Kitabı oku: «Principles And Pleasures», sayfa 2

He said, “I’m flattered you kept tabs on me.”

Meredith felt as if she was being baited. “I wasn’t keeping tabs,” she replied. “I must’ve heard Carly mention it.”

He nodded toward the bench. “Have a seat,” he said. “I’d like to talk to you.”

But she didn’t move. She’d had enough small talk. “You never said what brought you back to Aspen.”

“Business.”

What kind of business would a ski instructor have? But still, that did not mean he had returned for Carly. In fact, the idea of Josh Adams returning to confess his love for Carly was preposterous. He and Carly had been friends, nothing more. What would inspire him to come back…

“Meredith?” He was looking at her curiously. “Are you all right?”

She had to laugh. Josh would, too, if he knew what she and her mother had been thinking. “This is going to sound ridiculous, but I thought for a moment that your reason for returning might have something to do with Carly.”

Josh wasn’t smiling. “It does.”

Meredith felt a lump lodge in her throat. It was not jealousy, she told herself quickly. She could not be jealous that Josh had come back for her sister and not her. After all, he and Carly were friends. She and Josh were…well, they were nothing.

“She’s getting married, you know,” she said.

“Yes,” he said. “I know.” His face darkened. He met her gaze directly, as if daring her. “I wanted to…”

But Meredith didn’t let him finish. She read his reaction as confirmation of her fears. “Leave her alone,” she blurted.

“What?”

“She’s happy. You’ll just confuse her.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He stood and walked toward her.

She held his eyes. “I think you do.” She could see the muscles in his jaw tighten. She knew she was making him angry but she couldn’t stop herself.

Meredith stepped back. “Do you want money? Is that it?”

“Is that what you think?” He stepped closer to her. So close, he was almost touching her. His eyes glared at her, burning a hole.

“Because she’s not quite the heiress these days. In fact, if she doesn’t get married, she may not have any money at all.”

“I see,” he said.

Meredith was no longer the naive little schoolgirl. She was once again the head of Cartwright Enterprises. Past history aside, she was not about to let some playboy ruin her future. “So we understand each other?” she said to Josh.

“I understand you perfectly, yes. You’re saying that Carly has to marry to save your ass.”

“I beg your pardon?”

He glanced toward the house. His breath was white in the frosty air. “I’m touched by how important your sister’s happiness is to you.”

His words hung in the air. He was being sarcastic.

“She loves Mark.”

“So what are you so worried about? Surely she has some time for an old friend,” he said.

“Because she’s…she’s Carly. And Mark may not be so understanding.”

“It sounds like perhaps they shouldn’t be getting married.”

“I’m asking you as a…as a friend. Please go.”

“I’m sorry, Meredith. As a friend,” he said, as if he found the word distasteful, “I can’t do that.”

This was the man she dreamed about? The one with whom she compared all others? “I’m sorry, too,” she said. She spun on her heels and began to walk away.

“Meredith,” said Josh.

She stopped. But she did not turn around.

“Please tell Carly I’ll see her tomorrow.”

She stood still for a moment and then walked slowly back to the house, her head held high.

How dare she?

Josh sat on the bench, taking a few moments to compose himself. He had heard the rumors. Meredith Cartwright was so desperate to save her company that she had sold her sister. And, unfortunately, it appeared to be true. Meredith wanted Carly to marry Mark Duran so that she could get her hands on Durasnow.

And she thought that he, Josh, might interrupt the deal. She was right, of course. But he had not come back to steal Carly. He had done something much worse.

He had returned for Durasnow.

He had wanted Durasnow for years—he’d been the first to express an interest. But once Carly and Mark became engaged, the Durans had informed him that they’d felt obligated to entertain bids from Cartwright Enterprises. When Josh had read that Meredith had publicly declared her intention to buy Durasnow, he’d known the Durans had been less than honest. The writing was on the wall: the Durans would play Josh against Meredith, bidding up the price. In the end, neither would win. So Josh had come back to broker a deal. Perhaps he and Meredith could join forces and buy Durasnow together.

But Meredith was right in a way. He had come tonight because he’d wanted to see Carly. After all, he had not spoken with Meredith since their night together. He had tried to contact her several times but she’d never returned his phone calls. But her reputation was well-known. She was a stubbornly independent woman. So he had hoped that perhaps Carly might act as go-between, brokering a deal between Europrize and Cartwright.

