Chapter 5

Chapter

Five

Jagger thankfully drovethe Jeep so he couldn't stare nonstop at Bee, but he did get an angle on her face in the rearview as she oohed and ahhed and exclaimed over every lush green spot on the island, every flowering bush, every glimpse of the blue ocean or the soft sand, every glistening mountain peak. She talked about how fertile everything was and fantasized about all the crops they could grow here with little or no effort.

Her enthusiasm—all of her, truly—was irresistible to him. Everything except her cheating on him and ditching him. She wanted him to pretend they didn't know each other? Why? So he couldn't get answers, or because she didn't want to let him into her heart again? He gripped the steering wheel tighter.

"Do you want to stop anywhere before we get to the house?" Hays glanced back at Belinda. It was obvious she was the only one who hadn't been to the island.

"I want to hike to a waterfall!" Bee exclaimed. She didn't seem bothered at all that she and Jagger couldn't talk freely. Of course she wasn't; she'd set that parameter.

Had Mercedes brought Belinda here to torment and tempt Jagger? Shawn must've revealed he called his long-lost love ‘Bee.' Shawn had never made Jagger question his loyalty and his sweetheart of a friend Mercedes had never been anything but kind to him, and full of ‘lots of love' for him, before today. Jagger's circle wasn't large—his SEAL unit and this group of fourteen-year long friends. He wanted to trust his close friends implicitly. It was hard to stay angry at Mercedes after she'd claimed she only did this because of how much she desperately loved him. Mercedes loved everybody, but Jagger knew he meant a lot to her.

"But …" Belinda held up a sandaled foot and gestured to her pretty blue dress. "Julie wouldn't let me bring anything. Do they have hiking shoes and clothes for me?"

"Yes, ma'am." Hays always made everyone comfortable. "Let's get you settled and we can change into hiking clothes, show you a great waterfall, and then have dinner and relax on our patio and beach."

"I love this plan." She grinned, and Jagger caught the full force of that earth-shaking smile in the rearview. "I dreaded this week of misery, but …" She caught Jagger's gaze, clamped her mouth shut, and turned away. She ‘dreaded' the ‘misery' because of him? The hits kept getting harder and lower.

Jagger pulled off the main road that circled the island and drove toward the beach house. He should pull into the garage, but he wanted Bee to see the house from the front doors. Why he cared made no sense to him.

Jumping out, he hurried to open her door. She thanked him and brushed past him. Her arm grazed his, and his heart threatened to beat out of his chest. The punch earlier didn't really count as touching, but a simple graze of the arm threw him into a tailspin. Did she feel the draw between them, or had she shut him out of her heart too completely?

He had to get her alone, figure out the nightmare of their past, and hold her. He had to.

Bee rushed forward, staring at the greenery surrounding the house, the double glass doors and the windows, and the view all the way through to the rear patio landscaped with tropical flowers and trees and the soft brown sand and the ocean just down the vegetation-covered hill.

A rooster let out a cock-a-doodle-doo close by. There were far too many chickens and roosters on Kauai, and they crowed night and day. It could be bothersome.

"Ooh, ooh, ooh, this is gorgeous!" Belinda exclaimed. She all but ran into the house.

Jagger exchanged a look with Hays and Paul. They were both smiling. Paul was relaxing a little around them. At first, he'd acted like Jagger had shot his dog. What had Bee told Paul about Jagger on the plane?

They all followed her into the house and Hays gave them a tour. The house was bright, and everything that wasn't a window or glass door showcasing the bright green fauna or the ocean view was white or stainless steel. There were some red and teal accents with pillows, throw blankets, and woven into the countertops or wall art.

It was a great house. Jagger couldn't peel his gaze from Bee and found himself cracking his knuckles and wishing she'd stop him by holding his hand.

Bee was enchanting. He'd seen the house. Even if he hadn't, she'd be more enthralling than any house or work of art or any other woman or even a Colt 1873 Single Action Army revolver.

