Second Chance at First Love Read online

The front desk clerk was on the phone when they stepped up to check in. They were greeted instead by a woman who looked to be around her mid-thirties. Curls of strawberry blond hair framed her freckled face. Her warm brown eyes crinkled at the corners with her bright smile. “Welcome to the Casablanca.” Her lilting, friendly tone put Emily at ease. “I’m Lacey.”

  Chance took a step forward. He was ready to take charge and Emily appreciated it. That didn’t mean she was going to let him. He was doing enough just by being here. “Hi. I’m Emily Proctor. We’re here for the Weekes-Harris wedding.”

  “Great! We’re so excited to have you all here.”

  Emily handed her credit card over. “We’re pretty excited too.” Ugh. Way to sell the enthusiasm, Em. What she’d really wanted to say fell more along the lines of, “Thanks, but to be honest with you, I’d rather be having a root canal than be at this wedding.”

  Lacey’s fingers flew over the keyboard as she pulled up the reservation. “Okay, we have you all set up in the Rockrose Villa.” She swiped Emily’s Visa through the card reader and handed it back to her. She then slid a paper map across the desk and drew the route to their bungalow with her pen. “If you follow the path right outside the main entrance, you’ll find it.”

  Emily studied the map. Chance leaned over her to do the same and she stiffened as his wide, muscular chest pressed up against her back. The warmth of his body shouldn’t have felt good against hers. This week was about keeping up appearances and nothing more. Emily’s gaze faltered, toward the cheap cubic zirconia ring on the finger of her left hand. Make believe and nothing else. One friend doing a favor for another.

  “Thank you.” Emily cleared her throat. “I’m sure we won’t have any trouble finding our way around.”

  The printer spit out a sheet of paper and Lacey slid it across the counter toward her. “If I can get your signature and initials here, you’ll be all set.”

  Emily grabbed a pen and scribbled her name and initialed the appropriate spots. Lacey gave her a cheerful smile. “Enjoy your stay!”

  If only.… Emily smiled back and took the map along with her credit card and stuffed them into her purse. She turned, and nearly ran straight into Chance’s wide chest. The week was already off to a stellar start.

  “Whoa there.” Chance chuckled and steadied Emily on her feet. “I haven’t had to carry a body over my shoulder since my last physical agility test. Don’t make me try it now.”

  Emily’s cheeks heated. She’d always been a klutz. About as graceful on her feet as a goose making its way to the water. It had always driven Brad crazy but Chance always went easy on her. She didn’t mind his mild ribbing. It came with the territory.

  “No thanks,” she said with a grin. “I saw the way you treated poor Rescue Randy that day. I don’t think my head could handle being knocked against the sidewalk like that poor dummy’s.”

  Chance gave her a playful nudge. “Randy made it through all right. Besides, you know I’d treat you gently.”

  Emily’s step nearly faltered again. Since they’d boarded the plane in Spokane, Chance had been borderline flirty with her. It could have been that he was taking his role as her fake fiancé seriously. If so, he was putting on one heck of a show. She hoped he saved something for Brad and Amberly, not to mention the rest of their guests. They were the ones Emily was worried about impressing. Chance didn’t have to prove anything to her.

  “Ready, Freddy?”

  Such a goofball. Emily chuckled as they loaded their luggage up on a rolling cart and headed out of the lobby. If anything, the next few days wouldn’t be boring.

  #

  Usually all Chance had to do to turn a woman’s eye was show up somewhere in his uniform. Hell, just last week he’d been at the grocery store with a few of his shift partners, picking up groceries for the station. The cashier had poured on the charm and written her phone number on the back of the receipt before sliding it into his hand. Chance hadn’t done anything but stood there. Since they’d boarded the plane in Spokane, he’d practically thrown himself at Emily. She hadn’t so much as batted a lash at him. His flirting game must be seriously off. His self-esteem was bound to take a serious hit before the week was over.

  When it came to Emily it seemed he had no game whatsoever. Awesome.

