Claiming Her Billion-Dollar Birthright (9 page)

She couldn't remember being happier.

Her office on the ground floor of the Manor was bigger than her old one in San Francisco and bright with sunlight pouring in through a bank of windows. There were fresh flowers in the room, and a top-of-the-line computer and printer. She had all the assistance she needed from the employees at the business center and she had Trevor to bounce ideas off of and to argue with occasionally, as well.

What she didn't have, she thought now, was Christian.

He'd made himself scarce the last couple of days. She'd barely caught a glimpse of him. Erica stood up from behind her desk and looked out her window at the English-style garden beyond the glass. Scrubbing her hands up and down her arms, she forced herself to accept the fact that he was deliberately avoiding her. But why?

Those stolen moments beside the river rose up in her mind as they'd been doing regularly in every spare second. And in a heartbeat, she was back there again, his mouth on hers. His hand touching her intimately, pushing her into a pleasure so deep it was like nothing she'd ever known before.

It had been the most incredible encounter of her life.

So why wasn't he coming to her again?

Did he really mean to stick to Don Jarrod's ridiculous rules? Would he turn his back on her and what they might find to keep his job? Okay, yes, she could understand wanting—needing—to keep his mother safe and happy. But wasn't
he
allowed to be happy, too?

Or, she thought miserably, maybe he was happier without her. Maybe what they'd shared on the banks of the river hadn't touched him as it had her. Maybe he hadn't felt a damn thing. Maybe it hadn't meant anything from the start and he was just—

Her office door opened behind her and she whirled to face… “Christian,” she said. “I was just thinking about you.”

“Erica.” His voice was cool, polite.

She nearly caught a chill from across the room. But two could play at this game, she told herself. If he wanted to pretend there was nothing simmering between them, then that's what they would do. Be damned if she would show him that she was hurt. That he was stomping on her heart even now with his professional air and distant tone. No, she wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

“Can I help you?” Her words were as polite as his. Her tone every bit as cold.

“I've come to introduce you to—”

“Me,” another man said as he walked into the office and looked at her. “I'm Blake Jarrod.”

“It's nice to meet you,” she said, maintaining the professional manner she'd begun with. Erica saw no
warm welcome in his eyes, so she wasn't going to act as though they were any two siblings greeting each other.

 

Blake studied her and could see what his twin had already mentioned to him. Their newest sister did have the look of the Jarrods about her, so there was clearly no mistake made. He could see it in the defiant tilt of her chin. In the flash of her eyes. Hell, she probably had more of Don in her than Blake did.

But that didn't mean that he'd welcome her into the family like the prodigal daughter. Or that she deserved a share of the estate. Being blood didn't mean jack if you didn't earn your place, he told himself. Everyone else might be willing to give her a chance, but he wasn't so easily taken in. She'd have to prove herself to him.

Not that he had anything against her personally. And judging from what Melissa had had to say on the subject, he would probably like her. Eventually. But for right now, she was the intruder. Pushing her way into a family already hip-deep in problems and not really needing any extras.

“Getting along all right, I see,” he said, giving her office a quick scan.

“Everyone's been very helpful,” Erica told him, then came around her desk and took a few steps closer. “Look, I know how hard this is for all of us. And I'm not expecting us to be one big happy family anytime soon.”

He folded his arms across his chest and nodded.

“I do, however, expect you to give me a fair chance,” she said.

“You do.”

 

Erica looked directly at him and refused to be cowed by his steely stare. She'd already been warned that Blake would be the hardest nut to crack, so to speak. That this one of her new brothers would be the least welcoming. So she would stand her ground and if she needed to show him that she meant to make this place her home, then that's what she'd do.

Besides, Christian was standing right there, watching her, and she wasn't about to look weak or pitiful in front of him.

“That's right. Just as you would any new employee,” Erica said. “I think that's fair.”

Blake thought about it for a long moment before he nodded and walked forward, offering his hand. “It is fair. Okay, a chance it is.”

“Thanks.” Erica shook his hand and stepped back.

“Now, I've got to go find Gavin and talk to him about some business. If you two will excuse me…”

Blake left, shutting the door behind him and suddenly Erica and Christian were alone. Silence dragged out for what seemed like forever. Finally though, Christian said, “You handled him well.”

“Thanks,” she said, her words clipped, “is that all?”

“Erica…”

“I really don't have time to talk right now, Christian.
Trevor's expecting to see the new poster I've designed for the gala and—”

“I've missed you.”

