Читать книгу The Complete Boardroom Collection - Джанис Мейнард, Yvonne Lindsay - Страница 47

Rachel’s office phone rang and her stomach dropped. Ten days had gone by since she’d gone with Max to his parents’ anniversary party. Two days ago Max had hired his new assistant. She hadn’t heard from him once since. Had her contact with him started and ended with his employment needs? If so, what had the amazing sex on Saturday night been about? Good-bye?

Hearing the phone ring had become torture. Any call could be Max. How should she act with him? Professional? Friendly? What should she say? Were they moving to a different level?

But he never called and she wasn’t sure where they stood.

Nevertheless, every time she picked up the phone, her heart lurched as if it was trying to escape her chest.

“Rachel Lansing.”

“Well, if it isn’t my beautiful girl.”

Rachel shuddered. Brody had always called her that and never meant it. She’d never been his idea of beautiful. Just his idea of someone he could manipulate.

“What do you want, Brody?”

“I want you to meet me.”

She rolled the phone cord around her finger. “Why? I already told you I can’t pay you anything. There’s no need for us to meet.”

“The guy I owe money to isn’t going to give up unless you tell him that.”

“Why do I need to tell him anything? And what makes you think he’s going to believe me any more than he believed you?”

“He just wants to meet you.”

Rachel didn’t like this one bit. “It has to be somewhere public.” With lots of security guards within earshot.

“How about that place in the lobby where your boyfriend works? We could have drinks. Catch up.”

“He’s not my boyfriend.” The restaurant in the lobby of Max’s building? “Not there. Choose some other place.”

“Can’t. I already told the guy we’d meet in the bar. Be there at three.”

He hung up. Rachel stared at the phone in her hand, consumed by the urge to slam it repeatedly on the edge of her desk. Acid burned her stomach. What was going on? Had Brody told the guys about her connection to Max? Would they follow him to his car one night and slash more than his tires?

Rachel wanted to scream in frustration. She couldn’t let anything happen to Max. If that meant meeting Brody and the thug he owed money to, so be it.

Exactly at three, she pushed through the lobby doors and headed toward her rendezvous with Brody and his loan shark. For about the hundredth time she wondered what the hell she was doing. These were dangerous men. But it was a public place. And if it got her off the hook then it would be worth her trouble.

She spotted Brody before she reached the restaurant. He was deep in conversation with another man who faced away from her. She’d recognize those broad shoulders and the arrogant stance anywhere. Max. Her heart hit her toes as the worst of her imagined scenarios began to play out.

Max handed Brody a thick envelope and slid a folded piece of paper into an inner pocket of his suit coat before heading toward the elevator without ever noticing her standing in stunned immobility in the middle of the enormous lobby.

Brody spotted her as soon as Max headed for the elevator. A broad smirk transformed his boyish good looks into engaging handsomeness. The effect was lost on Rachel. She stalked over to him.

“What were you doing with Max?” She pitched her voice low, conscious that Max stood twenty feet away waiting for the elevator.

Brody waggled the envelope. “Collecting the money you owe me.”

“Give me that.” She made a swipe at the envelope, but Brody lifted it out of her reach.

“I don’t think so.”

“That money doesn’t belong to you.”

“The hell it doesn’t.” Brody’s smug smile made her grind her teeth.

“Where’s the guy who’s been threatening me?”

Brody laughed. “You’re such a sap. There never was anyone. I knew you needed motivating so I made him up.”

“No guy?” She shook her head, confused. “But you owe someone the money?”

“Nope. I needed the fifty grand to buy into this poker game a buddy of mine is running. I knew you wouldn’t give me the money unless you thought I needed help. I remember how scared you were when I owed money to Chuckie back when we were married.”

“Poker?” Was she that much of a sucker? Shame overrode her other emotions for a moment. Then she grasped what Brody had done. “You terrorized me and my sister over a stupid poker game?”

Rachel saw red. She raised her fists, ready to beat him silly, but spotted Max returning across the lobby toward them. Her hands fell to her sides, the fight draining out of her.

Max stepped between her and Brody. “Get out of here,” He addressed the command to her ex. “And don’t let me catch you anywhere near Rachel or her sister ever again.”

