“Meeting new people. Experiencing something different,” he murmured against her mouth as he ended the kiss. “Learning new things. About the world. About me.”
“Hmm?” she said drowsily.
“You asked what motivates me.” Only, as she reached blindly for him and pulled his mouth back to hers, he couldn’t help but think that he could have all of that and never leave the circle of her arms.
Darby winced as she bent over to pick up the shoes she was planning to wear with her stupid costume. Not only had she awakened a few long-dormant muscles, she was pretty sure she’d sent them into a full state of shock. Still, she smiled as she recalled the amazing night she’d spent with Shane. They’d tiptoed through Alexandra’s wing, then crept, wet and quite bedraggled, into Shane’s quarters. He’d snuck down to the kitchens at one point, returning with a tray loaded with enough food to feed an army, which they promptly devoured while swapping life stories.
She’d told her Rookie story after all, along with a number of others about the ranch, Tugger, her grandfather, her life there. Eventually even talking about her mom and her childhood, and her estrangement from her dad. That had led to telling him how surprised she was that her sister had secretly been hoping they’d reconcile. Any chance of which was all blown to shit after yesterday’s revelations. Not that she’d held out any hope in the first place.
But she didn’t want to think about that right now. She wanted to revel in the glow a bit longer. Shane’s interest had been sincere, even though her life was mundane when compared to his. She still couldn’t get over some of the things he’d done. She’d even told him he’d hooked up with the wrong Landon sister, and had regaled him with some of Pepper’s more entertaining international disasters. He’d laughed, then pulled her close and told her quite seriously that there was only one Landon for him.
That was the moment her heart had tipped over the edge into free fall. She knew it was going to hurt a lot when it hit bottom. But for now she was going to concentrate on the lovely weightless feeling of the fall itself.
She’d snuck back up here at dawn, after they had decided Shane should try and follow Stefan on his early morning meeting. They’d tried to decide what they should do about the whole ordeal. Between Alexandra’s personal files and Shane’s overheard conversation, they did have some proof. But what in the hell were they supposed to do with it? Shane was determined to figure it out. Not just out of idle curiosity, either. He stunned her by telling her that he’d decided to go through with the buyout deal. His one and only executive decision before he stunned the rest of the world with his other decision . . . dismantling Morgan Industries as soon as possible, breaking it down into individually held corporate entities. For those reasons alone, he had to dig to the bottom of the whole Celentrex-Stefan connection. If he was going to tear down an empire and split it into a fistful of self-supporting, nonfamily-held entities, then he wanted to make damn sure they had a fighting chance. The last thing he needed was the black cloud of possible scandal hanging over any aspect of it.
She didn’t envy him any part of what he was about to face, but she was proud of him for doing what was right for him. And for the company. Because he was right. Being an industry mogul was not his destiny.
She sighed, reminding herself that she wasn’t, either.
They hadn’t talked about the rest of it, and she knew he was still struggling with the emotional part of his inheritance. Regardless of what he ended up doing with that, the industrial commitment alone would tie him down here for who knew how long. By then he’d be itching to fly off somewhere exotic and remote. And she’d have long since returned to her life on the ranch. Dammit.
Well, apparently the afterglow part wasn’t going to sustain itself any longer. She reluctantly turned her attention to her mission for the day, which was more of what she’d done yesterday: keeping Stefan occupied and prying more information out of him if possible. Shane had already alerted the staff to let him know first if Mr. Bjornsen had any calls or messages.
Of course, her stomach twisted at the whole idea. Knowing Stefan, he’d take one look at her and know exactly what she’d been up to all night. And with whom. She didn’t relish fending off his knowing gazes and veiled comments, all the while playing Mata Hari.