  They made their way down the path toward their villa. The sound of lilting laughter drew Chance’s attention and he looked up at the exact moment he walked straight into Emily’s back. She stood, rooted to the walkway, her gaze straight ahead and focused on the happy couple headed toward them. He swallowed a groan. Running into the douchebag groom was bound to happen. He’d only hoped it would have happened more than a few minutes after their arrival.

  “Emily!” Brad’s voice was about as pleasant as fingernails on a chalkboard. He waved and increased his pace, pulling Amberly along at a clip. Good lord. Enthusiastic much? Chance fixed the most pleasant expression he could muster on his face and forced his lips not to curl into a contemptuous sneer.

  “Hi guys!” Emily’s own enthusiasm would put a cheerleader to shame. Amberly opened her arms and Emily walked right into the hug. Apparently only Chance noticed the tension in Emily’s spine and tightness in her voice. The fact that her former boyfriend and best friend were oblivious to her distress only made Chance’s annoyance boil closer to the surface. He still couldn’t understand what Emily had to prove by being here.

  “Thanks so much for coming, Emily. I’m so glad you could make it.”

  “Oh my gosh, are you kidding?” Emily’s voice went up a shrill octave or two. “I wouldn’t have missed this for the world!”

  Chance fought the urge to roll his eyes. A convincing actress, Emily wasn’t.

  “Hey man.” Brad looked Chance’s way and jerked his chin in greeting. What a jerk. “You come with Emily?”

  Really? They were only walking together, pulling along a cart with a pile of luggage. Brad wasn’t exactly the brightest bulb in the box. “Yup,” Chance replied.

  Brad’s brows gathered. “Why?”

  Chance clamped his jaw down tight to keep it from swinging open in disbelief. They really broke the mold with Brad Harris, didn’t they?

  Emily reached back and grabbed his hand. She pulled him beside her, her smile so wide and cheery it looked plastered on her face. “Chance and I are engaged!” she announced loud enough for the entire resort to hear.

  “I told you Chance was coming.” Amberly bent her head close to Brad’s. Blond, blue-eyed, tall, and willowy, with a body that would make a Barbie weep with envy, she was the epitome of the trophy bride. Exactly what someone as full of himself as Brad would want. She was also as dull and dry as a saltine cracker. “Men,” Amberly scoffed as she turned her attention back to Emily. “They don’t pay attention to details.”

  “Really? Chance is all about the details.” He cocked a questioning brow and Emily shrugged. Improvisation wasn’t exactly her strong suit. “He’s been so great with all of the wedding plans. Of course,” Emily said with a laugh, “we’re still pretty early in the planning stage. Maybe we’ll do the wedding here. It’s really beautiful.”

  “Isn’t it?” Amberly flashed a smug smile as she snuggled up against Brad. “If you’re not planning to have the wedding for a year or so, I’m sure you two would have plenty of time to save up.”

  Low freaking blow. Apparently Amberly didn’t think they could afford a destination wedding. Neither one of them came from wealthy families, and yeah, Chance wasn’t an investment banker like Brad, but he pulled people out of goddamned burning buildings. He’d like to see Brad keep his cool in the sorts of situations Chance found himself in every time he went on shift. He drew a cleansing breath into his lungs and let it out slowly. It was way too early in the week to get worked up. There’d be plenty more opportunities to be insulted before the week was over.

  “Oh. Well.” Emily’s tone was crestfallen and Chance’s anger surged to the surface. She didn’t deserve to be treated like this. “We�
�ve got quite a nest egg started.”

  Amberly responded with a wan smile.

  Emily added, “You never know what might happen.”

  “You really don’t,” Amberly replied.

  Yeah, like hooking up with your friend’s boyfriend less than five minutes after their breakup.

  “I promised Emily the wedding of her dreams.” Chance met Amberly’s gaze and then Brad’s. He gave the other man a pointed look over the top of Emily’s head. “There isn’t anything I won’t do to make her happy.”

  Brad’s gaze narrowed. There was a hell of a lot more truth to Chance’s words than he wanted to admit. He’d do anything for her. Whatever she asked of him. And it sucked that he felt like a chump for that sentimentality.

  “Lucky girl,” Amberly crooned. “I knew you’d bounce back, Em. You always do.”

