This was the armor she wore to face Nathan and his father.
She picked up the purse and went out into the living room to twirl in front of Grandmillie.
Her grandmother pursed her lips and nodded her approval. “I guess those designer clothes do have something special about them. Not that I approve of the ridiculous prices, but that dress looks like it was made for you.”
“I feel like a million bucks,” Chloe confessed. “Fortunately, the outfit didn’t cost quite that much.”
Grandmillie snorted out a laugh before a look of sadness crossed her face. “I wish you could buy prettier clothes for yourself all the time.”
Chloe came over to kneel beside her grandmother. “No matter how great a job I have, I’d never be able to pay for this myself. I only agreed to buy this because I didn’t want to embarrass Nathan in front of his father, especially since they have a strained relationship. I feel like I’m going to be examined under a microscope.”
The sound of a powerful automobile engine signaled Nathan’s arrival. Chloe gave Grandmillie a quick squeeze of the hand and an air kiss before she straightened. “Time to join the jet set.”
“Cinderella going to the ball,” Grandmillie said. “You deserve it.”
Chloe scooped up the handbag and headed for the front door. The bell rang just as she turned the knob to open it.
The Nathan who stood on her front porch was every inch the CEO in a tailored navy suit, a white shirt, and a red power tie. The gleaming waves of his hair were subdued, and his black wing tips shone like mirrors. Even his face seemed carved into commanding angles.
“In full intimidation mode, I see,” Chloe said, although her heart and her pulse leaped at the sight.
That loosened the tense set of his jaw. He gave her an appreciative scan and then brushed his lips against her cheek. “You are every inch my match.”
“Me, intimidating?” Chloe shook her head, but she liked the idea.
“Beauty can be very formidable.” He stepped into the foyer and glanced through the door to the living room. “May I say hello to your grandmother?”
“Of course.” Chloe led the way through the door.
“You look worthy of my granddaughter,” Grandmillie said.
He smiled and Chloe blessed her grandmother as the tension in his shoulders eased a bit more. “That’s a high compliment,” he said with a slight bow. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a business card and handed it to Grandmillie. “Dr. Cavill will be at the wedding, so I wanted to give you his partner’s direct phone number, just in case you need it. Please don’t hesitate to call for any reason at all.”
Chloe held her breath, but Grandmillie didn’t throw the card in his face. Instead she read the name on it. “Dorothy Scott. Nice solid name, and a woman. I like that.”
Chloe cast a grateful glance at Nathan. She’d arranged for their neighbor Lynda to stop in a couple of times to check on her grandmother, but this was an extra level of care. Evidently Grandmillie was willing to accept it from someone other than Chloe.
He tucked Chloe’s hand in his elbow. “We should be back by eight at the latest.”
“I wish your father much happiness,” Grandmillie said. “He’s fortunate to get a second chance.”
Chloe felt Nathan stiffen as he nodded.
He escorted Chloe out the front door and to the Maserati, opening the door and handing her in. As he steered the car down the narrow residential street, he reached across the gearshift to take her hand in his. Chloe used her other hand to trace along his knuckles. She loved the texture of his skin, the cradling strength of his grip, and the sense of connection she felt.
“I brought the sword,” he said.
She twisted around to see a long, flat leather case lying on the backseat. He’d listened to her. “I think it’s the right thing to do. The family sword should be a part of an important family celebration.”
His grip tightened. “Celebration might be too happy a word.”
“He must be so nervous,” Chloe said.
“The general, nervous?” He slanted her a glance of disbelief.
“He’s going to be a father again after thirty-odd years.”
“Fatherhood didn’t bother him. He just went on as he always did, steamrolling over everyone in his path.”
“Remember what Grandmillie said about second chances? Maybe he’s hoping to be a kinder father this time.” She paused. “I won’t say a better father, because he did something right in raising you.”
He squeezed her hand before letting her go to steer the car through traffic. “I suppose he was a good example of what I didn’t want to be.”
“Sometimes that can be as useful as a role model.” Chloe took a breath. “Maybe he just couldn’t understand that you weren’t like him. Your talents drew you in a direction he hadn’t even thought of.”
“He’s never once come to Trainor Electronics,” Nathan said. His jaw looked as though it was carved from granite.
“So he’s as stiff-necked and stubborn as you are.” But Chloe’s heart broke for him. He’d built something spectacular, and his father wouldn’t acknowledge it with his presence. “But you’ll never convince me he’s not proud of you.”
Nathan made a sound of repudiation. She hoped that the loan of the sword would soften the general’s attitude toward his son. The man must be an idiot if he couldn’t see how magnificent the child he’d raised had become.
“What’s the story behind the sword?” she asked.
“Family lore claims the sword was given to General Nathanael Greene by a British officer who served under Cornwallis in the Revolutionary War.”
“Is that who you’re named after?”
He shook his head. “My name comes from a Confederate general, Nathan Bedford Forrest, whose career my father particularly admires. He was a brilliant tactician, his men loved him, and his name struck fear in his enemies’ hearts.”
“He sounds like a good namesake. But tell me the rest of the sword’s history.”