He might be a bully with her, but Max’s threat made him pale. However, when Max made no further move against him, Brody sneered at Rachel and departed across the lobby toward the street.

Frustration surged as Rachel watched her ex-husband getting away. “Damn it, Max.” She turned the full brunt of her irritation on him. “What the hell did you do?”

“I paid your debt with your ex. You don’t have to worry about the guy ever showing up again.”

Dismay consumed her. “You paid my debt? I didn’t ask you to do that.” Now she was in his debt. Someplace she’d sworn never to be.

“Yours and Hailey’s. He’s out of both of your lives forever.”

Rachel stared at him, some of her anger draining away. “Hailey didn’t owe him any money.”

Max nodded. “She did. She was paying him back for her schooling.”

“What?” Rachel struggled to breathe as the weight of these new revelations crushed her.

“It was the only way she could get him to leave you alone. He agreed to stay out of your life if she reimbursed him the hundred thousand for her college education.” Max frowned down at her. “Only you had to go and borrow money to start your agency and bring him back in.”

She ripped her wrist from his grasp. “I didn’t borrow money from him,” she snarled. “I told Hailey that so she wouldn’t know what was really going on.” Bitter laughter tore from her throat. “What a bunch of idiots we all are. I was already paying Brody back for her schooling. It was part of our divorce decree. He played all of us. You. Me. Hailey.” She set her back against a nearby pillar as strength left her limbs. “How much did you give him?”

Max didn’t look the least bit worried about what she’d just told him. “A hundred and five thousand dollars.”

Rachel gaped at him. “What? Why so much?”

“The twenty-five you owed him plus the eighty Hailey still owed.”

“How much had she paid him already?” She shut her eyes, fought tears, and awaited the answer.

“Twenty.”

Helpless fury welled up inside her, but she didn’t have the energy to vent it. Hailey had been paying Brody behind Rachel’s back? That hurt.

“Rachel?” Concern tempered Max’s tone. “What the hell is going on?”

She looked up at him. His brows had come together in a concerned frown that made her stomach turn cartwheels. From deep inside her mind, Devon’s words surfaced.

Or maybe he’s found the one he wants.

Her heart ached for it to be true, but Rachel shied away from the foolish hope.

“I need to get out of here,” she said. “I need to find Brody and get that money back.”

Max caught her arm. “I don’t want you anywhere near him.”

“I can’t owe you.”

“You don’t.”

“I do. You paid my debt.”

“To get him out of your life, forever. If you hadn’t shown up today you’d never have known about our deal.” Max’s steel gray eyes sliced at her. “Isn’t that the way you work? Keeping everyone in your life in the dark about what’s going on with you.”

“That’s not fair. I was only trying to protect Hailey.”

“Fair? Do you think it was fair of you to keep the truth from your sister? She was paying your ex-husband a hundred thousand dollars to protect you.”

Rachel gasped. “She didn’t need to do that. I had everything all worked out.”

“Only she didn’t know that, did she? You were too busy keeping her wrapped in cotton to realize that by isolating her, you made her vulnerable.”

“I was trying to keep her safe.”

“And she was trying to help you. But you couldn’t let her. You can’t accept help from anyone.”

Max’s accusations lashed at her. Unable to deny that they made sense, she retreated into her convictions. What he said rang true, but it was only half the story.

“For good reason.”

“Care to share?”

She recoiled. Telling Max about the mistakes she’d made with Brody would substantiate every negative thought he’d ever had about her. Rachel wasn’t convinced she was strong enough to watch his concern die, but what choice did she have?

“So you agreed to pay him for Hailey’s education.”

“I didn’t borrow money from Brody to start up the business. I was paying him so he would agree to a divorce.”

“How much?”

“A hundred thousand dollars.”

“Why so much?”

“That’s how much it cost to put Hailey through college.” All at once, the secrets she’d lived with for years could no longer be contained. “Brody used me to keep his gambling a secret from his father. While I was married to him, he put me on the payroll for more than what I should have been earning. I was supposed to use the money for Hailey’s school, but most of the time, there wasn’t enough because he was losing the money playing poker. To get what I needed, I waitressed on the weekends he was gone.”

“He was stealing money from the company.”

