Reunited in Love (18 page)

“Ethan, what are you doing here?” The afternoon was still fairly young.

He gave her a quick kiss. “I just wanted to see you, that’s all.”

She nodded, not saying anything. Something about him called out to her, and she couldn’t help but take his hand in hers. It felt warm and impossibly solid. “Is everything okay?” she asked.

*

Ethan curled his fingers around her hand. It was the first time she’d reached out to him like that, and the tightness in his belly loosened. “Everything’s fine. Don’t worry.”

“It’s not even four. I thought you were at work.”

“Not everyone works a hundred hours a week. Did Natalie leave?”

“No. She fell asleep on the couch.” Kerri smiled. “I left her there. She looked too peaceful.”

He nodded, then saw a couple of boys running on the other side of the street. They laughed, their thin legs moving fast. Kerri looked at them, and just like that, the familiar shadow of sorrow darkened her eyes.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing,” she said, not meeting his gaze. “Let’s go back and see if Natalie’s up.”

She started moving, but he stopped her with a tug on her hand. “Kerri. What’s the deal? Why are you looking at the boys like that?”

“Like what?”

“Like you’re sad.”

She shook her head. “I’m not. I was just…well, they reminded me of my family.” Then her mouth abruptly shut, like she’d let something slip.

Natalie had said Kerri never spoke about her family. Gavin had been certain Kerri was Barron Sterling’s granddaughter. This was the opening for Ethan to ask. Still, care was required. She was so wary and secretive about her personal life. “When was the last time you saw them? Did you get to visit them at all while working in Hong Kong?”

“No.”

“You must miss them,” he said casually.

Silence.

“Where are they?”

“Back east,” she murmured.

Back east? They were in Virginia. How much further east was she talking about?

She was lying to him, and he was losing her. Every second they spoke about her family she drifted further away, retreating into some private fortress. It was incredibly frustrating. He wanted to understand her better. He wanted to know what made her sad, learn about her family and her secret hopes and dreams. Of course, she didn’t have to say anything for him to figure out her family was full of people who’d hurt her. It was in the way her eyes darkened with old pain.

His instincts told him to find out so he could make things right and keep Kerri happy, her bruised heart protected. But intellect won out. If Natalie hadn’t been able to learn much about Kerri’s personal life, he wouldn’t either. At least not by asking her. There were other ways, though. He was certain Gavin was wrong, but he wanted to make sure he had all the facts before some idiot decided to accuse Kerri of spying for her family. He knew how damaging that could be for a relationship. In their case it would probably be fatal, given her mysterious reticence when it came to her blood relations.

“Do you mind filling out the HR paperwork, by the way?” he said. “It slipped my mind, but I need your information for taxes.”

She nodded, her face relaxing. “Sure, I can get that done tonight. You don’t want to mess with the minions of Satan.”

He laughed. “The minions of Satan?”

“The IRS.”

“Ah. Have you been audited?”

“Not yet, thank god. But that reminds me, I need to go back to finish up some work.”

“Why bother? It’s a pretty day.”

“A girl’s gotta earn her keep.”

“How about if I pay for your time off?”

“Ethan, I don’t take charity. I’m independent, a modern woman, all that jazz.” She winked.

Some tension eased from the back of his neck. The heiress to Sterling & Wilson simply couldn’t be a woman who felt this way about money. No, she’d feel entitled to whatever she wanted.

BY THE TIME Kerri and Ethan made it back to the penthouse, Natalie was gone. Kerri picked up a note that was stuck to her laptop:
Sorry, didn’t mean to fall asleep! Have to go home to get ready for our dinner—it’s casual, so dress comfy
. It was signed with a smiley face.

“Dinner?” Kerri murmured.

“Yeah. Didn’t Natalie tell you? Alex is flying back from New York to join us.”

“New York? What’s he doing there?”

“Getting caught up. He’s sparing me the trip because he knows how things are with my family right now.” Ethan regarded her. “You
can
come to this one, right? Or is it going to be off-limits for some reason?”

Great. He was still sore about that. “Is it a big party?” No matter what Ethan, Natalie and Alex were expecting, she couldn’t go if it was going to be a big bash with tons of guests, possibly including a Sterling or two. Her family always received invitations to all the parties.

“Just the four of us.”

“Okay, then.” She smiled. “No problem.”

“You may want to hurry. We’ve only got about an hour.”

Only an hour?
Muttering to herself, she rushed to her room. She had no idea what to wear. Though Natalie had said casual, her definition of “comfy” might have changed since her marriage to Alex Damon. Kerri knew what “comfy” meant to her family. It meant elegant, understated and wealthy. Kerri could do the first two, but couldn’t afford the last. Sighing, she settled on a simple long-sleeved peach blouse, black silk trousers and a pair of ballet slippers. She’d bought them on a whim in Hong Kong and hadn’t found an occasion to wear them yet.

She changed quickly and smoothed her hair, looking at her reflection.
Makeup could use a little freshening
. A little bit more powder went on the nose, and she applied a new coat of coral pink lipstick. She frowned, then replaced her hoop earrings with a pair of discreet diamond solitaires. Much better. She wanted Alex to like her, but surprisingly enough more important was that she wanted Ethan to be proud of her.

Her hands dropped to her sides. She didn’t know why it should matter if he was proud to stand next to her and introduce her as his…what? Current fling? She pressed her lips together. Well, whatever. Until it was over, she wanted him to be crazy about her. She deserved that much, didn’t she?

And speak of the devil…
Ethan was leaning against the open doorway and perusing her from ponytail to shoes. “You look beautiful.”

