So, she came here, aware that my family business was falling apart and then pretended that she was on vacation and that she wanted to help an old schoolmate out of a tight spot.
I was angry and sad at the same time. Not only had I been gullible enough to fall for her charms, her beauty, and her excitement, I had given her full access to my life and the inner workings of my business. I had exposed my daughter to her. I had allowed her to pose as my wife and meet with my investors.
There were serious business matters discussed at the cocktail party that night, all of which Siena had made herself privy to. This whole thing had been her idea. It hadn’t even struck me that she could pretend to be my wife until she suggested it, and then, like a complete idiot, I went along with it. I putt my entire trust in her.
I emptied the remaining whiskey down my throat and rubbed my lips with the back of my hand. I noticed that my hand was shaking. Despite everything, I couldn't help but think that I still wanted her. I wished she was here, in this room with me, so that I could kiss her, claim her again, and so that I could have my way with her beautiful delicate body.
Siena had played me for a fool, and if it wasn’t for my family business, if it wasn’t Cora’s future involved, I would have accepted the reality and moved on. I deserved this treatment no doubt, but now my child’s future was at stake. I needed to protect my daughter.
I had a pretty good idea of what Siena was going to do with all the sensitive information she had gathered in the past two days of her stay here. She was going to write about it. Then she would publish it in her magazine, and then she was going to ruin the chances of my investment. If this happened, it would ensure that no guest ever came to stay here again. My family name, Cora’s legacy, this ski resort was going to turn into a laughing stock for the entire tourism industry.
Chapter 16
Siena
I was up at seven, showered, changed and packed by eight. At quarter past, I booked a taxi to take me to the airport at ten.
Since the previous night when I had locked myself in the room, I hadn’t stepped out, in fear that I would find myself wandering over to Ivan’s bedroom. I knew exactly what I was feeling. I wasn’t confused anymore. I had spent the entire night, awake and tossing and turning in bed, aware of the reality of the situation.
I was in love with Ivan. I had always been in love with him. Even though he had been mean to me at prom, I had never quite been able to hate him, as much as I tried. That was the truth, but it wasn’t the whole truth either. My dilemma was that I had also made up my mind to write the article.
No matter how much I loved him, and no matter how good he was in bed we had no future together. Ivan had Cora, he had his business to think of, and sex with me had been a bonus for him. He was tying up of old loose ends.
If I didn’t write this article, then I would have nothing to show for all this effort. Harvey was counting on me, and I had already committed to writing this story. Besides, I've had other relationships, and nothing ever felt like this one. When I was with Ivan, I felt something stronger than ever before. But, whenever something felt this strong with a man before it didn't work out. I don't think it's meant to be this passionate when you fall in love. It would never work. I had never had a problem with finding a boyfriend, but I just felt like someone like Ivan would never go for a girl like me. I couldn't get past remembering our high school days. He was always just so sexy and sometimes I would think that I would catch him looking right into my eyes from far off down the high school hallways, but then I would notice the most popular girls falling all over him and I would realize there's no way. He was strong, sexy, smart, and for some reason when I was around him, I felt safe. I've never found all of that in any man before. So, it just couldn't be. It never works out when someone is just so perfect for you. Something had to be wrong, and that is why it would never work.
I stood up from the bed and walked over to stare at the mirror. My hair was sleek and tidy, and I was wearing a green sweater and a tight pencil skirt with black heels. But I noticed that my green eyes looked tired. There was nothing to admire in the mirror, and yet, Ivan’s father had claimed that I was exactly his son’s “type.” What could he have possibly meant by that?
Then I remembered that conversation all over again. I thought about how Robert had changed his tune suddenly when he had apologized to me the moment he heard my name. At that time I was going to ask him about it, but Cora interrupted us.
I took a breath. My brain was working overtime. I was due to leave this place in less than two hours, and this was going to be my last opportunity to find out what Robert knew about me. Since this day was a day of truths, one more truth wasn’t going to hurt, right?
* * *
I sucked in my belly as I knocked on Robert Lockner’s bedroom door and hesitated when I heard his deep throaty voice asking me to come in.
I stepped in and shut the door behind me, in the hopes that Ivan wouldn’t find me talking to his father.
“Oh, it’s you again!” Robert was on his bed, in the same way, that I had found him the previous morning. His elaborate breakfast lay barely eaten on the bed beside him. I wrung my hands together nervously and posed a smile.
“Yes, it's me again. I’m leaving today, very shortly, actually,” I told him, and he seemed to grunt. He was looking at me in the same intent way as before, measuring me up as I stood before him near the door.
“And you’ve come to say goodbye? To me?” he asked, his blue eyes widening and I smiled at him some more.
“Something like that. And I also had something else to ask you,” I said. He grunted again, already looking like he was bored of this conversation.
“Yesterday, when we first spoke, you seemed like you despised me,” I began.
“I despise everyone,” he said, and a laugh escaped his lips.
“But when I told you my name, you seemed apologetic. You were sorry for your behavior like you recognized me somehow,” I said, and Robert took in a deep breath and looked out of the window beside him.
