Beholden (The Beguiling Bachelors Book 2)

by Madison Michael

  “I paid Jonathan, Maria. I paid him.”

  “A pittance, Sloane. Randall paid the rest.”

  By now, the tears were streaming down Sloane’s face. She made no effort to check them or wipe them away. Maria, done with her tirade, suddenly realized what she had done and slapped a hand across her spiteful mouth.

  “I am sorry Sloane. I don’t know why I told you all that. It was unkind and unfair.”

  “But it was all true, too. Right?”

  “Yes,” Maria murmured in response. “I just got angry that you did not give Randall credit when he did so damn much for you. I should have kept my mouth shut.“

  “No, Maria. Despite appearances, I am really glad you told me. I needed to know. I am just a little hurt and confused.”

  That is the understatement of the year.

  The outcome had been great, she couldn’t deny it, but Sloane sat there feeling like a fool. She was so unlikeable that Randall had bribed someone to take her on vacation. Her business was so awful that he had to shore it up before Maria could find a buyer. He lied to her at every turn, manipulated her, deciding what was best as if she were a child, an idiot or both.

  She thought what she overheard in Tahoe had been humiliating, but it had barely scratched the surface. Randall had been manipulating her life for almost a year. Her friends all knew, Maria knew. Randall had let everyone in on his little secret but her.

  How could he do that and still say he loves me?

  “Let me get the check,” Maria offered, as Sloane wiped her eyes with her napkin, the rest of her food untouched. “Sloane, I am really sorry.”

  “Don’t be, Maria. I really am glad you told me. It was the work of a true friend. You were just honest. I hope I can count on you to be honest with me, always.” Sloane waited several seconds before she asked in a tiny, vulnerable voice, “Did he arrange for my job?”

  “No, you got that all on your own. You deserved it. And I hear you are doing an outstanding job.”

  “Thanks, I am certainly trying. That is a huge relief. I wouldn’t know how to face Keeli otherwise. I’d be so ashamed. I am so ashamed.”

  I would have needed to resign too.

  “Oh no, Sloane. Please don’t say that.”

  “Well look, Randall obviously thought I couldn’t fix my own problems. Worse, he thought he couldn’t even tell me what they were. He should never have gone behind my back like this. Never. He must think I am the stupidest woman alive.”

  “He must love you, Sloane. He must love you very much.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  Not again. This was the fourth time in two weeks that Randall had tried to get together with Sloane and it was the fourth time she had been unavailable. The weeknights he had understood. Keeli Larsen Designs was opening a second location this weekend and the packing, the moving, the dealing with suppliers for tables, machinery, he was aware of the effort that took. Then there was the night she held her first board meeting, such as it was. She still needed to fill four slots on the board, but they had bylaws now and were moving forward.

  The weekends were harder to accept. A day with her mother made sense, but why did Sloane need to stay overnight? He was told by Sloane that Marianne had transitioned beautifully to the new condo and was making friends already. Needing to spend the night with her mom sounded like an excuse to him.

  Until two weeks ago, he and Sloane had been inseparable and he had been ecstatically happy. He even had clothes hanging in her closet already, and she had quite a few things in his. They slept together most nights – if you can call that sleeping – and took turns moving between her vintage apartment and his modern townhouse. But that arrangement had stopped suddenly – two weeks ago.

  She was tired, she was coming down with a cold, she would get home too late or she had to get up too early. She was full of reasons – none of them good. After two weeks, Randall was sure something was up, but he had no idea what had changed for her. He certainly felt the same. He loved this mysterious and difficult woman.

  If something is on her mind, why doesn’t she just talk to me?

  It had been over three months since they had declared their love for one another. They had made it through the stress of the Christmas holidays. Randall had presented Sloane with the beautiful antique desk she had admired in a store window. He had it delivered to her new office, so that it was there when she walked in on Christmas Eve. He had loved her over-the-top response, especially when she thanked him later, in bed.

