Brazen

11

Her legs went weak, and Sam lowered herself into the nearest chair. She twisted her fingers together as she started to speak. "I wanted to tell you. I was planning on telling you tonight, after…" Needing to gather her thoughts, she let her voice trail off.

"After…?" he prompted.

"After I ended things with Tom, and I did. Just now in the lounge. It's over, not that it ever was anything to begin with, but it was… necessary."

"And now it's not."

"No."

Mac stormed over to where she sat, bracing his arms on either side of the chair. A vein throbbed in his temple, and she noticed the tight clench of his jaw. Sam had never seen him this angry, not even when the guy in the bar had attempted to maul her in public. She swallowed hard, afraid that by waiting this long, she'd passed the point of no return. That he wouldn't listen to her explanation.

But he'd omitted things, too, so he should understand. "I should have told you, but Tom… the engagement is no longer necessary because…"

"I'm rich, too," he spat. "And with me, you not only get the money, but you get someone close to your own age and fantastic sex as well. Well, good for you, Sammy Jo. You nearly pulled it off." He slowly clapped his hands in applause.

Sam stared in shock and dismay. Each word hit her like an arrow to her heart. The pain was raw and acute. Then as the ugly reality of his words sunk in, furious anger followed. How could he think so little of her when she'd given more of herself to him than anyone on this earth? Especially when he'd been less than honest himself.

She met his gaze, expecting the steely anger she'd seen earlier. It wasn't there. In his dark eyes, Sam saw a pain that mirrored her own. Gut-wrenching, real pain, and she grabbed onto it like a lifeline, because if he hurt, he still cared.

She reached for him, but he yanked his hand away. She tried hard to mask how that one gesture hurt. "You honestly think I knew you owned this place? From the beginning?"

He nodded. "Or close to it."

"You think I'm capable of that kind of deceit?" He pinned her with a cutting glare. Point for him, Sam thought. She had deceived him from day one. He'd done the same but seemed to have forgotten that fact.

"I'm sure Zee or one of the boys meant well when they told you," he said.

She folded her arms over her chest. "Loyalty doesn't mean anything to you, does it, Mac? Zee treats you like a son, but you think he'd betray you. And after what we shared…" She poked him in the chest hard. "You think I'd do the same. Guess we didn't share anything so great."

She forced the words past her lips, even as the pain shot straight to her heart. "We couldn't have, considering both of us were lying the whole time."

She broke into a cold sweat. Suddenly afraid she would faint and humiliate herself in front of him, she headed for the closet. She needed something to cover herself so she didn't feel so raw and exposed. Something to stop the chills that had taken hold would help too.

His words followed her into the other room. "I overestimated your business ability, Samantha. You should never have walked away from one offer until the other was on the table."

Without waiting to grab the robe, she ran for the other room. "You arrogant, obnoxious, self-righteous…"

"Good choice of words, but if I were you, I'd spend my time trying to catch your first choice before he finds a replacement."

"Maybe I…" The rest of her words were lost as the suite door slammed shut behind him. "Will," she muttered, knowing she'd do no such thing.

Sam didn't wait. With the slamming sound of the door still ringing in her ears, she darted for the bathroom, then the closet, and began tossing the few things she'd unpacked into her suitcase. She couldn't stay here. Not when the man she loved thought she'd… she'd… Sell herself to the richest bidder.

Oh, God, that's exactly what she'd been about to do. Until she'd come to her senses. Until Mac had taught her… What? About love?

She laughed until real tears began streaming down her face. She wondered if they'd ever stop. She might have fallen in love with him, but he'd had nothing more than fantastic sex with her. That much he'd admitted aloud.

The zipper got stuck on her garment bag and she tugged until it shut tight. Without pause, she yanked the carry-on off the bed and headed for the door. She flung it open wide, then slammed it closed again.

Where did she think she was going stark naked except for her underwear? She sank to the floor in a heap, luggage at her feet.

Stop and think, Sammy Jo. "And stop using that ridiculous name," she muttered aloud. She had to get away from Mac and out of his hotel.

As she dressed, she admitted the obvious. "It's over." The pain was almost blinding. Clothed now in jeans and a T-shirt, she glanced around the suite one last time. To make sure she hadn't forgotten anything, not because she wanted to memorize the sweet-smelling flowers or the room service cart in the corner with champagne chilling in a silver bucket.

But she'd never forget the warmth and flow of this room as she'd first seen it. She plucked a red rose from beside the trays of food. Planning to leave it on the pillow, she walked into the bedroom.

Then she remembered the ring. It was a symbol that spoke volumes, as did the effort that went into creating this setting.

"Oh, God." Sam closed her eyes. All that came to mind was Mac and the pain she'd glimpsed in his dark eyes.

He wasn't a vindictive man. She knew that. He hadn't gone to all this trouble after learning of her engagement, he'd done it before. He'd bought her a diamond ring and set the stage for a romantic proposal. Then he'd learned the truth.

