Читать книгу Love at Last - Irene Brand - Страница 9

As Lorene Harvey walked across the campus of Woodston College, she was tempted to turn tail and run. The redbrick buildings, the shaded avenues and the memorial fountain, cascading colorful rainbows in the sweltering summer heat, brought unwelcome thoughts—memories of two years of her life she’d tried in vain to forget.

She hadn’t wanted to come to this Kentucky town in the first place, and the sudden surge of best-forgotten incidents confirmed her opinion that coming to Woodston had been a mistake. Would she ever put the past behind her? Why couldn’t she blot out recollections of twenty years ago when she’d made the biggest error of her life? A mistake that had spawned an empty vacuum where her heart ought to be.

But Lorene hadn’t established a successful media-relations business by surrendering to her mistakes. She paused before the splashing fountain, determined to suppress her regrets of days gone by. After a few minutes she took a deep breath, forced a pleasant smile and walked into the administration building.

Following the signs to room 202, she tapped lightly on the open door and entered. The receptionist, who looked to be in her sixties, smiled and said pleasantly, “May I help you?”

“I want to see the vice chair of Woodston’s bicentennial commission. I understand this is his office.”

The secretary’s eyes expressed caution. “He might not have time to see you. May I have your name?”

Lorene’s smile remained, but her jaw tightened and her gray-green eyes flashed like summer lightning, and in a harsh, uncompromising voice that didn’t sound like her usual velvet tones, she said, “I’m Lorene Harvey of Tri-State Public Relations Agency in Pittsburgh. I’ve been in Woodston for two hours trying to find someone to talk to me about the historical celebration our firm is supposed to promote. Mr. Kincaid, chairman of the commission, isn’t available, and I was sent here.”

Lorene was aware that a door had opened behind her, but without turning she said, “If everybody in this town is too busy to talk to me, our firm is too busy to represent Woodston.” Turning toward the door, she added, “We’ll return the retainer Mr. Kincaid sent us.”

“I—I’m sorry,” the receptionist stammered. Her face flushed, and her eyes darted to a point over Lorene’s shoulder.

“I’ll talk to you, Lorene.”

The voice jolted Lorene out of her anger, and she whirled to stare at the man standing in the doorway of the adjoining office. She took a sharp breath and her pulse raced.

As if Lorene’s surprise appearance hadn’t dealt his vulnerability a near-fatal blow, Perry Saunders continued, “You’ll have to forgive Alma—she’s overprotective of me. Come in.” He motioned toward his office.

Lorene’s yearning eyes swept his beautifully proportioned body from the neatly shod feet to his extraordinary eyes, as dark as black onyx, to the thick silvery-gray hair that fell loosely over his forehead before it tapered neatly to the collar of his dark business suit. Stunned by this unexpected encounter, she was powerless to do anything except nod and move toward him. Tense fingers tightened on the handle of her briefcase as she walked on trembling legs into a comfortable room with high ceilings, long, heavily draped windows and modern oak office furnishings.

Perry closed the door and, thinking her legs might not support her much longer, Lorene dropped quickly to a couch at the left of the desk. She looked upward and slowly studied each feature of the face that, except in her dreams, she hadn’t seen for twenty years. Perry had a long, lean face, high cheekbones and a straight, prominent nose. Except for the gray hair, she couldn’t see that he’d aged at all. The last time she’d seen Perry, his hair had been jet-black.

“I’ve always wondered what you’d look like with gray hair,” she said evenly, proud of herself that the emotional shock of seeing him wasn’t evident in her voice.

Perry’s neat gray mustache framed a sensitive, well-shaped mouth that widened into a smile. Sitting beside Lorene, he took her hand, and his eyes hungrily scanned each of her features. Thick dark hair fell gracefully over shapely shoulders, and her eyes of gray and green shades glowed with wonder and surprise at meeting him again. Lorene was tall and well proportioned with a slender waist, no heavier than she’d been when she was twenty. She looked just as he remembered—generously curved lips, delicate bone structure, dainty nose and long black eyelashes that splayed over rosy skin. She wore black dress pants, a red blazer and black pumps rather than the jeans and sweatshirts she’d preferred when he’d known her.

The most profound difference was in her character. In her teens, Lorene had been insecure, possessing low self-esteem, mostly because she had a domineering father who wouldn’t give her the freedom to think for herself. It was apparent that the years had brought an inner strength that hadn’t lessened her determination or marred her delicate beauty.

Lorene squirmed under his intense scrutiny, and he said lightly, “No gray in your hair, I see.”

“Thanks to my beautician,” she admitted with a slight smile. Then surprise and disbelief overspread her face, and she cried out, “You’re teaching in a Christian college! What happened to your engineering studies?”

