by Mia Caldwell
Chapter Fourteen
HOME? THAT WAS A LAUGH.
But Colin wasn’t laughing. Jaw set, he glared at her. Who did Sabela think she was? He made the rules here.
“If you want to go home, that’s fine. You can pay back the cash that you owe me on different terms.”
“It always comes back to that, doesn’t it? Okay, I don’t care. I’ll make payments, and I will pay you back every single dime.”
“In the next twelve months, with the agreed-upon interest accrued onto the amount borrowed.” He let that news hang in the air between them.
A waitress at a little diner like Pinkie’s didn’t make a fraction of what she owed over the course of a year. Was she delusional?
“That’s not possible,” she said.
“Of course it is. It’s in your contracts. Don’t tell me you still haven’t read them?”
She raised her chin. “I don’t have the copies with me.”
He shook his head slowly. “I’ll provide you with them … when we’re done with your skiing lesson.”
Sabela, incensed, struggled to release her skis. She poked again and again with her poles but kept missing. Her ineptness was amusing and he couldn’t help smiling.
She saw his smile and her pretty face puckered up into fury. She pounded down at the ski releases, was finally successful and stepped into the snow.
She stood, hands on hips, and glared at him, obliterating his smile. Why did the venom in her gaze hit him as hard as it did?
For maybe the first time in his adult life, Colin found himself wanting to apologize, though he wasn’t sure what for.
“Fine. That’s fine. I’ll figure it out. Whatever,” she said.
“What?”
“Paying you back. I said I’ll figure it out, somehow.”
She was so angry that she wasn’t thinking sensibly. Colin watched her flounder her way downslope through the deep snow. He skied after her.
“You’re being ridiculous,” he told her.
She was breathing hard as she struggled to lift her legs. “I-I-don’t care what y-you think.”
All of this because of what? Because she’d tried to ski once and decided to give up? Colin wasn’t impressed. Sabela was a hard-working woman, and he expected more of her.
“Why are you acting like this?” he demanded. For now, he contained his own frustrations.
She stopped and turned on him. “Because you’re unreasonable!”
“I’m unreasonable?” Colin asked. “You’re the one who tried to ski once and then gave up and attacked me because you didn’t turn into a world-class skier on the first go. No one skis well the first time.”
“I never wanted to ski in the first place!”
“But skiing is important to me, so I want it to be important to you, too.”
Colin wondered what was so hard to understand about that. The arrangement was that she was here to learn about him, and skiing was a big part of Colin’s life.
“You came here to pay off your debt,” he said. “You should be thankful I’d even consider hiring you for an easy job like this. All you have to do is be nice and agreeable. Is that so hard?”
She rounded on him, eyes ablaze. “I didn’t come here! You forced me onto a jet and made me fly off into the unknown!”
“I never forced you.”
“You intimidated me into it, just like you’re trying to intimidate me now.”
This conversation was going nowhere. Both of them were getting more and more frustrated with each other, and Colin didn’t want to lose his temper again.
He moved in close to her and reached out.
She pushed against his chest. “Stay away from me!”
“Calm down. I’m going to carry you down the slope. You’ll never make it down on foot, not at the rate you’re going.”
“No! Don’t —”
But he picked her up anyway, sweeping her into his arms. “Be still, or we’ll both fall.”
He began a slow descent, not that one could go very fast on this slope anyway. Sabela was light, and he had no difficulty maintaining his balance once she stopped struggling.
Her breath came fast and hard, puffs of steamy breath rising from her mouth and nose as if she were an enraged she-dragon. Colin had no doubt that, if she were a dragon, she’d be spitting fire at him.
He came to an expert stop at the bottom of the hill. Sabela didn’t say a word or even meet his gaze while he removed her ski boots. As soon as she could, she stalked away, heading back to the house. He let her go while removing his own gear.
Once inside, he took off his wet outerwear and made his way into the east lounge. Marie had a large fire already roaring in the massive fireplace. He stood in front of the windows and looked out over the pristine powder. What a waste of a beautiful day.
He turned in surprise when Sabela entered the room. She didn’t greet him, but simply moved to the fire, rubbing her hands together to warm them.
Was she serious about wanting to go home? Colin couldn’t tell. What he knew was that going home wasn’t on the agenda.
If only she’d listened to his instructions a little better and not given up at the first signs of failure. A sunny afternoon on the slopes learning and laughing together would have been a great start to a whirlwind of a romance.
And, if he was being honest with himself, Colin had been looking forward to teaching Sabela about something he loved.
Maybe he was being too pushy. It had been a long time since Colin had spent time with someone not on his payroll.
In a way, though, she was in his employ. If she didn’t stay here and work to pay back her debt like he wanted her to, she’d owe him for the rest of her life.
But what woman kept promises for that long? Colin frowned. Not even Blanca, the woman he thought he’d spend the rest of forever with, had been honest with him.
And now here they were.
“When can I leave?” Sabela demanded. Her hands were still stretched out towards the fire.
“Bruno can take you to the airport as soon as we know the passes are open. It could be later today but likely it won’t be until tomorrow.”
