The Mysterious Stranger (Triple Trouble) (16 page)

Fallon swallowed hard. “I was just thinking about that myself. When I lost my memory, all I wanted was to get it back. I wanted to know who I was and that there were people who cared about me.”

“Now you know.”

“I thought I would be happier,” she admitted, trying to ignore the sensual stroking of his fingers on her cheek. She was sure he didn’t mean the contact to be erotic, but already her body warmed as a tingling swept through her.

“I’m not saying I’m not grateful that my family is here,” she added quickly. “I love my sisters and I’ve missed them. I just wish…” She shrugged. “I don’t know.”

He sat on the bottom step and patted the space next to him. She sank down and drew her legs close to her chest.

“Why did you three pick St. Alicia?” he asked. “It’s not a typical resort.”

Fallon smiled at the memory. “It was my decision. My fifth graders were studying Caribbean history, so I had collected a lot of information, including travel brochures so they could have an idea of what the islands look like. The travel agent included a brochure for your resort, and I was hooked the first time I saw it.”

She wrapped her arms around her knees. “My sisters had told me to pick the place I wanted to go. You see, the three of us have always traveled together. We used to take camping trips in college, long weekends. Always on a budget, of course. This was going to be our first five-star vacation.”

His expression was unreadable. “You saved your pennies?”

“Not exactly. We, um, sort of got an inheritance.”

“Really?”

She nodded. “Money from ‘The Sally McGuire Show’ was put into a trust fund until we turned twenty-five. That happened this past summer. Compared to your fortune, it’s spare change, but it’s enough for us. I planned to give some of mine to charity, to use some for travel and to invest the rest for my future.”

He tucked her hair behind her ear. “So you weren’t after my money at all.”

“Nope. Sorry.”

“I’m not.”

The air around them crackled with an electrical charge. The tingling in her body intensified. Fallon wondered what would happen if she swayed toward him. Would he kiss her? Would she be able to keep from throwing herself at him?

“I have something to ask you,” he said. His dark eyes pulled her in. She could no more look away than she could survive without breath.

“Uh-huh.”

“Would you and your family consider spending your holidays here instead of at the hotel? There’s plenty of room, and both Anna Jane and I would be pleased to have the company.”

The invitation both shocked and thrilled her. “I don’t know what to say.”

“There’s the pool and the beach. Leona is a great cook, as you know. If it will help, I’m not above using my niece to get what I want,” he warned. “This would mean a lot to her.”

“I know. I was thinking about her, too.” She considered the possibility. Staying here for Christmas would be terrific. She could be with her sisters and still spend time with Jarrett and Anna Jane. “I love the idea, but I have to ask everyone else.”

“No problem. I’ll be in my office,” he said. “You can let me know the decision. Please don’t worry if you would rather return to the hotel. We’ll both understand.”

He might, but Anna Jane wouldn’t, and neither would she. She wanted her time with them to continue. This wasn’t real life, and eventually she was going to have to give up the fantasy and go home, but she wasn’t ready to do that yet.

They both stood. “I’ll be there in a few minutes,” she promised, and crossed to the living room. As she entered, she took in the scene. The beautiful room, her sisters and their husbands talking together.

“There we were,” Kayla said. “Ready to leave for the airport and I was running for the bushes.”

“Thanks for that visual,” Cole said dryly.

Kayla wrinkled her nose at her brother-in-law. “I warn you, Cole. Elissa and I are identical in many ways. That means if I have morning sickness, she’s probably going to have it, too.”

Cole paled at the thought. Elissa chuckled. “Don’t worry, honey, I’ll survive.”

“I won’t,” he told her.

“I can handle Kayla’s morning sickness,” Patrick said, taking his wife’s hand in his and kissing her palm. “What I can’t understand is how she can be so cheerful afterward.”

Fallon touched a hand to her flat belly and wondered what it would be like to carry a life inside her body. It must be a magical and humbling experience.

Elissa glanced up and saw her. “Is everything better?” she asked.

“She’s sleeping, so I didn’t get to talk with her,” Fallon said. “I’ll try tomorrow.” She shoved her hands into her shorts pockets. “Speaking of which, I want to talk to you guys about something.”

