Anonymity (16 page)

Turning his back on her, he stomped inside and slammed the door. Okay, so that hadn't gone as planned.

He slammed his partially packed suitcase onto the floor and cursed himself for opening up. He should have kept his mouth shut. All he'd needed to do was keep his feelings to himself for one more night.

He sank onto the bed, put his hands on his knees, and took several deep breaths. He'd never felt like this before and didn't know how to handle it.
Defeat sank into his bones.

* * *

Chapter Thirteen

Pre-dawn gray light shone through the slats covering the windows of
his cabana. He looked around the room for any forgotten items. This place had felt like home for two weeks, one with his family and the last with the only woman in the world he'd think about every damn day.

At least now he knew he was capable of loving someone.

Cursing, he zipped his suitcase and left the room. A group of scuba divers boarded a dive boat. Reggie's giant speedboat pulled up to the pier where another bunch of tourists waited to go on the Lamanai tour.

He paused on the beach, suitcase in tow, and waved at the old man who saluted him in return. Looking over his shoulder to
Alyssa's cabana, he sighed. They'd had their goodbye and, maybe it hadn't been pretty, but it had been final.

He'd known going in what her terms were
, but somehow he'd let his guard down. Maybe it had been the anonymity of their relationship that stripped them of initial expectation, making it easier to open up and let her inside. Whatever the reason, knowing her had changed him for the better.

The hammock on her porch swayed, making him smile with memories.

As if in a trance, he checked out, boarded the small plane in San Pedro that would take him to Belize City, looked out the window at the island of Ambergris Caye, and felt a pang in his chest that he couldn't explain.

* * *

Alyssa watched a couple head out on a kayak built for two and touched her fingers to the diamond-encrusted palm tree at her neck. As for resolutions, she'd already screwed up when it came to going after what she wanted. Here she'd thought she'd come so far only to be tossed backward because of some ridiculous notion that he'd break her heart. That's the risk someone took when it came to love. It's a risk she'd gladly take if only she could see him again. 

"
Time for me to go home, Rosie." She sat down for one last drink before checking out. New faces surrounded her, other tourists arriving, laughing, and letting go of inhibitions. She looked around the bar leading to the beach and sighed. "Dave the Gringo will be here tonight," she whispered. "The tourists are temporary but you all remain the same. I suppose you forget us, don't you? Well, I'll remember you, Rosie. I will definitely remember you."

"
Why are you so melancholy? Luke left earlier?" Rosie leaned against the counter, her old-soul eyes locking onto her. "You're going to see him in the States, ya?"

"
I sort of fucked that up. I behaved badly, acted crazy, and now he's gone. It is what it is." She rolled her shoulders back and grinned at the woman. "I'm glad I came here. I had the best time of my life."

Rosie frowned at her, arms folded across her chest. "What about Luke?"

"It was only a vacation thing," she said weakly, unable to stand the scrutiny. She cleared her throat. She motioned to the framed article hanging behind the door. "That looks good hanging behind the bar."

"
Did you at least say goodbye?"

"You could say that."
She blushed at her ridiculous outburst fresh out of sex in the shower. If Luke hadn't thought she was insane before that, he definitely had afterward because she certainly did. She'd walked up to his door last night to apologize but hadn't knocked. What good would it have done? Their goodbye would have come either way.

Rosie came around the bar and wrapped her in giant hug that left her breathless. "You take care of yourself, girl."

"I will. I have to go."

She
hugged her new friend and, in a fog, ended up on the shuttle flight to Belize City. She stared out the window at the boats in the water, the mangroves, and smaller islands that dotted a turquoise sea.

It wasn't until she'd passed
airport security and sat at the proper gate when the reality of going home hit her like a cold shower. She'd traveled to Belize seeking escape and had found everything she'd ever wanted. The right man—a stranger—had ignited her fire. They'd laughed, hiked through a jungle, kayaked, snorkeled, talked in the moonlight, and made love like honeymooners; it had been the most honest relationship she'd ever had. No strings. No bullshit.

She
touched the palm tree necklace. No matter what she had to do, she'd make it back for that reunion and pray that he'd show up.

"I'll show you mine if you show me yours."
Luke stood in front of her, passport and boarding pass in hand. "Deal's over now that we're off the island. I expect answers."

What the hell had Rosie put in that last drink? It couldn't be legal if she was hallucinating.

"I'm Luke Picket...perhaps you remember me?" He looked amused at her open-mouthed staring. "We spent a week together...any of this sounding familiar?"

"What are you doing here? You left hours ago."
She looked at him dressed in jeans and a long sleeved shirt with a messenger bag slung across his chest.

He sat next to her and held his documents toward her exactly like he'd held that metal box seven days ago.
"C'mon, Aly, let's trade."

"I'm sorry about yesterday. I acted like a crazy person."

"You did." He sighed, his gaze skimming over her knee-high leather boots and red wrap-dress. "Deal's over, Aly. Let's see what we can do about our problem. I want to solve it."

Shaking from the surprise of seeing him after thinking him lost to her, she handed him her passport and boarding pass and took his.
She grinned at his passport photo. She'd put money on it that he could cross borders with a smile and a wink alone.

He
laughed and tapped his finger against his boarding pass. "Did you take a good look at this?"

Frowning, she
looked at his final destination: Denver International Airport.

"You're from Denver? So am I." She faced him, their knees bumping together. "I work at the Denver Art Museum
, live downtown."

"
I live in Boulder. We're practically neighbors." He stared at her boarding pass and shook his head. "I can't believe this."

"Maybe we should have led with the standard question, where are you from?"

"Nah, I think we did it all right." He folded her boarding pass into her passport before handing it back to her. "I wouldn't change anything about how we met."

"
Me either...it was pretty perfect." She grabbed his hand and squeezed. "I'm really sorry about yesterday."

"
I came on a little strong, surprised myself, too." His eyes searched hers. "What else? I want to know everything about you. Tell me."

"I turned thirty-one two weeks ago, have a cat named Carl, and I'm originally from Santa Fe."

His smile widened. "I imagined Arizona so I was close. I have a dog named Lenny, I'll be thirty-five in March, and all of my family lives in Colorado. I know it's breaking all of your plans about no strings and no complications but...do you want to go out on a date sometime? Pick up where we left off?"

"We're the one night stand that never ended..." She smiled when he rolled his eyes and laughed.

"Tell me, Alyssa McNeil...fill in the blanks for me." He swayed toward her, dimples slicing into his cheeks, and wide smile making her want the whole sha-bang, as Savannah would say. 

"You're already familiar with some important details," she said, thinking of his vast knowledge of her body.

He slid his hand over her thigh and leaned within a fraction of her mouth. "I want more."

"
Insatiable, I like it," she quoted him from their first night together.

"Is that a yes?
You'll go out with me over and over again when we get home?"

"Definitely."
She smiled against his lips. "Best. Souvenir. Ever."

THE END

Books by Amber Lea Easton

http://www.amberleaeaston.com

About the Author
Amber Lea Easton is a multi-published author of romantic suspense, contemporary romance and nonfiction. An avid traveler, she incorporates her real-life adventures into her novels as much as possible (minus any illegal activities, of course.) "Smart is sexy," Easton says, which is why she creates smart heroines who have a lot to lose yet find the courage to face their fears to overcome adversity. She's an avid reader of all genres or "whatever turns her on in the moment".

Easton lives in Colorado
, USA, where she gives thanks daily for the view outside her window, her ability to pursue her passion, and for her family. Love is her motivation for all things--whether it be writing, traveling, playing with her dogs or hanging with her two teenagers--if it's not done with love, then what's the point?

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