Do Not Disturb by Stephanie Julian

Mariah. “I’m always second-best when Uncle Dane’s around.”
    Mariah plastered her tiny hands on Dane’s cheeks and gave him a big kiss, which he returned then gave her a tight squeeze.
    “I’m good with women.”
    Except Talia, apparently. But he was determined to change that.
    Next time, Talia wouldn’t be running out the door the next morning. And there would be a next time.
    ***
    “Hey, sorry I’m late. I needed to stop in the boutique to drop off a few things and then I ran into Ty and, well . . .” Kate grinned. “Yeah, sorry, I’m late.”
    Talia leaned into her chair and grinned back. “Have you two settled on a date yet?”
    Kate glanced down at the ring on her finger, her smile turning sweet. The sapphire was a Golden family heirloom that had been lost for years after being stolen. Kate and Annabelle had found the ring and the matching pin and their soul mates at the same time.
    “Nope, haven’t really talked about it lately, either. I’m not into all that pomp and circumstance, you know? When I get married, I want it to be on a beach on some tropical island.”
    Talia’s mind immediately started to dress the scene, from the hurricane glass lanterns lighting the sandy aisle to the sun setting behind the couple as they said their vows.
    “Don’t worry.” Kate’s wry tone made Talia refocus on her friend. “You’ll get to plan it out to your little heart’s content, because I sure as hell don’t want to deal with all the crap. But . . . you
will
be in my wedding. I won’t have near as many guests as Annabelle, so you will have no excuses.”
    “According to you, I won’t have to worry about that for a while. We’ll discuss it later. So, are we all set for the bachelorette party?”
    “Yep. I only had to tell Tyler we needed a few rooms at the retreat for the night and he snapped his fingers and made it happen. Gotta love a man with power. Since March is a slow month, there’ll only be a few other guests there. We’ll have a masseuse, a manicurist, and our own bartender and chef. Dating a man who has his own hotels is a definitely a plus.”
    “Guess it’s a good thing he’s good in bed, too.”
    Kate’s grin was blinding. “Oh, honey, you have no idea.”
    Not about Tyler, no. But Dane . . .
    “What’s that look for?”
    Shit. Kate was too eagle-eyed for Talia’s sanity. “What look? I don’t have a look.”
    Now Kate’s eyes widened. “Yes, you absolutely do have a look. The question is, why do you have that look?”
    Talia huffed out a sigh. “There’s no look and there’s no need for questions. So what’s on the menu for—”
    “Oh, no. No, no, no.” Kate wagged her index finger. “You’re not deflecting this time. We haven’t had much of a chance to talk lately and, lucky you, I’ve got free time on my hands today. And I feel guilty. So spill.”
    “We spent most of Saturday night together.”
    “No, actually, we didn’t.” Kate’s gaze narrowed. “But you did spend a hell of a lot of time talking to Dane.”
    And that was nothing she wanted to talk about now. “We were two of the people who weren’t in a couple so, yes, we did talk a lot. He’s a nice guy.”
    “Usually, yes. And he seemed particularly attentive to you.”
    Talia shrugged. “Like I said, only one of two single girls. And Trudeau seemed to have her hands full with Sebastian most of the night. Makes me think there’s something going on there.”
    Kate cocked her head to the side. “Good try, but I’m not taking the bait.”
    Talia had to control the urge to roll her eyes. “What bait? I was just making an observation.”
    “And I know you better than you think. Did something happen between you and Dane?”
    Why did Kate suddenly look worried? Was there something Talia didn’t know about Dane? And did it matter? She’d spent one night with him. One really good night, but it wasn’t going to happen again.
    She’d been telling herself that a lot more than she usually