by Tara Rose
This was ridiculous. He’d see her tomorrow, and they’d have a wonderful time. And this morning he had important business that needed his full attention. He planned to talk to his father and uncle about Asa’s offer to help them with their accounting issues. It would take a gentle touch because, while Merrick knew his father was aware that he was no accountant, it was also a sure bet that the last person he’d want to accept help from was Asa.
But the bottom line was that someone had to take care of the books now that Owen was gone, and preferably that someone had a degree in accounting and knew what he or she was doing. Merrick stepped away from the window and sighed. Time to get this out of the way.
* * * *
Ivy slept until two in the afternoon Thursday, and when she woke, she was dizzy from lack of food and water. After she ate something and drank about a quart of water, the fog began to clear. She hugged her knees and let the memories of the previous night wash over her. There was no guilt, and for that she was grateful. It was about time she enjoyed herself and did something to fulfill her own needs instead of everyone else’s.
She checked her phone and smiled as she read the text messages from Tom. He’d kept up a running commentary most of the morning about the various reasons employees at Phoebe’s Plaything called IT, and they had her laughing because she could totally relate to them. What he described sounded like many of the conversations they had every day at work whenever there were computer issues.
She called her brother Irwin, who was in charge of the office today, just to check in. He told her to take at least a week off, by orders from their parents. Apparently they were all very concerned about her because she’d never taken sick days, and now thought it had all finally caught up with her and she was on the verge of a complete collapse.
Ivy laughed once she got off the phone, and then took a long shower. If her family wanted to give her a vacation week or two, she wasn’t going to argue with them. And they were right. She’d never taken significant time off for anything. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been ill enough not to fly. Even when she and Scott got engaged she hadn’t taken more than a couple of days off.
She shook away thoughts of Scott as she toweled off. He was no longer allowed to live rent-free in her head. Neither was Nadine. They were both dead to her now. Although Ivy did have another chuckle as she pictured Nadine’s face if she were to find out what her brother had done last night. It was a sure bet Nadine wasn’t having that kind of kinky sex with Scott.
Ivy warmed up more leftover pasta and poured herself a glass of wine, then she sat in front of the TV and flipped channels, looking for something mindless to watch. Just as she found a reality show that she’d never watched before, her cell rang. Thinking it was Tom, she answered it without checking the caller ID, and was both surprised and delighted to hear Merrick’s voice.
“I was hoping I’d catch you during a layover.”
“Oh. I’m not at work today. I’m taking vacation time.” No sense in giving him details about why she’d called in sick. She counted five seconds of silence before he spoke again, leading her to believe she’d lost the call.
“If I’d known you weren’t working today I’d have called earlier. So…are we still going out tomorrow?”
Why wouldn’t we be? “Of course. I’m looking forward to it.” She hoped he didn’t ask any questions about last night. This was so awkward. How would she handle it if he wanted details?
“I know we planned to go to Lady of The Night, but would you rather go to Oceanview? It’s a bit more out of the way.”
And a lot more expensive. “I’d love to. Thank you.” She’d only been there a few times and loved it, but it wasn’t a place her family could afford to eat at very often. While she was really looking forward to her date with Merrick, she was now torn about what to say or not say to him about Tom. Surely he’d be curious how their date had gone.
How on earth did Alaina do this? Or the other subs who now had two Doms? Had they gone out with the men separately at first? And if so, how had they kept the peace? And why was she jumping to such crazy conclusions here? There was no guarantee she’d see either one more than a few times, let alone end up as a sub to both of them. She needed to slow down and relax.
“Great. Okay, then. I’ll pick you up right after I leave work, around six. Is that too late?”
“Not at all. I’m looking forward to it, Merrick.”
“So am I. See you tomorrow.”
Ivy stared at the phone for a long time. If his entire tone hadn’t changed as soon as he’d found out she hadn’t flown today, she’d eat her cell phone. Tomorrow night was either going to be a lot of fun, coupled with fabulous food, or a complete disaster.
* * * *
Merrick didn’t have time to dwell on why Ivy had taken time off work. She was entitled to vacation days, surely, but was it only a coincidence that she’d taken one the day after her date with Tom? Had he spent the night with her? It was none of his business. But his mind wouldn’t let go of the images, no matter how hard he tried to force them away.
“Say that again?” asked his father. “Asa wants to send me help from his department to do our books?”
Those questions pulled him from his musings and back the present issue at hand. “Purely as a consultant. Not an employee.”
“You mean not as a spy.”
Merrick sighed. “He said you’d think that. Dad, do you realize he’s saved this company?”
“I didn’t ask him to do that.”
“Well he did do it, just the same. He’s not trying to do anything here but help us get back on our feet. You have no clue what you’re doing with the books.” Merrick glanced toward his Uncle Davis, who looked bored. “And neither do you. I’m not saying this to be disrespectful. We all placed our trust in Owen over the years. What he did affects each of us, not only you two. Asa is backing us. He doesn’t want to run the company. But the bottom line is that we need help with the books. That’s all he’s offering.”