She whipped her head around to glare at him. “Couldn't have been easy to miss seeing me. I've been right here.”

He blew out a breath and took the few steps separating them. Now that he was closer, Erica could see the shadows under his eyes and realized he hadn't been sleeping well. That made two of them. She wanted to reach out and touch him, but wasn't sure he would accept it, so she kept her wants buried under a layer of anger.

“It's complicated,” he said.

“Not as far as I can see. You haven't spoken to me since…”

“You think I don't want to?” His voice was low and hard. “You really believe I'm not thinking about you every damn minute?”

Her heartbeat felt faint and fast. The look on his face was haunted, his eyes were blazing with fury and desire. “How would I know that when you've been avoiding me?”

“Because if I don't avoid you, this is what's going to happen.” He closed the distance between them, grabbed her and pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her so tightly she could hardly draw breath.

And she didn't care.

Didn't care because his mouth was on hers, his breath driving into her mouth, his hands scooping up her back into her hair. His body pressed into hers. She
felt the hard, thick ridge of him that proved exactly what he was feeling for her.

She moved in even closer, giving herself up to the feelings only he could engender. Her body was hot, her blood felt as if it were boiling in her veins. So when he released her abruptly, Erica staggered back a step before she recovered her balance.

Lifting one hand to her lips, she stared at him, trying to understand just what kind of game he was playing. And why she was allowing it.

“Yes,” he said, his eyes fierce, his voice a deep groan of need, “I want you. So damn much just being around you is painful.” He shoved one hand across the top of his head. “But you've got enough going on in your life right now. You don't need this as an added distraction.”

Erica blinked at him. She couldn't believe what he was saying and wasn't sure he believed it, either. “So you're backing off for my sake, is that it? Making a grand sacrifice so poor Erica doesn't get confused by too many things at once?”

He winced, either at her words or the sharp slap of how they were delivered. “All I'm saying—”

She interrupted him because she'd heard enough. “I'm sick and tired of people deciding what's best for me. My father and brothers did it for years. And if you think I'm going to allow
you
to jump in and do the same, then you couldn't be more wrong.”

She was trembling, her body shaking and quivering, not only from the rush of anger. Once again, he'd turned
her body into an inferno of desire only to shut it down before it could fully erupt.

“That's not what I'm trying to do,” he ground out.

Frustration and fury mingled inside her.

“Oh, no. All you're saying is thanks but no thanks. You've made that clear.” She turned her back on him and walked back to her desk. Once she was safely behind the rosewood barrier, she looked at him again. “Well, I'm just so grateful for your help, Christian. With so many things going on in my life, I don't know what I would have done without you there to help me keep things straight.”

He looked just as angry as she felt, and she was glad to see it. At least she knew that his ridiculous decision to pull away from her was making him as crazy as it was her.

“Erica, damn it—”

“Just stop it, okay? I've got a lot of work to do and I'm guessing you do, too.”

He stared at her for a long second then nodded as if accepting that the conversation was over. “Fine. We'll leave it. For now. But neither one of us is going anywhere, so you can be damn sure this isn't finished.”

“Isn't it?” Erica asked. “How is it that
you
suddenly get to decide how this relationship will go? When did you get the controlling vote?”

“Excuse me?”

He sounded angry—his voice was low and taut.
Well, good,
she thought. Why should she be the only one furious here?

“Do you seriously think so little of me to believe that I'm incapable of making my own decisions?”

“Of course not. That isn't what I meant at all.”

“It's what you said. Poor Erica. Too many new things in her life.”

“Damn it, you're deliberately misunderstanding.”

“Oh, I understand more than you think I do.”

“What's that supposed to mean?”

“Just that this isn't about
me
at all, Christian. You can tell yourself that if it makes you feel better. But this is really about you playing by a dead man's rules.”

A muscle ticked in his jaw and she saw the flare of anger in his eyes. She recognized it because she knew that same emotion was shining in her own. She'd spent the past several days torn between anger and misery, but now the fury was spilling over.

He reached for her, but she scuttled back, not trusting herself to allow him to touch her right now. She might shatter. Need swam inside her and battled her own pride. It was a toss-up at the moment which would win.

“I told you,” he said, letting his hands fall to his sides, “I can't risk what I spent my life building. But it's also true that you've got too much going on in your own life right now. You don't need me making things even more complicated.”

“Oh, stop it,” she whispered, shaking her head. She'd already trusted him too much, risked too much. She couldn't chance feeling even more. Trusting more. He'd already pushed her aside. How much clearer could he make himself?