“I finished my engineering degree, but I later went to seminary, received my doctorate in Bible studies ten years ago and came to teach in Woodston.”

She wanted to ask why he’d changed his profession. Instead she said, “I’m sorry I lost my temper with your secretary, but I still intend to return the retainer the commission sent and be on my way.”

Perry tightened his grip on her hand and said quickly, “When I’ve wondered for years where you were, do you think I’ll let you walk out of my life again? Tell me what disturbed you this afternoon. Most people consider Woodston a friendly town.”

“At Mr. Kincaid’s bank I was passed from one employee to another until a secretary told me he wasn’t available this afternoon and sent me here. She said that the vice chair of the commission was at this office. She didn’t mention your name, and by that time I was too annoyed to ask.”

“If you’d known I was the one you were to see, would you have come?”

The question was as sharp as a knife wound in her heart. She lowered her head. When she didn’t know the answer herself, how could she respond? She was suddenly overcome with an uncontrollable urge to leave this town. She’d run away from Perry once before, and she had even more reason to leave him now. Standing, she pulled her hand from his.

“No, Perry, I wouldn’t have. I’ll refund the deposit to the bicentennial commission and leave. You’ll be able to find another public relations firm closer to Woodston. I don’t know why we were contacted in the first place.”

With an indulgent smile, Perry said, “Mr. Kincaid has political ambitions, and he thought if he hired a nationally known PR firm, he might gain out-of-state recognition.”

Inching toward the door, Lorene said, “I’ll recommend a good company in Louisville that can provide as much publicity as my firm can.”

She had her hand on the doorknob, but Perry moved in front of the door and barred her exit.

“Lorene,” Perry said as he softly cupped her chin with his warm hand and lifted her face so that their eyes met and gazes held. “I’m not concerned with Woodston receiving national recognition.” There was a look of unflinching determination on his face. “But I do care about us. You walked out on me once, and I’ve never forgotten the emptiness that caused in my life.” His voice became pleading in its intensity. “It’s okay if you don’t want to represent Woodston, but stay a few days for me. I think you owe me that much.”

She closed her eyes against the entreaty in his voice, her heart aching with pain. Did he think he was the only one who’d been hurt? And he had no idea how much she did owe him! Would she ever tell him? Lorene’s heart and emotions demanded that she stay in Woodston, but her intellect shouted that she should put the past behind her as quickly as she could. She’d built a life without Perry Saunders. Besides, if he knew the secret she harbored, he wouldn’t want her to stay.

His hand slid over her cheek in a wistful gesture and Lorene opened her eyes. The moment of decision was crucial. A familiar smile hovered in Perry’s dark eyes, and in spite of the warning that hammered in her brain, Lorene nodded tensely. “Well, I’m not staying a few days, but we can talk for a few hours.”

Perry’s heart warmed when she yielded to his pleading, though he was instantly sorry he’d asked her to stay. His life wasn’t his own anymore. When he’d committed to full-time Christian service, Perry had repudiated his love for Lorene. Would being with her again distract him from his chosen profession? He didn’t know, but he was happy that his prayers had been answered. Humorously, he thought that God might have gotten tired of his entreaties. Not a day had passed since she’d left him that Perry hadn’t asked God to take care of Lorene and allow him to see her again.

Lorene moved toward the chair in front of his desk, but he said, “Let’s sit on the couch where it’s more comfortable. I’ll have Alma bring us something to drink. Coffee?”

She wasn’t keen about sitting beside him, but she moved to the maroon leather couch and answered, “That will be fine. I take it black.”

“Yes, I remember.”

He turned on the intercom, gave the order and joined her at a discreet distance on the couch. Now that she’d gotten over her initial surprise at seeing Perry, Lorene had her emotions under control, and she was eager to find out what he’d been doing, too.

When Alma entered with a tray and placed it on the low table in front of them, Lorene smiled at her and said, “I’m not usually so short-tempered, and I apologize for my rudeness. I know it isn’t ethical to break the verbal contract our company made with Woodston, so I’ll not back out of our agreement. But since I’ve gotten off on the wrong foot already, I’ll send another representative to work with the commission.”

A pleasant smile lighted Alma’s face, transforming her rather plain features. “Professor Saunders is chairman of his department, and many salesmen and others drop in to chat when he’s busy. I try to steer people away when I can, but I do get carried away sometimes. I had no idea who you were. Mr. Cranston was the initial contact from your agency.”

Lorene sipped gratefully on the hot beverage Alma had poured. “Kenneth Cranston accepted another job quite suddenly and didn’t give me any advance notice. My other employees are busy elsewhere, so it was up to me. But I shouldn’t have let my anger at Cranston govern my attitude toward Woodston. Forgive me?”

