Ladd Fortune (33 page)

Delaney turned her back while Nick
tracked Jeremiah’s every step toward them.

“
Well, well, well, what a
cozy little group we have here,” Jeremiah said, sarcasm oozing from
his voice. “What happened to my invitation?”

“
What do you want,
Jeremiah?” Delaney snapped.

“
I want my gold and my land
back.”

“
It’s not yours,” she
replied.

“
So you’ve been saying. But
I’ve spoken to a lawyer who says otherwise. In fact, you’ll be
hearing from him soon.”

Delaney’s expression reflected the hit.
She was obviously still worried about Jeremiah making headway with
regard to the title, but Malcolm didn’t see that he stood any real
chance. Duress was a hard case to prove, the life estate deed a
logical choice for a sane, terminally ill man to make. “Why don’t
you do a magic trick for us and make yourself disappear,” Malcolm
cracked.

“
Funny man,” Jeremiah
jeered. “Feeling all big and strong because you’ve hooked up tight
with my little lady?”

Lacy clutched Malcolm’s hand under the
table. “Back off, Jeremiah,” Malcolm warned.

“
Or what? Gonna finish what
you started?”

Lacy gasped. “Malcolm had nothing to do
with your face!”

“
Oh, didn’t he?” Jeremiah
glanced to Nick and added, “With a little help from his friend,
which is the only way this pretty boy could manage it. I have my
sources. I’ll get to the bottom of it and when I do, you’ll be
sorry you ever messed with me.”

Malcolm and Nick both held steady. And
quiet.

Which Lacy found odd. Peering over at
Nick, she wondered if they had something to do with it. After all,
Malcolm had not been with her that night. Lacy looked over at
Delaney, who seemed to be wondering the same thing.

“
See,” Jeremiah said. “No
denial.”

“
As much as I’d like to take
credit for your beating,” Malcolm replied, “I can’t. I had a
business meeting with my partner, here.”

He did? Lacy considered the revelation.
So that’s what he did instead of dinner with her.

“
Great alibi,” Jeremiah
mocked. “Tell the police.” He lowered and came very near to
Malcolm’s face. “I suggested they might want to come and talk with
you gentlemen. They’ll be happy to listen to you explain your
whereabouts and check out your flimsy alibi.”

“
Jeremiah—you leave him
alone, this instant!” Lacy cried. “You have no business throwing
accusations around.”

“
Does your new boyfriend
know about your old hobbies, Lacy?” He flicked a glance to Malcolm.
“Your money-making hobbies, I mean?”

“
Hush your mouth,
Jeremiah!”

Malcolm slid out of the booth and
stood. Jeremiah took a step back but Malcolm leaned close, his tone
raw and gravelly. “I’d suggest you get out of here right now,
before your little fishing expedition sinks.”

Jeremiah chuckled. “You should ask her
sometime. It’s real riveting stuff.”

Lacy hated the suspicion crawling in
Delaney’s eyes. She was so judgmental, and she didn’t even know
what Jeremiah was talking about but simply went straight to the
most horrible thing she could think of.

Malcolm remained doggedly in place, and
it occurred to Lacy that he was defending her honor. Like a warrior
blocking Jeremiah’s path, Malcolm knew what Jeremiah was referring
to and there he was, fighting against any and all insults. Lacy
gazed up at Malcolm. Sleek white hair, silky black shirt, inky
black pants—he was gallant, elegant, more attractive than any
southern man she knew. It didn’t matter what Delaney thought, or
her boyfriend Nick. It only mattered what Malcolm thought, and he
thought she was wonderful.

Aunt Frannie came up behind Jeremiah
and hovered near, her tray of coffee and orange juice held close in
hand, a stern look steeling the blue of her eyes. “You aren’t
welcome here.”

“
I wouldn’t eat here if you
paid me.”

Frannie held her ground, and Jeremiah
seemed to think twice about adding another retort. To the group he
cracked, “Have a nice breakfast.” Turning, Jeremiah strode down the
aisle and clear outside the restaurant. Lacy watched him through
the window to be sure he really left.

