Every way? a little voice asked at the back of her mind.
Her stomach tightened into a knot as she forced herself to acknowledge the point of difference in the two men. Yes, she loved Keaton and she had promised to marry him. He was handsome and clever and, on occasion, showed wit that hugely appealed to her. But he didn’t set her on fire the way Logan Parker did. Why not?
Honor fussed with her engagement ring all the way to the meeting room, and even when she got there she struggled to get her thoughts under control. It wasn’t until her supplier and their team arrived for the meeting that she managed to switch off the clamor in her mind and focus on what she needed to do. One day she and Keaton would run Richmond Developments together as husband and wife. As Douglas and Nancy did now. They were of a like mind. They had the same dreams and visions for their joint future. This was the road to ensure lifetime security. She needed to remember that.
* * *
Logan was working on his laptop when Kristin came to the door of the office.
“Oh, you’re here,” she said. “I was looking for Honor.”
“She’s tied up in a supplier meeting all afternoon. Do you want to leave her a message?”
“No, I’ll get hold of her later.” Kristin made no pretense of hiding her nosiness as she tried to see what he had up on his screen. “Aren’t those pictures of the new development site?” she asked.
“Yeah, we went there today. I’m working on a plan to persuade your father to save most of the buildings.”
“Seriously? You know we don’t do that kind of thing here. It’s not cost-effective.”
Logan shrugged. “Well, we’ll see.”
“Trust me, I know about these things. I don’t run the finance department just for fun. There’s no way you can recover the costs of repurposing those buildings as quickly as we would with a new build, if at all.”
She walked all the way into the office and stood there, arms crossed, feet planted shoulder width apart and looking as combative as she’d been yesterday.
“Sometimes it’s not just about making money,” Logan commented.
She laughed. “Are you sure you’re related to us?”
He couldn’t help it. He laughed out loud. “Yeah, I’m sure. Hey, do you know if the DNA results are back yet?”
“I don’t think even Dad’s money can rush those kinds of results. I’m pretty sure it’ll be another few days, but even so, he’s starting to sound like he doesn’t need the proof.”
“Do you?”
She uncrossed her arms and sank into the chair opposite his desk. “You look like my brother, but you don’t sound like him.”
“And yet, I know, in here—” he tapped his chest “—I’m your brother. How’s that for weird?”
She frowned a little before responding. “So what happens if you are who you think you are? Are you staying here in Seattle? Forging a role for yourself at Richmond Developments?”
“It’s still fluid for now,” Logan admitted. “I have a strong team running my business back home, but there’s always a need for a hand at the tiller. It was my brainchild, after all, and I’d hate to see anything change or slip while I was here.”
“Ever considered a career in politics? That’s a nonanswer if ever I heard one.”
He cracked a half smile. “True. I owe you better than that if we’re siblings, don’t I?” He sighed and leaned back in his chair. “To be honest, I’d like to think I could forge a place here as long as I don’t step on any toes. I know you and Keaton have both worked in the family firm since you left college and probably even before that.”
Kristin nodded. “And?”
“And I don’t want to be that newcomer who walks all over you to get what he wants. That said, I should have been a part of this family and Richmond Developments all along. I want my place in my family.”
Kristin nodded again. “I get that. But until the test results come back, you’re in limbo, aren’t you? What’s the arrangement back in New Zealand? Are you on leave for a set period or have you appointed an interim CEO in your absence?”
“At this stage, I’m on leave for three months.”
Kristin tipped her head to one side and looked at him seriously. “This is really important to you, isn’t it? It’s not just a matter of finding your birth family. It’s more a matter of finding your entire identity.”
Logan felt some of the tension he hadn’t even realized he was holding in his body ease just a little. “That’s exactly it. I had to give it my best shot. I figured that within three months I could prove my link to this family and discover whether or not I fit here. If I don’t, well, I will always have my other family and my work back in New Zealand. I don’t plan to abandon either.”
Kristin nodded slightly, then her expression became curious. “Just how are your family back home handling your trip here?”
Logan twirled a pen in his fingers as he considered his answer. “Some of them are worried about what this will bring down on my late mother’s name, especially with her having abducted me. But most of my cousins understand why this is so important to me. I’m not turning my back on them. I will always love and respect them. My grandmother is still living, and she gave me her blessing. We still consider each other family. End of story.”
“We don’t have any living grandparents,” Kristin said bluntly. “They died before I was born, and Keaton was too small to remember them. Do you think your grandmother would accept us, too?”
Logan grinned widely. “She’d welcome you with open arms. If you’re connected to me, you’re absolutely connected to her, too. As well as all my cousins and, trust me, there are a lot of them.”
“Mom and Dad were both only children, so we don’t have cousins here. I think I’d like to be part of a larger extended family.”
“Looks like we both stand to benefit if the results come back positive,” Logan said.
