Catching Her Rival (Mills & Boon Superromance)

by Lisa Dyson

  Was she beginning to have feelings for Harvey? Good to know. “Can’t you take him with you?”

  “I suggested that, but my mom isn’t a pet person. She didn’t exactly say no, but she asked if someone could take him for the weekend.”

  “I could keep him while you’re gone.”

  “But then you won’t be able to see your cousin, and they’re moving to Texas next week. I couldn’t do that.”

  Jack considered the options. “Then let’s take Harvey with us.”

  “Us?”

  “Sure. I would like to see my cousin before she leaves. There wasn’t much chance to catch up at the wedding. And if I’m going, we might as well drive together. Do you really think your mom will make a big deal out of Harvey coming along if I’m there?”

  “You’re willing to go, even though you hate the way I do business?”

  He hesitated before answering. She had a good point. “I think we decided to stay away from discussions about business. I broke the rules by calling you out on your dog ownership, but I’ll try to do better. Now, what time do you want to leave on Saturday?”

  She stared at him as if trying to decide whether to believe him. “My mother wants me there by lunch, and it’s about a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Providence. That means leaving by nine or nine-thirty—I have to pick up Scott and Emily around three o’clock. Will that work for you?”

  “Sounds perfect. I’ll text you when I’m on my way.”

  “You don’t have to pick me up, you know. I can drive to Newport, and we can go from there. In fact, we should take my car to New York. You’re already going out of your way to help me with Harvey.”

  “I don’t mind. I’ll check the map,” he said, “but I have to go north to get to I-90 anyway, so I might as well pick you up.”

  Allie fiddled with the bracelet on her slender wrist, looking down at the asphalt. Her pale gray pants were a perfect match for the bits of dog hair that clung to them below her knees. The darker gray heels she wore showed no visible bite marks. As his gaze roamed her body, taking in the frilly bright blue blouse that gathered at her narrow waist, his temperature rose.

  What was it about her that never failed to turn him on? Even when he was irritated by her actions, he wanted her.

  And then their gazes collided. Damn those eyes of hers. Dark blue like her blouse, with a distinctive ring around the outer edge of her iris. Could he see into her soul if he looked hard enough?

  She was talking, but he didn’t catch what she said. Something about him not feeling obligated, with his grandfather in the hospital.

  “They’re moving my grandfather into a rehab facility today. His doctor told me that he’s done remarkably well, but he wants to make sure Granddad doesn’t have any more dizzy spells before letting him go home.”

  “That’s good news,” Allie said.

  “If only Granddad thought so.” He told her about his visit to the hospital that morning. “I haven’t heard anything since. I’m hoping his doctor convinced him the rehab center is the best place for him right now.” He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “I’ll visit him tomorrow at the new place to make sure he’s settled in. I can be reached by cell if they need to contact me while we’re away.”

  “I guess everything’s settled, then.” But she didn’t sound convinced.

  “I’m still sensing something’s wrong.”

  “I’m dreading this trip,” she confessed. “My mother is an unapologetic matchmaker. She thinks everyone should be paired up and make families.”

  “And you disagree?”

  “Wholeheartedly. I’ve been in my share of relationships, but I’m not interested in one right now. But that doesn’t mean my wishes have any bearing on my mother’s actions.” She twisted her bracelet. “I need you to remember that my mother’s views on marriage and mine are total opposites. And if it looks like she’s trying to get us together, she is.”

  He grinned. “Works for me.” He chucked her under the chin. “Don’t even worry about it. I’m a big boy. I can handle myself.”

  Her shoulders relaxed, and before he could consider his actions, he pulled her in for a friendly hug.

  Wow. What a mistake—a mistake that felt way too good.

  Her arms immediately wrapped around his waist and, with heels on, her face came to his neck, where her warm breath just above his collarbone sent his pulse into overtime.