She'd hurt him and he'd lashed out, hoping to hurt her in return. And he had. She pressed her fists into her cramping stomach. Oh, how he had.

Despite his harsh words, she understood. Not that understanding could change anything. When two people came together with lies as the foundation of their relationship, they didn't stand a chance.

She swiped at a stray tear. At least she'd leave with the knowledge she had meant more to him than a temporary fling, even if he no longer believed that himself.

Grabbing a hotel pad, she scrawled a note to Mac, then rolled the sheet and placed the paper and the red rose against the white pillow.

Maybe one day he'd look back on this week with pleasure and not bitterness. Love and not pain.

Maybe one day, she would, too.

Mac slid into one of the many empty bar stools at The Hungry Bear. He studied the multicolored bottles of liquor lining the racks along the wall and wondered which would make him numb the quickest.

"A shot of tequila ought to kill the pain."

At the sound of the familiar voice, Mac glanced over to see Zee making his way from the storeroom in the back. "Where's Bear?"

"Where do you think? Setting his new family up at my place. The upstairs apartment is too small for Bear's rowdy boys and soon-to-be newlyweds. You didn't tell me I'd be having grandbabies so soon." The older man beamed with excitement.

Mac shrugged. "I promised."

"So you're good for something after all. Bear will be back to open for business tonight." Zee turned his back and began working on pouring them drinks, then slid the tequila Mac's way. "Here. You look like you could use this."

"Damn straight," Mac muttered.

"If you hurt Sammy Jo, I'll rip your heart out where you sit."

Mac rolled his eyes. Zee had only known the woman for a week and already he loved her. Unfortunately for Mac, he understood the feeling all too well.

Zee leaned across the bar. "Don't go making faces at me. She's a good girl who deserves better than to be lied to."

"Oh, really." Mac swallowed a harsh laugh, then reached for the salt and performed Zee's nightly ritual. Expecting the bitter taste of hard liquor, he nearly choked on the glass of amber-colored water.

"Shoe's not so funny when it's on the other foot, is it?" the older man asked.

"You knew?"

"I may be old, but I'm no fool. And you don't need to get drunk, you need to talk or you wouldn't be here."

Why argue the point, Mac thought. "What would you say if I told you Sammy Jo had a rich fiancé waiting back at The Resort?"

Zee didn't flinch. "I'd say there was an explanation."

Mac grunted.

"So what was it?" Zee asked.

"What was what?"

"Don't play dumb with me. What was her explanation?"

Mac shrugged, feeling like a teenager who'd knocked up a neighborhood girl and now had to face the consequences. "I didn't stick around to hear it."

Zee rounded the bar and smacked him in the head. "That was because your daddy's not here to do it himself," he muttered. Then he perched himself on a neighboring stool. "Usually when someone lies, they have good reason. You tell her you own The Resort yet?"

Trust Zee to get to the heart of the matter, Mac thought. And wasn't that why he'd come here in the first place? He looked at the man he thought of as a father. "She already knew."

Mac didn't need to ask the old man whether he'd been the one to inform Samantha. Contrary to what she believed, Mac understood loyalty. He knew Zee hadn't betrayed him.

Just as he'd known the minute he slammed the door behind Samantha he'd overreacted. But it wasn't every day a guy saw the woman he wanted forever with another man's ring on her finger.

Considering Mac had planned her ultimate fantasy-the fairytale proposal and the happily ever after-then to discover the truth the way he had was humiliating in the extreme.

"And you think she set you up," Zee said.

"No." Mac spoke emphatically. "Not anymore." When he first heard the news, he'd reacted with his heart and not his head. Now, having had time to think, he knew better. Hadn't he lied, too? Yet he hadn't given an inch when dealing with Samantha.

"But you thought so at first." They both knew the unspoken answer to that question. "Just don't tell me you told her."

"Fine. I won't tell you, so pour me a damn drink. Real liquor or I'm not having this conversation." Because although he'd felt like a fool, he'd acted like a jackass. He'd damn near called the woman he loved a whore. How the hell could he live with that?

Accepting the glass, Mac swallowed what looked like whiskey in one gulp. The raw liquid burned on its way down. "Good choice," he muttered. "Now keep them coming." Because only then could he forget the shock and the pain that flashed across her face with each cutting word he'd spoken.

"You had your reasons. Don't you suppose she had hers?"

Reaching for the bottle, Mac poured another shot glass full and drank before answering. "I'm sure she did."

"And the signs must have been there all along."

"That she was trying not to get too close? Yes. That she belonged to another man? Hell, no."

"Then focus on those reasons. And you can't do that if I let you get stinking drunk." Zee grabbed the bottle and shoved it beneath the bar. "Consider it payback for the watered-down crap you and Bear make me drink every night." He turned and headed for the back.

"Where are you going?" Mac hadn't come here to be left by himself.

