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CHAPTER THREE

LUCY COULDN’T BELIEVE her luck. The prince liked her, wanted to be with her. And what a prince he was, not only drop-dead gorgeous, but a billionaire to boot! Ellie had said enough about the Finn Franchises for her to know this guy was seriously wealthy, but had never mentioned he was also seriously sexy.

Which gave Lucy pause for thought as they made their way out of the building and across the Esplanade to the boardwalk that ran along the water’s edge of the park leading to the marina. Was there something wrong with Michael Finn, something that had put Ellie off being attracted to him? Was he a terribly demanding boss? Lucy wasn’t keen on demanding men. If he had struck himself off Ellie’s possibility list, Lucy needed to know why before jumping in the deep end with Michael Finn.

Though it was a beautiful day and her heart was singing. There was no reason not to enjoy this exciting attraction while it was still lovely and shiny. As soon as they paired off on the boardwalk, the two of them in front, Ellie and Harry behind, Michael gave Lucy a smile that tingled right down to her toes.

‘Tell me about yourself, Lucy,’ he invited. ‘How did you come to be in cemetery administration? You look as though you should be a model.’

He had silver-grey eyes—very distinctive, like the rest of him—and she was thrilled that he was interested in her, if only for a little while. Words bubbled out in an effervescent stream. She told him about her experience of modelling—its advantages and disadvantages—then tour guide jobs she’d had, and he laughed at the amusing stories about people who’d made guiding both difficult and hilarious at times. Moving on to her stint in the dance studio, she was prompted to ask, ‘Do you dance, Michael? I mean, do you like dancing?’

It was a strike against him if he didn’t.

He grinned at her, half singing, ‘I’ve got rhythm…you’ve got rhythm… .

She laughed in delight.

‘Our mother insisted that Harry and I have dancing lessons when we were kids,’ he went on. ‘Said it was a mandatory social skill and we would enjoy it in the end. We grumbled and groaned at having to miss sport for girlie dancing, but she was right. You could get the same adrenaline rush out of dancing as you can out of sport.’

‘A case of mother knows best,’ Lucy remarked.

He winced ruefully. ‘She always did.’

Seeing the change of expression, Lucy softly asked, ‘Does that mean your mother is not still with you?’

It drew a quizzical look. ‘Don’t you recall the plane crash that took both my parents?’

‘No. I’m sorry, but…’

‘It was all over the newspapers, the media… .’

She wasn’t about to admit that her dyslexia made reading newspapers too difficult. ‘How long ago was this?’

‘Close to ten years.’ His frown lifted. ‘Maybe you were too young to take much notice. How old are you, Lucy?’

‘Twenty-eight. And just over ten years ago my mother died of cancer. I didn’t take much notice of anything for a while, Michael.’

‘Ah…understandable.’

His face relaxed into a smile again and Lucy was highly relieved that a sympathetic bond had been established. She pushed it further, saying, ‘I don’t have a father, either. He deserted us before Mum died. It’s just me and Ellie now.’

‘Do you live together?’

‘Yes. We share an apartment. Ellie is a wonderful sister.’

The voice of her wonderful sister shattered the lovely build-up of understanding. It was raised in extreme vexation, crying out, ‘That’s because you’re so annoying!’

Startled, Lucy instantly swung around, anxious that nothing go wrong today. Michael turned, too. Seeing that she’d drawn their attention, Ellie rolled her eyes at her companion and huffed in obvious exasperation before saying, ‘It’s okay. Harry was just being Harry.’

Guilt swirled around Lucy’s mind. Had she inadvertently lumped Ellie on her birthday with a man she didn’t like, spoiling the nice lunch her sister had been anticipating with Michael? Being completely star-struck by the storybook prince, Lucy might have been blindly selfish in so quickly agreeing to a foursome, not really consulting Ellie about whether it was okay with her.

‘Be nice to Elizabeth, Harry,’ Michael chided, ‘It’s her birthday.’

‘I am being nice,’ he protested.

Ellie didn’t lose her temper over nothing, Lucy thought, taking proper stock of Michael’s brother. He was a very manly man, his white T-shirt and shorts displaying a lot of firm muscle and smoothly tanned skin. The slightly bent nose stopped him from being classically handsome, but the riot of black curls and the bedroom blue eyes gave him a strong, rather raffish attraction. He exuded a confidence that probably meant he was used to being popular with the opposite sex, but he’d be dead in the water with Ellie if she perceived him as a playboy.