“Wish I could,” he admitted, coming around her desk, walking closer and closer still. “Wish to hell I could put you and what's between us out of my mind, but it won't go.”

She laughed sadly, thinking of the past few days when he'd avoided her at all costs. “It seems you've been doing a fine job of that.”

“No. You're in my mind all the damn time. You haunt me, Erica, and I'm not sure how to deal with that.” He reached out, and this time she didn't move away. Couldn't make herself do it.

He cupped her face between his palms. Staring into her eyes, he said, “What's between us won't be denied and neither one of us can wish it away.”

“Can't we?” she asked, her voice soft as she met his gaze searchingly. “Isn't that what's been happening lately?”

“No,” he countered. “This is what's been happening.”

Then he kissed her. Hard and deep, pouring into that kiss everything she'd been needing for so long. Her head swam, her heartbeat quickened into a racing gallop and by the time he broke away, she was laboring for breath.

Yet at the same time a tiny corner of her heart was erecting barriers, ready to defend her.

“Don't,” he said softly. “I can feel you pulling away even when I'm holding you.”

“Haven't you been doing the same thing these last few days?”

“No,” he answered, releasing her and taking a step back. “I'm doing what I have to do.”

“Because you won't risk caring for me.”

“Because this is my life,” he reminded her, and his features were hard.

“It's my life, too,” she told him, stiffening her spine. “And I won't be used then discarded on a whim. You can't run hot and then cold on me, Christian. I refuse to play that game.”

“You're wrong about me,” he said tightly. “I'm not playing games, Erica. I wouldn't do that to either one of us.”

She scraped her hands up and down her arms, trying to chase away the chill that was swamping her. But it was bone-deep and she was suddenly sure that she'd never be really warm again. What she felt for Christian was going nowhere. Because he would continue to refuse what lay between them. Once again, Erica thought sadly, she just wasn't wanted badly enough.

When he was gone, Erica slumped into her desk chair, turned it around and stared out at a sunlit day that had gone, for her at least, suddenly dark.

D
espite their argument, over the next week, Christian spent time with Erica every day. He continued to be her guide as she grew more and more accustomed to her new life. But somehow he managed to keep their conversations centered on business, or the resort itself. He refused to bring up anything personal and she must have come to the same conclusion. She was polite. Cool. She treated him as she would have a distant acquaintance.

And every minute he was with her was a session in torture.

He'd never wanted anyone with the fierce desperation he did her. Thoughts of her plagued him constantly. He couldn't lose himself in his work anymore. Couldn't
stroll through the Manor without seeing her, hearing her—or hearing someone else talk about her.

She'd charmed the staff and had settled into her new position as if she'd been born to it. And in a way, he supposed, she had. She was a Jarrod, after all. Which was the major problem for him.

If she weren't a member of the Jarrod family, he wouldn't be doing his best to ignore her.

Stopping by her office, he knocked, then walked inside to find her hunched over her keyboard, gaze fixed on the screen. Even here, he thought, when she was unaware that anyone was watching her, she looked…alluring. Her hair was tucked behind her ears and long, twisted shards of gold hung from her lobes. She was chewing at her bottom lip as her fingers flew over the keys and didn't look away even when she reached out blindly for a cup of coffee on her desk.

She'd given herself up to this job. This place. She'd jumped in with both feet and, true to her word, was definitely making a place for herself.

He wished that place was with him. But damned if he could see a way to make that happen.

As if she sensed his presence, Erica looked up then. Backlit from the window behind her, her amber eyes were shadowed, but he could still see the trepidation on her features as she looked at him. “Hi. Was there something you needed?”

“Loaded question,” he muttered, then said more loudly, “Actually, yeah. There is. I wanted to know if you approved the design for the gala's setup on the main lawn.”

“Yes, I did. I sent the papers over to Trevor this morning.”

“Fine. I'll check with him again. He couldn't find them earlier, but that's not saying anything. He probably misfiled them.”

She smiled slightly. “That does sound like Trevor.”

“You like him,” Christian said.

“It's impossible not to,” Erica told him as her smile slowly slipped away. “He's got this flair for living that I really admire. He is who he is and makes no excuses for it. He simply lives and enjoys every minute of it.”

Christian stiffened a little at the inherent comparison between himself and the easygoing Trevor Jarrod. “Trying to tell me something?”

She glanced up at him and shook her head, her soft hair swinging in a gentle arc that made Christian want to reach out and bury his fingers in the softness. “No, Christian, I'm not. I think we've already said everything there was to say.”