“The officer gave Nathanael Greene his sword because he was impressed with the superb strategy General Greene displayed in retreating.” Nathan gave a bitter laugh. “Greene presented the sword to one of his subordinates for bravery on the battlefield. That subordinate happened to be my ancestor, William Trainor.”
“Did they actually use it, or is it one of those dressy swords for show?”
“It was used in battle. You can see the nicks and scratches and dents. It’s called a three-quarter basket hilt sword, made by Samuel Harvey.”
She was impressed. “So it must be valuable even apart from your family’s connection.”
“More than you know,” he said with an odd note in his voice.
He swung the car onto an access road that led to a manned gate, showing his ID to the guard who waved them through. They drove around a hangar, and there was the now-familiar black-and-silver Trainor Electronics jet standing on the tarmac. Nathan slotted the car into a marked space along the hangar’s wall and twisted toward her in his seat. “Would you humor me with something today?”
She didn’t trust his too-guileless smile. “That depends.”
He reached into his pocket and brought out two Tiffany boxes. “I would like you to accept these as a loan just for today. Then you can return them to me.”
“Forgive me for being suspicious,” Chloe said, not moving to take the proffered packages, “but I still have a whole pile of Saks Fifth Avenue boxes in my closet that haven’t been returned.”
“I’ll have everything picked up on Monday. You have my word.” He continued to hold the blue boxes out to her. “I’d like to see if my choices suit you. Just for my own satisfaction.”
“I’m on to your tricks,” Chloe said. But it seemed ungracious and even unkind to refuse when he was so on edge. “But I’ll pretend you fooled me this time.”
She put one of the boxes in her lap and untied the white satin ribbon from the other one. Inside lay the sapphi
re-and-diamond bangle from the auction. Chloe touched the sparkling stones with her fingertip. “Your bid won.”
He took the open box from her. “Now the other one.”
She tugged the ribbon free and lifted the lid to reveal the matching earrings. “I have to admit, these are perfect for this dress.”
Gratification lit his eyes. “My thought exactly. However, if you prefer to wear your pearls, please don’t feel obligated to wear these.”
The cultured pearl studs she wore were no match for Nathan’s gift. She removed them and hooked the Tiffany earrings through her lobes.
“Let me help you with the bracelet,” Nathan said. He deftly flicked it open before fitting it around her wrist and snapping it closed. He held her wrist to admire the bangle, his long fingers warm where they lay against her skin. With a swift movement, he lifted her arm to brush a kiss on the sensitive skin on the inside of her wrist, his breath tickling across her hand. “Thank you for indulging me.”
As she watched the bracelet send a confetti of light dancing around the car’s interior, Chloe knew it was herself she was indulging, and in more ways than wearing expensive jewelry.
CHAPTER 27
As the jet had gotten closer to landing, Nathan had become increasingly withdrawn, his gaze fixed on the blue sky outside the plane’s window. When he no longer responded, his friends had stopped the friendly ribbing that was meant to relax him while it kept Chloe in a ripple of laughter all during the flight southward. Once they touched down, Nathan had collected the sword and escorted the group to the waiting limo, his shoulders held rigid.
Now Chloe sat in the limousine beside a silent Nathan while Ben and Ed chatted in the seat perpendicular to them. Despite all the constraints she felt, she wanted to soothe his strain away. However, the best she could do was lay her hand over his, stilling his fingers from drumming on the leather of the seat. She couldn’t even say anything comforting to him since she didn’t want to embarrass him in front of his friends.
So she intertwined her fingers with his and gave him her best smile of support when he glanced down at her for a moment. She was rewarded with a softening of the lines around his mouth. He lifted her hand and kissed the back of it.
Chloe caught the quick look of concern Ed cast Nathan’s way. So she wasn’t the only one who’d noticed the tightness in his jaw.
The limo swung past brick gates and wound through the military base. Chloe caught glimpses of people dressed in everything from full dress uniforms to various shades of camouflage. It struck her that Nathan had worn Marine Corps colors too, and she wondered if he was aware of it.
The limousine glided to a halt outside a large brick church with white trim. A clot of young men and women in dress uniforms walked through the church’s door, their posture impeccable. When Nathan swung the car door open, the soft, warm air felt like summer. Autumn had not yet arrived in North Carolina.
“The general picked his wedding date right. This is one of the three days the weather isn’t miserable here,” Ed said, as he exited out the other side.
Once again, Nathan offered Chloe his hand. This time, though, she had the sense that she was the one giving support, as his grip was firm to the point of near discomfort.
Ben came around the car. “We’ll go find our own seats,” he said. “You see if you can track down the general before the service begins.”
Nathan nodded as he hefted the sword case and led Chloe toward a side door of the chapel. “You’ve been here before,” she said.
“Every Sunday for all the years we were stationed here.”
She tried to think cool thoughts as she almost jogged to keep up with his long strides, but when he pulled open the door, she sighed in relief as a cloud of cool air billowed out. He towed her through another door into a small carpeted room. A tall silver-haired man in the dark-blue jacket and black belt of a Marine officer’s dress uniform stood with his back to them, his hat tucked under his arm. He was speaking with a short, wiry gray-haired man, also in uniform, who was facing them.