  Randall discovered she liked to cook, bake and decorate for the holidays. She liked to go all out, including a trip to church and lots of family events. She bought him ski clothes, expensive elegant ski clothes, which he wore when he met his father for a week last month to celebrate a belated holiday with him.

  Had something happened while he was away? He and his father had spent a fabulous week of skiing a lot, working a little, laughing and talking and then even more skiing. The time had flown by. He had spoken with Sloane everyday, since she had been too busy to come with him for the trip west. He thought they were doing well when he returned. Within days of the trip though, she had changed.

  They had fallen into a routine together. He kissed her goodbye and left her sleeping most days, braving the cold to be in the gym early. She rose around 7:00. On most nights, they met for dinner around 7:00 or 7:30, usually dining out or carrying in. Some nights he would have hockey practice, she would watch, then they would join his teammates for a beer – just one – and come home and cuddle. On nights home, Randall would disappear behind a computer screen for an hour or two after dinner, she would do the same, or read or watch TV and by 11:00 PM or so they were wrapped in each other’s arms, making love or making small talk, or both.

  That had all stopped two weeks ago and he was sick of sleeping in that big, cold bed. It was time to beard the lion in her den and find out what the hell was going on. He started with Marianne. No, she told him, she did not know of a problem, but she was expecting Sloane for dinner later that night and could ask her then.

  “How much later? Do you mind if I wait for her at your house?” Marianne wanted nothing more than to see Sloane settled with Randall, so, of course, she said yes. With the trap set, Randall settled in to count down the hours and, if he could concentrate, finish some work.

  Promptly at 6:30 he was at Marianne’s door, so when Sloane let herself in at 6:45, Randall was lounging on the sofa, chatting comfortably with her mother.

  “What…” she sputtered, clearly caught off guard. She threw her mother a “how could you” glance but got a completely innocent look in response.

  “I think you have been avoiding me, and it needs to stop.” Randall took Sloane’s coat, hanging it up as if he lived there, handing her a drink and pointing to the sofa. Marianne disappeared into the kitchen with a warning that dinner was in 30 minutes.

  Randall saw immediately that Sloane was spoiling for a fight. He just had to get her to speak and he suspected he would get an earful. What did he expect when he fell in love with a hellcat? She flopped down in the corner of the large sofa clearly exasperated and positioning herself so that he would sit in the other corner. Instead, Randall dropped his large frame right next to Sloane, taking her hand in his.

  “Honey, you are going to have to learn to talk to me when you are upset,” he started. It was as far as he got.

  “Don’t honey me, and don’t you dare speak to me about talking. Like you share everything, you hypocrite! You lied to me, you went behind my back, you took over my life, you told me nothing and now you sit there, Mr. Holier than Thou, and tell me to let you know what’s on my mind!” Sloane’s voice was shrill and very angry.

  In fact, Sloane was fuming; Randall realized he had unleashed a maelstrom.

  “What? What did I do?” he asked in innocent confusion, although a suspicion that she had learned the truth lurked in his eyes.

  “What? What did I do?” she mimicked in a singsong voice. He sat up, dropped her
hand and turned to her, clearly angry now too.

  “Now I have your attention, I see,” she continued spitefully. “Let’s talk,” she spit the words at him.

  “First, did you or did you not interfere with the acquisition of HI after I specifically asked you to butt out? I told you I didn’t want to work with you. I was working with Maria. But nooooooo,,” she complained, “You had to go calling my clients, strong-arming Wyatt, risking your money.”

  “But, Sloane, PPHP is my company. I get to run it as I see fit. And what I do with my money is my business too. I made it my mission to get you the best deal possible, and, thanks to Maria and her team, that is just what happened, damn it. They got you an excellent price. Why are you so angry?”

  “If you were just making good financial decisions, why did you pay their fees? Why didn’t you discuss it with me? How could you just be so high-handed?” she attacked, hands moving up and down in front of her in a universal gesture of confusion and utter frustration.

