Whatever You Like

by Maureen Smith

She gave him a knowing look. “So you want Nurse Jacobs to be your personal caregiver, huh?”

  He nodded. “She’s going to help me achieve my ultimate goal.”

  “What’s that?”

  His expression grew tender. “To walk you down the aisle on your wedding day.”

  That undid her.

  When Morgan returned to the apartment, she was greeted by the sight of Lena curled up in their grandfather’s lap, tears streaming down her face as she softly crooned the words to “Stormy Weather.”

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  At the end of January, Lena decided it was time to quit her job as an escort. She hadn’t gone on a date in months, so she figured there was no sense in prolonging the inevitable. Because she and Zandra had become good friends, she wanted to give Zandra the courtesy of resigning in person.

  On her day off from work, she drove to the downtown building that housed Elite For You Companions and parked in the rear lot. As she stepped through the doors of the escort agency, she skidded to a halt, her heart slamming against her chest.

  Standing in the lobby was a tall, broad-shouldered man in a dark suit, his hands tucked casually into his pockets as he studied a painting on the wall.

  “Roderick,” Lena breathed before she could stop herself.

  The man turned to face her, his mouth quirking at the corners as he met her yearning gaze. “Not quite,” he murmured.

  Realizing her mistake at once, Lena blushed furiously and stammered out an apology.

  “No need to be sorry,” Remington Brand drawled. “I get that all the time.”

  Lena couldn’t help staring at him. Although she’d known that Roderick had a twin, she was still stunned by the striking resemblance between the two brothers. She could only imagine the games of switcheroo they must have played on friends and unsuspecting strangers. Their features were identical, even right down to the thickness of their black lashes. To the untrained eye, the most obvious—and only—difference between them was the trim goatee that framed Remington’s full, sensual lips. But because Lena had memorized Roderick’s face, she could detect other differences, subtle things that she’d picked up while watching him sleep, or gazing at him across the dinner table.

  She suddenly realized that Remington was returning her appraisal, his dark eyes narrowed as if he were trying to place where he’d seen her before. “So you know my brother?”

  Lena swallowed, then jerked her head in a nod.

  A slow, lazy smile curved Remington’s mouth. “Well, any friend of Rod’s is a friend of mine.” He slid his hand forward. “Remy.”

  Lena shook his hand. “Hi, I’m—”

  Her introduction was interrupted when Zandra suddenly emerged from the back. “Sorry to keep you wait—”

  She stopped short at the sight of Lena and Remington standing in the lobby. She looked from one to the other before her gaze settled on Lena. Her sympathetic expression spoke volumes. Coming face-to-face with Roderick’s twin had been a shock to Lena’s system, and Zandra understood that.

  “Hi, Lena,” she greeted her gently.

  At the mention of her name, recognition dawned on Remington’s face. Lena didn’t know whether to be ecstatic or sad that he’d apparently heard of her before.

  Zandra said, “Lena, this is Roderick’s brother—”

  “I know.” She smiled at him. “We were just introducing ourselves.”

  He smiled back at her. “So you’re Lena, Roderick’s—”

  “Friend,” she finished.

  She didn’t know how to interpret the look that passed between Remington and Zandra. It was followed by a long, awkward silence.

  Pointedly clearing her throat, Zandra said to Remington, “Before she headed out, my receptionist told me you were waiting in the lobby. What’re you doing here?”

  “I came to take you out to lunch.”

  Zandra shook her head. “Not today. I’m busy.”

  “So take a break.” The determined set of his jaw let her know that it wasn’t a request. Lena remembered the look all too well.

  Zandra frowned, her eyes narrowing on Remington’s face.

  He just stared her down.

  “Fine,” she relented, huffing an exasperated breath. She turned to Lena, whose mouth was twitching with laughter. “I’m so sorry, Lena. You came all the way down here—”

  “That’s okay. I should have called first anyway. I know how busy you are.”

  “I’m never too busy for you. Are you free on Saturday? We can get a massage and do lunch afterward.”

