Читать книгу Cinderella's Tycoon - Caroline Cross - Страница 12

Three

“Oh, my,” Susan said softly.

Standing beside the car, she stared at the house before her. Like everybody in the area, she’d heard about Sterling’s place. She’d even driven past the ornate entrance gate once with Callie to see for herself the emerald green pastures, man-made lake and graceful groves of trees that made the lush estate such a novelty in the arid scrubland of West Texas. Not surprisingly, the locals had taken to calling it the Oasis and the name had stuck.

The house couldn’t be seen from the road, however, set back as it was in a screen of trees at the end of the long, straight driveway. Secretly she’d been worried that it was going to be so imposing she’d never feel comfortable in it.

Now, some of her tension melted away. Instead of the formal, white-pillared mansion she’d expected, the structure rising before her was a big, sprawling two-story surrounded by a wild profusion of bushes and flowers. From what she could see, it was warm rather than palatial, charming rather than impressive, welcoming rather than intimidating.

It didn’t seem to suit Sterling at all, she thought ruefully, watching him from under her lashes as he got her suitcases from the trunk.

So far, he’d been anything but warm and welcoming. Not only had he barely spoken a word on the drive over, but it had almost seemed as if he’d been trying to avoid looking at her. And though she’d told herself that it didn’t mean a thing, that he was just being a conscientious driver, she had to admit that his aloofness was starting to get to her.

Waiting until he looked up, she bravely met his cool gray gaze. “This is lovely, Sterling.”

His expression lightened for a moment. “Yeah. It’s okay.” Closing the trunk, he picked up her suitcases and led the way across the paved circular driveway and up the wide, shallow stairs to a trellised entryway. Overhead, a leafy vine abloom in white flowers gave off a faintly spicy perfume.

Captivated, Susan again tried to start up a conversation. “Oh, how pretty. Is that a clematis?”

He set down the suitcases and reached to open the door. “Beats me. You’ll have to ask Maxine.”

“Maxine?”

“My housekeeper.” His voice took on a distinctly sardonic tone. “She likes to think she knows everything.”

“Oh.” Susan felt a pang of dismay. While she was relieved to discover that they weren’t going to be all alone in the house, she didn’t know a thing about having hired help. Heavens, she’d never even had a cleaning lady. What if this Maxine didn’t like her?

She didn’t have to wait long to find out. She’d barely crossed the threshold before a tall, energetic woman dressed in trim white slacks and a bright turquoise blouse materialized at the end of the hall. “Well, I declare, it’s about time you two got here,” the newcomer drawled with a pronounced Texas twang as she marched purposefully closer. “I was startin’ to worry. I put the last touch on the cake half an hour ago.”

Sterling’s eyes narrowed. “What cake?”

The woman, who appeared to be in her fifties, and who had shrewd brown eyes, a weathered face and improbable blond hair swept up in the sort of elegant chignon that Susan could never achieve, smiled at him blandly. “Why, your weddin’ cake, boss. You didn’t think I’d let something as important as your gettin’ hitched pass without at least fixin’ you a special dinner, did you?”

Blithely ignoring his obvious lack of enthusiasm, she shifted her focus. “You must be Susan,” she said warmly. “Why, aren’t you a pretty little thing! The boss never said a word about that, but then, he wouldn’t.” She flashed her employer a brief, reproachful look, then brightened. “But I guess I’m gettin’ the cart before the horse. I’m Maxine, and I take care of most of the important things around here. I’m sure this must all seem a tad overwhelmin’ at the moment, what with the baby and this quickie marriage, but you just wait and see, you’ll be settled in no time.

“Now, why don’t you let me show you your room, and then you can see the rest of the house. I’ll get one of the boys to bring up your suitcases later, unless you need something right away.”

Susan glanced at Sterling, feeling a bit dazed. Unless she’d missed something, it appeared he’d explained their situation to his housekeeper. While she didn’t mind exactly—when she stopped to think about it she could see that anything else would have raised all sorts of awkward questions—he could at least have warned her.

Yet conversing with her was clearly not high on his list of priorities. “You go ahead,” he said, his expression once again impossible to read. “I need to call my office.”

“Yeah, and you need to call your lawyer,” Max informed him tartly. She made a sour face. “I’m tellin’ you, for such a supposed hotshot, that man is plenty excitable. He’s called here three times, babblin’ about some message you left on his answering machine and insistin’ he has to talk to you.”

“Great,” Sterling murmured. “Anything else?”

“As a matter of fact, yessir there is. Greg Hunt called. Said he had some information for you about that immigrant you and some of the other gentlemen from the Cattleman’s Club are sponsoring and that he’d appreciate it if you’d give him a call.”

“Terrific.” With a stiff nod, he walked down the hall and disappeared around the corner.

Susan stared after him, telling herself to give him the benefit of the doubt. Rather than being deliberately rude, he probably just hadn’t adjusted his thinking yet to include a wife. Once he did, he’d no doubt be appalled at his thoughtlessness in practically abandoning her at the front door.

As if reading her mind, Maxine laid a hand on her shoulder and urged her toward the sweeping staircase that curved up to the second floor. “Don’t mind him, darlin’,” she said breezily. “The first thing you gotta know about the boss is that beneath all that growl, the man’s a cupcake. Not—” she rolled her eyes “—that he’d ever admit it, you understand.”