Meredith, obviously, had no idea who he was. She assumed he was still the same playboy that had left Aspen.

The mere thought of his former lifestyle was enough to put a smile on his face. How things had changed.

It had not been an easy transition. Shortly after his night with Meredith, his aunt died. He had been surprised to learn that she, a waitress of seemingly meager means, had managed to save fifty thousand dollars. The instructions she’d left in her will had been simple. Make me proud. His friends had encouraged him to use the money for travel, to continue his life uninterrupted. But he’d had no intention of frivolously spending the money for which his aunt had worked.

His aunt had given him a new chance at life, a chance to remake himself. And he preferred not to have any reminders of the boy he once was.

Not that his life growing up had been all bad. Without the experience he’d gained, he never would have started his business. He knew his old friends had been surprised to learn that he’d been able to utilize the skills he’d learned in his former life and turn them into a multi-million dollar business that had made him one of the richest men in Europe.

His company, Europrize, had developed several interactive video games that had been sold to a major technology company, leaving him with more than enough money to buy out the richest men in Aspen. But he was just getting started. His newest venture, buying and renovating ski resorts, was already bringing in revenues. But their earning capability was limited to the season. If he could stretch out the season a month or so on each side, especially if his was the only ski resort open, the business would boom.

Which is why he wanted Durasnow. He had been following the Duran company for a while, his eye on their product. He’d approached them about buying the rights and they had seemed interested. But Wayne Duran reminded him of many of the men he had known from Aspen. A seemingly friendly but ultimately untrustworthy guy. Although Josh had been promised the rights, he’d had nothing in writing. He hadn’t been surprised to learn that a major conglomerate had suddenly gotten involved.

But he had been surprised to learn it was Cartwright Enterprises. It seemed odd to be up against a family he had known for years. He and Carly had once been good friends, but through the years they had lost touch, corresponding less and less. And Meredith…he had not spoken with her since their night together.

His fingers tightened around the edge of the bench as he thought of her. Meredith had not been like the other women in Aspen. She’d been quiet and intellectual, a girl who seemed to always have her nose in a book. Whereas Carly had been with a different boy each week, Meredith had never seemed to go out at all.

Most of the girls had just ignored her and the guys hadn’t been much better. But they were not just being cruel. Meredith had a way of speaking to people that was extremely off-putting. She’d handled her peers as if she were a queen dealing with mere commoners. Her behavior had become a running joke between his friends, who had dubbed her “Princess,” short for Ice Princess. It wasn’t that she was a typical snob, thinking that she was better than everyone else because of her family money. Not at all. Meredith, with her mismatched outfits and tights with holes, cared little about money. Meredith was an intellectual snob.

She’d always been the smartest person in the room, and she’d known it. Still, there was something about her he’d found appealing. He realized later that in an odd way he related to Meredith. Meredith had suffered the loss of a parent and had had a troubled relationship with the man who had taken her father’s place. Josh’s own family history was similar. His mother had died when he was young and his father had married a girl just out of high school when Josh was eleven. He had not gotten along with his young stepmother. His father later divorced her and married another—a woman who was even worse than the first. The situation had gotten so bad that Josh had moved in with his mother’s sister.

Although he’d enjoyed living with his aunt, she’d never really been his parent. In a town where family and money determined one’s success, Josh had had neither. He may not have looked the outcast that Meredith was, but inside, he’d felt like her.

One night he’d attended a party and stumbled upon Meredith sequestered in the library. She’d been sitting at a desk, reading intently. She’d removed her thick-lensed glasses, and her long, curly hair—usually pulled tightly back—had been loose around her shoulders. In that moment he’d thought her the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

She had looked up at him and smiled, a rare thing for Meredith. Encouraged, he’d struck up a conversation. It was as if she was a different person. They’d spoken for hours, rambling about everything from Thoreau to the state of the ski slopes. He’d felt a connection between them, an understanding.