  Lena smiled. “That sounds good. See you then.”

  Zandra nodded, then shot a dark glance at Remington. “I’m going to get my coat.”

  “You do that,” he said silkily.

  She stalked off, muttering under her breath about pushy, overbearing brothers who thought the world revolved around them.

  Remington grinned, and the sight of that lazy grin was so achingly familiar to Lena that her heart squeezed. As his gaze wandered back to her, she cleared her throat and pasted on a bright smile. “Well, it was nice to meet you, Remington.”

  “Remy,” he corrected her.

  “Sorry. Remy.” She smiled, then turned and walked to the door.

  “The whole family’s flying to Japan next week,” he announced to her retreating back.

  Lena stopped, but didn’t turn around. “Oh? The whole family?”

  “Yep. My parents, grandparents, siblings, nieces and nephews. The Brand clan is invading Tokyo.” He chuckled.

  Lena smiled softly. “I’m sure Roderick will be happy to see all of you.”

  “He’d better be. He left right after Thanksgiving, and Mama’s been depressed ever since. Even our old family dog has been moping around. Everyone really misses him.”

  “I bet.” I know the feeling, Lena mentally added.

  “We also figure he could use some cheering up. He hasn’t been himself in quite a while.” Remington’s voice softened. “Mama says he’s staying away from home so he can lick his wounds in peace.”

  Lena closed her eyes, and for the first time in weeks, she felt a tiny glimmer of hope.

  “Is there a message you’d like for me to pass along to him while I’m there?” Remington asked gently.

  Lena swallowed hard. There were so many things she wanted to say. But words failed her. Courage failed her.

  Glancing over her shoulder, she shook her head and said quietly, “Enjoy your trip.”

  Later, though, she had second thoughts. After staring at her cell phone for over an hour, she worked up the nerve to type what she hoped would be a game-changing message: I didn’t sleep with Dylan, and Glenn was a mistake. You weren’t.

  She sent off the text and anxiously waited for him to respond.

  By the end of the week, she still hadn’t heard from him.

  And that was when she finally abandoned the last shred of hope she’d been foolishly clinging to.

  Chapter Thirty

  At the end of February, Lena received a frantic phone call from Zandra. “Do you have any plans tonight?”

  Lena chuckled dryly. “Is that a joke?” Zandra, of all people, should know that she’d been living practically like a recluse for the past four months.

  “So…does that mean you’re free?”

  “Yes.” A wary note crept into Lena’s voice. “Free for what?”

  Zandra sighed. “I need a huge favor.”

  Now Lena was downright suspicious. “How huge?”

  “Well, I have a new client—”

  “Zandra.”

  “I know, I know. You’re retired from the business. Believe me, I wouldn’t ask you for this favor if I had other options. But the girl who was supposed to go out with this client had a family emergency, and no other escort meets his specifications. He’s hosting a private dinner party for some clients and he wants someone who speaks Italian. You are—were—the only other escort who does. So can you help me out?”

  Lena groaned, w
avering. “I don’t know, Zandra. I really wasn’t planning—”

  “Please, Lena?” Zandra implored. “You’d really be doing me a favor.”

  And because Zandra had been there for her these past four months, always giving her a shoulder to cry on, Lena relented with a deep sigh. “All right. I’ll go. But just this once.”

  “I’ll never ask again,” Zandra assured her.

  So there Lena was on another Saturday night, preparing to meet her first client in months. She stared listlessly out the window as the limo glided down Lake Shore Drive, traveling past a stretch of elegant houses situated on pristine lawns before reaching a sprawling lakefront property.

  The driver pulled into the circular driveway, then climbed out and opened the back door. Lena murmured an absent thanks as she stepped out and started up the cobblestone walk toward the imposing stone house.

  She’d just raised her hand to press the doorbell when the door suddenly swung open.

  She froze, stunned to find herself staring into the face of the man she’d been trying to forget for the past four months. Four of the longest, most excruciating months of her life.

