“Damn.” His hungry eyes roamed over her slender body.

“That dress has been driving me crazy all night. I’ve been dying to see you in the light.”

Liz smiled and turned in a slow circle, lifting her arms behind her head. “Well, here I am.”

In a flash Darius was across the room and had her wrapped in his arms. “And all night I’ve been thinking about taking it off you.”

His mouth went to her neck, as he began removing the thin material with his teeth and sliding it down her body, kissing his way along the path he was creating.

Liz felt as if her whole world was spinning on its axis as he lifted her in his arms, carrying her to the bed. “Wait! What about Dee and Marc?”

Darius paused. “What about them?”

“What if they come in and hear us?” Liz was trying to focus, but it was hard when all his sun-gold skin was being revealed inch by beautiful inch.

A smile spread across his face. “Then, I guess you’re gonna have to keep it down, huh?”

ELAINE OVERTON

currently resides in the Detroit area with her son. She attended a local business college before entering the military and serving in the Gulf War.

She is an administrative assistant currently working for an automotive-industry supplier and is an active member of Romance Writers of America.

His Perfect Match
Elaine Overton

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Be still, and know that I am God…

—Psalms 46:10

Thank You for always reminding me.

Dear Reader,

Thank you for taking the time to read His Perfect Match. I hope you enjoy Darius and Liz’s story. Like fine wine, sometimes love needs time to age and evolve into something rich and wonderful. Darius and Liz discover this the hard way, but thankfully life gives them a second chance to get it right.

I love to hear from my readers, so feel free to write me at elaine@elaineoverton.com. I look forward to hearing what you think!

And make sure to look out for my next Kimani Romance title, Miami Attraction, coming out in April 2010.

Elaine

Contents

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Epilogue

Prologue

Ten years earlier…

Cincinnati, Ohio

As he stepped off the train Darius North listened to a voice mail introduction of his fiancée’s cell phone before speaking. “Liz, it’s me. I’ve been trying to reach you for two days. I need to talk to you. Call me as soon as you get this message.” He started to hang up before adding. “I don’t know why you’re not returning my calls, but whatever it is I’m sure we can work through it, just call me. Okay?” He tucked the cell phone back into the case attached to his belt.

Slinging his tote bag over his shoulder he moved through the crowded train station and out to the main entrance where cabs waited for fares. His troubled mind was running in a thousand directions. Something was wrong. She was having second thoughts. Darius knew it as certain as he knew his own name. He could feel it.

He climbed into one of the available cabs.

“Where to?” the driver called over his shoulder.

Darius gave his home address and a few seconds later the car was in motion. He settled back in the seat knowing it would be at least twenty minutes before they reached his apartment complex.

He stared out the window at the passing cityscape as his problems raced through his mind. Whatever was going on with Liz had started over a month ago. She’d changed almost overnight. Now, if he said up—she said down. If he said left—she said right. He’d tried to talk to her before leaving on his trip and she’d just brushed him off.

Which was extremely unusual. Liz was the most agreeable person he knew. He thought back to the last getaway they’d had. He’d planned a romantic weekend retreat to a local medieval-style castle. She’d not even known where they were going until they had arrived, and the surprise on her face when they pulled up to the castle had been well worth the effort. They’d had a terrific time that weekend, but that was before all the wedding plans had begun.

At first, he’d assumed it was just the usual nervousness that came with getting married. After all, he was experiencing his own share of it. The idea of taking responsibility for the financial and emotional well-being of another human being was daunting to say the least.

But he was prepared. Probably more prepared than most twenty-four-year-old men. After all he had a successful business to provide for them. And not only was it successful but thriving.

At the age of eighteen, straight out of high school, he’d signed up for the franchise-training program at the deli he worked in. Within a year, he was opening his own store. Two years later, another, and another across town, and now he was returning from a planning meeting in a city fifty miles away where he was preparing to open more delis and supermarkets.

Liz, a recent college graduate with a philosophy degree, could do much worse than him, he thought. So, what was her problem? His phone rang and he quickly answered it.

“Hey, man, where are you? I called the hotel you were staying at and they said you checked out.”

“Hey, Darren. Yeah, I decided to come back a day early. What’s up?”

There was a long pause before his brother finally said, “Nothing—nothing, just wanted to see if you needed any last-minute help with anything.”

Darius frowned. “No, you just make sure you bring the ring.”

“Of course.”

His frown deepened. He loved his big brother, but Darren wasn’t exactly the reliable type. “Did your tux arrive?”

“Um…yeah, about that.”

Darius laughed, already knowing what his brother’s complaint would be. “What about it?”

“It’s green.”

“Sage.”

“What?”

“Sage. Liz picked the colors—not me.”

“At the shop we tried on black tuxes.”

“That was just for sizing. I thought I told you that?”

“You know damn well you didn’t say anything about green tuxedos.”

Darius laughed again. “Sorry, brother, but I’m just trying to make my new bride happy.”

“Are you sure you can?”

Darius felt a chill of premonition run down his spine. “What’s that supposed to mean?” He waited for several seconds but when no response came he prompted his brother again. “Darren, what the hell did you mean by that?”

Darren’s only response was a grunt.

Darius instantly realized his brother knew more than he was saying. “Look, Darren, if you know something, say it.”

“Nothing to say—I don’t know anything.”

“Then why did you say that?”

“Just messing with you. It was a joke. You’re too sensitive. Chill.”

Darius’s eyes narrowed. His brother was lying. “Darren, as my brother I would expect you to tell me if you saw something or even heard something about Liz while I was away.”

“Man, you’re overreacting.”

“Am I?”

“Look, I just called to see if you needed some help with the wedding stuff. Never mind.”

Darius listened as the phone went dead on the other end before turning off his own. Darren knew something. Something he was obviously hesitant to share. That short conversation was just enough to confirm Darius’s suspicions.

Before he could change his mind he leaned forward and knocked on the glass. “Instead, can you take me to 5682 Willard Avenue?”

The driver gave him a quick annoyed glance. “That’s thirty minutes in the opposite direction.”

“I know. I’ll make it worth your while.”

That seemed to appease the driver because as soon as he could find an appropriate place to turn around, he did, and headed back across town in the direction of Willard Avenue.

Thirty-five minutes later Darius was stepping out of the cab and paying the driver his fee and a fifty-dollar tip. The man nodded his satisfaction before pulling away.

Darius stood in the drive of the small family home belonging to the Donovans. Liz’s compact car was sitting in the drive right behind her father’s pickup truck.

He walked to the door and knocked. It was a warm June evening, so although he waited a few minutes and knocked again a couple of times, it was not an uncomfortable wait.

Finally, the door cracked partially and half a face topped with a couple of pink rollers appeared. “Darius? What are you doing here?”

“Evening, Mrs. Donovan. Sorry to disturb you so late. I was hoping to talk to Liz.”

Marian Donovan closed the door to remove the chain and opened it wide. “I’m sure she’s in bed already. Is something wrong?”

“Who is it, Marian?” A gruff male voice called from the top of the stairs.

“Sorry to wake you, Mr. Donovan, I was hoping to see Liz,” Darius called up the stairs.

The stairs creaked as the large man descended. “Darius? What’s wrong, son?”

Darius, starting to feel a little ridiculous for getting this couple out of their bed for nothing, tried to play down his concern. “No, nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to speak to Liz for a few moments, if it’s not too much trouble.”

