Page 62 of Here & Now

“You’re welcome to leave,” Bree hissed.

“Gladly.”

Still seething, Bree followed Kayla to the door, just for the satisfaction of slamming it behind her. However, when Kayla opened it, Zane was standing there.

He took one look at them, and his brow furrowed. “Ladies, is everything okay?”

“No, it’s not okay,” Kayla snarled. “Your friend insulted me when I was just trying to do my job.” Without waiting for his response, she stomped off in her high heels, slid into her fancy convertible, and sped off.

He frowned at Bree, but she refused to meet his eyes. “Do me a favor?” she said. “DON’T do me any more favors!” She was just about to slam the door when he pressed his hand against it.

Physically, she was no match for him, but she had healthy lungs. “GET OUT!”

He stared at her and shook his head. “Not until you tell me what the hell happened.”

“I don’t owe you an explanation. I don’t owe you anything.”

“I never said you owed me anything, but I sent Kayla here, so I’d like to know what happened.”

“GAH!” She stomped into the living room and paced while he came in and shut the door. He joined her in the living room but wisely stayed back and gave her some space.

Finally, she stopped pacing and faced him. “You sabotaged me.”

“I did what?”

“You heard me.”

“How did I sabotage you?”

“Miss Fancy Pants came up with a list price for the house without ever seeing it.”

“It’s her business to know what homes around here are selling for.”

“Of course you’re defending her. You probably slept with her, along with every other woman on this island!”

He stiffened. For the first time since he’d shown up, he looked angry. “Not that it’s any of your business, but I did NOT sleep with her.”

She glared at him. “Maybe not, but you wanted to.”

His jaw clenched. “You have no idea what I want.”

“Well, guess what? It doesn’t matter, because we’re done here.”

“Done with what? You still haven’t told me what I did wrong.”

“From now on, stay out of my business. We’re just neighbors, and I don’t need your help. Is that understood?”

A wide range of emotions crossed his face, including anger and disappointment. Finally, he said, “Understood.” Then he calmly turned and walked out, closing the door firmly behind him.

Silence descended upon her, and the weight of it was more than she could bear. She slumped to the floor and hugged her knees to her chest. She thought she might cry, but she was too exhausted for tears. Instead, she sat there, staring into space and trying to make sense of things.

The bottom line was she’d trusted him and he’d violated it. She should never have let her guard down. If she hadn’t, this wouldn’t have happened. She’d started falling for his charms, just like every other woman on this island, and it had backfired on her.

After meeting Kayla, Bree was convinced he’d been trying to do himself a favor more than her. He probably wanted to get up Kayla’s pencil skirt, and that was why he’d recommended her. She wasn’t sure whom she was angrier at, him or herself, for getting involved with him in the first place.

She heaved a sigh. With him out of the way, she could focus on what she’d come here to do. As for Kayla, there were dozens of real estate agents she could contact, and none of them had to come from his list.

Yesterday, while she’d been out to breakfast with Zane, Scott Duggan had left her a message apologizing for not getting back to her sooner. She’d decided to meet with Kayla before returning his call, but now was as good a time to see him as any. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed his number.