“Certainly,” Alma said as she left the office, closing the door behind her, but not before her eyes shifted appraisingly from Perry to Lorene.

“Alma had been the secretary to my predecessor, and she has a tendency to mother me. I have a standing invitation to her house for dinner every Sunday, or any other time I want a home-cooked meal.”

Concluding from his comments that he lived alone, Lorene glanced at his left hand. No ring on the third finger. Her heart fluttered slightly at the implication and her fingers tightened on the coffee cup. “You aren’t married?”

“No.”

She met his eyes briefly, but lowered her gaze when he continued, “You don’t have a ring, either. Why?”

“That’s a question I’ve often asked myself,” Lorene admitted, “but I’ve never come up with a satisfactory answer.” Her eyes clouded with memories of the past, and Perry moved toward her.

“Mr. Kincaid wants to see you,” Alma said over the intercom, breaking the tension between them. The door opened immediately and a thin beanpole of a man barged into the office.

“Are you Miss Harvey?” he said, coming toward Lorene with outstretched hand.

Perry cupped Lorene’s elbow and helped her to stand.

“Lorene Harvey, meet Gaston Kincaid, chairman of Woodston’s bicentennial commission.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t on hand to meet you,” Kincaid said, pumping her hand. “I contacted the bank by phone and learned you were in town. I’d received the e-mail message that you were replacing Cranston, but I didn’t know when to expect you. I trust Professor Saunders has taken care of you.”

Perry flushed slightly, but Lorene answered smoothly, “I’ve only been here a short time, and we haven’t gotten around to discussing the PR agenda.”

“I have an engagement tonight,” Kincaid said, “but I’ll notify the commission members that we’ll meet tomorrow evening. Perry can give you a file outlining our plans, or do you have what we sent Cranston?”

“Unfortunately, Kenneth deleted his records from our computer system before he left. But I can read through the file tonight and look around town tomorrow. Perhaps you and I should have a private conference before the meeting?”

“I’m a very busy man, so I can’t give you much of my time,” Kincaid said, “but Perry can help you. Will you take Miss Harvey out for dinner tonight?”

“It will be a pleasure. Since the fall quarter has started, my schedule is flexible. I’ll give Miss Harvey all the help I possibly can.”

“Good! Good!” Kincaid said, and hustled out of the office with an abrupt wave of his hand. Shaking his head, Perry moved to close the door.

“Kincaid is one of the college trustees, and he twisted my arm to serve on the celebration commission.” With a slight grimace, he added, “His first priority is promoting himself and his business, and then he turns the rest of his attention to steering the course of this college. He has his good points, but he can be overbearing.”

He sat beside her again. “Now, where were we?”

The phone rang, and with a look of annoyance Perry picked up the receiver on his desk and answered. He concluded that call, started back to the couch and the phone rang again. Perry’s handsome features faded into a frown when he took the second call. What was the matter with Alma? She usually held all calls when he was in a conference. Was she deliberately interrupting his conversation with Lorene? It must have been obvious to her that they knew each other. He didn’t need Alma’s interference in his attempt to prevent Lorene’s immediate departure from Woodston.

“We’ll never manage any privacy here,” Perry said when he finished that conversation, “so we’ll talk this evening over dinner. I prefer a restaurant out of town. If we stay in Woodston, we’ll meet too many people who know me and want to visit.”

Lorene knew it wasn’t prudent to have dinner with Perry, but she’d seldom displayed any caution in her relationship with him.

She looked at her watch. “I’ll enjoy having dinner with you. After all,” she added with a grin, “Mr. Kincaid practically ordered you to entertain me. It may take quite a while to go over Woodston’s plans, but I can work late tonight.”

“Where are you staying?”

“At Riverview Ridge, the B and B on the outskirts of town. My travel agency gave it a four-star rating. The apartment I’m renting is in the back wing, facing the river.”

“You made a good choice. I’ll pick you up at six-thirty.”

Already having second thoughts, Lorene panicked at the thought of spending an evening alone with Perry. “Do you think it’s wise for us to do this?”

“Probably not,” he admitted honestly, “but I have to know why you deserted me. It’s weighed on my mind for years.”

“That period of our life is over, so maybe we shouldn’t rake up painful memories that won’t do either of us any good, but…” Her lips trembled and she pressed a hand against them. “But I do want to spend some time with you, Perry. I’ll be ready.” She gave him her cell phone number. “Let me know if you change your mind.”

“I won’t change my mind.”

An eager light flickered in Perry’s black eyes, filling Lorene with conflicting emotions. Apprehension swept over her, and she knew she should cancel this dinner. If Perry wanted to resume their previous relationship, did she have the willpower to resist him? Or did she even want to resist?