But he’d been called away by friends and, although Meredith had promised to wait for him, she had gone by the time he returned. Afterward, he’d thought of little else: the feeling of excitement, the anticipation he’d felt at seeing her again. The next day he’d arrived at the lodge early, fully aware that Meredith was to be his student in a trek down Lost Mountain. But his anticipation was for naught. When Meredith arrived, her figure hidden beneath layers of clothing, her beautiful eyes once again covered by her thick, tinted lenses she’d acted as if nothing had changed. Whatever spell had possessed her the previous evening had been broken. She’d obviously had no interest in him.

He’d attempted to put her out of his mind and, for the most part, was successful. Sure, he’d feel a mild sting of curiosity—a what-if?—whenever her name was mentioned, but that was all. Life went on.

During the next five years, he interacted with Meredith briefly, with nothing really happening. Then things changed one Thanksgiving weekend when Meredith returned from her expensive Eastern college looking as though she’d enrolled in beauty school. His friends, most of whom had never even noticed her before, had suddenly taken an interest in her. But Meredith had had her sights set on him.

She’d hired him for a private lesson. She’d chosen Bear Mountain, one of the most difficult courses in Aspen. Accessible only by helicopter, it was a private and expensive run. It was so difficult that the owners kept a stocked halfway house for those who were either too tired to make it down the mountain or got caught in one of the blizzard-like snowstorms that engulfed it several times a week.

He had given Meredith private lessons before, but none that had required packing an overnight bag. And although Josh had found himself in sticky situations before with amorous female students, he’d never suspected Meredith’s intentions.

Not even when she’d hurt her ankle and insisted on going to the cabin. Although he’d known her injury was not severe, he’d been more than happy to acquiesce. He’d helped her back to the cabin, relishing the feel of her as she’d leaned against him. When she’d told him to wait before calling for assistance, he still hadn’t suspected anything untoward. Because by then, he’d been so smitten with her that he’d been barely able to think.

Sitting across from her in that cabin, he’d been tongue-tied. He’d realized that he’d had nothing to say to a woman like Meredith, so educated and intelligent. And for the first time in his life, he’d cared.

Fortunately, Meredith hadn’t seemed to mind. She’d appeared relaxed and at ease, seemingly metamorphosing into a completely different, warm and flirtatious person. He’d lost track of time and, before he’d realized, it had been too late to call for help. They’d had no choice but to spend the night in the cabin on the mountain. As he’d watched Meredith limp around the room, he’d realized that she had switched legs, that she’d been faking her sprain. For whatever reason, she had wanted to be alone with him as much as he had wanted to be with her.

And when Meredith had moved to sit beside him, he hadn’t hesitated. He’d done what he had wanted to do since that night in the library. He’d kissed her.

She’d been a surprising lover. Passionate and daring, wildly responsive. So much so that, until he’d entered her, it had never occurred to him that she’d be a virgin. He had pulled out immediately, afraid of hurting her. But she had insisted and he had continued, albeit at a more gentle pace.

Knowing that he’d been the first to touch her had only increased his desire. He’d wanted to consume her, to keep her beside him always. He’d wanted her to be his and his alone forever.

But when the dawn broke, the feelings that had engulfed him had been replaced by more familiar ones. A dull, throbbing discomfort, a reminder of a need to be alone. A desire to stay single and unattached.

Fortunately, Meredith’s ankle had miraculously healed. After an awkward morning with stilted, uneven spurts of conversation, they’d skied down the mountain in silence. When they’d parted at the lodge, he’d made the promise he made to every woman who shared his bed. I’ll call you.

It had taken him several days, but he had called and been somewhat annoyed when she hadn’t called him back. In fact, he’d begun to feel desperate when she hadn’t returned any of his calls over the next several days. Suddenly, he no longer cared if he spoke with her again and it hurt him that she hadn’t felt the same.

The truth had been bitter and unavoidable. “She thinks she’s too good for me,” he had told his aunt a week later.

His aunt had not beaten around the bush. “She is.”

As hard as it was to hear those words, he’d known his aunt had been right. How could he even have hoped to woo someone like Meredith? He’d been an uneducated playboy, a man whose only interests were skiing and women.

“At least, right now,” his aunt had added. “But who knows what the future holds. Perhaps you will prove her wrong.”

His encounter with Meredith became a turning point in his life. For the first time he’d started to think about the boy he was and the man he wanted to be. When his aunt had died and left him the money, she’d given him the means. He’d always had the will.