Aunt Frannie swooped in, dishing out
coffee cups, creamer and juice. “That man is meaner than a wet cat
spittin’ mud.” Pouring coffee, she grumbled, “Why, I have a mind to
call the police next time he comes cavorting around
here.”

“
I don’t think you’ll have
to worry about a next time,” Malcolm said.

“
Well if he does, I’m
bootin’ him out.”

Lowering to his seat beside Lacy,
Malcolm slid a protective hand to her thigh. She intertwined her
fingers with his and squeezed. “Thank you.”

Malcolm leaned over and kissed her
neatly on the lips. “You’re welcome. I’m sorry you had to listen to
any of it, at all.”

In that instant, Lacy knew the love she
felt for him was real and true. Any man who would stand up and
defend her honor was a man who loved her and one she would always
love in return. Forever.

“
Nice restraint,” Nick
commented, raising his coffee cup to Malcolm in toast.

“
Oh,
believe
me I would have taken great
pleasure in finishing his beating if I didn’t think he was already
wrapped up in a pretty box and on his way to Vegas.”

Delaney drew back.
“Finishing?”

“
We didn’t do it, Delaney,”
Malcolm said flatly and brought coffee to lips, sipping
slowly.

“
Well,” Aunt Frannie piped
in, “as far as I’m concerned, next time he’s here it’ll only be a
pit stop on his way to jail.”

Lacy didn’t hear a word Aunt Frannie
said. Annie’s daughter walked in, accompanied by the Parker boy.
Should she go over and talk to her? Talk to them? Annie might get
mad, see it as interfering. But now that she and Annie were making
amends, Lacy wanted to get to know her niece. Maybe she should ask
Malcolm.

“
Lacy? Child?” Aunt Frannie
stared at her. “Blow the cotton out your ears and tell me what
you’re fixin’ to have for breakfast.”

“
Oh!” Her cheeks flushed.
“The usual, Aunt Frannie.”

“
Eggs, grits and biscuits,
coming right up,” she said and departed their table. Aunt Frannie
stopped and talked to Casey, leading her and the boy to a table on
the opposite side of the restaurant.

Breakfast was served, eaten and cleared
without any more disturbances. Lacy found it strange how Delaney
continually looked over her shoulder, checking on Casey and Troy.
What was so interesting over there? Otherwise, Lacy was grateful
for the fact that Delaney was being nice to her. Probably because
Malcolm was Nick’s business partner and she didn’t want to look bad
for being rude, but Lacy wasn’t fussy. She’d take what she could
get when it came to peace in the neighborhood.

“
So, while I hate to ruin a
lovely breakfast with business,” Malcolm said, tucking his napkin
alongside his plate, “we need to get the ball rolling on the hotel.
I can have a lease drawn up in a week,” he said to Delaney. “You
can have your attorney look it over, and we can go from
there.”

“
Can we sign it, though?”
Delaney asked. “I mean, between Ernie and Jeremiah
and...”

Malcolm silenced her with a hand. “As
far as I see it, nothing’s up in the air. Once Ernie passes,
Felicity owns the property. The two of you will need time to look
over the lease, make sure it’s in line with your expectations, and
we’ll sign when appropriate. Until then, Nick and I have a lot to
do,” he said, drawing Nick into the conversation. “Belinda has some
preliminary drawings, but we’ll need a site plan, a topography
study. We also need to get the architects here as soon as feasible
to work their vision into ours. The potential for working the hotel
in the natural scope of the land is incredible.”

Lacy thought Malcolm sounded
intelligent, commanding. He had to be the brains behind the
business.

“
Have you thought about
layout?” Nick asked. “Any changes you want to make?”

“
I have.” Pitching elbows to
the table, Malcolm continued, “I agree with you on the main hotel
location, but I say we add a restaurant along the river for a
little al fresco dining. I want to hike the property a bit more
before I agree to anything specific, especially for the Meditation
Trail location.” Malcolm looked to Lacy before adding, “I need to
scout for the perfect location before I can decide on anything
final.”

“
Sounds good.” Nick leaned
back into his seat, an outstretched hand lingering on his coffee
cup. “I think the back meadow is the spot for the
stables.”