They gave each other a strange look before Marian announced, “I’ll go wake her.”

“Thank you.” Darius called to her retreating back as she climbed the stairs.

“Come on in.” Will Donovan gestured to the living room. “Have a seat.”

The two men entered the small, cozily decorated room, and sat at opposite ends of the couch.

“You sure everything is okay, Darius?” Will asked, leaning forward to meet the younger man’s eyes.

Darius tried to smile reassuringly. “Yes, sir. It’s just that I haven’t been able to reach her by phone for a couple of days.” His smile widened to a grin. “Just want to make sure she hasn’t changed her mind.”

Will chuckled loudly. “Better not, considering the money me and her mama have spent on this little event.” He reached over and patted Darius’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, son. She’s probably just a little nervous. Perfectly natural.”

“Yes, sir.” Darius nodded obediently, and tried to tamp down his own concern as he watched Marian Donovan descend the stairs alone.

Her troubled eyes first went to her husband as both men stood to greet her. “She’s not in her room.”

Will frowned. “What do you mean she’s not in her room?” He crossed the floor and pulled back the curtains on the windows facing the front of the house. “There’s her car right there.”

“I know. She must’ve gone out with some girlfriends after we went to bed.” Darius did not miss the way his future mother-in-law avoided eye contact with him. “I guess she’s making the most of being a single woman.” Marian tried to laugh, but the sound sort of faded off in a squeak.

Will’s face was twisted in a harsh frown. “Without even leaving a note?” He crossed the room and grabbed the cordless phone from his base on a side table. He quickly dialed his daughter’s cell phone number.

Marian and Darius stood patiently, although Darius was feeling anything but patient. His earlier concern had deepened to an almost terrifying fear.

“Where the hell are you?” Will Donovan growled into the phone. “Call home as soon as you get this message, young lady!” He slammed the phone down on the base and flopped down in the chair next to the table. “Sorry, Darius. I don’t know what’s gotten into that girl lately. This is the third time she’s done this in the past couple of weeks.”

“Will!” Marian hissed.

He rolled his eyes at his wife and continued, unintimidated. “The man has a right to know, Marian.”

Marian crossed to stand between her husband and Darius. “It’s just regular wedding jitters, Darius. Everybody has them. I’m sure you’re nervous in your own way, as well.”

Darius tried to force a smile. “Yes, ma’am. I’m a little nervous. I’m going to head home.” He turned toward the front door, then paused and looked over his shoulder. “Could you call me and let me know when she makes it in? Just so I know she’s okay.”

Will simply nodded and Marian called out, “Of course we’ll call you. I’m sure she’s just out with some girlfriends.”

Or another man, Darius thought. But the worried expressions on both her parents’ face let him know he was not the only one thinking it.

Just before five, Darius was awakened by a phone call from a tired-sounding Marian announcing that Liz had finally made it home.

“Can I speak to her?” he asked.

“Um, Darius, maybe now is not a good time. She just had a big argument with her father and I just don’t think she’s…”

“It’s okay. I understand.”

“Maybe you should just give her some time to herself. I really think she’s just nervous about Saturday.”

“Yeah, that’s probably it.”

“Okay, then, we’ll see you at the church on Saturday.”

But as he hung up the phone and laid back down, Darius realized he did not understand. Somehow, his well-planned-out life was becoming complicated; things were changing, and he did not understand at all.

Two days later, dressed in his sage-and-black tuxedo, Darius knocked on the door to the dressing room in the back of the church, and felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. “Liz? You in there?”

In the distance he could hear a piano solo of Jeffrey Osborne’s “On the Wings of Love” coming from the sanctuary. One of Liz’s friends, a bridesmaid, Kelly, hurried toward him down the hall, her sage-green gown lifted to her knees revealing white stockings with a severe tear down the left leg.

As she reached him, Darius asked, “Have you seen Liz this morning?”

She seemed distressed as she bobbed her head, the flowers threaded through her blond tresses weaving precariously. “Yes, about an hour ago.” She gestured to the closed door. “She should still be in there. I was just coming to see if she had any extra stockings.” She extended her leg. “Mine are ruined.”

He knocked on the door again. “Liz?” He cracked the door a bit and the first thing he saw was Marian Donovan reflected in the full-length standing mirror on the other side of the room. She was reading something.

“Mrs. Donovan? Is Liz here?”

Marian Donovan swung around with a terrified expression on her face. “What? Oh, no, no—she’s not.” She rushed across the room to them. “Kelly, would you be a dear and go find my husband?”

Kelly’s wide blue eyes looked nervously between Darius and Marian, and then she hurried away to find Will Donovan.

With a loud swallow, Marian finally looked directly at Darius. “Darius, come in here. We…we need to talk.”

Darius started into the room on shaky legs. He knew. With absolute certainty he knew what he was about to be told.

Marian closed the door and handed him the note. “I found this a few minutes ago.”

With clumsy fingers he unfolded the note and quickly scanned the scrawled writing.

Darius,

As much as it pains me to tell you in this manner, I cannot in good conscience go through with our wedding. I’m in love with someone else. I’m so sorry to hurt you this way, but to marry you would mean being untrue to my own heart…

He heard the door behind him burst open and Will Donovan’s blustery voice in some kind of deep discussion or argument with his wife, Darius couldn’t focus his mind enough to tell. Nor, did he care. He felt like he was in a fog, an agonizing, torturous fog.

He could hear others pouring into the room, his own parents’ voices were mingled with the rest. But he was trying to see through the newly formed tears in his eyes to read the rest of the letter.

I hope you believe me when I tell you that I wish you only the best life has to offer and I hope, I truly hope that one day you can forgive us. I do love you, Darius, in my own way. But I have discovered too late that the love I feel for you is more that of a brother for a sister and not the deep emotional attachment I feel now.

Someone was sobbing, no…a couple of someones. And he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Please don’t look for me, go on with your life and find the happiness you deserve. And tell my parents I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt them, either. Liz

Darius slowly folded the note closed exactly as he’d received it and turned to face the family and friends crowded into the small room.

His mother pushed her way forward and took his face between her hands. “Darius? Are you okay, baby?”

He nodded and closed his eyes tightly to hold back the tears. Not here. Not now.

Carol North hugged her eldest son to her, and then said, “I’ll get your brother to drive you home.” She looked around, but it was impossible to see anything in the mass of chattering people. “Darren! Darren where are you?”

No answer came for several seconds, so she turned to her husband, Jimmy, who’d worked his way to his son’s side. “You know where Darren is?”

He shook his head. “Has anyone seen Darren?” He called over the crowd, but the incessant chatter continued and no one offered an answer.

Feeling his chest heave, Darius unfolded the note and reread ten words that were now taking on a new meaning. “I truly hope that one day you can forgive us.”

Us.

Us?

Darius reached behind himself, and amazingly he found a chair to sit in before his legs finally gave way.

Carol worked her way over to the back of the chair and gently put her hands on his shoulders, as if by touch alone she could remove his pain. He could feel her turning her body in each direction still searching for her other son, the one she expected to help his brother now.

Darius could’ve told her Darren wasn’t there. Us. By now, both his brother and his fiancée were long gone. On the way to their new life…together.

