Authors: Teresa McCarthy
She
had missed Max too many times to count when he’d come to Tanner’s house for a
visit. Hannah complained they didn’t see much of Max because he was usually off
at some rodeo, or buying some horse, or fixing something at his ranch. He also
liked to travel the world when the whim hit him. He was a business man too.
The
beard had thrown her off. She had seen a few pictures of the youngest
Clearbrook brother, without the beard! But she never really examined the man’s
features too much.
And
Hannah had told her he had been on some business trip when he had missed her
wedding. He had been stuck somewhere overseas. Okay, his words were finally making
some sense, but really, the man—
A
smile lit Rafe’s face. “You didn’t know?”
Candy
looked at Max’s twinkling blue eyes. Her blood surged with rage. “Why didn’t
you tell me who you were?”
He
threw his head back and laughed. “I did, sugar. But you weren’t in the
listening mood.”
Candy
gave the man a shove. With an oath, Max toppled to the floor. Rafe hooted with
laughter.
Max
pulled himself up. “Why did you go and do that for? I was only having a little
fun.”
Candy
exchanged glances between the two brothers and gritted her teeth. “Get out! Both
of you!”
The
brothers looked at each other and laughed.
After
a few seconds, Rafe sobered, as if remembering the way he found his brother in
Candy’s room. “Why are you here, Max?”
Max
grabbed his Stetson off the nightstand and shoved it back on his head. Taking
his sweet time, he hooked his thumbs in his pockets and swaggered toward Rafe.
“Need
you ask?” he answered back with a mocking laugh.
Rafe
clenched one hand while the other hand clutched his towel.
“Would
you two get out of here?” Candy said, clearly exasperated.
Rafe
turned to her and narrowed his eyes. “I believe you would be interested to know
the details of my brother’s presence, because it involves you.”
“What
do you mean it involves me? I never saw your brother before he stepped into
this room!”
Max
tipped his hat to her as he rounded the door. “Nice meeting you, ma’am. Fritz
said to say hello and was wondering when the wedding is.”
Candy
felt a blush climbing up her neck.
Rafe’s
hold on his towel tightened. “If Dad sent you here, thinking you’re going to be
some catalyst for a soon to be wedding, you’re dead wrong! There isn’t going to
be one! Ever!”
Candy’s
heart squeezed with pain.
“Oh,”
Max said with a raised brow. “I think not.”
“I
think so,” Rafe challenged back.
Max
stared at Candy and gave her a wink.
Although
a knot of grief sank like an anchor in her heart, she forced herself to smile. She’d
heard the man had a façade tougher than Rafe’s, but Candy had to hand it to
Max, he was a charmer.
“Where
are you off to?” Rafe shouted as he marched after his brother. “I’ve got
business in town, and when I’m back, you better be long gone.”
The
brothers’ voices drifted off as Candy rested her head against her pillow. The
thought of Fritz sending Max to carry on as matchmaker infuriated her. But the
thought of Rafe’s refusal to marry her devastated her.
What
kind of fool had she been professing her love before he did?
She
squeezed her eyes tight and fought the overwhelming misery that sliced her
heart in two. Okay, so Rafe had never said a thing about love. But he had
kissed her. He had wrapped her in a cocoon of desire so great, she’d forgotten
about her past.
Her
first love had been a doctor, and he’d left her. It seemed that Rafe might do
the same thing, except Rafe might be the man who could break her heart where it
could never be repaired again.
She
should go home. She wasn’t wanted here. Rafe wasn’t looking for marriage. But
neither was she until she had fallen in love with the stupid man! The islands
had sealed the deal on her heart.
Something
had to change right away, and it obviously wasn’t going to be Rafe.
She
would have to leave. But first, she promised herself she would take a nice walk
in the sand and then swim in the ocean before she left. That would at least
cool her off. She owed herself that much of a vacation, Rafe or not!
It
was two o’clock in the afternoon and the ocean was heavenly. It warmed every
inch of Candy’s body as she dove below the surface and watched the wildlife
below.
She
never thought swimming in the ocean could be so exhilarating. The old pair of
goggles she found in one of the kitchen drawers was just what she needed to
view the pint size stingrays skimming across the sand. Their tan color made the
creatures almost invisible against the ocean floor.
It
was a change to the mountains in Colorado. She wished she had more time here. But
she had to return home.
She
was hurt by Rafe’s sudden aloofness, and she’d finally realized the man was
trying to avoid her all morning. He’d taken Selena into town to visit her
husband, and left Candy alone, since Max had hopped a ride with them at the
last minute.
Selena
hadn’t been too happy about Max’s surprise visit to Candy in her bedroom. The
older lady had been taking a bath when Max had arrived, and she had missed his grand
entrance. Candy smiled to herself. Max’s ears must still be ringing from the
way the lady had scolded him.
Candy
dipped below the water again. For the first time in days, she found herself
alone and discovered that she rather liked it. Rafe had no idea she was
swimming in the ocean, and she had no intention of telling him.
Dr.
Rafe Clearbrook was by no means her life preserver. She could handle her life
all by herself.
“What
the hell are you doing out there?”
The
shout penetrated Candy’s ears the second her head popped out of the water. When
she turned her face toward shore, her heart lurched.
It
was Max, and he looked meaner than a bull trapped in barbed wire. His black
Stetson rode high on his head, as if he were going to a rodeo beachside.
“What
do you think I’m doing out here? Fishing for sharks?” she yelled back, sinking
her feet into the sand. She could still stand in the water, but she was tiring.
Her
words seemed to amuse him. His throaty laugh rippled across the waves. “You’re
one spunky filly. Now, get your little tush over here or Rafe’s gonna have a
fit.”
