She took a deep breath and let the warmth of the memory of all those generations of independent, successful businesswomen—her people—wash over her. Coming home had been the right thing to do. It was a privilege to have such a birthright, a place like this to come home to when she needed to figure things out. She was happy to have the chance to help her mother and Gigi. After all, the best way to forget her problems was to be of service to someone else.
With a renewed sense of purpose, she left the dining room on a mission to fold the linens and deliver fresh towels to the Gibbons. She didn’t get very far, because the first person she saw when she stepped out of the dining room was Daniel Quindlin.
Her heart did a sudden flip in her chest and the sensation had her hand fluttering to her throat.
He was standing in the lobby at the front desk, looking freshly showered and dressed after his run through the park. A crop of stubble had accumulated on his face, but not enough to be a beard.
Seeing him again up close made her remember that he was tall. How was it that today he seemed bigger and more menacing than she’d remembered? Maybe the sight of him there, invading her sanctuary, was making her feel fragile and vulnerable.
Well, she needed to get over it fast because she’d never considered herself breakable a single day in her life. She hadn’t broken when Roger had left her at the altar, and she didn’t intend to start now.
But Daniel loomed, dark and dangerous, like he’d come for her.
Self-preservation told her to turn around and hightail it back into the dining room, because she didn’t want to talk to him. But it was too late; he’d already seen her.
Crap. She may or may not have uttered the oath out loud. She didn’t care if she had. The only thing worse than seeing Daniel in the park this morning was getting a visit from the devil himself. He may have tried to steal her dignity, but he wasn’t going to rob her of the comfort of coming home.
Chapter Two
“It’s really you,” Daniel said.
Elizabeth Clark raised her chin in that superior good-girl way she’d perfected when they were in high school.
“Were you expecting someone else?” Elle asked.
She was still sassy. And good God almighty, she was even more gorgeous than the last time he’d seen her standing there in that big white dress after Roger Hathaway had walked away from the best thing that would happen to his sorry life.
Since he’d seen her on the balcony, looking sexy and sleep rumpled, Elle had tamed her long blond hair back into a ponytail. That sweater she wore touched every curve in just the right place and made him wish he could, too.
“I was expecting you,” he said. “I saw you this morning. I thought you waved at me.”
She squinted at him and her nostrils flared, as if she smelled something as she looked down her perfect little nose at him. Her attitude made him want her more.
“I didn’t realize you were in town until I saw you this morning up there on your balcony looking like Juliet.” Since she was already rolling her eyes, he stopped himself before he offered to stand in as her Romeo. Besides, Romeo and Juliet died. Clearly, they weren’t good for each other. “Don’t you live in Atlanta now?”
“I didn’t realize you were keeping track of me, Daniel.”
“Don’t worry, I’m not.”
He smiled at her. She didn’t smile back, but her cheeks turned a pretty shade of pink that matched her sweater.
“You just happen to know I’m living in Atlanta, but you’re not keeping track. I see.” She crossed her arms and a dainty hint of cleavage winked at him. He locked gazes with her to force his eyes to stay in respectable territory.
“I have no idea what you’ve been up to these days,” she added. “I didn’t know that you were back in town.”
Her tone suggested she didn’t care what he’d been up to or when he’d gotten back into town. He hadn’t left Savannah under the best circumstances. And then there was the wedding-day incident, which she’d made perfectly clear she blamed on him. It was no wonder that she was surprised to see him. He’d always prided himself on bringing the element of surprise.