Jules Bennett - California Secrets

Will he still love her every touch...

when he finds out who she really is?

For years, Ethan Michaels has plotted to reclaim the resort his mother founded. His plan never included a lover...or a pregnancy. But his desire-fueled fling with smart, stunning Harper Williams results in just that. Now he’s getting used to the idea of a baby...until he finds out Harper’s father is the very man who stole everything from him years ago.

USA TODAY bestselling author JULES BENNETThas published over sixty books and never tires of writing happy endings. Writing strong heroines and alpha heroes is Jules’s favourite way to spend her workdays. Jules hosts weekly contests on her Facebook fan page and loves chatting with readers on Twitter, Facebookand via email through her website. Stay up-to-date by signing up for her newsletter at julesbennett.com.

Also by Jules Bennett

Twin Secrets

Claimed by the Rancher

Taming the Texan

A Texan for Christmas

Married in Name Only Montana

Seduction

Best Man Under the Mistletoe

The Heir’s Unexpected Baby

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk

California Secrets

Jules Bennett

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-474-09264-7

CALIFORNIA SECRETS

© 2019 Jules Bennett

Published in Great Britain 2019

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

By payment of the required fees, you are granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right and licence to download and install this e-book on your personal computer, tablet computer, smart phone or other electronic reading device only (each a “Licensed Device”) and to access, display and read the text of this e-book on-screen on your Licensed Device. Except to the extent any of these acts shall be permitted pursuant to any mandatory provision of applicable law but no further, no part of this e-book or its text or images may be reproduced, transmitted, distributed, translated, converted or adapted for use on another file format, communicated to the public, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher.

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www.millsandboon.co.uk

Version: 2020-03-02

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To my sister, Angel.

You’re always willing to drop your

workload to help me with mine.

Love you more than cake!

Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

About the Author

Booklist

Title Page

Copyright

Note to Readers

Dedication

One

Two

Three

Four

Five

Six

Seven

Eight

Nine

Ten

Eleven

Twelve

Thirteen

Fourteen

Fifteen

Sixteen

Seventeen

Eighteen

About the Publisher

One

The red bikini never failed to arouse him...and the damn thing was just hanging there on the heated towel bar in his en suite.

When Harper Williams donned that collection of triangles and strings, he always enjoyed peeling the flimsy material from her curvy body. As much as he always wanted to tear it off, he enjoyed this sexy suit way too much to destroy it.

Ethan Michaels slid on a gray T-shirt and stepped back into the bedroom of his penthouse at Mirage. The adults-only resort was beyond luxurious and grand. In addition to all the amenities that made this five-star resort so sought out, the breathtaking property sat in the middle of Sunset Cove, a private island off the southern coast of California, making this resort a most magnificent destination.

While waiting out his time until he orchestrated an epic surprise reunion with his bastard of a stepfather, Ethan had started a fling with the owner of that tempting red bikini. He’d always been a sucker for red...and the lush body beneath didn’t hurt, either.

The one-night stand had turned into nearly a month of passion and R-rated sleepovers. Even with the time that had passed, he and Harper had kept things casual, simple—just the way he preferred his temporary arrangements, and she seemed more than okay with how their fling was going.

Ethan had no clue what brought Harper as a single guest to Mirage—and he had no intention of asking. She’d been alone like him, and they’d just gravitated toward each other, as most people who came to the adults-only resort were couples.

He and Harper had fallen into a perfect routine of meeting in his room for dinner in the evening. He’d always make sure the chef prepared something special just for them and the waitstaff always accommodated every need—Ethan would remember each loyal employee when he took the resort back into his name.

There was never a set time for Harper showing up in the evening, but Ethan always made sure something was ready for her. During the day, though, they did their own thing and went their own ways. Occasionally he’d see her on the beach and take her a drink, but they never so much as touched outside his penthouse.

Watching her parade around on the beach seemed to be the ultimate foreplay.

But he couldn’t get too distracted—he still had a job to do, a vendetta to secure. His time here wasn’t all about play. Harper was just an enjoyable by-product. He didn’t care one bit that she seemed to be using him to pass her time, as well. He did wonder what she was biding her time for, but again, he didn’t want to pry, because anything personal was out of the question.

All it would take would be one quick message to his assistant to have any answer he wanted about Harper, but that would imply that he wanted to know her beyond the bedroom. Some may call him cold, and they might be right, but Ethan had his reasons for the distance, and they were nobody else’s concern.

Besides, he never started a fling if the woman wasn’t on board for something casual and fun or if he thought for a second she was husband shopping. He’d never lead a woman on or pretend he could offer anything more than his body and a small portion of his time.