The Man I Want to Be Read online

  “Kenna,” Bryan said, dipping his chin to search her eyes. “Do you understand?”

  She swallowed. “Yes.”

  “And if anything seems out of sorts, I want you to scream as loud as you possibly can and run, okay?”

  She shivered a little at his direct tone and the meaning of his words. “O-okay.”

  He marched into the room, letting the door slam behind him, leaving her standing alone in the hallway. She glanced to her left at the line of tan carpet and white walls with coral doors. To her right was another row of painted doors leading in the direction of the elevators, which she could hear dinging every few moments. A woman in her mid-twenties in a short black dress and heels walked with a man Kenna assumed was her boyfriend. They held hands, laughing, greeting Kenna on their way to a room a few doors down. The guy had an arm around the woman’s waist, snuggling his nose into her neck as she fished her room key out of her bag. Once their door opened, they disappeared inside, and silence overtook the hallway.

  A few more silent moments passed, and Kenna’s heart rate sped up. The longer she stood there, the longer her imagination ran wild. Bear could be dangling from the balcony while a bunch of gangsters stood watching. Or worse, they could have thrown him off by now.

  It also occurred to her that if the suspect did come back to her room, and wasn’t in there yet, she was a sitting duck in the hallway by herself.

  Screw this.

  She quickly reinserted the key into the lock and reached for the handle. Before she got the door open, it swung open, and Bryan appeared.

  “Thought I told you to wait out here for me,” he said.

  She breathed a sigh of relief. “You’re okay.”

  “Of course I’m okay. What did you think was gonna happen?”

  “Honestly? I thought gangsters might have thrown you off the balcony by now.”

  An amused grin lit his face. “Gangsters?”

  She shrugged. “Who knows what’s lurking around here.”

  “I can say for damn sure if it was a bunch of gangsters, I would’ve taken care of them.”

  “Not if they outnumbered you.”

  “Especially if they outnumbered me.” His eyes sparkled, and his grin broadened. He was enjoying this. “It’s all clear. Come on in.” He held the door open so she could enter.

  She moved to the middle of the room and peered around. “You’re sure you didn’t miss a spot?”

  He was behind her, his breath dancing across her bare shoulder. “I never miss a spot. I’m very thorough.”

  The implication was clear enough, but a traitorous thrill ran through her nonetheless. There was a time when he’d known all of her spots. Even ones she wasn’t aware of.

  As Kenna turned around to face him, nerves washed over her. “You’re sure?”

  Taking in her worried look, he clasped her face in his large, warm palms. “You’re safe, Kenna. I promise.”

  She nodded but didn’t feel reassured. How did the thief get into her room? Did he have a key? Had he broken in? Her lock didn’t look like it had been tampered with.

  So how?

  Before she could voice those concerns, Bryan was already walking to the door. She heard the click of the dead bolt being fastened. “I’ll stay with you tonight.”

  “Wait, what?” she shrieked. “That’s not… I didn’t mean… You can’t.”

  “I can. And I am.” He strode past her toward the bed, reaching to his back to pull his shirt over his head. He tossed it on the nearby chair, slipped out of his boots, and dropped his shorts to the ground like it was normal. He stood in tightly fitting boxer briefs—God help her, she definitely looked—as he turned the blankets down on the side of the bed by the balcony.

  “That’s my side,” she said.

  Yeah, ’cause that was her biggest problem at the moment.

  Grinning, Bear rolled so he landed on the other side, the one closest to the door. He fluffed the pillow under his head and closed his eyes. “Night, night, Kenna.”

  She stood staring at the man whom she hadn’t seen for more than a decade making himself at home in her bed. Like he belonged there. In his underwear, no less.

  How had she gotten here? And how was she going to survive if he planned to make this a nightly routine until they found her mom’s ring?

  As those thoughts processed, there was one very important thought that came to mind as she shed her own shoes and dress.

  He’d distracted her from the events of the last few hours. He was protecting her, even though it wasn’t his job anymore.

