Chapter Two

Sara awoke instantly aware of two things; she had no clothes on and there was an arm draped across her stomach that did not belong to her. As the cobwebs of sleep cleared from her mind, bits and pieces from the night before came trickling back into her consciousness.

After the ceremony, everyone had gathered for dinner and dancing. At some point, everyone but she and Christopher disappeared from the romantic poolside setting and she had yet another cosmo, her fourth of the night. Normally she stopped after two. She could only remember one occasion when she’d consumed three, and she didn’t know why she had so many the night before.

After the drink, they’d kissed. At first the kiss had been gentle, but it’d changed as desire and longing surged through her veins. It’d been more than two years since a man kissed her. Without any warning, her body instantly responded. Soon she and Christopher were holding onto each other for dear life as they made their way to his room.

Not once had she paused to think about what she was doing. She’d let him take her dress off without any protest. Heat burned Sara’s face as she remembered helping him remove an article or two of his clothing.

Groaning at the memory, she squeezed her eyes shut. Maybe if she didn’t open them all, these memories would turn out to be just part of a dream. A very nice dream, but one she didn’t want to be real. One that for both their sakes couldn’t be real. Maybe the weight on her stomach was a figment of her imagination.

Sara shifted her leg a little, and the crisp hairs brushing against her skin dashed away any hope that she was still dreaming. Taking in a deep breath, Sara slowly exhaled then opened her eyes.

Something between a groan and a laugh bubbled up and out of her when her eyes settled on Christopher’s face. His eyes were still closed and his breathing remained even, as if he didn’t have a care in the world.

Hell, what was I thinking? She’d never in her life had a one-night stand. Not to mention, this was her brother’s best friend. How was she ever going to face Christopher after this? What about her brother? She’d die if Jake ever found out she’d slept with Christopher.

Could she sneak out before he woke up? While it might not solve the overall problem at hand, at least she wouldn’t have to face him naked the minute he woke up.

In an effort not to disturb him, Sara slid toward the edge of the bed, all the while keeping her eyes locked on his face.

Almost there. Another moment or two and she’d be home free.

Christopher’s arm slipped off her stomach and hit the mattress. With one leg over the side of the bed, she sat up, prepared to grab her dress and yank it on.

“Sara?” Christopher sounded as confused as she’d been a moment ago.

Darn it. With her dress out of reach, Sara yanked the sheet around her. Considering the circumstances, a sheet was better than nothing.

An eternity of heavy silence hung in the air between them. “I… we… uh… should talk,” Christopher said.

The mattress shifted, and she knew without looking he’d pulled himself into a sitting position.

“I’m… I didn’t intend for this to happen,” he continued, his tone apologetic.

He took hold of her hand, and the heat already burning her face flooded her body. Unable to look at him, she nodded, not sure whether to tell him she understood or tell him it was okay. At the moment, a whole plethora of perplexing emotions churned inside her, and she didn’t want to voice any of them.

“Sara?”

Since she couldn’t undo the events from the night before, she had to face them.

“We’re both adults. Last night happened. No big deal.” Sara struggled to keep her voice sounding nonchalant. “Trust me, things like this happen all the time. I don’t even know how many times it happened during the eighteen months I worked on the senator’s campaign,” she said matter-of-factly.

Just not to me.

“People get lonely, and when they do, they look for companionship.” Did her argument sound better to him than it did to her? She hoped so.

“Still it shouldn’t have happened. I’m sorry.”

She saw worry and guilt in his eyes when she looked over at him. Placing a hand on his bare shoulder, she leaned a little closer. “You have nothing to apologize for, okay? Let’s pretend it never happened.”

Could she do that? Saying the words was one thing, carrying them out another.

“I should go before anyone gets up and sees me leaving.” Sara dropped her hand. The way she saw it, if she left now, she had more than a fifty-fifty chance of getting back to her room unseen by either of her brothers. “If it’s all the same to you, I’d rather keep this a secret between us.”

Sara knew she didn’t imagine the look of relief that washed across his face.

“You read my mind. Jake would kill me if he found out,” Christopher answered, his face devoid of any humor. In one fluid movement, he swung his legs over the side of the bed. “Go ahead and get dressed. I promise not to look.”

She glanced once at his bare back. The night before, she hadn’t seen any of it, but her hands had roamed across every inch. In the morning light, she could see the muscles her hands had traced the night before, and immediately her hands tingled, wanting to do so again. Bad idea. Very bad idea.

Before she gave in to her hands’ desire, she jumped off the bed and snatched up her dress. In record time, she pulled it over her head and zipped it up. While her first instinct was to fly out the bedroom door, she paused long enough to open it and peek into the hall. From here anyway, the coast appeared clear.

Please let me make it to my room. “I’ll see you later,” she said without looking back at Christopher. Sara didn’t stick around for his reply either. Slipping into the hall, she closed the door gently behind her.

So far so good. Sara walked down the hall toward the empty living room. The curtains covering the windows and French doors remained closed, hinting at the fact no one else was up yet. As she crossed the living room toward the hall leading to her room, she held her breath. Just a few more steps and their secret would be safe. No one would ever know.

Feeling a bit like a criminal sneaking into somewhere she didn’t belong, Sara walked into her room and closed the door. Exhaling the breath she’d been holding, she leaned back against the bedroom door. Made it. Our secret’s safe.

Two hours later, Sara stood at her bathroom sink. Someone was up, she’d heard voices earlier, but so far she’d remained locked in her room. How could she ever face Christopher again? Or Jake? Yeah, sure Jake knew she wasn’t a virgin, but that didn’t mean he wanted her sleeping with his best friend either.