Two months later…

Las Vegas, Nevada

Elizabeth Donovan sat on the window seat of the small hotel room watching the bright-red neon sign of the strip club across the street flash its invitation of topless women. She pulled her knees to her chest, folded her arms across them and finally surrendered to the tears she’d fought for too long. What a complete mess she’d made of her life.

Her comfortable world filled with the safe haven of family and friends seemed to have disappeared before her very eyes. Some mornings she woke believing the past two months had been nothing more than a nightmare. Then she would sit up in the bed, look around the shabby little hotel room and remember. It was real. All of it. Every horrific detail. And she had no one to blame but herself.

How had everything gone so wrong, so fast? It seemed like years since she’d stood before the full-length mirror being fitted for her wedding gown, when in fact it had only been a few months. She’d been so sure of everything then, including what to expect of her future. Now, she wasn’t sure of anything, not even her own mind.

Almost from the time they were children playing together, Liz had known and accepted that Darius North would always be a part of her life. Although he was five years older than she, her family had had no objections when they’d started dating four years ago. Even then Darius had a reputation as being an upstanding, dependable young man.

Over the years he’d proven to be everything it was assumed he would be. Respectful, generous-hearted, reliable. And the more he lived up to his stellar reputation, the more Liz accepted a secret truth in her heart that she would never admit aloud. For all his wonderful virtues, Darius nearly bored her to tears.

With Darius nothing was ever a surprise. Not even a surprise was a surprise. Every year on their anniversary when he handed her a gift-wrapped box Liz could guess what it was before opening it. Darius followed the traditional anniversary-gift guidelines as if it were gospel.

First year paper, second year cotton and so forth. In fact, Darius always followed the set guidelines. He never broke the rules, and she knew he never would.

At twenty-one, Liz already knew what her life would hold. She would marry Darius, the staid deli owner from Ohio, and they would probably have two, three children at the most. They would buy a small brick home in a Cincinnati suburb and continue to belong to their Methodist Church, Blessed Mary, where Darius would eventually become a deacon. Liz knew this because Darius had laid it all out to her some time ago. And Darius always did what he said he would. Always.

Using the back of her hand she carelessly wiped at her tear-filled eyes. What she wouldn’t give to have that predictable man back in her life. But that particular bridge had been burnt to ash. There was no going back. Ever. All because of one man—no, that wasn’t fair. It was as much her fault as it was Darren’s.

Liz leaned her head against the window and sighed at the feel of the cool glass against her heated face. She glanced down at the thin white plastic stick resting in her limp hand. Through her blur of tears she could barely make out the pink strip in the tiny opening. It didn’t matter. She’d already spent the past hour staring at it. No, there was no going back now.

Seeing a car pull up below she hastily wiped her eyes hoping it was someone dropping Darren off. She glanced at the clock and felt her heart sink a little more. It was just a little past midnight. Darren never made it back before dawn—on the mornings he bothered to come back at all.

The car door slammed shut and she was able to make out the Las Vegas Police Department symbol. For some reason she found herself focused on that symbol. It wasn’t unusual to see LVPD pulling up in front of the hotel that also served as a halfway house. But there was something about the way the neon sign across the street flashed over the car that cast the symbol in a strange light.

She watched as the two uniformed officers entered the building below, and glanced back at the stick in her hand. Forcing her exhausted body into motion she stood and went into the bathroom to toss out the stick. She grabbed some toilet tissue and wiped the tears from her eyes.

There was no more time for self-pity. There were decisions to be made. Important decisions. And this time she would think it through instead of acting on impulse as she’d done two months ago.

This time she would make the right choices, because now her decision wasn’t just for herself anymore. Just then, a knock came on the door.

Liz frowned as she headed to the door. She hesitated to answer, wondering who it could be. Darren was the only person who knew she was there and he had a key. She bit her bottom lip nervously wondering if one of the ex-convicts who occupied the building had been watching Darren come and go and knew she was there alone. She decided not to answer, until another knock came and with it a deep baritone voice announced, “Liz Donovan? Las Vegas police—we need to talk to you.”

Oh, God, what has Darren done? Liz slowly moved toward the door and, after glancing out the peephole, she opened it. “I’m Liz Donovan.”

Liz braced her body against the door to keep from falling down. She’d opened the door expecting to find two officers bent on doing their duty whatever that may be, and that’s exactly what she found. But the sympathy in their eyes spoke volumes regarding exactly what type of duty they were required to do that night. In that moment Liz knew Darren would not be coming back that morning…or any other morning for that matter.

Chapter 1

Present Day

Mid-January, Columbus, Ohio…

As the light white flakes fell steadily outside the window Liz studied the chessboard carefully, fully aware of the skill of her opponent. If she did not make the right move, he could easily have her queen in two. She glanced up at his serious face wondering what he was thinking. His thin, black brows crinkled in concentration. She knew he would show no mercy if she made a bad decision. She shifted her body, trying to get a look at the board from his direction, trying to think like him.

Her opponent released a heavy sigh of frustration.

She simply frowned at him, refusing to be pushed into the proverbial corner. She lifted her hand to move her pawn and thought better of it. She glanced at the king sitting on the side table by the hospital bed. He already had her king. She couldn’t let him get her queen, as well.

Lord knows, he’d never let me live it down.

“Sometime today would be good,” he grumbled.

“Don’t rush me,” she mumbled back. After a few seconds of consideration she slid her pawn one space to the left, and knew it was the wrong move as soon as a beautiful smile lit his face followed by the musical laughter she loved more than life.

“I can’t believe you fell for that, Mom.” He shifted his bishop to the right and swooped up her queen. What she thought he would do in two, he did in one. “Checkmate! I win—again.”

Nine-year-old Marc North bounced in the bed oblivious to the tubes running from his arms and chest to the nearby machines. “I win! You lose! I’m a winner! You’re a looossseeerrr!” He laughed loudly.

Liz simple watched the antics, trying to suppress her own grin. “And such a graceful winner at that.” She knew in her heart that she would gladly lose a million chess games for that laughter. Although, there was no need to try to lose. Marc was exceptionally good at the game.

Ignoring her words, he poked his thumbs at his chest. “Winner.” Then pointed both index fingers at his mother sitting across the board from him. “Loser!”

“You shouldn’t call your mother a loser, Marc.” A gravelly voice came from across the room.

“Hi, Aunt Dee,” Marc was still grinning as his great-aunt came to the bed and wrapped him in a hug. “Mom lost—again. You’d think she would’ve learned by now.”

“Learned what exactly?” Liz asked folding her arms across her chest, and accepting a light kiss on the cheek from her aunt.

“I’m the master! You’ll never beat me.”

“Marc.” Delia frowned down at her nephew. “Your tone is disrespectful.”

“That’s okay, Aunt Dee.” Liz smiled deviously. “There’s more than one way to skin a cat—or a chess master.”

Marc’s playful smile disappeared. “Meaning?”

“Meaning, if your Xbox 360 ever goes missing—” Liz widened her eyes in a poor attempt to look innocent “—I don’t know what happened to it.”

“You wouldn’t.”

He looked so stricken Liz reached across the board and hugged him. “Of course not, I just wanted to bring you down a peg or two.” She leaned back and looked at him. “Did it work?”

“Yes.”

“Good.” She stood up beside the bed. “You need to know that in the chess game of life…Mom always wins.”

“That’s because she cheats.”

