His mother, who had urged him to take an extended leave of absence, came outside to bid him goodbye. She ran her hand along the side of the vintage VW van painted aqua and white with yellow daisies. “Take all the time you need, Liam. I want you to be happy. Your brothers are nearby if I need them. You’re free, my dearest boy. God bless.”
He hugged her, feeling a trace of guilt for leaving, but more importantly, exhilaration and hope for the road ahead. “Thank you, Mom. I love you.”
“I love you, son. And if it’s any comfort, I’d stake my life on the fact that Zoe loves you, too.”
“I treated her badly.” His lack of faith in the woman he claimed to love still scored him with guilt.
“We all make mistakes, Liam. She understands that. Sometimes a simple, sincere apology means the world.”
“I hope you’re right.” The alternative didn’t bear thinking about. “I’ll keep you posted. Don’t work too hard.”
Maeve grinned, taking years off her age. “Work keeps me young. Now go. Get out of here. And don’t come back until I have at least some hope of having grandchildren one day.”
* * *
Zoe felt the sun warming her back as she knelt to pluck weeds from among the seedlings in her mother’s well-tended flower bed. The Henshaws employed a full-time gardener, but this monotonous task was one Zoe enjoyed. She let her mind wander, hearing the birds sing around her and smelling the piquant odor of freshly turned earth.
She realized that she was more centered, more at peace than the young woman who had slipped away on Christmas Eve so many weeks ago. Loving Liam had taught her to look inside herself for the truth of her emotions.
She didn’t hate her father, but they would likely never see eye to eye. Finally finding her backbone and dealing with him these last few weeks had not been easy, but Zoe’s reward was the way her mother had blossomed. The older woman smiled now.
Beneath the familial triumphs, though, was the ever-present ache of losing Liam. She missed him terribly. Without even realizing it, she had come to regard Silver Glen as home, and the head of the Kavanagh clan as her heart’s desire.
No matter how much she grieved, she knew she had been right to let him go. He still had doubts about her, perhaps because they were too different. In all fairness, some of the rift was her fault. She had kept too many secrets. She hadn’t trusted him quickly enough, nor deeply enough. She was tempted to go back to North Carolina and apologize for that, if nothing else.
But she didn’t want Liam to take her back for the wrong reasons. Though he’d said he loved her, she suspected that his declaration was the result of an overdeveloped sense of responsibility. She knew he wanted her. And perhaps he had convinced himself that what he felt was the real thing. The truth was, however, Liam took care of people. His mother, his family, the hotel... Zoe would be just another millstone around his neck.
She was in the zone, as they say, intent on her task, when two male feet appeared in her peripheral vision.
“Need a hand?”
The all-too-familiar voice sent a chill down her spine. She stood up slowly, wiping her fingers on the legs of her ancient, faded jeans. “Liam.” It wasn’t much of a response, but it was the only one she could come up with. Her heart leapt in joyful surprise, but her brain beat the girly response into submission. “What are you doing here?”
He looked so good it made her chest hurt. The only time she had seen him dressed so casually was the night she sang in Dylan’s bar. Today he wore a dark blue knit shirt that matched his eyes. His hair was a trifle longer than usual, and he looked tired.
With hands in his pockets, he regarded her intently. “I brought your van back to you. It’s parked out front.”
“Ah. Well, thank you.”
“I left Silver Glen a week ago and took my time getting up here. Toured Monticello. Caught a couple of museums in D.C. Saw the world’s largest Coke can in a little town in Jersey. Slept in your van almost every night.”
“I see.” But she didn’t. Not at all. Was he trying to tell her something? “How are you getting home?”
“I’m not going home. At least not yet.”
“Okay.” Still she was baffled.
His lips twisted. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you about the money.”
She saw genuine regret on his face. “I overreacted, Liam. And I was partly to blame for your assumptions. It’s hard for me to trust people. If I had told you the truth sooner, you never would have thought I was a criminal.”
His theatrical wince made her smile.
“Criminal is a strong word. But tell me something, Zoe. Why did you carry all that cash?”
“That part is easy to explain. When my father and I first had our falling-out, not this past December, but earlier, I hit the road not wanting to be found. I knew if I used credit cards, he could trace me.”
“But you used one to check in at Silver Beeches.”
“True. So I guess a shrink would say I was tired of running.”
“No comment.” His smile was rueful. “Sorry I interrupted. Please continue.“
“Anyway, the first time I left, I withdrew a large sum of money from my own account and hid it inside Bessie.”
“Bessie?”
“That’s what I call my van. I’ve traveled the world enough to know that a single woman needs to have a backup plan for emergencies.”
“I hope you never have an emergency that big. Aren’t you wondering if your money is intact?”
“Is it?”
“Of course.” He ran both hands through his hair. “Gary thought I was insane when I asked him to paint the van. Again. To its original color.”
“That was sweet of you.”
“It seemed the least I could do.”
