by Pat Ballard
“Tom, it’s me, are you okay?” she asked when he picked up the phone.
“Pam, you need to come home right now!”
Panic clutched Pam. “Tom, are you okay?” she demanded into the phone.
“Just get home!” The receiver went dead.
Pam had never heard that tone in Tom’s voice. And he definitely never demanded anything of her. He didn’t sound sick. He sounded furious. Great! He must have found out where she’d been this morning.
Slowly opening the door to the apartment, Pam reluctantly went inside. What she saw made her mouth drop open. Tom sat at the small dinette table, which was covered in bottles of medicine. He was holding a piece of paper in his hand.
“What have you done, Pam?” His question shot across the room at her. The look on his face told her it was going to be a long afternoon.
Reluctantly, she went to the table and sat down. Little bottles, which appeared to be samples of pain medicine, covered the table.
She took the piece of paper from Tom and glanced over it. There were clear directions on when and how to take each medicine, and a chart to keep up with how each one affected Tom’s pain, and if there were any adverse reactions to any of them, he was to call the doctor immediately.
The receipt on the sack that the medicine was delivered in was from the Bainbridge Medical Center, the in-house medical clinic that cared for Bainbridge Corporation employees. A note was attached that instructed Tom to try the samples and see which one helped his pain the most, and to let the doctor know, and that particular prescription would be supplied at no cost.
A slow smile spread across Pam’s face. She couldn’t believe this. Even if they didn’t get the Bainbridge inheritance, at least Tom would get some pain relief.
“You know we have to send this back.” Tom’s bitter voice broke her reverie.
She simply could not believe her ears. And she’d had enough. No more would she put up with this martyr act Tom had fallen into. She took his hand in hers and gently looked into his eyes, but her voice wasn’t gentle.
“Tom Spencer, you will try these pills. You will see which one helps your pain. And if you refuse, I’ll shove them one by one down your throat, or up your butt! Whichever you prefer, but you will take them. At least you’re kind of under a doctor’s care now, and I won’t let you blow this. If this is all we can get from Bainbridge Corporation, by damn, we’ll take it!
The shrill ringing interrupted Pam’s tirade. “Hello,” she almost shouted into the phone.
“My, my, Miss Spencer, you do have a nice phone presence.” Fiona Bainbridge’s slightly amused voice came through the phone line.
“Oh, I’m so sorry,” Pam quickly apologized. “Tom and I were just having a small discussion.”
“I suppose he received the medicine?”
“Yes, and thank you so much.”
“I suppose he wanted to send it back and tell me where to shove it?”
“I do think that crossed his mind,” Pam answered honestly.
The cackle on the other end of the line was becoming familiar to Pam.
“Put him on the phone, please.”
Pam handed the phone to Tom, who took it, not knowing who was on the other end.
“Tom Spencer,” he stated, then sat and listened as the color slowly drained from his face.
Pam was going crazy wondering what Fiona Bainbridge could possibly be saying to Tom that could cause that look on his face and not have him hang up the phone on her.
Finally he placed the receiver back on the phone base, but continued to stare at it for the longest time.
“What?” Pam couldn’t stand the tension any longer.
When Tom looked up at her, she saw a look in his eyes that she hadn’t seen since before he’d had his accident. There was actually hope in his eyes, and a tear slid out the corner of one of them.
“Tom! What did she say to you? Please! I’m going crazy here!”
“I’m to experiment with the pain medicine the rest of the week and through the weekend, and Monday, I’m to report back to my old job. She says she sees no reason why I can’t perform my duties as the supervisor of the department in a wheelchair, but she does expect me to stay off of ladders.” Sudden laughter exploded from Tom for the first time in many, many months.
Pam dropped her head onto her folded arms and wept with happiness.
Chapter 2
“Fifi, what the hell have you done this time?” Everyone seated at the huge, formal dining table turned their heads in unison to stare at the formidable voice.