Hays showed them the main level. It was completely open, with comfortable gathering spaces, dining, and the kitchen. Downstairs was the theater, the only spot in the house with dark gray walls and no windows, the fitness room which was thankfully large and boasted high quality free weights and a cable machine, and a spacious game room with a pool table, ping-pong, a table for playing cards, air hockey, and a wet bar. Upstairs were four spacious, mostly identical master suites with a laundry room between them. Each closet was filled with clothes of their exact size, so it was easy to figure out which bedroom Julia had assigned them to. Of course, Bee's had the best view of the ocean and a jacuzzi on the deck.

Hmm. Maybe Jagger could talk her into soaking in that jacuzzi.

They all sauntered back downstairs and out back to the patio. An explosion of tropical flowers decorated the pool area. The infinity pool dropped off with a view of the greenery directly below them and the beach and ocean beyond. A bark-lined path led through the thick trees to the mostly private beach area.

Jagger was itching to go for a long swim in the ocean and clear his mind before he got Belinda alone and got some answers. His fingers were itching to touch her soft skin and pull her close. Fourteen long years without talking to her, staring at her, holding her, kissing her. He couldn't have cared less about this challenge or anything except Bee right now.

"This house and Kauai are off the charts, but you all promised me a waterfall hike. Let's go!"

Paul chuckled. "Have you not traveled much?"

Jagger didn't know what she'd been up to the past fourteen years, besides building an impressive charity, but he knew Bee. She could've seen more gorgeous tropical locations and houses than this and she'd still be vibrant and rambunctious and delighted by all of it.

"I actually travel far too often," she admitted. "There are some exotic places in Africa, beaches and tropical forests to rival this, but most of my days are spent in areas that aren't lush, to put it mildly. Digging wells and irrigation ditches through sunbaked dirt." She smiled as if that was no big deal. "Don't you agree Kauai is incredible?"

"Yes, ma'am." Paul nodded, and then he glanced at Jagger and his face went from grinning to impassive when he noticed Jagger and Hays waiting for an answer. Was Paul going to admit he knew Kauai well or that this was his first visit? The guy was playing the game, and Jagger didn't blame him. He'd been all set in his mind to go even harder than he had the past two weeks. He'd been happy for the ladies to win their money through the last two episodes, but he was ticked that he'd lost. He'd never been a fan of losing.

Now that he knew it was Bee, it about killed him to think of defeating her and her lifelong work. Actually, now that he knew the parameters, he wanted to hunt them down quickly each day and have that much more time to spend with her. It might hurt like a gunshot wound to get those answers, but he was pushing the fear away and focusing on winning the battle. He wasn't certain what the prize would be for winning the battle. Belinda's heart? That seemed too much to hope for. Especially since she acted like he was the one to blame for their split.

"You spend most of your time in Africa's poorest countries," Jagger clarified. That's what Shawn had said in his intro.

"Yes." She gave him a questioning look.

"Are you safe? Who's in charge of your security? Do you ever get into dangerous situations?"

Belinda stared at him, and fire flashed in her blue eyes. "I don't see what business it is of yours if I am safe."

Jagger's nostrils flared. She'd meant the world to him, still did truthfully. He hated the thought of her being in danger. "I'm just concerned for you," he managed in a level tone.

"Well, maybe you should've thought of that before …" She broke off and asked in a cheery tone, "So … who knows where to go hike?"

‘Thought of that before'? Why did she keep intoning he'd dumped her, not the other way around?

Despite her feisty nature, Belinda was innocent and loving, without guile. Did that mean she hadn't been hurt? He hoped so.

She also wouldn't realize nobody wanted to admit they knew where to hike. The men were plotting and holding their cards close to not reveal what they knew or didn't know.

"I'll Google it," Hays said.

"Oh, perfect. Thank you. I'll go change into hiking gear." She grinned and all but danced up the open staircase.