‘Try harder,’ Michael advised, dismissing the distraction by lightly grasping Lucy’s elbow and turning her away with him to continue their stroll together.

She couldn’t dismiss it so easily. ‘Does Ellie dislike your brother, Michael?’ she asked, hating the feeling that this foursome had been a very bad idea.

If it was, she had to break it up, regardless of the miracle meeting with this man. A real prince who was truly, deeply attracted to her would pursue a relationship, anyway. It wasn’t fair to Ellie, messing up her birthday with a man she found hard to tolerate. Better for them to dump the men and go off together, though that was tricky with Michael being Ellie’s boss.

‘I don’t think it’s a case of dislike,’ he answered with a slightly wry grimace. ‘I’ve never known anyone to dislike Harry. He’s a natural charmer, but he does tend to ruffle Elizabeth’s feathers with his flirting.’

There was flirting and flirting, Lucy thought, and some of it could get a bit icky.

‘Don’t worry,’ Michael went on. ‘He’ll behave himself now. I’ve warned him.’

That made no difference if, deep down, Ellie couldn’t abide the man. Lucy needed to have a private word with her, suss out the situation to her satisfaction. Impossible right here. They had walked past the park with the children’s playgrounds, and were level with the swimming lagoon. Another ten minutes’ stroll would bring them to the Mariners Bar, Hopefully, she would get the chance to be alone with Ellie in the cocktail lounge before they went into the dining-room.

In the meantime there was no point in not making the most of Michael’s company.

‘We’d got up to dancing,’ he reminded her with a grin, the grey eyes lit with amused curiosity. ‘Modelling, tour guiding, dancing—how did this lead to cemetery administration?’

‘Oh, there’s a lot of stuff in between,’ she said airily. ‘I was doing a beautician course while the dancing was paying off. That led to jobs in a department store and two of the holiday resorts up here.’ She slanted him a twinkling look. ‘I do a great foot massage and pedicure if you ever need one.’

He laughed. ‘A woman of many talents.’

She loved the sound of his laugh. It echoed in her ears and seemed to ripple down to her heart, where it tripped her pulse into racing overtime.

What was she going to do if his brother was a frog? Please don’t let him be, she silently begged. It would ruin this highly promising lunch.

Michael kept asking her questions, seemingly intrigued by her, which was a lovely feeling. Most guys wanted to talk about themselves. He gave her the sense that he’d never met anyone like her before and he couldn’t get enough of her, not right now, anyway. Whether that would last…Well, nothing usually did, not on this kind of high, but Lucy couldn’t help revelling in it.

Of course, he wouldn’t be intrigued by her at all if he knew the truth—that she didn’t just flit from one job to another because she was attracted to something new and different. More times than not she ran into an unavoidable snag because of her dyslexia, and she was either let go or moved on before she had to suffer the humiliation of being found wanting again. Her disability was a curse she had to live with, but she was determined to enjoy the good times in between being stumped by it and having to pick herself up and try something else.

Right now the promise of having a very good time with Michael Finn was thrilling her to bits, though she still had to check with Ellie that what was happening was okay with her. She wanted her sister to have a happy birthday. Men came and went in Lucy’s life. Ellie was the only person she could count on to always be there for her.

They’d passed the yacht club and were on the path to the cocktail bar adjoining the restaurant when Harry called out to them. ‘Hey, Mickey! I’ll buy the girls cocktails while you see the maître d’ about our table.’

Mickey? Mickey Finn. Lucy rolled her eyes. That was such boy stuff! Maybe Harry was simply an overgrown boy, irritating Ellie with his silly immaturity.

‘Okay.’ Michael tossed back the response, apparently accustomed to being called Mickey by his brother, and not minding it.

Whatever…The arrangement between them would give her some time alone with Ellie in the cocktail bar—time enough to check if the current scenario sucked for her sister.

Michael left them at the bar, striding swiftly into the restaurant to speak to the maître d’. Harry led them to a set of two-seater lounges with a low table in between, and saw them settled facing each other.

‘Now let me select cocktails for you both,’ he said, the vivid blue eyes twinkling confidence in his choices. ‘A margarita for you, Elizabeth.’

It surprised her. ‘Why that one?’

He grinned. ‘Because you’re the salt of the earth and I revere you for it.’

She rolled her eyes at his linking her character to the salt-encrusted rim of the glass that was always used for a margarita cocktail.

