Destiny Unleashed (24 page)

“What’s wrong?” he asked at once. “Come in here and sit down.”

“I don’t want to sit.” Proving it, she began to pace. “I have never in all my life been so disappointed with anyone.”

“Richard?”

“Yes.”

William sighed. “What’s he done now?”

“He’s just being a completely bullheaded horse’s behind.”

“About me?”

“Yes.”

“Then let me fix the problem,” he suggested. “Tell me where to reach him. Let me invite him to my club. I’ll sit him down with a cigar and a drink and tell him exactly how I feel about you.”

“Apparently, he’s already gotten that particular message. He says you shared it earlier today.”

“Ah,” William said, gathering that his revelation that he loved Destiny had upset her almost as much as it had her nephew. “Would you have preferred it if I’d lied to him? Told him that we were simply having a mad fling?”

She scowled at him. “There’s nothing wrong with two adults having a madcap fling. We did it rather
successfully for many years, in fact. There were no complications to that.”

He bit back a grin. “Never said there were. I’m not sure Richard would take much comfort in it, though. I wouldn’t if I were in his shoes.”

“But if he concludes we’re serious about each other, he’ll assume that means marriage.”

“A lot of people would leap to that conclusion,” William agreed. Destiny was apparently the only female on earth to whom the idea seemed to be incongruous.

Destiny gave him an impatient look. “I’m sure in my nephew’s view, a marriage between the two of us would be the very worst thing that could happen.”

“Because I’m the enemy and likely to take you and the company for everything I can once I get my hooks into you,” he concluded.

“Well, can you blame him?”

“Not entirely,” William admitted. “That’s all the more reason for me to sit down with him and explain exactly how things are. I could point out, in fact, that the last real skirmish was the one he himself initiated when he tried to buy that woolen manufacturer in Scotland.”

“He doesn’t want to see you,” Destiny said glumly. “I suggested dinner and he blew a gasket. Even if he relented, he wouldn’t be happy to be reminded of an incident that caused me to threaten to have him removed from his position. Besides, in his mind, it’s the acquisition of Fortnum that proves you’re still up to no good.”

“Then what do you suggest we do? Stop seeing each other entirely?”

To his relief, alarm immediately registered on her face.

“No, absolutely not,” she said at once. “I’m not sixteen, for goodness’ sake. I won’t let him dictate to me who my friends can be.”

William frowned at her response. “Is that the only reason?”

She paused in her pacing and stared at him. “What do you mean?”

“Am I some bizarre form of midlife rebellion for you? Am I your way to prove your independence to your nephews?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” she said.

“Pardon me, but I think you might take a look at this from my perspective,” William said quietly. “It seems that everything you’re saying and doing is a reaction to Richard. Shouldn’t it be about what you truly want for the rest of your life? Once you’ve made up your mind about that, it might be a whole lot easier to convince your nephew to stop interfering. I have little doubt that right now he senses some sort of ambivalence on your part. I sure as hell do.”

Destiny stared at him with obvious shock. “What are you suggesting?”

“That if you waved an engagement ring under his nose, he might begin to take us seriously.”

“I thought we’d decided—”

William cut her off. “You decided. My offer’s still on the table.”

She sank onto a chair. “This has turned into such a muddle.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” he told her more gently.
“Make a decision, Destiny. Once you have, whatever it is, the rest of us will learn to live with it.”

“I suppose you’re right.”

“You know I am. We’re past the age for taking things by half measures.” He went around his desk and extended his hand to help her up. “Get out of here and think about things, Destiny. What is it you truly want for the rest of your life? Once you’ve decided that, everything else will come easily enough.”

He walked with her outside, then pressed a kiss to her forehead. “While you’re thinking things through, don’t forget that I love you with all my heart.”

She gave him a small smile. “No last-minute pressure there,” she chided.

“Just a reminder,” he insisted. “I don’t want it to slip your mind.”

“As if it could,” she said, her hand soft and warm against his cheek. “I’ll be in touch.”

And then she was gone, striding briskly and purposefully down the sidewalk, blending into the London crowd. William watched her go, his heart in his throat. He’d taken a huge chance by forcing the issue, but it was time. Whether she knew it or not, Destiny was ready to make this decision. She’d had more than twenty years to mull it over.