  There was that citrus scent of her hair again, tickling his nose. His hands slid from her lower back up to her head, sliding through the silky strands of her hair. His body screamed out for him to do something about this pull she had on him, but his mind remained in control.

  The parking lot was deserted, but they weren’t alone. People walked by on the sidewalk, but there were several rows of parked cars between the sidewalk and where he and Allie stood.

  Allie pulled away, taking a step back.

  “I’m sorry.” They both spoke at the same time.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” Jack pleaded.

  “How am I looking at you?”

  “I don’t know. But there’s something in your eyes that makes my brain go blank.”

  She smiled, and that made him want her more.

  He groaned inwardly and checked his watch. Almost five. He could ask her to go for a drink, since trying to get any work done at this point would be fruitless.

  Harvey barked from inside his crate as if he knew they needed a referee.

  “I should get Harvey home,” Allie said. “He probably needs some exercise after spending the afternoon in that conference room.”

  Jack nodded. Going their separate ways was the smart decision. “I really liked your presentation, Allie. You know you didn’t need Harvey. Your talent stands on its own.” He couldn’t help himself. The words came out automatically.

  She cocked her head. “Thank you, I think. I liked yours, too. Those branding ideas were genius.”

  “Thanks. But I mean it, Allie. You can rely on your talent. You don’t have to deceive people to win them over.”

  Allie narrowed her eyes. “That’s easy for you to say. You have no idea what I’ve been through or how hard it is for me to get new business. You have your grandfather’s company and reputation behind you.”

  “That doesn’t mean I don’t have to work extremely hard to win accounts.” Did she really think he had it that much easier than she did just because his firm was established? “Nothing is handed to me because of my grandfather.”

  Allie stared at him a minute as if she didn’t believe him. He decided to change the subject, unwilling to leave things between them on such a sour note. “Who did your animation? I loved the different personalities of the dog family with puppies that were picky eaters.”

  “I did it all,” she said stiffly. “I can’t afford to hire anyone right now. Anyway, animation has been a hobby of mine since I was a kid.”

  “Really? That’s very cool.”

  Her face colored. “Yeah, I used to make those little books of pictures that you fan and the characters move. Now there are websites you can use to do it all.”

  “But you do the actual drawings of the characters?”

  She nodded. “Even though we haven’t figured out how Charlotte and I are related, we did discover that both of us have an artistic streak.”

  “That’s amazing. I’ve seen Charlotte’s work, and she’s very talented.”

  “Isn’t she? I’m a hack compared to her.”

  “Like I said before, don’t doubt your talent,” he chided her. “You have different points of view.”

  She seemed to consider that. “I like that. Different points of view. Maybe I’ll use that the next time my mother tells me animation is a hobby, not a career.”

  Right there, Jack decided that this weekend he would need to stick up for Allie if her mother belittled her obvious talent, or otherwise.

  Was that why she didn’t feel she could rely on her talent and had to be dishonest to su
cceed?

  * * *

  EARLY FRIDAY MORNING, Allie was leaving the vet hospital without Harvey. She hadn’t realized how attached she’d become to him until now. Poor guy didn’t have a clue about what was about to happen to him.

  According to the vet, Harvey should have no trouble traveling tomorrow. She only hoped her mom would accept having him in her house. Allie had already figured that Harvey would need plenty of exercise this weekend since he’d probably be relegated to his crate indoors. And if her mom gave her a hard time, she would just get a room at a local hotel.

  She got into her car, and before starting the engine, she called Charlotte. “Tell me Harvey is going to be all right,” she moaned in greeting.

  Charlotte laughed. “He’ll be fine. Vets do this operation all the time. It’s no big deal.”

  “Maybe not to the vet, but it’s a big deal to Harvey. Do you think he’ll hate me after this? I was just getting him to like me better than—or at least as much as—Jack. I’d hate to go backward in our relationship.”

  Charlotte laughed again. “Stop giving him human reasoning and reactions. He won’t even know what happened. He’s certainly not going to blame you.”