“So all of a sudden, I’m Darby Landon, Socialite Superspy,” she muttered, staring in disdain at the costume she’d laid out on the bed. Hell, she hadn’t even pulled off the socialite gig all that well. She picked up the linen-and-whalebone corset. Whoever had thought up this stupid idea should be horsewhipped. Women had given up layer upon layer of froufrou lacy undergarments for a good reason. “They’re a pain in the ass.” She held up the white linen, authentic underdrawers, staring in disbelief at the little ties that held it together. “Literally, it seems.” Not to mention that she wouldn’t be able to use the bathroom all day. Not without major assistance, anyway.
“Darby?” someone said through her door in a whispered voice.
She grinned. Thank God. The one person who could actually make the torture of putting on this ridiculous costume more endurable. In fact, having Shane tie her up in her stays might be the most fun she’d have all day. She hurried to the door and popped the lock, knowing it was ridiculous to miss someone so badly when she’d just crawled out of his bed hours before. But there you had it. “I thought we weren’t going to see each other until—” She broke off as the door swung wide, and stood there in openmouthed shock.
“Surprise! Now let me in before anyone sees me. I can’t believe I made it all the way up here unnoticed. Except for the staff, of course, but then they have to be discreet. It’s in their bible or something, right?”
Pepper pushed past her into the room, a whirlwind of blonde hair tied with an Hermès scarf, blindingly white leather Keds on her dainty feet, Liz Claiborne cuffed shorts showing off perfectly tanned and toned legs, leaving a black leather bag and a whiff of White Diamonds in her wake.
Cinderella Rule #19
Sometimes we see what we want to see. It’s certainly easier to rationalize our decisions when they’re based on what we want to believe about someone, rather than what might really be the truth. The problem comes when those we’ve categorized and neatly filed away under a convenient label no longer allow us that luxury. Life cannot be neatly filed, darling. And labels are never one-size-fits-all.
—AURORA
Chapter 19
Darby didn’t know which part bothered her more, that she’d recognized the designers her sister was wearing, or that she wasn’t as relieved to see her as she should have been. “Uh, hi. Why are you here?”
Pepper stopped in midskip and swirled—she was a big one for swirling—and propped her hands on her impossibly tiny waist. “What, you’re not happy to see your only sister?”
Darby crossed the room, tugging the belt on her robe tighter, her Cinderella quotient dwindling by the second. “Of course I am. You just caught me off guard, I thought you were someone el—” She didn’t catch herself until it was too late.
Pepper’s eyes lit up. “Darmilla Beatrice, you didn’t! I knew you had a little bit of slut inside you.” She grinned and threw her arms around her sister and squeezed tight. “Feels good to let her out for a spin once in a while, doesn’t it?” She stood back and looked her over, then yanked her robe open before Darby could read her thoughts.
“Hey!”
“Just checking for beard burn.” She glanced down at her thighs, then looked up with a wink. “Good girl. You picked a hot one.”
Darby snatched her robe from Pepper’s perfectly manicured nails and wrapped it up tight. “Good God, Pepper.”
“Oh, please. Just admit there are some things I know a lot more about than you, and deal, okay?” She swirled again and checked out her face in the mirror over the dresser. She wore bubble-gum-pink lipstick, and actually made it look good. Even Barbie would be jealous of her, Darby thought, then sighed, hating to admit she might be a little bit green-eyed herself
. It was too early and she was too tired to deal with this.
Sure, Pepper was too perfectly beautiful for her own good, and realized her God-given glory to its fullest potential at all times, but generally that only made Darby worry about her more. Never once had she actually coveted any part of it.
She’d been totally unconcerned about her looks, her body, all of it, while she’d been with Shane. In fact, thinking about it now, it was really shocking just how little that part of it meant. Sure, he enjoyed her body. She sure as hell wasn’t complaining about his. And yet, their lovemaking hadn’t been about body worship, much less the rest of their conversation.
Yet, one look at Pepper and—bam!—she was transformed into the ugly stepsister. In last year’s runway castoffs. With a hairstyle even Cyndi Lauper wouldn’t be caught dead sporting.
