“Okay, who’s responsible for that look on your face? Tell me and I’ll beat them up for you.”

  Just the sound of that deep, slow-talking voice was enough to send goose bumps dancing down her spine. She glanced up into Tyler’s twinkling blue eyes and felt another jolt of electricity. Even though his arrival was exactly what she’d hoped for, she obviously hadn’t steeled herself against his thoroughly masculine effect on her.

  “Thanks all the same, but I can fight my own battles,” she retorted lightly, pleased that her voice was steady.

  “Mind if I join you? Or would I be taking my life in my hands?”

  She conducted a blatant survey of him from head to toe. “Oh, you look tough enough. I think you can probably take care of yourself. Have a seat and tell me what’s put you in such a good mood. A couple of hours ago you looked as if you were heading off to war.”

  “In a manner of speaking I was. Battle’s over. I won.”

  “Was there ever any doubt?”

  “For a few minutes, there, it could have gone either way. Now let’s get back to you. Any luck with the job hunt?”

  “I spent the morning making calls,” she said honestly. “No leads.”

  “Why don’t you let me help you out? If you don’t want to work for Delacourt, I know a lot of other people in this town.”

  “I’m sure you do, but I need to do this myself.”

  He nodded, his expression oddly irritated. “Pride’s a funny thing, especially if you let your desire for independence overshadow common sense. It can cost you in unexpected ways.”

  She regarded him curiously. Had pride been an issue with him before? “Such as?” she prodded.

  “Sometimes it keeps the people who care about you at arm’s length at the very time when you need them the most.”

  “Has that happened to you?”

  His expression clouded over. “In a way. Enough about pride, though. What’s your game plan?”

  Since her game plan was in a state of flux and had nothing to do with job hunting, she forced a brilliant smile. “I’m taking the afternoon off. How about you?”

  “As it happens that’s exactly my intention, as well.” His gaze locked on hers. “So, Maddie Kent, want to do something impulsive?”

  “Such as?”

  “It’s not impulsive if you have to know all the details ahead of time,” he teased.

  Her pulse promptly kicked into overdrive. It appeared that this lighthearted, victorious Tyler was even more dangerous than the brooding, vulnerable man she’d first met. No wonder he had a reputation. That smile of his could lure a woman into going against every sane, rational bit of advice she’d ever been given—to say nothing of severing the last fragile thread by which she was clinging to her ethics.

  However, his mood played straight into her own agenda to worm her way into the heart of the Delacourt clan. “Name it. I’ll go along.”

  “Come with me, then.”

  “I haven’t even eaten.”

  “Don’t worry, short stuff, you’ll get to eat. In fact, I’ll promise you the best seafood you’ve ever eaten, along with buttered corn on the cob and the perfect dessert for a steamy day like this.”

  “Lead me to it,” she said.

  He held out his hand, and after a second’s hesitation she placed hers in it. The instant she did, she knew it was a mistake. His touch sent heat sizzling through her veins and set her every nerve to tingling.

  Slow down, she warned herself. This was very thin ice, and given the temperature of her thoughts at the moment, it wouldn’t take long to melt right through it.

  “Where are we going?” she asked, then sighed when he frowned. “Sorry. Force of habit.”

  “You do ask a lot of questions.”

  “Can you think of a better way to get answers?”

  “Well, just this once, stuff a sock in it. You’ll get all your answers in due time.”

  He led her to a sporty, classic convertible from the sixties, its brilliant blue exterior the exact same shade as his eyes. She laughed when she saw it.

  “And here I thought you’d have a rugged sports utility vehicle all covered in mud. Something practical and sturdy.”

  “I do. It’s in Louisiana. This is the car I keep to impress the ladies.” He regarded her with a grin. “Is it working?”

  “It will if you let me drive.”

  “Not in a hundred million years,” he said fervently. “I’ve worked like a fiend to restore this car. Nobody touches it but me.”

  “Then I’m not impressed.”

  He held open the passenger door. “Still coming?”

  “Of course.”

  She realized within minutes that they were heading out of town and minutes after that, concluded that they were going to the beach. Still, she dutifully kept all of her guesses and her questions to herself and settled back against the soft, buttery leather to enjoy the ride.

  When Tyler finally pulled to a stop in the driveway of a beachfront house, Maddie looked around with undisguised curiosity.

  He chuckled at her struggle with restraint. “Okay, go ahead. You can ask.”

  “What?”

  “I can see you’re dying to know where we are.”

  “I know where we are,” she retorted. “We’re at the beach.”

  “At my family’s house, to be precise.” A boyish expression washed over his face. “It’s been a while since I’ve been here.”

  She studied him intently, then concluded, “But you love it, don’t you?”

  “Every weathered shingle of it,” he confirmed. “My brothers and I replaced those a few years back, after we bought it from our parents. My sister, Trish, says it’s about the only work we ever did here. We tended to party a lot. Now the rest of them are married, so if there’s any partying to be done, I guess it’s up to me.”