The
very idea of Max telling her what Rafe would feel infuriated her.
She
lifted the goggles off her eyes and onto her forehead, throwing him a cold look.
“For your information, your brother has nothing to say about what I do and
neither do you.”
“I
don’t like the way you’re acting, sugar. So, whether you like it or not, I’m
going to have to take matters into my own hands.”
His
voice held a deceptive calm that turned Candy’s stomach. But it was when he took
off his hat and started for his boots that she began to panic.
He
was going to come in after her! The nerve of the man. “You wouldn’t dare.”
He
glared at her. “You come out, or I come in. Which is it, sugar?”
“What
does it matter to you that I’m swimming? You’re not my babysitter.” Or was he?
“Rafe’s
coming back in about an hour. He was worried about leaving you alone,
especially after he sent those workers next door packing. Since I was returning
earlier than him, he asked me to keep an eye on you.”
“Okay,
so you’ve kept an eye on me.” She waved her hand at him to shoo. “You’ve done
your duty. Now get!”
“I’m
not leaving, sugar. There’s a coral reef about twenty feet behind you. If you
get cut, Rafe will skin me alive. And there’s no telling what he’ll do to you
after he patches you up.”
Candy
almost laughed out loud. The man had to think she was an idiot. She was not going
to bump into a coral reef. She may be stupid with men, but she certainly knew
how to swim.
She
backed up and tightened her goggles. “Hold your horses, cowboy. I’ll be out of
the water in a few minutes.”
Hold
your horses.
She thought that was rather funny since he
was a rancher, but the man didn’t seem to enjoy her little play on words. Even
through the fogginess of her goggles, she could see him pacing back and forth
on the beach like a warhorse ready to bolt.
Suddenly,
she had a second wind, and it felt exhilarating.
“Don’t
do it!” he shouted, watching her dip her head.
Her
face popped up again.
“You
hold it right there, sugar!”
She
could almost see those baby blues narrowing when he spoke to her. She clenched
her teeth, finding the man almost more annoying than his older brother.
“I
don’t take commands from Clearbrooks very well,” she answered back.
“You
better listen to this Clearbrook or you’ll be sorry!”
Laughing,
Candy moved a few feet further into the water and felt a dip in the sand. She
began to tread water. “Well cowboy, you know what you can do with—”
The
words stuck in her throat. All at once, a strong current took hold of her and
swept her below the surface.
“Hold
on, sugar!”
She
barely heard the shout as water began to fill her mouth, and she felt herself
being propelled away from shore.
As
soon as Rafe pulled the truck up the road toward the condo, he saw Max whip his
Stetson into the sand. His brother would never throw that prized hat onto the
beach unless something was wrong.
Fear
swept through him when he realized Max was yelling at somebody. Rafe didn’t
have to guess who that somebody was. Candy and Max were having a heck of a
shouting match.
He
jumped from the truck and hurried toward Max, but he couldn’t see Candy.
A
numbing terror coursed through him when he realized Max was staring into the
water.
“Where’s
Candy?” he yelled, almost afraid of the answer.
Two
hard blue eyes glared at Rafe. “She’s going to drown, you starry-eyed moon calf.
Get me a rope!”
“What?”
Max
grabbed his shoulders. “Candy’s caught in the current. She’s staying afloat
right now, but doesn’t have much time before she hits those reefs. I need a
rope. It’s too dangerous to go in after her. The coral would tear us to shreds.
Believe me, it’s safer for her this way too.”
Rafe
stared into the ocean. A hot pink swimsuit blinked like a beacon in the sun.
Rafe
cursed and pushed his brother aside. “There’s a laundry line and rope in the
back. I’m going in.”
“You’re
crazy. I can’t let you do it, Rafe. Didn’t you hear me? It’s safer my way. I’m
thinking of her. I can do it. We still have time.”
Rafe
glared at his brother. “And if you miss?”
“I
never miss.”
“I’m
going in. So don’t even think about knocking me out, because when I come to,
you’ll wish you hadn’t.”
“Fine.
I’ll pull you both in.”
As
Rafe swam toward Candy, the current pushed him up and down like a rubber toy. When
skin touched skin, he almost groaned in relief.
“I
got ya, sweetheart. Put your arms around me.”
Her
eyes were wide with fear. “I’m s-sorry, R-Rafe.”
“Don’t
talk. Let’s get out of here first.”
Rafe
lodged his body between Candy and the reef. He tried to keep her head above the
water, but it was difficult to hold on when the coral bit into his legs like
razors.
Blood
swirled about his body, turning the water red. He knew that a couple of sharks
had been spotted in this vicinity only a week ago, and he wanted out of the
water as soon as possible.
“Come
on, Max! We aren’t in swimming lessons here!”
The next
second, Max shot a rope across the water, circling Rafe as if he were a calf in
a rodeo event.
Max
pulled them both to shore, and Candy stretched out on the sand, exhausted.
Max
grabbed Rafe by the arm and glanced down at his legs. “You’re bleeding like a
stuck pig.”
Rafe
slumped over, breathing hard as he stared at Candy’s shivering body. “Shut up
and get her out of here. It’s not as bad as it looks. I’ll be fine.”
Max
grimaced and scooped Candy into his arms, taking her back to the condo. “Looks
like a warm shower for you, sugar.”
After
Max threw Candy under the warm water with her swimsuit on, he gave her some
privacy in her attached bathroom as she slipped into a T-shirt and shorts.
Max
was waiting in her bedroom when she came out. “Where’s Rafe?” she finally asked
in a tired voice. “I want to see him.”