He had often thought about seeing Meredith again and wondered what it might be like. He had to admit, laying eyes on her tonight, after all these years, had taken his breath away. When he’d last seen her, she’d still been a girl about to come into her own. She was now a woman, poised and confident, radiantly beautiful. But from what he had heard, looks were deceiving. Meredith had a reputation as one of the most ruthless chief executives in the business.

So ruthless that she was willing to trade her sister’s happiness for artificial snow. Although he had a hard time believing that Carly would let herself be manipulated like that, he still found the entire deal suspicious. He did not trust the Durans and had no intention of getting into a secret bidding war with Meredith. He had been involved in those before and had found himself the victim of the winner’s curse more than once. The price would become so inflated, the final tally seldom reflected the true value. But from what he had seen tonight, Meredith Cartwright was not a woman who would listen to reason.

So he would continue on his course and attempt to reach Meredith through Carly. Although she was not as brilliant as Meredith, she was still an astute and energetic individual. He would try to win Carly over by explaining the situation and having her act as an intermediary with her sister. He would also make it clear to Carly that she did not have to marry Mark for Cartwright to win the rights. If only Meredith would agree, they could share the company.

Once again he thought about how Meredith had offered him money to leave Carly alone. What would make her think he had come back to woo a woman with whom he had not spoken in years? Besides, he had never been romantically interested in Carly. She was and always would be, in his eyes at least, a less impressive version of her older sister. He would never be able to look at Carly without remembering the night Meredith had finally quenched his thirst.

He stood and began to pace. He would not go back to the party. But he would return tomorrow. Meredith could not intimidate or manipulate him. She may not realize it yet, but she had met her match in Josh Adams.

Two

The dining room table was at least thirty feet long, big enough to seat forty people. Meredith sat at the head of the table, across from her mother. Carly sat in the middle, exactly halfway in between.

Meredith did not like this table, nor did she care for the room. It was too ostentatious and showy. But her mother had grown up dining in this room. And although there were no longer servants to tend to the fire in the fireplace or to bring out steaming plates of food, her mother still insisted that they all drink their morning coffee beneath a one hundred and fifty pound chandelier.

Meredith glanced at her mother who had just finished telling the story of how the decorated Christmas tree in the living room had crashed to the ground, causing havoc and tearing the Ritter sisters’ gowns.

“It’s those men who installed it,” Viera said. “I told them they weren’t putting the trees in the stands correctly, but they didn’t listen.” She sighed deeply and dramatically as she focused her attention on the newspaper spread out in front of her. “It’s so hard to find a man you can trust.”

“Speaking of men you can trust,” Carly interrupted, turning toward Meredith. “You’re going to make me ask, aren’t you?”

“What do you mean?” Meredith asked, sipping her coffee.

“What happened with Josh? Did you talk to him?”

“Yes.”

“And?” Viera asked as she pushed her bifocals lower on her nose so that she could see Meredith.

“And nothing.” She shrugged and took another sip.

Carly and Viera glanced at each other. “You were certainly gone a long time,” Viera said. “I didn’t see you all night.”

“Well, I wasn’t with Josh,” Meredith said, setting down her cup. “I came back and went to bed.”

“Why is he back in Aspen?” Carly asked.

“I don’t know. But I think it has something to do with you.” Meredith felt a slight ping of jealousy. Ignore it, she told herself. And it will go away.

“With me?”

Meredith nodded. “He said he wanted to see you. In fact, he said he would see you today.”

“Really?” Carly smiled and sighed dreamily. “He looked so handsome, didn’t he?”

“I didn’t notice,” Meredith said quickly.

“There’s just something about him. A charisma. It’s like a sexual fire or something.”

“Sexual fire?” Meredith asked.

“A spark. The way his eyes twinkle.”

Meredith paused, remembering the eyes that had stared so deeply at her. She agreed with her sister. Josh’s eyes were the kind that seemed to bore right through you.

“And the way he smells. It’s so woodsy and manly-like.”

Meredith remembered how she had awoken from her night with Josh, how she had felt surrounded by his musky scent. She was surprised that her sister would mention something so personal about Josh. Carly was speaking like his lover, not like his friend.

“And he’s so confident and self-assured—”

“Have you heard from Mark?” Meredith interrupted.

