11

Cadence

“Seriously?” Max demands.
I feel like I should be asking myself that. Because, Cadence, what are you doing?
I’m going to a wedding with Maximilian Stonee. Not only a wedding but a destination wedding in a place I’ve never been before. With a man I know nothing about.
And he’s not paying me. This is not for work. This is for…
Fun.
Novi told me I needed more fun in my life.
Aren’t weddings supposed to be fun? Because why else would I be going away with a man I’ve just met? That is a brand of impulsiveness I’ve never had. I don’t do spontaneous.
I swallow, hoping that I’m not making a terrible mistake. Max is… I know nothing about him except that his father was in my client book when he was married to both of his wives.
I’m not about to tell Max that. They don’t call me the Secret Keeper for nothing.
Didn’t… I guess that ended when I sold E and my client list with it.
Unlike his father, Max seems nice enough, and slightly protective, which surprises me when you consider the laid-back attitude and jokes.
He’s wearing jeans and a baseball cap in Tate’s. Novi would be rolling over in his grave if he were here.
He’s not. He’s never going to be here again. And he wouldn’t even be in a grave yet, but on route to some funeral home that his family picked and I won’t be welcome anywhere near him.
My therapist once told me grief is like waves and you never know when the next one is coming. I feel like I’ve gotten hit with a big one and the fear of the details coming to light keeps holding me down in the water.
The only way I can keep my head up is to push everything else down. Push it down and forge ahead. And ahead for me, is making this deal for Tingel Island.
Five one-acre islands and a fifteen-acre island in Muskoka, on Lake Joseph, the playground of the rich and famous. I want the land because I want to build something on it.
I’m just not sure what.
Years ago, a client took me as his guest to a cottage in Muskoka. I had been a working girl, trying to run E and advocate for the girls, but also tempted by the amount of money clients wanted to throw at me for spending time with them. I had stopped dancing, and tried to class myself up, and it worked because some of the clients who requested me didn’t even want sex.
I was a simple escort to most. A companion—someone for them to talk to, or join for dinner or business events in place of a wife or partner. A friend, if they weren’t paying thousands for that friendship.
Some of them still wanted sex, but I was slowly able to transition to those I wanted to have sex with.
We had to take a boat to this island, and I thought it was the height of luxury. Being so cut off seemed the best way to remove yourself from your life. To relax. To hide.
Even before I bought my house, I had searched for the perfect spot to hide, but it wasn’t until a few months ago that I heard Tingel Islands were coming on the market.
Which Max and his father are also trying to buy.
Spending time with Max might prove beneficial in many ways. I’ll get to hide from Preston and any more questions by the police as I pretend to be with Max, tick off the fun box as a way to fulfill Novi’s last request, all while keeping my eye on the prize by keeping an eye on Maximilian.

“I happen to be free this weekend,” I tell him instead. “And I’ve never been to Turks.”
“Really.” Max’s eyes are practically popping from his head. “Wow. This is fantastic. I’m so glad.”
And he is. Happiness radiates from him like a wave, and I’m not exactly sure how to process the fact that I made him happy. “You don’t have to make a big deal about it,” I murmur into the last of my tea.
“Of course I do because it is a big deal.” His smile is—wow. How can a woman say no to him when he flashes that?

From a distance, Max Stonee is attractive. More than just attractive, but up close and personal? Being caught in the circle of attention and interest when he smiles like that?
Will I want to say no? “Maybe this is a bad idea,” I say.
“It’s not a bad idea; it’s the best idea and I am giving myself all the credit.” He pats himself on the back and I smile. “You, Cadence Quiler, woman of mystery and who probably works too hard, will have a fantastic time because I will make sure of that. I will be at your beck and call for the entire time to make sure you have the most incredible time at the wedding of people you don’t know.”
Beck and call-girl. The line from Pretty Woman flashes through my mind. I’d hate that movie if I didn’t love it so much. It hits too close to home.
“You’re pretty confident,” I point out.
Max leans back. “I am confident in three things: that no woman will be left unsatisfied after an encounter with me, that I have the innate skill of pissing off my father, and that I have the awesome ability of creating a good time wherever I go.”
“Does it piss off your father that you satisfy all your women?” I ask with a straight face.
I’ve heard the rumours, and it appears Mr. Stonee, Senior, doesn’t share that same talent as his son.
Something that looks a lot like pain flashes across his face. “Probably,” he says shortly.
I make a note to get Tatiana to figure out what’s going on there.
Max searches the restaurant for the waitress. “This is going to be great,” he says in a brisk voice. “Would you like some more tea?”
“No, thank you. I—”
Max raises his hand to cut me off. “Please don’t say you have to get back to work,” he pleads in the same voice I can picture him using when he was a child. “You took the time off to come and track me down, so that means your morning is free. Go ahead and check.”
“I don’t need to check.” First, he interrupts me and then he decides he knows what I’m about to do? This should annoy me to no end.
So why do I find him amusing? Even… charming.
“If I can’t get you more tea, then let’s leave right now and go shopping.”
I lean back with a skeptical sniff. “Shopping?”
“You know—the buying of clothes for an event? Marco implied that the suit I brought with me is unsuitable for the weather of Turks and I’ve got to go get me another one. We have six hours before our flight, so let’s get cracking.”
“You certainly don’t need me to find a suit.”
“You remember what I said before?”
“The fact you never leave a woman unsatisfied?”
Max’s eyes widen and he coughs. “I don’t know what to think when you say things like that,” he admits, his voice losing the confident note.
“Why?” I ask, keeping my voice low and husky. Flirting comes naturally to me, which is helpful in my careers, but it’s different with Max. I don’t want to flirt because then it would make it business, but I can’t seem to help myself.
“Because if you keep it up, I’m not going to be able to stop myself—”
“From trying to get me into bed?” I interrupt with a raised eyebrow. It’s a shame if he’s that predictable.
“From falling in love with you.”