Just then a nurse appeared in the doorway. “Okay, Marc, the doctor’s released you. See you Thursday,” she said as she removed the needle from his arm and pushed the dialysis machine aside.

“Thanks!” With a leap Marc was out of bed and headed across the room to the chair that held his shoes and coat.

“Slow down, tiger.” Liz rushed over to help him into his coat, ever mindful of his thin arms that she knew were sore where the needles for his dialysis were inserted twice a week, leaving them visibly bruised.

Marc crawled into the chair and waited patiently while his mother tied his sneakers. “Can we play in the snow when we get home?”

Liz’s eyes widened as she glanced up at her aunt who only shook her head in response. Given the draining procedure he’d just endured Liz could not imagine where he got the energy to want to play in the snow.

“Not today, sweetie.” She stood and pulled on her heavy winter coat. “How about we rent a movie on the way home, instead?”

“No way,” he called over his shoulder already headed for the doorway. “Tonight’s wrestling night, right, Aunt Dee?”

“You got that right,” Dee agreed, as the trio headed for the elevators.

“Alright, Aunt Dee, I’ll meet you downstairs.” Liz glanced down an adjoining hall.

She turned and headed down the hall, pulling on her winter knit cap as she spoke to the nurses she passed in the hall, realizing she knew them all by name. And why wouldn’t she, considering how much time Marc spent in this ward?

Her bright, beautiful boy had spent over half his short life in and out of hospitals, and yet he managed to remain upbeat and optimistic. Most of the time. Sometimes the pain from the dialysis needles was so intense, even the most spirited people were brought to their knees. And Liz spent every treatment holding his hand and praying that God would somehow transfer the pain into her body instead of his.

As she approached the end of the hall she passed through a set of double doors leading to the intensive care unit. She paused at the last room and lifted her hand to knock on the open door announcing herself, but the scene that greeted her caused her to pause.

In the bed lay a girl not much older than Marc whose kidney’s had completely failed. The only thing standing between the child and death were the various machines that did the work her failing body could not. The mother sat in a chair, her head resting on the side of the bed, and across the room the father and older sister stood looking out the window. No one noticed her standing in the door. They were all distracted by their own fears and concern. They were on a death watch.

Liz turned and quietly walked away without them ever knowing she’d been there. She had met the family through her juvenile diabetes support group, and knew of their daughter’s recent change in condition. She’d wanted to offer some words of encouragement. To tell them it would be all right. But she knew in her heart it would not be. Their child was dying and there was nothing they could do about it.

There but for the grace of God go I. Liz felt a chill run down her spine as she approached the elevators once more. So far the dialysis treatments were working for Marc, but she knew all too well how quickly that could change.

Of course he was on the waiting list for a match, but so were thousands of others, many of whom had more common blood types than Marc’s rare AB negative. They really only had one hope, one prayer and no idea of how or even if it would be answered.

As she stepped off the elevators on the ground level there were Marc and Dee on the other side of the large open entry in front of the glass revolving doors talking to Pete the security guard.

Even from across the lobby Liz could see Marc’s wide smile as he chatted happily and knew he was bragging about his recent chess win against her.

She smiled to herself, remembering Marc’s laughter when he realized he’d won. Her only child was spoiled rotten, a poor loser, and she adored every inch of him. He was the sun in the sky, the axis of her world—and he knew it.

In her most ridiculous moments she wondered if maybe she loved him too much. She could not even imagine a world in which he did not exist and yet, thanks to his disease, such a world was a real possibility. She shook her head to remove the morbid thoughts.

“Hey, sexy lady,” Pete said as she approached, and grinned, revealing several gaping holes between his teeth. He has as many teeth missing as he has in his mouth, Liz thought, but she would never say it aloud.

For all his useless flirting, Pete Daniels was a good guy and she would never intentionally hurt his feelings. Which is why she put up with his insistent come ons. They both knew he didn’t stand a chance in hell, and yet he didn’t let reality slow him down a bit.

“Hey, Pete, how are you?”

“Better now that I’ve seen you.” He winked.

“I was just telling Pete about our game,” Marc said with a smug smile.

“I bet you were,” Liz answered.

Pete chuckled. “I’m surprised I didn’t hear his crowing all the way down here.”

She smiled, remembering she wasn’t the only one who’d lost more than one game of chess to Marc. She and Marc had been forced to spend the Fourth of July weekend in the hospital, and Pete and his girlfriend Sal had smuggled in a holiday feast.

They’d spent the afternoon tearing through ribs, potato salad and corn on the cob, followed up by one of the best peach cobblers she’d ever tasted. The couple claimed it was their planned dinner and they were just sharing it with them. But the bland taste of the food immediately told Liz that Sal had cooked the meal just for Marc using very little salt and seasoning.

Realizing the time, Liz asked, “You’re here kinda late, aren’t you?”

Pete shrugged. “Yeah, pulling a double. My old lady is on the warpath about my spending habits, so I thought it best to stay out of sight until she cools down. Know what I mean?”

Dee tilted her head to the side with a frown. “What did you do this time?”

“What?” He shrugged again. “A man’s gotta have his fun.”

Liz knew from experience that Pete’s idea of fun was spending half his check on lottery tickets. “How much, Pete?”

His eyes widened. “Damn. We’ve known each other too long.”

“How much?”

He shrugged again. “Three-fifty.”

Now Liz’s eyes widened. “Three hundred and fifty dollars?!”

His lips twisted in a smirk. “Three fifty-four if you want to be exact.”

She shook her head, and in a rash moment of generosity made an offer. “I’ll lend you the money so you can go home, but this will have to be the last time.”

Dee shot her a strange look, but said nothing.

He held up his hands. “No, no, I can’t take any money from you.” He shook his head insistently.

“It’s just a loan.”

“No way.” He leaned across and placed his hand on Marc’s shoulder. “Look, you got real problems—and you need your money. No way could I take money from you. I wouldn’t even be able to sleep at night.”

Liz wanted to tell him that no amount of money could express her gratitude for his friendship and support over the years. Because of her frugal spending habits, the help from Aunt Dee and the medical benefits of her long-term substitute teaching job, Marc’s medical expenses were mostly taken care of. But how did she say thank you for all the times Pete used his breaks to make special trips to the floor to tease and entertain the sick children there? Or the comic books he provided the unit faithfully from his own small paycheck? Those were just a few of the small things this man had done for them with no expectation of return and for that much kindness she would pay anything.

But Liz could tell by the determined glint of his eyes that this particular discussion was closed. And secretly she was glad for it. Although she would’ve given him the money, she really had none to spare.

Still she asked, “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. Sal will cool off after a day or two.”

“Or three,” Dee said with a smirk.

Pete grinned, exposing his gaps. “Whenever, and then I’ll be back in like Flynn. You’ll see.”

With a shake of her head, Liz turned to her family. “Did you guys forget it’s wrestling night?” That reminder was all it took to get their little group headed toward the glass doors.

“See ya next time, Pete!” Marc waved as he headed out the door.

“All right, little man, and next time I want a rematch.”

As Liz approached the valet station and offered the ticket, her cell phone rang. With the city noises surrounding them, Liz covered one ear to better hear the caller. “Hello?”

“Ms. Donovan? This is Scott Banton.”

Liz felt her heart skip a beat, and moved a few feet away from Dee and Marc. She swallowed hard. “Any news?”