“I guess.”

“How much of Hailey’s education did you pay for by waitressing?”

“By the end, I was paying for all of it.” She circled her hand in a vague gesture. “That’s when I wanted out. But Brody hired the best divorce attorney in Biloxi and contested everything. I was desperate enough to agree to anything to get away from him.”

“I don’t understand why you let him do that to you.”

“Because I was young and scared. When I met Brody, I’d been taking care of Hailey by myself for a year and slipping a little further behind every month. Our apartment was a dump. We clipped coupons and barely scraped by. Most days I didn’t see how I was going to make it to the next paycheck. Then Brody swept into my life. He seemed like a dream come true. Wealthy, handsome, charming, and he saw me as the perfect patsy. Stupid and gullible.” Rachel turned away from Max, unable to face her failure reflected in his eyes. “I guess some things haven’t changed. I came here today because he said that I needed to meet with the guy who slashed my tires and convince him that I wasn’t going to be able to come up with any more money. Only there wasn’t any guy threatening Brody.”

“He lured you here to see me giving him the money. He wanted to hurt you.”

He wanted to humiliate her. To demonstrate he’d always be smarter than her. “How did you know about him? About the money I owe him?”

“Hailey. She was worried about you and came to me for help. Did you know she was paying your ex for her tuition?”

“What?” This was a complete disaster. Now she had to have a long, painful talk with her sister. “Why would she do that?”

“Brody convinced her the only way he would give you a divorce is if she paid him back for tuition.”

“She did it because we were worried about you. Why can’t you just say thank you for the help?”

Failure buzzed around her head like a swarm of black flies. She’d screwed up again. Self-loathing flared, setting fire to her irritation.

“I didn’t ask for her help or yours.”

“Maybe everything would have turned out better if you had.” Max’s gaze warned her to stay silent as she opened her mouth to disagree. “You brought this whole mess on yourself and on us because you had to do it all yourself. You couldn’t reach out for help. You couldn’t accept assistance when it was offered. Instead, you alienated Hailey and me and made it so your ex-husband could cheat both of us.”

“You’ll get every penny back,” she retorted, her face hot while the rest of her body shivered with chill. “If it takes me until the day I die, I’ll pay you back every cent.”

“I don’t care about the money. I only care about you.” He reached for her, but Rachel flinched back. It was instinctive reaction to Max’s earlier scolding, but his gray eyes became like a wintry sky, dense and ominous. “Only you won’t let me do that.”

And to Rachel’s profound dismay, he turned on his heel and walked away from her. She wrapped one arm around her waist and ground the knuckles of her other hand against her lips to keep from calling him back. The set of his shoulders told her he was completely done with her.

As he should be.

He was right. This was all her fault. She’d made nothing but one mistake after another since the day her father died. She’d trusted the wrong people. She’d allowed fear to make her weak. And when she learned to be strong, she swung so far in the other direction that she’d put up walls that kept out even the people she loved.

She didn’t blame Max for walking away. In fact, she was a little surprised he hadn’t run as far and fast as he could to get away from her. She owed him more than she could repay. Not just the money he’d given Brody, but for stepping in on her behalf as well as on Hailey’s.

What a fool she was to have shut him out. She was an even bigger fool to let fear of rejection stand in the way of her chasing after him now.

Max went straight to the parking garage. His footfalls ricocheted around the concrete structure, mimicking the echo in his empty chest. He’d called his new assistant and warned her he’d be gone the rest of the day. Taking off in the middle of the afternoon wasn’t like him, but what was the point in trying to work when there was no way he could concentrate?

He eased his car up the exit ramp and rolled down the window to activate the garage’s electronic gate. Heavy, humid air, stinking of exhaust, washed over him as his tires reached the street. He longed for the clean scent of the beach. But even that wouldn’t soothe him for long. The fragrance would forever remind him of Rachel and their time together.

How could two people be so right for each other and so wrong at the same time?

The question made him think of his parents’ past troubles, and before he knew his intention, the car was heading to the suburbs. He called ahead to make sure someone was home and his mother met him at the door.

“Your father is golfing,” she said, drawing him through the house with her arm linked through his. “He appreciates playing so much more now that he’s back to work part-time. I’ve never seen him so relaxed. He’ll be back in an hour or so if you can wait around that long.”

