“Rachel isn’t coming,” she said, her voice barely a whisper, but deafening in the empty sitting room of her family estate.
“What do you mean she isn’t coming?” he asked, his voice soft, a vein of granite running through it.
“It’s just... She texted me. She... Here.” She handed the phone to Ajax, nearly dropping it when his fingers brushed hers. “It says she wants to be with Alex, whoever that is, and that she can’t marry you. Not now. She’s sorry.”
“I can read, Leah, but thank you.” He handed the phone back to her, and she curled her fingers around it, holding it down at her side. He looked to her father. “Did you know?”
Joseph shook his head. “Did I know what? That she was having second thoughts? Not at all. I never pressured her to do this, Ajax. You know I wouldn’t have. I was under the impression she was completely on board with this.”
Ajax nodded once, then looked at Leah. “Did you know?”
“No.” If she’d known, she would never have let things go this far. She would never have let Rachel leave Ajax like this, without warning. With the world watching.
“Alex who?” he asked, his tone sharp. “What other information is there?”
“I...” Leah scrolled back through her phone’s messages. The look on Ajax’s face was fierce, feral, like nothing she’d ever seen before. Usually he was so controlled, so unruffled. But now he was frightening. A different man entirely. “She doesn’t say.”
“Text her. Now.”
“Ajax, if she needs space...” Her father spoke tentatively.
“I’m not overly concerned about that,” Ajax bit out.
Leah texted as quickly as she could, her fingers shaking. Alex who? Anyone I know?
You don’t know him. Alex Christofides. Unexpected. And I’m sorry.
“Alex Christofides.”
Ajax and her father shared a look that said volumes. The hair on the back of her neck prickled, goose bumps rising on her skin as she realized the full implication of the name.
“Alexios,” Leah said slowly. “Alexios Christofides.”
“That would be the one,” Ajax said. “Not content with attempts to destroy my business, the bastard has to destroy my wedding, as well. And make a grab for Holt, I imagine.”
“Why, Ajax? Why does he have it in for you like this?”
A shadow passed over Ajax’s face. “I don’t know. Just business, I suppose.”
“But she... Does she know that? Does she know who he is?”
“She wouldn’t,” Ajax said. “This isn’t her world.”
No. But it was hers. She knew about Alexios Christofides and his attempts to bump Ajax’s retail and manufacturing conglomerate off the map, via covert stock purchases and reporting of illegal activities that hadn’t even existed, much less been provable. Alexios had been a headache for Ajax in an increasingly alarming way over the past five years.
“And you never mentioned him to her?”
“As I said,” he replied, teeth clenched, “it is not her world.”
Leah sent another text to Rachel, while her father and Ajax continued talking.
He’s an enemy of Ajax’s. Didn’t you know that? What if he’s using you?
It’s too late, L. Can’t marry Jax now. I need to be with Alex.
The day of your wedding?
I’m sorry. Trust me. There isn’t another way.
“If Rachel has chosen him,” her father broke in, “then she’s chosen him.”
“Even if he’s out to hurt Ajax? And what about the company? My business is rolled into this. I am going to get steamrolled by his heavy machinery tactics.”
“You’re making the assumption that he doesn’t care for Rachel. And that Rachel is a fool. I don’t believe that, Leah,” her father said.
No. Of course not. Rachel would never be so foolish. At least, that’s what everyone would think. Sparkling, poised Rachel, who did so well in every social situation, would never be seduced away from the man she was meant to marry through lies and deceit. She was too savvy.
Leah didn’t buy it. Her sister was wonderful. And as such had been coddled by the media. Rachel didn’t see the ugly things in life. And the idea that a man, Alexios, might be lying to her, using her, made Leah’s stomach churn.
“Sign it over to me,” Ajax said, his attention on Joseph. “Revise the agreement.”
“I would,” Joseph said. “But the company is something that was promised to my daughters. To the husband of the first to be married.”
“It was always meant to be me,” Ajax said. “You made the offer with me in mind.”
“Yes. Naturally, I assumed it would be you. But what can I do? I gave my word, and I would not have Rachel feel I was holding the company hostage to make her marry the man I wanted her to. And if this is her choice, it’s her right to have the company in this matter if she chooses. She knows the agreement, too.”
Leah knew the agreement, the promise, had only ever been intended for Ajax and Rachel. Joseph loved Ajax like the son he’d never had, and he and Rachel had seemed like a logical and clear match from moment one. As though Ajax was always meant to be a part of their family.
But now everything was falling apart. And Leah’s stores, her business, her entire life, were all wrapped up in the package that might now be delivered into the hands of Ajax’s enemy.
If Alex was making a grab for Holt, intent on wrapping his hand around it and crushing it for vengeance against Ajax, then he was going to crush Leah’s dreams along with it.
She wasn’t the media darling. She wasn’t the beautiful one. She wasn’t the one who attracted men. She had Leah’s Lollies. Her business was on the upswing, building and becoming a sort of trend. Candy from one of her stores was fast becoming one of the most popular gift items in the world. Tiffany Blue might be iconic, but Leah Pink was starting to gain momentum.