“Impossible,” he told her, walking toward her desk. “We couldn't have, because there's still too much unsaid between us.”

“And it should probably stay that way,” she said.

“Maybe,” he agreed, reminding himself that it was
he
who'd put up the wall between them. He had been the one to take the first step back from what they might have found. And though it infuriated him to acknowledge even privately that she might have had a point when she accused him of being unwilling to face up to a dead man's wishes…she hadn't been far wrong.

If Don Jarrod were still alive, it would be different. He could go to the man, tell him how he felt about Erica. Make the old bastard see that she was right in saying that the fraternization clause was medieval. But with Don gone, the board of directors was in charge, and with the codicil in Don's will insisting that the clause remain in effect, they wouldn't be making changes anytime soon.

And how the hell could he go to the Jarrod siblings and insist that
they
change it? He couldn't be sure that they wouldn't side with their father.

Christian felt as if his hands were tied and his heart was being ripped in two. What he wanted was vying desperately with what he'd spent his life working for.

“Let's not do this again, Christian,” she said quietly as she stood and came around her desk. “At the very least, we can stop torturing each other.”

He tucked his hands into his slacks pockets to keep from grabbing her. God, he missed the feel of her pressed against him. The taste of her. The scent of her. He was making himself crazy with wanting her.

Then she reached up and smoothed his hair back from his forehead and the soft slide of her fingertips against his skin sent flames rushing through him. He inhaled sharply, deeply, and she instantly let her hand drop to her side again.

“Sorry,” she said with a shrug she no doubt meant to look nonchalant. “As angry as I am at you, it seems I still have to remind myself not to touch you.”

“I know the feeling all too well,” he admitted, calling on every ounce of his will to keep from holding her
and damn the rest of the world. Screw his job. Screw the Jarrod family. Screw Don Jarrod in particular for creating this hell for the two of them.

“I guess we'll just have to work on it, won't we?”

“Right.” He nodded, but it cost him. “I'll just go check with Trevor about those papers.”

“I'll go with you,” she said. Tugging her white, long-sleeved shirt down at the hem, she smoothed her denim skirt.

Her legs looked long and tanned and her feet were tucked into dark blue heels that made her legs look even longer. Hell, she didn't even have to try to make him crazy.

Erica walked past him into the hall and he fell into step beside her. Blake and Gavin were standing near the elevator, locked in a conversation that was suddenly halted when they drew near.

“Hey, guys,” Christian said. “What's going on?”

Blake shot Erica a wary look and said, “Nothing. Just talking. What're you two up to?”

Erica said, “Just checking on some paperwork with Trevor.”

“Right. Well.” The elevator door opened and Blake stepped in. “We'll see you later.”

As the doors whisked closed again, they both heard Gavin say, “For God's sake, Blake, lighten up with Erica, will you? She's not the enemy.”

“That went well,” Erica said wryly as they continued on to Trevor's office.

“Blake will come around.” Christian took her
arm and pulled her to a stop. “It's a big change for everyone.”

She looked down at his hand on her arm until he released her. Then she shifted her gaze to his. “I don't mind Blake's feelings. At least he's honest.”

Heading into Trevor's office alone, Erica didn't look back at him. So she didn't see Christian's dark scowl as he was left standing alone.

 

The main spa room at the Ridge was so opulent it was nearly decadent. Which made it perfect. A curve of aquamarine water followed the circumference of the room. Jets built into the walls of the pool produced frothy bubbles of pure relaxation and the only sounds were from the jets and the rhythmic splash of the overhead waterfalls spraying heated water down into the waiting pool.

Erica felt loose and limber and almost guilty for taking an entire day to do nothing but be pampered. Still, since it had been Melissa's idea to have a quiet day of sisterly bonding, Erica thought she could let the guilt go just this once. Besides, after the long week she'd had, it felt good to just relax, away from the Manor, away from Christian.

“You're seriously making us all look bad,” Melissa told her with a sigh. “I mean, really, you don't have to be Jarrod Family Member of the Year right off the bat.”

Erica smiled and hid the hurt that seemed to be a constant companion. Yes, she was making great strides at her new job. Her brothers and sister were
coming around—she'd even managed to talk to Blake without him glaring at her. And she'd had dozens of compliments on her plans for the splashy welcome she'd designed for the opening of the gala.

For the first time in her life, Erica felt as though she was being accepted for who and what she was. For what she could contribute. And it felt great.

