The Bad Boys of Eden (50 page)

“It’s not you I’m afraid of.” She still would not meet his eyes.

“Then what?”

“It’s me.” He hadn’t expected that to come out of her mouth, and his confusion must have shown on his face because Kylie quickly added, “And how all of this is making me feel.”

His thumb stroked circles on her hand but he didn’t let go. “There’s nothing to be afraid of as long as you—”

“Trust?” She laughed, pulled away from him and jumped to her feet. “That seems to be the word of the moment.”

“I was going to say relax.” He pushed up from the sand. “But trust works too. We better get going.” He took her hand again to have some form of contact with her, even if it was sweet and chaste. “As great as this morning as been, there’s more to do. A lot more.”

Kylie walked with him and to his satisfaction, squeezed his hand in hers. “Where are we going?”

“I’ve arranged for us to go on a little scuba diving expedition this afternoon.”

Kylie stopped so abruptly, Malcolm’s arm yanked backwards. Her face was impossible to read. A combination of excitement, wariness, and suspicion. “What?” he asked. “You have always wanted to try diving, haven’t you?”

Her mouth opened in a very cute little
o
shape before closing again. She swallowed whatever protest or question had been on her tongue and nodded slowly. “I have.”

“Good.” He knew she wasn’t used to his take-charge attitude, and she wasn’t usually the type of woman to follow a man blindly and do whatever he said without protest. But he didn’t care. Malcolm had an agenda for the week, and it involved making sure all her dreams and desires came true. Even the ones she didn’t know she had yet.

CHAPTER 5

Once again traveling by golf cart—this time driven by Malcolm—along the lush paths of the island, Kylie had a chance to see a little more of the landscape, including tennis courts where a handful of guests ran around in the heat and hit the ball back and forth. The idea of tennis never had appealed to Kylie. She couldn’t figure out why people were willing to chase a small ball around. Especially in the heat.

“Those are the first other guests I’ve seen,” Kylie said as they passed. “I was beginning to think we were alone on the island.”

“Well, that was the idea.” Malcolm didn’t take his eyes off the pathway and navigated past another cart that moved in the opposite direction. “I made sure we were on the far end of the island, where it’s more secluded. But you’ll see a lot more people over here as we get closer to the castle.”

And it was a good idea, too
, she thought, but didn’t say aloud. Being on a deserted island had always been a fantasy of hers. But it was nice to have some of the amenities of the resort if they wanted them. Like the scuba diving. She’d been surprised when Malcolm mentioned it. But the surprise had quickly faded. After all, it was Malcolm. He knew her better than anyone. It shouldn’t be a surprise that he knew all the details about her island fantasies, too. Marcus had probably told him. A flicker of doubt niggled at the back of her mind, but she pushed it away.

Since she’d woken up determined to have an open mind, she’d had a fabulous time and the day was only getting better. Clearly, an open mind was the key to a good time. And she wasn’t about to change that by letting any common sense or worse, doubt, creep in. No way. She was going to enjoy herself.

Kylie watched Malcolm openly and ignored the passing landscape.

He was gorgeous. In a different way than she remembered. A different way than his brother, for sure. Even though they were identical twins, there were differences. More now than there were then. Or maybe it was just her memory. Time had a way of changing things.

Malcolm noticed her stare and gave her a sly smile as he navigated the cart onto a new path, away from the ocean.

“Where are we going? Shouldn’t we be headed to the water?”

“Of course. And we will, I promise. I have a boat ready to go. But first, we need some lessons. I know I’ve never been scuba diving before and I’m pretty sure there isn’t a lot of opportunity for that in the mountains, so I thought a quick lesson wouldn’t be such a bad idea.”

Kylie laughed. “You’re right. I didn’t even think about that. Is it even safe? I mean…I don’t want to do anything that—”

“I promise I will never let anything happen to you.” He was so serious, his eyes full of sincerity, there was no room for doubt and Kylie believed him one hundred percent.

They rode the rest of the way in silence. Kylie alternated between looking at the view and staring at Malcolm. He was so familiar. The same old Malcolm. Her friend. But he was different, too. A heat was between them now that had never been there before. She’d felt it last night. Wasn’t that what had spooked her? It wasn’t so much the kiss, which was definitely nothing to be spooked by. But the completely unexpected spark between them when his lips touched hers. And the familiarity in the kiss. It was almost as if they’d done it before, which was ridiculous. It had to have been the twin thing.