She wouldn’t lose it. She couldn’t. It was who she was.
“I need to talk to Ajax alone,” she said, before she could fully process her request. “Please,” she said to her father.
He nodded once. “If you must.” He looked at Ajax. “I am sorry, my son. But I cannot force her down the aisle. No matter that I wouldn’t have had her leave you today, I won’t force her. And if she has chosen Alex, no matter who he is to you, if she is intent on him, I won’t stop that, either.”
“I would never ask that of you,” Ajax said, his voice hard.
Her father turned and walked out of the room, and Leah fought the urge to follow him. To try to reason with him. It would be easier than dealing with Ajax. But her father wouldn’t bend on this. He had given his word, and in Joseph Holt’s world, one where men had honor, one where men didn’t stoop so low as to use a woman as part of a business firefight, your word was all that was needed.
But that wasn’t the real world. She knew it. Ajax knew it.
Ajax pushed his hand through his hair and looked out the window again. “The question is, what is to be done? There is an agreement, drawn up and ready to sign. There is a wedding planned. There are a thousand guests coming in only three hours. The media will be there. This has been hailed as the wedding of the century. So the question is—” he turned to face Leah “—what is to be done?” His control was fraying slightly, an edge to his voice that Leah wasn’t accustomed to.
She looked at his face, at the hard lines around his mouth. At the worry in his eyes. Ajax Kouros, worried. And the answer hit her. So clear, so simple. This was how things worked in business, and what they were dealing with was a business-related problem. A contract that needed signing.
Or to be specific, two contracts that needed signing.
“What was the extent of your deal? What did the contract say?”
“Ownership of Holt was to pass to me upon
signing the wedding agreement, contingent on the fact that the marriage last for five years. Otherwise, ownership returns to your father.”
“And the names on the document?”
“No names. Interchangeable. That’s the issue.”
“Five-year minimum?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll do it,” Leah said.
The words hung in the room, too loud in the emptiness.
For one fleeting moment she felt exposed. Awkward. No. She wasn’t that girl anymore. She was stronger than that. She’d learned. Never expose yourself. Never let them see you cry.
“You will do what?” Ajax asked, dark eyes now trained on her.
“I...” Insecurity rose up and grabbed her by the throat, choking her. Past Leah, the Leah who had idolized Ajax. The girl who had made a fool of herself chasing after his attention, his affection. The idiotic teenager who had nearly declared herself just before he’d declared his love for Rachel.
It’s for Leah’s Lollies. It has nothing to do with those feelings. It’s for Holt.
She wasn’t a slave to those old feelings anymore. Sure, she’d dreamed of Ajax when she was a girl, but then, like everyone else, he’d chosen Rachel. And she’d learned never to expose herself like that again. Had learned how to cover up pain under a layer of armor. Because the alternative was to show it to the world, and damn your pride.
Well, she was quite fond of her pride.
“I’ll marry you. And then the guests and the companies, yours, mine and Holt, and all of that will be fine. And no matter what, no matter if Rachel marries Christofides next month or...tomorrow, it won’t be him that gets his hands on Holt. It will be okay. All of it.”
He laughed, humorless, dark. “It will all be fine, will it? Perfection. Just a slight hiccup.”
“I’m well aware this is more than a hiccup. But it’s better than nothing, right?”
Ajax was not an expressive man. He’d been good to her sister, but not overly affectionate. She’d wondered more than once exactly what sort of relationship they had. If it was more convenience than passion. But just then, she had to acknowledge that Ajax looked very much like a man who’d lost the love of his life.
Ajax put his fingers through his hair again, the look in his eyes so different to what she was used to. Lost. It reminded her of a younger version of him. Of the boy he’d been before coming to the Holt Estate. A boy she’d never known.
She still remembered the moment she’d met him, when they’d come to the estate for the summer. It was like the world had fallen away. Like she’d fallen away.
She’d been so young, but there had been something about him that had pulled her to him. He’d, in an instant, been so many things to her. And he’d listened. He’d made her feel important. Special. And she’d clung to him, followed him around like a lost puppy. Obvious. Just thinking about it made her skin crawl with embarrassment.
He looked at her, that lost look in his eyes fading as suddenly as it had appeared. Now his gaze was unreadable, unexpressive. Like he was looking over a new yacht, or sports car. Well, no, not even that. He got a bit more passionate over sports cars. And dark chocolate. That was one thing they had in common. Or at least something they’d had in common.
Handy, because she was short on sports cars, but she did have a lot of dark chocolate. Occupational hazard. Although, she’d stopped trying to tempt him with treats a while ago. About the time she’d realized she was staring at him like an idiot and he only had eyes for her sister.
“You will have to do.”
The way he said it made her want to melt into a puddle and slither out of the room. She was being compared to Rachel, again, and being found utterly lacking. “Thanks. And you’re welcome.”
“Don’t expect me to be happy about any of this.” He started to pace. “My bride has walked out on me. Chosen my rival over me. And she didn’t even have the courtesy to text me about it. Rather she contacted you.”
