Upstairs Downstairs Baby

by Cat Schield

  Eight

  The morning of his mother’s party, Linc woke alone in his bed with a sense of foreboding. These past few nights with Claire had been some of the best he’d ever known. Her passion and openness drove him to want to take her pleasure higher each time they made love.

  And she’d surprised him by being a curious and sensitive partner in bed, up for any number of adventurous activities. The shyness she often demonstrated vanished behind his closed bedroom door and this intrigued Linc all the more.

  One thing she hadn’t given him was any deeper insight into the hopes, fears and dreams that had shaped the woman she’d become. As much as he’d spoken of how things had been before and after his father’s illegal dealings had surfaced, she’d glossed over her own childhood experiences growing up in San Francisco, leaving him with a vague picture of a little girl who’d been lonely and neglected by her father after her mother had left them.

  Nor had he had any luck bringing their relationship into the light of day. As soon as the sun came up, she returned to her housekeeper role. He’d made no headway on breaching the walls she erected that kept him at a professional distance.

  Which was why when he found her in his kitchen, going over her to-do lists for his mother’s party, he decided to tackle what was bothering him.

  “This upstairs-downstairs thing with you isn’t working for me.”

  She regarded him blankly. “The what?”

  “You and I have a connection. I want more than just a sexual relationship with you.”

  For a moment, she had the audacity to grin at him, but when he continued to regard her in all seriousness, she sobered. “I get what you’re trying to say, but it’s the way things have to be.”

  “I don’t like it.”

  “Be realistic, Linc. You can’t trot me out as the woman you’re sleeping with—”

  “Seeing.”

  She made a face and shook her head. “Because I will never fit in.”

  “That’s not true. Not one of my friends gives a damn who I choose to date as long as I’m happy.”

  She cocked her head. “Really? So they supported you marrying London?”

  He considered his conversation with Knox. “That’s different. They were worried that she wasn’t right for me.”

  Claire’s expression said it all.

  Linc snorted in disgust. “Not because she wasn’t from an old Charleston family, but because they weren’t sure she loved me.”

  “Has it occurred to you that they’re going to be even more skeptical of my motives? London has a lot of money and she runs a successful business. She’s a gorgeous trendsetter and well connected. I’m your housekeeper.” Claire’s expression twisted into disgust. “We’re nothing but a cliché. They are going to see me as nothing more than an opportunist.”

  “Not once they get to know you.”

  She shook her head. “I won’t fit in.”

  “You don’t even want to try.”

  “You’re right. I’m afraid.” Color spilled into Claire’s cheeks. “One of the things I’m terrible at is standing up for myself. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve let people bully me.” She paused and met his gaze with eyes as hard as granite. “This town is elitist, judgmental and cliquey. Why would you want to be with a woman who won’t fit in?”

  It was on the tip of his tongue to insist that he didn’t care when he realized that didn’t matter. Claire cared. For her own peace of mind as well as for his reputation and how this would affect his mother.

  “I wish you could trust me,” he said after a short pause. The throb in his voice made her flinch.

  “It’s not a matter of trusting you.” But she didn’t sound convincing.

  From the little she’d shared about her past, he was pretty sure that every time she needed to rely on someone, that person had come up short. He thought of what had happened to his mother when Linc’s dad had first gone to prison and then divorced her. What if Linc and Sawyer hadn’t been there with their love and support, making a tough time a little easier?

  Often Linc had thought it odd that Claire had moved to Charleston and put the entire width of the country between her and her family. Maybe she didn’t have anyone who made her life easier or better.

  “I’d never do anything to hurt you,” he told her.

  “I’m not worried about that.” She sucked in a lungful of air and then expelled it on a harsh sigh. “It’s not you I don’t trust, it’s me. Sometimes I don’t protect myself well enough and get hurt because of it. I know you aren’t going to hurt me. It’s not in your nature. But you can’t control everyone or everything.”

  He was starting to understand her concerns. “So it’s okay for us to keep sleeping together as long as no one finds out.”

  “For now. It’s working for both of us at the moment.” She shrugged. “When that changes, it will mean a cleaner finish if we keep things in perspective.”

  Basically, what she was saying was that she didn’t want to get emotionally entangled with him. He’d been right to think that she wasn’t over her late husband. And wasn’t he the perfect guy for her to take up with? In her mind, their relationship had a built-in countdown. A few weeks. Maybe a month. Some palate-cleansing sex for him. A bridge between London and the next woman he became seriously involved with.

  Linc wanted to punch something. This wasn’t what he’d signed up for when he pursued Claire, but it seemed that it was all she intended to offer.

  “How very practical of you,” he said. “I guess I’d better head to the gym and get my workout in before the party.”

  After waiting a heartbeat for her to say something more, Linc realized she’d emptied her conversational basket of all its goodies and he would get nothing else. Turning on his heel, he exited the kitchen.