She’d thought he’d kiss her again this morning in the ocean. And even though she couldn’t blame him for keeping it chaste, the desire that surged through her when he’d held her close was both unexpected and undeniable. Maybe there was something to be said for all this trust she was putting into the experience of the island. The fact that her attitude had changed so much in less than twenty-four hours shocked her, but Kylie didn’t care because she couldn’t remember the last time she’d had so much fun. She fully intended to continue to let the magic of Eden work on her.

Malcolm parked the golf cart in the shadow of the castle, and took her hand. His hand felt natural in hers. She squeezed and tugged him toward her. Without taking his hand away, Malcolm wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close before he kissed the top of her head. Electricity ran through her, and instinctively, she tipped her head up.

Instead of the kiss she wanted, Kylie was treated to a smile. “Ready for some fun?”

She nodded. Kylie couldn’t believe herself how ready for fun she actually was. And wouldn’t he be surprised if she told him? Instead of questioning things, she was determined to enjoy every second of it.

“Then let’s get going.”

They skirted the edge of the castle, up a large stone staircase and stepped up into an open pool area. The patio buzzed with people lounging in chairs, enjoying beverages and by the looks of a few amorous couples, each other as well. Kylie looked away with a blush. What kind of resort were they at?

“There they are,” Malcolm said, and Kylie looked to where he pointed. At the far end of the pool deck was a couple surrounded by scuba diving gear, oxygen tanks, and other miscellaneous things that Kylie couldn’t identify.

“Hi,” the woman said when they got close enough. “I’m Jenna and this is Caine. We’re going to show you the basics today. Are you ready?” She asked the question to the two of them, but it was Kylie she looked at.

“Absolutely,” Kylie said. “I’ve wanted to do this for years. Is it hard?”

“Not at all.” Jenna’s smile was warm and Kylie instantly liked her.

“Well then.” Kylie pulled her cover-up off and over her head. “Let’s get started.” She turned to toss it on the lounge chair behind her, but froze when she saw Malcolm staring at her. “What?”

“I was wrong.” He shook his head slowly.

He looked so serious, Kylie was worried he’d changed his mind about scuba diving with her. “About what?”

“Earlier today when I said that white tank top was probably hotter than any bathing suit you could own.” His eyes drank her in greedily as they roamed her body and instead of it making her insecure, Kylie stood straighter, thrusting her hip out. “I was wrong,” Malcolm continued. “Because that bikini is—”

“If you two are ready, we should get started.” Caine walked toward Malcolm and thrust a scuba vest at him. “We have a lot to cover if you want to go out to the wreck site later.”

Jenna laughed and Kylie did her best to focus while the other woman helped her into her gear and explained what everything was for. The next hour flew by while Jenna and Caine passed on their knowledge. Kylie and Malcolm both proved to be quick learners and after a few demo dives in the deep end of the pool, their instructors declared them fit for the ocean. They all loaded up into Caine’s Jeep and headed down to the dock where a boat waited for them.

* * *

“Jenna? You named your boat after your partner?” Malcolm grabbed the tank Caine hefted up to him from the dock, and placed it next to the others.

“Not my partner.” Caine hopped aboard. “My woman.”

“Oh, it’s like that?” The women had gone below deck to put away the refreshments Jenna had packed for them to enjoy after their dive, so it was easier to talk man to man without fear of them overhearing.

“It’s very much like that.” Caine winked. “I let her get away once, but never again. When you find a woman like Jenna, you only make that kind of mistake once.”

“Isn’t that the truth,” Malcolm mused aloud. He’d let Kylie slip through his grasp in a totally different way. But never again. That was a pledge he’d made to himself when he left Cedar Springs. He had to leave her to get her, and now that they were together again, there was no way he was going to screw things up. Kylie would be his, of that he had no doubt. “I learned that the hard way.”

Caine gestured to the hatch that led below deck. “What? You mean…”

Malcolm shook his head.

“I never would have guessed.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Isn’t it always?”

Malcolm chuckled and nodded. “True. But things with Kylie are complicated. She used to date my twin brother. He broke her heart.”

“Ah. Gotcha.” Caine nodded as he turned the key in the ignition and fired up the boat. “Complicated.”

“Right.” Malcolm sat and crossed one leg over the other. “But that’s going to change.” He actually felt as confident as he sounded, which didn’t surprise him. The more time he spent with Kylie, the more he knew they belonged together and that’s all that mattered. He’d deal with everything else later.

“I believe it, man. This island is special.” Caine glanced around, looking for the girls. “Jenna thinks it’s magical, and I don’t know if I’d go that far, but there is something special about Eden. It’s like the island knows what you need, and it’s your own imagination and fantasy that determine what happen here.”

