She’d learned to pretend to be something she wasn’t a long time before. And god, she’d learned not to ever fuck up. A smile on the face. That was how to get through life. The one time she’d failed… Well, she preferred not to think about that at all. Stupid Vallon had made her think about it and she wasn’t going to let it ruin her again.

She never let life see her down because life had no problem showing her exactly how much further she had to fall.

She strode out into the late afternoon light and walked toward the train station, trying not to think about the gorgeous man she’d left behind. And wishing she’d changed her shoes.

* * * *

“You want to tell me what the hell that was about?” Remy felt weird as he picked up the end of the couch and barely managed to fit it through the door to his new home. Temporary home. He wasn’t staying here for long.

It was awfully nice though. Probably the nicest place he’d ever lived, but then that wasn’t so surprising since this was where the Daleys stashed their youngest sibling. Lisa was the only one of the Daleys who wasn’t attached, and apparently she was very independent. The building had good security, a whole round of amenities like a dog park and jogging trails. Hell, anywhere he’d lived before Dallas, if he wanted to jog, he did it while trying not to be eaten by gators.

He couldn’t stay for long because the paperwork was already in the works. He had done all the paperwork for the loan and in a few short weeks the marina and everything in it would be back where it belonged. In his hands.

Lisa Daley was nothing more than one last job. It didn’t matter that he wanted her. It didn’t matter that she was the most tempting thing he’d seen in forever. He wasn’t getting involved with another woman who would need more than he could give her. He’d married one and that had led straight to the situation he’d been in for years. He wasn’t about to lose his family and his inheritance over a spoiled rich girl again.

So why the hell was he feeling like a bear riled out of hibernation way too early? She’d looked utterly horrified at seeing him. Oh, he’d told her something different and he could see she’d been trying to appear normal and happy, but pure terror had been behind that smile. He had the feeling she’d wanted nothing more than to run as fast as she could.

And then she’d turned on that high-wattage smile when she’d caught sight of Shane. She looked at Shane like he was a cupcake and she’d been on a sugar-free diet for way too long. It bugged him.