Though it was clever, Lucy thought, openly conceding, ‘You’re right on both counts. Ellie loves margaritas and she is the salt of the earth. I don’t know what I’d do without her. She’s always been my anchor.’

‘An anchor,’ Harry repeated musingly. ‘I think that’s what’s been missing from my life.’

‘An anchor would only weigh you down, Harry,’ Ellie put in drily. ‘It would feel like an albatross around your neck.’

‘Some chains I wouldn’t mind wearing.’

‘Try gold.’

He laughed.

This quick banter between them gave Lucy pause for speculation. ‘Do you two always spar like this?’ she asked.

‘Sparks invariably fly,’ Harry claimed.

Ellie gave him an arch look. ‘I would have to admit that being with Harry is somewhat invigorating.’

Lucy laughed and clapped her hands. They were playing a game, scoring points off each other. It wasn’t bad at all. ‘Oh, I love it! What a great lunch we’ll all have together!’ She cocked her head at the man who was certainly ruffling Ellie’s feathers, but quite possibly in a way her sister found exciting under her surface pretence of indifference. ‘What cocktail will you choose for me?’

‘For the sunshine girl…a pina colada.’

She clapped her hands again. ‘Well done, Harry. That’s my favourite.’

‘At your service.’ He twirled his hand in a salute to them both and headed off to the bar.

A charmer, Michael had said, and Lucy could now see how it was. Ellie was attracted to Harry but she didn’t trust his charm, maybe thinking he was a bit too slick with it. She should just ride with it, enjoy it, let her hair down and not care where it led.

Lucy leaned forward to press this advice on her sister. ‘He’s just what you need, Ellie. Loads of fun. You’ve been carrying responsibility for so long, it’s well past time you let loose and had a wild flutter for once. Be a butterfly instead of a worker bee.’

An ironic little smile tilted Ellie’s mouth as she drawled, ‘I might just do that.’

‘Go for it,’ Lucy urged, excited by the possibility that both the brothers could be princes. ‘I’m going for Michael. He’s an absolute dreamboat. I’m so glad I wasn’t held up any longer at the cemetery. I might have missed out on meeting him. Why didn’t you tell me your boss was gorgeous?’

‘I’ve always thought him a bit cold.’

Lucy threw up her hands at her sister’s lack of discernment. ‘Believe me. The guy is hot! He makes me sizzle.’

Ellie shrugged. ‘I guess it’s a matter of chemistry. Harry is the hot one for me.’

Chemistry…yes! That explained everything. There was nothing wrong with Michael. Quite simply, there was no chemistry between him and Ellie, and no one could make that happen. It either did or it didn’t. Lucy had met some really nice guys in her time, but there’d been no point in dating them. They just didn’t do it for her.

She sat back contentedly, the narky questions that had been niggling at her making a complete exit, leaving her free to fall in love again.

She grinned at Ellie. ‘Brothers and sisters…wouldn’t it be great if we ended up together, all happy families?’

It was a lovely fantasy! Totally off the wall, because Lucy knew she wasn’t good enough to hold on to a man of Michael Finn’s calibre. Today was hers. Probably tonight. Maybe she would have him for a week or two if she could manage not to be found wanting by him.

‘I think that’s a huge leap into the future,’ her sister commented, rolling her eyes at Lucy. ‘Let’s just take one day at a time.’

Sensible, as always.

And completely right, as always.

But Lucy was flying high and didn’t want to be brought down to earth.

That could happen tomorrow or the next day or the next… .

Today she was over the moon and wanted to stay there.

CHAPTER FOUR

WHILE LUCY DIDN’T believe in big dreams for herself, she saw no reason for Ellie not to have them. Her sister was brilliant at everything. No one could find fault with her. However, her personal life certainly needed brightening, and Harry Finn looked like the right man to do it if she’d simply fling the door open and let him in.

‘You’re always so sensible, Ellie,’ Lucy chided, wanting her to lighten up and take a few risks for once.

‘Which is something I value very highly in your sister,’ Michael said warmly, picking up on her words as he appeared beside them and seated himself next to her on the lounge.

‘Oh, I do, too,’ she quickly agreed, liking him all the more for appreciating this quality in his PA. She bestowed a brilliant smile of approval on him as she added, ‘But I also want Ellie to have fun.’

‘Which is where I come in,’ Harry said, also catching her words as he came back. His eyes danced with wicked mischief as he gazed at Ellie. ‘Starting with cocktails. The bartender will bring them over. Here are the peanuts and pretzels.’

