After he’d gone, she stared after him for just a moment, counting her blessings. She loved her nephews and their families with all her heart, but William had just jumped to the top of the list. In his arms, she’d found herself again. She didn’t think she could possibly bear to let him go.
When the doorbell rang, William muttered a harsh curse and put aside the eggs he’d been about to whisk. When it rang again, the caller obviously impatient, he cut off the toaster and went to see who had the audacity to turn up on his doorstep at such an early hour.
To his complete shock, he discovered Richard Carlton looking thoroughly out of sorts.
“I ought to punch your nose in,” Richard announced.
William took it as a good sign that Destiny’s nephew seemed to have considered the idea and dismissed it. “A cup of tea, instead? I’ll drink from the same pot to prove you have nothing to fear.”
“No need. I have just two things to say and I can say them right here. Stay away from my company and stay away from my aunt.”
“Sorry, I can’t do that, at least not where Destiny’s concerned. We could probably come to some agreement on the business aspect of things, eventually at any rate,” William said, grateful that Destiny was taking her time upstairs. If she were to come down now, it could prove damn awkward.
Richard’s scowl deepened. “Are you telling me you won’t back off?”
“What kind of man would I be, if I did?”
“Dammit, Harcourt, be reasonable!”
William studied him with barely contained amusement. He doubted Richard would be pleased to know he was providing William with a certain amount of entertainment with his unrealistic demands.
“Do you fear a little healthy business competition?” he asked Richard.
“Of course not. I can handle a fair business fight any day of the week, just leave my aunt out of it.”
“Hard to do since she’s in charge of your operations over here. That puts her in the thick of it.”
Richard paused at that. “Are you suggesting I fire her?”
William shrugged, taking momentary enjoyment in the idea of this young man digging his own grave. Destiny would have his hide if he tried to fire her, supposedly for her own protection. “Up to you, of course.”
“Oh, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?” Richard responded. “Does she have you running scared? Is that why you’re anxious for me to call her back home? I’ll be damned if I’ll play right into your hands. Destiny stays right where she is.”
“Your choice,” William said blithely.
Richard raked a hand through his hair in obvious frustration. “Dammit, I knew I should have sent Mack over here. You wouldn’t be quite so blasé if he were the one standing here.”
“Neither you nor your ex-football-player brother are likely to intimidate me,” William maintained.
Richard gave him a sharp look. “What are you really up to, Harcourt?”
“Running a business, same as you.”
“And my aunt? How does she fit in?”
“I love her,” William said simply. “Always have.”
Richard looked completely taken aback by the candor of William’s admission. William almost took pity on him and offered him the brandy he so obviously needed. Instead, he asked, “Are you sure you won’t come in and have a cup of tea, maybe some eggs?” Perhaps seeing his face when Destiny joined them would be worth the risk. At least it would put everything into the open.
Richard blinked at the invitation. “No, thanks. I need to be going.”
“A word of advice before you leave,” William said mildly. “You might want to keep this visit quiet. I don’t think Destiny would be particularly pleased about you meddling in her life.”
“Destiny deserves whatever meddling I decide to do,” Richard said grimly. “But you’re right. I think we should keep this conversation between us.”
“Maybe the three of us could have dinner while you’re in town,” William suggested, still trying to extend an olive branch to this man who meant so much to Destiny. He wanted to get to know all of the people who were important to her. He wanted—but didn’t need—their approval. Destiny, however, quite likely did.
“I don’t think so,” Richard said.
“Your wife didn’t seem to think I was such bad company or much of a threat, for that matter.”
“My wife is a romantic. I’m not. I don’t trust you, Harcourt. And when I’m through, Destiny won’t, either.”
“Fortunately for both of us Destiny tends to make up her own mind about things.”
At least William hoped to hell that hadn’t changed.
A gasp from the top of the stairs caught their attention at the same moment.
“Richard!” Destiny exclaimed with obvious dismay.
Richard stared into the shadows. “Destiny, is that you?”
Though she was dressed only in one of William’s thick robes, Destiny descended the long staircase as regally as if she wore a ball gown. William had never been more proud of her. She met her nephew’s shocked gaze without blinking, her chin held high. There was no question that she was a woman capable of facing down anything, even this awkward moment.
“What the devil are you doing here at this hour?” Richard demanded as if it weren’t perfectly obvious.
A smile touched Destiny’s lips, then vanished. “I should think even you could figure that out on your own. The more important question is what are you doing here?”
“He just stopped by for a chat,” William said when Richard couldn’t seem to find his tongue. “Nothing to get worked up over, darling.”
Richard scowled at him. “She is not your darling.”
William regarded him with amusement. “Destiny seems to find the notion agreeable enough.”
Richard looked as if he might be reconsidering his earlier threat to punch William in the nose. Instead he turned his attention to Destiny. “Get your clothes. We’re getting out of here.”
She stared at him as if he were speaking a foreign language. William waited for the explosion that was sure to follow such an order.
