The Mighty Quinns: Ryan

“It’s a plan,” she said.

“There is one thing I’d like to say before we leave.”

“Do I want to hear it?” Serena asked.

“Probably not. But I’m going to say it anyway. You deserve to be happy. You deserve everything good in life, and you shouldn’t settle for anything less.”

“So you think I should call off the wedding, Quinn?”

“I can’t tell you to do that,” Ryan said.

“Of course you can,” Serena countered. “Just say it. Say ‘Serena, call off the wedding.’ It’s not that hard. Everyone has an opinion.”

“Everyone does.”

“Say it,” Serena insisted.

“I can’t. I won’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because I have less noble reasons for saying something like that. Because I want to kiss you again. I want to touch you without feeling guilty. And I don’t want to be the bloke who ruined your wedding.”

Serena stood up. “See? This is my problem. No one ever tells me the truth. They only tell me what they think I want to hear. I can’t make my own decisions. I never have been able to. I’m the princess of self-doubt. And now, when I am finally ready to make a decision, everyone is telling me not to. So just give me the truth. Tell me that I can call off this wedding and it might be messy for a while but everything will be all right.”

She saw the conflict in his expression, and Serena understood his reluctance to get involved. He was right. What man wanted to be responsible for breaking up the current Hollywood supercouple? No doubt word would leak out about the cause of her abandoned wedding. There were four women on this trip who would gladly sell the story to the tabloids. And he had his own reputation to worry about.

“All right,” she said. “I understand. I’m being ridiculous.”

“Serena, I—”

“No,” she said, pressing a finger to his lips. “This has been a pleasant little diversion, but you’re right. We’ll keep our distance and always have a chaperone.”

“If that’s what you want,” he said. “At the end of the week, I’ll just tell Thom that you wanted to relax and that the adventure part of the trip didn’t happen.”

Serena nodded. It was a reasonable compromise. And it gave her time. She had to make her own decisions. Right now, she had no idea what she was going to do, but by the end of the week, she’d have it all sorted out.

3 (#ulink_3db7adfb-f674-54cc-afdc-f968f5daedbe)

THE SUN WAS just barely over the horizon when Ryan walked into the kitchen. Juni and Arthur were enjoying their breakfast, but both of them got to their feet when he entered. “Sit,” Ryan said. “I can get my own coffee.” He poured himself a mug and joined them at the table.

“What can I make you for breakfast?” Juni asked.

He pointed to a plate of fresh bread. “I’ll have a bit of that? What is it?”

“Bibingka,” Juni said. “It is a bread made of cassava, coconut cream, eggs and cheese. I’ve made scones for the misses. And I have fresh papaya and mango. May I make you an omelet?”

“No, this sounds good, thanks,” Ryan said. He grabbed a piece of the bibingka and took a bite. “Umm. I’ve never eaten anything quite like this. It’s delicious.”

Arthur nodded. “My wife makes excellent bibingka. A tasty prawn curry, too. She is a very good cook.”

There was pride and affection in Arthur’s smile. He’d seen that same look on Mal’s face when he talked about Amy, and in Rogan’s expression when he spoke about Claudia. It was like some secret knowledge that men had when they were in love, and until now, he hadn’t really understood. But now he did.

He felt the same when he thought about Serena, about all the qualities that made her such an amazing woman. And he wasn’t even in love with her.

“Have another,” Juni said, holding out the plate of bibingka. Startled out of his thoughts, Ryan accepted the offer. He made a mental note to ask Juni to recommend some Fijian restaurants. Now that he had more time, he could enjoy everything the island had to offer, including its cuisine. But first he had to work up an appetite.

“Arthur, I’d like to go surfing today. I understand there are some awesome reef breaks off Nadi, but I need to get a board.”

“Mr. Thom has some surfboards,” Arthur said. “I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if you used them. I’ll get them out for you.”