Renee Roszel - Accidental Fiancee

“Please, call me Liv,” she said. “I think saving my life gives you that right.”

He slashed a cynical grin. “Being your fiancé doesn’t count?”

She winced at his taunt. “Oh—I—well…”

He shrugged. “Never mind—what can I do for you—Liv?”

Her gaze darted away from his face, ricocheted off the boathouse then pinged up to the mansion. She blinked several times, her fingers lacing and relacing. “I—first…” She slid her attention back to him, and he sensed the move had taken extreme effort. “I want to apologize for the—the engagement thing.”

“Ah, yes.” He fought a renewed surge of irritation. “I seem to remember hearing something about that in a few newspapers.” He lifted a sardonic eyebrow. “Imagine my glee.”

Dear Reader,

I had so much fun with my ENCHANTED BRIDES trilogy, I decided it would be exciting to write a series about three brothers. I envisaged each brother to be tough and successful in his own right, but lonely—whether he realizes it or not. Then I decided to place these men on a mountain of emeralds located on their own private island.

The heirs to the Merit emerald dynasty, Jake, Marc and Zack, are as different as brothers can be. But what they have in common is that they are all gorgeous men—who are each about to meet the one special woman for them.

I hope you enjoy Zack’s story, Accidental Fiancée. Zack is the Merit family badboy, the mystery man, and he likes it that way. But he’s thrust into the national headlines when he saves a senator’s daughter from certain death. Now, Olivia has accidentally become his fiancée—and they are forced to hide out on Merit Island to avoid the press. The couple’s two weeks together are a tormenting, thrilling, life-changing adventure…. Enjoy the ride!

All my best,

P.S. I love to hear from readers so do, please, write to me at P.O. Box 700154, Tulsa, Oklahoma, 74107, USA.

The Merit brothers—

it takes a special woman to win their hearts.

www.millsandboon.co.uk

To Barbara McMahon and Patti Knoll for their continued support, humor and friendship day after day after day after day…

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

ZACK fell through empty air toward earth. He watched them appear from out of nowhere—the almighty security force that guarded Merit Island. Seconds after he pulled the rip cord on his main parachute, they were no longer scurrying ants, but loomed large enough for him to see the sun glinting off their state-of-the-art artillery.

He grinned. He hadn’t expected a marching band to welcome him home after all these years, but he would have preferred to touch down with fewer side arms aimed at his heart.

He attained a zero rate of descent as his feet reached ground level. A perfect landing, especially considering twenty years had passed since he’d seen the topography of Merit Island. His shoe soles skimmed the grass while he sat in his harness. Stepping lightly on the ground, he removed a little of his weight from the rigging. With each successive step he tread more heavily until he fully supported his weight. Coming to an easy halt, he shifted to watch his black-and-silver rectangular chute flutter to the lawn. He also noticed the troops surround him.

As briskly as he could, without making any moves that looked threatening, he took off his helmet and gear, then lifted both hands to reassure the gentlemen in starched gray that he was unarmed and represented no threat, though he was dressed a little like Captain Galaxy in his black jumpsuit.

He smiled at the grim-faced security force as they approached. “Hi, boys,” he said with as much friendliness as his desire not to be riddled with bullets could muster. He spread his fingers, his webbed gloves making his surrender look unearthly. Maybe he should have shouted out, “Take me to your leader.” He wagged his webbed fingers skyward, surveying the troops. “As you can see, guys…” Making a slow, composed turn, he took a quick inventory of how many muzzles were aimed at his gut.

Eight.

“I can’t hide many machine-guns in this sausage-skin getup.”

“You’ll have to come with us, sir.”

Zack glanced at the gray man who’d spoken, no doubt the highest ranking sentry.

“No problem, General.” He smiled benignly. “I don’t want any unsightly holes drilled in my carcass. Lead the way.”

The burly man jerked his head toward the three-story stone-and-timber home Zachary remembered from his childhood. Shifting his gaze from the leader’s laser-sighted weapon, Zack stared at the house, his first glimpse since he left home at seventeen. The tightening in his belly surprised him. He’d thought if he ever saw the old homestead again it would seem smaller, somehow less significant. But it didn’t.

The image of an English manor house, Zack’s boyhood home was still the stately tribute to capitalism it had been all those years ago, with its spectacular view of the Atlantic from the crest of the island’s highest point. The sight brought back a wave of feelings, stronger than he’d believed possible. It wasn’t the splendor of the residence that made him ache inside, or the memory of the importance of the family dynasty, not the island’s primeval beauty or even the vast wealth he’d walked away from all those years ago.

He ached because of the empty hole inside him, a hole that couldn’t be filled, no matter how much adventure and excitement he poured in. After a tragic boat racing accident last year when he’d lost his best friend, he’d awakened to the fact of his own mortality, and that a life lived all alone was a barren existence. That realization had sparked the urge to reconnect with family.

Pride had stopped him for much too long. But now that things had gone so royally nuts, he’d been driven by circumstances to come back, pride or no pride. Though the problem that forced him to return to Merit Island made him furious, deep in his soul he was thankful for this chance.

“Sir?” The brawny sentry’s guttural prodding jarred Zack to the problem at hand. He peered at the scowling head man, who wagged his weapon in the direction of the house. “Let’s go.”

Zack nodded, then indicated his chute and rigging. “Would you mind having a couple of your sidekicks gather up my gear, Admiral? Parachutes are bears to re-pack once they get tangled in a rose garden.”

Zack’s attempt at a joke died a sober death. Apparently Jake had carried on the family tradition of hiring sentinels who’d had their sense of humor surgically removed. Indicating the mansion with a brisk nod, he offered, “I’m ready if you are, friend.”

“My Lord—Zachary?”

At the sound of his name, Zack turned, surprised to see his older brother, Jake, appear from the mansion’s loggia. He was jogging around the expansive gardens, which, Zack belatedly noticed, were in riotous bloom on this bright, still Sunday in mid-July. Some things never changed.

With a quick grin, Zack shifted to watch his brother’s rapid approach. Ignoring the gaggle of guards, Zack strode toward Jake. “Hey, old man,” he shouted, taking off his webbed gloves and tossing them into his discarded helmet. “Don’t give yourself a heart attack.”