What Caine was saying wasn’t new to Malcolm. He’d heard it before from one of his buddies at the gym. As soon as Malcolm had overheard him talking about Eden, he knew it was exactly the place he needed to bring Kylie. It had taken him six months of planning and preparation, but they were finally there and although Malcolm knew exactly what his fantasies and imagination would create for him on the island, he could only hope that Kylie’s fantasies would match his.

At that moment, the women came up from below, and Malcolm lost his train of thought when he saw Kylie’s lush body showcased in the hot pink bikini that had taken his breath away earlier. Back in the mountains, her usual attire consisted more of parkas and knit caps, at least in the winter months. And in the summer he’d done his best to avoid looking at her, because while he was a sucker for punishment by falling in love with his brother’s girl, even he had his limits.
But that was all changing now
, he thought as he watched her climb up and into the cockpit of the boat. Her hair caught in the ocean breeze and she laughed as she pulled it back off her face.
Yes, that was definitely going to change.

Kylie was no longer Marcus’s girl. He’d been good. He’d waited while she nursed her broken heart, while she raged and went through her “no-more-men-ever” phase. Hell, he’d even made sure his brother didn’t have any lingering feelings for her. Not that that was an issue. He was too stupid back then to see what he had, and as time went on and he spent time on the professional snowboarding circuit, surrounded by snow bunnies, he was even more of an idiot, at least where Kylie was concerned.

If Caine was right, and the island of Eden was all about fantasies, then he certainly had a lot to look forward to. He shifted to the side to make room for Kylie to sit next to him as the couple tossed the ropes to the dock and Caine navigated the boat out to sea. Despite the hot day, the wind coming off the water was cool and instinctively, Malcolm wrapped his arm around Kylie’s bare shoulders.

She snuggled into him, and he held her tight. Something had definitely shifted between them from last night, and whatever it was, he wasn’t going to mess with it.

CHAPTER 6

The boat bounced over the waves and with every bump, she slid a little closer to Malcolm, who’d already pulled her close into his side. Soon, she found she used the waves and bounces as an excuse to get even closer because being cuddled up next to his hard chest with his strong arm wrapped around her holding her tight had never felt more right.

The ride was over far too soon, and Caine slowed the boat as they came to an area with some interesting rock formations jutting out of the water. “There’s a lot of reef around here,” he said. “I’d rather not meet any of them up close with the boat.”

“Absolutely,” Malcolm agreed. He gave her one more squeeze before he released her to stand and get a look around.

“The wreck is right below us.” Jenna got the gear ready and lined up the tanks on the deck. “It’s not really a very deep dive, but you’ll be pretty satisfied with what you see, I’m sure. And maybe you’ll even find some artifacts.”

Kylie’s ears perked up. “Artifacts? Like what?”

“Well, when the boat sank in the early 1900s, it was said to have a young couple aboard. Their names were Kevin and Michelle and they were on their way from the Old World to start a new life together.” Jenna shot a look at Kylie over her shoulder. “You see, they had to run away to be together because Michelle was meant to marry Kevin’s older brother, Edward.”

Kylie’s heart stuttered. “What?”

“That’s how the story goes. They were both from wealthy families and it was an arranged marriage, but from the time she was a girl, she loved the wrong brother.” Jenna shrugged. “Well, I guess he wasn’t wrong to her. But back then it was all about lineage and money and deals between families. So if they wanted to be together, they had to run away.”

“And the boat sank before they made it to the New World?” Kylie wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly cold despite the warm sun. “That’s so sad.”

“It really is.” Jenna nodded and paused a moment before she added, “The story goes that when the families found out about the wreck, they were dumbfounded that the couple would even have run away in the first place, because they would have embraced their love with open arms.”

“So it was all for nothing?”

“Sadly, yes. All they had to do was trust that they were making the right choice.”

There was that word again. Kylie shook her head and turned away. The story was so sad, so unnecessarily tragic that it made Kylie want to cry. She snuck a glance at Malcolm, who helped Caine get the tanks hooked up to the vests. The story was strangely familiar. Except for the whole running away part. She shook her head. “It’s so strange.”

“What’s strange?” Jenna stood next to her, a small knowing smile on her face.

“The word trust. I keep hearing it from everyone, and then last night there was a box with a chocolate on my pillow.”

“Oh, the chocolate.” Jenna smiled. “It’s exclusive to the island. The Master has it brought in special from a master chocolatier in Paris. And the messages on the boxes are also unique. I assume the chocolate had a message for you?”

“It just said, ‘trust’ and I could have sworn it wasn’t there when I’d arrived. It’s just really strange.”