Liz watched the driver pull her small sedan to the door, but even as her family climbed inside she stood frozen to her spot while soft white flakes fell around her. She was totally oblivious to the snow, as well as to the people moving around her as they entered and exited the hospital, going about their lives. She stood motionless as the winter cold filtered its way into her down coat.

She was waiting for the world to change. Waiting for a miracle to be offered. Waiting for the private detective she’d hired to give her the lifeline she so needed.

Finally the male voice on the other end of the phone spoke the words she desperately wanted to hear. “Yes. I found him.”

The Hawaiki Inn

Tairua, New Zealand

Darius pasted on his best professional smile. “Congratulations.” He handed the room key to the new groom. “I hope you both enjoy your stay.”

The blushing bride was practically beaming with happiness and she gazed up at her new husband. “How can we not? This place is beautiful.”

Just over the couples’ shoulder was a floor-to-ceiling picture window that overlooked the Tairua Harbor. The turquoise-blue water almost matched the color of the cloudless blue sky exactly. In the distance the lush green mountainside of Paku volcano stood high in the middle of the perfect skyline. The palm trees swayed only slightly as a soft breeze rolled by and the bright sunlight warmed the hot-pink, soft lavender and bright-red tropical flowers indigenous to the area. Tairua was as close to paradise on earth as one could hope to get and yet Darius was certain the newlywed couple before him would probably never leave their room over the next two weeks.

As they turned from the counter heading up the stairs to their room, Darius returned to his task of entering invoices into the computer system when the phone rang. He answered on the second ring. “Hawaiki Inn—a little touch of paradise on the Coromandel Peninsula. How can I help you?”

A woman cleared her voice softly. “May I speak to Darius North.”

“Speaking.”

“Darius?”

“Yes.”

There was such a long pause, Darius wondered if the caller had disconnected. “Hello?”

“Darius…this is Liz. Elizabeth.”

His heart stopped for a moment, and then he realized it couldn’t possibly be his Elizabeth. He struggled to find his voice. “Hello, Elizabeth, how can I help you?”

“Darius, it’s me. Elizabeth Donovan.”

His heart stopped once again, and, as if by some reflex reaction he slammed the phone down on the base. He took several deep breaths trying to control his breathing. Liz Donovan?

He walked around the check-in counter and took a seat on one of the plush tangerine-colored sofas scattered around the hotel lobby. Why would Liz Donovan be calling after all these years? How had she found him? What could she possibly want?

He leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees and cradled his head in his hands. If you hadn’t just slammed the phone down in her ear you might have been able to get answers to those questions, idiot.

The ringing of the phone startled him and he glanced over at the desk. He sat still as stone listening to it ring and ring. After several rings it stopped and he released a sigh of relief. Then it started up again. He stood but found his feet rooted to the spot. After several rings it stopped again. Then it began again.

Just then, his assistant Alika came into the lobby and headed straight for the ringing phone, never noticing his boss standing a few feet away.

“Don’t answer that.” Darius’s harsh tone cut through the air like a knife, and Alika stopped dead in his tracks.

His dark eyebrows rose in confusion. “We’re no longer answering the phone?”

“Just don’t answer it.” With a quick glance at the confused man, Darius turned and headed out the glass sliding doors that led to the palm-tree-lined walkway that wound its way through the hotel bungalows and eventually down to the harbor.

Alika stood in stunned silence looking back and forth between the phone and the rapidly disappearing back of his normally super-composed boss. At first, he’d assumed Darius was headed back to his own bungalow, but then he watched him take the curve leading to the harbor. Alika prided himself on knowing his enigmatic boss better than anyone, and he knew he was going for a swim. He always swam when he had a difficult problem to solve. But what was troubling him now?

Alika glanced back at the phone when it suddenly stopped ringing, remembering the look of fear and anger on his boss’s face. His natural curiosity ate at him as he tried to imagine what kind of telephone call could both intimidate and infuriate his boss?

With a shrug he turned and headed down the hall leading to the kitchen to talk to the chef. But just as he started to walk away the phone started to ring again. Instinctively he walked back and answered it.

“Hawaiki Inn—a little touch of paradise on the Coromandel Peninsula. How can I help you?”

“I’d like to schedule a reservation,” the woman’s voice on the other end said.

Alika quickly scheduled the reservation and, after ending the call, headed to the kitchen once again. His mind briefly fluttered back to Darius’s strange behavior, but he quickly dismissed it, deciding that despite his great curiosity it really was none of his business.

Chapter 2

“Are you sure about this?” Dee asked, sitting on the side of the bed as Liz packed her suitcase.

“What choice do I have?” Liz pulled several pairs of underwear from the drawer and tossed them into the bag. “He won’t take my calls.”

Dee lifted one of the well-worn pairs of underpants and frowned. “Is this the best you’ve got?”

“I’m not going there to seduce the man.”

Dee looked directly at her for several long seconds. “Are you sure about that?”

Liz slammed the drawer closed. “How can you even suggest such a thing? My only child is dying—that I know for sure! This man is his best chance for a transplant—that I know for sure! Beyond that, Dee, I don’t know a damn thing, for sure.” An uncomfortable silence fell over the pair until Liz released a deep sigh. “Sorry, didn’t mean to snap.”

“I know.”

Liz moved on to digging around for shoes in the bottom of her closet.

“Do you think he’ll do it?”

“Yes,” she grumbled. “He’ll do it.”

She turned from the closet carrying two pairs of sensible flats in various shades of beige, and dropped them on top of everything else in the suitcase. She could tell by the way Dee was eyeing the case that her packing left something to be desired. But considering the stress she was working under she thought she was doing good just to get everything inside the suitcase.

Liz stood staring down at the hodge-podge of faded blouses and frayed jeans, trying desperately to ignore the feeling of fear building in her chest. “He’ll say yes because it’s the responsible thing to do.”

Dee’s eyes widened at the heavy sarcasm. She glanced back down at the open suitcase. “I know you’re going there for Marc, but I really wish you would spend some of your savings on a decent wardrobe. You haven’t seen Darius in almost ten years, you don’t want to show up looking like a ragamuffin.”

Liz braced her hands on her hips, and looked at the aunt whose advice she normally took as gospel. “Aunt Dee, I left him at the altar to run off with his brother. We haven’t exchanged a glance or single word since then. Despite all that I’m about to show up at his place of business and ask him for a kidney. Trust me, Aunt Dee, there is nothing pretty underwear can do for this situation.”

“It couldn’t hurt,” Dee grumbled.

Liz flashed her aunt a frown, realizing this was where Marc had picked up the annoying habit of mumbling under his breath. She began collecting her toiletries from the dresser.

“Besides, I need every dime for Marc’s medical care—nothing else matters.”

Dee walked over and laid her hands on Liz’s shoulders. “That’s not true. You matter.”

The loud engine of a school bus grew closer and Liz knew that any second her son would come bursting through the door like a tiny dynamo. Instead of answering Dee’s last remark she turned and headed to the front door to greet her son.

It was rare that she was able to greet him coming home from school, and watching his face light up as she opened the front door made it all the more special.

“Mom! What are you doing home so early?”

“I wanted to see you before I left. I’m going away for a week.”