“I am not going anywhere,” Destiny said coldly. “But you are leaving, Richard. Right now, as a matter of fact. I won’t be bullied by you.”
“Dammit, Destiny.” Richard stared at her with obvious frustration.
“Go, Richard,” she ordered, her gaze unrelenting. “We’ll talk about all this later, when the timing is somewhat more appropriate.”
“I doubt there’s an appropriate time or place for this conversation,” he retorted.
“Then we needn’t have it at all,” she replied, her tone icy. “I have never done you or your brothers the discourtesy of barging in on you and being insulting when you were with a friend. I thought I taught you better manners.”
She was working herself into such a state that William felt compelled to step in before one of them said something they could never take back. A serious rift between Destiny and her family was the last thing he wanted to be responsible for.
“Darling, it’s not a problem,” he soothed. “Richard merely came because he’s concerned about you. I can appreciate that he loves you and wants to protect you. I wouldn’t have much respect for him if he didn’t.”
“I don’t need you to defend me,” Richard responded.
William sighed. “If I were you, I’d take assistance wherever I could find it. Can’t you see that Destiny is about to lose patience with you entirely?”
“I’m already past that point,” Destiny said. “If you won’t leave, Richard, then I will.” She swept past him and headed for the door.
Both men stared after her. It was Richard who grabbed her when she would have marched down the front steps, barefoot and wearing nothing but William’s robe.
“You can’t leave this house in a bathrobe,” Richard protested, looking horrified. “Go back inside. I’ll go. We’ll talk later.” His expression miserable, he met her gaze. “I’m sorry, Destiny.”
As soon as he’d gone, she flung herself into William’s arms and burst into noisy sobs.
“It’s okay,” he soothed. “It will come out all right in the end.”
“I know,” she said, her voice muffled against his chest. “Why does he have to be so incredibly stubborn, though?”
William laughed. “Little question about that one, my dear. Look who he’s had for a teacher.”
She frowned up at him, her cheeks damp. “Now who’s being insulting?”
“Just truthful, as you perfectly well know. Now, let’s eat. Breakfast was almost ready before he arrived. It won’t take but a minute to get it on the table. You’re going to need all the strength you can get to face the rest of the day.”
“Tell me about it. I don’t suppose you’d like to play hooky again after all. Being a business executive who reports to my pigheaded nephew has suddenly lost some of its appeal.”
“No, I will not give you an excuse to avoid Richard. I think it’s past time we got this settled once and for all.”
Destiny regarded him with obvious regret. “I suppose you’re right, but I have to say I’m not looking forward to this particular confrontation.”
He chuckled. “Frankly, I’d like to be a fly on the wall. I think you can handle Richard.”
“He’s certainly not concerned about it,” she said.
“He should be,” William said. “You’re a formidable woman, Destiny. It’s about time Richard saw that for himself. Maybe then he’ll stop worrying so much about my influence over you.”
Though her eyes still shimmered with the sheen of tears, her lips quirked into a full-blown, satisfied smile. “Formidable?” she asked happily.
“No question about it.”
“You know, no matter how things turn out, coming to London and seeing you again has been a wonderful boost to my self-confidence.”
William studied her with alarm. She sounded almost as if she were ready to concede defeat. “What do you mean, no matter how things turn out? There’s no question about that, Destiny. You’re going to triumph, not just in business, but as a woman and as a wife.”
She frowned at him. “I thought I told you how I felt about marriage,” she said, ignoring all the rest of his praise.
“You mentioned it,” he agreed. “But eventually you’ll come around to my way of thinking.”
“Now who’s being stubborn?”
He laughed. “It’s the only way I know to be any sort of match for you.”
23
Destiny considered hopping on a plane and heading for Paris for a visit with Violetta, but cowardice had never been her way. She was clearly going to have to face Richard sooner or later. She might as well get it over with.
That didn’t mean she didn’t need to be fortified for the battle. One thing her nephew excelled at was spotting a weakness and taking advantage of it. She couldn’t afford to show any hint of weakness.
Once she’d left William’s, she went home, spent a half hour soaking out the delicious new kinks in her muscles, then dressed in a very tailored black suit, added her best pearls, her Italian leather pumps and the pin William had given her. The latter was meant as a reminder of what was at stake—not just her future with Carlton Industries, but her right to have the personal life she’d denied herself for too long in the misguided belief that her nephews required all of her devotion to make up for their terrible loss.
Surveying herself in a full-length mirror, she decided she looked every inch a no-nonsense, professional businesswoman. Maybe that would be enough to give Richard pause.
Striding confidently into the office a half hour later, she beckoned for Miriam to follow. “Close the door, please. I don’t want anyone else to wander by and overhear this.”
Miriam shut the door and regarded her with alarm. “Is there a problem?”
“You could say that,” she responded wryly. “Richard is in town. He’s clearly on a mission. I assume it’s to break up my relationship with William, but if he can’t accomplish that, he’s likely to try to use my performance here in some way to insist that I come back to Virginia.”
