Destiny Unleashed (18 page)

In fact, Richard was going to find it all but impossible to forget the whole business rivalry and move past it. In retrospect that had probably been a bad tactic to use, but it was the only one William had been able to come up with that could accomplish what he’d hoped for.

Sitting in his office the morning after tea with the four impressive Carlton women, he buzzed for Malcolm.

“I need you to do me a favor,” he said when his assistant arrived. “I need five of the best seats in the house for the theater tonight. Cost is no object, so find me the hardest-to-get tickets to the hottest, most critically acclaimed play. I’m out to impress some people.”

“Who would that be, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“Destiny and her nephews’ wives.”

Malcolm regarded him with dismay. “Is that wise, sir? You know how paparazzi love to hang around outside the theaters. A picture of all of you together would be bound to make it into the tabloids.”

William groaned. He’d forgotten all about that. Well, it was unfortunate, but he wasn’t going to back out now. He’d made a promise and he intended to keep it. “Get the tickets,” he said succinctly.

“As you wish,” Malcolm said, his disapproval plain. “By the way, you might want to take a look at the final December sales figures for H&S Books. Shall I bring you the report? It’s on my desk.”

William nodded. “How are they? The preliminary figures looked promising.”

“Actually they’re excellent,” Malcolm said. “Apparently stirring up a bit of a rivalry brought enough people into the stores to counteract the discounts you were offering.”

“I’ll have to thank Destiny again when I see her. Something tells me that having her around will keep us on our toes.”

“It could at that, sir.” His dour expression returned. “A word of caution, though. There’s a rumor circulating that a woolen mill that’s been a favorite of ours is about to be purchased.”

William stilled. “Carlton?”

“It would seem so, sir.”

“Get me every bit of information you can find on that,” William said tightly. He didn’t believe for an instant that Destiny had gone back on her word and set out to do something so underhanded. Not after they’d discussed this very thing. “Something tells me the offer didn’t come from Destiny. I’ll wager it came from Virginia.”

“Entirely likely, sir.”

William stared after his assistant, his temper stewing. Damn Richard! He could handle the man if it came down to a fight. Whatever the manufacturer, the owner was likely someone William had known for years. It wouldn’t take much to counter whatever offer Richard had put on the table. That wasn’t the problem.

What William couldn’t believe, what he found so blasted infuriating, was that the man was sneaking around behind his aunt’s back. If William found that to be the case, there was going to be hell to pay. And
once Destiny found out about it, he had a hunch he wouldn’t be the first in line to get a crack at the man.

Destiny cast a concerned frown in William’s direction. He’d been worried about something from the moment they’d all met outside the theater. When she’d asked about it earlier, he’d forced a smile and lied through his teeth that she was imagining things. Well, she’d just see about that, she resolved, sitting back to wait for intermission.

The instant the curtains closed to thunderous applause after act one, she grabbed his hand. “I’d like to speak to you,” she said. “Now!”

He gave her a startled look. “What’s wrong?”

“In the lobby,” she said, determinedly tugging him past her curious nieces. “Excuse us, girls.”

The instant they were out of earshot, she folded her arms across her chest and scowled at him. “Tell me,” she said.

He regarded her blankly. “Tell you what?”

“Oh, stop it. You’re not very good at dissembling, William. Something’s on your mind and I have a hunch it has to do with me.”

He sighed. “You see too blasted much,” he grumbled.

She frowned and waited.

“Oh, all right. I’d hoped not to get into this tonight. I learned something today, something I suspect you know nothing about.”

“Which is?”

“Carlton Industries has made an offer to buy my primary woolen manufacturer in Scotland.”

Destiny felt faint. “That can’t be. Nothing like that
could happen without my knowing about it, and I can assure you I don’t. We’ve already canceled the misguided purchase of the haberdashers, so what would we need with a woolen manufacturer?”

“I suspect it’s being done merely to annoy me.” He regarded her with something akin to pity.

“But I’m not behind it,” she repeated. “No one else could authorize such a thing.”

“No one except Richard,” he said quietly.

She gasped. “He didn’t,” she said, then realized it made total sense. It was exactly the kind of thing Richard might do to send a message to a business rival. That he had done it without consulting her was proof of just how little respect he had for her or her position in the company. Didn’t he see that it would be impossible for her to continue running the European division if he was going behind her back in such a way? Or was that precisely what he intended?

Barely containing her temper, she met William’s gaze. “You’re sure?”

“I spoke to the owner. He’s been dealing directly with Richard. I’m sorry, but there’s no question about this.”

“And the outcome? Did Richard get his way?”

“Of course not. I discovered his plan in the nick of time and formed a lucrative partnership with the firm myself. Richard won’t get his hands on it now.”

“Good. Do you have your cell phone with you?”

He nodded.

