The Corporate Raider's Revenge (Silhouette Desire #1848)

Elena Royal sipped on her second glass of Sex on the Beach and the irony struck her anew.Sex on the beach?That's exactly what she should be having right now, while on her honeymoon. Instead, she sat outside alone on a bar stool of the Wind Breeze Resort. As overhead palm frond fans lapped around stealing traces of tropical Hawaiian heat, she cast off admiring looks from men at the patio bar and proceeded to drink away her sorrows.She would have been married by now.To Justin Overton, the scoundrel who had her convinced he loved her and not the Royal bankroll. Finding out on her wedding day that her would-be bridegroom hadn't an honest bone in his body, sent her packing, abandoning her wedding and the guests that would have arrived within the hour.Yes, she'd left Justin at the altar, but she'd left her heart there, as well. No longer the trusting twenty-six-year-old girl who believed in happily ever after, Elena's tender ego had taken a nosedive.She'd been shattered and still felt slivers of regret and heartache deep inside. She'd come to this secluded outof-the-way Maui resort hoping she wouldn't be recognized as the daughter of West Coast hotel magnate, Nolan Royal. She needed the escape. She needed peace and quiet. She needed time to reevaluate her life. She'd spent the past three weeks on the beach, swimming, reading and relaxing.It was driving her crazy.The midnight moon glistened on the oversize pool and beyond that, Hawaiian waters caressed the sand, the gentle waves echoing into a soft roar. From under the thatched roof of the bar's hut, she finished her drink, debating on having another before returning to the solitude of her lonely cottage. The sultry June night surrounded her in stillness, the Wind Breeze Resort falling short of its namesake. If it weren't for the lapping fans, the heavy air would smother her."Want another drink?" the bartender asked, then darted a hard quick stare, keeping the last of the men at the bar from approaching her.She smiled. Joe, the bartender, had taken it upon himself to protect her solitude once he realized she wasn't like other single women who were eager and willing to leave the bar with a stranger. "I'd better not. I haven't finished this one yet."A splash from the pool had her lifting her eyes from her cocktail glass.The late-night swimmer dipped down deep in a perfect dive then, shadowed by moonlight, he rose up until his head popped out of the water. Water flowed off longish black silken hair and his shoulders rivaled the breadth of an Olympic athlete.She caught herself staring and when he spotted her, he stared back, his eyes dark and piercing. Her heart beat faster. Chills of awareness romped up and down her body, the sensation like nothing she'd ever experienced before.She lifted her lips in a smile.He didn't smile back, but the slightest arch of one brow answered her.She grew warm all over, her lower body stirring with unexpected heat as she watched the stunning man come out of the water with a grace that belied his rugged physical stature.Holding her breath, she watched as he mopped up beads of water off his shoulder, shaking out his hair and wrapping a towel around his waist. He glanced at her again, his eyes filled with promise. Her heart raced as she hoped for his approach, which surprised her since she'd sworn off men at least for the next ten years.She'd had it with liars, deceivers, men who'd speak vows of love and forever after, only to want a piece of the Royal pie. Justin had been most clever. She'd been fooled quite easily with his charm and vows of undying love. Until her father had him investigated.She'd found out just in the nick of time that Justin Overton wasn't the high-powered financial consultant he'd claimed to be when she'd met him in Europe six months ago, but a college dropout on the verge of bankruptcy.Elena had run for all she was worth to hide away in this tropical resort and heal her brokenSands, Charlene is the author of 'The Corporate Raider's Revenge (Silhouette Desire #1848)', published 2008 under ISBN 9780373768486 and ISBN 0373768486.