In the meantime, he had something he needed to do. He strode back to his office and tracked down Malcolm.

“I need you to find out where Richard Carlton is staying,” he told his assistant.

“He’s not at Ms. Carlton’s flat?”

William smiled. “I gather there’s been a bit of a falling-out between those two. I’m fairly certain he’s
been banished to a hotel. I’m sure you can find out which ones Carlton executives prefer when they’re in town.”

“Should I ring his room when I find him?”

William considered whether or not the man deserved a fair warning and decided against it. “No, but get the room number. I know it’s something hotels prefer not to give out, but you should be able to manage it.”

Malcolm nodded. “I don’t believe that will be a problem, sir. Give me a few minutes.”

What might have taken an extremely good private investigator a couple of hours minimum, Malcolm did, indeed, accomplish in minutes.

“He’s at the Dorchester, sir. Here’s the suite number. I believe he’s in at the moment.”

William took the piece of paper and grabbed his coat. “Then you know where to find me,” he said.

“Will you be long, sir?”

“I suppose that depends on just how stubborn Carlton is inclined to be.” He thought about Destiny’s stubborn streak, then added, “It could take a while.”

Malcolm gave him a rare grin. “Yes, sir. I imagine if Mr. Carlton takes after his aunt, I shouldn’t expect you back this afternoon.”

“Wish me luck.”

“Always, sir, but you won’t need it.”

William appreciated Malcolm’s display of confidence. If only Destiny had half as much faith in him.

Or in herself.

D
estiny walked for hours, her head spinning. William had made it sound so simple. Just decide, he’d told her. The rest would follow naturally.

There was only one problem with that. Since coming to London, she’d discovered she wanted it all—a career, William and her family. No simple accomplishment, given the high emotions on all sides.

What if she couldn’t have it all? she asked herself, trying to face reality. Was she willing to settle for less? And if so, what was she willing to sacrifice?

The job was something new. She supposed she could live without the challenge and excitement of it, but why should she have to? She was good at it. Damn good, in fact. No, she decided, she wouldn’t give that up, not without a fight.

And William? What about him? She thought about what he meant to her, what he’d always meant to her. How could she sacrifice that again? She simply shouldn’t have to. Neither of them deserved to spend another lonely year because of family pressures, first from his side and now from hers. They’d waited far too long for the happiness they deserved.

Which brought her to her family, or more precisely to Richard, who was the instigator of all the problems she was facing. Mack and Ben might be worried, but
it was Richard who was stirring the pot and turning a tiny little molehill into a monumental mountain. If she could win him over, make him trust her judgment about William, it would solve everything.

Passing a tea shop, she realized she was starving and instinctively turned in, then realized it was one of the Harcourt & Sons shops. She smiled at the coincidence, then realized that it was a bit like being surprised to find a Starbucks back home just when the thought of coffee popped into her head. There seemed to be one on every block. Harcourt & Sons tea shops were almost as pervasive in London.

She found a vacant table, ordered a wonderfully strong Darjeeling and a scone with clotted cream, then resumed her musings. She was pretty much where she’d been at the outset. She still wanted it all. She simply had to figure out the way to do that.

Again, it came back to Richard. If she could bring him around, the rest would fall into place. Not an easy matter, but she could do it. She merely had to take the first step, and then the next, until he saw things her way. Hadn’t she spent the past two decades molding him into the man he’d become? Surely she could still find some creative way to get through to him.

Sipping the last of her tea, she nodded decisively. That was it, then, and there was no time like the present to begin.

William rode the elevator straight up to Richard’s floor, then knocked on his door. When there was no immediate response, he knocked a little harder. More than likely, the man was sleeping off his jet lag. That
could work in William’s favor. Richard wouldn’t be so quick to argue over every little thing William said.

At last, the door to the suite swung open and Richard stared at him, his eyes bleary, his face lined with fatigue and evident dismay.

“You!” he said, sounding cranky and inhospitable.

“May I come in?” William inquired, then walked right past him without waiting for a response.

Richard didn’t argue. He merely shut the door and stood with his arms folded across his chest, glowering. “Make it quick.”

