Must Be Magic (Spellbound) (28 page)

“It might be—”

“Dante.” She jumped to her feet. “It’s Dante.” She could just barely make out the familiar silhouette, waiting only another few seconds to be sure. “It’s him.” She bent to help Bryce up, taking some of his weight as they moved away from the rocks and toward the sandy shoreline.

The boat reached the edge of the shore before they did, and Dante launched himself from the boat, tearing up the beach to reach her. Right on his heels was…Thomas Lancaster?

Bryce looked as stunned as she was. Standing on his own, he released his grip on her hand only when Dante swept her up in a fierce hug. The familiar sense of safety and home washed over her, and tears blurred her eyes.

Her twin noticed the way she held her arm. “Are you okay?”

“I am now.” She looked past Dante’s shoulder to where Thomas pulled his son into just as tight an embrace.

“We thought we lost you,” he said, his hoarse voice carrying on the breeze.

Bryce clapped him on the back. “We hung in there.” He slipped away from his father, returning to Darby’s side to lace their fingers, making it clear to everyone that they were together.

Dante didn’t look impressed, but she was too tired and relieved to care. In a daze she followed everyone back to the smaller boat, alternately answering the questions that were thrown at her and Bryce.

Once they were onboard and everyone’s curiosity was momentarily appeased, Bryce led her to a wide, padded bench along the side of the vessel, out of the way of the crew that stared as much as everyone else.

“You need to get your leg checked.”

“After.” He sat down, coaxing her to stretch out and rest her head on his good leg. “It’s your time to rest,” he murmured, tucking her hair back behind her ear. “I’ve got you.”

She curled herself toward him, finding his hand with her own. She wanted to talk to her family more, to reassure them she was okay, but somewhere between Dante storming the beach and climbing onboard the fishing boat, she’d lost the last of her strength. “Maybe for just a few minutes.” She met Bryce’s gaze, reading his eyes easily before she gave herself over to sleep.

I’ve got you.

Darby didn’t know how long she’d been asleep, but from the way Bryce tensed, she guessed it was her brother’s shadow that fell across her face, but she didn’t open her eyes. It was easier if she just pretended she was still asleep. The rocking motion of the boat, combined with the way Bryce ran his hands through her hair, had guaranteed she would fall asleep the moment she’d lain down on the bench and put her head in his lap.

“Don’t.” The lethally quiet warning came from Bryce.

Dante didn’t move. Didn’t say a word in response.

Although the impulse to break up the fight before it started stirred inside her, she didn’t move. Not yet.

“You’re not good enough for her.”

“That’s not your call.”

“You had your shot,” Dante challenged, his voice no louder than Bryce’s but still more menacing somehow. “You fucked it up.”

Bryce’s hand tensed at the back of her hair, a subtle tightening that told her he knew she was awake, and that he wanted her to let him handle this. She was too exhausted, physically and mentally, to even think about having a problem with that.

“And now I’m making up for it.”

“A little late for that,” Dante argued, his tone telling everyone within eavesdropping distance that it was actually
a lot
late for that.

Bryce resumed running his fingers along her temple, easing the urge to get between the two men who had nearly as much to work out as she and Bryce. “I know about the baby.”

“You knew years ago…” Dante trailed off, as though Bryce was shaking his head in disagreement.

“She told me when the plane was going down, actually. It was a toss-up between which was the biggest shock, the crash or that little detail you failed to mention when you came to beat me to a pulp after she lost the baby.”

Darby must have tensed because his hand was at the back of her head again.

Was that what Bryce had been talking about when they’d been aboard the
Sea Witch
, when he’d said he knew how Dante felt?

“You deserved every punch.”

“And so did you.” He drew in a sharp breath, like he was fighting for control. “You should have said something.”

“I thought you knew.”

“I didn’t.”

Both men fell silent for a long moment.

Dante was the first to speak again. “Nothing has changed. You realize that, don’t you? She’s still a Calder.”

“I know
exactly
who she is.”

Darby held her breath, waiting for Dante to take issue with that comment. Hell, with
all
of Bryce’s comments.

Footsteps faded away, a ray of sunshine warming her face in place of Dante’s shadow.

“He’s gone,” Bryce said quietly a few seconds later. He smoothed her hair across her temple. “We’ll be fine,” he assured her when she didn’t say anything.

She cracked open one eye, peering up at him. “Optimism is not one of your strengths.”

“I’m a work in progress.”

She poked him in the chest, doing her best to let go of the fear that her family, Dante in particular, would never accept Bryce as part of her life. “Aren’t we all.”

Bryce couldn’t sleep. Not like Darby could, but he kept his eyes closed most of the trip back to St. Lucia. It kept his father at a distance. It kept everyone at a distance. Except Riley. He’d lost track of how many times she’d sat beside him, grilling him on everything that happened when they were on the island.

She didn’t seem to care that he kept his eyes closed almost every single time.

By the time they’d docked and disembarked the fishing vessel, Darby had a death grip on his hand. The nervous clenching felt the same way his stomach did.

Fucking awful.

He could see her family heading toward them—his too—from the end of the dock, and knew he was running out of time with her.

She seemed to read his mind and turned, wrapping her arms around his waist, even though he knew it probably hurt her arm.

“You need to go with your family.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “They’re worried about you.”