“Ah, Reese! I wondered how long it would take Sharon to alert you to my business.” Fiona’s flashing blue eyes held challenge as she greeted the man who leaned casually against the doorframe, his crossed arms emphasizing his wide chest.
Captivating. That was the only word Pam could think of to describe him. At least six feet tall, with coal black, slightly wavy hair with just a touch of gray beginning in the temples. Not handsome in the classic sense, but there was a presence, an aura, surrounding him, demanding that you pay attention.
The same blue eyes flashing from a tanned face held and met Fiona’s challenge. “Well, someone at Bainbridge Corporation needs to keep me informed of your daft actions.”
“Daft! How dare you walk in here and start insulting your grandmother, when I haven’t seen you in over a year?”
“Fifi, you know my job takes me away for long periods at a time,” he said, and seated himself at the large table. “Hello, Suzy,” he warmly greeted the middle-aged housekeeper as she hurried out with a place setting for him. He took her hand in his and kissed it as she finished laying his silverware.
“It’s good to have you home,” she whispered with a smile. Obviously the two cared deeply for each other.
“Ahem!” Fiona’s irritated sound broke up the short reunion, and Suzy hurried back to the kitchen.
Pam glanced over at Tom, who winked at her. He was apparently enjoying the commotion. He had become more and more like he used to be since returning to his job at Bainbridge Corporation. His insurance had been reinstated, and the company doctor had him on a pain medicine that seemed to relieve most of the discomfort in his back. Pending surgery was not far in the future, and each time she saw him beam his beautiful smile at her, Pam was reassured that she had done the correct thing when she answered Fiona Bainbridge’s ad.
“So these are the freeloaders?” The new arrival penned Pam with his intense blue glare. His eyes were the exact same blue as his grandmother’s, but seemed even more fierce radiating from his tanned face. Pam had a hard time holding his gaze, but was determined not to back down.
“Now, Reese, these are my house guests, and you will treat them with respect,” Fiona directed.
“But this is my house, and I don’t recall inviting these people to stay in my house.” The tanned face seemed to darken just the slightest.
“Reese Bainbridge! How dare you talk to me like that in front of guests! You know very well this is my house for as long as I live! It only becomes your property on the day I die, and if I can help it that will be a long time from now.”
“I’m sorry, Fifi. I may have crossed the line with that statement, but dammit, surely you can see how frustrating it was for me to get a copy of that stupid Public Notice you ran, advertising for a worthy heir. Don’t you know how dangerous that could be? You’ve left yourself open to all kinds of shysters.” His eyes stopped on Tom, as if seeing him for the first time. “Oh, this is perfect! A wheelchair always gets sympathy!” The laugh that exploded from his throat held no humor.
“Reese! That’s quite enough. You and I can discuss this later, but right now we’re going to try to have a civil dinner.”
Pamela and Tom had been at Bainbridge Hall for a week. Fiona Bainbridge had approached them with an arrangement to which they had reluctantly agreed. They were to live in her home for one year, and if they met her qualifications, at the end of the year she would make them heirs to her esta
te.
Now, watching the exchange between Reese Bainbridge and his grandmother, Pam had the uneasy feeling that she and Tom were just being used to manipulate the wayward grandson to come home and fight for what was rightfully his. All of a sudden she felt like the bait for a trap, and a cold apprehension of problems ahead settled over her.
But she could face whatever lay ahead if it meant Tom would have his back surgery and be able to have a normal life. That’s all she had ever wanted from Fiona Bainbridge, anyway.
After dinner, Reese and Fiona headed for the huge library to “discuss” the situation. Tom was in the room he had been assigned to, on the ground floor, so Pamela decided to take a stroll around the grounds.
Bainbridge Hall was a huge antebellum home built by Fiona’s great-grandfather in the 1800s. But, as Fiona had pointed out as she gave Pam and Tom their tour, the house would not be part of the estate in question, as it was to go to her grandson at the time of her death.