  By the time he returned home, Claire was gone and the house had the same empty feeling it always did when she and Honey were out. Funny how he didn’t get the same vibe in his Fort Worth home. Maybe because his housekeeper there didn’t live-in, so her presence in the house didn’t have any impact one way or another. Or perhaps because during baseball season his head was filled with the game and he had little downtime to notice that he was lonely.

  Knowing his mother would be on edge before the party, Linc made sure he was at her house half an hour early. She received him in her bedroom, where she was having her makeup done. Sawyer had also arrived and was sitting on the chaise in the corner, watching their mother’s transformation. She winked at him as he entered.

  Bettina waved her hand. “Come over here so I can get a look at you.”

  Linc did as he was asked. Tonight, he’d donned a navy suit with a white shirt and bright blue-striped tie. When he’d chosen the latter, he’d imagined Claire smiling up at him as she commented how the blue matched his eyes.

  “Do I meet with your approval?” he teased, seeing his mother’s fond smile.

  “You make me proud.” Her gaze flashed toward her daughter, who wore a figure-hugging black dress that bared her toned legs and arms. Bettina frowned. “There’s still time before the party if you want to run home and change,” she told Sawyer. “To put on something with a little more color maybe.”

  “I like what I’m wearing.” In one smooth move, Sawyer got to her feet and headed for the door. “Besides, Linc is the one everyone is going to be focused on tonight. No one will even notice I’m here.”

  Before their mother could do more than snort her disapproval, Sawyer vanished through the door. Linc stared after her in amusement. At least until her words penetrated.

  Everyone would be focused on him tonight. He was the main event.

  Normally this would appeal to him, but the idea that most of the women attending the party had their sights set on becoming his wife meant he would be disappointing a lot of people over the course of the evening.

&
nbsp; “I’m going to go grab a drink,” he murmured, setting his hands on his mother’s shoulders and meeting her gaze in the mirror. “You look beautiful.”

  “Don’t drink too much. Remember, this party is a marathon, not a sprint.”

  “But I’m such a happy drunk,” he teased.

  In fact, he held his liquor very well and tended to quit earlier than most of his friends. The last thing he needed was to get caught in a compromising situation because he’d drunk to excess and have his exploits splashed all over social media.

  His mother regarded him in mock sternness. “We’re trying to make a good impression here.”

  “Everyone finds me charming and irresistible. I’ll be fighting them off by the end of the evening.”

  “I hope so. Not everyone in this town is convinced you are a good catch.”

  Linc could see this bothered his mother and thought he understood why. “I don’t care what people think and you’d be a lot happier if you didn’t, either. There are a lot of small-minded people who believe their social position gives them the right to judge others. The same people who were happy standing on the shoulders of those less fortunate when Daddy roped them into his Ponzi scheme are the ones who think they’re better than him. But they behaved just as badly.”

  “Your father made things hard for all of us.”

  “Which is why you should be so proud of everything you accomplished.”

  His mother’s expression became uncharacteristically bleak. “What did I do besides keep a roof over your heads and put food on the table? Even that was a struggle until you started pitching in.” Bettina shook her head. “And don’t think for one second that I don’t realize my blind desire for social prominence is what prompted me to marry your father. If I hadn’t been so focused on the Thurston name, I might have chosen a man with integrity. Instead, I took someone without a lick of sense and made him think he had to take idiotic risks to further our social standing.”

  Linc hated hearing his mother take the blame for his father’s bad judgment. “He chose to rely on shortcuts instead of hard work.”

  “He was never all that ambitious.”

  Which was why after getting out of prison, he’d divorced Bettina and married an outsider with a lot of money.

  “You know, it was your belief in me that made me such a success. And what about Sawyer? She’s a driving force for conservation in this city. Do you think she would have the passion for preserving Charleston’s history if not for the stories you told us growing up?”

  “You two are my joy. I want the best for you.”

  Linc gave his mother’s shoulders a gentle squeeze. “I know.”

  “That’s why I threw this party, so you could meet some suitable women.”

  His mother hadn’t yet asked what was going on between him and Claire, but he suspected she would if he didn’t go on a date with one or more of tonight’s guests. “Go check on Claire and see how she’s doing,” his mother said. “I want everything to be perfect tonight.”

  “I’m sure she has everything in hand, but I’ll see if she needs anything.”

  Downstairs, Linc poked his head into the kitchen and found a completely unflustered Claire giving instructions to her waitstaff. Determining she had everything under control, he went in search of Sawyer and found her chatting with the bartender setting up in the sunporch off the main living room.

  “Hey,” Linc said, eyeing the drink in Sawyer’s hand. “Starting already?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business, but it’s club soda.” She sipped the drink and changed the subject. “Are you sure it was a good idea inviting all your friends tonight?”

  “Absolutely.” Linc had hoped to redistribute some of the pressure the female guests were sure to bring. All his friends were single and one perfect girl away from settling down. “Austin, Knox and Roy have been looking for some new meat.”

  Sawyer made a face. “Yuck.”

  “You say that, but I bet every one of them hooks up tonight.”

  “Challenge accepted,” she said, an adversarial glint in her eye. “I will make it my solemn duty to warn everyone in here about your buddies.”