Zoe shifted from one foot to the other. Perhaps she should ask him in for tea, but she wasn’t at all sure why he had come, other than to return her vehicle. “Well, thanks again,” she said brightly.
His gaze grew stormy. “I told you I loved you.”
Like she needed reminding. “I know you did. But you’re a fixer, Liam. A caretaker. You see people in trouble and you want to help. I seemed like a desperate case, so you convinced yourself that you loved me and needed to save me from myself. It was a heat-of-the-moment kind of thing. Very noble, but not legally binding.”
“Do you care about me at all?”
His steady question set her feet in quicksand. The more she struggled, the faster she would sink. “Of course. I had a lot of fun with you.”
“Fun.” He said it like a curse.
“You seem to be getting upset. Perhaps you should go.”
“Damn it, Zoe.” Without warning, he yanked her close, his strong arms binding her to him as he kissed her senseless.
She might have gotten too much sun already. Her mother always warned her to wear a hat. When she could finally catch a breath, she pushed her hands against his chest. But it was like trying to move Mt. Rushmore. “You don’t have to do this. I’m fine.”
He glared at her. “Well, I’m not. You waltzed into my life and painted it all the colors of the rainbow. After you left, everything was gray again.”
“You have a great life. Everything a man could want.”
“No.” He said it simply. “I don’t have you, Zoe.”
“You think I’m unfocused and lack ambition.”
He nuzzled her nose with his as his hands stroked up and down her arms. “I think you’re amazing, and just the person to plan our road trip.”
“Our road trip?” His kisses must have fired a few synapses.
“I’ve taken a sixty-day sabbatical from the hotel. My mother sends her regards.”
Zoe gaped. “But you love that hotel.”
He shook his head, his eyes filled with happy tenderness. “I love you. And at the risk of sounding egocentric, I’d like to know how you feel about me. Am I too much of a stuffed shirt for a pretty gypsy with sunshine hair and a voice like an angel?”
T
ears welled in her eyes. “I couldn’t bear it if things didn’t work out.” She didn’t want to get her hopes up. Walking away from him once had nearly destroyed her. And their relationship had been so complicated, it was hard to believe he loved who she really was.
“Then we’ll take a trial run. In Bessie. On the open road. Wherever you like.”
“Really?” It felt like Christmas and her birthday all rolled into one.
“Really. But I do have one condition.”
“That sounds ominous.” She patted his chest and rested her cheek over his heart.
“Look at me, sweetheart.” He backed away and fished in his pocket, extracting a small, elegant box. “That day in New York when you were studying French impressionists at the museum, I sneaked away and bought this. I know you need time to think about marrying me, but I want you to wear it.”
The ring was a flawless square-cut solitaire, at least two carats or more, surrounded by tiny sparkling stones. She barely breathed as he slid it onto the ring finger of her left hand. “Oh, Liam...”
He lifted her fingers to his lips and kissed them. “Please, Zoe.”
“Please what?”
“You know what.”
She stared down at her hand, tilting and twisting it so that the sun caught the facets of the diamonds and sent prisms of color in every direction. When she looked back at Liam, he had his arms crossed over his chest. His gaze was watchful.
Flinging herself into his arms, forcing him to catch her, she kissed him with every bit of the longing she had bottled up for the last few weeks. “Of course I love you, you big doofus. And if you ever get around to proposing, I’ll say yes.”
His eyebrows went up. “I thought I already did.”
“You alluded to it. That’s different.”
He was breathing hard, his face flushed. “Marry me, Zoe. Create babies with me. Sing to our children. Make love with me in our bed. You’ve taught me how to stop and smell the roses. Let me share my big, boisterous family with you.”
“Oh, Liam...”
“You already said that,” he teased.
“My parents will probably want a big society wedding. I am their only child, you know.”
“I can live with that. I just can’t live without you.”
He scooped her up in his arms and strode toward the front yard.
Zoe linked her arms around his neck. “Where are we going?”
“Bessie should be the first to know, don’t you think?”
“Well, she was responsible for bringing me to Silver Glen.”
“We’re never getting rid of this van,” he said fervently.
“Whatever you say, dear.”
He dropped her on her feet and backed her up against the door that concealed a huge chunk of cash. “Thank you,” he said, his lips brushing the tender skin below her ear.
“For what?”
“For being you, Zoe. For being you....”
* * * * *
If you loved this first Kavanagh novel, don’t miss Dylan’s story, BABY FOR KEEPS coming June 2014.
Only from USA TODAY bestselling author Janice Maynard and Harlequin Desire.
Don’t miss Janice Maynard’s first family saga, THE MEN OF WOLFF MOUNTAIN!
INTO HIS PRIVATE DOMAIN
A TOUCH OF PERSUASION
IMPOSSIBLE TO RESIST
THE MAID’S DAUGHTER
ALL GROWN UP
TAMING THE LONE WOLFF
A WOLFF AT HEART
All available now from Harlequin Desire!