Watching the expression on Kristin’s face soften as they talked about his background gave him an insight into his sister that he wasn’t expecting. She was a powerhouse here at Richmond Developments, but inside she was still a person who cherished family ties. She was looking for a place to belong, just as he was. He began to feel a glimmer of hope that she was on the path to accepting him and his place within the family.
“Those are great shots. What type of camera did you use? It wasn’t your phone camera, was it?” Kristin asked, abruptly changing the subject as she turned to look at his computer screen. Clearly the time for family communion was over.
“No.” He reached down beside the desk, took his camera from its case and handed it over to her. “I use this when I’m on a job, but I usually have it with me when I’m out and about, too. I don’t want to miss anything that could be a source of inspiration.”
Kristin lit up when she saw the camera, and he was intrigued to find they had a love of photography in common.
“Oh hell,” Kristin said after a few more minutes of discussion. “I’m supposed to be elsewhere. We’ll need to continue this later.”
Logan stood as she did and held out his hand. Kristin hesitated a moment before taking it.
“Thank you,” he said.
“For what?”
“For talking to me like I’m not the enemy. I’m not, you know.”
She gave a short nod. “Yeah, well, I’m not the one you have to convince.”
Seven
It became eminently clear at a dinner at his parents’ house the following Sunday just whom he did need to convince—Keaton. His twin was as distrustful as he’d been on day one, and there was absolutely no sign of any acceptance or friendship coming from his direction. In fact, he appeared more openly hostile than before.
Honor, too, had become even more standoffish. But he knew she was aware of exactly where he was throughout the course of the entire evening, and he knew that
because he was equally, painfully aware of her. Neither Honor nor Keaton had said more than a word or two to him all evening, nor to each other, to be honest. But it looked as though that was going to change any moment now, Logan realized, as he watched his brother stride toward him with a look of determination painted clearly on his face.
“Keaton, good to see you. Our paths haven’t exactly crossed the past few days, and I’d like to catch up when you’re free,” Logan said as an opening gambit. He certainly wasn’t expecting what came next.
“Stay away from my fiancée,” Keaton said in a low voice.
“I beg your pardon?”
“I said, stay away from Honor. I’ve seen the way you look at her, and she doesn’t need the pressure of having to ward off unwanted attention. Be a gentleman, Parker. Hands off.”
Logan squared his shoulders and stared his brother down.
“Hands off? That would imply I’m trying to be hands on.”
Had someone mentioned seeing the two of them at the hotel the other night? Was everything about to blow up in Logan’s face? Surely his parents wouldn’t be so welcoming if they knew what he and Honor had done. His gaze flicked past Keaton’s shoulder to where Honor sat chatting with Kristin.
“Even now you can’t stop looking at her. It’s making both of us uncomfortable. Stop it,” Keaton said firmly.
“I’m sorry,” Logan began, deciding to take a placatory line rather than engaging in the full-on confrontation his alpha side wanted.
Keaton was right. He had been unable to keep his gaze off Honor tonight. She looked, as always, stunningly beautiful, but there was an air of fragility about her that hadn’t been there the night he’d met her. It called on every one of his instincts to protect her and make her world right so the confident woman he’d met could come forth again. But it wasn’t his place to offer her that protection, and he kept having to remind himself of that.
“She’s a beautiful and clever woman, Keaton, and I’m sorry if I’ve made either of you uncomfortable,” Logan continued. “Unfortunately, your father has put us in her office together. I can ask to be moved, if that would make you, and Honor, more at ease.”
“Look, I can accept that Dad, for whatever idiotic reason that’s currently taken his normally rational mind hostage, thinks that the two of you need to work together. Just keep it business, okay? Even now you’re staring at her as if she’s a triple-decker burger and you haven’t eaten for a week.”
“Triple-decker burger?” Logan couldn’t help it—he burst out laughing.
Keaton had the grace to grin back at him. “What can I say? I’m hungry. Mom’s idea of dinner is not really suited to people with a genuine appetite.”
“Want to head out for a triple decker once this is over? It would give us a chance to talk, just the two of us.”
Logan knew that if an olive branch was to be extended, it had to come from him. He was the outsider here and if he wasn’t prepared to do what was necessary to make his brother happy, then he didn’t deserve to be here, either. But should his brother’s happiness come at his own expense? He clamped down on the thought before it could bloom into anything else.
Keaton was shaking his head. “Sorry, I have an early start in the morning. Business meeting in San Antonio, then on to Houston and up to Dallas over the next few days, so I’m heading home soon.”
“Maybe another time, then.”
“Sure. When I get back. We’ll sort something out.”
Keaton started to turn away, but Logan stopped him.
“Keaton?”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t worry about me with Honor. I respect the fact that she’s your fiancée, and I won’t do anything to upset her.”