The snowstorm last night had played out in his favor. Sabela would have to stay until the roads were clear, and that would give him a chance to calm her down and change her mind.
There was silence. Curious, he glanced over at her and saw her crestfallen expression. Much of her anger had disappeared, replaced with disappointment.
Was he really that terrible of a man to spend time with? And what about this magical chalet? Who wouldn’t want to be here?
“How much do I owe you?” she asked.
He nearly sighed. She didn’t even know the balance of her debt. This would be an unpleasant surprise, then. With the salary she made at Pinkie’s, Colin ball-parked that she’d be able to pay him back in thirty years.
And that was only if she didn’t spend much of what she earned.
Across the room was a small table next to a landline phone with a note pad and a pen. Colin strolled over to it, penned the amount onto the top paper, and ripped it free. Then he joined Sabela by the fire.
“If you want to simply divide that number into twelve monthly installments over the next year, I will accept that,” he said evenly.
Sabela looked at the paper almost as if she was expecting it to bite her, as if he were offering her a snake. He supposed, in a way, he was. Reluctant, she took the piece of paper at last.
Her gasp stabbed at his heart, but he fought back the sensation. She was a pawn, he reminded himself. A pawn in a bigger game. And besides, he’d never actually make her pay back the debt. It, too, was only a tool to be used as necessary.
“Th-this can’t be right,” she stammered.
“I assure you it is.” Colin sounded cooler than he felt, a good thing. “I’ll have the ledger for the account sent over if you don’t believe me.”
“The ledger?”
“You’ll have twelve months to pa
y it all back. You’ll find those terms listed in the contract you signed. You’ve already agreed to them, so there’s nothing to negotiate.”
“Twenty-four months,” Sabela offered, tearing her gaze away from the paper.
“There will be no negotiations,” he repeated. “Twelve months, no more. I’m also within my right to demand the full payment up front, should you default upon the terms. I’m trying to be nice, Sabela, no matter what you might think.”
Sabela stood stock straight, and for a moment, Colin wasn’t sure if she was going to hit him or faint, her jaw was clenched so tight. She didn’t even turn as she threw the piece of paper into the fire. He watched it crackle and burn as the flames devoured it.
She looked up at him then and raised her pert nose in the air. He saw the flash of determination in her eyes.
He wasn’t sure what she was going to do. He may have underestimated Sabela Vaughn.
From head to toe she was beautiful. Blanca had been beautiful too, yet where Blanca had been soft and subservient, Sabela had a backbone that bent but wouldn’t break.
“Fine. I’ll stay.” It was a bitter pill for her to swallow, he heard it in her voice.
Colin tried to process what it was he felt. Victory? Reluctant relief? Sorrow?
Did he really regret that he was putting her in such a difficult position? No. He didn’t.
“We’ll try skiing again tomorrow,” he said, emphasizing the point so that she didn’t get the impression that she’d won any leeway from him. “In the meantime, why don’t you go rest up? I’m sure you’re still tired from yesterday’s travels, jet lag and all. I’ll see you at dinner. I’d like you to get to know me a little better, and I’d like to have another chance at getting to know you.”
Sabela studied him silently. He could see she was thinking hard, and he didn’t like it one bit.
Finally, she spoke. “Here’s the thing, Colin. I guess I don’t have many options according to you. But one thing I do have, is questions. What I’m wondering right now is, why me? You could hire anyone to accompany you and pretend to be your girlfriend. So why me?”
Luckily, Colin had anticipated her asking this question eventually. “Why not you? You owed me, and this is an easy way for you to fulfill your obligations.”
“Easy, hmm. If you say so.” Sabela gave him a stiff nod and headed toward the door.
She stopped in the doorway and turned back to him. “But it seems like you picked me specifically, to trick me into accepting aid that wasn’t really aid at all. Is this how you get your kicks? Blackmailing poor women? What does that make you, Colin? What kind of man does that?”
He had no answer for her.
She turned on her heel and walked away without another word.
Adrenaline pumping in his veins, Colin moved over to the side table and poured himself a glass of whiskey. He sipped long and let the liquid burn its way down his throat. He wasn’t a big drinker, but now he found himself seeking relief from his troubled thoughts.
She’d asked, what kind of man was he?
In his heart, he knew the answer. The vengeful kind, that’s what sort of man he was. A man committed to justice and who would get what he wanted no matter the cost.
A hurt man. A man who has shut himself off from his better nature.
There it was again, his mother’s voice speaking unwanted opinions from a part of him that should shut the hell up.
Without a second sip, he set his whiskey down. Clouds were starting to move in again. Weather changed quickly and often unpredictably in the mountains. He’d check the weather report, and see if tomorrow’s skiing lessons might have to be taken off the schedule.
Part of him hoped they would be, then he’d be off the hook from forcing Sabela to submit to another lesson. He was growing more convinced that it would only hurt his position. But he had to make the point that she couldn’t get out of things just because she didn’t like them.
He refused to feel sorry for her. The Vaughn family didn’t deserve his pity.
He’d be as hard with her as he needed to be until he got what he wanted.