“Oh.” His slender body, padded in winter gear, brushed past her and his heavy book bag was momentarily trapped between the doorjamb and Liz. With a wiggle and a push against his mother both boy and bag were soon hurrying down the hall to his bedroom. “Hi, Aunt Dee.” Marc threw up his hand in greeting as he passed Liz’s bedroom where Dee was quietly reorganizing the suitcase.

The older woman picked up a thin nightgown that had definitely seen better days and shook her head in resignation.

Liz, following him down the hall paused at her bedroom. “He doesn’t seem the slightest bit fazed by the fact that I’m going away.”

“Why would he be?” Dee asked, tossing aside a pair of frayed leather sandals she deemed beyond embarrassing.

“I’ve never spent a night away from him.” Liz fought the sharp shooting pain in her chest that reflected her own fear of separation anxiety. “You’d think he would be a little nervous.”

“Why? Because you are?” Dee shook her head. “Liz, all his life you’ve worked double time to make sure he felt safe and secure. And guess what? It worked. He knows you’re coming back and he knows I’m here while you’re gone. He’s not nervous because he knows his world is stable.”

“I guess you’re right.”

“I know I am. Now, go say goodbye before the cab gets here.”

Liz came to Marc’s bedroom and leaned against the door frame watching as he played video games. How to say goodbye? She was about to leave her son for the first time ever to fly around the world. She shook her head at the audaciousness of the task before her. But she would succeed. She had to. “I know you better not have any homework since you’re playing video games.” She folded her arms across her chest.

He shook his head, never taking his eyes from the television screen.

“None at all?”

The head shook again.

“Hmm…that’s strange because it’s Tuesday, and you always have a spelling test on Wednesday, so shouldn’t you be studying for your test?”

He glanced over his shoulder with a frown. “That’s not homework, Mom.”

“No?”

“Uh-uh, that’s just something the teacher tells you to do.”

Liz frowned at his convoluted logic. “I have no idea why you think that makes a difference, so turn off that TV and get started studying.”

With a heavy sigh he turned off the TV and turned to face his mom. “You gonna quiz me?”

“No, Aunt Dee will. My cab will be here soon.” She came into the room and sat down beside him on the bed. “Marc, you know I love you, right?”

“Uh-huh.”

“And I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“I know.”

“Do you want to know where I’m going?”

His young face became strangely sober. “I already know. Aunt Dee said you’re going to see if you can find a kidney for me.”

Liz’s eyes widened. She wasn’t sure how she felt about Dee sharing that with him, but it didn’t seem to trouble him.

“Something like that. I promise I’ll be back by Saturday.”

“Okay. Aunt Dee said we’re going to play hooky tomorrow and go to the zoo.”

“Sounds like fun, wish I could come along.”

“You can go with us next time.”

“Liz, your cab is here,” Dee called from the front of the small house.

“Be right there.” She leaned forward and hugged Marc close. “I’m going to miss you so much, but I’ll get back as soon as I can. I love you.”

“Love you too, Mommy.” He pecked her cheek and then, having done his duty, immediately began squirming to get free.

Liz slipped on her heavy winter coat and boots and, taking the small suitcase from her bedroom, headed for the living room where Dee was peeking out the window.

She placed a soft kiss on Dee’s shoulder. “Take care of my baby, Dee.”

Dee looked her directly in the eyes as if to convey the sincerity of her next words. “You know I will.”

Two and a half days later an exhausted Liz climbed the carpeted stairs leading to the welcome center of the Hawaiki Inn resort. Even in her bedraggled state Liz couldn’t help but be impressed by the elegant bungalow-style hotel.

She’d arrived on the courtesy van along with six other guests and all the others had already gone in to register. But she’d just stood on the porch taking in her new surroundings.

Liz wasn’t sure exactly what she expected but it certainly was not this warm and welcoming chocolate-colored wood-shingled village. Everything about the place said “Come inside my walls and rest.” And after her long trip she was more than ready to comply. The problem was that somewhere inside those walls awaited the confrontation of a lifetime.

It had only been two days since she’d left the snowy streets of Columbus, but she could’ve traveled to another world. Where Columbus was experiencing one of the worst winters on record, New Zealand was just entering its summer season. Where Columbus was all freezing winds and dirty snow, New Zealand was a lush green landscape sprinkled with flowers and trees of every color.

The welcome center sat back from a cliff top. Standing on the long, circular porch gave Liz a breathtaking view of a harbor with the clearest blue water she’d ever seen in her life. It sparkled like a pool of tiny crystals in the bright sunlight.

Colorful flowers were scattered in pots and growing wild throughout the complex. So many of them she was certain she’d never even heard of before.

Unable to put off the inevitable any longer she entered the lobby and found it just as colorful as its surroundings. The large open room was decorated in tangerine and royal purple. Large, plush sofas were spread around beside small wood tables beneath walls decorated with abstract artwork. Candles, lanterns and tiki torches adorned the room. As she crossed to the counter the last couple from the van were getting their room key.

“Welcome to Tairua, can I have your name please?” The young Maori man at the counter gave her a wide smile.

Liz felt her spine relax and only then did she realize she had expected to see Darius standing behind the counter. “Thank you. It’s Lisa Smith.” She gave the alias she’d registered under, fearing Darius would cancel her reservation if she used her real name.

“Yes, Ms. Smith, I have you right here.”

He punched something into the computer. “You will have the Nogomain bungalow.”

“Nogomain?”

The young man smiled. “All of our bungalows are named after Polynesian gods and goddesses. Nogomain was an aborigine god that gave spirit children to mortal parents.”

“Really?” Liz thought that maybe fate was sending her a positive sign given how desperately her mortal child needed some spiritual intervention. With impressive speed the attendant explained to her all the hotel’s amenities and gave her a small brochure to fill in the blanks.

A short while later, small suitcase in hand, she was wandering down the redbrick path that wound its way through the collection of small bungalows looking for Nogomain.

A couple passed her looking so completely in love that for a moment her heart ached for what she’d never had. Further down the walkway she saw a group of teens talking and laughing as they took the path that led down to the harbor. And, as she spotted her bungalow and approached it, she noticed a group of people off to her left, toasting their glasses. She placed the key in the lock of the door, glanced at the group and felt her heart stop.

There in the middle of the small crowd stood Darius looking like a Maori god himself. The years had changed him, but she knew it was him without a doubt. His perfect smile seemed even whiter. His light complexion had darkened to a golden bronze. His short-cropped dark hair had lightened to a sandy brown. Funny, I’d always thought his hair was black.

That single thought reminded her of just how little she knew about this man she was once engaged to. She quietly moved from the walkway across the plush grass to shield herself behind a nearby tree.

Where did that body come from? The Darius she remembered was lean and bordering on skinny. This man was full of muscles—everywhere. From his impressive pecs, over the six-pack abs to the thick thighs. If he’d been fully dressed in one of the business suits he use to wear constantly she would’ve wondered if anything was padded, but wearing only swim trunks revealed that the only thing padding his bulges and biceps was pure flesh.

She frowned. She didn’t remember him looking this good. She searched her memory and decided that was because he didn’t used to look this good. Time had obviously been good to him. She fought down the slight resentment she felt, realizing that while she’d been struggling to put herself through school and at the same time take care of a sick child he’d been here living the life of a real-life beach boy. But justice wouldn’t allow the resentment to simmer. Immediately her conscience asked the question: and whose fault is that?