“I guess,” Carly said.

“What do you mean, you guess?” Viera asked. “Either you have or you haven’t.”

“What difference does it make? All I can think about is Josh.”

Meredith leaned forward, certain that she had misunderstood. This was her horrible imagination playing tricks on her.

Her mother glared at Carly. “I’ve got four hundred people coming to your wedding in two weeks. I suggest you stop thinking about Josh and start focusing on your future husband.”

“I can’t stop thinking about him.” Carly glanced away. “I have to see Josh.”

“What would Mark say if he heard you talking like this?” Viera exclaimed.

Carly shrugged. “I think he would think the same thing I’m thinking. If I’m so tempted by another man, then maybe we shouldn’t get married.”

“That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard!” her mother practically screeched.

“Mother—” Meredith began, trying to calm Viera.

“If,” her mother interrupted, looking at Carly, “you care nothing for me, think about your sister. What’s going to happen to the deal with the Durans if you break their son’s heart? Your sister could lose her job.”

On the assumption that Meredith would be purchasing Durasnow, her company’s stock had been rising. And so had the board’s confidence in her. If this deal fell through, the company might still survive, but Meredith’s tenure as CEO would be over.

“You’re right, Mother.” Carly sighed deeply. “What’s wrong with me?”

Meredith couldn’t speak. What was wrong with her?

Josh’s obvious charm aside, Meredith couldn’t understand why Carly would want to jeopardize what she had with Mark. They seemed so happy together. Meredith had often wished she would be so lucky as to find someone who cared about her as much as Mark cared about Carly.

Carly put her head in her hands. “It’s the curse,” she cried. “I finally meet a good guy, a guy that I love and who loves me. It’s all going to be ruined. Just because of Josh.”

Perhaps her sister was right, Meredith thought. Perhaps it was just the Cartwright women’s knack for romantic self-destruction that was leading her astray.

Carly focused her wet, blue eyes on Meredith and said, “You’re the only one who can help me.”

“Me?” Meredith asked, surprised. “What can I do?”

“Keep him away from me.” Carly threw her head in her hands, her long, curly blond hair falling forward.

Meredith thought back to the previous evening when she had offered Josh money to leave Carly alone. The defiant fire in his eyes had been unmistakable. Meredith shook her head. “I can’t keep him away. If you don’t want to see him, you have to tell him yourself.”

“I can’t. I’m afraid if I see him…if I’m alone with him…well…”

“You’ll pick up where you left off?” It was Viera who spoke.

Meredith held her breath, waiting for her sister’s answer. She had always assumed that nothing romantic had ever transpired between Carly and Josh. But then again, would Carly have told her if it had?

“Left off?” Her sister appeared startled by the question. “We’ve never even dated. We were always just friends. I mean, I’ve dated some cads, but Josh was almost too much of one even for me. I knew so many girls that were hurt by him.”

Meredith exhaled. At least Carly had not slept with him.

“And this is the man with whom you can’t stand to be alone?” Viera asked slowly, as if she was also having trouble grasping the problem.

Carly’s eyes settled on Meredith. “Distract him, Meredith. Just until Mark gets back.”

“What? How?”

“Hire him to give you skiing lessons. Ask him to take you to Bear Mountain. That’s at least a solid day. By the time you get back, Mark should be home. I’ll be safe.”

“You better be ‘safe,’” Viera said, making quotation marks in the air with her fingers. “We’ve got five hundred people with invitations and gifts expecting a wedding.”

Meredith raised her eyebrow. “A minute ago there were four hundred.”

“Replies are coming in as we speak,” Viera said defensively. “It’s the event of the season.”

Meredith shook her head. “I don’t know.” She sighed. “If Carly is having so many second thoughts then maybe…” Maybe she shouldn’t get married. As much as she hated the idea of losing the contract with Durasnow, she couldn’t stand the thought of her sister being in a loveless marriage. “Maybe…” Meredith began. Just say it. She glanced at her sister. “Maybe your marriage to Mark is not meant to be…”

“It is meant to be,” Carly said.

“Excuse me?”

“I just need a little help avoiding the curse.”

Meredith shook her head, not convinced. “What if you get married and start feeling this way about someone else…”

“I won’t. It’s just Josh. I think he could tempt any woman to misbehave.”

