The Love Laws

Prologue

Jamie
Martin sighed, leaned back on her bare elbows, and dug her pink-polished toes
deeper into the warm sand. This wasn’t a fantasy. She was actually in the
Hawaiian paradise she’d always dreamed of visiting.

All
the props were there: a sugary secluded beach beneath her, a Technicolor sunset
in front of her, and a positively delectable strawberry margarita balanced
precariously on one pale knee. There were even some hard-bodied surfers in the
distance to add to the total ambience, and yet she wasn’t content. Even here in
modern Eden, she couldn’t stop thinking about her lingerie store, specifically
what she would do if business didn’t pick up at Hidden Treasures soon.

She
shook her head as if to free it from dismal thoughts. Looking down she noticed
that despite her platter-sized straw hat and SPF 50 suntan lotion her skin was
definitely turning an alarming shade of pink.

Jamie
sighed and attempted to arrange her sarong over her legs, but it was no use,
the square of aquamarine cotton barely covered her tiny blue crocheted bikini
and that was usually the way she liked it—the more skin exposed the better. Of
course, being from Vancouver, third degree burns from sun exposure wasn’t
usually a problem.

Jamie
wasn’t here in Maui on vacation, at least not really. She was here for her twin
sister’s wedding. Jessica Martin had vowed to love, honor, and cherish
Detective Duncan Reinhold on this very beach just twenty-four hours ago. It had
been a gorgeous, intimate ceremony, and Jamie felt tears gathering in her eyes
at the memory.

Jessie
had looked so happy, so in love as she’d stared into Duncan’s eyes. The only
thing missing had been their parents. Cal and June Martin had died four years
before in a fatal car crash and both girls felt their absence keenly. Even
their absence couldn’t seem to detract much from Jessie’s day, and for that,
Jamie was eternally grateful, and just a wee bit envious.

Duncan,
her new brother-in-law, was not only incredibly gorgeous and kind; he was also
out-of-his-head, frothing-at-the-mouth, head-over-heels in love with his new
bride. Jamie was thrilled for her sister, but it was difficult not to feel just
a tad green when she saw the two of them together. Up until two years ago,
Jessie had been a hard-core librarian spinster, and Jamie had been the
femme
fatale
. Now it was almost like their roles had switched. Jamie had been so
preoccupied with getting the store up and running lately that she really hadn’t
had time for romance.

If
she was really honest with herself, she hadn’t had the inclination either.
She’d spent the two previous years as a burlesque dancer in a high-end
gentleman’s club and that experience had pretty much turned her off men—at
least temporarily.

Looking
out at the waves now, Jamie could feel some of her interest returning. One of
the surfers in particular caught her eye. He wasn’t particularly graceful on
his board, spending more time being dumped off than balanced on, but he was
definitely having the time of his life out there. His deep laugh and flashing
white teeth were difficult to ignore, even from a hundred or so metres away.

Glad
for the distraction Jamie straightened up and adjusted her oversized sunglasses
higher up on the bridge of her nose so she could watch him without being too
obvious. Her laughing surfer was straddling the board now, looking for the next
wave, and she had an excellent view of the broad expanse of his smooth, golden
back. To Jamie there was nothing more irresistible than a man with a fabulous rear-view,
but this was the first time in months she’d actually taken the time to admire
one. Silently, she prayed that his face didn’t resemble a fright mask.

As
Jamie’s gaze skimmed over every inch of his impressive physique, she allowed
her sunglasses to slide back down her nose to get a better look. She was
staring so intently at his back that she didn’t notice when he turned his head
in her direction until their eyes locked and held.

Damn,
now he knows I was ogling him
, Jamie thought, shifting her focus to a
random spot on the horizon to avoid his intent gaze. Two years ago, being
caught perusing a strange man would have been just the sort of bold move she’d
been known for. Yesterday’s Jamie would have stared back and smiled invitingly.
Mr. Surfer would have been out of the water so fast it would have looked like a
scene out of
Jaws
. But she wasn't that girl anymore.

 Today’s
Jamie, however, was mortified at being caught practically drooling over a truly
world-class pair of shoulders. She wanted desperately to abandon her cocktail and
make a dash for the nearest ladies room. Instead, she held her ground and
stared out to sea, taking a casual sip from her margarita like nothing untoward
had occurred.

Her
cool demeanor lasted about two minutes. That’s how long it took the surfer to
reach the beach. When his feet touched bottom he rose out of the water like
some kind of mythological water god, Neptune or Poseidon maybe. Jamie half
expected him to be armed with a triton, but the huge yellow surfboard was close
enough.

When
he’d been out on the water, Jamie had thought he’d dwarfed the four other
surfers, but it was difficult to tell from so far away. Within shouting
distance, he was a giant—at least several inches above six feet and thickly
muscled across his smooth chest and arms. His shoulders looked big enough to
block out the setting sun, which they did when he got close enough for Jamie to
get a really good look at him.

Completely
against her will, Jamie felt her jaw drop. She’d been hoping for a harmless
flirtation with a handsome stranger, but her random surfer wasn’t a stranger at
all. The water had darkened his golden hair, and she’d had no idea his clothes
had hidden such a mouth-watering body, but there was no denying that she’d
accidentally stumbled upon her new brother-in-law’s best friend, Kevin Hall.
From what she knew of this man, he was exactly not what she was looking for. He
was the type of guy that smart women avoided like cheap shoes and discount
bikini waxes.