  “You weren’t speaking to me,” Randall answered simply, thinking that resolved the issue. Boy, was he wrong.

  “That’s the whole point. You were supposed to stay out of it.” They were going in circles, Sloane shouting in annoyance. “Your answer might make sense, but so does mine. If you were going to be involved behind the scenes, someone should have told me.”

  “Maybe you are right…”

  “Maybe? Maybe?” She was hollering. “There is no maybe about it.”

  “Would you have let me be involved, if you knew?”

  “Shit,” the steam went out of Sloane. “Not a chance. Okay, maybe I see your point. But what about Tahoe? You organized Tahoe and begged your friends to take me away. What was that all about?”

  “Who told you that?” Randall was immediately defensive.

  “Does it matter? It’s true, right?”

  “Yes, but you were having a meltdown over everything and dying to get away. And I wanted you far away from other men,” he admitted sheepishly, thinking that it would soften her. “Besides, you had heard about the legal mess – you were never supposed to know about that…”

  “That’s another thing,” she jumped in, not the least bit softened.

  “One thing at a time. You needed to get away and I had the means to make it happen. I needed to buy myself some time to win you back. I knew you were furious at me – rightly so – so I couldn’t just suggest you take a little vacation on my dime. Instead, I conjured an auction win that made it all work. Besides, you had a great time, you landed an unbelievable job, and it all worked out great.”

  “Randall, you are completely missing the point. You didn’t consult with me; you didn’t trust me to make my own decisions. You didn’t even think well enough of me to tell me about it. How do we move forward if you think so little of me?”

  “Oh Sloane, I think you are brilliant. I think you could out-maneuver me any day of the week. But you were too close to things. Your emotions were getting the best of you. I was just trying to help you because I cared. I care. I love you.”

  He could see Sloane softening, but she was still resisting the urge to let him off the hook. “You acted like a typical, high-handed man. You left me out of things and made me feel stupid when I finally found out. It may have been well intentioned, Randall, but it was cruel.”

  “You know I believe in you, Sloane. You know I do. What if I promise to never, ever do it again?” he asked with a boyish grin, crossing his finger in an ‘x’ over his heart.

  “Well,” she smiled, “if you pinky swear too, and let me reimburse you for my legal fees,” she kept him from arguing, “Uh uh, that is non-negotiable.”

  “Jeez, you know everything, huh? Okay,” he took her hand and wrapped his little finger around hers, “I swear. And we can work out a payment plan for the fees. Perhaps I could take it out in trade?” He said the last while sliding one hand under her skirt, leaving her in no doubt of what kind of trade he had in mind.

  “Dinner.” Marianne called from the doorway causing Randall to swiftly return his hand to his own lap. “I thought I heard a truce brewing. Is it safe to allow the two of you around knives?”

  “It’s all good, Mom. Let me come help you.” Sloane got up to help put dinner on the table, Randall following behind. Soon, the three sat down to a surprisingly companionable dinner.

  Crisis averted. Lesson learned. Randall knew it could have gone much worse for him.

  “I am so glad to see you two happy again. I was concerned for a while that you might not patch things up. You need to involve Sloane in your decisions Randall. Otherwise, you will have a very unhappy girlfriend. That's it. That is all I am going to say on the topic.” The two were staring at her, wondering what she knew. “What? It’s a small condo and your voices carried,” she explained unashamed for eavesdropping.

  “I was just trying to help, you understand. Trying to help Sloane be happy again, so she could be happy with me.”

  “Well, Sloane, you can’t argue with that.”

  “Mom, who’s side are you on?”

  “Both of yours. I mean really, if you think about it, even the perfect hero, Mr. Darcy, went behind Elizabeth’s back to marry Lydia off to Mr. Wickham. The entire Bennett family was beholden to him. He saved their reputations and their place in society. All completely in secret, while she thought he was lost to her forever. Seems to me that if it was okay for Fitzwilliam Darcy, it must be okay for Randall Parker.”