  The idea that Sawyer would be running around cock-blocking his friends amused Linc. “They’re not all bad,” he said, testing out a theory. “Knox, for example, is a great guy.”

  “He’s no better than the rest.”

  Even though he watched his sister carefully, she gave no sign that corroborated his suspicions that she was into his best friend. Time to push a little harder. “That’s not true. In fact, I think he’s seriously interested in someone.”

  “Why do you say that?” Sawyer looked only mildly curious.

  “Because from what I can tell, he hasn’t taken a girl back to his place since I returned to Charleston and there are a lot of nights he doesn’t come out with us at all.”

  Sawyer waved her hand, dismissing his theory. “That doesn’t mean he’s interested in someone. Maybe he’s really busy or just sick of hanging out and drinking every night with a bunch of thirtysomething adolescents.”

  Linc shook his head. “There’s more to it than that. I know my friend. The only time he isn’t looking to hook up is when he’s already involved.”

  “You’re imagining things.”

  “Sort of like you,” he said, hoping this time he could trip her up and she’d admit she was seeing someone. Someone like Knox.

  “Sort of like me what?”

  “I think you’re dating someone. I’ve put Knox on your trail. It’s only a matter of time before he figures out who it is and tells me.”

  Sawyer frowned at him in puzzlement. “Why do you care?”

  “I need to set the guy straight about you.” Linc liked playing the part of the protective big brother. He’d assumed the role as soon as Sawyer started kindergarten. “It’s important that he knows if he breaks your heart, I’m going to kick his ass.”

  “Nice,” she scoffed, her voice dry. “You don’t need to worry. No one is going to break my heart, and besides, what if he’s bigger than you and kicks your ass instead?”

  Linc snorted. At six feet two inches of solid muscle, he wasn’t worried. “Yeah, that’s not going to happen.”

  “It’s not going to happen because it doesn’t need to happen.” Sawyer set her empty glass down and indicated she wanted a refill. “You don’t need to watch out for me. I’m a big girl.”

  “But it’s my job to take care of you and Mom.”

  Their dad sure as hell hadn’t been around to do that, even before his financial schemes landed him in jail.

  “That’s sweet,” Sawyer said. “Worry about Mom all you want, but I can take care of myself just fine.”

  “Okay, then answer me this. Are you dating anyone?”

  “Shouldn’t you be greeting your guests or something?”

  “Nobody’s here yet.”

  “Then why don’t you go pester Claire? Or bug this guy to make sure the bar is stocked with the right kind of bourbon.”

  “Why don’t you answer my question?” Both her expression and her silence told Linc he would get nowhere. That didn’t stop him from persisting. “Have you ever considered dating Knox?”

  “I thought you said he was already interested in someone.”

  “What if that someone is you?”

  Sawyer’s eyes went wide and she gave her head a vigorous shake. “Me and your best friend? That’s a recipe for disaster.”

  “I disagree. You two have a lot in common with your love of preserving Charleston’s old buildings. I figure if he ever decides to settle down, you’d be good for him.”

  “What about him being good for me?”

  “You’re right.” Linc knew his sister well enough to recognize when it was time to back off. While he believed she and Knox would be a perfect mat
ch, too much pushing from him and they’d never realize it. “Forget I said anything.”

  Sawyer was quiet for a long time, but Linc held his tongue and waited her out. In the end, his patience was rewarded.

  “You’re right that we do have a lot in common.”

  “Do you want me to have him ask you out?”

  “Geez, Linc. No. Forget it. Don’t you dare say anything to him.”

  “Too late. I’ve already put the idea in his head.”

  “Linc Thurston, how dare you meddle in my love life.”

  “To quote our mother, ‘I just want you to be happy.’”

  “Then you’ll mind your own business and never speak of this again.”

  “You know I can’t do that. I inherited our mother’s meddling gene.”

  To his surprise, Sawyer wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a fierce hug. “Everything is going to be all right with both of us,” she murmured. “You’ll see.”

  Linc put his arms around her and squeezed gently in return, basking in her affection. “I hope you’re right.”

  But all he could think about was the endless party that stretched before him and how a certain brunette with soulful brown eyes was going to handle seeing dozens of women flirting with him all evening long. He only hoped she’d hate it as much as he was going to.

  * * *

  Carrying a stack of clean plates, Claire scanned Bettina’s party guests and the waitstaff and the bartenders, making sure everything was running smoothly. In addition to sending Jenny and Steve around with trays of appetizers and glasses of wine, Claire had opted to set up hors d’oeuvres in a couple locations. Every fifteen minutes or so, she made a loop of the party.

  It might have seemed like she was micromanaging things, but staying focused on the tasks at hand kept her from dwelling on all the beautiful women in attendance and wondering which of them would end up with Linc. Automatically, her gaze swept the room in search of him. Her chest ached when she spied him in a group composed of his friends and a familiar blonde woman. Everly Briggs looked comfortable and at home as she repeatedly touched Linc’s arm as if to punctuate whatever she was saying.