“What are you doing here, Siena Jenkins?” he asked.
“I told you I’m here on vacation,” I said. He shook his head and then turned to me again, fixing his eyes on me.
“Why are you leaving so soon? What happened with you and Ivan?” he continued as I took a step towards his bed.
“You acted as if you recognized me. We never met before. I know that for a fact,” I exclaimed and Robert took in another deep breath.
“No, we’ve never met but I know you, or rather I know about you,” he told me, and I creased my brows in confusion.
“Ivan? Did Ivan tell you about me?” I asked him the most logical question I could think of.
“Yes, he mentioned you in passing at first. When he came to live with me in Switzerland, leaving his life in the States behind, he told me that he had finally gathered his courage to ask you to prom, after years of pining after you,” Robert said and I felt like the ground beneath my feet was shaking.
“He was pining…” I whispered, my voice choking in my throat and Robert raised his brows in surprise.
“You didn’t know this? I assumed it was why you were here. That Ivan had finally gotten over himself now that we are back in the States, and he told you the truth,” Robert continued. I gulped, shaking my head.
“Told me what truth?” I asked. He shrugged his shoulders and let out a sigh.
“That he’s never been able to get over you. You were the girl who got away, the girl he was always in love with and never got a chance to have a relationship with,” he replied, and I stood in front of him, awestruck and speechless.
“I was harsh on that boy when he was growing up. I forced him to give up his life and help me with the business in Switzerland. Over the years, after I saw the way he couldn’t bring himself to take any other girl seriously. I started feeling guilty for being responsible for tearing the two of you apart,” he continued, and my mouth fell open, my lips were quivering. I
couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Ivan was not only in love with me, but he had told his father about me!
“I was glad to see you here. I felt like maybe I could feel less guilty now. I was hoping that maybe now my son had his shot at happiness,” he said, and I could feel a cry rising in my throat.
It wasn’t just a one night stand for him. Sex with me wasn’t just a bonus for him. He had been thinking about me all these years. He was as heartbroken and miserable about me as I was for him.
“But now, it doesn’t make sense to me anymore. What are you doing here if he didn’t ask you to come? Why are you leaving so suddenly? I assumed that the two of you, now that you’ve met again, would have a chance at the real thing. I was hoping that they two of you could have the kind of relationship I never had with Ivan’s mother,” Robert was still speaking, but his words were barely making a dent in my brain anymore.
“Siena?” his voice cut through my thoughts.
“I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m doing. I need to go speak to him,” I said.
“Go then!” Robert barked at me, and I whipped around and burst out of his room. I felt like I had run out of breath. All at once, I realized I did not need to write the article. I had it all wrong. He was telling the truth when he said that he wanted to ask me to prom because there was nobody else he would have rather gone with.
“Siena?” I heard Ivan’s voice, and I looked down from the staircase to see him standing at the front door of the cabin, in the foyer.
Ivan looked handsome, freshly showered and dressed in dark slacks and a cool blue sweater that stretched over the expanse of his chest. His dark hair was stylishly brushed back, and his blue eyes looked stormy and dark.
“Ivan!” I shrieked, forgetting all sense of manners or propriety and I went running down the stairs towards him.
I was inches away from throwing my arms around him when Ivan stepped back. From the expression on his face, I could tell that something wasn’t quite right.
* * *
When I looked again at the door, I saw that my bag had been brought down. Ivan had asked May to bring it down from my room.
I parted my lips to speak but stopped when I saw the rage in Ivan’s eyes.
“I’ve asked my chauffeur to drive you to the airport. You are free to leave now, Siena,” he said, in a thick growl and his eyes were narrowed and focused on me. This was a new side to Ivan that I had never witnessed before, and there was only one thing that could have caused this change in him.
“You looked me up online,” I said flatly. Ivan took in a deep breath, clenched his jaw angrily and stuffed his hands into the pockets of his pants.
“You lied to me. You were here to gather information on me and my family,” he said as I stepped towards him. His body language deterred me from stepping any closer to him. He didn’t want me anymore, and I wanted nothing more than to hug him, and to weave my fingers through his hair.
“I’m sorry, Ivan. Yes, those were my initial intentions, but I didn’t know what was really going on. I misjudged you,” I cried and realized that my voice was quivering.
Ivan squared his shoulders, as though he was completely unaffected by everything I had to say to him.
“What’s done is done. I know now why you’re here now, and I should have known better than to bring you into my life,” he growled.
“I’m sorry Ivan, that I deceived you but I’m not going to write that article. You have to believe me…” I pleaded, but he remained firm.
“I don’t care what you do with all this information, Siena. You’ve had your fun, you’ve taken your revenge, and now you can go,” he growled, and I could hear my heart breaking. It was like a crystal vase falling on the ground and shattering into a million pieces.
“I spoke to your father. He told me that you'd discussed me with him. He seems to believe that you’re in love with me” I said, in a soft dejected voice. For a moment, Ivan’s eyes shone, and then a snarky, mean grin appeared on his face. How could someone who looked so delicious also look so cruel?