“I didn’t come about business. I need to talk to you.”

“Really?” Her surprise faded to concern as she scanned his face. “Is it something serious? You’re not ill, are you? You look awfully pale. Are you sleeping?”

“Nothing like that.” Max patted her hand to reassure her. “It’s about Dad’s affair.” Max felt his mother’s whole body stiffen. He kicked himself for being so blunt. “If it’s too hard for you to talk about, I’ll understand.”

“No.” The word swept out of her on a gust of air. “It’s okay. I should be able to talk about it after twenty years, right?”

“It’s okay if you can’t.”

She didn’t speak until they’d entered the kitchen and she’d pushed him onto a stool at the breakfast bar. In his childhood home, the kitchen had been separate from the rest of the house, a place where the housekeeper prepared meals and he and Sebastian snuck snacks. In this house, the kitchen opened onto a large great room with overstuffed couches and an enormous flat-screen television. A sunroom had been transformed into a semiformal dining area for eight and a breakfast nook held a table that seated four.

Although the house possessed a formal dining room designed to entertain on a grand scale, the room was used infrequently. For holidays, birthdays and spontaneous dinners, the family gathered in this casual space.

From the refrigerator, his mother brought out white cheddar cheese, pâté, and olives. From the pantry, two types of crackers. By the time she handed Max a glass of crisp chardonnay, an empty plate and a napkin, he was grinning.

“What’s so funny?” she demanded, handing him a cracker spread with pâté.

“I didn’t realize it was happy hour.”

“It’s five o’clock somewhere.” She waved her hand at him and sipped her own wine. “I tried a new recipe for the pâté. I’d like your opinion, but only if you rave about my wonderful cooking. Now, what did you want to know about your father’s relationship with Marissa?”

Nathan’s mother’s name slipped off her tongue with ease as if she’d spoken it a thousand times.

“It really isn’t the affair I’m interested in. I wanted to know why you forgave Dad after what he’d done to you.” Max popped the cracker into his mouth and chewed. “Or maybe I should ask how you forgave him.”

“I loved him.”

“That’s all there was to it?” Max couldn’t shake his disappointment. He wanted a concrete, step-by-step plan that he could apply to his own difficulties with Rachel. “You didn’t weigh your options then decide do it to keep the family together or because he promised never to do anything like that again?”

His mother shook her head. “No. I forgave your father for purely selfish reasons. I didn’t want to live without him.”

“Even knowing he hadn’t been honest with you?” The question struck at the heart of what he couldn’t grasp. “What assurance did you have that he wouldn’t lie again?”

“None.” His mother cocked her head. “I went on faith.”

“That’s it?” Damn it. The answer to such a complex problem couldn’t be that simple. “After everything that happened you didn’t want a guarantee?”

“What assurance do you have that someone will love you forever or that they ever intended to keep vows they made? ‘Til death do us part. How many people believe in that anymore? The vows should say, ‘’til we’re no longer willing to work on our marriage.’”

His mother’s pragmatism left Max momentarily speechless.

“But you and Dad just renewed your vows. Why did you do that if you didn’t believe in them?”

“Did I say I didn’t believe in them? I took my vows to your father very seriously.” She handed him a slice of cheese. “And just so you know, it was his idea to renew our vows. It’s taken us a lot of work to get to where we are today. But I can say with confidence that your father and I are more in love and more committed to each other than we were the day we got married.”

Max chewed on the cracker and pondered his mother’s words.

He loved Rachel. There was no sense in denying it any longer. Her stubborn need to reject all outside help had given him the excuse he needed to hide from the truth in his heart. No matter how many secrets she kept from him, she wasn’t deceitful because she was a bad person. She merely struggled to trust anyone. And after what she’d been through, could he blame her? He had his own issues with trust.

“Is this about that woman you brought to the party?” his mother asked, stepping into the silence. “I liked her very much.” Her lips curved in a wry grin. “I got the distinct impression you did, as well. You two left here early enough.”

Max felt a little like a teenager caught in the backseat of the car with a half-naked girl. “We’ve been seeing each other for a few weeks.”