Malcolm nodded. “It’ll be an easy walk
from the hotel location. A short buggy ride if the guests prefer.
In fact, I think we should—”

“
Stop.” All eyes turned to
Delaney. “We can’t decide any of this yet.”

“
Why not?” Nick
asked.

“
Because.” Lacy thought
Delaney looked panicky, her brown eyes nervous,
unsettled.

“
Because why?” Malcolm
asked.

Delaney glanced over her shoulder.
“Because I need to speak with Casey, first.”

A knowing gaze sank into Nick’s
expression, but Malcolm simply appeared confused.
“Casey?”

Delaney looked like the saddest dog
Lacy had ever seen, but she held her breath hoping Delaney was
about to say what she thought she was about to say. “Casey may be
entitled to half of the property.”

Lacy’s insides cheered. She
could kiss Delaney—if she wasn’t wearing the face of a possum, that
is. Delaney was really going to give Casey a chance! She was going
to consider giving her half. Annie would be thrilled. Lacy was
thrilled! Glancing about the table, Lacy decided Annie would
have
to appreciate her
now.

“
Is this because of the
paternity suit?”

“
If Casey is really
Jeremiah’s daughter,” Nick interjected, “legally she’s no different
than Felicity. Children of unmarried parents—once paternity is
proven—can claim a share of the parent's estate.”

Malcolm turned to Lacy with a small
smile. “I know someone who will be happy.”

She could hardly contain herself. She
grabbed his arm. “Isn’t it great?”

He nodded, but when he looked away,
Malcolm groaned. “So long happy days, hello misery.” Lacy’s
pleasure collapsed. She thought he was happy for her. “Don’t look
now, but trouble just walked in.”

Lacy’s gaze dashed to the front door.
Nick and Delaney followed suit. A dark-skinned woman stood at the
entrance. She was tall and slender, raven black hair falling in a
glossy sheet behind her. She slid off a pair of oversized black
sunglasses and surveyed the restaurant’s interior.

Who was she? Lacy’s insides buzzed and
popped. Did Malcolm know her?

Nick dug a hand through his hair. “Aw,
hell.”

“
Who is she?” Delaney
asked.

“
Jillian Devane, Harris
Hotels arch enemy.”

Malcolm chuckled. “That’s a little
rich, don’t you think?”

“
Who’s she a problem for?”
Lacy asked.

“
Jillian is a problem for
everyone,” Malcolm replied.

When the woman spotted them, a smile
pulled at her mouth. With a gentle shake to her shiny hair, the
Jillian woman headed straight for them. She walked like a runway
model, Lacy thought. And her eyes were hypnotic, amber gold on
brown skin, her brows manicured into well-defined, dramatic
arches.

Malcolm didn’t look happy to see her.
Was this an ex-girlfriend?

Jillian Devane paused tableside. She
took in the four of them and smiled, the sheen of the plum lipstick
she wore almost liquid in its gloss. Hers wasn’t a happy smile,
quite the opposite. In fact, Lacy found it rather
condescending.

“
Hello, Nick,” Jillian said,
her soft-spoken voice thickly accented. “Malcolm.”

“
What brings you to
Tennessee, Jillian?” Nick asked casually, as though it were normal
for a foreign woman to stroll into a country diner in
Tennessee.

She flicked an insulting glance toward
Delaney and said, “Business.”

“
So I hear,” Malcolm put in.
“How’d you find us?”

“
Small town, two gentlemen
who don’t belong...it was quite simple.”

Don’t belong? Lacy huffed silently.
They sure do belong here!

“
You’re wasting your time,”
Nick told her. “We’re two steps ahead of you.”

Jillian tapped Lacy and Delaney with a
snooty look and said, “Yes, it appears you are.”

Lacy stiffened. She didn’t like this
woman one bit.

“
Well, I wanted to tell you
in person, amorzinho, that I will not be beaten.”

Huh? Lacy looked to Delaney. What the
heck was she talking about? Delaney ignored Lacy, clearly engrossed
by the woman standing before them.