“I don’t want to leave you,” she whispered, clinging to him so tightly her mouth brushed his ear when she spoke.

Letting her go—for now—was the only way he could think to keep the peace. They’d all been through enough. She’d barely made it through his and Dante’s exchange on the boat, and as much as she’d joked afterward, he could tell the confrontation had upset her. He wouldn’t be the reason anything else troubled her today.

“Just for a little while,” he coaxed. He leaned back, smoothing the hair from her face. “Tonight you’ll be with me. Or sooner than that if you want. But they need time. They almost lost you.”

And he needed time to deal with his father. He just wished he had a clue how to handle that.

“How will I find you?”

“I’ll make sure everyone knows.” He couldn’t stop himself from covering her mouth with his, lingering for just another beat. “Maybe just not Dante,” he teased.

She rewarded him with that stunning smile that flipped his heart around in his chest. He enfolded her in his arms once more, second-guessing the plan to let her out of his sight for more than a minute.

He knew it was the right thing to do…for everyone but him anyway.

“I’ll see you soon.” He’d never had to try so hard to smile in his life. He nodded to where Finn stood watching them. Dante had joined the rest of the Calders, his expression unreadable.

“Okay.” Her smile looked nearly as forced as his felt.

What the hell were they doing?

Before he could voice that thought aloud, she was swept away, her family closing ranks around her.

He stayed where he was a moment longer, then turned to find Bree in front of him. She threw her arms around him, squeezing the last of the air from his lungs.

“It’s just for a little while,” she echoed. She stood back, and after giving Finn a little wave, she led Bryce toward the car parked a few feet away.

She wasn’t coming.

Bryce glanced at the clock in his room for the hundredth time in the last two hours. Like he had half a dozen times already, he crossed to the door—a much more tolerable process now that his leg had been fully treated and he’d been given something for the pain—half-prepared to track her down.

She’ll come.

Forcing himself to sit, he glanced at the clock again. It was after nine. How in the hell had he gone weeks, months, even years at a time without seeing her and barely six hours was eating a hole right through him?

He should have stayed with her. Aside from seeing the doctor, talking to the local authorities and being set up in a suite at the resort, he’d had nothing but time on his hands.

His family had stuck around for a while, until he’d confronted his father about Darby’s pregnancy. Although he’d looked regretful, his father hadn’t apologized, insisting he had done what he thought was best at the time.

Everyone had cleared out then, but both his mother and sisters had popped back a couple times since then. He expected to hear from one of them again within the hour.

He blew out a breath. Where was Darby?

She wasn’t coming.

He’d made sure everyone knew his room number, had done everything but skywrite it for everyone staying at the resort to see. Had she changed her mind about being with him?

He rejected the idea as soon as it crossed his mind.

She’ll come.

Christ, he felt like he was picking the petals off a freaking daisy.

To hell with it. He grabbed his keycard off the table and wrenched the door open.

Darby stood at the threshold, her hand poised to knock. “Hi.”

His gaze moved from the top of her clean, shiny hair to the modest blue sundress and down to her sandaled feet.

“You got a pedicure,” he said lamely. She was here. Finally. And he was talking about her painted toenails.

Awesome.

She laughed, and it was hands down the best sound he’d ever heard. He did a mental rundown to figure out what else he could say that she would find funny.

“Riley insisted it would make me feel normal again.”

“Do Riley and normal even belong in the same sentence?” He held the door open, really hoping he wouldn’t have to haul her inside.

Scratch that.

He did want to haul her inside. Into his arms and straight into his bed.

She moved before he could, sliding past him, brushing up against him just enough that he knew the move had been intentional.

The door slipped from his hand as he pivoted, drawing her back to his chest before she moved out of reach.

“You took too long.” He noticed then she’d forgone the sling for her arm. He relaxed his hold. A little.

“I know. I needed to make sure they were okay.”

He could have laughed. Even after what
she’d
been through, she’d worried about what her family needed. He imagined her pedicure was more about reassuring Riley than trying to feel normal again.

Lips against her ear, he said, “You are something else.”

“That almost sounds like a compliment.” She turned in his arms, nudging him back until he came up against the door.

“I am a nice guy from time to time.”

She sucked in her bottom lip, the gesture making him instantly hot. “I seem to remember exactly how nice you can be.”

He ran his hands up her sides, pulling her even closer. “I like that train of thought. What comes next?”

Leaning in to run her lips along his jaw, she shook her head. “I’m a little undecided.”

Capturing her hand, he slid it down between their bodies. “I may be able to help you out…with that,” he finished, his breath catching the moment her fingers closed around his arousal.

She’d been in the room less than a minute and he was already achingly hard for her. Did she realize she didn’t have a chance in hell of keeping that sundress on for more than two minutes in his presence? Five, tops.

He planned to see to its leisurely removal just as soon as he could think beyond the slow pump of her hand along the length of his cock.

She dropped to her knees, looking up at him with such sinful intent that he nearly closed his hand over himself to hold back the exquisite pressure building inside him.

He hauled her back up, sinking into her mouth before she could ask what he was doing. He wanted the slow slide of her tongue and the melting softness of her lips moving beneath his.

Wanted it for the rest of his life.

Someone knocked on the door.

“We’re ignoring them,” he murmured against her lips. He was done sharing her tonight. Her family or his, it didn’t matter. “They’ll think I went out.”