“And she’s important to you.”

“Yes.”

“But there’s a problem of trust between you?”

“We met five years ago. She was married at the time, although I didn’t find that out until after we …” He paused, groping for a delicate way to put it.

His mother played with her diamond tennis bracelet. “Spent some time together naked?” While he regarded her in dismay, she chuckled. “Oh, I wish you could see the look on your face right now.”

Max dove back into the story. “I was so angry when I found out. With everything that happened with Dad you know I wouldn’t have gotten involved with her if I’d known.” Or would he? The chemistry between them had been hot and all consuming. Would he have walked away if she’d told him up front that she was in an unhappy marriage?

“She’s divorced now, I take it.”

“For four years. When we met, she didn’t tell me she was married. I found out when her husband showed up to bring her home.”

“And you overreacted because you’ve always taken issue with your father for cheating on me. If you love her, you can’t continue to punish her for mistakes she made.”

“I don’t want to punish her.” But wasn’t his inability to trust her just as detrimental to their relationship?

“If you can’t forgive her, you might have to give up and let her go.”

But his mother hadn’t given up and Max needed to know why. “Why didn’t you leave?”

“Some things are worth fighting for. Your father was one of them.”

“Even after he’d lied to you and had an affair?”

“Not just an affair,” she told him, her voice and eyes steady. “He loved Marissa. I don’t know why he never left me for her.”

Max’s temper simmered at the old hurts. “You didn’t ask?”

“It was enough that he stayed.”

He remembered those days. His mother had been depressed and on the verge of tears much of the time. Max hadn’t understood what was happening between his parents until Nathan appeared, but he’d been mad as hell at his dad for upsetting his mom.

Max still didn’t understand his mother’s ability to forgive his father. Sure, she loved him and wanted to keep her family together, but she wasn’t bitter or angry about the past. It was as if she understood she needed to let it go in order to be happy in the future.

“And he promised it would never happen again,” his mother continued.

“You believed him?”

“Yes.” She lifted her hand and showed off the five carat diamond ring Brandon had bought to renew their vows. “And we’re still married because I did.”

“I’m not sure I have it in me to forgive Dad.”

“I wish you would. Hanging on to the past isn’t healthy. You’ve let what happened between your father and me keep you from falling in love and getting married. Rachel seemed like a lovely woman. I can’t imagine that you would care for her if she wasn’t wonderful. Forgive them both. I think you’ll find doing so will set you free.”

“I’ll think about it,” Max muttered, but even as he said the words, he felt himself resist.

Rachel hadn’t wanted to interrupt Hailey at work, but she desperately needed to talk to her sister. She called Hailey and invited her to dinner. Then, she went to the grocery store and bought what she needed to make their father’s famous pan-fried grouper.

The domestic routine soothed her. She’d been rushing around so much these last few weeks, between her business and Max’s office, fitting in a couple hours to cook and eat a meal hadn’t been a priority.

It was time she slowed down.

By six o’clock when Hailey arrived, Rachel had made a mess of the kitchen but had fun doing it.

“Whoa. What’s with this? You’re cooking?” Hailey dropped her purse on the small breakfast table and surveyed the mess Rachel had made. She wrinkled her nose at the spilled flour, puddles of buttermilk and the array of spices and bowls that occupied every square inch of countertop. “Now I remember why I took over cooking. You are a disaster in the neatness department.”

“Don’t I always clean up when I’m done? Get changed and come open a bottle of wine.”

“I’ll be right back.”

Only a twinge of guilt pinched Rachel as she directed her sister to the bottle in the refrigerator.

Hailey pulled it out and peered at the label. “Champagne? What are we celebrating?”

“I had some good news today.”

“A new client?” Hailey worked off the foil and pried at the cork.

“Better.” Rachel waited until her sister was fully engaged in wiggling the cork free before she unloaded her bombshell. “Max paid off Brody.”

The bottle jerked. The cork shot out with a loud pop and dented the ceiling. Hailey stared at Rachel with her mouth open as foam flowed down the side of the bottle onto the floor.

“He did?”

“Any idea how Max found out that Brody was hassling me about money?”

“I told him.” Hailey looked one part anxious and one part resolute. “Are you mad?”