“I need it, if you don’t mind. I need to make a call to Carlton Industries. I suspect Richard will be expecting it.”

William took his cell phone out of his pocket, but he held it out of reach. “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to quit, of course.”

“Destiny, you can’t do that,” he protested. “I know how much you want to prove yourself in this job.”

“How can I, if my nephew is going to go behind my back and sabotage me? I made a commitment to you, and if you didn’t trust me, you could easily have assumed I was behind this and launched an all-out assault against the company.”

“But I do trust you and the matter is handled,” he said. “Think about this. Wait and call him in the morning, when cooler heads will prevail.”

“I don’t want a cooler head when I talk to him,” she insisted fiercely. “I want to tear him limb from limb. How could he do this? I’ve never been so furious and disappointed in my entire life.”

“He’s worried about you,” William said quietly. “He wants you to quit and come home. I think that message is plain. Whatever he’s heard from Melanie and the others since their arrival has obviously only fueled his concerns.”

Destiny stared at him. He was absolutely right. That was Richard’s intention. He knew she would find his actions intolerable, and he expected her to call and quit or at the very least to bolt home to confront him in person. There was a third alternative, though, one she doubted he’d considered.

“Give me the phone,” she said quietly.

“Destiny, please, are you really sure about this?”

“Just watch and listen,” she said grimly, punching in the numbers for Richard’s private line. It was no
surprise that he answered on the very first ring. He’d probably been sitting there on pins and needles all day long waiting for her call.

“Hello,” he said, sounding a little too cheerful.

Destiny couldn’t wait to spoil his mood. “Hello, darling,” she said just as cheerfully. “Make any big deals today?”

“You heard about Scotland, I imagine,” he said, still sounding surprisingly upbeat for a man whose deal had been foiled by William. “Sorry, but I did what I had to do.”

“Too bad it didn’t work out.”

“Obviously William got word of it,” he said.

“Even without me knowing a thing about it,” she pointed out. “I assume you thought I was the one you couldn’t trust with the information.”

“Not under the circumstances, no,” he admitted, though he was beginning to sound slightly less confident. “I know you’re upset—”

“I was at first,” she conceded. “In fact, I was mad enough to quit, which was precisely what I intended, until I thought it through.”

“Oh?”

“William made me realize that quitting would be the worst decision I could possibly make.”

“Oh,” he said, his voice filled with resignation.

“Instead, I’m calling to warn you that if you try a stunt like that again, I will go to the board of directors and see that you’re removed.”

“What?” The word exploded from him. “You wouldn’t dare.”

“Try me,” she said softly. “Just try me.”

And then she hung up and handed the phone to an
openmouthed William. “Let’s get back inside. I’d hate to miss the second act.”

Before she could take a step, though, he pulled her into his arms and gave her a hard kiss. “Have I mentioned how absolutely astonishing I think you are?”

She smiled at him. “You ain’t seen nothing yet. And neither has my nephew.”

H
er nieces regarded her with obvious concern when Destiny and William slipped back into their seats a moment after the second-act curtain had gone up.

“Everything okay?” Melanie whispered as the orchestra began to play the overture to the first song.

Destiny forced a brilliant smile. “Fine. Nothing to worry about,” she said, even though she still felt sick inside at what Richard had done and what she’d felt forced to do in response.

The threat she’d made months ago back in Virginia had been idle, something meant only to capture his attention and make him take her seriously. She was so furious now that she’d meant every word of this one. There was no telling how Melanie and the rest of the family were likely to react once word got around about her heated exchange with Richard. In fact, on second thought, she wasn’t sure that she wouldn’t have regrets herself.

Well, there was nothing to be done about it now, she thought, settling into her seat and trying to focus on the play. It was a wonderful musical, and on another occasion she would have been thoroughly entertained, but tonight it could have been a bunch of rank amateurs performing in a second-rate production
of some ridiculous farce for all the attention she paid it. She was almost relieved when it ended.

“I’ve made reservations for supper,” William said when they finally stepped out into the refreshingly balmy night air. He regarded her with worry. “Are you up to it?”

Beth immediately stepped to her side. “Destiny, aren’t you feeling well? You do look a little pale.”

“Oh, stop making such a fuss. I’m fine. And I am not going to spoil our evening out.” She managed what she hoped was a reassuring smile. “Where are we going?”

His worried frown was still firmly in place, but William let the subject of her mood go. “It’s a new place, all the rage, I hear.”

“And you managed to get reservations at the last minute?” she asked. “Aren’t you clever?”

“Actually it’s my assistant, Malcolm Dandridge, who’s clever. The man could wrangle an invitation to tea at Buckingham Palace if I asked him to. He has connections everywhere. Knows every maître d’ and butler in town.”

