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“It’s hot as hell under that.”
    Folding the blanket across his arms, he tried a grin, but Kylie’s mouth tightened as she turned away again and started fussing with a stack of T-shirts.
    His words came out in a rush. “Cozumel wasn’t supposed to mean anything, you know? I didn’t think it would matter if you didn’t know I’m…well, me. You were on the rebound, for Christ’s sake—it was supposed to be your honeymoon. And it was nice to meet someone who didn’t care about…” His voice trailed off.
    “About who you really are?”
    “About what comes with being who I am, at least.” He shrugged again. “What could I have said? Would it have made a difference?”
    She had stopped trying to straighten things and had stepped closer. It was all he could do to stop himself from closing the space between them and taking her in his arms.
    “I don’t know,” she said. “Maybe? At least I would have been more prepared.” Now her voice was the one that trailed off as she glanced behind him to the tabloid. “I saw it in the airport, you know. On the way home. It was already on the stands by the time my plane landed.” She spoke so quietly he had to strain to hear her. “I couldn’t believe it when I saw.”
    “I’m sorry, Kylie.” He placed the folded serape down over the tabloid, covering up its incriminating images. “But in my defense, I did try to tell you.”
    “Why are you here, Cole?” Her voice was expressionless, flat.
    “You came to my show last night.”
    “Yes. I went to your show. LeeAnn got tickets, her boyfriend canceled, and I didn’t want to disappoint her.” Her eyes flicked toward the side of the store.
    Cole’s gaze followed hers—and came to rest on a display featuring products covered with his own image. The corner of his mouth tilted up in a half smile. “Really? That’s the only reason?”
    “That’s it.” Her voice was defensive.
    “Dammit, Kylie, you came to me.”
    “No, I didn’t. I came to your concert. Believe me, it’s different.” Her voice rose. “Nothing’s changed.” She tilted her chin toward the hat and serape on the counter. “If anything, it’s worse. At least in Mexico you didn’t have to skulk around like some sort of criminal, hiding behind stupid disguises.”
    “No, there I had to register under a fake name, hide out, pretend to be someone I’m not just to get a little privacy. Here I didn’t want anyone to follow me. Would you rather I brought the paparazzi down on you?”
    “No. I would rather you didn’t come at all.” Her near-shout echoed in the small space, followed almost immediately by the electronic chime of the bell signaling the opening of the door. Kylie’s cheeks had flushed bright red and they both breathed heavily, staring at each other. Kylie broke away first, moving toward the customer who had entered the store, asking in a murmur if she could help the woman find anything in particular.
    Cole turned his back on them and picked up his disguise, staring down at the tabloid he uncovered. He heard the chimes ring again as the customer left the store, but he didn’t turn around, working instead to calm his racing heart.
    “I looked you up online, you know.” Kylie’s voice came from behind him. “When I got back.”
    A barking laugh escaped him. “And I can guess what you found. You’re not the only one who’s been blindsided by the tabloids.”
    The silence was so complete he could hear her breathing, harsh and rasping. Finally, he turned around. “Can we start over?”
    “Start over?”
    “Yeah. Like this: Hi, I’m Cole Grayson.” He stuck his hand out and waited. After a long moment, she reached out and matched his light grip. “I was wondering if you would be willing to go out to dinner with me.”
    She tried to pull away, but he didn’t loosen his clasp. “It probably wouldn’t be easy,” he said, leaning forward confidingly. “I’d like to get to know you better. But we might have to sneak