Keaton stared at him hard, as if to gauge whether he was telling the truth, and for a moment it was unsettling looking so directly into a living mirror of himself. Whatever Keaton saw reflected back in Logan’s eyes must have satisfied him, because he nodded and offered his brother his hand. The two men shook and then Keaton went to make his apologies to his parents before leaving. Honor, too, made her excuses and joined him.
As Logan watched them leave, he couldn’t help but wonder if he’d end up being proved a liar. His desire for Honor had not abated. Not when she’d sniped at him in the office. Not when she’d all but ignored him on a site visit. Not when she’d studiously avoided him at this family dinner. Was her bad temper because she continued to fight her own attraction for him, or was it that he made her uncomfortable like his brother had said?
Whatever it was, the knowledge that Honor was with Keaton should have been enough to quell any feelings he had for her. The very thought of his brother’s hands on her was enough to send a murderous rage through his mind the likes of which he’d never experienced before. And that, in itself, was more than enough warning that he needed to get some level of control on his feelings. No, better than control. He needed to rid himself of them altogether.
Honor Gould was strictly out of bounds.
* * *
As Keaton drove her home, Honor mulled over the fact that he was going to be away for several days. While he was around, she could tell herself that the magnetic pull she felt from Logan Parker was nothing to worry about. But with him gone? She gave herself a hard mental shake as they pulled into the parking garage at her apartment building. She was made of sterner stuff than her mother. She was far more driven to succeed and far more motivated. She was not going to let Logan Parker derail her lifelong dream. She hadn’t worked this hard for this long to see it go by the wayside all because of some crazy hormonal reaction to a man who looked exactly like the one she’d promised to spend the rest of her life with.
And she and Keaton would have a great life together. She had no doubt of that. They were on the same page with everything from how many children they wanted to how they planned to continue to work together. Okay, so they were a little lacking in the passion stakes—she could live with that.
But could he?
She’d never truly asked herself that question before today. Was she forcing him to settle for less than he deserved? Was he happy looking forward to a tepid love life for the next fifty or sixty years? She hated that she was second-guessing herself all of a sudden and that she was second-guessing Keaton, too. It was patently evident that they needed to talk. She had to be certain he was happy. She did love him and she wanted happiness for him, and more. But was she the right person to give that to him?
“Are you coming up?” she asked as he pulled into one of the two parking spaces allocated to her apartment.
“I’ll see you to your door, the way I always do,” he said with a smile.
“I was hoping that maybe we could do a bit more than that.”
“More than that?”
“Yes, like talk about our future.”
He sighed a little. “Let’s go upstairs.”
He got out of the car, walked around to her door and opened it for her. Always the consummate gentleman. She loved that about him, she truly did, but manners didn’t make a relationship, did they? They both needed more than that.
Upstairs in her apartment, Honor offered him coffee.
“No, thanks. What did you want to talk about, specifically?” he asked, not even taking a seat.
Honor drew in a deep breath. This would be so much easier if he’d just sit down instead of looking like he was ready to bolt for the door at the earliest opportunity.
“Us. I feel like there’s a distance between us lately, and it’s growing. Are you happy, Keaton?” she asked him, studying his expression carefully.
She’d always been able to tell if he was being truthful, but right now his eyes were shuttered and the set of his face made him look more distant than she’d ever seen him.
“There’s a lot going on, not to mention I have to leave on the red eye for San Antonio in a few hours
. Look, can’t this wait until I get back?” he hedged.
Honor took a step toward him. “This is important, Keaton. I need to know. Are you happy?”
He closed his eyes briefly before looking straight back into hers, and in that moment Honor regretted pushing the issue and dreaded what she was about to hear.
“I think we should consider taking a break,” he said, bluntly.
“A break away together?” she asked hopefully, even though she knew that wasn’t what he meant.
“No, apart.”
Honor made a small strangled sound. Suddenly, it felt as though everything she’d ever worked for and wanted was slipping out of her grasp.
“Look, I know this probably comes as a shock, but I feel like lately we’re on different wavelengths. I’ve tried to ignore it. Even tried to blame it on the resurrection of my sainted, long-lost brother. But if I’m totally honest with myself, this sense of separation started before his arrival on the scene. You’ve felt it, too, haven’t you?”
Honor found herself nodding. She knew exactly what he was talking about, even if she hadn’t wanted to admit it.
Keaton took a step toward her and wrapped her in his arms. “Look, let’s take some time to think about what we really want.”
“I thought we knew what we wanted,” she said, her voice breaking on the last few words.
He sighed and shook his head slightly. “So did I. Look, I’m gone most of this week. Let’s use the time apart to figure things out, and if we need more space when I get back, we’ll take however long is necessary till we can agree on our paths for the future.”
Paths? Did he mean separate paths? Honor couldn’t bring herself to verbalize the question, because she was afraid of what he might say.
“Okay?” he prompted.
“It’ll have to be okay, won’t it?” she said carefully. “When we marry, it’s going to be forever. Like you say, we need to be sure.”
Seducing the Lost Heir Page 7