Magnolia Bride. Tara Randel

Dane never understood. Better to focus on being successful, at least in business. It might be lonely at times, but he already had one strike against him with the annulment. Between ending the marriage to Nealy and witnessing the disaster of his parents’ marriage, he’d sworn off the institution. Why risk making another mistake?

      But when Nealy walked back into his life, he sensed the emptiness starting to shift. Having put the past behind him, he hadn’t expected his emotions to get all tangled up again. Since he knew she was coming to help Juliet, he’d anticipated an awkward first meeting. One look at her as she strode into the lobby, and a hard knot formed in his throat. Then she bumped into him and everything faded away as his attention narrowed to one thing: the love he’d lost when trying to make things right.

      He locked those thoughts away as he arrived in the lobby, satisfied to find it filled with the Friday-night crowd. The main restaurant, The Rendezvous, specializing in fine cuisine, along with the more casual outdoor Sand Bar Cafe, did a brisk business. His initial profit margin for the hotel proved better than projected, a very important factor in his bid to make the Grand Cypress a destination hotel.

      This property had become more than a rehab project to him. When he came back to Cypress Pointe and looked at the run-down hotel after his uncle proposed the purchase, he suddenly discovered two personal reasons for making the Grand Cypress the most successful hotel in the Peterson Holding Group.

      First, he needed to prove to others he could make sound, rational decisions based on fact, not emotion, after the impulsive marriage and subsequent annulment twelve years ago.

      And second, he needed to prove to himself he was nothing like his deadbeat dad. Dane worked hard for what he now had in his life, no thanks to a father who cared more about pleasing his unhappy wife at the expense of Dane and his brother, Alex. His father never supported Dane, but never hesitated to call when he needed something or show up on Dane’s doorstep when his life was sinking. Guilty of always continuing to help the old man had made Dane jaded about love and having a happily-ever-after.

      So his goal was to make the Grand Cypress Hotel the place to be seen in Florida. After Juliet’s much-touted engagement parties, along with the senator’s connections, he hoped booking future events would allow him to build a small empire here in Cypress Pointe. But the weekend was far from over and he needed to be on his game.

      He’d just checked in with the manager on duty when the Grainger clan appeared for the smaller toned-down celebration. At the tail end of the group, Nealy swept into the foyer, a wide smile on her lips, her brown eyes shining. She’d pulled her hair back in a sleek, fancy ponytail. Absolutely beautiful, she was wearing a sleeveless magenta dress and glittery black high heels.

      As she passed, she caught his eye and nodded curtly. His grin spread into a full-blown smile and she stumbled in reaction. He strode to her side, taking her arm to steady her.

      “Hang on there.”

      “The, um, floor is a little slick.”

      “Right.” He should let go of her arm, but the softness of her skin mesmerized him. The familiar peach scent intoxicated him. He couldn’t drag his gaze away from her flushed face.

      She cleared her throat.

      Dane reluctantly removed his hand and asked, “How is Juliet doing?”

      “Nervous. Obsessing.” Nealy’s brow knitted in concern. “Can I ask you a question?”

      Surprised Nealy would ask him anything, Dane schooled his expression. “Sure.”

      “Has Juliet seemed off to you?”

      “I haven’t seen her much. She spent most of her time with my former event coordinator.”

      “Right.” Nealy’s cheeks turned a becoming shade of pink. “When you did see her, was she acting strangely?”

      “Maybe she’s just preoccupied with all the preparations.”

      Nealy shook her head. Under the chandelier light, the diamonds in her ears flashed, just like her eyes.

      “It’s more. I know my sister. Something is up with her. More than the normal type of jitters.”

      “Your mother’s been making her a little uptight. Standard operating procedure.”

      “What about Brandon?”

      “What about him?”

      “How does he seem? Like an okay guy? Even though I spoke to him last night, I couldn’t get a sense of who he is. Has he been helping Juliet with the party plans?”

      “The only time I see him is at his regular tennis court time on Tuesdays, here at the hotel.”

      Nealy tapped her foot, a contemplative look in her eyes.

      “What?”

      Her gaze darted to him. She parted her luscious lips to say something, but then stopped.

      “Nealy...” Dane coaxed.

      “I’m getting a bad feeling.”

      His mouth curved into a wry smile. “Since you’ve been in town all of three days?”

      “Last night she broke into tears and I got the impression she was having second thoughts. I don’t want my sister doing something she’ll regret.”

      She started to move away, but Dane blocked her escape. She looked at him, eyebrows raised.

      “Are you sure you want to make waves?” he asked.

      “I need to make sure my sister isn’t making a mistake.”

      “She’s a smart woman. She can make her own choices.”

      “She needs to be one hundred percent sure of what she’s getting into.”

      He ground his molars together at the obvious dig. “Unlike us?”

      “I didn’t say that.”

      “Nealy, I regret how things ended. You’ll never know how much.”

      Nealy’s rigid posture softened and turmoil eclipsed her dark eyes. “This weekend is about Juliet, not you, not me, not what we had,” she said with a shaky voice, as if not believing for a second seeing each other again wasn’t an issue. Her obvious struggle to keep him at bay had him hoping the aloof veneer she’d adopted could be cracked.

      In this instant he suddenly realized how much he wanted her forgiveness. Needed her to say the words out loud.

      “Dane, I have to go.” She eased around him and with a determined stride continued across the foyer, disappearing into the fray of family and close friends.

      * * *

      BEFORE LONG THE GUESTS were mingling and wishing the engaged couple the best. Nealy tried everything to get her sister alone, but people interrupted or Juliet sent Nealy off on errands. Obviously Juliet didn’t want to talk to her. At one point, she’d spied Juliet by the pool, having what looked like a heated conversation with a man she’d seen working in the hotel’s garden the day she arrived. Strange. After that, her sister flit between family and friends, but Nealy kept an eye on her.

      A light breeze picked up, carrying the briny scent of the gulf waters with it. The extreme heat of the day had passed, leaving the evening cool as the sun began its descent in the cloudless sky. As soon as Nealy could, she corralled her sister.

      “Juliet, what’s going on?” Nealy whispered, hoping no one overheard.

      “I’m fine,” she snapped. “Go have fun.”

      Okay, this was the last straw. Worried about her normally docile sister’s sharp response, Nealy started to press Juliet when Brandon, standing in the middle of the outdoor dance floor, asked the group to quiet down while motioning for Juliet to join him. With a smile pasted on her lips, Juliet approached her future husband.

      “Tonight we celebrate Juliet saying yes to my proposal.