  Sloane howled at the comparison and barely managed to speak she was laughing so hard. “Well, who am I to argue with Jane Austin?

  “Exactly,” Marianne confirmed.

  “Oh good,” Randall chuckled, “Thank God for the classics. I am redeemed.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  On a bitter cold night in early March, when Sloane was dozing in front of the fireplace in her apartment, Randall looked up from the work he was doing and asked her if things were stable enough at the office to get away for a few days. She responded that with a few days notice, she could pull it off.

  “What do you have in mind?

  “I wanted to introduce you to my father, and get in a few days out west. Sound good? I will have Amy make the plans for next Thursday?”

  “OK. Where again?”

  “We will fly into Reno.”

  “Oh Randall, Reno. I don’t really want to go to Reno. I thought your Dad was in Colorado or Montana, somewhere with some open air.”

  “He is, Hon, we have to drive a little ways from Reno. C’mon. It would mean a lot to me.”

  “Okay. It’s just a few days. I am sure it will be fine.” She sounded less than enthusiastic.

  The following week, the couple disembarked from their first class flight into the Nevada sunshine. Sloane enjoyed the cold, brisk air and the realization that it was two hours earlier here. She was also happy that they would arrive at Randall’s father’s home while it was still light.

  If they were lucky. Holy shit, there are chains on those tires!

  “Where are we going? Why do we need chains on the tires? Isn’t four wheel drive enough?” Sloane was climbing into the seat of a large, rental Jeep that looked to her like it would drive through concrete.

  “Not far, but the last few miles are off the main road. Besides, the law mandates chains at this time of year.”

  Randall knew the routes well, and they quickly left the neon casino lights, strip malls and congestion of Reno behind, traveling on open roads with beautiful views of mountains all around.

  “This is stunning,” Sloane conceded. “It reminds me a bit of Tahoe.”

  “Well,” Randall explained, “Tahoe is actually pretty close. I can see that you don’t know your geography very well.”

  “I guess not. I didn’t realize they were that close. Reno and Tahoe certainly feel like worlds apart. Hey, maybe we can drive into Tahoe and wander along the lake? I can show you the house we rented, if I can find it again. Oh yeah, forgive me, that would be the house you rented.
”

  Randall flashed her a grin and then a look of relief. “It is so great that we can joke about that stuff now.”

  “Now. It wasn’t funny at the time but I think we both learned some valuable lessons.”

  “I know I did,” Randall admitted. After a few minutes of silence, Randall continued. “Anyway, we will be doing some skiing and hanging out with my father, but I think we should be able to get into Tahoe at some point. Maybe go out to dinner there tomorrow night? That should work. I am not sure about getting my father off the slopes to join us. He is a fanatic.”

  They spent the next half hour of driving discussing Randall’s father, Randall, Jr, who went by his middle name, James. At one point there had been three Randalls, so nicknames had become critical.

  “Were you ever a Randy?” Sloane asked now. “I cannot picture you a Randy at all.”

  “Rand, never Randy.”

  “Rand.” Sloane repeated. “I can live with that.”

  Looking around her, Sloane let her mouth drop open. Randall grinned from ear to ear upon seeing her expression.

  “Okay, don’t get mad. I might have done a little organizing without discussing it with you,” Randall pleaded.

  “You got us the same house as last time? I love this house. What about your father? Does this mean we are not going to see your father?”

  “Oh no, he’ll be here, just as I promised.”

  “Oh this is just perfect,” Sloane beamed with pleasure as they pulled up in front of the now familiar stone and redwood mansion. Randall tapped the horn twice and a young man came out to help unload the car.

  “Dana, this is Sloane. I don’t believe you two met last time she was here. Sloane, this is the caretaker for the property, Dana.”

  The two shook hands and then wordlessly the men started unloading the luggage.

  “Is my father here?” Randall asked as they walked up the front walkway.

  “He’s been back from the slopes for about an hour. He was trying to be showered and dressed before you arrived.”