Jagger pushed out a breath, watching her go. Hays focused on his phone. Paul looked at Jagger and tilted his head outside.

Oh, the guy wanted to talk? Sure. Jagger would love to talk.

"Pardon us," Paul murmured to Hays.

Hays's head snapped up and he arched his brows, his dark eyes questioning if Jagger wanted him to come. Jagger didn't need anybody holding his hand, but he'd learned throughout their fourteen-year friendship that sometimes it was good to have a calming influence like Hays around. Right now, he was fine. He wasn't going to start a brawl. He shook his head at his friend.

He and Paul strode out onto the back deck, past the patio where cameras were mounted and down the path to the beach far enough away to not be heard by cameras.

Paul stopped and turned to him. "My job is to protect and help Belinda this week. Are your feelings for her going to be a problem?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Jagger said shortly, cracking his knuckles.

Paul's blue gaze grew perceptive. He was a steady kind of guy like Hays. That was probably good, or he and Jagger would probably already be brawling.

"It's obvious you care deeply for her, but you also hurt her deeply. I don't know Miss Ralphs well, but I don't want to see her hurt."

Jagger wanted to flare up again, but he blew out a breath instead. "I never wanted to hurt Bee and would never want to. I appreciate you looking out for her." What to admit to? "Our past is a mess." He wasn't going to get into all of it with Paul. "What did she say to you on the plane? You came off the plane already defensive about me."

Paul nodded but shrugged. "She didn't say much. She prayed a jet airplane would drop on your handsome head." He smiled and Jagger couldn't help but smile too. That was so Bee. "She only told me her former love was out there and she needed a moment to compose herself."

"Thank you for sharing." Jagger meant it. Paul didn't have to help him. They were supposed to be enemies, after all. He extended his hand, and they shared a firm handshake. "I swear to you I will not hurt Bee. I hate that we're pitted against each other."

"You're doing this for Mercedes and Shawn?" Paul guessed.

"Yes. They're my closest friends besides Hays. We all loved and lost Mercedes's brother Grayson. That bonded us."

"I see. Well, nothing we can do about the competition but make the best of it," Paul said. "Compete fiercely, then banter about it later."

"Sounds great." He clapped Paul's shoulder. "I figured you for a stiff. Nothing like Aiden and Nick, who loved to banter and give me a hard time."

He'd especially liked Nick and Darcy. They'd teased Darcy about being her ‘brothers' and he'd gotten overprotective of her putting herself in danger.

Paul smiled. "I'm less of a jokester than those two, but I make up for it in agility, intelligence, good looks and, of course, humility."

They both laughed at that, then turned and walked back toward the house. Jagger's head was spinning. He and Paul were in agreement. Neither of them wanted Bee hurt. Now if only he could get to the bottom of their past, why she had given up on him that summer and turned to Mike, and if Jagger and Bee stood a chance in the future.

What if the answers hurt worse than the separation? He couldn't worry about that. He didn't worry about pain when he plunged into battle. He dealt with wounds later. If a man was scared, he could tense up and make mistakes, hurt himself and others. Jagger had to go forward with confidence. No hesitation.

Unfortunately, he'd made the stupid promise to Shawn to pretend they didn't know each other for the cameras.

Him and making promises he shouldn't make. It had been a big part of their separation. How many times had he wished he hadn't been so cocky and impulsive and intent on keeping his word? He should've burst out of the horse stall, knocked Mike flat, demanded answers from Bee, and found a way to work everything out between them. Instead he'd stayed quiet, let his heart be broken by her cheating, been knocked out by her dad, and hadn't gone back to fight for her.

He would fight for her now. More likely, he would fight with her.

Jagger grinned as they reached the house and headed to their suites to change for the hike. Fighting with Bee was almost as fun as kissing her.

A hope and light he hadn't experienced in fourteen years filled him. He might have a future again.