He’d met her on the beach as she packed her things, and that’s when she first came face-to-face with his million-watt smile, the kind of smile that oozed charm and magnetism.
The wave hadn’t taken her down, but that smile certainly could’ve.
“All right, that was impressive,” he’d said.
“What was?”
He stuck the end of his board in the sand and grinned at her. “You kicking my butt out there,” he said.
She smiled. “Oh, you noticed that, did you?”
“Let me take you to dinner,” he said with such confidence it nearly knocked her sideways.
“Wow,” she said. “That was bold.”
His hair dripped onto his shoulder, and the droplets slid down his muscular torso.
He didn’t break eye contact with her for a second. “What can I say? When I see something I like, I go for it.”
She peered past him to the harem of blondes. “I bet you do.”
He followed her gaze, then snapped his attention back to her. “I don’t even know those girls.”
She picked up her board and started off.
“At least tell me your name,” he said.
She didn’t respond.
“I’m going to find out,” he said. “Might as well tell me.”
She turned but kept walking backward. “What’s the point? I’m not interested.”
“Boyfriend?” He watched her—a little too intently.
“You think the only reason I might not be interested in you is because I’m taken?”
He shrugged, and the way the sunlight hit him, his bronze skin practically glowed.
One of the bikini girls bounced over and stood next to him, giving Pru a once-over. Prudence raised a brow, as if this was the perfect visual of an alternate reason she might not want to go out with him.
The blonde shimmied up next to his wet body, and Pru gave a mock salute. “See ya later, boss.” She turned to go, but not before she caught the look on his face, one that seemed to have something to say but thought better of it.
And from that day on, she’d carefully kept him in the friend zone.
Things would be completely different if she’d responded to his advances that day.
Who was she kidding? There would be nothing between them if she’d responded differently that day. They might’ve had one or two amazing dates, but Hayes would’ve ended things the same way he did with every girl he dated. He seemed to find it impossible to get serious about any of them. She’d always said he’d left a trail of broken hearts all over the world.
At least hers wasn’t one of them.
And at least now she could claim him as a friend. A good friend, in fact. The kind of friend who kissed her hello and made her feel like she wasn’t alone. The kind of friend with a family who changed their holiday plans to support something as silly as her artwork.
Not that custom surfboards were a traditional canvas.
Regardless, she needed that. It wasn’t like she had a family of her own.
She drew in a deep breath now, not at all aware of his woodsy scent that had filled the SUV.
“So, we’ll do Thanksgiving dinner with my family, then the tree lighting and caroling downtown the day after. Then, didn’t you say there’s a party or something to kick off the Stroll and crown you the queen of the Festival of Trees this year?”
She groaned. “You do not have to do all of that. And I’m not the queen of anything. I’m just the artist who designed the 20-foot talking tree.”
“Oh, is that all?” She didn’t miss the sarcasm in his voice.
She could feel his eyes on her. She gripped the steering wheel and tried not to wonder how she looked from the side.
“Did you not hear me when I said this week is all about you? Don’t pretend this isn’t a big deal.”
She braked at a stop sign and glanced over at him, which, it turned out, was a surefire way to lose her breath. His eyes looked older now, but they still glowed, and while he didn’t talk about it, she suspected he’d suffered heartbreak too, though maybe not when it came to women. He wasn’t serious enough about any of them to ever let himself get hurt.
Still, there were a lot of ways for a heart to break, and despite his image, she knew there was a depth to him that he hardly ever showed to anyone. And where there was depth, there was pain—and he’d seen too much in his travels to be exempt.
They were like two shattered pieces of glass, and she had to wonder if their pieces would ever fit together.
“Well, thank you for that,” she said. “It means a lot to me.”
He squeezed her hand, that familiar, mischievous smile playing at the corners of his lips. “You know I’d do anything for you, Pru.”
A friendly honk from behind kept her from lingering there, and she stepped on the gas, begging herself to stay as calm and cool as she needed to be if she was going to keep up this charade.
And she must. Because if she lost Hayes, she would be hopelessly, horribly, utterly alone.
And that wasn’t something she was willing to risk.
Chapter 2
A Thanksgiving Surprise
The McGuire family had its own set of Thanksgiving traditions, so when Hayes mentioned he was flying to Nantucket to spend the holiday with Pru, he didn’t expect his parents to come along.
Now, drawn from bed by the smell of freshly pressed coffee, he felt a smidge grateful they were that kind of family—the kind that would upend everything to support someone they considered “one of their own.” And that was exactly how they saw Pru.
Hayes had been bringing her around for years now, and while he often got teased about it, he thought his family had mostly accepted the fact that the two of them were just friends.
After all, Pru was the exact opposite of the girls he usually dated. He’d met his last girlfriend, Delilah, around the same time he’d met Prudence. He and Delilah reconnected a little over a year ago at a party in Manhattan. Hayes had just returned from Taiwan, and Delilah had just shot her first magazine cover. The leggy blond model asked him out, and they dated for a few months before Hayes called it quits.
“Why don’t you ever date intelligent women, Hayes? You’re one of the smartest people I know,” Pru had said when she found out he and Delilah were together. He’d spent more time with Delilah than he typically spent with any of the women he dated, but still, he knew better than to get serious about her.
That had happened once—a girl in college named Kara. Kara had been smart. And funny. And beautiful. And also still hung up on a high school boyfriend who eventually wormed his way back into her heart. And her bed.
Hayes had fallen hard and fast for Kara, and when he discovered her betrayal, he’d made up his mind to never let that happen again. Now, he dated casually, made friends easily, and never let his heart get tied up in the mix. When he needed a date for a media event, he had a handful of beautiful women he could call, but they all knew Hayes wasn’t a relationship guy.
He kept things simple, and he was always clear up front. Things were better this way—and he could avoid ever feeling the sting of betrayal again.
Not that he’d ever explained that to Pru. Though he’d downplayed the whole situation with Kara, Hayes was pretty sure Pru knew he’d had his heart broken. He wasn’t sure what she believed about him these days, but probably that he was a never-too-serious, fun-loving guy who dated too many women and had no interest in settling down.