Kevin
had arrived late, just in time for the nuptials, and Jamie had felt his gaze on
her throughout the entire ceremony. He’d watched her unabashedly, smiling into
her eyes whenever he got the chance. There was something both thrilling and
irksome in his attentive manner. He looked at her like he owned her even before
they’d exchanged the barest of pleasantries.

On
one hand, capturing the interest of such an incredibly attractive, eligible man
was always good for the self-esteem, but on the other, she couldn’t stand it
when men assumed that she was available for whatever fantasy they had in mind
just because she’d worked at the Kitty-Kat Lounge for a few years. As a result,
Kevin’s best efforts to be charming had been met with a blank stare and outright
avoidance on her part. Now, she’d been caught staring at him—a move guaranteed
to inflate his already impressive ego.

 “Do
you surf?” Kevin asked when he reached her, his deep voice sending involuntary
shivers down her spine, making Jamie even more irritated.

“No,”
she said shortly, without any effort at an explanation. Avoiding his topaz
gaze, she began gathering up her things.

“Why
not?” He asked, hands on hips, he watched her flustered attempt to get up
without spilling her drink or losing her monstrous hat in a sudden gust of
tropical wind.

She
paused. “What do you mean, ‘Why not?’ Is it a requirement or something?” She
asked, annoyed. Staring up at him through her sunglasses, she tried not to
notice how endearing his half-grin was or the way the water molded his
knee-length black board shorts to his muscular thighs. Why was this stud-muffin
questioning her anyway? Was it any of his business what she did? Definitely
not.

“Well,
if it’s not, it should be. You should really try it out. It’s incredible. The
water feels great,” he said, giving his head a shake so glittering droplets
spread around his head like mist.

Jamie
stepped away to avoid the shower and gave an unladylike snort. “You should
know. It looked like you spent a lot more time in the water than on your
board.”

“So,
you were watching me?” He asked with a teasing grin and an arch of one golden
eyebrow. “I thought so. Did you like the view?”

“I
certainly wasn’t looking at you,” she said indignantly, mentally crossing her
fingers for the lie. “At least not how you mean. I just couldn’t help noticing
you make a fool of yourself. Honestly, it was like watching Laurel and Hardy
out there.”

Kevin’s
grin widened. “I’m pretty sure Laurel and Hardy never surfed. Probably because
they were chickens. Like you,” he challenged, crossing his arms over his
chiseled chest.

“I
am not scared,” she said evenly, ignoring her desire to punch him in the knee
for even suggesting she was cowardly. “If an overgrown oaf like you can manage
it, I’m pretty sure I can handle it, without nearly drowning myself either, I
might add.”

“Fine
then. Let’s see how you do. I’ll bet you can’t even manage to stand up on your
board. In fact, I think a little wager might make things interesting.”

“Interesting
to whom?”

“Interesting
to me, but you too. If you’re game.”

 Jamie
gave him a chilly look and held up her hand as if to push him and his
suggestion away. “As tempting as that sounds, I’m definitely not game. Not for
anything you have in mind.”

Kevin
turned the wattage on his grin up to blinding. No woman had ever resisted him
like this before. “C’mon. You’re in paradise. You should be experiencing all
the pleasures the island has to offer,” he said, allowing his eyes to wander
down to Jamie’s full pink lips.

Jamie
stared at him in disbelief, momentarily stunned by his boldness. “Ick, did you
get that off a tourist pamphlet or something? I thought you were a writer.
Couldn’t you come up with something more original than that?”

“I’m
a true crime writer, so I’m pretty sure my particular brand of communication
wouldn’t work very well in this situation, but the resort literature has got a
point.” He began counting those points off on his tan fingers. “We’re in a
strange place. We’re alone.  We’re single…what’s wrong with taking a few
chances and experiencing some new things?” He looked at her with a wide-eyed
innocent look meant to put her at ease.

Jamie
rolled her eyes so hard she thought they might just fall right out of her
skull. She took off her sunglasses to give him the full benefit of her
snapping, cinnamon-colored gaze. Bracing her hands on her hips, she glared up
at him and said in her iciest tone: “Listen, Mr. Wannabe Lothario, this whole
‘experiencing new things’ approach might work with women without a smidge of
intelligence or self-respect, but since I have both, and am not falling down
drunk or under medication, let me assure you that however attractive you think
you are, you are the only person on this beach who thinks so. Now, if you’ll
excuse me, I have some packing to do.” With that she turned away and began
stomping up the sand toward the resort in what she thought was a fairly
impressive exit, marred only by the loud smacking sound of her pink flip-flops.

Not
content to let Jessie’s feisty sister have the last word, Kevin scanned his
memory for the most obnoxious reply he could think of.

 “Wow,
that is some temper you have there,” he called to her retreating back. “No need
to check if the rug matches the drapes. You are definitely a natural redhead.”

Jamie
stopped in her tracks. He hadn’t actually said that, had he? What a complete
jerk. Turning slightly, she smiled evilly at him. “I can guarantee that you
will never, ever get the opportunity to find out for sure,” she said, raising
her chin, she strode away, giving her hips an extra eat-your-heart-out sway as
she did so.