As Pam rounded the west corner of the house, she stopped abruptly, captivated by the sunset. It was one of those rare East Texas sunsets that illuminated the entire sky with dazzling colors of all tints. As she stood and gazed at the changing hues, she became aware of voices, and realized she was hearing Fiona and Reese.
She had inadvertently stopped under a library window, which, apparently, someone had opened to take advantage of the unusually cool spring day. The terrain was lower at this point, so she couldn’t be seen by the two people inside.
“So what stump did you find those two under?” She could detect the contempt in Reese Bainbridge’s voice even from her distance.
“Here’s their file. I’ve had detailed research done on them. They aren’t scum, as you want to believe. Tom Spencer was employed by Bainbridge Corporation for ten years, and had an immaculate work record. As you can see, he was hurt on the job, and as far as I’m concerned, our little company screwed him. He was trying to fix a faulty light fixture that could have fallen and actually killed someone. He did us a great favor, and we rewarded him by firing him for being careless, when in actuality it was one of our maintenance men who knocked him off the ladder. He’s been in that chair for over a year now, and according to Dr. Ross, he’s been in severe pain.”
“Okay. But why do they have to live here? You could have done all that needs to be done for this Tom person without moving the two of them in here. Is the woman his wife?” Some of the sarcasm had left his voice, but Pam still detected a slight loathing.
“No. Pamela is Tom’s sister. She’s the one who answered my ad in the paper. She just wants to help her brother.”
“Of course. I’m sure she’s such a goody-two-shoes that she has no interest in the Bainbridge fortune. All she wants is to help her lil’ ol’ brother get out of that nasty ol’ wheelchair.” Pam shuddered at the raw contempt in his voice as he mimicked her.
“Actually, Reese, I do believe that’s all she’s interested in. And that’s the only reason I’m considering them. She seems totally unimpressed with my money.” Pam could have hugged Fiona for taking up for her.
“Fifi, I’ve never met a woman who was unimpressed with money. This one has the wool pulled so far over your eyes that you can’t see the light. But you will. She’ll show her true colors if given enough time and temptation.”
“She’s different from the women you associate with, Reese. That’s the other reason I chose her. She’s real and warm and loves her brother. Also, she looks different than the women you usually carouse with, so I knew you wouldn’t be trying to get her into the sack as soon as you saw her.” Fiona’s familiar cackle wafted through the window, and Pam’s face turned a slow red.
So that’s what Fiona had meant in that first interview when she’d said Pam looked perfect. Fiona believed that because Pam wasn’t a size six, Reese wouldn’t find her attractive, and wouldn’t pursue her.
Pam moved quietly from her vantage point and made her way to the edge of the large swimming pool. Slipping her shoes off and sitting on the edge of the pool, she dangled her feet in the cool water and contemplated the conversation she had just overheard. She should never have stood there and eavesdropped on their conversation, but she’d been so caught up in what they were saying she hadn’t realized what she was doing until Fiona dropped the bombshell about her size.
It was true. Pam wasn’t the typical size six—or smaller—that so many women tried to be, but that had never been a problem for her. She’d been told on many occasions that she had a voluptuous body, and her hourglass-type figure had always attracted more than her fair share of men. She was active, exercised regularly, was in perfect health, and enjoyed her body just the way it was.
So why would Fiona Bainbridge assume Reese wouldn’t find her attractive? Did he have a problem with full-figured women? Well, Pam might have to change both their minds about that subject. A mischievous smile toyed with the corners of her full lips as a plan started to take root in her mind.
She wasn’t blind. She knew her peridot green eyes, golden blonde hair, and Marilyn Monroe body type were a striking combination. Okay, so her body was somewhat larger than Marilyn’s had been, but she’d been told she could pass as a double for the late actress. And although she wasn’t vain, she knew what kind of reaction she got from the male population. She knew heads turned when she entered a room, and whispers passed appreciating lips. She also knew part of that reaction was due to her self-confident attitude and the fact that she liked who she was. That kind of attitude always set a person apart as appearing special.