Damn right she was mad. But confronting Hailey about seeking Max’s help wasn’t satisfying. Tension flowed out of her, leaving behind nothing. Not even regret.

“No. I’m angry with myself. I should have told you the truth instead of trying to protect you.” Rachel’s eyes burned as she reached into the cupboard and brought out two water glasses. The only pair of champagne glasses she’d ever owned had been bought for her wedding toast. She’d smashed them not long after her first anniversary.

Hailey poured the champagne. “I wish you had. It would have made things a lot easier for both of us.”

“Here’s to honesty between sisters from here on out.” Rachel clinked her glass against Hailey’s.

“I’ll drink to that,” Hailey said. “Tell me what happened today.”

“Why don’t you start by telling me what possessed you to go to Max.”

Hailey shot her an accusing look over the rim of her glass. “You are mad.”

“I’m not,” she started, but her sister’s impatient huff reminded her of their toast. “Okay, I’m not exactly mad at you. I get why you did it. I just wish you hadn’t.”

“I had to. Someone slashed your tires. That scared me.”

Rachel flinched. “I had it under control.”

“No, you didn’t.” Hailey’s voice was hot as she countered Rachel’s claim. “Just like you didn’t have it under control after Dad died and Aunt Jesse took off on us. I know I wasn’t out of high school, but you should have let me help.”

“I was trying to protect you.”

Hailey shook her head. “You always treated me like I was made of glass. Just once I wanted you to lean on me, but you never did.”

“I didn’t realize it was that important to you,” Rachel said, holding up her hands to fend off her sister’s verbal battery. She’d always been proud of her sister, but never more than now. “Thank you for going to Max.”

Hailey’s temper evaporated. Her lips formed a half grin. “Wow, how’d that taste?”

“Bitter.” Rachel finished the rest of her champagne in one swallow and held her glass out for a refill. “If you hadn’t gone to him, Brody would have continued to pester us. He’d have taken more of your money. And I would forever be hopeful that Max might someday forgive me for not telling him I was married five years ago. I don’t need to worry on any of those accounts any more.”

“You and Max will make it work. That man has it bad for you.”

“You didn’t see him today. He never wants to see me again. Thanks to me he paid a hundred and five thousand dollars to a lowdown stinking liar.”

“Why so much? You only owed him twenty-five.”

“But you told Max that you’d promised to pay Brody for your college education.”

Hailey gasped. “He wasn’t supposed to do that.”

“Now do you understand why I kept this from Max?” She slid the cooked fish onto two plates and dished out the broccoli she’d steamed. “He’s not the sort of man to stand on the sidelines when he could save the day.” Another reason why she loved him. Rachel blew out a breath. “He settled both our debts. I told him I’d pay him back the money. The problem is, you and I were both paying Brody off for your schooling. He was double dipping.”

“I thought you were paying him back for a loan to start your business.”

“No. Brody was cheating us. We paid him for your schooling twice.”

“Twice?” Hailey looked horrified.

“I was paying him as part of our divorce decree. Now paying back Max will make it three times.”

“That’s insane. You’re not going to do that. I’m not going to let you.”

Rachel shoved a plate into her sister’s hands. “Yes, I am.”

“No, you’re not. It was my mistake. I’m going to pay Max back.”

“It was my fault for not telling you about my arrangement with Brody from the beginning. I’ll pay Max back. You’re getting ready to start your life with Leo. You don’t want this sort of debt hanging over your head.”

“And you’ve got a business to run. You shouldn’t have to shoulder it, either.”

Rachel had never seen her sister look so fierce or so determined. New respect bloomed. While she’d struggled with her business and finances, Hailey had become a strong, independent-minded young woman. Rachel was ashamed she hadn’t noticed sooner.

“Okay.”

Hailey’s eyebrows shot up. “What do you mean, okay?”

“You’re absolutely right that I don’t want to be the one to pay Max back.”

“You’re going to let me do it?” Hailey nodded in satisfaction.

“Nope. I have a different idea altogether.” Rachel rubbed her hands together and sent an evil grin winging toward her sister.

Hailey cracked a smile. “Anything you’d care to share?”

“Grab some silverware. We’ll talk while we eat.”