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One
Alexis watched him from the doorway to the winery. Late afternoon sun slanted through the windows at the end of the room, illuminating tiny dust motes that floated on air redolent with the scent of fermented grapes. But she was oblivious to the artistic beauty of the setting—her focus solely on the man who worked on, unaware of her presence.
He’d changed. God, how he’d changed. He was thinner, gaunt even, and his signature well-groomed appearance had given way to a self-executed haircut, a stretched and faded T-shirt and torn jeans. His face obviously hadn’t seen a razor in several days. But then grief was bound to do that to a man—to diminish the importance of the everyday tasks he’d done automatically and replace them with indifference.
How could she help a man who was clearly long past any interest in helping himself?
The weight of what she’d agreed to do felt heavy and uncomfortable on her shoulders. She, the one who always willingly stepped up to the plate when everything went pear-shaped, was now thinking that perhaps this time she’d bitten off more than she could chew.
Straightening her shoulders, she shook off her doubts. Bree had turned to her in her time of need—had written a letter that begged Alexis to take care of her husband and the child she’d been on the verge of delivering should something happen to her, as if she’d known what lay ahead. While her best friend had died before Alexis could give her that promise, in her heart she knew she couldn’t refuse—couldn’t walk away. Even if keeping that promise meant putting her heart back in firing range from the man she’d been magnetically drawn to from the moment she’d first met him.
Raoul stilled in his actions. His attention shifted from the table of wine samples before him, his pen dropping from his hand to the clipboard covered in hand-scrawled notes that lay on the stark white tablecloth. He lifted his head and turned toward her, his face registering a brief flash of surprise together with something else she couldn’t quite put her finger on. It was gone in an instant, replaced by a tight mask of aloofness.
“Alexis,” he said, accompanied by a tight nod.
“I came as soon as I heard. I’m sorry it took so long. I…” Her voice trailed away. How did you tell a man that it had taken almost a year to hear about the birth of his daughter and the death of the love of his life because you’d severed ties with his wife, your best friend since kindergarten, when it became too painful to see her happiness with him? That you’d “forgotten” to give her your new email address or the number to the cell phone you bought when your work started requiring more international travel because you couldn’t bear to hear any more about how perfect they were together? Because you had coveted him for yourself?
Because you still did.
She took a deep breath and swallowed against the lump of raw grief that swelled in her throat.
“I’ve been traveling for a while, ever since my business…” The words died at the expression on his face. Clearly Raoul could not care less about the success she’d been enjoying ever since her clothing line finally started taking off. “Bree’s letter caught up with me at my father’s house. It must have been following me around the world for the past year.”
“Bree’s letter?”
“To tell me about her pregnancy.”
Should she tell him also that Bree had begged her to watch out for her husband and her, at that time, as yet unborn child? That she’d somehow known that the aortic aneurysm she’d kept secret from her family would take her life in childbirth? One look at his face confirmed he hadn’t known of his wife’s correspondence to her.
“So, you’re back.”
Finally. The unspoken word hung on the air between them, both an
accusation and an acknowledgment at the same time.
“My mother was ill. I made it back a few weeks before she died at Christmas.”
“I’m sorry.”
The platitude fell automatically from his lips but she sensed his shields go up even stronger. He didn’t want to know, not really. Not when he was still locked tight in his own sorrow, his own grief.
“I only got Bree’s letter last week and rang her mom straightaway. I’m here to help with Ruby.”
“The child already has a carer, her grandmother.”
“Yes, but Catherine needs surgery, Raoul. She can’t keep putting her knee replacement off, especially now that Ruby is getting more active.”
“I told her to find a nanny if she needed to.”
“And I understand you rejected every résumé she presented to you. That you wouldn’t even agree to interview any of the applicants.”
He shrugged. “They weren’t good enough.”
Alexis felt her temper begin to rise. Catherine had been beside herself with worry over what to do. The osteoarthritis in her knee caused constant pain and made looking after a small child more difficult every day. She needed the surgery as soon as possible, but that meant Ruby absolutely had to have a new caretaker. By refusing to look at the résumés, Raoul was ignoring his responsibilities—to his daughter, to her grandmother and to Bree’s memory. He looked at her again, harder this time. What on earth was going on behind those hazel eyes of his?
“And what about me? Am I good enough?”
“No,” he answered emphatically. “Definitely not.”
She pushed aside the hurt his blunt refusal triggered.
“Why? You know I’m qualified—I have experience caring for little ones.”
“You’re a dressmaker now, though, aren’t you? Hardly what the child needs.”
Wow, he was really on form with the insults, wasn’t he, she thought. Dressmaker? Well, yes, she still made some of her signature designs but for the most part she outsourced the work now. She’d trained as a nanny when she’d left school, and had completed a full year intensive academic and practical experience program because her parents had been opposed to her trying to make a career following her artistic talent alone. But three years ago, when her last contract had finished, she’d realized it was time to follow her dream. That dream was now coming to fruition with her clothing label being distributed to high-end boutiques around the country and in various hot spots around the world. But Raoul didn’t care about any of that.
A Not-So-Innocent Seduction Page 17