  “I don’t believe this,” she whispered, shaking her head slowly. “She set me up.”

  Roderick gazed at her. “Lena—”

  She spun on her heel and started back down the walk.

  “Don’t go,” he called after her.

  Her heart twisted at the raw desperation in his voice, but her wounded pride kept her feet moving determinedly forward.

  “I love you.”

  That stopped her cold.

  But she didn’t turn around. She didn’t want him to see the tears glistening in her eyes, blurring her vision.

  “I love you,” Roderick repeated in a husky, ravaged voice. “I can’t live without you anymore. I don’t even know why I tried to in the first place.”

  Lena dragged in a shaky breath that burned in her lungs.

  “Living in that apartment has been pure hell,” he continued raggedly. “Everywhere I look I see reminders of you. And the teahouse? I haven’t stepped foot inside that room since you left. I can’t even walk past the closed doors without remembering the night we spent in there. I saw a geisha hurrying down the street one day, and I had to excuse myself from a tableful of Japanese businessmen just to get my bearings. When I came back, they looked at me like I’d lost my damn mind.” He paused, a note of wry humor entering his voice. “If you’d been there, you could have told me just how bad they were talking about me.”

  That coaxed a reluctant smile out of Lena.

  “I’ve been going out of my mind without you,” he confessed. “You can’t even begin to imagine.”

  Oh yes, I can, she thought.

  “I love you, Lena Morrison,” he said thickly, coming closer. “And the best part is, I know you love me, too.”

  “You don’t know anything,” she mumbled.

  “Yes, I do.” His voice softened. “I saw the picture.”

  That, finally, broke her.

  The tears she’d been keeping in check spilled down her face. As her shoulders began to shake with helpless sobs, she felt his strong arms go around her and haul her against his chest.

  “I shouldn’t have stayed away so long,” he whispered fiercely. “I was so stubborn and stupid!”

  “Me, too,” Lena cried.

  He crushed her to him, kissing her forehead, nose and lips, then rubbing his cheek back and forth against her hair as if he just wanted to absorb her into his body all at once.

  “I couldn’t bring myself to look at the photos we took together,” he confessed. “I wish to God I had. Maybe I would’ve come to my senses a helluva lot sooner.”

  Lena smiled through her tears. “I couldn’t bring myself to delete them. Came pretty close several times, but I just couldn’t hit that button.”

  “I’m glad.”

  She lifted her head to meet his tender gaze. “So am I.”

  As he gently brushed the tears from her face, she blurted accusingly, “I sent you a text message.”

  “You did?” He looked surprised. “When?”

  “A month ago. You never even bothered to respond.”

  He groaned with frustration. “That’s because I never got it. Some asshole hacked into my phone, so I had to get the number changed. I swear to you, Lena, I never would have ignored a message from you.”

  A wave of relief swept through her, and she gave him a soft, tremulous smile. “I believe you.”

  “Good.” He stroked a hand down one side of her hair. “What did your message say?”

  “The truth.” She looked into his eyes. “I didn’t sleep with my client that night. I only said those things to hurt you, because you’d hurt me. I couldn’t believe you’d accuse me of being with another man so soon after everything we’d been through.”

  Deep regret filled Roderick’s eyes. “Words can’t express how sorry I am for doing that to you. The thought of you being intimate with another man—any man, client or not—just drove me out of my damn mind. I flew home that weekend to talk to you, to see if we could work things out. I couldn’t get in touch with you, so I cornered Zandra and made her tell me where you were that night.”

  He shook his head, his expression turning grim. “When I got to the party and saw you with another guy, it just sent me into a tailspin.”

  “Because I slept with Glenn,” Lena stated flatly. “If I didn’t already have a track record, you wouldn’t have jumped to conclusions about me and Dylan that night.”

  Roderick frowned. “I didn’t think you had a ‘track record,’ Lena.”

  “But you were angry about Glenn.”