“So,” Pepper continued, having touched up her lips, reteased her fluffed bangs and straightened the impossibly tiny pink baby tee she wore. “Tell me about him.” Then suddenly she gasped and spun around, hand pressed dramatically to her expansive, deeply tanned bosom. “Oh, no, wait a minute. You didn’t—I mean, you’re not knocking heels with—”
Darby realized what she thought and immediately shook her head. “No. Not Bjornsen.”
Pepper’s shoulders relaxed as she let out a whoosh of air. She seemed almost overly relieved, but then, drama queen was her middle name. “Good, good.” Then, like someone had flicked a switch, she beamed again and bounced onto the bed. “So, tell me about him, then. Did you meet him here or at Glass Slipper?”
Darby just looked at her. “Glass Slipper? Like I had time to meet men there?” Then she thought about her little “shopping expedition” with Shane in the dressing room and turned away before Pepper could see the heat rise in her face. “Actually, I met him at the airport.”
“Really?” Pepper crossed her legs and settled in. “I never figured you for a hangar banger.”
“A what?” Darby asked, turning back around.
“Hangar banger. A layover pickup. Flight delay nooners?”
“You know, I really want to stop worrying about you . . . After all, you’re a grown woman, but then you go and say something like that, and I swear you’re making me gray before my time.”
Pepper just rolled her eyes and laughed. “Stop worrying about me.”
“Stop giving me reasons to worry,” Darby shot back, like they hadn’t had this conversation five million times. “Like, why did you think you had to sneak up here? Trust me, one more guest won’t be noticed at the banquet tables.” She grabbed the pantaloons off the bed. “Here, you can even have the costume. A belt and a few pins. And maybe some really, really high heels and it’ll work, no problem. Okay, throw in a few more petticoats to make the skirt stick out farther, and voilà.”
“So, you’re totally going to avoid dishing on the airport hottie.” She snapped her fingers, her eyes going wide. “Wait a minute! That skin is a bit tender for week-old beard burn. Is he here?” She darted a look toward the bathroom and hopped off the bed. “Oh, my God, Dar, did I interrupt something?” She didn’t look all that upset at the prospect.
In fact, Darby couldn’t remember her ever looking so interested in something having to do with someone else’s life other than her own. Especially her older sibling’s life.
“He’s not in the room.”
“Okay. But he is here. So? . . . Come on! You owe me.”
“Just because you yearn to share every intimate detail about your life does not mean I want to share mine.”
“I always figured it was because you didn’t have any.” She lifted her hands when Darby glared at her. “Totally kidding.”
“Yeah. Right.” She scowled, but mostly because Pepper was right. Well, she certainly had plenty to share now, didn’t she? Only she didn’t want to put it out there. It was still all hers—theirs—and she wanted to keep it that way a bit longer. She’d tell Pepper later. Years later. When her shattered heart had mended and their brief time together was nothing more than really good vibrator fodder.
“You still haven’t told me why you’re skulking around,” Darby persisted instead. “If you’re worried about Stefan seeing you, don’t be. I’m sure he’d be relieved. I’ve been a horrible hostess and he’s probably on the verge of canceling the whole deal.” She put the pantaloons back on the bed. “Speaking of which, we need to talk.” She pulled over the vanity bench and took a seat. “What exactly did Dad say to you about this deal?”
Pepper stilled, for just a brief second, but it was clear that Darby’s question had caught her off guard. Something like alarm had flashed briefly across her face.
“Penelope Pernell Landon! What do you know that you didn’t tell me? I swear to God, if you made me come all the way out here when you knew something wasn’t right, without telling me—”
She lifted her hand to halt the lecture, then let it drop back in her lap, her mouth forming a perfect Pepper pout. “It’s just another deal. How the hell should I know?”
“So why the look?”
Pepper didn’t bother trying the “what look?” line of defense. It never worked and she knew it. Darby of all people knew her sister was a lot more on the ball than she liked to let on. But then, she wasn’t trying to get into Darby’s bed. Or her bank account.