"I figure if I leave you alone with yourself for company, you'll get smart and go after her." With that parting shot, Zee rounded the corner and disappeared.

Mac knew without being told that he'd been wrong. He knew his Samantha could not deliberately set out to entrap and hurt him. She just didn't have it in her.

"Think explanations," Zee called from the back room. "And then get the hell out of here." Explanations. The woman had arrived straight out of the desert. What else did he know? She came from back East and had violet eyes he could drown in. Her mother died three years ago and she rambled when she was nervous. She was a financial planner and made love like she couldn't get enough of him. Her only family was an aging father whose love she sought, who was in debt up to his…

That was it. The father who needed money. What was it Samantha had said about the engagement? "Not that it ever was anything to begin with, but it was… necessary."

And Zee was right. There had been signs. She'd promised her dying mother she'd take care of her father. "Besides, I've always done the right thing." And because she wanted them to love her.

"Dammit." She was marrying the rich old man to help out her father. Mac was sure of it. He was also sure she hadn't baited him to take the first guy's place. She'd gathered her courage and turned her back on her father's predicament and her word even when she'd believed him nothing more than a bartender. He may not know who told her, but he had a damn good idea of when she'd learned the news. And it was sometime after she'd left him at Bear's.

Mac knew this because he knew Samantha. Too bad he realized it so late.

"Good going, Mackenzie," he muttered. She'd spent the week breaking with old habits and insecurities. Hadn't he sensed the contradictions and watched her grow more confident with him and with herself? And just when she'd needed him the most, he'd hit her with lack of faith and trust. He'd rewarded her courage with accusations to burn her ears and singe her heart. She'd been searching for love and he'd probably convinced her she'd never have his. He'd acted low enough to lose her for good.

Mac muttered a curse and headed for his car, making it back to The Resort in record time. He had to find Samantha. Sucking up was the least he could do.

He didn't know where they could go from there. Hell, after his performance, he didn't know if there was anywhere to go, but at least he'd see her one more time. Now that the blinding rage had passed and understanding had taken its place, Mac needed that most of all.

When he reached the suite of rooms, he didn't knock, just inserted the card in the door and walked inside.

Honey, I'm home didn't seem like an appropriate line, so he just called her name. "Sam?"

Silence.

He knew she was gone.

A call to the front desk confirmed she'd checked out. He'd stood in this very room, had everything he wanted in his grasp, and he'd thrown it all away. His head started to pound, and he walked into the bedroom and sat down on the bed. His own stupidity overwhelmed him. If his accusations weren't enough, he'd gone and told Samantha to go back to her first choice.

Her parting shot came back to him with gut-wrenching clarity. "Maybe I…" Mac hadn't stuck around, but he knew how that particular phrase ended. Which meant she might still be in the hotel with the other guy.

He reached for the phone and realized that Joe, the only other person who could identify the fiancé, had clocked out for the night. Mac's gaze lit on the pillow.

His stomach constricted as he reached for the note left for him beside the flower. "Mac, I would have liked 'forever', even in a little apartment over a bar." She couldn't have been more clear. She loved the man she'd believed him to be, not The Resort owner and jackass he'd become.

"You don't look well, Mr. Mackenzie. That is, I mean you look tired this morning."

Mac raised an eyebrow at his still-eager but now flustered employee. "Lack of sleep will do that to you, Joe." So will restless dreams and erotic memories, Mac thought.

"Oh."

"Have you seen the older guy from last night? The one with Ms. Reed?" Mac asked.

"This morning on the way to breakfast."

He waited. Joe remained silent. What a great time for the kid to clam up and speak only when spoken to. Mac would have to pry the information out of him. "And was he alone?"

"No, sir. He had a stunning young woman on his arm."

Stunning blonde? Stunning brunette? Stunning Samantha? What? Mac wanted to throttle him for learning discretion in such a short time.

"They're still in the dining room if you'd like to… er, check things out."

Mac walked away from Joe and toward the restaurant, his heart pounding hard in his chest. Before he could pass the hostess desk, a voice paged him over the loud speaker.

Mac picked up the nearest phone. "Mackenzie."

"Hi, Mac."

"What's up, Kate?" Even as Mac spoke to his sister, his gaze strayed toward the hallway. His sister was merely checking up on him since he'd cancelled their weekend plans, and Mac attempted to reassure her… in between keeping an eye out for Samantha and the other man.

Seconds after he hung up, he found what he was looking for. The guy was coming out of the restaurant with a stunning… Mac craned to catch a glimpse. When he did, his breath hissed out in a rush. A redhead. A gorgeous, young redhead was on his arm. Relief swelled inside him because it wasn't Samantha.

But that meant he had no idea where the hell she'd gone. Home, probably, not that he blamed her.

Mac made it back to the front desk in record time. For all its headaches, being the owner had its privileges. And as he pulled the weekend's reservation cards, he thanked his lucky stars for each and every one.