“Is there an echo in here?” he wondered out loud, hiding his amusement. “You’ll stay as a guest of Fantasies until the authorities have been notified and proper steps are taken.”
“What steps?”
He shrugged again and stared directly into her wide, scared eyes. “Fingerprinting, no doubt. You’ll have to be investigated.”
“You’re kidding me. You don’t seriously believe—” She moved up to the cell bars, grabbed hold of two of them and squeezed hard. “Gabe, you know I’m not a thief.”
“No, I don’t,” he said reasonably, enjoying the heat of her temper. God, arguing with Deb had always been fun. “For all I know, you are this master thief the British authorities are looking for.”
“British?”
He shrugged. “Apparently the thief ran through several estates in England before moving on to the island resort towns.”
“I’ve never been to England,” she argued.
Gabe smiled and turned to face her. “And I’m supposed to take your word for that?”
“Why wouldn’t you?”
“I can’t risk allowing a wanted criminal to escape the island.”
“Oh, for—”
“So,” Gabe said, walking toward her again with slow, measured steps, “until we get this straightened out, you’ll be staying right here at Fantasies.”
“You can’t keep me here, Gabe.” She stopped dead at the far end of the cell and glared at him.
“You’re wrong about that.”
She gaped at him and started pacing again.
He leaned one shoulder against the cold, steel bars and watched her as she stalked the confines of her cell. The heels of her sandals clicked frantically against the cement floor and the look she shot him should have fried him on the spot.
“I’m not guilty of anything and you can’t hold me here against my will.”
“I can do whatever I want to, Deb. This is my island. I make the rules.”
“There are laws about kidnapping.”
He chuckled. “Nobody kidnapped you.”
She gritted her teeth, hissed in a breath and then spoke in a deliberately patient tone. “You can’t just hold a person in jail because you feel like it.”
He smiled, waved one hand to encompass the tidy jail cell and said, “Clearly, I can.”
Sighing, she slid one hand through her hair, pushing it back from her face. “What’s really going on here, Gabe? We both know I’m not this jewel thief, so why’re you really doing this to me?”
There were too many reasons, he thought, and scowled as the humor he’d found in the situation moments ago drained away. He didn’t owe her any more of an explanation than the one he’d given her. He had the right to hold her on the island until the authorities notified him otherwise. Still, if he kept her around for too long, things could get sticky.
He pushed away from the bars, stuffed his hands into the pockets of his slacks and said, “We can talk about this later.”
“No, there is no later. I have a plane to catch.”
“Actually, you don’t,” he said, watching her, “your plane’s gone.”
She just stared at him and Gabe almost felt a flicker of guilt. Almost. Then he remembered that one night ten years before, she’d walked away from him without a backward glance. And that memory was enough to steel him against the sheen of tears glittering in her eyes.
He only hoped it would be enough to help him hold out against the low, distinct throb of need pulsing inside him. “Look, as I see it, you have two choices,” he said quietly. “You can spend your time on the island here, in this cell…”
She swung her gaze in a wide arc, taking in her surroundings in a heartbeat. He knew exactly what she was thinking. It didn’t matter that the tiny jailhouse was a pleasant enough place. There were bars on the doors and windows and being locked away wasn’t a good thing, no matter how nice the accommodation.
Which is how he knew she’d choose door number two when presented with it.
“Or,” he said, meeting her gaze when she shifted it back to his, “you can come back to the hotel with me.”
“With you.”
“As the owner of the island, I can release you into my custody.”
“Custody.”
He grinned. “There really is an echo in here, isn’t there?”
“Funny.” Debbie watched him warily. “And if I’m in your custody, what exactly does that mean?”
“It means,” he said, his voice low and dark, “you would be staying in my suite. Where I can keep an eye on you, until the matter is resolved.”
“Why can’t I have my old guest room back?”
Because he wanted her close, damn it.
“A wanted criminal?” he countered, lifting one dark blond eyebrow. “I don’t think so.”
“We both know I’m not guilty of anything.”
“All I know is, you’re in jail and I’m in charge,” he said. “Up to you, Deb. Spend a few nights in a cell or come with me now.”
She looked from him to the cot behind her and back again. She studied his face and said, “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
“Shouldn’t I be?” he countered, giving her a lazy smile that didn’t even try to disguise his amusement.
Debbie stared at him for another long minute. She could hardly believe any of this was happening. Gabriel Vaughn was the owner of Fantasies? The owner of his own, private island?
Ten years ago he’d had big plans and little else. Debbie had loved him madly back then, despite her own fears of a future that had looked shaky at best. Now, he was clearly more successful than even he had dreamed.
And she was literally at the mercy of a man who had every right to still be furious and bitter at the way she’d ended things between them.
This so didn’t look good.
Her mind racing, Debbie tried to slow her thoughts down and slide them into some kind of order. By all rights, she should be on a plane home, having a tropical drink right now, served by a smiling flight attendant. Instead she was standing in a cell, facing down the man she’d once thought she would love forever.
But
