Kayla Perrin - Blurb - SAY YOU NEED ME

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SAY YOU NEED ME
Feb. 2002 Harper Torch ISBN: 0-380-81379-3
DOUBLE TROUBLE... "Mr. Right" was WRONG! Lovelorn librarian Serena Childs was destroyed when Cecil Montford-the fine-looking charmer she thought was "The One"-snuck out of her life with her life savings and a priceless diamond necklace. And now he's dining in plain view at a local restaurant only two weeks later! But it's not until she has the man arrested that Serena discovers he's not Cecil at all-but the lowlife thief's equally hot twin brother, Darrell. MEANS TWICE THE LOVE! The lady can't believe the two men are actually related. Where Cecil was lowdown, Darrell's loyal and honest...and as tempting a dark dreamboat as her lips have ever ached to kiss. Darrell's eager to help Serena get back the jewels-and the heart-his no-good twin stole from her. But how can she trust someone with the same heavenly face that gave her hell-even when the angel tells her he wants to love her for a lifetime?
Chapter One When she saw him, Serena Childs very nearly choked on her mouthful of succulent, medium-rare sirloin-the best sirloin steak she'd had in a long time. Her eyes first bulged with stunned disbelief, then narrowed with bitter realization, while the morsel of sirloin lodged in her throat. He'd seen her, no doubt about it, and as if he were some stranger casually flirting with her from the restaurant bar, the bastard actually had the nerve to smile. Somehow, Serena managed to swallow her food without gagging. "That shameless son of a bitch!" Startled at Serena's outburst, Kiana, Serena's younger sister by a year, flinched and dropped her silverware. The knife and fork clinked as they landed on her plate. Her eyebrows bunched together as she regarded Serena with concern. "What is it?" Serena and her sister were at a restaurant on Miami Beach's Ocean Drive, seated at an outside table. Until now, Serena had been enjoying the lovely March evening. Just a hint of a breeze floated off the Atlantic Ocean, and the lively sounds of a salsa band made the atmosphere a festive one. Just the type of atmosphere Serena had been looking forward to after a very stressful week. Now, one look at the slime ball who had made her last few weeks a living hell, and the evening was ruined. Kiana looked over her shoulder, following Serena's eye line to the restaurant's outdoor bar. She turned back to Serena and frowned. "What?" "I don't believe it," Serena said in reply, her gaze never leaving the lying jerk's face. "It's Cecil." Kiana's jaw dropped to the table. "Cecil Cecil? As in-" "Cecil Montford." "Oh, my God." Kiana whipped her head around, scanning the crowded outdoor patio and bar. "Where is he?" "He's on the far side of the bar. Dressed in a white T-shirt and blue jeans." After a moment, Kiana said, "Oh, yes. There he is." Serena scowled at the back of her sister's head. Her sister had actually spoken in a dreamy voice, as if they were talking about Cecil the sweetheart, instead of Cecil the world-class prick. Having met Cecil once when they'd all gone out for dinner, Kiana had been very impressed with him. After the dinner, Kiana had crooned on and on about how gorgeous and charming Cecil was, how he definitely knew how to treat a woman right. She'd been as smitten by him as Serena had. Clearly, Kiana was still smitten. Not that Serena could completely blame her. He was drop dead gorgeous fine, which is why Serena had been so flattered by his attention. Most of the time, Serena dressed in comfortable, roomy clothes when she went to work at the library-far from glamorous. She didn't own a mini-skirt, and the only time she wore tights was when she worked out-and even then she wore an oversized T-shirt to cover her hips and thighs. Usually, she opted for her glasses over her contact lenses, which helped contribute to her dull librarian image. So at first, she hadn't been able to understand what such a gorgeous man would want with her-men like him didn't tend to give her a second look. But as she'd spoken with him time and time again when he'd come to the library, making it clear with his kind words that he was interested in her, she'd slowly let her guard down. After witnessing her parents' wonderful love affair, Serena had held out her whole life for Mr. Right, and Cecil had finally seemed like he could be The One. She gritted her teeth at the memory. She couldn't have been more wrong if she'd thought she was going to marry the Pope. Kiana turned back to Serena, her short braids swaying as she moved. Instantly, her large brown eyes grew wide with alarm. "Serena! God, what are you trying to do? Strangle the wineglass?" Startled by her sister's comment, Serena's gaze dropped to her hand. Her fingers were tightly wrapped around the wineglass's stem as though she planned to snap it in two. Not a bad idea . . . if it was Cecil's neck. Again, Serena looked at Cecil. How could he sit there so casually, eyeing her from time to time, as if he hadn't done a damn thing wrong? As if he sensed her staring at him, Cecil angled his head to face her. Seeing her, he raised his wineglass and smiled. "Oh, no. He did not do what I think he just did. Did you see that?" Serena asked in an incredulous tone, flitting her eyes between Kiana and Cecil. "I can't believe he's . . . he's flirting with me!" "Hmm." Again, Kiana's voice got dreamy. "Yeah, he's a charmer. Too bad he turned out to be such a jerk. God, he really is good looking." What was wrong with Kiana? Serena had expected nothing less than outrage from her overprotective, worry-wart-by-nature sister. Instead, she seemed to be off in la-la land, still unable to escape Cecil's charm-despite what he'd done. Casting another glance in his direction, Serena lifted her wineglass and took a liberal sip of her cabernet sauvignon, needing something to wet her throat. No doubt about it, Cecil was fine. Even now she couldn't help noticing his striking brown eyes, his I'm-gonna-make-you-love-me smile. And maybe it was the restaurant's lighting, but he actually seemed more attractive tonight