“I don’t think that will be possible. Why don’t you shower and I’ll order up coffee?”

“Dammit, man, you can’t come in here and take over. I didn’t even invite you in.”

“No, but you won’t be rude enough to toss me out, so let’s handle this as pleasantly as possible,” he said mildly. “Want some eggs with your coffee? Or perhaps a sandwich?”

Richard looked as if he wanted to argue—or perhaps tear William limb from limb—but he finally shrugged. “Order whatever the hell you want,” he grumbled, and left the room.

William took it as a good sign when he heard the water come on in the shower. He called room service and was about to order a hearty lunch for two when someone knocked on the door. He took it upon himself to open it and found Destiny on the threshold, mouth gaping.

“I gather you concluded Richard was the key to things, as well,” William said.

“I thought I told you he didn’t want to see you,” Destiny said, brushing past him.

“We don’t always get what we want. It’s a lesson your nephew needs to learn.”

“Where is he? Why are you answering the door?”

“He’s taking a shower and probably trying to wake up sufficiently to toss me out. I was about to order lunch. Care for something?”

She regarded him with a bemused expression. “Have you won him over already?”

“Hardly,” William admitted ruefully. “The only agreement we’ve reached so far is that I wouldn’t be leaving till we’d talked.”

“Amazing.”

William picked up the phone again and dialed. “Destiny, what can I get you?”

“Nothing. I just had tea in one of your shops. The scone was dry.”

He laughed. “I’ll make a point of passing the word along to the bakery.” He ordered a large pot of coffee for himself and Richard, then added two club sandwiches. He doubted either of them would feel much like eating, but it would give them both something to pull apart when things got tense, which they were bound to do once Richard discovered his aunt was also on the scene.

When he’d hung up, he turned to Destiny. “What did you come here to tell Richard?”

“That he’s not going to bully me into giving up either you or my job,” she said at once. “That I want him to accept my decision and make peace with it.”

“Think he’ll go for it?”

“Not at first,” she admitted. “But I think I can make him see that I know my own mind and that I’m
entitled to do things my own way.” She gave him a curious look. “Why are you here?”

“For much the same reason. I wanted to get my cards on the table, ask for your hand, that sort of thing.”

Destiny’s jaw dropped for the second time in less than ten minutes. “Ask for my hand?”

“I know it’s a bit old-fashioned,” he admitted. “But I thought it would be a nice touch. Thought it might show that I respect his role in your life. Bit tricky to pull off with you sitting right here, though.”

“You want me to leave?” she asked incredulously.

“Might be best.”

“Not till I’ve said my piece,” she insisted, her hands folded in her lap.

Silence fell for several minutes, then she glanced at him. “Do you happen to have a ring?”

William’s heart took an unexpected leap, probably a dangerous thing at his age. “An engagement ring?”

She nodded.

“Of course,” he admitted.

“Could I see it?”

“Want to see if it’s big enough to impress him?”

“No, I thought if I waved it under his nose as you suggested earlier, it might get his attention and make him take us both seriously.”

William shook his head. “I’ve revised the plan. I think we’ll go about this in a more traditional way. Richard strikes me as a traditional kind of man.”

“Stuffy, you mean.”

He grinned. “Your word, not mine.”

“Yes, I suppose you’re right about that. Okay, we’ll do that much your way.”

“Lovely of you to agree. Every successful businessperson understands the art of compromise.”

She smiled. “Only one of the skills I’ve mastered since coming here.”

Richard walked into the room just then and stared at the two of them. “Ganging up on me?” he inquired tightly.

“Actually, no,” William said emphatically with a pointed glance in Destiny’s direction.

“William’s right. I’ll only be here a moment. I just came by to tell you that I love you, that I respect you and want your approval when it comes to William, but I’m prepared to live without it if that’s the way it needs to be.” She stood up and headed for the door, then glanced back over her shoulder. “Oh, and one more thing. I am not giving up my job, no matter how annoyed you get with me over all of this. One thing has absolutely nothing to do with the other, and I won’t allow you to get them all twisted up.”

Richard stared at her. “You amaze me.”

She beamed at him. “I’m not surprised. Lately, I seem to be amazing myself. Now, listen to what William has to say, darling. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.”