“My father is old, and he’s sick. Are you going to believe the ramblings of a mad man? My father will say anything to undermine me. He knows nothing about me or how I feel about anything,” Ivan said, and I stepped towards him again, out of desperation.
“Ivan, please don’t do this. Just give me a chance to explain. I love Cora, I love you” I said, and the cry finally rose up. I could feel my eyes watering, my vision getting blurry and a squeak escaping my lips.
Instead of drawing close to me, Ivan opened the front door, allowing a gust of cold, snowy wind to enter the cabin. I shivered where I stood, wrapping my arms around myself.
“I don’t need any explanation, Siena. I’ve read and seen everything I needed to know. This is why you were in such a hurry to go back. So that you could go and write your article about me. Then, in the most business-like fashion that he could, he stepped aside allowing me passage out of the door.
I stared outside, at the path covered in a blanket of snow. My mouth was open. I was shivering and feeling lost. The last thing I wanted to do was to leave Salthill Peak now. I didn’t want to put any more distance between Ivan and me, but I had no other choice. I had brought this upon myself. I had lied to him and duped him, and put his daughter in a vulnerable position.
“I’m not going to write the article, Ivan. After I spoke to your father, and after I know now that you feel for me the same way I feel for you, I have no intention of using you for my professional gains,” I tried to explain in a firm voice, but Ivan stared past me at the wooden walls behind me.
“Charlie, my chauffeur, is waiting for you,” he said and then bent forward to pick up my bag, which he then handed to me. Ivan had taken every precaution not to let his hand touch mine.
“Siena!” I heard Cora’s voice, and Ivan had heard it too. She was standing at the top of the stairs.
“Go back to your room, Cora. Now,” he growled at her, but she was staring at me. She had seen my tear stained cheeks.
“Siena?” she said again, and I tried to catch my breath.
“Go to your room, sweetheart,” I said, forcing myself to smile.
“Goodbye, Siena. I wish you the best of luck,” Ivan turned to me again, and that was the last straw. I couldn’t protest anymore, not in front of Cora.
I stood staring up at the cabin while snow fell on me quietly. My heart was broken, but I had no other choice now. I had to leave.
Chapter 17
Eight days later
Ivan
It was the moment that Alfred Brown shook my hand in his boardroom in New York that I realized I had made a colossal mistake. My mistake wasn’t to do with the fact that a contract of investment had been signed. I was so grateful and relieved for that. The error was that I had foolishly assumed I was going to be able to get over Siena. No, that was not going to be possible.
The investors around the boardroom beamed at me. They were all excited and happy at the prospect of this new venture with my family’s company and until a minute ago, I was happy too. Now, as the others began shaking my hand, I realized that I wasn’t happy. I was never going to be happy without her.
I didn't know if Siena stuck to her word. It was too early to tell if she was going to write that expose about me and my family’s regrettable reputation, but as of now, she hadn’t published it. I kept checking the internet and the news-stands regularly since she left Salthill Peak.
And even though she had been in our lives for only two days, after she left, everything seemed different. It felt bland and dull. When she was there, I felt driven. When she was at the resort, I wanted to succeed to impress her, because she looked so happy to see me succeed. Making love to her felt right. She was the woman I should have been with all along.
Cora understandably was confused. She had been asking for Siena since she saw her at the door, with tears rolling down her cheeks. Now, she had decided to blame me for her favorite person in the world leaving.
Nothing I told Cora, no excuse I gave her, was enough to convince her that Siena going was for the best. Cora had already decided that Siena was the mother she never had.
Even my father! The great big grump of a man seemed sad. Initially, I had no idea that he had spoken to Siena, not once, but twice. After she left, he called me to his room and lectured me on why I needed to fix things with her. We argued, as was expected. I blamed him for ruining my life in the first place, and he blamed me for not recognizing a good thing when I had it.
Ultimately, I had resigned myself to just dwindling my days away. I decided to dedicate my energy and focus on the resort, to building it back to its former glory, and on raising Cora. But nobody was happy anymore, and neither was I. I just assumed that with time, we might all learn to deal with the reality that Siena wasn't going to be part of our future.
Now that I was in New York, things seemed different. I wanted her still and I I was living with that feeling daily. This had been my second chance with her, and I blew it. She blew it. We were both responsible for what happened. I couldn’t have just forgiven her for the ploy she was pulling, and I was shocked by what I had uncovered about her. I couldn’t have imagined that the sweet, shy girl I knew from high school, was capable of such a malicious plan to ruin my family’s reputation.
“Ivan, you look like you’re in shock!” Marcus Heffner laughed, and his voice cut through my thoughts. I realized that I hadn’t been paying any attention to anything the investors had been saying.
“You could say that, I suppose. I’m delighted is more like it,” I laughed too, trying to salvage the situation. These people had just invested millions of dollars in my business. The last thing I wanted, was for them to think that I couldn’t focus on matters at hand.
“And how is your beautiful wife, Siena?” he asked, as I adjusted the tie at my neck. Suddenly it was beginning to feel a little too tight.
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