Meredith sighed. She couldn’t argue with that.

“Sometimes matters of the heart don’t make sense, Meredith,” her mother added, glancing at Carly.

The doorbell rang, its chime echoing through the empty house. Carly stood and moved to the window to peek out. She ran back to Meredith and clutched her arm. “It’s Josh,” she said. “Ask him to take you to Bear Mountain or something. Please.”

But Meredith couldn’t bear the thought of seeing Josh again, not to mention asking him on a trip. “I have to work. I’m supposed to go to New York today.”

Viera stood and said, “If your sister is seen with Josh, you may not have a job to worry about.”

“Just for a day or so. Until Mark gets back.”

“Carly—” Meredith began.

Carly interrupted. “If you won’t do it for me, do it for your…”

“Country?” Viera suggested.

“I was going to say company,” Carly said, “but whatever works.”

Meredith hesitated.

“A day, Meredith,” Carly said. “Please?”

“All right,” she said, standing. “One day.” She walked away, certain she had just made a deal with the devil. No good would come of this. No good at all.

Josh stood with his back to the Cartwright door, admiring the view of the mountains. At times he missed those long days with nothing better to do than ski. He had gone from one extreme to the other. From ski bum to corporate entrepreneur. There has to be, he thought, a happy alternative.

Hearing the door open, he turned, expecting to see one of the Cartwright servants. Instead, Meredith stood in front of him, her thick, dark hair loose around her shoulders. She was dressed casually, in a tight-fitting turtleneck and jeans. He couldn’t help but notice the outfit clung to her like a second skin.

He felt a warmth stir inside him. The once uncertain girl had become a captivating swan who was not only aware of, but also relished the change.

She looked at him and nodded.

Josh had long prided himself on his ability to recognize his opponent’s strengths and weaknesses. He had an innate sense of people. So far, at least, his instincts had not led him astray.

And his instincts told him one thing. Whatever was about to come out of her mouth would be interesting.

Meredith focused her bewitching brown eyes on him and smiled. “Please come in. Carly is waiting for you.”

He heard Carly gasp from the other room. “I’m sick, Meredith!”

“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s just Josh. He just wants to say hello.” Meredith turned back toward him. “I’m sure she’s well enough to welcome an old friend…”

Carly burst past them, covering her mouth. Viera followed close behind.

“I’m afraid Carly is sick with the stomach flu,” Mrs. Cartwright said, hurrying after Carly but pausing at the base of the stairs to flash Josh her famous, white-toothed smile. “Josh,” she said, as if she suddenly had all the time in the world. “Carly’s obviously not in any shape to entertain an old friend. You’ll have to settle for Meredith.”

Viera nodded toward her daughter. “Why don’t you invite Josh in? There’s coffee in the dining room,” she added as she made her way up the stairs.

“What was that?” he asked.

Meredith shrugged her delicate shoulders. He thought he could see the hint of a smile. “I guess Carly’s not as well as I thought.” She paused and focused her oval eyes on him. He had the feeling she was summing him up, deciding what to do with him. “I’m afraid this flu is a nasty one.”

“Perhaps I should come back later.” He caught her eyes and held them. Was this a ploy to keep him from speaking to Carly about her fiancé’s company?

No. He had seen Carly with his own eyes. She may not have the flu but she was obviously ill. Still, he couldn’t help but tease Meredith. If she thought so little of him that she believed he had returned to seduce her sister, especially after what he and Meredith had shared, then so be it. “As you know,” he continued, “I’m very anxious to see her.”

“Of course,” she said.

If he was annoying her, she didn’t show it. He shrugged. “Perhaps tomorrow. I’m free all day so—”

“You’re free all day?” she interrupted.

“All day.”

She hesitated, and glanced once more at the top of the stairs, as if waiting for Carly to appear. Finally she said, “Good.”

“Good?”

“I was hoping you’d be free.”

“You were?” Just the night before, she had been ready to run him out of town.

Once again, she smiled. It looked stiff and practiced, the kind of smile one saved for photographs. “Why don’t you come in?”

“All right,” he heard himself say.

“Can I get you some of the coffee Mother offered? Although,” she added conspiratorially, “I should warn you it’s a little weak and lukewarm.”