“I’m her sister.”
“And I’m the man she was supposed to love,” he bit out.
She put her hand on his arm, a flash of heat racing from her fingertips and through her body. She pulled back as though she’d been burned.
She hadn’t expected that. Hadn’t expected to feel that intense, scorching heat. After all, she’d stopped carrying a torch for Ajax years ago. Though, that didn’t change the fact that he was an incredibly handsome man. The heat was only due to a physical attraction. She was only human. She imagined any woman who touched him would feel the same way.
Thank God she knew how to hide that moment of insanity. She’d spent years cultivating her mask, one that kept the press at a distance. One that kept her from getting hurt. One of indifference. A smooth, cutting smile on hand whenever she needed it. One that said: Oh, you again. Can’t be bothered.
Oh, dear Lord. I proposed to him.
That thought made her smile slip.
But it wasn’t as if she’d done it for herself. Not for herself personally, anyway. Everything was on the line. The future of Holt, of Leah’s Lollies, and Ajax’s dreams and hard work. And that mattered to her. She wasn’t in love with him anymore, hadn’t been for years. But she cared. About Holt. About her own business.
“Why, Leah? What are you getting out of this?”
“Well, jeez, Ajax, Rachel has clearly lost her mind. She’s run off with this man that you and I both know is probably not with her by coincidence. A man who would do this just to hurt you. He would, wouldn’t he?”
“Yes,” he said.
“My father loves Rachel, but he’s frankly blind to her faults.”
“Does she have them?” Ajax asked dryly.
“She’s far too trusting, I think, which you and I know full well is a fault. Alexios would take advantage of that to get to you and to get his hands on Holt to keep you from expanding your business. He’ll hurt her. And I can’t allow that. I doubt you can, either.”
“Of course not.”
“So then it’s settled. We have to marry before she does. You can still graft yourself into my family tree, which we both know you want. Otherwise we both lose Holt. You especially lose. You lose Rachel, and Holt, to Christofides.”
“I didn’t know Holt mattered to you so much, Leah.”
“In terms of it being my family legacy, it does. I can’t just let it pass into some stranger’s control. But more than legacy, my father owns half the stock in my business, and it’s all rolled into the Holt corporate umbrella. Suddenly a stranger has control over me and my business.”
“And if Rachel wants Holt?”
“She doesn’t. It doesn’t mean to her what it means to you and me—you know that. She was going to be your right hand socially, but I doubt she ever spent a day in those offices of her own free will.”
“True enough. But I didn’t require that of her. A hostess, someone to give me a softer face—that I needed.”
She looked at the granite lines etched by his mouth, his eyes. Yes, he most certainly did need a hostess.
She took a breath, putting her hard, practiced expression in place. “Well, that’s not happening now. And do you want some other man to have your wife and your business?”
Ajax took a step toward her, dark eyes trained on hers, and she felt something inside her melt.
“Other than Holt, Leah, what do you want?”
“To preserve Leah’s Lollies. Holt owns a quarter of my stock. And in addition to my candy stores being linked to Holt, I am a Holt. It’s my legacy. It’s ours, not just yours.”
“It was meant to be mine and Rachel’s.”
“I know.”
“And you trust me with your stocks, do you? Alexios is quite the financial genius—perhaps he would serve you better than I would. Rachel seems to think so.”
; “You’ll do right by me and my shops, Ajax. I have no doubt.”
“I don’t know. Perhaps I’ll sell my stocks off. You think they’ll be profitable enough for me?”
“Of course I do. I sell things that are expensive and bad for you. I think I’ll be in business forever.”
He arched a dark brow, something in his expression changing. “A sure success, then. There is very little some people love more than indulging a vice.”
“Yes. Well, and if I may, allow me to continue my argument for marriage.”
“Please,” he said, no emotions on display.
“You’re right. Everything is in place. Everything. You taking the reins at Holt. The guests. The minister. The cake. There’s... I donated a lot of candy. A gift.”
“Nice of you.”
“Well, now I’m donating a bride. Which might be a bit more than nice.”
“If I accept.”
“Oh.”
Ajax looked at Leah, the woman who, up until ten minutes ago, had been about to become his sister-in-law. Now she was talking about being his wife. Leah. He scarcely thought of her as a woman. In his mind, she was still a round sixteen-year-old girl with curly hair, braces and a sweet tooth.
He could remember, very clearly, having a piece of candy waiting for him with his gardening tools every day when he’d first started working at the Holt Estate. And what had started as a childish game had continued as a tradition. When he’d started interning at the corporate headquarters in New York there had been a piece of candy on his desk. And when he’d branched off on his own, an entire bouquet, and yes, it could only be described as a bouquet, of chocolate had been waiting in his office.
Yes, whenever one of her little gifts showed up, he pictured Leah, the girl. Sweet, uncomplicated Leah, who looked at him and saw someone worth smiling at. But that vision didn’t match the reality standing in front of him.
Never Say No to a Caffarelli Page 17