“No it’s not.” Kylie stared at the other woman, open-mouthed. “Not if you think about it,” Jenna continued. “The island knows what you need and what you want. Maybe you should heed the advice on the box?” Jenna smiled again and Kylie shook her head with a smile of her own.

“Do you remember the invitation you got?”

Kylie nodded slowly, trying to recall what it had said.

“It said, Welcome to Eden. Where reality is whatever you wish it to be…”

Kylie remembered. But that didn’t mean anything and it certainly didn’t have anything to do with the fact that she was constantly being told to “trust”—someone? Something? Herself? She didn’t know. “So it makes sense, right?” Jenna still spoke and Kylie struggled to pay attention. “I mean, you’re here for a reason and obviously the island, or your subconscious, is trying to help steer you in the direction of what you really need…and want.”

The other woman winked at her. Before Kylie could ask her more questions, Caine called from the back of the boat. “We’re ready to go.”

* * *

Malcolm had been worried that their short introductory course to scuba diving wouldn’t be enough before they hit the open water, but he needn’t have worried. Caine and Jenna were very thorough in their teaching and as soon as Malcolm donned his gear and flipped backwards into the water, he felt as if he’d been doing it for years. And by the looks of Kylie, she did too. Damn, she looked good in her form-fitting skin suit that hugged every curve of her tight body.
Of course, she looked good in everything, or out of it, too
, he thought. Once again the desire to take Kylie to bed and claim her for his own was so strong it was almost an overwhelming need.

All in good time
, he told himself—not for the first time. After he’d almost screwed everything up on their first night, Kylie was going to have to come to him. And he’d be ready for her when she did. More than ready.

He submerged, the way Caine had taught him, and soon he was under the sea along with Kylie, Jenna, and Caine. Slowly, following their leaders’ hand gestures, they descended through the blue water. Schools of tropical fish in all colors and shapes swam around them, completely unaffected by the intruders in their world. Malcolm found himself watching Kylie. Hell, he couldn’t take his eyes off her. Even with a scuba mask and regulator covering her face, she was stunning and to see her eyes light up at the sea life as it swam around them was amazing. His brother may have had her first, but he’d have her last and forever. He was the one sharing this experience with her. And that’s all that mattered.

Caine pointed below him, and Malcolm followed to where he pointed. The wreck. He couldn’t remember how old Caine had said it was, but the sea water had preserved a great deal of it. It rested on its side, half submerged in the sand. The hull had a number of holes in it, and there appeared to be a great deal of access points inside. Jenna and Caine had told them it was perfectly safe to go inside, but they should stick with a buddy because it was easy to get turned around and not remember which way was up. Malcolm had every intention of staying close to Kylie anyway. He kicked his fins hard, and swam up beside her. She took his hand, and Malcolm could have sworn he saw her smile at him through the regulator in her mouth. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so happy as he was at that moment swimming in the ocean with Kylie by his side.

He knew she was excited to look for artifacts in the wreck and he’d overheard Jenna telling her a bit of the story surrounding the shipwreck, but he hadn’t heard any of the details as he’d been too busy helping Caine set things up. It didn’t matter, though. Whatever the story was, if there were artifacts, and Kylie wanted one, he would do his best to help her find them.

Together they swam through an opening in the hull and into the ship. The water may have preserved it somewhat, but a lot of the boards had eroded away and left great open areas for them to explore. Jenna was right: it was easy to get disoriented, but they stuck together and he knew their leaders were close by in case there was any trouble. They swam around and explored for quite some time, and just the way he was taught, Malcolm continued to check his gauges to see how much oxygen he had. He was getting low and they wouldn’t have much longer. If they didn’t find an artifact soon, he was afraid Kylie would be disappointed. She’d let go of his hand and was only an arm reach away; she sifted through the sand on the bottom. He was about to swim over to her when a sparkle caught his eye.

Malcolm reached down through some rotted boards and pulled out a delicate ring, with what he thought was a blue stone set in the gold. It was dirty, covered in years of buildup, algae, and who knew what else, but Malcolm could tell it was beautiful and more importantly, Kylie would love it. Instinctively, he turned to show it to her, but she was gone. Malcolm tucked the ring into a pouch around his waist and spun around, frantically trying to find Kylie.

She was nowhere. He kicked his fins, propelled himself forward to another opening. Would she have gone in there? Without him? She knew the dangers, dammit. Kylie would never be so reckless. But she would. When she had her heart set on something, there was no stopping her. Her determinedness was one of the things he loved about her. But that was before he was desperately trying to find her at the bottom of the ocean in a shipwreck. At that moment, he could have done without her bullheadedness. He paused at the mouth of the opening that he was sure would lead him to Kylie.