He placed a bowl of them on the table and settled himself beside her, throwing her a challenging look that mocked any resistance to having fun with him. She flicked him a sizzling glance in return.

Definitely something hot going on between them, Lucy thought, and gave Harry an approving smile as she asked, ‘What cocktail did you order for Michael?’

‘A Manhattan. Mickey is highly civilised. He actually forgets about sunshine until it sparkles over him.’

Lucy laughed at the teasing reference to herself as the sunshine girl. ‘And for yourself?’

‘Ah, the open sea is my business. I’m a salty man, so I share Elizabeth’s taste for margaritas.’

‘The open sea?’ Lucy queried.

‘Harry looks after the tourist side of Finn’s Fisheries,’ Michael answered. ‘I take care of buying in the stock for all our franchises.’

‘Ah!’ She nodded, understanding why Harry was dressed the way he was.

She knew Finn’s Fisheries was a huge franchise with outlets all around Australia. They not only stocked every possible piece of fishing gear, a lot of it imported, but the kind of clothing that went with it: wetsuits, swimming costumes, shorts, T-shirts, hats. The range of merchandise was fantastic and Ellie had told her Michael dealt with all that.

She knew about the tourist side, too, having been a tour guide herself. There were Finn dive boats offering adventures around the Great Barrier Reef, Finn deep sea fishing yachts for hire, and for the really rich, the exclusive getaway resort of Finn Island, where she’d never been but would love to go.

Harry couldn’t be too much of a playboy if he was responsible for keeping these enterprises running successfully. She noticed that his white T-shirt with the tropical fish had the emblem of Finn Island printed below his left shoulder, and wondered if he’d come from there this morning. Maybe if she and Michael hit it off really well, he would take her to the glamorous getaway.

Lucy decided she could not have wished for a more exciting situation—Ellie and Harry, she and Michael. The conversation over cocktails zipped with good humour. Ellie drank a second margarita, definitely loosening up, hopefully throwing caution to the winds. A thirtieth birthday was not a time to be overly sensible.

Lucy wanted her sister to have the best possible day.

Which led to making the mistake!

They were handed menus as soon as they were seated in the dining-room, and instead of waiting for the others to start talking about the dishes listed, as she usually did, the fact that they were at a top-line restaurant gave her the confidence to say, ‘I bet I know what you’re going to order, Ellie.’

Her sister raised her eyebrows. ‘What?’

Lucy grinned at her. ‘The chilli mud crab.’ It was her absolute favourite dish.

‘Actually, I can’t see that on the menu,’ Michael said, glancing quizzically at her.

‘Oh, I didn’t really look. I just assumed,’ she replied quickly, silently cursing herself for being an impulsive idiot.

Revealing her disability to a man she wanted to impress—a man as smart as Michael Finn—would make him lose interest in no time flat, and she would shrivel up inside if he got that look on his face—the look that saw her as defective. Hiding her dyslexia was always the best course. Now she had to cover up the stupid mistake.

Pretending to study the menu properly, she asked, ‘What have you decided on, Michael?’

‘The steak.’

‘How about sharing a seafood platter for two with me, Elizabeth?’ Harry said, leaning closer to point out the platter’s contents on the menu. ‘You get crab on it, as well as all the other goodies, and we can nibble away on everything as we please.’

Lucy instantly warmed to him even more—a sweet man, not only caring about her sister’s pleasure, but also taking the meal selection heat off herself.

‘Harry will eat the lion’s share,’ Michael warned.

Harry instantly raised a hand for solemn vowing. ‘I swear I’ll give you first choice of each titbit.’

‘Okay, that’s a done deal,’ she said, closing the menu and slanting him a smile.

‘Sealed with a kiss,’ he said, bright blue eyes twinkling wickedly as he leaned closer still and pecked her on the cheek.

‘You can keep that mouth of yours for eating, Harry,’ she snapped, probably on the principle of give him an inch and he’d take a mile.

He grinned. ‘Elizabeth, I live for the day when I’ll eat you all up.’

‘That’ll be doomsday.’

‘With the gates of heaven opening for me,’ Harry retorted, his grin widening.

Lucy couldn’t help laughing.

Ellie heaved a long-suffering sigh and shook her head at him. ‘You are incorrigible.’

‘A man has to do what a man has to do,’ he archly declared, sending Lucy off into more peals of laughter.

He was fun. And totally irrepressible. She suspected that Ellie was holding out against him because she got a kick out of the sparring, as well as not wanting him to think she was an easy catch.