She stood hidden behind the tree listening as he informed the group of guests about the evening’s activities, including a full luau dinner. Apparently the Hawaiki Inn went to great lengths to keep their guests entertained.

It didn’t take Liz long to realize there were changes other than his physical appearance. Darius had always been self-confident but there was a sternness about him that she’d never seen before. Despite the wide smile he gave his guests there was a hardness to him. Soft brown eyes that she remembered as being full of compassion were no longer tender. Now they were shrewd, analytical, as he scanned the group around him and sized up each individual.

For the first time Liz began to doubt her plan. She’d come to ask her ex-fiancé for the favor of a lifetime, but it appeared she’d arrived too late. It appeared that man no longer existed.

A few minutes later as she stood over her open suitcase preparing to unpack she was forced to admit Aunt Dee was right. Before she confronted Darius she would have to make a trip to the hotel gift shop and hope they had something in the way of clothing. There was no way she could approach the stranger she’d just encountered looking as defeated as she felt.

The old Darius would’ve taken pity on her and offered his help immediately. But the man she saw today would take one look at her lived-in linens and well-worn wools, realize she’d fallen on hard times and then proceed to eat her alive, all the while laughing at her temerity.

No, she was going to have to rethink her whole approach. She would have to exchange truth and desperation for cunning and manipulation. She closed up her suitcase and shoved it in the bottom of her closet all the while saying a silent prayer for strength and wisdom. Getting this new Darius to bend to her will was going to be a lot harder than she’d assumed.

Chapter 3

“What you doing up here, boss? The guests are asking for you.”

Darius turned at the sound of his assistant, Alika, coming up the brick stairs that led from the beach to the hotel. Darius stood leaning against the white wrought-iron fence that ran the length of the cliff surrounding the hotel. The sun was just beginning to set over the harbor, casting the entire valley in a soft reddish haze, and the gentle breeze added just the right touch to offset the surprisingly high evening temperature.

“Just catching my breath. Everything okay down there?” He nodded toward the beach where his guests were enjoying the luau dinner provided in first-class style by the hotel. It was one of the main attractions of his hotel and always a big hit with the guests. A small group of Maoris did a haka dance as the wait staff moved between the clusters of people serving dishes from various South-Pacific cultures.

When he’d first arrived on the island ten years ago Darius had been struck by the similarities between the cultures of the indigenous New Zealand Maori people, Australian aborigines and the Hawaiians. Having the same origins, much of their traditions were shared. When he opened his hotel he chose that shared culture as his theme.

“Yes, everything is going well. But some of the guests were wondering if you planned to appear tonight.” Alika came and stood beside him. “I told them you would.”

Darius smiled to himself. Alika was an excellent assistant and one of his most appealing characteristics was his ability to push without being seen as pushy. It was a skill that came in very handy with hard-to-please guests and tradesmen. Alika hadn’t yet learned that his pushing-without-being-pushy technique didn’t really work with his boss.

“Then it’s going to be a little awkward when you go back and tell them I won’t be appearing tonight.”

“Why?”

“Well, because you’ve already told them I would be—”

“No, I mean why won’t you? You always come to the weekly luau, at least you used to.”

Darius continued to stare out over the bay, refusing to be baited into a discussion about his behavior over the past few days. He knew his entire staff had become aware of his dark mood, but until he figured out what it all meant himself, he had no intention of talking about it.

With one single, incomplete phone call his whole world had been turned on end. He hadn’t stopped thinking about Liz Donovan from the moment he’d hung up the phone. Why, after all these years, was she calling him? What could she possibly want? His eyes narrowed on the volcano in the distance but his mind was a million miles away.

For the past few days he’d been taking daily trips down memory lane reliving every painful moment in vivid detail. Instead of completing his payroll he’d spent hours remembering the night he’d proposed. At the time he’d seen only her sweet smile and the soft “yes” that rolled off her lips. In hindsight the hesitation in her eyes was revealed in stark contrast. He tried but failed to find the connection between her and Darren. What made them fall in love with one another? No matter how he searched his mind he could not find any evidence that caused that horrific conclusion to make sense. Nothing.

Every time he’d touched her she’d felt like his. Never once did he get any sense that he was sharing her with another man. Certainly not his own brother.

But Darren’s betrayal was really no surprise. In fact, he should’ve suspected something was up when his brother became helpful. Darren had never helped anyone but himself. And in the end he’d helped himself to his brother’s woman. Even his death seemed like providence. Killed in a Vegas club fight. Darius remembered his father once saying that Darren had been trying to die since the moment he was born.

Much to his embarrassment Darius’s first question to his mother upon receiving the call of his death was about Liz. His mother had answered with what she knew, which was very little. As far as Liz’s family was aware, she was fine. The unspoken message hung heavy between them.

He’d immediately understood that Liz’s family had not gone to any trouble to verify her circumstances. It was assumed that since she was not with Darren when he died that she was fine. They didn’t care one way or the other; she’d been cast out.

Considering how close she’d been to her parents that news should’ve brought him some satisfaction for his own suffering, but surprisingly it didn’t. He didn’t want to imagine her out there, alone, without even the support of her family. Despite everything he knew, some part of him would always wonder.

That was all so many years ago and Darius had thought he’d put it all behind him. Then, with one phone call she’d unearthed all that pain and anguish, and unfortunately his staff had bore the brunt of it. Over the past week he’d caught himself lashing out over the smallest infractions, and had even gone out of his way to avoid guests until today.

Somehow he had to find a way to repress the reopened wound, but how could he when every ounce of his being was dying to know why she’d called in the first place? Until he had that question answered he would have no peace. She would stay with him every minute of every day. He would hear her voice in his hotel lobby, as he had that afternoon when he’d locked himself in his office determined to focus on the payroll. He glanced down at his guests on the beach…and saw a woman standing on his beach dressed in a coral halter-back sundress looking up at him.

“Who’s that?”

Alika followed his nod. “Ms. Smith. She checked in today.”

“Ms. Smith? Did she check in alone?”

Alika lifted an eyebrow noting his boss’s interest in the pretty woman. “As a matter of fact, she did.” He smiled. “She’s very pretty, huh, boss?”

Pretty didn’t begin to describe the vision watching him from the beach. Her shoulder-length black hair hung in a loose ponytail over one shoulder. She stood watching him with her eyes shielded by her small hand. The pose was strikingly sexy with her arm lifted, accentuating her slender body and small waist. Wrap-around sandals snaked up her elegant brown calves, making her wide-legged stance damn near erotic. But the tilt of her head revealed a bone structure that was engrained on his memory.

So many nights after they’d made love he’d lain awake simply outlining her jawbone with his finger. He’d always been fascinated by how the shape of a woman’s small face could reveal both delicacy and strength. He’d thought Liz was that…delicacy and strength. In the end she turned out to be pure deceit.

He watched as the woman on the beach lowered her hand revealing her whole face and his mouth literally fell open. It had to be a trick of the lights. It had to be some tortured part of his psyche playing tricks on him. But as she smiled, he knew the truth for what it was. Only one woman in the universe had that smile.

She turned, exposing an expanse of flawless mocha skin, and started to walk toward the other end of the beach away from the luau and the hotel guests.

“Well, Alika, looks like you won’t have to recant after all.” He turned and headed down the brick steps leading to the beach, taking them two at a time, all the while keeping his eyes on the fast-moving coral-cloaked siren strolling away.