  She wasn’t sure what to make of that.

  Chapter Five

  She was a terrible friend. But really, Kenna had more important things to do than meet the rest of the wedding guests for a rowing competition. First, her arm strength was abysmal, so she wouldn’t be much help anyway. More pressing, she had a thief to track down. She’d beg for Sam’s forgiveness later.

  When she’d woken up, she rolled over expecting to see Bear still snoozing away in her bed, but he wasn’t. In fact, there wasn’t any trace of him in her room at all. The sheets had been pulled up on his side, and his items weren’t on the chair. She’d had a slight flash of disappointment and then reminded herself what she should be focusing on.

  Her mom’s ring.

  Kenna pulled the ball cap she’d purchased in the gift store lower on her forehead and kept her face toward the marble floor of the elevator as she rode it down to the main level. When it dinged and then the doors opened, she slipped out and quickly glanced into the lobby for anyone who might foil her plans. Not spotting anyone she recognized, she headed straight for a courteous looking man with kind brown eyes, dark hair, and a white hotel uniform typing on a computer at the front desk.

  “Excuse me,” she said, keeping her voice intentionally sweet.

  He looked up with a smile. “Yes, ma’am, what can I do for you?”

  “Hi, I’m Kenna. I’m a guest here.” She read the name on his badge. “Davis? I was hoping you could help me locate another guest.”

  His expression turned weary, making her nerves ramp up.

  He opened his mouth like he was going to rebut, so she jumped back in. “Average height, dark hair, thin build. He wears T-shirts and shorts. We had the most fantastic night last night on the beach together, and he didn’t even give me his name. I was hoping to be able to repay him for such a wonderful night last night. If you know what I mean.” She winked for good measure. “Anyone you can recall here fits that description?”

  “As a matter of fact, yes,” Davis said.

  “Yes?” she said, her voice a little too excited. Ha! Take that, Hawaii Five-O. She could have this case solved in less than twenty-four hours. “Who? Do you have a name?”

  Davis swung his arm out in a wide arc. “Take your pick. About a quarter of our guests are average height, with dark hair, and thin build. I even spotted some of them wearing shorts. I bet your one-night stand is out there somewhere. Happy hunting.” He lowered his attention back to the screen in front of him.

  Gee, thanks.

  She gave him a half-hearted laugh. “Okay, fine. It wasn’t a one-night stand. I’m actually looking for someone who I think might have broken into my hotel room and taken something very important to me.” A flash of interest passed Davis’s face, so she took that as her opening to keep going. “It was a ring that belonged to my mother. She died, and it’s the only thing I have left to remember her by.”

  The man’s expression softened, but his words didn’t. “We take security at this hotel very seriously, miss. If you’d like to make a claim that your hotel room was indeed broken into, I’ll need to call my security manager so you can give him an official statement. They’ll take a report and investigate further.”

  “Very well,” she said. The more people looking for this guy, the better.

  Davis typed a few things into his computer, moved the mouse around, then said, “Your room number?”

  “550.”
/>   Three clicks, then he paused to regard the screen with interest. “Hmm.”

  “What?” she asked. “What is it?”

  “There’s already a claim in the system.”

  “How? Who filed it?” Though she already had her suspicions. Talking to hotel security was the next logical step. Obviously Bear beat her to it this morning.

  “I’m not at liberty to say,” he said. “If you’ll wait just a moment while I call security. I’m sure they’ll be interested in getting your perspective.”

  After a few minutes of Kenna tapping her sandals on the glossy tile floor, and a few annoyed glances from Davis, a tall, dark-skinned man in his thirties walked toward her. He introduced himself with a slightly accented voice as Kilos, the hotel’s assistant security manager.

  He gestured to a small office behind the front desk with a two-way mirror that looked out on the lobby. Once inside, she took a seat in a worn leather chair across from his desk and gave her account of what her ring looked like and what the man she spotted leaving looked like. The interlude lasted a lot shorter than she’d expected. It wasn’t long before Kilos escorted her back to the lobby.