However, their selection of a seafood platter for two didn’t help Lucy with choices. She would have to order the same as Michael, which was okay. The steak should be very good here.

Michael was amused by Harry’s determined assault on Elizabeth’s defences, amused by her determined resistance to his charm, too. Most women would be lapping it up. His brother was going to have to work hard to win this one over, but the battle served to keep them occupied with each other, leaving him free to pursue the connection with Lucy.

He’d been quite stunned when Elizabeth had turned up at work this morning wearing the gorgeous butterfly blouse—totally atypical of her usual style in clothes. A birthday gift from her sister, she’d said—a sister who was as different from her as chalk and cheese. She was so right about that. He could see Elizabeth as a schoolma’m. Lucy promised to be a delicious array of exotic cheeses, and tasting all of it had already become a must-do in his life.

And despite her choice of white clothes today—very sexy white clothes—she was definitely the butterfly, flitting from job to job as though they all had some sweet nectar for her, tasting and moving on, clearly enjoying everything that life could offer her, wanting a whole range of experiences.

Including him.

Saw him, liked him, wanted him.

His head was still spinning with the excitement of her uninhibited response to their meeting. No games, no pretence, no guard up—just lovely open Lucy letting him know she found him as sexy as he found her. It was a struggle not to be in a constant state of arousal.

He thought of Fiona Redman, his most recent ex, who’d definitely been into female power games. The convenience of having her as a sexual partner did not stack up against the annoyance of being expected to toe her lines. No woman was ever going to decide for him when he should work and when he shouldn’t. The success of Finn Franchises had been top priority in his life ever since his father’s untimely death, and that was not about to change any time soon.

However, he would certainly make time to satisfy this sizzling lust for Lucy. It probably wouldn’t last long. the sheer novelty of her would wear off and the usual boredom or irritation would set in. He had never come across the magic glue that could make a relationship stick. He always found fault somewhere and that was the end of it. Quite possibly the fault was in him. Whatever…he was going to enjoy this woman as long as she stayed enjoyable.

The waiter returned and took their orders. Lucy chose the steak, too. Wanting to share everything with him? It was absolutely exhilarating being with her, especially when she turned those big brown eyes on him, the golden specks in them glowing with warmth.

‘You said dancing lessons interfered with sport, Michael. What did you like playing?’ Dimples flashed in her cheeks as she spoke.

He smiled reminiscently. ‘Everything in those days—cricket, baseball, tennis, soccer, rugby.’

‘Not now?’

‘They were mostly schoolboy passions. I still play tennis, but only socially. I have a couple of games of squash during the week to loosen up from too much desk work, and usually a round of golf at the weekend.’ She looked sublimely fit, probably from dancing, but out of interest he asked, ‘What about you? Any sporting passions?’

‘I can play tennis, but like you, only socially. At school I mostly concentrated on athletics.’

He grinned. ‘High-jump champion?’

His instant assumption surprised her. ‘How did you guess?’

‘Long legs. Great shape, too.’

And he couldn’t wait to have them wound around him in an intimate lock.

‘You’re obviously in great shape yourself,’ she retorted, her eyes simmering with the same kind of thoughts, driving his excitement metre higher. Then, as though taking a mental back step, she added, ‘I also play netball with a group of friends once a week. I always keep up with my girlfriends. Men can come and go, but real friends stay in your life.’

‘You don’t count any men as real friends?’

‘A few gay guys. They’re lovely people. Lots of empathy and caring.’

‘No straight ones?’

Her dimples deepened as her luscious lips twitched into a provocative little smile. ‘Well, sooner or later most straight men turn into frogs.’

‘Frogs?’ he repeated, needing enlightenment. He’d heard ‘empathy and caring’ loud and clear but ‘frogs’?

Her eyes danced teasingly at him. ‘You suddenly turn up in my life and everything about you shouts that you’re a prince amongst men.’

A prince. That was a surprisingly sweet stroke to his ego.

Her hands lifted in a helpless gesture. ‘But how do I know you won’t turn into a frog tomorrow?’

‘Ah!’ he said, understanding. ‘You’ve been with guys who haven’t lived up to their promise.’

She shrugged prettily, the off-the-shoulder sleeve of her peasant blouse sliding lower on her upper arm. ‘It happens,’ she said in airy dismissal. ‘I’m hoping not to be disappointed with you, Michael.’