  “I hope not.” She changed the subject to the real topic she was calling about. “I was wondering what you’re doing this weekend? Would you like to come to my parents’ house with Jack and Harvey and me?”

  “You want me to come with you? Why?”

  “Yeah. I thought maybe you could help me pressure my mom into telling me about my adoption. She’s got to realize there’s something screwy when she sees how much you and I look alike.”

  “I’d love to come, but maybe another time,” Charlotte said. “I’ve got so much to do for my showing in a few weeks. I don’t have nearly enough inventory.”

  “I understand, but I just thought I’d ask. I probably shouldn’t drop you on her like that anyway. I should at least give her some warning, I suppose.”

  “I think you’re right. Are you going to push her for answers?”

  “I’m gonna try,” Allie said. “My mom’s a champ when it comes to changing the subject if she doesn’t want to talk about something.” She’d done it several times in the past week alone.

  “At least she’s still around to answer questions.” Charlotte spoke softly. “I wish you and I had met before I lost my mother. Then I would have been able to ask her questions. Like why she had an extra thirty thou lying around when I was born.”

  “Still no answers?”

  “Nada.”

  “Well, keep at it. I’m sure some clue will appear when we’re least expecting it.” They were still waiting for the DNA kits they’d requested to arrive. They couldn’t come soon enough where either of them were concerned. They needed answers.

  “Speaking of not expecting it,” Charlotte said slowly, “what’s the story with you and Jack? Are you two seeing each other now? I mean, going away for the weekend. Meeting your parents. Sounds pretty serious.”

  Allie’s face heated, and she was glad Charlotte couldn’t see her. “I told you, we’re just friends.”

  “Uh-huh. Sure.”

  “We are!” Allie laughed.

  “So you’re taking him to your parents’ this weekend because you’re friends?”

  “He’s going to see his cousin,” Allie reminded her. “That’s the only reason he agreed to go. Didn’t I tell you all this last night when we talked?”

  “Yes, but I didn’t believe you any more then than I do now.”

  “You’re as bad as my mother with your matchmaking,” Allie said. “She’s trying to find someone perfect for me just like my father is for her.”

  “Tell me again why you’re so against being in a relationship? I know your last boyfriend is in prison, but not all guys are like him.”

  “That’s what you think,” Allie said. “I’ve met, and been involved with, more of them than you’d believe. Somehow I attract the kind of guy who is nothing but trouble. I’m not even sure if I’d recognize Mr. Right if he stood in front of me. I’ve made so many mistakes, I don’t trust my own judgment anymore.”

  “Give me another example of a bad boyfriend.”

  Allie thought a minute. She had so many losers to choose from and hadn’t thought about many of them in years. “How about the guy I worked with at a seminar in Charleston, South Carolina, who was using me as a cover to pass off copycat cosmetics?”

  “How did you figure that one out?”

  “I didn’t. I was so enamored with the guy that I didn’t see what was right in front of me. It was the assistant manager at the hotel where the seminar was held who figured it out.” And he’d probably live up to his promise to have her arrested if she ever showed her face in Charleston again.

  “But Jack’s a nice guy,” Charlotte said. “He’s not like these other jerks you’ve been involved with.”

  “And he’s no more interested in a relationship than I am.”

  “I think you both protest too much,” Charlotte teased.

  “This weekend is going to be pure torture.”

  “Because you’ll be surrounded by chaperones?” Charlotte asked.

  “Stop it!” Allie laughed. “Go paint some pictures.”

  “Charcoal.”

  “What?”

  “I’m working in charcoal,” Charlotte explained. “Not paint.”

  “Oh. I thought you worked in pastels.”

  “I used to.”

  “Before your mother’s diagnosis?” Allie finally began to understand. Charlotte must still be grieving the loss of her mother. Allie had never experienced grief to the same extent, but she would definitely do some research to help her newfound look-alike through hers.

