“That’s not what I asked you to do, Hollis.”
He chuckled, not at all embarrassed by the situation. “I was making a new friend.”
“Do it on your own time,” the woman said, dismissing him with a wave of her hand and turning to smile at Robin. “Sorry about that. I thought he’d behave for once. I should have known better. Anyway, I’m Judith Davies, and you must be Robin.” Her glance shifted to the cake. “It looks fabulous! Now I know why you come so highly recommended.”
Praise like that never went unappreciated. “Thank you. Have you disassembled a wedding cake before?”
Judith laughed. “Many times.”
“Then I won’t bore you with my ten minute tutorial. Just a reminder: the top layer is foam. The real one is in the freezer at my shop. I was told someone would come by to pick it up.”
“I’ll be doing that on Monday.”
“Great.” She held out the piece of paper. “If you’ll sign the release form, I’ll be on my way.”
Five minutes later Robin was on the sidewalk leading to the parking lot. Her glance rose to the sky. The gray clouds from earlier had scattered, leaving behind a wide expanse of blue. This was more fitting for the first day of spring and the unofficial start of the busy bridal season.
As she approached the pastel blue and white delivery van, she noticed Hollis a.k.a. Mr. Wonderful leaning against the hood of a low-slung sports car. In the short time since his departure from the banquet room, he’d collected an audience of three females who appeared to be hanging on his every word. When he looked up suddenly and met her glance, she realized he bore a slight resemblance to Reece Diamond. From what she’d seen, the two men had more in common than movie-star looks. They also thought they were irresistible to women.
Robin might have been inclined to dismiss the rumors surrounding the CEO of Diamond Jet Service if she hadn’t heard a firsthand account of Reece’s exploits from one of her longtime customers. Trina Farmer’s wild tale about her daughter’s involvement with the hotshot pilot had given credibility to the gossip circulating on social media. As the saying goes, there’s no smoke without fire.
Two months ago, Reece had been someone Robin knew only by reputation and had no expectation of meeting. That changed when she started dating Wade Hannon. It would have been impossible to quantify her disappointment when she learned her new boyfriend was connected to the playboy billionaire. She hadn’t yet crossed paths with Reece, a state of affairs she hoped would continue. Robin had no use for men who made a career out of playing the field and didn’t care how many broken hearts they left in their wake.
Wade was cut from a different cloth. He was serious-minded, dedicated and scary-smart as evidenced by the string of letters after his name and the number of degrees on the wall of his office at the oceanic institute. He also wasn’t put off by Robin’s background or lack thereof.
Kait, her roommate and business partner, agreed that Wade was the best thing that ever happened to Robin. This wasn’t hyperbole. Her previous boyfriends had been little more than a vast desert of wasted time. They’d come and gone without an ounce of regret on her part. That wouldn’t be the case with Wade. This time her heart was involved.
Along with all the excitement of her first love was an awareness that the stakes had risen. Her happiness had suddenly become intertwined with someone else. If by some chance things didn’t work out with her and Wade, there would be no going back to business as usual. This shift in perspective made it imperative that she proceed carefully. It was also the rationale for her decision not to tell Wade about her biggest (and most embarrassing) fear. Doing so could destroy her chance for the happily-ever-after she’d dreamed about for so long.
Chapter Two
Reece urged Gypsy into the house. They’d just returned from a morning walk during which his dog had once again been snubbed by the snooty Pekinese next door.
“You might as well give it up, girl. Your age is against you, and your pedigree is questionable.”
Gypsy ignored this well-meant advice and ran over to her water bowl.
Reece had found the terrier/lab mix wandering around the airfield a few years ago. Although she’d appeared well-cared-for, she hadn’t been wearing a collar. He’d posted signs in the area in hopes of finding her owner, but no one had called to claim her. Rather than take Gypsy to a shelter, Reece had kept her.
“You’re getting a bath later on today,” he told her as he hung the leash on the hook by the door. “In the meantime, take a nap in your own bed. Not on my couch.”
Gypsy stopped lapping water long enough to send him an innocent stare, as if such an idea would never occur to her. The light brown hairs he found on the throw pillows suggested otherwise.
He grabbed his keys off the counter and headed to the garage. Reece liked fast planes. It only made sense that his fascination with speed would carry over to his land-based modes of transportation. Along with a vintage Ferrari, he owned a Porsche 911 and the latest Lamborghini to roll off the production line.
His stepbrother had texted him last night about meeting for breakfast this morning. The two men didn’t see each other often. Their jobs kept them occupied in different parts of the city, and they didn’t have any interests in common. Reece’s father had mentioned having a party to celebrate Maxine’s fiftieth birthday. He wondered if that was what Wade wanted to talk about.
Reece had lost his mother when he was four and Addison was two. His memories of her were limited to a shadowy figure who’d smelled like flowers and spoken in a soft voice. Instead of hiring a nanny, his father had asked his unmarried sister to move in and take care of his two young children. Aunt Leigh had lived in the Diamond family home until his father married Maxine.
The likelihood that his aunt’s decision to help her brother had kept her from having a husband and family of her own wasn’t lost on Reece. In his mind, that was a heavy price to pay. She’d never uttered one word of complaint or regret. Aunt Leigh was in all things a realist, preferring to dwell in the present rather than spend time re-examining the past. Reece was left hoping that his actions showed how much he appreciated the sacrifices she’d made for him and Addison.
Wade was already at a table when Reece arrived at First Watch.
“Hey, man. Thanks for coming.”
“No problem,” Reece replied, taking the seat opposite.
A smiling waitress appeared as if on cue. Reece accepted her offer of coffee and flipped open the menu. He skimmed past Belgian waffles, frittatas, fancy-sounding omelets and French toast. He was a creature of habit. For breakfast, he always had bacon, eggs, and buttered toast.
After they ordered, Wade asked, “How are things at Diamond Jet?”
“Busy as ever. We just hired two more pilots and a flight instructor.”
“Are you still dating the meteorologist from Channel Nine?”
Reece laughed inwardly. Had it really been four months since he’d gone on a date? If he was a playboy, he wasn’t a consistent one. “I’m not seeing anyone at the moment. How about you?”
Wade smiled widely. “I met the most wonderful girl. Her name is Robin. She owns a cake shop in Ponte Vedra. She’s beautiful, uncomplicated, and doesn’t fall asleep when I drone on and on about the life cycle of sea urchins and mollusks. I think she might be the one.”