  He held out his hand again. “Come on. I’ll show you around.”

  He conducted the tour with evident pride, pointing out every change he and his brothers had made to the structure. The rooms were filled with sunlight and comfortable, worn furniture. The wood floors had been worn smooth by sandy feet. Ceiling fans, which he turned on as they went, kept a salty breeze stirring through the rooms. Finally he gestured toward a deck that faced the Gulf of Mexico.

  “Have a seat and relax. I’ll run to the store and pick up what we need for a feast.”

  The chaise lounge, deep in the shade, looked tempting. “Are you sure? I could come along and help.”

  “A polite, dutiful offer, but unnecessary. I’ve got it covered. If you want something to drink, there may be a few beers or soft drinks in the refrigerator—help yourself. And there are paperback novels scattered everywhere if you feel inclined to read.”

  “I’ll be fine.”

  He studied her intently for a heartbeat, then grinned. “Thanks for coming with me, Maddie Kent.”

  Only after he’d walked away did she whisper, “Thanks for inviting me.”

  And for leaving her alone so she could snoop, she thought with some degree of guilt.

  As distasteful as the thought was, the opportunity was too good to pass up. And so the minute she heard the sound of the car’s engine begin to fade, Maddie began exploring.

  Unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be much to find, she decided ruefully after completing her inspection of the second floor. The bedrooms were simply decorated. The drawers held an anonymous assortment of bathing suits, shorts and T-shirts. The closets were virtually empty except for the occasional pair of old sneakers and discarded socks. No secrets here, she concluded with regret. Just evidence of a houseful of bachelors who passed through whenever the mood suited them.

  Back downstairs she found cupboards filled with playing cards and board games, stacks of CDs and old magazines, and the promised supply of dog-eared paperbacks. Far more enticing was the collection of old snapshots she found in a drawer. She took them with her to a chair and studied them with fascination.

  The photos seemed to span at least ten years or more, beginning when Tyler was maybe twelve. She recognized his smile, as well as the fact that he was the smallest of the boys and the only one whose hair was the color of straw. She recalled various newspaper photographs of his parents, both of whom had darker coloring, more in keeping with that of his brothers and his sister.

  None of the pictures appeared to be more recent than his college days.

  Other than his sister, Trish, who was in the family photos, there didn’t seem to be any women, not even as the boys grew into men. Whatever bachelor parties they threw, apparently no one wasted time taking snapshots.

  Oddly, there didn’t seem to be any pictures of their parents. Had Bryce Delacourt been the one behind the camera? Or had he and his wife not spent time here? She was still pondering the implications of that when she heard the purr of the car as it pulled into the driveway. Hastily she put the pictures back where she’d found them and walked outside just in time to see Tyler emerge from the car with an armload of groceries.

  “Did you buy out the store?” she asked, chuckling at the amount of food he’d apparently bought for their supposedly simple meal.

  “Once I got started, I couldn’t seem to stop.” His gaze settled on her face. “Maybe we’ll have to stick around a few days so it won’t go to waste.”

  Maddie’s heart thumped unsteadily at the teasing suggestion. Staying here, alone with Tyler, was not an option. Alarm bells clanged from so many different directions, her head ached from the clamor.

  “Let’s stick to our late lunch, shall we?”

  He regarded her with disappointment. “What’s wrong, Maddie? No sense of adventure?”

  “I’m as adventurous as the next person,” she assured him. “But I’m also out of work. I need to keep looking for a job. I can’t keep playing hooky.”

  “It’s not hooky if you don’t have a job to begin with,” he reminded her as he carried the groceries inside and set them on the kitchen counter. “It’s seizing the moment.”

  “Well, maybe you can afford to seize the moment, but I can’t.”

  He paused while taking food from the bags to level a look at her. “If you’re in a bind—”

  “I’m not,” she said hastily. “Not yet, anyway. I have some savings. I didn’t just impulsively take off with nothing to fall back on. But it won’t last forever.”

  “Well, if your situation changes, you can come to me. I want you to remember that,” he said with apparent sincerity.

  She stared at him in astonishment. “You hardly know me. Why would you be willing to loan me money?”

  He shrugged. “Because I can.”

  She suspected he meant exactly that. She also had the feeling that he would make the same impulsive offer to anyone he ran across who offered up a convincing sob story.

  “Tyler, you can’t go around passing out money to everyone who seems down on his luck.”

  “Why not? What good is having money if you can’t help other people?”

  “It’s not that,” she said, frustrated by his inability to recognize the possibility that people might abuse his generosity.

  “What then?”

  “People will take advantage of you,” she said, ignoring the fact that in her own way she, too, was doing exactly that, though not financially.

  “I suppose. But I’d rather risk that than ignore someone who might really need a helping hand.”

  “Then give money to charities. Take a tax write-off.”

  “I do, but this isn’t about getting a good deduction on my income taxes. It’s about stepping up to the plate, even when there’s nothing to be gained in return.”