Kayla and Elissa shared a look. Fallon wondered what they’d been talking about.

“Jarrett has invited us to spend the holidays with him, here at the house.” She held up her hand. “Before you say anything, I want to let you know that there’s plenty of room and there’s a pool and a private beach outside.”

She paused, not sure how to phrase the rest of it. “Anna Jane and I have become friends. She’s a sweet child, and in the past few months she’s lost both her mother and her nanny who was her companion for most of her life. She’s been here on the island less than a month and she’s feeling a little lost. I know it would mean a lot to her to have company for the holidays. Not that I’m trying to make you feel guilty or anything.”

“Right,” Cole said dryly. “A lonely child and the great beachfront mansion. Tough decision.”

“Ah, the rough life,” Kayla said lightly.

“Be serious, you two,” Elissa ordered, and turned to Fallon. “Wouldn’t we be a bother? The size of the house party is going to more than double. I’m concerned about cooking for that many, not to mention providing food. We would have to offer Jarrett something in return.”

“Don’t try money,” Patrick said. “He won’t take it.”

Kayla grinned. “I suspect our host is already getting everything he wants.”

Fallon felt herself flush. “You couldn’t be more wrong.”

“Oh, I doubt it. The unflappable Fallon is starting to show a little wear around the edges. Is that your control I see unraveling?”

“If it is, it’s because I’ve had amnesia for the past several days.”

“Oh, I think it’s more than that.”

Fallon ignored her and looked at Elissa. “There’s a full-time housekeeper here,” she said. “But I agree with you on the cooking. Maybe we could pitch in. Or would that make it less like a vacation?”

Elissa glanced at her husband and brother-in-law, then at Kayla. “We’re not going to turn our back on Anna Jane,” she declared. “Not after she and Jarrett have taken care of you. Besides, the little girl seems very sweet and we would love to make her holiday special. We know what it’s like to lose a parent.”

Fallon winced as she remembered that first Christmas after their father had died. Their mother had seemed very comfortable with her new husband, but the triplets had suffered through missing him.

“We don’t need convincing,” Patrick said. “We’d love to stay, and we’ll help where we can. Frankly, I prefer the idea of Christmas in someone’s home rather than in the resort. It’s more personal.”

Her sisters nodded. “Then it’s settled,” Cole stated. “Tell our host we’d be delighted to accept his invitation.”

“Thanks,” Fallon murmured, and left the room. She should have known. Once she explained the situation, there wouldn’t ever have been a question of them not staying. They were wonderful people and she was lucky to be a part of this family.

Anna Jane would have her happy Christmas, the triplets and their spouses would be together, and Fallon got to spend more time with Jarrett. All in all, it was what the business world referred to as a win-win situation.

But the pleasure at staying didn’t explain the rapid patter of her heart, nor the fluttering in the pit of her stomach. Somehow she knew she was getting the best part of the deal. Even better, she wasn’t even going to complain.

She stopped in the doorway to Jarrett’s office. He was working at his computer. The sun had already set and the bare windows reflected the scene, the mirror image capturing his intensity as well as his good looks. What odd quirk of fate had brought her into this man’s world? Under ordinary circumstances, they would never have crossed paths. She knew that after the holidays she would leave this place and never return. Would he think of her? Would he remember these weeks, when a letter in a bottle had invited a strange woman to share his life? Would he remember her? She had a feeling that she would never forget him, no matter who else might enter her life.

“Jarrett?”

He glanced up. She felt the impact of his gaze all the way to her toes. It was as if she’d suddenly stepped very close to a fire. Heat flared across her body, making her breasts swell and her thighs tremble.

“What’s the verdict?”

“We would love to stay. Thank you for having us.”

“The pleasure is all mine.”

She knew for a fact that wasn’t true, but it was nice of him to say. “When you tell Leona, don’t let her panic. We’ll all be happy to pitch in. My sisters and I are pretty decent in the kitchen. Nothing fancy, but we can do the basic stuff.”