“I think we should take it,” said Davis.
“No way.”
His uncle took his feet off the desk and leaned forward in his chair. “Then who do you propose we hire? We have no prospects. You can’t do them alone and neither can I. Do you want the state to come in here and start poking around? If that happens, it won’t matter whether Asa is backing our losses or not. We’ll be shut down.”
“The upcoming civil suits alone might do that anyway,” said Merrick. “You both know it’s true. The people who were hurt in those fires, along with the families of the workers who were killed aren’t going to be satisfied once Owen is convicted of involuntary manslaughter and arson. When we start getting served with suit papers, we’ll need to have our ducks in a row as far as the books are concerned, and you know it. They won’t go after Owen. There’s no money there. They’ll come after the company.”
That did the trick. He knew his father and uncle wanted to pretend no one on this island would file a lawsuit against them for what Owen had done, but that was fantasy. They would. And the company didn’t have that kind of money. But Phoebe’s Playthings did, and Asa had already offered it. They had no choice here but to accept his help.
Once his father and uncle finally agreed with him and his Uncle Davis said he’d take care of the call to Asa, Merrick returned to his office and tried to work. But his mind kept wandering to last night and what Ivy might or might not have done with Tom. It was none of his business. He firmly acknowledged that. He had no prior claims on her, and it was his own damn fault that he’d spent so many years worshipping her from afar.
But he needed to know how he’d handle it if he found out they’d had sex. It was important that he knew his own feelings in that regard. Ivy wasn’t the only woman that Merrick had dated who was also seeing another man at the same time. But none of those relationships had lasted long, and he hadn’t really cared that they’d been dating others, as well. Those women weren’t Ivy. She was diffe
rent. She always had been.
And now Merrick had waited too long. The man whose sister had taken away Ivy’s fiancé was now possibly Ivy’s lover. How fucked up was that? Merrick knew he had some serious soul-searching to do, and it had to happen before tomorrow night. He’d waited a long time for a real date with Ivy, and he knew once they were together, sharing food and drink, laughing and talking, there was no way he’d be able to back down and let Tom have her all to himself. So it was either not go out with her at all, or figure out a way to handle the truth, whatever that turned out to be.
* * * *
Tom meant to call Ivy again Thursday night, but he was so busy with an issue caused by one of the idiots who worked in sales, that by the time he got home it was after ten. She’d probably be asleep. He texted her anyway, and told her he missed her already and couldn’t wait until Saturday. Then he waited a half hour before finally going to bed. Either she’d decided to ignore him, or she was asleep, like he’d guessed. He had no idea if she was taking time off work again tomorrow. Had she told him she was? He couldn’t remember right now.
Tom tried to sleep but images of her out with Merrick the next night filled his head. Would the same thing happen? Would she let Merrick seduce her? He couldn’t fault Ivy for that. She had a right to do what she wanted. Tom had no claims on her. That she’d allowed last night to happen at all was still a mystery to him. He was grateful for it, but what if she wasn’t? What if the reason she hadn’t texted him back was because by now she realized it had been a huge mistake?
“Christ,” he whispered into the dark. “When did you turn into such a pussy?”
This was ridiculous. He’d waited so long to be more than a passing acquaintance with her, and now that he’d finally found his balls and gone out with her, Merrick had wormed his way into the picture as well. Talk about bad timing. Or was it karma? No. He had to stop going that road. He wasn’t Nadine, and he wasn’t responsible for what she’d done. Ivy didn’t blame him. She’d told him that.
He needed to shut off his mind and get some rest. Whatever happened with her and Merrick would happen. He had no control over it, and he couldn’t stop it. But he would have to deal with the fallout. And he hoped like crazy that Ivy still wanted to see him on Saturday.
Chapter Ten
Ivy smoothed down her dress after the hostess took her coat inside Oceanview Restaurant. She’d chosen basic black, with a dash of cinnamon and forest green for trim. Elaine had once told her the dress brought out both the red highlights in her hair, and the green in her eyes. Merrick seemed to like it.
“You look beautiful.” That was the tenth time he’d told her so since picking her up. She’d counted.
“Thank you. You look very nice, too.” He really did. Oceanview didn’t have a formal dress code, but she was glad to see he’d chosen Dockers and a nicer shirt than he wore while working. She’d been in the offices of JD Construction enough on company business to know he usually wore torn jeans and T-shirts at the office.
He smelled great, too. She leaned close as they were shown to their table, and took another sniff—Polo—one of her favorites. He asked if she minded him ordering their drinks and appetizer, and she told him to go ahead. Once that was done, she asked him what his favorite dishes were, because she had no clue what to order.
“That depends on whether or not you like Cajun food.”
“Are you kidding? On this island? We’re fed Cajun as infants. I love it.”
He smiled and nodded. “Good point. That’ll make it easier then.”
Once they had drinks and an appetizer of cold crawfish dip and sesame crackers, Ivy asked how things were going at JD Construction.