She also knew that if Reese Bainbridge was a heterosexual male, he’d find her attractive to some extent, even if he never admitted it.
“Making yourself at home?” Pam was startled from her reverie by the question shot at her from the approaching figure of Reese Bainbridge.
Watching him casually move towards her like a big cat on the prowl, Pam prepared herself for his onslaught, determined not to let him intimidate her.
“Any reason I shouldn’t?” she asked. His approach brought him so close he almost stepped on her hand, which was braced on the side of the pool beside her. She refused to look up at him because she knew that’s what he wanted, from his towering vantage point above her.
“Rest assured, there are several reasons you and your brother shouldn’t make yourselves at home here. But the main one is that this is not now, nor will ever be your home.” Did the man ever speak without some form of sarcasm in his voice?
“Oh, Reese, I wouldn’t be so sure of that if I were you.” Pam couldn’t resist the sudden urge to taunt this arrogant man.
Suddenly Reese wasn’t towering above her any longer. Instead he had squatted, placing her almost between his legs, and when she swiveled her head around to look at him, their faces were less than six inches apart. “Now you listen to me, and you listen good.” His breath, carrying a faint touch of mint, fanned the hair around her face as he spoke. “This is my home, and I’ll have you and your freeloading brother out of here as soon as I can. You’ll be back in that two-bedroom apartment where the two of you belong.”
Whatever response his actions were intended to have on Pam was not, she was sure, what she actually felt. For the first time in her life, she felt engulfed by masculinity. Sensual, arousing, stimulating masculinity. Instead of feeling intimidated she felt breathtakingly alive, but she didn’t dare let him sense her response to him. She was sure that was the way most women responded. And she most definitely didn’t want him to know she fell into the same category.
“Are you sure, Reese?” she asked sweetly. “You might be begging me to stay in this house with you, before it’s over.”
“That’ll be a cold day in hell,” he hissed, his cold blue eyes trying to bore a hole into her calm green ones.
“Stranger things have happened,” she warned, never wavering from his look.
He raked his eyes down her body, from the top of her short blonde hair to where her feet disappeared into the water, letting his ey
es rest momentarily on her full breasts, before looking again into her eyes. “No, nothing that strange has ever happened,” he assured her, before rising and walking away.
Pamela sat still, too drained to move. Her rapid heartbeat vibrated her entire body. This wasn’t going to be easy. The man affected every part of her emotional being. But most of all, he had thrown down a challenge. Pam loved challenges. And she loved bringing arrogant men to their knees.
Because most arrogant men were actually just bullies, and when they were challenged, they usually wound up being cowards in disguise, just like the typical schoolyard bully. But Reese Bainbridge was a different breed. He wasn’t going to be as easy to bring down as most. But she would bring him down. She’d have him eating from her hands before it was over. But she had to be careful. Those feelings she’d just experienced had never been present with anyone else, and she couldn’t afford to get caught in her own trap.
Yes, this one was dangerous, but that just made the game more exciting. Adrenaline charged through her. She was ready for the battle.
Back in the room that had been his since childhood, Reese collapsed into a huge recliner by the window. What had just happened? He had used some of his most intimidating work on that woman out by the pool, and she hadn’t wavered. Hadn’t seemed to have gotten his point at all.
But, he, on the other hand, had almost been lost in those strange green eyes. Fifi was right. This woman was different from any he had ever met. He could tell that, and he’d only just met her. Fifi was also right about her not looking like the women he usually dated. But the women he usually dated were politically correct. They were the type to be seen with in this society. What Fifi didn’t know was that those women didn’t do a thing for his libido. Oh, sure, he found one occasionally who turned him on enough to have a fling with, but the excitement soon turned to boredom. Fifi didn’t know about his secret fascination for the Marilyn Monroe, Jane Mansfield body types, and that at the back of his closet was a stash of magazine articles and posters he’d collected as a teenage boy and young man.