Nathan’s grip on her hand became crushing, but he wore a mask of polite indifference on his face. “Uncle Fred, it’s good to see you,” he said.
“Nathan, you son of a gun,” the shorter man said, a grin creasing his tanned skin. “Glad you could make it.”
The silver-haired man pivoted slowly, as though he wasn’t sure what he would find behind him. Chloe’s breath hitched as she saw his face. There was no question he was Nathan’s father. The resemblance was extraordinary, right down to the way the general’s hair waved away from his forehead.
“Dad, Uncle Fred,” Nathan said, “I’d like you to meet Chloe Russell.”
She had to tug her hand loose from his to hold it out. “General Trainor, it’s a pleasure,” she said.
The older man was wearing white gloves, and he quickly stripped his right one off before taking her hand in a dry, firm hold. “A delightful surprise to meet you,” he said, his deep voice carrying a noticeable southern drawl. He gave her a quick penetrating look before shifting his gaze back to his son.
Chloe felt invisible as the two men locked eyes. They were matched in height and breadth of shoulder. The father was only slightly thicker through the waist than his son.
The general held out his hand to Nathan. “Thank you for coming.”
For a moment, she was afraid Nathan would spurn his father’s handshake, but he briefly gripped the outstretched hand before holding up the leather case. “I thought you’d want this for the ceremony,” he said.
The general’s attention had clearly been on his son and not on the luggage he carried, because surprise flickered in his eyes. “You thought right,” he said, taking the case.
Nathan nodded. “Congratulations.”
Then he took Chloe’s hand and started toward the door. She wanted to scream in frustration. The two men hadn’t exchanged more than a dozen words, and those had been stiff and formal. When Nathan suddenly halted, she happily came to a stop, hoping he would offer something more to his father. He didn’t turn but simply looked over his shoulder to say, “I’ll need the sword back after the wedding.”
She had partially swiveled so she could see the general’s face. A strange look crossed it—a mixture of shock and gladness.
Then Nathan was moving again, and she was being towed along with him. She threw an apologetic smile to Uncle Fred, who nodded back with a rueful look.
“You and your father look so much alike,” she whispered as they approached the double doors that led into the nave of the chapel.
“And there the resemblance ends,” he muttered, relinquishing her hand when a young Marine offered her his arm to escort her down the aisle.
“Bride or groom?” the young man asked, so he could seat them on the proper side of the church.
“Family on the groom’s side,” Chloe said.
“We’ll sit with Ben and Ed,” Nathan contradicted from just behind her. “They’re up near the front.”
Chloe glanced around as she paced up the aisle beside her escort. When Nathan had mentioned a chapel, she’d expected something small and intimate. This was a huge open space of white walls lit by arched stained-glass windows under a ceiling supported by heavy, dark trusses. Row upon row of straight wooden pews marched down the nave in a neat military progression. She wasn’t sure how big a battalion was, but she imagined you could fit one in the church.
As they got closer to the altar, the pews were filled from the aisle to their midpoints. She spotted Ben and Ed three rows from the front and steered her escort toward them. Nathan gestured her aside so he could slide in first, giving her the aisle view.
Ed and Nathan exchanged murmurs, neither of them looking happy, and she suspected Ed was trying to persuade Nathan to sit in the front pew. On the bride’s side there were several family members, but the groom’s family pew held only one older couple and a single man.
Nathan must have followed her gaze because he said, “Those are my oth
er two uncles and my aunt-in-law.”
Chloe hesitated, but the pew looked so empty. She’d persuaded Nathan to bring the sword. She should at least attempt to push him another step toward reconciliation with his father. “I think we should sit up there. Otherwise the bride’s side wins.”
He looked down at her with an odd glint in his eye. “You’re being Machiavellian again.” He turned and said something to Ed before taking her hand. “You’ve played on my competitive nature.”
She gave him a dazzling smile as they stood and walked to their new seats. This time Nathan sat between her and his relatives, creating a barrier to conversation. He nodded to his uncles and aunt but didn’t offer to introduce her.
“You’re being rude,” she whispered.
“I’m keeping you out of trouble.”
“Trouble for me or for you?”
“Both.” He laced his fingers with hers and stared straight ahead. She felt his nerves in the sporadic press of his fingers and saw it in the tiny tic of a muscle in his jaw.
“At least we have a chance against the bride’s side now. There are only eight of them. And they’re all short,” she whispered.
His grip on her hand eased, and the corner of his mouth twitched.
The brash, festive notes of a trumpet rang through the church, making her start. A door near the altar opened to allow General Trainor and Uncle Fred to walk through it with the measured pace of soldiers on parade. They took their positions and stood ramrod straight and unsmiling.
The trumpet was joined by the organ in the “Trumpet Voluntary.” Chloe twisted in her seat to see a young man and woman, in uniforms from two different services, pace up the aisle in that same controlled stride.
“My cousins Emily and Christopher,” Nathan murmured. “Navy and Air Force.”
Behind them came one woman, dressed in a simple sheath of peach satin, holding a bouquet of cream roses.
The CEO Buys in (Wager of Hearts #1) Page 28