than she'd remembered him. That had been her problem from the beginning. She'd fallen for his pretty boy good looks and charm, and that had gotten her into this mess. Still, it was hard to reconcile the reality that the attractive man twenty feet away from her could have done something so heinous. As if reading her thoughts, Kiana commented, "With that mmm baby look he's giving you, you'd never think he split town with all your money." "I know." Serena frowned, wondering what his game was. Was he going to flirt with her all night from afar, or was he finally going to approach her and give her some lame excuse for what he'd done? Clearly, since he wasn't ignoring her, he must be planning to give her some line of bull. Otherwise he would have hightailed it out of the restaurant before she'd seen him. Her thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of their overly chipper waiter. Smiling from ear-to-ear, he placed another glass of red wine on the table before her. "I didn't order this," Serena told him. "I know," he replied in a singsong voice. This is compliments of the gentleman at the bar." The waiter nodded in Cecil's direction. Startled, Serena whirled her head around to face Cecil. He flashed her another one of his sexy smiles, the type that had won her over in the first place. God, he really did have a lot of nerve. Well, this time his charm wouldn't work. Until now, Serena hadn't been sure how to handle the situation. Approach him? Wait until he approached her? But, as he continued to make goo-goo eyes at her, she knew exactly what she'd do. If he wanted her to go to him, so be it. She'd play this game his way. He just wouldn't like it. "Excuse me." Serena pushed back her chair. "Serena," Kiana said, her tone wary. She threw a hand out to grab her arm, but Serena was already out of her chair. Serena picked up the glass of wine. "Serena, I don't think-" Serena took a step, then halted. Her sister was right. Why waste a good glass of wine? She put it back on the table. Then, she gave her sister a saccharine grin as Kiana stared at her from worried eyes. "This won't take long." "Serena . . ." Ignoring her sister, Serena casually approached the restaurant's outdoor bar. Cecil's smile widened as she neared him, revealing perfect pearly white teeth. Either he thought she was completely clueless, or he figured he could actually explain away the last few weeks. She'd love to see the jerk explain away the fact that his cell, business and home numbers had been disconnected-right after he'd left her that cryptic note about having to leave town on some emergency. "Hey, there," he said. Hey, there. He'd taken off with her family heirloom, her check for ten thousand dollars that she'd given him as a down payment for an antique jewelry store, and he was greeting her with a hey, there? "Hey, yourself," Serena replied flippantly, doing her best imitation of a smile. Cecil's eyes crinkled as he grinned at her, and damn if Serena's heart didn't do a little jiggy in her chest. Yes, he looked especially handsome tonight, definitely more so than the last time she'd seen him. Why her heart should do a hyper pitter-patter now, given what he'd done to her, was beyond her. Nerves, she told herself, squaring her shoulders. "So," he said, chuckling softly. Serena mimicked his chuckle, then abruptly gave him an evil glare. "So? You take off with ten grand of my money and all you have to say for yourself is so?" Cecil's lips went flat. "What?" "Oh, now you have no idea what I'm talking about. Let me guess," she continued, raising her voice and placing a hand on a hip, "you've never seen me before, right?" She guffawed. "Is that part of the scam once you've been caught? To make me look crazy?" "Actually, you do look kinda-" Whack! Serena swung her hand back, then slapped Cecil upside the head. Her palm stung from hitting him with such force, but she didn't dare show the pain on her face. Besides, the pain was overshadowed by the feeling of intense satisfaction. She'd wanted to do that-and more-for nearly three weeks. Cecil's hand immediately went to his injured jaw. "That's for stealing my money," she told him, not caring that everyone within earshot was listening. "And for taking the necklace my grandmother gave to me- God, the sight of you makes me sick. I'd ask why you did it, how you could do it, but I know all I'll hear from you are lies. You . . ." She faltered, but went on. "You never cared about me. I can't believe I was so incredibly stupid to believe a word that ever came out of your mouth." "Wait a second-" "No, you wait." She shook a finger at him while doing a quick neck rotation, full of attitude. "I want my money back. And my great-great-great grandmother's necklace. You know that means everything to me." "If you'll let me get a word in-" "I don't want to hear a word out of your slimy mouth." Cecil's eyebrows shot together. "Slimy?" "If you have one decent bone left in your body, do the right thing." Serena blew out a ragged breath, her body suddenly trembling. She squared her jaw and continued. "Look, I can live without the money . . . but the necklace." She hated that she had to beg this jerk for what was hers, but she'd beg to get back the heirloom that had been in her family for generations, if that's what it took. "Even if you keep the money, at least return the necklace. You know where I work; you can bring it there." She looked him up and down with distaste. "God, I curse the day I ever let you into my life." Cecil was speechless, and Serena's satisfaction grew. She had never done anything like this in public before, yet she wasn't embarrassed by her behavior. Humiliating Cecil was entirely worth it. She only hoped, prayed, that she got her point across and he would do right by her. He opened his mouth as if he was going to speak, but before the lying bastard could say a word, she turned and stalked back to the table where she'd left her sister. Her concerned expression replaced with a smirk, Kiana gave Serena two enthusiastic thumbs up. And then a smile erupted on Serena's face, the first genuine smile she'd had in nearly three weeks.