all.”

Every man in her life up to now had been Ivy League, clean cut, with a future like her own—promising. Not to say Devon didn’t have a promising career. She breathed in the clean ocean air. Laughter surrounded her as more friends and family of Whispering Cove arrived. According to Leo, Reece and Devon were going places. Developers from all over the United States sought them out for their commercial building expertise, but instead of branching out into other areas of the country, Devon continued to only work for Reece. She glanced at Leo and Sky. Her quiet, reserved brother had his arms around his fiancée’s waist.

Skylar Wellington was a councilman’s daughter who had run away from the demands of her father’s life. Sahara had met Councilman Wellington at several social functions. He was a formidable man, cold and driven, so unlike Sahara’s father. As a Supreme Court Justice he definitely had his ideas of right and wrong, but he was also loving and understanding. Still, it had taken both her mother and father a little time to accept Leo’s path in life, but they had.

What was she talking about?

One of the reasons she’d hightailed it to Whispering Cove early was to see for herself why Leo had chosen a simple existence over one filled with status and money, everything at their fingertips. Sahara was spoiled and she always got everything she wanted, which included men. She grinned as Devon approached, holding two beers.

Something about this man did it for her. He was real—all man. Not like most men she knew who had never changed a flat tire, much less a light bulb.

Without a word, Devon handed her a beer. The chill of the moist bottle rippled across her warm skin. She took a drink, trying not to cringe when the cold, bitter ale touched her taste buds. She would have preferred a wine cooler, maybe a mojito or a glass of champagne, but as they say, when in Rome…

“Ready?” he asked.

“Yes.” Sahara was more than ready, because at that moment she had made up her mind. Tonight Devon was hers.

Side by side they both started to step on the court when Cord yelled, “Taylor. They could use you on the other side.” Devon didn’t hesitate. He chugged his beer, wiped his mouth on the back of his hand and tossed the can in a nearby trashcan before he joined the other team.

Disappointment was Sahara’s first response. Yet when he turned around and faced her, she realized this was a great position to watch every one of his muscles in action. She took one more sip of her beer before setting it on the ground and taking her place.

When the game began, she wasn’t surprised to see how athletic Devon was. He knew exactly what he was doing. His firm body stretched as he jumped up with a cut shot, spiking the ball at a sharp angle across the net. He even acted as a decoy, appearing as if he were about to spike the ball again, when another teammate received the volleyball instead. It was obvious many of these people had played together before. She was the outsider here.

When the first game went to Devon’s team he leaped into the air, bumping his chest with another man’s, a person Sahara had yet to meet. Later on she heard a long-legged blonde call him Ryan.

As they began the second game, Cord spiked the ball straight toward a barren spot on the other side of the net. Devon came from out of nowhere, dove for the ball and hit the sand, skidding as he struck the volleyball before it could hit the ground. When he looked up, he was lying on his stomach at her feet. Sahara thought she saw another flash of interest in his eyes, but he jumped to his feet, now covered in sand.

He brushed himself off but the sand was unforgiving, sticking against the light sheen of perspiration covering his body. “I’ll be back.” He turned and ran toward the ocean, jumping in without a pause.

The Atlantic was chilly, but he made it look so effortless that everyone followed him. One minute they were playing volleyball, the next everyone was diving into the ocean. Sahara, on the other hand, walked toward the water and hesitated. If she went in now it would destroy her hair and makeup. The day was still young and she had plans for the night.

A startled scream ripped from her throat when someone grabbed her from behind and began to push her toward the frigid water. She fought him even as he raised her into his arms.

When she realized it was Leo, she released an uneasy chuckle. “You wouldn’t dare.” But he did dare as he tossed her into a large, consuming wave.

The shock of the fifty-five-degree water stole Sahara’s breath and she ended up sucking in a mouthful of salty ocean. A moment of panic gripped her as she struggled for the surface. Breaking the water, she inhaled, but when she attempted to stand another wave knocked her legs from beneath her. Once more she tried to gain purchase and failed. When a strong set of hands grabbed her, pulling her toward safety and air, she held on to him for dear life. Raising her eyelids, she stared straight into eyes as blue as the sky.

“You okay?” Devon asked.

As soon as she realized she would be all right, anger took over. She was going to kill Leo. That’s when she realized her brother had managed to do what she hadn’t—put Sahara in Devon’s arms.

She feigned coughing and made a poor attempt to bat her now wet and heavy lashes. “I’m not sure.”

“Do you want me to carry you ashore?”

Devon would do that?

Sahara hesitated a moment, before she realized what it would look like. One thing she wasn’t was helpless. “No.” He started to release her, but she held on tight. “Give me a moment.” Okay. Maybe she’d play along a little longer. She laid her head against his chest and listened to the beat of his heart, which seemed to increase with each passing second.

Damn. He smelled good. Even through the multiple aromas of the ocean and something cooking on the beach, she scented his cologne. Woodsy. Sexy. Intoxicating.

“You ready?” his deep voice hummed in her ear.

She didn’t want to let go of him, but she did, and he set her on her feet. Waves splashed into her, making her unsteady. She fought to stay upright, thankful when Devon assisted her to dry land before he let go of her.

“Thank you.”

“No problem. The Atlantic can be cold and a little frightening for some people.”

“Not for you?” And evidently everyone else who continued to splash around and laugh like children.

“Not me.” A grin spread across his face as a light-brown-haired toddler waddled toward him. “Or for this princess.” He scooped the girl into his arms and she squealed when his cool, wet skin met hers.

Sahara’s heart dropped when a beautiful woman headed toward them.

“She’s missed you.” There was no denying the child belonged to this woman. They shared the same hair and skin coloring. Their porcelain features made them both look like angels that had fallen from the heavens.

“Katy, meet Sahara, Leo’s sister.” Devon bounced the girl in his arms and she giggled. “And this baby-cake is Katherine.”