  “Thanks for your time. We’ll be in touch.” He held out his hand. “If you think of anything else, please let us know.”

  She didn’t shake his hand. Not yet. “You guys have cameras all around, so that means you’ve got security footage you’re going to review, right?”

  “We do,” Kilos said.

  “Great, can I take a look?” Hopefully their cameras caught the thief’s face.

  Kilos’s thin lips spread into a conciliatory smile, giving way to straight white teeth. “I’m sorry, Ms. McCord, I won’t be able to do that. Hotel policy.”

  “I really need to find the man,” she pleaded, her emotions getting the best of her.

  He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “Don’t worry. We have a great relationship with the local authorities. We’ll handle it from here. You have my word.”

  The rational part of her was relieved. Security had been alerted, and they were on it. But the irrational part of her didn’t want to accept that. The controlling part of her brain needed to do something. Since she was the only person she could depend on.

  “Please,” she said. “Is there anything you can recommend? Anything at all?”

  Her expression must have been pleading enough, because his shoulders dropped on a sigh. “You could talk with the gentleman over there.” He pointed toward the entry of the hotel.

  She turned to glance toward the wide lobby with marble floors, lofty ceilings, and dark-oiled chandeliers.

  Then she spotted him.

  Bear.

  He leaned against a tall, white pillar with one untied combat boot crossed over the other, reviewing papers. He wore a heather-gray T-shirt and cargo shorts with a baseball hat and wide-rimmed sunglasses. He looked very badass and very sexy.

  Ugh, she hated herself right now.

  She kept her attention on Bear but addressed Kilos. “Why should I talk to him?”

  “Because he asked for the same information about ten minutes before you did.”

  She jerked a look back at Kilos. “You showed him the video?”

  With a guarded expression, he said, “Not yet.”

  Not yet. But he would. “What part of the hotel policy allows you to show it to him and not me?”

  Kilos gestured with his chin at Bear. “That gentleman had a valid reason.”

  “Which was?” Her annoyance and excitement at odds with each other.

  She kept her attention on Bear, and seeming to sense her stare, he looked up. Their gazes connected. Bryan took in where she stood, whom she was talking with, and he smirked. Proud and shit-eating. Then he lifted the hem of his shirt where a shiny silver badge was clipped to the waistband of his shorts. Motioning to it, he mouthed, Got one of these?

  “That,” Kilos said behind her.

  Bryan laughed, then exited the hotel, the turn-style door spinning as he went.

  Kenna cut across the lobby, dodging luggage carts, families checking in with young children and dogs, and one disgruntled older man who claimed he missed his golf game after the hotel purposefully gave him a faulty cart because his wife told them to. She had one objective in mind. Convince Bear to take her along when he looked at that video.

  She headed straight for the regular push door. Pressing her hands against the glass, she thrust herself outside. Bear wouldn’t be difficult to find, given his overly tall and wide frame. Throwing a glance to her right, all she spotted were luxury vehicles, an empty bellhop station, and a few golf carts. To her left was the stone walkway that she’d used to get to the beach last night, a fountain with an intricate water feature, and a row of palm trees that led to the pool. But no Bear.

  Damn it. How did he disappear that quick?

  She dropped onto the side of the marble fountain and huffed out a breath. Okay, regroup. He could hide all he wanted, but she’d corner him later today at one of the wedding festivities. For now, she needed to do something to help her cause.

  Scanning her surroundings, she thought about the thief and what he would want with the ring. Why he would want it.

  He couldn’t do anything until he got off this island…

  Her eyes focused on the small sign pointing toward the ferry, and she rose to her feet. The ferry was the only way to leave.

  It was about ninety degrees at eight thirty in the morning. As she started down the stone walkway, her flip-flops snapping against the bottom of her feet, sweat dripped down the center of her back. Her lungs burned from the exertion, but instead of cursing herself, this time she used the uncomfortable sensation to fuel her. She let her adrenaline take over and propel her faster. She prayed whoever had taken her ring hadn’t left the island yet.