  As though having been party to breaking Emily’s heart was no big deal and nothing to have worried about since she “always bounced back.” Please.

  “The luckiest.” Emily grabbed Chance’s arm and pulled him to her as though afraid he might bolt. “You guys did me a favor, really by screwing around behind my back. I should probably get you two gifts.”

  Amberly’s eyebrows shot up into her hairline. Emily stiffened beside Chase and her chest rose and fell with quick shallow breaths.

  “Not that you…I mean, I didn’t think that…well, Brad made it seem like…and you never denied…” She turned to Chance, her hazel eyes as big as saucers. He didn’t like to see her giving herself enough rope to hang with it.

  “We really appreciate the invite.” Showing any gratitude to these two life ruiners nearly made him gag on the words. He forced them through clenched teeth that he hoped resembled a smile. “I think we all got what we wanted in the end.” Not Chance. At least, not yet. “We had a long flight and we’re both a little travel loopy. Gonna call it a day I think.”

  “Yeah,” Emily gripped his arm like it was the only thing keeping her upright. “I’m wiped out. Definitely travel loopy. We really do appreciate the invite. Thanks.”

  Brad’s jaw squared, his gaze focused on Emily. Amberly smiled. Whether it was fake or not, Chance didn’t much care. “Of course. I know we’ve been through a lot, Em. But we really did want to share this with you.”

  The woman had absolutely no tact. “That’s why we’re here,” Chance replied as smoothly as he could manage. “Come on, honey. Let’s get unpacked and settled in.”

  “Maybe we’ll see you later tonight?” Amberly asked.

  “Sure,” Emily replied as though she’d rather set herself on fire than see either one of them again. “Sounds great.”

  “Have a good evening you two.” Brad finally deigned to speak. What an ass.

  Chance pretended not to notice his condescending tone. “You too.”

  Hell. It was going to be a long damned week.

  Three

  Who in the hell planned a three-day-long wedding? Brad and Amberly sure knew how to take pretentiousness to a whole new level. How was Emily even paying for this trip? It’s not like she was rolling in money on her salary. Her little bakery had only been open for a year and it always took a while for a new business to take off. She’d offered to pay for the flight and sprung for the higher priced villa. Chance had played along because Emily wouldn’t have had it any other way. But he’d be damned if she shelled out another dime on this over-done affair.

  Today was almost half over. That left two and a half days to go. How in the hell was he going to survive with his sanity intact?

  Chance watched with an unhealthy fascination, the wide strokes of Emily’s arms cutting through the water as she swam. Emily had always loved the water. The woman was practically a mermaid. Why couldn’t Brad have gotten married in northern Canada? Alaska wasn’t too bad in the summer. Antarctica? Anywhere would have been better than the Gulf of freakin’ Mexico where every day was bikini weather. Shorts, tank tops, strappy little sundresses…. Emily had packed them all. Including a few tantalizingly skimpy swimsuits like the one she wore now.

  This was torture. Pure unmitigated torture. Chance could think of a hundred situations he’d rather be in right now. Including standing in a burning building with a faulty SCBA. At least in the fire, he’d be suffocating because of bad equipment. Right now, it was Emily’s perfection that forced the air from his lungs.

  Damn.

  “Hey.” Emily swam to the edge of the pool where he sat and rested her arms on the edge to hold her up. “You don’t want to swim?”

  “Maybe later.”

  Her cheery disposition couldn’t be more transparent. Their run-in with Brad yesterday had rattled her. Though what had she expected? That they’d hang out on the beach and manage to avoid the bride and groom for three whole days? They were on an island for shit’s sake! He had to give her an A for effort, though. So far, she was doing a stellar job of behaving as though she wasn’t the least bit bothered to be attending her ex’s wedding.

  Emily gave a playful splash. “Isn’t water a firefighter’s best friend?”

  “So, what’s on the agenda for today?” The last thing he wanted to think about was taking off his shirt and getting into the pool with her. Especially when his fingers practically itched to reach out and touch her. “I’m sure Mr. and Mrs. Perfect have a full itinerary planned.”

  Emily’s expression became crestfallen. He hated to burst her bubble, but she needed the reminder that they couldn’t avoid Brad and Amberly all week.

