Read Barefoot in Pearls (Barefoot Bay Brides Book 3) for Free Online

“Native Americans believe in mermaids?”
    “My parents watched The Little Mermaid with my older siblings one night, and when it was over, they told them there would be another baby in the family.” She fought a smile. “My sister announced I would be named Arielle, and it stuck, with a slightly fancier spelling.”
    His jaw loosened. “So nothing mysterious or ancient?”
    “Only the ancient and mysterious Walt Disney.”
    “But what about your parents and the universe?”
    “My grandmother and the universe,” she corrected. “My mother did not share that connection. Quite the opposite, in fact.” She held out her hand, palm up. “Payment, please.”
    He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a wallet, sliding out a one-dollar bill without taking his eyes from hers. “I’ll add that to the list,” he said softly, placing the bill in her hand.
    “What list?”
    “The list of things I know about you.” He started counting on his fingers. “Disney princess, interior designer, sorceress, candy snob…” He reached forward to touch the sunflower. “Twisted.”
    “Twisted?” She angled the champagne flute, enjoying the playful exchange far more than the drink. “What I said and what you heard were two different things.”
    “That’s how it is for us superior-character judges. Let’s bet again because I hate to lose.” He swept a hand toward the wedding guests. “Ask me about anyone you know here, and I’ll tell you something just by looking at them. If I’m right, I win. If I’m wrong, you win.”
    She waved the dollar bill. “Double or nothing?”
    “You keep that.” He put his lips right over her ear, ruffling the perfectly placed curl that Gussie had styled earlier. “This time I wager a kiss. That way, there is no real loser.”
    About six billion goose bumps exploded on her neck, and Ari actually had to tense up to not give in to a full-body shiver. “Losing is losing, and I hate it, too.”
    “Then we make quite a pair.”
    Oh, God, she thought, sanity slipping with each passing minute. They did make quite a pair.
    “Game on, Little Mermaid.” And back he went on the two legs of the chair.
    “All right.” With her chin propped on the back of her hand, she searched the crowd with a pointed-finger periscope that stopped at Mandy Nicholas. “The blonde right over there. Tell me her story.”
    Would he guess that the woman who ran the housekeeping company was once a maid at the resort and recently married one of the über-rich men who’d moved here to start a minor league baseball team? Unlikely.
    “Ahh, let me think.” He peered at her, pursing his lips, nodding as he thought it through. “Definitely on the bride’s side. Maybe a sister or cousin. And she’s a neat freak.”
    True enough, Mandy was scooping up a plate that had held hors d’oeuvres and looking around for someone to hand it to. Someone who worked for her, but would he know that?
    “And she’s pregnant.”
    Ari sat up straight. “Really?”
    “Look how she’s sort of absently rubbing her stomach.”
    Mandy was indeed giving herself the telltale pregnancy rub with her free hand. “Huh. Who knew?”
    “Me.” He leaned closer. “I’ll settle for a peck on the cheek. Ready whenever you are.”
    “No way.” She shook her head, backing away. “She is not a cousin or sister of the bride,” she said, glancing at Mandy as her husband, Zeke, walked toward the table, talking to the groom. “She’s in charge of our housekeeping service and married to a billionaire.”
    “But she is pregnant.”
    “That remains to be seen. Would you have known that her husband is a billionaire?”
    “No, but that guy behind him is.”
    She leaned to the side to see who he meant. “Well, yes, Nate Ivory is a billionaire, but that so doesn’t count since his whole family is tabloid fodder, and we weren’t betting on him.”
    He laughed softly. “How many things do I have to get right to qualify for a win?”
    If he