He looked back. Jenna and Caine were probably still exploring on the outside of the wreck. They’d wanted to give Malcolm and Kylie privacy. A lot of good that was doing now. He could go back and find Caine to help him get Kylie. He knew that’s what he should do. But what he should do and what he was going to do were two totally different things. Malcolm glanced at his gauges again. He didn’t have a lot of oxygen left. Caine had told them to start gathering at the meeting spot when the gauge read in the yellow zone. If he went back for Caine and Jenna, he definitely wouldn’t have enough air to get Kylie. And he’d be dammed if he would leave her there. What if something had happened?

Fear flashed through him and chilled his blood. The idea that something could have happened to Kylie terrified him. Sure, there were dangers with diving—especially in shipwrecks—but he hadn’t actually thought any of those dangers applied to them. And even when he’d first discovered she wasn’t at his side, he hadn’t really thought she’d be in trouble. But it wasn’t like Kylie to take off and…with one last glance back toward where Caine and Jenna would be waiting soon, he pushed forward and into the dark hole.

It took Malcolm’s eyes a moment to adjust to the lack of light. Streams of daylight filtered through holes in the ship; the water made the light dance and morph in strange patterns. But it was definitely darker in this part of the wreck. He wanted to call out for her. A foolish idea, but it was a hard instinct to control. He swam slowly and scanned the area in front of him and to the sides. He worked his eyes methodically, looked for any sign of her. And then there it was.

A flash of movement, a stirring of sand.
Kylie
. He moved quickly and kicked his fins hard to propel him forward toward her. He put his hand on her back and she jumped and twisted so she looked at him. Beneath the mask, her eyes were wide with panic and fear. A quick assessment of the situation and he could see exactly why she was scared. Kylie’s hand was stuck between two boards. It looked as if she’d reached between them to grab something, but she couldn’t seem to maneuver her gloved hand back through the small space.

Malcolm’s heart twisted as fear assaulted him as well. But he couldn’t let it show. He reached around her to grab her gauges and check her oxygen level. A whole new spike of fear ran through him. She was low. Dangerously low. No doubt her fear had caused her to breathe faster and use more oxygen. She had to calm down, or there was going to be a real problem. And fast.

As best he could, Malcolm used his hands and gestured for her to relax and slow her breathing. He tried to convey a sense of calm with his eyes, and he knew the instant Kylie relaxed and trusted him enough to get her out. He just hoped he was worthy of that trust.

Malcolm turned away from her and focused on the boards Kylie was trapped in. He could see the artifact she’d been trying to reach. A hand mirror. Even covered in a hundred years’ worth of ocean grime, he could tell it was beautiful. No wonder it had attracted Kylie’s attention. Her gloved hand dangled close to the mirror; he positioned himself closer to the boards so he could see the problem. Her glove had ridden up and was acting as a stopper. It wouldn’t let her slide her hand back through the opening. Malcolm quickly wrapped his fingers around the board and, trying not to expel too much energy, he pulled backwards until the board splintered and moved. Kylie pulled free, but not before she grabbed the mirror.

Malcolm shook his head. He didn’t expect anything less. When Kylie wanted something, she’d get it.

He grabbed her hand and yanked her back the way they’d come. The watery blue light guided them to the exit, and Malcolm swam as fast as he could while they navigated around the debris. He didn’t even want to glance at their oxygen gauges because he had a feeling he wasn’t going to like what he saw. He needed to get to Caine and Jenna. They’d be able to get Kylie to the surface quickly and safely. Something he didn’t have the knowledge or expertise to do.

They were waiting for them at the opening of the wreck, and the moment Caine spotted them, he swam over and grabbed their gauges. When he saw Kylie’s, Malcolm was sure he could hear the other man swear. He gestured to Jenna, who swam up next to Malcolm and pointed her finger between herself and him. He looked to Caine, who’d taken Jenna’s hand and had already begun their ascent toward the surface. Malcolm nodded at Jenna in understanding, and together they followed.

They’d only gone a few feet when Malcolm saw Kylie wave her arms wildly and grab at Caine. He knew instinctively what was wrong. She’d run out of oxygen. The urge to swim to her and drag her to the surface overwhelmed him, and as if she sensed it, Jenna grabbed his arm and held fast. She shook her head and pointed up.

They continued their ascent, but Malcolm didn’t take his eyes off Kylie and Caine, who now calmly shared his regulator with Kylie as they kicked slowly upwards. They’d gone over that particular skill during their lesson in the pool, but Malcolm never thought they’d actually have to use it. A feeling of helplessness washed over him, as he watched Caine save the woman he loved, knowing he couldn’t have done it.