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was probably right. She
hadn’t always been a cynic and hoped to heaven she wasn’t destined to remain
one forever. But it was hard not to be when she’d been cheated by the woman
she’d considered her best friend. Cheated and lied to.  
    To make matters worse Debbie had seemed to prosper on the rewards of her
treachery. Her business currently thrived, and she was often feted and courted
as being one of the new entrepreneurs in the region.
    Lissa swallowed down the bile rising in her throat. It wasn’t good to
dwell on the negatives. She had a job, didn’t she? And a roof over her head?
Although how long either of those would last was debatable.
    Reed pulled into the parking lot of a restaurant perched on a cliff
overlooking the sea. As they entered the building there didn’t seem to be any
empty tables, but when the waiter came over and shook hands with Reed, Lissa
knew that a table would magically appear.
    They were led through the restaurant and up some stairs to a pretty deck
area enclosed by floor to ceiling windows twinkling with fairy lights. The deck
offered a fabulous vista of the sea.
    Two other couples dined in the space. The men at each table rose to
shake hands with Reed.
    After brief introductions, Lissa took her seat and accepted the drinks
menu handed to her by the waiter. She ordered a non-alcoholic fruit punch.
After the waiter had left with their order, she eyed Reed. “Do I hear money
talking again?”
    Opposite her, Reed indicated the table. “You don’t like it?”
    “It’s lovely. But I’m wondering what would happen if Mr. Regular turned
up here and asked for a table. Would he be told they were fully booked, or
immediately guided up here to the hallowed heights?”
    “The latter, I imagine.” Reed gave her a lopsided grin. “Hopefully he
wouldn’t be dining with Ms. Cynic.”
    Lissa tried not to respond to his infectious smile as she glanced around
at the half dozen tables, each a discreet distance apart from its neighbor. The
crimson of the table coverings were echoed in the deep red drapes at the corner
of each window. Delicious smells wafted around the space and Lissa’s stomach
grumbled in response to the memory that she hadn’t eaten since that morning.
    “It really is lovely here,” she said as she looked back at Reed. “Is it
your regular haunt? You seem to know a lot of people.”
    “I use it when I’m this way. The food here is the best on the south
coast.”
    Indeed it was, and they talked more about the development while they
enjoyed a delicious lobster dinner. Lissa hadn’t had lobster before, except for
soup, and she enjoyed every mouthwatering morsel.
    On the drive back, Reed pulled over just past the development sign and
turned off the ignition.
    “What are you doing? Lissa asked as a shiver of anticipation moved along
her spine.
    “Showing you the development site. Want to see?”
    “At this hour? It’s dark, what’s to see?”
    “Humor me.” He stepped out of the car and came around to the passenger
side, where he held the door open for her. As she hoisted her bag on her
shoulder, he smiled. “Have you got your camera in there?”
    “Yes. Why?”
    “Maybe you’d like to make a start.”
    He didn’t step back and Lissa felt the heat from his body burn into
hers.
    “I haven’t got the flash with me. I wasn’t expecting to do night shots.”
    “And here’s me thinking a woman like you would always be prepared for
any eventuality.” If anything, he moved closer and reached up to the strap of
her bag where it nestled on her shoulder. “If there’s no flash in here, there’s
no point in you clutching it like a lifeline, is there?”
    As he relieved her of her bag and dropped it back on her seat, Lissa
swallowed. “I’m not sure what you’re playing at, but—”
    “I’m not playing at anything, princess.” He wrapped his fingers around
her arms, and drew her up close to him. “I intend to do this right.”
    Without her bag as armor, she