The seductive challenge sizzled straight to his groin. He was up for it, all right. He wished he could whizz her straight off to bed. How long would this birthday luncheon go on—main course, sweets, coffee? At least another hour and a half. He’d give Elizabeth the rest of the afternoon off, take Lucy to his penthouse apartment. Although…

‘Do you have to get back to work this afternoon?’ he asked.

‘Yes, I do,’ she answered ruefully. ‘I have to deliver the angels’ heads to the stonemason, take the van back to the office, then visit the people who own the burial plot that’s been mistakenly used, and hopefully persuade them that one burial plot is as good as another.’

‘Tricky job,’ he said with a sympathetic wince.

‘Not really. It’s a matter of getting them to empathise with the bereaved parents who have just laid their daughter to rest—how terrible it would be for them to have her dug up again,’ Lucy explained. The caring in her voice moved something in his heart, reminding him of laying his parents to rest, the final closure.

Caring, empathy…he sensed something quite special in this woman. She wasn’t just fantastically sexy. There was much more to her. So far it was all good.

‘Are you free tonight?’ he asked, not wanting to wait any longer to have her to himself.

‘Yes.’

Her smile promised an eagerness that matched his for a more intimate encounter. Which made his hardon even harder.

Fortunately, the waiter showed good timing in arriving with their main course. Their conversation moved to food as they ate their steaks, which were perfectly cooked, asparagus on the side with a touch of Béarnaise sauce, and crunchy roasted potatoes.

Lucy was into cooking, loved experimenting with different combinations of ingredients. Better and better, Michael thought, looking forward to enjoying many meals with her. She had an infectious enthusiasm for life that made her company an absolute delight. He was wondering if she’d ever cooked frogs legs after bidding a frog goodbye when Harry claimed his attention, leaning an elbow on the table and pointing a finger at him.

‘Mickey, I have the solution to my problem with the resort.’

The problem that had brought him to the office this morning—the discovery that the resort manager was feathering his own nest at their expense. Michael frowned over the interruption. He didn’t want to talk family business with his brother when he had plans to make with Lucy.

‘You have to clear that guy out, Harry,’ he said tersely—the same advice he’d given earlier. ‘Once you confront him you can’t leave him there. The potential for damage…’

‘I know, I know. But it’s best to confront him with his replacement. We walk in and turf him out. No argument. A done deal.’

Why was he persisting with this discussion here? ‘Agreed,’ he said impatiently. ‘But you don’t have a ready replacement yet and the longer he stays—’

‘Elizabeth. She’s the perfect person for the management job, completely trustworthy, meticulous at checking everything, capable of handling everything you’ve thrown at her, Mickey.’

That rocked him. Was Harry off his brain, wanting to mix pleasure with business? The way he’d been madly flirting…was he seriously attracted? This didn’t feel right.

‘Elizabeth is my PA,’ Michael stated firmly, giving his brother a steely look.

Harry dug in regardless. ‘I’m more in need of her than you are right now. Lend her to me for a month. That will give me time to interview other people.’

‘A month…’ Michael frowned over the inconvenience to himself. Harry did have a point. He needed a replacement for Sean Cassidy pronto.

‘On the other hand, once Elizabeth gets her teeth into the job, she might want to stay on,’ Harry said provocatively.

Michael glowered at him. ‘You’re not stealing my PA.’

‘Her choice, Mickey.’ Harry turned to her. ‘What do you say, Elizabeth? Will you help me out for a month…stay on the island and get the resort running as it should be run? My about-to-be ex-manager has been cooking the books, skimming off a lot of stuff to line his own pockets. You’ll need to do a complete inventory and change the suppliers who’ve been doing private deals with him. It would be a whole new challenge for you, one that—’

‘Now hold on a moment,’ Michael growled. ‘It’s up to me to ask Elizabeth if she’ll do it, not you, Harry.’ This on-the-spot decision didn’t sit well with him, particularly with his brother virtually railroading him into it, yet it was a credible solution to the problem.

‘Okay. Ask her.’

Michael heaved an exasperated sigh, disliking the sense of having been pushed into a corner. ‘It’s true,’ he reluctantly conceded. ‘You would be helping us out if you’d agree to step in and do what needs to be done at the resort. I have every confidence in your ability to handle the situation. Every confidence in your integrity, too. I hate losing you for a month… .’

He grimaced at the prospect. She was his right hand in the office, always understanding and delivering whatever was needed. Gritting his teeth, he muttered, ‘I guess someone from the clerical staff can fill in for a while… .’