  He hesitated, then nodded reluctantly.

  “Glenn was a mistake. I’d just started—”

  “You don’t have to explain anything, Lena.”

  “Yes, but I want you to know.” She cupped his face between her hands, pinning him with a direct gaze. “I’d just started working at the agency. I was inexperienced, and I was still a bit dazzled by the idea of rich, successful men paying for my company. Glenn was very sweet and charming. But he had no interest in me beyond that one night.”

  Roderick’s expression softened with understanding. “I didn’t realize he’d hurt you.”

  “How could you have? I never told you the whole story.”

  “I never asked.” He grimaced. “I didn’t want to know.”

  “I sensed that. And I was too embarrassed to tell you anyway.”

  He searched her eyes. “Is that why you were so resistant to me? Because you thought I was only after one thing?”

  “Weren’t you?” she countered, giving him a pointed look. “You propositioned me for sex, Roderick.”

  He had the decency to look sheepish. “Maybe that’s what I was after at first,” he admitted, “but it didn’t stay that way for very long. I fell hard for you, Lena, and it scared the hell out of me.”

  She smiled softly. “I know the feeling.”

  He caught her hands and began kissing her fingertips one by one. “Do you know when I realized that I was in love with you?”

  She shook her head, shivering at the warm brush of his lips.

  “It was the day we went looking for apartments.”

  “Really?” She grinned impishly. “Because of the way I handled your snooty real estate agent?”

  Roderick chuckled. “That was enjoyable.”

  “Very.”

  “But, no, that wasn’t it. What got to me more than anything was that you cared about my happiness. It mattered to you that my home should be just that—a home, not a showplace. I don’t know of any other woman who would’ve turned up her nose at a luxury penthouse. But you did, and that meant more to me than you can ever imagine.”

  Smiling tenderly, Lena curved a hand against his cheek. “I love you.”

  He lowered his head and kissed her as deeply and intensely as he’d kissed her that night in the teahouse. And this time, there was no mistakin
g the depth of his feelings.

  Linking her hands behind his neck, Lena nibbled his lower lip. “You were supposed to keep me warm this winter,” she reminded him.

  “Well, technically,” he drawled, low and husky, “winter’s not over yet.”

  “That’s true.”

  “So what do you say we go into hibernation for a couple weeks, starting tonight?”

  Her belly quivered. “We do have a lot of lost time to make up for,” she purred.

  “A lot,” he agreed, his erection nudging her stomach.

  Lena stepped away with a low, naughty laugh. “Down, boy. We don’t want to scandalize your neighbors. Speaking of which,” she said, motioning toward the house behind him, “is this your new home?”

  He nodded, holding her gaze. “I was hoping you’d share it with me.”

  Her heart went into overdrive. She stared at him, afraid to misinterpret what he was asking. “You want me to move in with you?”

  He lifted her face in his palms and looked into her eyes. “I want you to marry me.”

  Fresh tears welled in her eyes, and she swallowed hard. “Okay,” she whispered simply.

  Roderick hesitated uncertainly, as though he hadn’t heard her. “Was that a yes?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Looking both relieved and overjoyed, Roderick hugged her like he’d never let go. She wouldn’t have complained if he didn’t.

  At length they drew apart and smiled warmly at each other.

  “So what do you think of our new home?” Roderick asked her. “Did I do okay?”

  Lena surveyed the large, beautiful house and grinned. “I’ll let you know after I’ve been inside.”

  Roderick chuckled. “On that note…” Glancing over her shoulder, he signaled to the driver that he could leave. As the limo departed, Roderick swept Lena up into his arms, then frowned.

  “What?” she asked.

  “You’ve lost a lot of weight.”

  She shrugged. “Nursing a broken heart will do that to you.”

  His frown deepened. “We’ve gotta fatten you up,” he muttered, striding up the walk toward the house.

  Lena laughed. “No man’s ever said that to me before. But since you mentioned feeding me, I could go for some Japanese food.”