“But you’ve done a wonderful job here,” Miriam protested loyally. “Everyone says so, even Chester, and you know what a skeptic he was at first.”
There was no time to indulge in the pride Miriam’s remark sparked in her. “Even so, I want you to pull together facts and figures on every single project we’ve been discussing around here. I want the itemized cost savings in every department along with the projections for the next two years. I’m going to bombard Richard with so much information, his head will spin. Maybe that will prevent him from getting into the matter that brought him charging across the Atlantic.”
“You mean Mr. Harcourt?”
“Precisely.”
“It’s not that unusual that Richard would feel very protective toward you,” Miriam said. “After all, you kept most men at arm’s length for many years. Now when you’ve finally let down your guard, the man you’ve chosen deliberately set himself up as the enemy.”
“Yes, well, we all know that William is not seriously intent on taking on Carlton Industries,” Destiny said. “Richard seems to be the only one who can’t accept that. It’s unfortunate that William felt it necessary to acquire Fortnum Travel. That only solidified Richard’s low opinion of him.”
“Perhaps if they met…”
Destiny chuckled. “I’m afraid that’s already happened,” she admitted. “He caught me at William’s this morning wearing his bathrobe.”
Miriam’s eyes widened. “Oh, my.”
“Indeed. If only Richard’s reaction had been mild shock.”
“Was he outraged?”
“Pretty much, which is why I hope to forestall the discussion he’s vowed to have the minute he walks through the door here. I refuse to be treated like a schoolgirl whose father caught her kissing some inappropriate boy on the front stoop.”
“Richard might not be quite so upset if he’d merely caught you and William kissing,” Miriam pointed out, struggling to hold back a smile.
“You’re not helping,” Destiny retorted, fighting a small smile of her own. “Besides, aren’t I entitled to a life at this late date? A few weeks ago, I would have let Richard’s opinion change things for me, but I’ve seen the folly of that. William and I have already lost too much time because I allowed his family’s opinion to matter too much. I won’t make that mistake twice.”
“Of course not, but it’s bound to be a shock to him, as well as to Mack and Ben. Essentially you’ve been a single parent whose entire world has revolved around them. They’ve had you to themselves for a very long time now. I suspect they’re worried that they’ll lose you, that you’ll no longer have any time for them, especially since you’ve already chosen to move so far away.”
Destiny stared at her. “You can’t be serious.”
“It’s not that unusual for children to feel that way. I know mine will when they discover I’ve moved on now that their father’s gone.”
“But it’s utterly absurd,” Destiny protested. “Besides, they’re not children. They’re adults.”
“Well, of course, it’s absurd,” Miriam acknowledged. “No one ever said men were rational when it comes to this sort of thing.”
Destiny was forced to acknowledge the validity of Miriam’s observation. Something told her it was going to be a very long day.
“Just get all those reports together, would you?” she requested. “It’s too bad I never learned yoga. Now seems like just the time for some nice, calming meditation.”
“Or a good stiff drink,” Miriam retorted merrily on her way out.
Destiny’s gaze flew to the assortment of whisky, sherry and other liquors on the credenza in her office. No, that definitely wasn’t the answer. This conversation was going to be tricky enough without Richard coming in and discovering her sipping booze befo
re lunchtime. He’d probably insist on having her committed.
No, the answer was to go on the attack the instant he walked through the door. If she’d learned nothing else from Mack and his attachment to football, it was that sometimes the best defense was a powerful offense.
Richard was dreading the confrontation that loomed with Destiny. It had gotten far more complicated when he’d discovered her in William’s house, wearing the man’s bathrobe. He shuddered every time he recalled the image. There had been no question at all in his mind that she’d merely been trapped at the man’s house overnight by some calamity or another. No, the two of them were having an affair, and no matter how Richard broached the subject, he was going to come off looking like an interfering jerk.
Of course, there was a slim chance that Destiny had been thoroughly embarrassed by the incident and, having seen the way it looked through his eyes, would have ended it by now. Perhaps he’d never have to bring up the uncomfortable subject.
Okay, that was obviously a delusion, but it was enough to give him the courage to walk into her office.
She glanced up from the stack of reports on her desk and gave him a hard, unyielding look that destroyed whatever illusions he’d been clinging to. He felt like he’d been summoned to the principal’s office after being caught cheating on an exam, when the shoe should have been on the other foot. Destiny was the one who was supposed to be squirming.
“Do you have a problem with the way I’m running things over here?” Destiny demanded before he could utter a word.
It was the second time this morning that someone had questioned his motives. He hadn’t much liked it when Harcourt had done it. He liked it even less coming from his aunt. He was going to have to tread cautiously to keep her from blowing a gasket. Destiny in high dudgeon was something to fear and she was clearly on the brink of that now.
“No, of course not,” he conceded, willing to give her that much. “To be honest, things have never run more smoothly. I expected you to get off to a much bumpier start.”
“Then go back home and leave me alone.” She gave him a piercing look. “Unless there’s some other reason you’re here.”
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