  “Are you for real?” she asked, unable to imagine him as the offspring of the hard-hearted Bryce Delacourt. Who had taught him such a standard?

  Surely not his father.

  “You think there’s something wrong with doing a good deed every now and then?” he asked, studying her.

  “Of course not, but people like you can get taken to the cleaners by con artists.”

  He laughed. “I’d like to think I’m a better judge of character than that.”

  Maddie wasn’t so sure. Take her, for example. She wasn’t at all what she appeared, but he didn’t seem to suspect it, not anymore, anyway.

  Whatever suspicions he’d held when they’d first met seemed to have vanished. He seemed to be accepting her at face value now. He’d invited her here, hadn’t he?

  Was he truly beyond cynicism and suspicion where she was concerned? Or was she the one being deceived? Was this just his way of getting her to let down her guard so she’d slip up?

  Maddie sighed. What a tangled web this was turning out to be.

  “Why the sigh?”

  “Just thinking about the fact that it must be nice not to be as distrusting and jaded as I am.”

  “Who made you that way?”

  She wondered what he would say if she told him it had been his father.

  Instead, she shrugged off the question. “Just life.”

  “You’re way too young to sound so cynical.”

  “Twenty-six is not that young. I’ve lost both parents, and to all intents and purposes I’ve lost my brothers. That’s enough to change your perspective on the world. You wouldn’t know, though. You’ve apparently never lost anything or anyone important.”

  No sooner were the words out of her mouth than she realized her mistake. Even as Tyler’s eyes became turbulent, his expression turned bleak. Before she could apologize for making such an assumption about his life, he whirled around and headed outside. The groceries lay forgotten on the countertop.

  Maddie started to rush after him, then hesitated. Obviously she’d said something terribly wrong. She needed to give him a minute alone before she went after him and badgered him with questions he probably wouldn’t want to answer.

  She took her time and put the food away, then popped the tops on a couple of beers before venturing onto the deck.

  Tyler was standing at the railing, staring out at the sparkling water. Something told her he wasn’t just appreciating the scenery. In fact, his expression was filled with such sorrow it almost broke her heart. What memories had she unwittingly unleashed with her careless remark?

  Without saying a word, she went to stand next to him and held out the cold drink. He accepted it without comment, without so much as a glance in her direction.

  “I’m sorry,” she said finally.

  The apology was greeted by more silence.

  “Tyler, I truly am sorry. I had no right to say such a thing.”

  “No,” he said coldly. “You didn’t. You know nothing about me, nothing at all about what I have or haven’t lost.”

  “Then tell me,” she pleaded. For once, the request had nothing to do with the story she was trying to piece together and everything to do with understanding this man who was turning out to be far more complex than she’d been led to believe by the media reports.

  He shook his head. “No. It’s not something I discuss. Not ever.”

  “Keeping that kind of pain bottled up inside can’t be good for you,” she said softly.

  “Drop it, Maddie. I want to forget, not dissect it to death.” He turned to her then, reaching for her as he did. “There’s only one way I know to do that.”

  Before she could anticipate his intentions, his mouth covered hers in a hard, punishing kiss that had her senses ricocheting wildly and had her clinging to him. There was nothing gentle or tender, just fierce, primal need. She was gasping for breath by the time he pushed her away, his expression miserable.

  “Now I’m the one who’s sorry,” he said, his gaze avoiding hers. “I had no right to do that.”

  “It’s okay,” she stammered, touching a finger to her still-tender lips. She had deserved some sort of retribution for her insensitivity, though a punishing kiss hadn’t been what she expected. Worse, she had liked it. She had wanted more. No man had ever demanded so much of her with a mere kiss. The wild racing of her pulse was frightening yet exhilarating.

  The fear, of course, stemmed from Tyler’s identity, nothing more. On some level she had known he would never hurt her, never go beyond that dark and dangerous kiss unless she invited him to. The problem was, she couldn’t feel this much with him, couldn’t want so much, not from a Delacourt.

  “Maybe we should go, though,” she whispered, and this time her voice was unsteady.

  Tyler dragged a hand across his face and muttered a soft curse under his breath. Then his gaze locked with hers.

  “Maddie, I truly am sorry. What I did was unforgivable. If you want to go back, we will, but I promised you a seafood feast, and I’d very much like it if you’d stay and let me fix it for you.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure. In fact, I’m starving.”

  She offered him a tentative smile. “To tell you the truth, Tyler, so am I.” She took a deep breath and came to a decision. “What can I do to help?”

  “Stay out from underfoot,” he suggested. “Great chefs need space. We can’t have a beautiful woman diverting us from the task at hand.”

  Even though she knew she shouldn’t be, she was pleased that he considered her a beautiful distraction. “Then by all means, let me make myself scarce. I want you to be entirely focused, if that means we’ll get to eat sooner.” She gestured toward the chaise. “I’ll be right over there, tucked safely out of your way. Just don’t forget all about me and eat everything yourself.”