He shook his head and rosé to his feet. “That isn’t necessary. Leona has easily handled house parties four times this size. That’s one of her major complaints about working with me. She doesn’t have enough to do. She’ll be thrilled with the opportunity to show off her skills.”

“We’re the ones who are thrilled,” she said, trying not to sound breathless as he made his way toward her. His lean body moved with perfect grace. “The house is so beautiful, as are the beach and pool. Everyone will have a great time. Anna Jane gets company. It’s perfect.” She licked her lips nervously as he drew closer. “I’ll remind everyone to keep the noise down so you can work.”

“Don’t worry about that.”

He stopped in front of her and braced one hand on the door frame by her head. She was closed in on three sides. It would have been easy to slide away, but she didn’t want to. She liked Jarrett being close to her. She could inhale the scent of him. Two parts tantalizing masculine fragrance, one part something mysterious and uniquely him.

His gaze flickered over her face. She felt it as tangibly as a touch. “Thank you,” she said.

“You just did.”

The handsome planes of his face, the dark eyes and firm mouth all made it impossible to concentrate. “Not just for the invitation,” she explained, “but for the way you asked. You questioned me to find out about my plans. Obviously you didn’t want to interfere if we had something we already wanted to do.”

He shrugged. “I was afraid you would feel obligated because of your relationship with Anna Jane.”

“She’s not an obligation.”

“Now it’s my turn to thank you. For caring about her.”

“I’m a teacher,” Fallon said. “That’s my job.”

“You did it before you knew you were a teacher. I don’t think it’s your job as much as who you are.”

Fallon had the oddest feeling they were, in fact, having a conversation about something else entirely. But she didn’t know what, or if she was just reacting to his nearness. He was close enough that if she wanted to, she could have slid her arms around his waist and leaned against him.

Lord, how she wanted to. She wanted him to hold her, too, to kiss her and—

“I’ll notify the hotel and tell them to collect your things and send all of the luggage over.”

She blinked, trying to figure out what he was talking about. Oh, the luggage. Obviously he wasn’t fighting the same desire she was.

“Um, sure. Wait. I’d better go over so I can make sure everything of mine gets packed. Elissa and Kayla will want to come with me to make sure they collect all of their luggage, too. Is there a car?”

He nodded. “A van. Frank will drive you.”

But he made no move to call Frank. Instead he moved a half step closer. They were nearly touching.

“Fallon, I…”

Instead of finishing his sentence, he lowered his head and brushed her mouth with his. The kiss was soft and sweet. Passion flared, but it was the quiet kind, as if her body knew that family was in the other room and nothing could happen between them right now. But there was always later.

The thought made her surge up against him, returning his pressure and increasing it. She rested her fingertips on his shoulders. A groan caught in his throat and the sound thrilled her to her bones.

He pulled away slowly and stared at her. She basked in the fire reflected in his gaze, drawing strength from the heat. He touched her cheek. “I’ll go call Frank,” he said, and turned away.

Her eyes burned. She couldn’t figure out what was wrong, then she realized she was very close to tears. Which was strange. She never cried.

* * *

Jarrett waited patiently on hold while the woman on the other end of the phone looked up the information. The music was silenced as a voice said, “Yes, sir, we have those videos in stock. Where did you need them shipped?”

He gave her an address in St. Thomas, knowing it would be quicker to have them delivered there and then brought to the island. After giving his credit card number, he hung up and crossed off the item on his list.

When packages had to be air-expressed to St. Thomas, shopping this late was expensive, but he didn’t have much choice. He hadn’t known about his houseful of company in time to plan a trip to the stores. Besides, he had made millions of dollars in the past few years. This house had been his only extravagance. He rarely spent money otherwise. If not for Anna Jane, Fallon and her family, then for whom?

The front door opened and he heard the sound of voices, laughter and footsteps. Everyone had decided to accompany Frank back to the hotel. He’d heard a spirited argument about whether or not all the people plus the luggage would fit in the van. A friendly debate had broken out between the men and women about how much luggage was actually required for a vacation of this kind.

“I can carry my own bags,” Fallon protested from the foyer.

“No problem,” Frank told her. “Mr. Jarrett told me to take care of you. That’s what I’m doing.”