Chapter Fifteen
THE NUMBER WRITTEN ON THE note had shriveled when the fire ate at it, but Sabela could still see it large as ever in her mind’s eye. There were too many digits.
How could one person accrue a debt like that? She hadn’t realized how bad those medical bills had really been. Hell, she’d stopped opening them after a while; it was better not to know for sure because knowing was too terrifying.
Over two hundred thousand dollars. Sabela’s chest tightened and she fought back tears. It was hopeless. She wanted so desperately to go home and have all of this be over, but that wasn’t possible, not if she ever wanted to be out of debt again.
If she went home and couldn’t pay, then what? Would Colin sue her? She remembered a saying from her childhood: you can’t get blood from a stone. That was her, the bloodless stone.
Of course, the courts could garnish her wages, what little there were of them. And what about Trevor? Would they withdraw his government assistance? They were still waiting to try to get him on disability, but hadn’t had any luck yet because they couldn’t afford a lawyer to speed up the process.
Colin couldn’t go after Trevor for anything, could he? The medical bills had been his, after all, not Sabela’s. But he hadn’t signed those contracts. Sabela had.
If she cared about her brother, she needed to stick this through. Even if she didn’t want to ski, or go to dinner, or even speak to Colin, she’d be letting Trevor down if she didn’t go along with the rich man’s demands.
After all of this was done, they could move on with their lives and start again. She’d never have to think about Colin Morgan or Haberlin Chalet again.
Until then, she’d have to endure.
But what about the space in between?
After leaving Colin, Sabela had retreated to her room to compose herself, taken a short nap and now paced in front of the windows in the suite’s main room with nothing to do.
Colin expected her at dinner that evening, he’d made that clear, but there was plenty of time to burn before then.
The day was still young.
But if she left the room, she might run into Colin. Another confrontation was the last thing Sabela wanted. If he lashed out at her and reminded her that he owned her life one more time, she might cry.
Colin Morgan didn’t deserve her tears.
When they’d stood together by the fire, something akin to pity had danced across his eyes. It was suppressed and unwanted, but she’d seen the stirrings of it before he quashed it and became emotionless again.
What the hell was that about? And he’d sidestepped her question about why he’d done this to her, specifically. Questions and more questions. Her thoughts spun in a loop.
The spacious bedroom felt little better than a gilded cage. Sabela moved from the bathroom and back into the bedroom, then sat on the window seat and stared outside at the stunning mountaintops. Nothing was familiar anymore, and the only thing she could depend upon was herself.
Early afternoon slipped away in quiet contemplation. At one point, she saw Bruno walk down the path and up the slope to collect her discarded skis. Sabela couldn’t help but feel guilty – Bruno wasn’t a young man, and if she’d just cleaned up after herself, he wouldn’t have had to climb the hill to drag back the skis she’d left behind.
Sabela sighed and cupped her chin in her palms. Nothing was easy.
Was there any way she could raise a ton of money in a year? Maybe if she became a legitimate escort, but that would defeat the purpose. With no degree and no qualifications to speak of, stepping into a job that would make high five figures, let alone six figures, was impossible.
She was stuck.
If only Trevor hadn’t crashed his car. If only he’d stayed home that day, none of this would have happened, and she wouldn’t be in this situation.
Putting the blame on Trevor was low, she t
hought. She loved her brother, and she understood his limitations better than anyone. Even though he’d never been a hard worker, even when he was healthy, he was still blood.
He needed someone to take care of him because he didn’t know how. Until she got him up on his feet, she was the one who would have to bear the weight of his responsibilities.
If it wasn’t for her hunger, Sabela would have stayed in her room all day. Apart from the granola she’d munched on that morning before skiing, she hadn’t eaten anything since the night before.
She was ravenous.
Was there anything she could do to prolong the inevitable? The room was gorgeous, but it lacked things to do. She’d tried the big screen TV, but most of the shows weren’t in English, and the ones that were, didn’t interest her. Without so much as a bookshelf, the only other entertainment offered was the view outside her windows.
She considered calling Trevor, but hesitated. He’d probably be sleeping. Trevor didn’t keep regular hours, and slept most of the day.
The only thing left for her to do was get something to eat. She figured she could find her way to the kitchen and quickly snag something without crossing paths with Colin.
She slipped out of her room and headed down the hallway. She knew the way to the front door, but the rest of the chalet was a mystery.
Careful to move silently, Sabela walked down the hall and turned the corner, losing herself in the labyrinth of hallways. How did Marie navigate this place so easily? And there were other servants, too, though Sabela didn’t run into any of them along the way.
In the end, Sabela found the entryway. As she stepped down a long hallway, one of the doors opened and Colin stepped out. Sabela froze.
He froze, too, and she cast her gaze downward, dismayed. This wasn’t what she wanted.
“There you are,” he said carefully. Was he trying to be nice again? She couldn’t keep up with him. “I was just going to send Marie to see if you wanted something to eat.”
“Don’t bother Marie, I was going to go to the kitchen and find something for myself,” she said.
Colin’s brow furrowed for a moment, as if he’d never heard something so strange. Sabela assumed that a man as rich as he was had never gone into the kitchen on his own. It was just as well.