  “Most of the day is open,” she remarked. “But there’s a cocktail hour at seven and then dinner at Junonia at eight-thirty.”

  Though he was looking forward to a gourmet meal at the resort’s five-star restaurant, Chance deserved a gold star for agreeing to endure the amount of socializing he’d be subjected to between now and Saturday. “So that gives us all afternoon to do what we want?” The only bright spot in this entire week was the possibility of getting some one-on-one time with Emily. Their jobs kept them both busy and aside from text messages and the occasional lunch, they hadn’t seen much of each other over the past few months.

  “Yep.” Her expression softened. “I thought we’d explore town if you’re up for it.” Her eyes darted to the right. “I haven’t bought them a wedding gift yet. I suppose I’d better do that.”

  Chance picked up the beach towel beside his lounge chair. “Might be a good idea.” He tossed the towel to the edge of the pool where Emily floated. “Dry off and let’s get out of here.”

  Her answering smile made his breath hitch. “Sounds good. We can play tourists for a while.”

  Pretending to mean more to Emily than simply being her friend was proving to be more than Chance could handle. He found himself wishing that playing “tourist” was the only thing they were playing at.

  #

  Mimosa Key couldn’t have been more idyllic. The town, which the front desk clerk had referred to simply as “Mimosa,” was charming and small, with plenty of island flare. Emily took in the beauty of the colorful stucco buildings as they meandered through town and soaked up the sun. There were several small towns in Idaho similar to Mimosa. Places with populations under ten-thousand that depended on tourism to keep the local economy afloat. Those towns were earthy and reflected the mountainous landscape, the buildings built from dark woods, and the atmosphere sleepy. Mimosa was none of those things. It was so vibrant and bright and full of life.

  Emily paused and tipped her head up to the sky as she let her eyes drift shut. The sun warmed her face and bare shoulders. She let out a slow breath that moved through her and relaxed her from head to toe. It could have been the warm spring day that felt more like summer, or the bright tropical setting that soothed her. Or, it could have been that she’d put a little distance between her and the resort—where Brad and Amberly were undoubtedly walking hand in hand. The feeling of eyes watching her prompted her lids to open and she turned to her left to find Chance studying her. The intensity of his green-eyed stare bore
through her. He grinned and her stomach fluttered.

  What the heck?

  Chance was her friend. Her best friend. The guy who’d been there for her when her parents freaked out on her for deciding not to pursue her bachelor’s degree. No one can get by with an associate’s degree! Are you crazy? Chance had believed in her drive and focus and encouraged her to open up her tiny bakery. He’d been the shoulder she’d sobbed on when Brad had dumped her like a sack of trash on the curb.

  Chance was funny and a genuinely nice guy. Beyond attractive. Smart, self-assured, gainfully employed. He knew what he wanted and never backed away from a challenge. He was capable—who didn’t like a guy with common sense?—and focused. But Emily had been down the boyfriend road with him and it hadn’t worked out.

  You were fourteen, you idiot. A kid. Nothing works out when you’re fourteen.

  No. She wouldn’t ruin what they had by even entertaining the idea that they could be something more. If things didn’t work out, if they broke up, she’d lose her best friend and Emily didn’t think she could bear the loss. Imagining a day without at least a text conversation with Chance sent a zing of anxiety-infused adrenaline through her system. Which was why she’d never cross that line with him. Ever.

  She screwed her face into a grimace. “What?”

  He continued to watch her and she fought the urge to squirm under his scrutiny. “I’m just wondering how long I’ll have to stand here while you recharge your solar battery.”

  She grinned at his teasing tone. True, summer in the mountains equated to a few months of above seventy degree temps. Pretty mild in comparison to Florida’s delicious eighty-plus-degree heat. The humidity didn’t even bother her. So much better than the dry mountain air.

  “It feels so good.” Emily let out an indulgent moan. Chance’s jaw squared and another pleasant flutter hit her stomach. “I just want to stand here all day and soak up the warmth.”

  Chance took a quick look behind him. “Maybe let’s do it someplace where people won’t have to step out on the street to get around you?”