Well, Ellie—no Ellen Elizabeth Fletcher—had only just begun!
Clay glanced out the window, trying to fathom the sudden turn of events. Things weren’t going at all as he’d planned. In fact, far from it. For the sake of the team, he’d hoped to speak to Ellie in private, tell her he was sorry, explain how ill-suited they were, tell her how much better off she was without him.
It appeared all his arrangements had been for naught. Ellie seemed to be handling their estrangement just fine.Too fine,he thought, and realized how much it rankled him.
He wanted her to be upset, he grudgingly admitted. Wanted her despondent at his leaving.
He hated this new woman Ellie seemed bound and determined to become. He hadn’t seen much of her lately, purposely staying away. Had their single night of lovemaking changed her so completely?
It was possible, he knew. What had happed in Monaco had certainly changed him.
He glanced at Ellie, sitting regally beside him. When she felt his eyes on her, she tilted her chin at precisely the angle to display her features to their best advantage. It was a gesture he might have expected from Gabriella, or Angela, but never from Ellie. Where was the warm, vibrant woman who had captured his heart?
Clay looked back out the window. Outside the car, the wild splendor of the Wicklow Mountains passed by. The road wound its way through some of the most beautiful country in the world.
They drove through Glendalough, a secluded, wooded valley between two lakes, arriving at their destination, Castle Glenmorra, not a moment too soon for Clay.
“Good heavens,” Ellie said. “This is what your father calls a house? It looks more like a palace.” Her face lit up with childish delight, thatjoie de viveClay had come to love.
His heart began to pound. He felt her leg pressing against his, smelled her subtle perfume, and his blood began to pound.
Damn! He’d come up with the idea for this weekend in order to put things right between the members of the team, not to set himself up for more problems with Ellie. He’d have to stay away from her, steel himself as he had before. He could do it, he knew. He’d kept his emotions controlled for most of his life. He was even better at it now.
Waiting as the car slowed to a stop, Ellie’s excited look faded, replaced by her newly acquired veneer. She was making it easy, Clay thought. Becoming the kind of person he’d come to hate almost as much as he’d hated ending their ill-fated affair.
“Actually, this is the ancestral estate of the Baron of Lahinch,” he said dryly. “My father has expensive taste.” Then the chauffer opened the door.
“Have you ever seen anything like this?” Ellie whispered to Prissy as they climbed the massive marble staircase, the sound of their voices echoing off the stone walls. The huge, vaulted entry was magnificently paneled in walnut, exquisitely carved, and lit with ornate gilded sconces. Original oil paintings hung above ancient suits of armor.
Prissy’s gaze followed hers. “The Whitfields sure know how to live.”
Ellie was shown to a huge sleeping chamber, Prissy to one across the hall. From the frescoed ceilings to the tapestry-draped four-poster bed, the castle spoke of an elegance long forgotten. Even though she had to put up with Clay, Ellie was glad she’d gotten a glimpse of an era and a way of life few people ever discovered.
A black-suited servant brought up her bags, which were unpacked by a uniformed maid.
“You ready?” Prissy stuck her head through the door. Avery had invited the guests to what he termed “a light repast” by the pool. Ellie had changed into a mauve silk jumpsuit, very chic, and drawn her hair into a long ponytail that started at the top of her head.
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”
Dressed in a two-piece navy linen pant suit piped in white, Prissy flashed her an approving glance. “Didn’t take you long to catch onto the high society look.”
“My mother has a passion for clothes. For years she’s been dying to get me to dress like this. Up until now, it wasn’t my style.”
“Times do change,” Prissy teased.
Ellie grinned. “Clay said I was a quick study.”
“I think he’s eating his heart out.”
That was a sobering thought. “I doubt it. But I can’t help hoping you’re right.”
They headed downstairs to join the rest of the team members as well as the dozens of other guests Avery had invited. Ellie’s armor was holding up and she felt good about herself for the first time in days. She’d show Clayton Whitfield.
Or damn well die trying.
Though he tried to remain immune, Clay found himself watching Ellie throughout the day. The poolside party, overflowing with guests invited in honor of the team, provided her an endless stream of admirers. The laughter, flirtatious smiles, and teasing expressions she bestowed on the men around her aroused feelings in Clay more powerful than anything he’d been prepared for.
His emotions ran the gauntlet—anger, jealousy disappointment, humiliation, and heartache.