  The hot summer sun pierced the crystal-blue ocean water, casting a reflection like diamonds. The water was peaceful, as was this part of the beach. Serene. No boats coming in or going out. Beautiful boats of all sizes were docked around the area, waiting for their owners to return and take them out for a ride.

  Kenna approached the end of the pier where a small white hut sat with a poster of the ferry cost and schedule. She scanned the schedule for today. The first one was due to leave in thirty minutes.

  A twentysomething guy with shaggy blond hair lounged in a chair inside with his bare feet kicked up on the table in front of him, head dropped back, and eyes closed.

  “Excuse me,” she said through the open window.

  No response.

  “Yoo-hoo,” she said.

  Nothing.

  She pounded on the side of the building.

  The young man jolted forward, bare feet smacking the ground, and looked around as if he expected a sequence of depth charges to detonate on the pier. Once he realized he wasn’t in immediate danger, he took a deep breath, adjusted himself properly in his seat, and looked at her.

  A long, slow smile crept across his face. “Hey, babe. How can I help you?”

  Babe?

  “I’m assuming you work here at…” She drew back to read the sign across the top of the building. “The Bay Bee.”

  “That’s right.” He leaned an arm on the table in front of him. “You need a private, one-on-one tour out on the open sea?” His eyebrows wagged up and down.

  Might as well go for it. It was the only thing she had going for her at the moment. “Well, that depends.”

  He blinked a few times, obviously not expecting his crude tactic to work. “On?”

  “On how helpful you are.”

  “Babe, I can be as useful as you need.”

  Of course he could. “What’s your name?”

  “Finn.”

  “Well, Finn, I need to know how important you are.”

  He looked at her like he didn’t understand her statement.

  “I need a favor,” she clarified. “And I need to know if you’re the guy to do it.”

  “I can handle anythin
g you need me to,” he said, and she got the sense they were talking about two very different things. “I’m the boss. For today at least.” He said the last sentence out of the corner of his mouth, which didn’t give her much confidence in the plan.

  She eyed him a moment. His white T-shirt with a large blue marlin on the front pocket of his chest, his board shorts, and tanned skin. “Okay, Finn. I’m looking for a man.” He grunted at that. “Because he stole something from me.”

  Finn’s posture immediately tensed. “What did he take?”

  “A ring. It means a lot to me. I need to get it back.”

  Finn’s eyes were intent, direct. “What do you need me to do?”

  “Has anyone left the island in the last twenty-four hours?”

  He reached to his right for a clipboard. Flipping the pages up, he read through what she assumed was a log of passengers. “Looks like Jake took a family of five to the mainland last night around eight. Nothing else since then.”

  “Do you have anyone signed up for today?”

  He shook his head. “Not yet. Why?”

  “I think the guy who took my ring is going to try to get off the island quickly. I need to stop him.”

  “What can I do to help?”

  “If a man with dark hair and lean build wants a ride back to the mainland, I need you to delay him. Here’s my cell phone number. Call me, please.” She reached for the pen on the counter and wrote her number on one of the brochures.

  Nodding, Finn said, “Will do. And I’ll alert Jake, too. He’s coming in around three to work the night shift. You can count on us.”

  “I really appreciate it,” she said.

  On her way back up the path, walking at a much more leisurely pace this time, something caught her attention. Movement to her right. It had dark hair, and from the looks of him, he was lean. Could be the thief! When that realization registered, a zing raced through her and she kicked into a trot.

  She trailed him, leaving a few feet between them so he wouldn’t get suspicious. From the back, she couldn’t tell if he was the man she’d seen. He wore salmon-colored shorts and a white polo shirt with brown leather shoes. He was heading in the direction of the resort at a semi-rushed pace. Kenna picked up her speed to keep up with him.