“I doubt that,” Richard muttered. “Where’s that blasted coffee?”

“On its way,” William assured him. “Should be here any minute. I think we’ll wait for it. No sense in getting into things and ruining our appetites.”

Richard gave him a sour look but didn’t disagree. He did look relieved, though, when there was an almost immediate knock on the door.

“I’ll let him in on my way out,” Destiny said.

The waiter wheeled in their food and coffee, then left as well, leaving William and Richard in awkward silence. Richard poured two cups of coffee and picked up a section of the sandwich only to set it down again.

“Just get on with it, Harcourt. Say whatever you have to say and get out.”

William heard the impatience in his voice and concluded the atmosphere wasn’t likely to get any friendlier than this.

“I told you earlier today that I love your aunt,” he began.

Richard’s frown deepened. “Not what I want to hear.”

“No, I’m sure of that. You’ll be even less likely to be happy with the rest. I intend to marry her.”

“Over my dead body!” Richard retorted.

William regarded him with a level look. “If need be.”

Richard faltered a bit at that. “You’re serious?”

“As a train wreck,” William confirmed. “Now, before you get all riled up and defensive, hear me out. I’ve loved your aunt from the moment we met more than twenty years ago. Had it not been for your parents’ deaths, we would have been married long before now.”

“Oh, really?” Richard said skeptically. “I don’t recall you ever coming to Virginia, standing by her side while we were all grieving. You abandoned her then, didn’t you?”

“Yes,” William said honestly. “But not exactly in the way you mean. You see, I’d had a rift with my family over her. She concluded on her own that that rift could only be mended if she broke things off with
me. I didn’t realize that at the time, but she used your family’s tragedy to make the break. I should never have allowed that to succeed, but I had too much pride and not enough sense. I picked up on all the signals and stayed away. In hindsight, I see what a huge mistake that was, but at the time I thought I was doing what she wanted.”

“You expect me to believe that she broke up with you and broke your heart and not the other way around?”

“That’s exactly what I’m telling you, though I can’t deny that I bore some of the blame,” William said. “You can ask her yourself. I won’t make the same mistake again, though. This time I will fight to keep her. You, your brothers and your wives can stand in our way, if you feel you must, but I intend to marry her. I’d like your blessing because I know how important it is to Destiny that you not be unhappy about this, but I don’t need to have it.”

Richard stared at him mutely.

“Well?” William prompted. “Are you going to fight me on this? You know it’s what Destiny wants, too.”

“I need to think about what you’ve said,” Richard said finally. “It’s a lot to absorb.”

“In other words, you want time to call for backup,” William guessed. “Go ahead. I’d probably do the same in your shoes, but I will tell your brothers exactly what I told you. Your wives already believe in me. So does Destiny. They can’t all be wrong, can they?”

He nodded when Richard said nothing. “I didn’t
think you’d risk calling them fools. That’s the most promising thing that’s happened since I arrived.”

Richard gave him a wry look. “Saying things like that has already cost me,” he admitted. “I may be stubborn, but I’m not stupid.”

William grinned at him. “Never thought you were. A smart man always sees the handwriting on the wall.”

He left to give Richard time enough to read it for himself.

The minute Harcourt left his suite, Richard did in fact call for reinforcements. He figured if he was going to have even half a chance of keeping Destiny and Harcourt apart, he was going to need Mack and Ben by his side, united in their opposition to this liaison. Nothing William had said had swayed him in the slightest, but he could see that it was going to be trickier than ever to convince Destiny that she was wrong about the man. If he was smooth enough to almost win over Richard with all that talk of missed opportunities, then Destiny had never stood a chance.

Unfortunately, Richard hadn’t counted on Mack and Ben’s wives coming along, as well. The next day, he opened the door to his suite to find the entire Carlton clan on his doorstep, babies and all. Even Melanie had turned up, looking decidedly displeased with his plan to disrupt Destiny’s romance. The presence of the women was going to make it a lot more difficult to reach consensus on what needed to be done to save their aunt from William’s untrustworthy clutches.

“Why exactly are we here?” Ben asked.

“To save Destiny,” Richard said, his expression grim.