“You want the PC answer or the truth?”
“Uh-oh, that doesn’t sound good.”
He glanced up at her from under his lashes, which she noticed for the first time were longer than her own. Why is it that men had lashes long enough to be able to do that, when women had to spend a small fortune on mascara just to make theirs long enough to see without a microscope? “We’re all waiting for the lawsuits to pour in.”
“Oh. I hadn’t thought of that. Do you really think it will come to that?”
“I have no doubt it will. Owen has no money now. They froze his personal bank accounts. And we’re not sure when the money he stole will be returned to the company. I imagine after he’s convicted.”
“Or pleads guilty. I mean, really, what defense does he have?”
“None. They went through our books with a fine-toothed comb. He stole millions.”
“What about his gambling debts?”
Merrick shrugged. “His problem, not ours. I’m not paying them off.”
“Will those people come after you?”
He snorted. “Let them try. Don’t pass this on, but Asa has already assured me he’s let the cops know in no uncertain terms that anyone coming to this island looking for retribution for Owen’s debts needs to find themselves taken right back off this rock.”
She shook her head. “Only Asa would make a statement like that and have complete confidence that it’ll be taken care of.”
“Six months ago, I would have balked at such a thing and told you Asa was a bully. But what if I told you he’s backing us, and has even offered help from his own accounting department so we can get our books in order and clean up the mess Owen made?”
Ivy nearly choked on the sip of her margarita she’d just taken. “Are you serious?”
“Very. I had a long talk with my father and uncle just today about it.”
“Asa wants your company.”
Merrick shook his head. “No. I thought the same thing at first but I looked the man right in the eye when he told me that’s not his intention. Asa is a lot of things, but a liar isn’t one of them.”
“Well, that certainly isn’t what I would have expected from him, but I’m happy for you. It would be a huge loss for this island to lose JD Construction.”
“Thank you.” He stared at her so intently she almost became uncomfortable. “And thank you for coming to dinner with me.”
“Merrick, thank you for asking me. This is so nice. I should have taken vacation time years ago.”
“What prompted that, by the way?”
Was it her imagination, or did his voice sound too casual? “Spur of the moment decision Wednesday evening.” He’d ask, and she’d tell him. Ivy could hear the conversation playing out in her mind, as it if had already happened.
What was with the Durante and Raleigh men? They had the power to charm the deepest, darkest secrets out of her, and she didn’t regret telling them the next day. No wonder their ancestors had been cursed. They’d probably tried to charm the demons who had cast it.
“Because your date with Tom went that well?”
She actually admired his directness. Unlike Scott, who never came out and asked her a question, Merrick obviously wasn’t the type of man who would play head games. It was refreshing. “Yes. And then when my family assumed I was ill, and jumped to the conclusion that never taking sick time or a real vacation for years had finally caught up with me, they basically forced me to take two weeks off. So here we are.”
She lifted her glass, and when he finally did the same, she clinked hers against it. “To vacation time and having fun.”
“I’ll drink to that.” He took a long sip, and then asked her how business was.
“Booming as ever. I can’t imagine us slowing down unless that curse is lifted one day and you all start buying your own planes.”
Merrick chuckled. “Did Jan say how long it would be before she was able to get through Shona’s diary?”
“Not to me. Alaina is probably the best person to ask about that. She seems to have taken on the task of coordinating all your clues, and is determined to break this.”
Merrick lifted his glass again. “To breaking the curse.”
“Hear! Hear!”
Their entrees arrived, and they made small talk about everything fr
om the food and how great it was, to how she intended to spend the rest of her vacation. Ivy couldn’t take it any longer. His curiosity about Wednesday night was almost palpable. Finally she put down her fork, leaned close, and lowered her voice. “Just ask me, Merrick. I won’t lie to you.”
He narrowed his eyes for a few seconds, but there was no trace of confusion on his face. He knew exactly what she meant. “Okay. Did you spend the night with Tom?”
“Yes.”
He nodded slowly. “How was it?”
Ivy laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”
“Nope. And let me remind that you said you wouldn’t lie to me.”
“Why do you need to know how it was?”
“It’s a guy thing.”
“A guy thing? Really?”
“All right. Maybe not. At least not once we graduate from high school. But seriously, how was it?”
“Not bad.”
“Not bad? Not bad? Ouch. I won’t tell Tom you said that. On second thought, maybe I will. Not bad. That’s what you say about a TV show you didn’t turn off five minutes into it, or a doctor’s appointment where you weren’t told terrible news.”
Ivy was laughing so hard she had to take several sips of water, because now she had hiccups. “Stop it. Please. I didn’t mean it like that. But I’m not going to sit here and give you graphic details.”
“Well that’s good to know.”
“Why is that?”
He reached across the table and took her hands. Ivy had to bite back a moan at the electricity shooting through her body at his touch. Holy fuck. To know he had the same physical effect on her as Tom was overwhelming. It wasn’t a complete surprise, but to be face-to-face with it now brought home her predicament, and hard.