She debated for a moment whether or not to tell Pepper what she and Shane had learned about Stefan . . . and what they suspected about her father. She didn’t want to worry her sister, but now that she was here, she was going to be right in the middle of it anyway. Besides, she’d be an extra set of eyes and ears. Hell, if nothing else, she could distract Stefan and allow Darby and Shane the time to do more digging. Or, screw the intrigue, they could just spend more time alone with each other.
Pepper waved her hands in front of her sister’s face. “Earth to DarDar?” She grinned when Darby whipped her gaze over to hers. “Works every time.”
“You’re probably not going to want to taunt me anytime soon. Cowgirl.”
Pepper blanched. Darby smiled.
“Okay, listen, I need to tell you some things Shane and I found out. About Dad. And this deal.”
“Wait a minute. Shane? As in, Shane Morgan, heir apparent?” Pepper’s eyes popped wide. “That’s who you’ve been—”
“Yes, that Shane Morgan,” Darby said, cutting her off before she could toss out another wink-wink euphemism.
“But you said you met him at the airport.”
“I did. As it turns out, he’s Mercedes Browning’s godson. He saw the Glass Slipper limo and decided to hitch a ride in, to pay a visit.”
She expected Pepper to explode with a barrage of questions, or, at the very least, a few inappropriate asides. Instead, she looked a bit stunned. And more than a little disconcerted.
Darby frowned. “Is it really so hard to imagine? I mean, I know I didn’t get the girly genes in the family—”
Pepper absently waved her hand, her thoughts still obviously elsewhere. “No, no, that’s not it. Though, I know I didn’t say this before, but you really don’t look like you at all with your hair like that.”
“Thanks,” Darby said dryly. “I think.”
“It’s just—” She shook her head. “Never mind. It’s not about you. You could have anyone you wanted. You’ve always been the smart, self-sufficient, confident one.”
Darby’s mouth dropped open at the almost casual sincerity in her sister’s tone.
Pepper smiled, but for the first time, Darby noted a hint of seriousness in her expression. “Hey, being labeled ‘the pretty one’ isn’t always all it’s cracked up to be. It’s a lot to live down to, you know?”
“Pepper, you know I never—”
“Listen, we can hash this out later.” Suddenly she was all business. In fact, Darby couldn’t recall her sister ever looking so serious. It made her look like . . . a grown-up or something.
“What’s wrong?” Darby asked. Then she sighed. “If it’s about Stefan and Dad’s shady d
eal, I know all about it. Well, some of it, anyway. And I wish you’d told me whatever you knew before I got here. It would’ve helped.”
Pepper’s gaze sharpened like a tack. To the point that Darby felt like she was suddenly sitting across from a complete stranger.
“You know what about the deal?” Pepper demanded. “Start at the beginning.”
Darby frowned and studied the stranger sitting across from her. “Okay, now you’re freaking me out. Who are you and what have you done with my lovable but kooky sister?”
She smiled then, a bit wistfully and totally un-Pepperlike. And Darby seriously wondered if she was looking at a stunt double.
“Who am I?” Pepper asked, then squeezed her eyes shut, shook her head, laughed a little before dropping her chin. There was a slight pause, and she huffed out a long sigh. Only it wasn’t her typical it’s-all-about-me sigh. This one sounded like it had a lot of years and a whole lot of pent-up emotion behind it. When she lifted her head again, the smile was back, but her eyes belonged to someone who looked a whole lot wiser than even she’d ever given Pepper credit for being.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” she said quietly. “But I guess maybe it’s time I did.”
Shane shot the cuffs on his shirt and straightened his turn-of-the-century jacket. He’d boil to death in this thing the minute he stepped outside. But Darby was dressing up so she could hang on Stefan’s arm, and he had enough ego to not want to look like a beach bum in comparison. Not that he was in competition with the Swede for Darby’s attention or anything. Hell, he didn’t compete period.
He rubbed his jaw and contemplated shaving. Again.
The Cinderella Rules Page 26