Or would have, if there wasn't a shadow clinging to her thoughts. Christian hardly spoke to her anymore. Not since that last kiss they'd shared in her office a week ago. She saw him at the Manor, of course. The offices were all too close together for them to completely avoid each other.

Though that might have been easier all the way around. How much harder was it to see him and not be able to touch him? Talk to him? But she refused to be the kind of woman who threw herself at a man when he had already made it clear that there couldn't be anything between them.

“Okay, what's wrong?”

“Hmm? What?” Erica jolted as she realized her thoughts had wandered off while Melissa was talking to her. “Nothing. I'm just thinking about work.”

“Uh-huh.” Melissa shook her head and reached out to pat Erica's shoulder.

The two of them had indulged in a luxury spa treatment. They'd already been through the facials, the massages and now, they were stretched out side by side in the narrow curve of the pool, relaxing. Or they were supposed to be.

“I know that look,” Melissa said. “And it's not a ‘work' look. It's a ‘man' look. So spill.”

She automatically shook her head. She'd never been one to share secrets with her girlfriends and there was simply no way she wanted her new sister to know that she was lusting after a man who wasn't interested. “I really don't think—”

Melissa gave her a dramatic pout. “What's the point of having a sister if you can't bare your soul and get free advice—or sarcasm, as the situation demands.”

In spite of everything, Erica smiled. It did feel good to have a sister. Even two weeks ago, she never would have believed that she'd be able to use the words “my sister” in a sentence. Yet here they were, and astonishingly enough, the two of them had actually formed a bond that Erica hoped would only get stronger with time.

Sister
wasn't just a word anymore. It was real. And it was good.

“Okay,” she said, and glanced around to make sure they were still alone.

“Relax. The place is ours for the afternoon. I run the spa, remember?”

“Right.” Erica lifted one arm and slid it through the water, letting the jetted bubbles pulse against her skin. “Okay, say there was a man I'm having a problem with.”

“Yes, let's say that.” Melissa leaned back and floated, allowing more of the jets to beat against her body. “Now let's say some more.”

“Okay, this man, he's interested, but he's not willing to get involved.”

“What's his problem?”

“It's a long story,” Erica said, not wanting to give Christian's name or his reasons for pulling back from her. She wasn't sure if they knew about the fraternization clause.

“One you don't want to share.”

“Not exactly.”

“Is he married?”

“No! of course not!” Erica frowned at the other woman. “If he was, I wouldn't be making myself nuts over him.”

“Okay, so do you want this man?”

“Yes, damn it.”

Melissa laughed. “So go get him. Or at least try.”

“What about dignity?” Erica countered. “Pride? Am I supposed to chase him down like a dog with him protesting the whole time?”

Straightening up, Melissa shook her wet hair back from her face and gave Erica a pitying look. “Little sister, men are simple creatures. He wants you. That's the point here. He's trying to stay away for whatever reason, but he doesn't want to. So make it a little more difficult for him to ignore you. For heaven's sake, why would you make it easier on him?”

“I don't know…” Erica sighed and shifted in the water, letting the heated water push into her back, easing tension she hadn't even really been aware of.

“Up to you of course,” Melissa told her. “But for me, if there was a guy I wanted, I'd go get him.”

Her words were said so forcefully Erica had to wonder if there was a particular man her sister was talking about. But an instant later, the timer for the jets shut off and silence dropped over them.

“I'll think about it,” Erica said, climbing out of the water and reaching for a fluffy white towel.

“Less thinking, more kissing is probably the way you want to go,” Melissa advised, “but maybe that's just me.”

Maybe Melissa was right, Erica thought as she and her sister toweled off and moved toward the locker room to get dressed. Because really, why was she making it easier for Christian to ignore her? Could be that what she
should
be doing was spending more time with him, not less. Talk to him. Lean into him. Keep him so close that he wouldn't be able to pull away from her.

After all, ignoring him hadn't hurt him and had been driving her insane. So, she'd turn the tables on him. Take Melissa's advice and make him so miserable that he wouldn't be able to avoid her. And, since she'd just spent the last three hours being buffed and polished and styled, today was the perfect day to set this new and much more interesting plan in motion.

 

Christian threw a rock into the river and watched it hit the water and sink. Just how he felt, he thought. He'd been carrying around a sinking feeling inside him for the last two weeks and it was only getting worse.

Being here at Jarrod Ridge had always given him a sense of satisfaction that he'd found nowhere else. He'd studied back east and had been eager to get back
to Colorado. He'd traveled the world and never found another spot as beautiful as this one. But now…

There was an unsettled feeling inside him.