  CHAPTER NINE

  THE WEATHER SATURDAY morning was drizzly and downright dreary. Exactly like Allie’s mood.

  Yesterday, Harvey had made it through his neutering procedure like a champ and slept most of the night. Unfortunately, Allie wasn’t so lucky. She woke about every two hours to check on the dog and then couldn’t get back to sleep because her mind was racing with thoughts of how the weekend at her parents’ would go.

  Jack had texted fifteen minutes before that he was on his way, so Allie double-checked her overnight bag and purse to make sure she had everything. She was taking a separate bag for Harvey’s bowls and toys, plus she needed to fold up his crate and the blanket she used to line it.

  There was no way she could take everything down in the elevator all at once, so she chose Harvey and his crate for her first trip—she still didn’t trust him to behave when he could run free in her apartment. She didn’t have long to wait before Jack pulled up.

  “Good morning!” He looked fresh and appealing as he got out of his car at the curb. He wore an untucked blue plaid shirt with rolled-up sleeves over a navy T-shirt and jeans that fit him extremely well.

  He was sexy enough to make her knees buckle.

  Why couldn’t she just forget her previous disastrous relationships and her vow to not get involved?

  What would it hurt to have a fling with this man who’d made it clear that he was more than a little attracted to her, too?

  Jack sprinted around the front of his sports car and lowered the seatback for the crate that Allie had reassembled while waiting for him to arrive. She’d found an overhang next to the apartment building to stand under.

  “You’re bright and cheery today.” Allie held an umbrella over the two of them while they loaded Harvey into the crate inside the car.

  “I’m looking forward to this weekend,” he said.

  Allie mumbled, “That makes one of us.”

  “Two whole days off and no talk of business or rivalries.” He patted her shoulder and shut the door, and they stepped back under the cover of the building. “Come on, let’s make the best of it.” He lowered his voice. “How’s Harvey doing after his big operation?”

  “Amazingly well. He hasn’t eaten much and has slept a lot, which is what they said
would happen. It was a lot easier than I expected, but I’m glad he’s coming with us.” She handed him the umbrella. “I have the rest of my things upstairs. I’ll be right back.”

  The road trip went quite smoothly. Their agreement not to discuss business seemed to work for them.

  About halfway there, Harvey got antsy, and they stopped at a rest area so he could relieve himself. Other than that, the trip was actually pleasant.

  So enjoyable that Allie didn’t want it to end—probably because she wasn’t looking forward to facing her mother and her matchmaking tactics.

  “It’s the house up there on the right with the wagon wheel in the front yard,” she told Jack. The street where Allie grew up reminded her of a typical neighborhood from sitcoms in the fifties and sixties. Which was likely why her old-fashioned parents had chosen it in the late seventies shortly after getting married and had remained here ever since.

  “Is there meaning behind the wagon wheel? It looks pretty old.”

  Allie shrugged. They passed several children playing. “No clue. It’s been there as long I can remember.”

  Jack glanced at Allie. “Maybe I’ll have to find out from your mom if there’s a story.” He pulled into the driveway. “I’ll park on the street after we unload.”

  The engine was still making noise as it turned off when Allie’s mother came out the front door, her ever-present dish towel flung over her shoulder. She wore navy pants with loafers and a short-sleeve, floral-print V-neck shirt. Her elfin short gray hair framed her smiling face.

  “You must be Jack.” Her mother ignored Allie and went straight to him. Mom put her arms out, and he dutifully hugged her. “I’m very glad you were able to join us. We love your cousin Emily, and we’re so happy she’s part of our family now.” She slipped her arm through his and continued talking as she led him toward the front door. “That makes you part of the family, too.”

  Jack looked back over his shoulder at Allie. “I need to give Allie a hand unloading the car, Mrs. Miller.”

  “Oh, please, don’t be so formal. Call me Eleanor.”