And she didn’t want to consider how Christopher must see her now. What kind of woman had a one-night stand with her brother’s best friend? Certainly, not someone like her. Well, at least not before last night. Somehow though, she hadn’t been able to stop herself. For more than two years, she’d stayed clear of men, content with building a name for herself in politics. Then in a matter of hours, she’d gone from simply dancing to waking up next to a complete stranger, naked.

“Okay, maybe not a complete stranger,” she said to the mirror. Still, they didn’t know each other well. Prior to this weekend, she couldn’t even remember the last time they’d seen each other.

I cannot stay in here all day. Even if she didn’t come out for any other reason, at some point she needed to eat. At the thought of food, her stomach rumbled. Come on. You’re a Sherbrooke. Sherbrookes don’t hide. Get your butt out there.

After one last glance in the mirror, Sara marched out into the living room only to find it empty. The sound of movement in the kitchen though told her someone else was up.

The barest hint of cinnamon mixed with the aroma of coffee tickled her nose when she walked into the fully functional kitchen where Maureen O’Brien sat with a steaming coffee mug in front of her.

“You must have stayed up late last night,” Maureen said after greeting her. “I just finished breakfast, but I can make you something. Dylan and Christopher ate all the French toast I made, but I can make more if you want.”

Before she could stop herself, Sara looked around again for either of the two men. “Where is everyone?” she asked, even though she only cared about the current location of one particular individual.

“Dylan and Callie went to the beach. Christopher left for the airport about an hour ago. Jake and Charlie are still not up.”

Jake and Charlie were still in bed, no big surprise there. They’d gotten married yesterday. As for Dylan and Callie, it made sense they’d gone to the beach. Both enjoyed it, but didn’t get there often, living in the city. Christopher’s departure though seemed odd. It didn’t seem like him to leave so abruptly. Then again, what did she know? With the exception of the previous night’s activities, she’d never spent more than an hour with him at a time.

“Don’t worry about it, Maureen. I’ll call for something.” While the penthouse apartment in the hotel had a complete kitchen, it also had full access to the hotel’s amenities, which included two five-star restaurants.

“Sara, that’s silly. Let me make you something,” Maureen said, waving her hand for added emphasis. “It won’t take me long.”

The French toast and coffee from earlier did smell delicious, and Jake had told her what an excellent cook Maureen was. “If you really don’t mind, some French toast would be great.”

As Maureen cooked, she chatted away about the wedding the day before and Hawaii in general. Sara was grateful Jake’s mother-in-law didn’t mind that she did little more than nod in agreement. At the moment, she couldn’t handle an in-depth conversation with anyone. All her thoughts remained centered on the previous night’s events. The fact that she’d slept with Christopher seemed like a dream or a scene out of a movie. She’d avoided men for two years, yet after a few drinks and a single kiss, she’d lost all of her common sense and her clothes. How was she going to face her brother? No matter what, she couldn’t let Jake find out. Who knew how it might affect his friendship with Christopher?

“I wish they’d invited your parents,” Maureen said. She placed a plate piled high with slices of French toast in front of her. “They should’ve been here.” Maureen sat down across from her with a fresh mug of coffee. “Your mom will be heartbroken. I know I would be in her shoes.”

Sara nodded in agreement and reached for the coconut syrup, a sweet treat she indulged in whenever she visited the area. Heartbroken wasn’t the only adjective that came to mind when she considered Mom’s reaction to the news. Furious also ranked up there too. Dad wouldn’t be pleased either, but he would understand far better than their mother.

“I’m glad I’m not the one who has to tell them,” Sara said.

“Tell who what?” Jake asked, walking toward the table. “Is that French toast I smell?”

The hunger she’d felt a few seconds earlier disappeared at the sound of Jake’s voice.

“Tell Mom and Dad you and Charlie got married yesterday.” She kept her eyes on her breakfast when she answered. If she looked at her brother now, she feared he’d know something wasn’t right. While he’d never guess the true cause of her unease, he’d hound her until he got the information from her.

“They’ll understand eventually.” He took a seat across from her. “Where is everyone else?”

“Callie and Dylan headed to the beach, and your friend Christopher left for the airport after breakfast,” Maureen answered, placing another plate piled high with slices of French toast on the table.

“Left? Wonder why? I figured he’d stick around for the weekend.” Jake dug into his breakfast with gusto.

Sara kept her eyes down. “Probably business. You didn’t exactly give anyone time to plan for being away from work.”

“Sometimes it’s fun to be spontaneous, Sara. Admit it, even you had fun yesterday.”

A flicker of apprehension coursed through her as the memories from the night before blossomed in her mind. He doesn’t know what happened. “I guess. Maybe a little.”

She popped a piece of French toast in her mouth and hoped Jake changed the subject. She didn’t want to discuss the events of last night with anyone, ever.

“Do you plan on staying a few days or are you leaving today too?” Jake asked between forkfuls of his breakfast.

“Not sure.” She hadn’t considered exactly how long she’d stayed. “But I might fly back to D.C. tonight.” The sooner she got home and away from Jake the better.

Sara finished a portion of her breakfast and then stood. “Maureen, that was delicious, but I cannot eat another bite.” She picked up her plate, prepared to carry it into the kitchen.

“I’ll finish it up for you.”

Sara shook her head. She didn’t know where Jake put it all. “It’s all yours.” She passed the plate to him. “I’m going to read my e-mails.”

When she re-entered her room, the beeping cell phone on the desk greeted her. Picking it up, she saw one text message from a number she didn’t recognize.

Thought you’d be more comfortable if I wasn’t around when you got up, the message read.

An emotion she couldn’t identified washed over her, and she hit delete. No one could ever see that message.