Destiny gave him a piercing look. “Oh?” she said, instantly suspicious. A man who knew so many people certainly bore closer scrutiny. Why hadn’t she considered that before? “Who does he know at Carlton?”

William had the grace to look vaguely guilty at that. “No idea, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he knew a few people there.”

She frowned at him. “We’ll discuss that later, I think.”

He grinned, clearly undaunted by the warning note in her voice. “I’m sure we will.”

They walked to the restaurant, which had been getting rave reviews in the papers for its Asian-Pacific cuisine. The decor was a little stark for Destiny’s taste, but the menu looked promising, especially a grilled mahi-mahi with a mango-papaya chutney.

As soon as they’d all ordered, Melanie regarded her with a penetrating look. “Okay, what’s up? What were the two of you huddling about during intermission and why did you both look upset when you came back? Maybe Beth can be put off with a few platitudes, but I can’t.”

“Just a minor annoyance,” Destiny insisted. “Nothing worth discussing.”

William regarded her evenly. “I think you should tell them.”

“Tell us what?” Melanie pressed.

Destiny could see she wasn’t going to get any peace, so she relented and gave them a condensed version of Richard’s actions and her response to it. She gazed at Melanie. “I’m sorry, darling. I felt I had no choice. What he did totally undermined my authority over here. No one in my position would have found that acceptable.”

“Of course you didn’t have a choice,” Melanie said, her expression grim. “I don’t blame you a bit. What on earth was Richard thinking?”

“That he had to do something to force my hand, I imagine,” Destiny said. “Or something to prove that I couldn’t be trusted.”

“He knows better than that,” Melanie said fiercely. “My God, you’re as much a Carlton as he is. I’m so furious I’m tempted to call and tell him off myself. I’ve told him before what I think of his ridiculous
doubts about your loyalty to the company. He’s convinced you can’t separate your professional life from your personal feelings. It’s been nagging at him from the beginning.”

Destiny frowned. She didn’t want Melanie, Beth and Kathleen drawn into this any deeper than they already were. “Don’t get involved in this, any of you. This isn’t your fight. I can handle Richard.”

“That’s obvious,” Beth said. “Do you suppose Mack and Ben were in on it?”

“I doubt it,” Destiny said honestly. “When it comes to Carlton Industries, they’re not that interested.”

“But this is about you,” Beth reminded her. “Not just the company. I can’t imagine that they would approve of what Richard did. It was a direct slap in the face.”

Destiny gave them all a fierce look. “We are not going to get into some sort of family feud over this. Not if I can help it. It’s strictly business. I don’t want the rest of you taking sides. Is that understood? Please listen to me. If that happens, I will have no choice but to quit and come home. I will not be responsible for some huge family rift.”

“But, Destiny,” Kathleen protested, “what Richard did was wrong. He needs to know how we feel about his total lack of respect and consideration for your feelings, to say nothing of his disregard for your position in the company.”

Destiny reached for Kathleen’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “I suspect he understood the risk before he did it,” she said quietly. “Richard always considered himself to be the man of the family after his parents
died. Even though he was only twelve, he assigned himself the job of looking out for everyone’s best interests, mine included. He’s always taken everything to heart. He obviously thought this situation required drastic action. Believe me, I didn’t cut him any slack. I’m sure he can already see how wrong he was to choose this particular course.”

“I can attest to that,” William said. “I heard every word she said. No intelligent man would take her lightly.”

Melanie suddenly stood up. “Will you excuse me? I need to talk to him. I won’t be a moment.”

She rushed from the dining room before Destiny could stop her. Destiny stared after her, filled with misgivings. “Oh dear, I hope I haven’t made matters worse by getting into this with all of you.”

“It’s okay. Richard deserves what’s coming to him,” Kathleen said. “Maybe if he hears it from his own wife he’ll wake up. This nonsense has to stop.”

“Perhaps,” Destiny said, but she was suddenly beginning to wonder if the price for her independence wasn’t getting to be too high. The last thing she wanted was to be as alienated from her family as William had been from his all those years ago.

William wished he could turn back the clock. Oh, he’d been wishing for some time now to go back to the uncomplicated way things had been two decades ago in Provence, but right now he would settle for going back twenty-four hours to before he’d told Destiny about her nephew’s sneaky attempt to buy the Glasgow woolen manufacturer. He’d handled the mat
ter with no harm done. Perhaps he should have left it at that with Destiny being none the wiser.

He was sitting at his desk, staring morosely at the gray morning skyline, when Malcolm came in.

“How was the theater, sir?”

“Fine.”

Malcolm frowned. “And dinner?”

“Fine.”

“You told Ms. Carlton about her nephew, didn’t you, sir?”

William wasn’t surprised that Malcolm had guessed. They’d known each other too long and too well. “Yes.”

“And now you’re regretting it,” Malcolm concluded.

