He told her a few more things about Belize as she put a new lens on her camera. She pointed to the side of the road. “Do you mind pulling over?” she asked.

“Not at all. Since it’s just you and me, we have a little more freedom.” He pulled off the highway, and Felicity took some photographs of a traditional Mayan home made from wooden poles with a thatch roof. Two small children played in the yard while a woman hung laundry on a line to dry.

After they got back in the car, she turned to him. “Do you mind if I ask you a personal question?”

He hadn’t been expecting that. He wasn’t sure what she wanted to ask, but curiosity got the best of him. “All right.”

“I keep looking around at the resort, and you, and your car, and I’m thinking you must have sold that piece of technology you were working on for so long. How did that go?”

Aiden leaned back in his seat, unable to speak. So, it was true. Felicity hadn’t found out what he’d been doing the day he missed their wedding. She’d never stopped to ask what held him up. He took in a measured breath. “It went well.”

He’d wanted to leave it at that, but Felicity kept looking at him, expectantly. He finally succumbed to the silence. “I sold it for a billion dollars.”

Felicity sucked in air and then coughed. “You what?”

Her reaction might have been comical if he hadn’t spent the last five years regretting his decision to keep the sale a secret. He’d wanted to surprise her. That hadn’t turned out well. His throat closed as the memory of that day surfaced, and how he’d thought she’d be happy. Instead, she left him, not even knowing what he’d done for her.










Chapter 5

Felicity couldn’t believeit. A billion dollars? Was Aiden kidding? Aiden sat there, his jaw clenching and unclenching. Why wasn’t he answering her? “Did you really sell that thing for a billion dollars?”

“It wasn’t the gadget as much as the technology behind it. The guidance system I created integrates with existing technology in such a way that...” He gave her a sideways glance. “Well, let’s just say it was very valuable to Hathaway Tech Systems.”

Felicity sat there, her head reeling. Aiden had always said what he was working on could set them up for life. She’d never fully understood what that meant. Now, it was beginning to sink in. He was a billionaire. Holy cow.

She studied the look on his face. He was upset she’d brought it up. Why? Surely, he was happy it sold for so much. “You deserve it,” she said.

“What does that mean?”

Why was he getting defensive? “It means, I’m happy for you. You worked long hours on that thing. You deserve the success it brought you.”

“Yeah,” he said. There was a bitter edge to his voice.

“What’s wrong? I’ve made you mad, and I don’t even know what I said.”

He glanced at her, and his gaze softened. “I’m sorry. You’re right. I shouldn’t be upset. It wasn’t your fault.”