“And now you want to surprise him—with me?”
“You don’t like surprises?”
What could she do with him when he got into a rascally mood? He must have had a pleasant reunion with his friend, and perhaps one drink too many.
“I’ll go and get ready, Lucas.”
“Good girl.” He gave her a quick peck on the cheek. “You can have the house to yourself if you want to bathe in the kitchen to save time. I’ll clean up in the barn.”
“You won’t come in until I call you?”
“I can’t make any promises, beautiful.”
He laughed, and she watched him saunter away. Why did he persist in calling her “beautiful” when he knew it annoyed her? And how could she stay annoyed with him when he was such a rogue?
Twenty-two
The Palace Hotel was a pleasant surprise, nothing like she had expected. It was narrow and only three stories high, and the top floor was one large suite belonging exclusively to Samuel Newcomb. But its plain wooden facade hid luxury. With chandeliers, and crystal lamps on each of the tables in the dining room, she felt at home. Of course, a fine New York restaurant would never be so empty, nor would she have worn a simple outing dress, which she decided was elegant enough.
There was only one other couple in the dining room, and only one waiter to serve them. She watched Lucas covertly while they sat waiting for Emery to join them.
She hadn’t mentioned the parcels he’d brought from town. The plain calico dresses were obviously for her to work in, and the boy’s pants and cotton shirts were probably for riding. The clothes told her that, as far as he was concerned, she wasn’t leaving any time soon.
While they waited for Emery, Lucas watched Sharisse, too. She took his breath away. He had told her to dress up, and to his mind that meant something flashy. But she had dressed in sheer elegance, in a black and red lampas basque. There were three flounces of Chantilly lace on the skirt, draped to reveal the rich black satin beneath. The dress brought out her rich, vibrant copper-colored hair. She looked exquisite. But then she always looked good to him. He shook his head. If only he hadn’t discovered what a little liar she was.
He still didn’t know what to make of it. Damn, she was as good at spinning tales as he was. And he had been just as gullible as she was, believing everything she told him. He’d never guessed that she really might be a virgin. A virgin! He ought to have known. She sure acted like one.
That fact delighted and enraged him. He certainly hadn’t got any sleep the night of the big surprise. He had spent hours trying to figure what could have motivated her to claim widowhood, when the simple truth would have been much more appealing. It didn’t make sense.
The next morning, she had managed to hide the evidence of her recently-lost virginity. The little innocent really thought her ruse had gone undetected, and she meant to keep it that way. But why? What was her real story, anyway? Was she running away from someone? From the law? Did she really have no intention of marrying him? Was that also a lie? He was consumed by curiosity.
Those splendid amethyst eyes turned his way, and she smiled shyly at him. Hell, there was no reason he couldn’t keep her as long as he needed her. Five minutes later Emery walked in, but he wasn’t alone. Lucas groaned at the sight of the Newcombs. He was puzzled. Emery had told him that Sam insisted no one learn about the sale of his ranch, not yet. How would Sam handle being caught in the lawyer’s company? For that matter, Emery looked quite uncomfortable. Handling things from afar was one thing, but being thrust to the forefront of a colossal swindle was another. It had taken Lucas a long time to find a lawyer whose scruples wouldn’t be a problem for what he had in mind. He hadn’t considered that Emery and Sam Newcomb might meet face to face.
Just then, Samuel Newcomb was wishing he were anywhere but where he was. It had been Fiona’s idea to come to dine at the hotel with his business associate, which was what he had told Fiona Emery Buskett was merely an associate. And wouldn’t you know, she had spotted Holt and his fiancée and was making her way to their table. Of all the rotten luck.
Damn. He hadn’t wanted Luke to know that the man who was handling their mutual investment was in town. He would certainly wonder why he was there, and he might put two and two together and see what Sam was up to. Sam was buying the new block of stock in Fiona’s maiden name so none of the original investors would know he was after the controlling interest. If that fact were known, someone else might get the same idea and go for the controlling interest himself. Sam had been so careful, and now this. He wasn’t worried that Holt would come up with a very large investment, but there was the possibility that he might know some of the other investors and tell them what Sam was up to.
When the time came for expansion, Sam would direct that expansion to Newcomb. His dream of the town he had founded being a huge city one day was a possibility. And with profits pouring in, he could buy back all his properties pretty soon.
That would be the easy part, once the absentee buyers that Emery was coming up with found out that Newcomb was at present on its way to becoming a ghost town. Sam had promised Emery a sizable profit to keep that information to himself. That was why he had insisted on Emery coming to Newcomb. He wasn’t going to broach such a delicate matter through the mail. If he hadn’t been able to buy the lawyer, Sam would simply have got rid of him and dealt with someone else. But Emery had gone along with everything. He had assured Sam that he and Luke weren’t close friends. Besides, Holt’s investment would be salvaged by the deal Sam was making, so he couldn’t very well complain when he finally heard about it.
“What a pleasant surprise,” Fiona was saying. “We certainly didn’t expect to find you here, Luke—and of course your charming fiancée,” she murmured. Her pale blue eyes lit on Sharisse with unconcealed contempt. “Whatisyour name, dear?” She dismissed her, smiling at Lucas. “You poor man. I suppose the hotel is the only place you can get a decent meal these days.”
Sharisse was shocked by the blatant insult. The proper thing she wanted to do was to be icily polite. That was proper. But the way Fiona Newcomb was devouring Lucas with her eyes rubbed Sharisse the wrong way, and what was proper went right out of her mind.
Fortunately Lucas found his voice before she could bare her claws. “I don’t need an excuse to bring my fiancée to dinner here, Fiona, but if you’re curious about her skills in the kitchen, you might as well know she puts your imported cook to shame.”
“How delightful,” Fiona replied dryly.
Sharisse beamed at the sweet lie. “Actually, Mrs. Newcomb, Lucas promised me an evening of hearing the latest news from St. Louis. A friend of his is in town.”
“Not our Mr. Buskett?” Fiona asked. She looked over her shoulder to see him approaching with Sam.
“How did you know Emery was in town, Luke?” Sam asked suspiciously.
“I happened to see him when I was here today. But you know how lawyers are when they’re on a business trip—all work and no socializing. And since he’s only passing through, I figured if I didn’t bring Sharisse to town tonight to meet him, she wouldn’t get the chance. But how didyouknow he was in town?”
“He, ah, came by the ranch to pay a courtesy call, introduced himself. After all, I’d never met the man, and he is handling some affairs for me.”