“Yes, as a matter of fact, I’m regretting it deeply.”

“I don’t believe you should. If she’s serious about making a success of this job, she needed to know what he’s capable of doing behind her back.”

“But she loves her nephew,” William protested. “This must be tearing her apart. It’s not as if she was betrayed by someone whose only connection to her was business.” He turned slowly and met his assistant’s gaze. “How did you happen to come upon that information, Malcolm?”

Malcolm regarded him with dismay. “You want me to reveal my source, after all?”

“Perhaps it’s time I knew,” he said. “This person has proved to be a godsend to us, but I’m not sure I like that Destiny has someone she trusts who’s betraying the company so readily. Perhaps if she can show Richard who’s been behind all the leaks, he’ll finally let her do her job in peace.”

Malcolm’s expression filled with alarm. “You’d give this person away?”

William considered that, then sighed. “No, of course that’s impossible. This person dealt with you in good faith. Damn, this has gotten complicated. I thought it would all be over once Destiny got to London.”

“Perhaps it’s time you and Mr. Carlton have a talk and settle this, then,” Malcolm suggested. “He’s the fly in the ointment now, isn’t he? In the end, she could well be torn between her loyalty to him and her affection for you.”

“You think I should go behind Destiny’s back and speak to her nephew directly? Impossible,” he said at once. “I won’t undercut her authority in that way.”

“As you wish, sir. It was just an idea.”

“I know, Malcolm. I appreciate everything you’ve done. I couldn’t have gotten her over here without you.”

“Do you regret that, as well, sir?”

William’s expression brightened. “Not at all. In fact, that’s the first sensible thing I’ve done in years.”

Now he simply had to figure out a way to straighten the rest of it out before Destiny regretted ever setting eyes on him again. For one thing, it was time to settle things with David Fortnum and his board of directors, so that matter could be put behind them all, as well.

Destiny was lingering over her morning tea, hoping for a word with Melanie before leaving for the office. She was on her third cup of Earl Grey and it was beginning to make her jittery by the time Melanie finally appeared, looking as if she hadn’t slept a wink.

“I thought you’d be gone,” Melanie said, pouring herself some tea and sitting down opposite Destiny.

“Is that what you were hoping?”

“Of course not,” Melanie replied at once, then added. “Maybe.”

“When you came back to the table last night, you never said a word about your conversation with Richard. How did that go?”

“He’s beside himself,” Melanie admitted. “He began by ranting on and on about your threat, then finally conceded he would have done the same thing had he been in your shoes. He truly regrets what he did, I think. In fact, he almost sounded as if he admired your audacity.”

“But he would do it again,” Destiny guessed.

Melanie nodded, looking miserable. “He’s determined to protect you from William, to show him for the kind of man he is.”

“Is it truly me he thinks he’s protecting or the company?” Destiny asked dryly.

“You,” Melanie insisted. “I couldn’t get through to him. He didn’t want to hear my impressions of William. In fact, he was furious that we’d gone to the theater together. That set him off all over again.”

Destiny regarded her with amusement. “I thought Richard wanted you to spy on the two of us. How did he expect you to accomplish that without ever setting eyes on William?”

Melanie grinned for the first time. “I don’t think he was inclined to be logical last night.”

“If I ask you something, will you give me an honest answer?”

“Always,” Melanie promised.

“Given everything you know about the possible repercussions, do you think it’s crazy for me to want a second chance with William?”

“Absolutely not,” Melanie responded fiercely. “If you love him and he loves you, then nothing should stand in your way, not even my stubborn, bullheaded husband.”

“But look what it’s doing to the family,” Destiny said. “We haven’t even declared an intention to get back together and Richard is in an uproar.”

“Perhaps if William had come to him—or even to you—with hat in hand and expressed an interest in marriage, this wouldn’t be so problematic,” Melanie pointed out. “Instead, he attacked Carlton Industries to trick you into coming over here. I can see why Richard might be wary of his true intentions.”

Destiny laughed ruefully. “Yes, that did muddy the waters, didn’t it? Well, perhaps in time, everyone will meet and we can put all of this behind us.”

“Maybe that’s the answer,” Melanie said thoughtfully. “If Richard actually met William face-to-face, I think he’d feel better about everything.”

“But he’s far too stubborn to come here now,” Destiny said. “He’ll only be happy if I come home.”

Melanie’s expression brightened. “You forget that I learned a few tricks from a master not that long ago. Leave Richard to me. I might not be able to pull it off overnight, but I think I can get him over here eventually. It’ll just require putting a bit of a spin on things once I get home.”

Destiny chuckled. “How perfectly lovely, then, that spinning a story falls right within your area of expertise.”

“Exactly.”

“Darling, just promise me you won’t do anything to jeopardize your relationship with Richard over this, okay?”