Liz concentrated on her breathing. Stay calm. Stay calm. But it was hard to stay calm when she was almost certain she was baiting a shark using herself as the chum.

With her head held high and her shoulders back she moved her hips seductively with every step, secretly wondering if maybe she was overdoing it a bit. She glanced back over her shoulder to where he’d gotten caught in the crowd of excited guests. It was working.

He was dressed in a loose-fitting, light-beige tunic that carried the hotel’s name and emblem, safari shorts and open-toed sandals, and it struck her again just how different this man was from the one she’d known years ago. There was no way the Darius she’d known would’ve ever worn shorts of any kind, let alone shoes that exposed his toes.

She looked back again to see him gently but persistently pushing his way through the throng of people, never taking his eyes off her. She watched as he licked his lips and his eyes narrowed on her in an almost menacing fashion. Okay, maybe it’s working too well.

She maneuvered her way around a grouping of inflatable balloon slides and bouncers where children played, oblivious to the darkening sky. She looked ahead at the empty beach that stretched before her. The sun was just disappearing beyond the horizon and the sky was quickly darkening. She stopped at the edge of the water, took off her sandals and waited for him to catch up.

Darius stopped a few feet away, still not convinced that what he was seeing was real. But it was her. Here, on his beach after all these years. How? Why? As he stepped closer, he realized she was more beautiful than he remembered, which seemed impossible considering he’d once thought of her as perfection in the flesh.

“What are you doing here?”

“I had to come. You wouldn’t take my calls.”

“Didn’t that tell you something?”

“Yes. That I would have to come here and talk to you face to face.”

“We have nothing to say to each other.”

She turned to face him and he felt his heart skip a beat. “Actually, we have a lot to say to each other.”

Looking into her warm brown eyes was like a homecoming. A sense of relief and satisfaction that he hadn’t felt in years flowed through his entire being. The unfairness of it was almost staggering. How could she still make him feel this way after all these years? After all she’d done?

Her betrayal had almost destroyed him, and yet all he wanted to do now was go to her and take her in his arms as though nothing had changed. But it had. Everything had changed.

He couldn’t do this. When he’d come down to the beach he’d thought he could have a reasonable conversation with her and find out what had brought her halfway around the world after all this time. He’d thought he could satisfy his curiosity and then send her packing.

Looking at the coral sundress clinging to her legs as the soft winds whipped around them he knew the evening was not going to play out like that. If he remained on this isolated portion of the beach, with her soft perfume wafting into his nose, looking at all that tempting bare skin, he would end up trying to satisfy more than his curiosity. And from the seductive way she was watching him he was almost sure his advances would be welcomed. What the hell is she up to?

“What do you want, Liz?”

“I need to ask a favor.”

“Of me? Surely you’re joking? Unless you’re looking for directions to hell I’m not the one.”

“That’s where you’re wrong.” She moved to close the distance between them and Darius instantly stepped back. “You’re the only one.”

“What are you talking about?”

She turned back to the water. “Wow, this is even harder than I thought it would be.” She chuckled. “And I thought it would be impossible.”

“You should’ve followed your first thought. Because this is a colossal waste of your time and mine.”

Outwardly agitated she swung back to face him. “You don’t even know what I want!”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“I understand I’m the last person you’d volunteer to help, but—”

“If you understood that, then why are you here?”

“Just listen. I understand you hate me, but what I’m asking is not for me. It’s for my son.”

In that moment Darius wondered if his heart could stand any more shocks this night. “What did you say?”

“What I have to ask—I ask not for myself but for my son, Marc.”

Darius felt as if his knees were going to buckle under the implication of that statement. Her son. Darren’s son. The child that should’ve been his. Following her was a mistake. He knew that now.

“He’s nine and—”

“Stop.”

“He has diabetes. He was diagnosed when he was five.”

“Stop!”

“The diabetes has eaten away at his kid—”

“I said shut up, damn you!” He turned and, taking long strides, headed back to the luau.

“He’s dying!”

Darius stopped in his tracks, feeling his whole body stiffen from the tips of his toes to the hairs of his head.

“He’s dying—he needs a kidney transplant. He has AB negative blood. I have O positive. I’m not a match. And he’s been on the waiting list forever and there is no one. There just isn’t anyone for him. The doctors say his very best chance is a blood relative. You would probably be a perfect match. Darius, you can save his life.”

Despite the hostility radiating off the man, Liz moved closer to him and gently placed her hand on his shoulder. He flinched but didn’t pull away and she took that as a good sign.

“I know I have no right to ask this of you, but here I am asking. Please, Darius, I’m begging you, please.”

“I should’ve had security kick you out the minute I spotted you instead of following you here.”

“But you didn’t. And now that you know why I’m here can you in good conscience turn me away?”

He glared at her over his shoulder. “Don’t you dare try to preach to me about good conscience.”

Liz removed her hand and circled around to stand before him blocking his view of the luau. “If there was any other way, believe me, I would’ve chose it. My son is everything to me. I would do anything for him. I’d make a deal with Satan if it would save his life, so swallowing my pride and coming to you was small by comparison.”

His brown eyes narrowed on her face in the same analytical manner she’d seen earlier than day. “A deal with the devil, huh?” His full lips kicked up at the corner. “That sounds about right.”

As hungry eyes roamed over every inch of her body Liz only then considered the lack of intelligence involved in luring a man who hated her to a deserted portion of beach. She glanced over her shoulder to be sure the hotel guests were within screaming distance.

She swallowed and determinedly pushed forward. “Will you do it?”

His eyes came up to hers and he simply stared unblinking while she waited for the verdict that would either condemn Marc or save his life. As he stared she felt her skin becoming covered in goose bumps, knowing her greatest fear was his immediate rebuff. Still, having no idea of what he would say, she never expected the next words that came out of his mouth.

“What’s in it for me?”

She frowned, not sure she understood the question. “What?”

“Your Marc gets a new kidney, but what do I get?”

“Is this a joke?”

“No more of a joke than you asking.”

She shook her head, realizing she’d failed. He was not only refusing to help, he’d decided to taunt her in the process. “If you’re not going to do it just say so.”

“I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it. But everything costs.”

Liz focused on his face trying to determine if he was serious. She couldn’t tell. “So what’s your price?”

“Well.” He thoughtfully rubbed his chin as if he didn’t hold the weight of her world in his large hands. “The devil would require your soul. I can at least promise you my price will be much smaller.” He huffed. “Quite honestly, I’m not certain you have a soul to bargain with anyway.”

Liz swallowed the sharp retort that immediately came to mind. He hadn’t said no. She could stand any insult if it meant he’d do it. “So what now?”

He took a deep breath. “We go back and enjoy the rest of the evening. Get some sleep—if you can. And in the morning I’ll tell you what I require in exchange for one of my kidneys.”

She narrowed her eyes on his handsome face. “What the hell happened to you, Darius?”

“You did.”

She bit her lip, knowing that was probably true. What she’d done could make a man hard and bitter. Was it really any surprise that he would keep her dangling miserably now that he could?

His eyes widened. “Of course, there is always a chance I won’t be a match, and then any stipulations would be null and void.”

“You’ll be a match.” She turned and headed back to the hotel.

He frowned at her retreating back. “What makes you so sure?”

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