After Dark

Five minutes ago, he’d simply wanted time to wrestle with his demons and consider assuaging some of his loneliness in Sloan’s arms. Now, suddenly, if he wanted her, he was too late. And, regardless, he might not have a prayer of her wanting him anyway.

The ex had arrived.

“This isn’t about her,” Davis said, facing Sloan, turning his back on Aidan.

“Oh?” Sloan looked surprised. “You haven’t come to announce your engagement? Invite me to the wedding? Have a quick roll between the sheets before you commit?”

“There’s no wedding.” Sighing, Davis attempted to steer Sloan out of the foyer, but she simply shook her head and crossed her arms over her chest. “Things between Rebecca and I were never quite right,” he said quietly after a quick, embarrassed glance back at Aidan. “I only broke it off with you because I was tired of our long-distance relationship.”

“It was your idea to go work in Atlanta in the first place.”

“What was I supposed to do? Take over my dad’s insurance office? Hang around boring Palmer’s Island all my life?”

Sloan’s eyes flashed dangerously. “Yes.”

“Well, I wasn’t ready to do that.” He rolled his shoulders. “However, things change. I realized I made a mistake.”

“You’ve been gone for months, Davis. It took you quite a while to work out that mistake.”

“It was okay at first. I was happy, and I thought you were probably better off, too. We needed to see other people, find out what else was out there.”

Sloan glanced down, but not quickly enough that Aidan failed to see the hurt in her eyes. “I didn’t.”

“I’m sorry.” He laid his fingers under her chin and lifted her head. “I screwed up.”

“Did she break up with you?”

“No.” He stroked her arm. “Things just kind of…fell apart.”

“Got boring?” she challenged.

Davis shrugged. “I don’t know. I only know I missed you.”

“Convenient that this missing me started after Aidan sold the company.”

“I missed you before that.”

The simple explanation and clear sentiment behind it was hard to argue with. Sloan obviously felt the same, since she didn’t protest.

“I got back to the island last night,” he added, “and couldn’t wait to see you.”

Sloan moved away from him, wandering around the foyer. “I heard.”

“Already?”

“Gossip is the only thing that travels fast in this town. Helen told me this—” She whirled toward him. “Why did you come here? To this house? In another fifteen minutes I would have been back at the library.”

Or in my bed. And Aidan wished like hell he’d taken Sloan’s advice and ignored the door, forcing the intruder to go away.

Again, Davis glanced at Aidan. “I did go to the library. The clerk said you were here with the new owner, who turned out to be Aidan. So I decided to come right over.”

Now that was interesting, Aidan thought. Davis obviously hadn’t rushed over with a housewarming gift. Was it possible Davis considered him a threat to his big, happy reunion plans?

To complicate matters, he and Davis had had some minor wars over business decisions in the past. While he respected the other man’s understanding of sales and dealing with customer issues, his overall marketing strategy was too impulsive and not clearly defined. If not for his family tragedy, Aidan was sure he would have eventually fired Davis.

Was this trip back home another impulse?

Should he share these observations with Sloan? Or was he simply feeling his own level of threat from the easygoing ex?

And why was he getting so worked up about a woman he’d known less than twenty-four hours? Why did he care if she and Davis made up, screwed themselves silly, then settled into cheery, small-town life? Why did he care if Davis got his hands on that luscious body, those lips that—

Hell.

“I’m going back to work,” he said, stalking through the foyer.

“No,” Sloan said, stepping into his path, placing her hand on his chest. “Davis should go.” She glanced at him. “Aidan and I have things to discuss.”

Davis’s gaze moved to Sloan’s hand, then back to her face. “Discuss?”

“About the renovations.”

“I can discuss renovations.”

“Please go, Davis,” she said emphatically.

Davis opened his mouth, no doubt prepared to argue.

“Don’t worry,” Aidan couldn’t resist saying with a fierce look at his former employee. “I’ll take good care of her.”

Davis glared at him. “I just bet you will.” He turned to Sloan. “I’ll call you,” he said in a gentle tone.

One he no doubt practiced on a daily basis.

“Fine,” she said coolly.

Davis let himself out of the house.

“What a mess!” Sloan burst out the moment the door closed, throwing up her hands. “Our relationship was always out of balance. Why that man, of all the others, could always hit me right here—” she tapped her chest “—I’ll never understand.”

“All the others?”

Still ranting, Sloan seemed not to hear him. “The downright, outrageous nerve of him, thinking I’d jump for orgasmic joy at the sight of him.”

“Orgasmic?” Even as the idea sent ripples of anticipation through his body, she rolled on.

“I wonder if he expected to have to apologize right away, or if he thought I’d fall onto my back immediately.”

“He acted sincere,” Aidan said, shrugging. “But who knows?”