“Thanks.” She blushed, absurdly pleased, like she’d just won the lottery. When he looked at her like she was the only woman in the world for him, she felt beautiful and special. She’d miss this kind of moment with him when they went their separate ways. She had some pleasant memories of her exes, but none of them as precious as the ones with Ethan.

The fact that she’d keenly note Ethan’s absence, not just physically but emotionally as well, sent a little jolt through her system. When had he started to mean this much to her?

“You all right?” Ethan asked.

“Yes.” She forced a quick smile and checked her appearance a final time. “Let’s get going.”

Natalie and Alex had a penthouse not too far from Ethan’s—no, the
corporate
—condo. While The Lloyds Development’s place reflected more masculine sensibilities, the Damons’ home had a warmer, softer tone that showed a feminine touch in the soft leather couches that invited people to sit and relax, pretty lace curtains, and vivid jewel-tone accents in the midst of the warm honey and cream wallpaper.

Natalie hugged Ethan and Kerri both. Natalie was dressed even more casually than Kerri expected: a pink and gray fitted shirt and a denim skirt that ended a couple of inches above her knees. She hadn’t bothered with shoes, which somehow made her seem even more fragile and feminine than usual. Kerri couldn’t think of a time when her best friend hadn’t looked delicately female, even when she’d donned her most severe power suit.

Alex, dressed in a red polo shirt and khakis, came out from the kitchen holding an uncorked bottle of Merlot. His frame wasn’t as large as Ethan’s, but she could tell he worked out. He was different from what Kerri had imagined. She thought he’d be more like her grandfather—aloof, awash in wealth and all it entitled him to. Alex was clearly used to wealth, but he didn’t wrap himself up in it. He seemed comfortable with who he was, and even if he didn’t have a penny to his name, he’d still have a commanding presence and a sharp intellect in his eyes.

As he came closer, Ethan casually put his arm around Kerri’s waist. Natalie made the introductions, and Kerri shook Alex’s hand. He was almost her type, tall and dark—though from the looks of him, completely unmanageable. But the skin-to-skin contact created nothing in Kerri, unlike the stomach-flipping sensation Ethan’s touch induced in her.

Alex smiled. “So happy to finally meet you, Kerri. Heard a lot about you.”

“Likewise. Natalie simply
can’t
stop talking about you.”

“Is that so?” Alex looked fondly at his wife.

“She’s lying, as usual,” Natalie said. “I stop talking about you at least twice a day.”

Alex planted a kiss on her cheek, which caused Natalie to giggle.

Kerri raised an eyebrow. Natalie was so not the giggling type. On the other hand, she had never had a man who adored her purely for herself, not for who her family was.

“Let’s go in,” Alex said. “I’m afraid we haven’t prepared anything home-cooked.” He cast an amused glance at his best friend. “I know Ethan’s been spoiling you.”

“I
have
offered to teach you,” Ethan said.

Alex widened his eyes. “Your grandmother’s super-secret family recipes?”

“Well, no, not those.”

“Then what’s the point?”

“You aren’t using your kitchen to its fullest potential.”

Alex shook his head and mimicked Clint Eastwood. “A man’s got to know his limitations.”

“Our limitation was having just got back, we had to cater,” Natalie explained. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Have you ever seen me say no to free food?” Kerri teased.

They all laughed and moved to the dining room, where an interesting arrangement of plum blossoms occupied the center of a large cherry table. Natalie poured some wine for herself and passed the bottle to Ethan.

The menu consisted of beautifully prepared Peking duck and other complementary Chinese dishes. Natalie served everything, with some assistance from her husband, and said, “I so missed this stuff. I love European cuisine, but there’s something about American Chinese.”

“And she blurted out just how much she missed it while eating foie gras. In Paris, yet.” Alex gave her a soft kiss on the mouth, then turned to Ethan and Kerri. “Thank god the waiter didn’t hear.”

Natalie rolled her eyes. “The French and their food pride.”

Kerri had assumed Alex would be a bit too intense, even dominating. But he was all charm and easy words. He also looked at Natalie with a love so pure Kerri’s chest ached. She wanted to know what it was like to belong and be loved unconditionally.

Not for you, Kerri. That’s not for you
.

Career. That was all she could really depend on. Not because it cocooned her, but because it was less likely to disappoint her. She could work at it without becoming too attached. After all, it was just a string of jobs. If one didn’t work out, she could always get another. But people were different. They were individual, irreplaceable, and their emotions didn’t remain constant. She couldn’t afford to entrust her happiness to anybody.

Not even her own mother had cared about her happiness.

But still… Wouldn’t it be great to be loved? Have somebody she could come home to? Someone she could love and support, who would love and support her back?

“So are you going to resume house-hunting?” Ethan asked.

“Yes,” Alex said with a sigh. “The realtor said she’d send a list.”

“There’s no way I’m moving once I’m pregnant,” Natalie said. “Well, I guess technically I could, but I’d rather be moved in and settled first, you know? This place just isn’t going to work. The entire condo complex was designed for working professionals, not families with young kids.”

“I had no idea you wanted to start one so soon,” Kerri said. This was a different side of Natalie, one she’d never seen before.

“We don’t,” Alex said firmly. “I want her to myself for a while, but we were thinking maybe in a couple of years.” Alex toyed with a loose strand from Natalie’s chignon and she smiled indulgently at him.

Their easy intimacy created a lump in Kerri’s throat, made her heart constrict with longing.

But a relationship asked too much, especially if she wanted something like what Natalie had. She’d have to strip the protective armor from around her heart and gamble in a big way.
Not possible
. She’d done that and more with her family, but they’d rejected her for eighteen years. Granted her family had some justification, but they were still flesh and blood, supposedly unbreakable ties.

Romance came with none of that. Men like Ethan… She stole a quick glance at him. He’d want someone who could be everything he needed her to be. Go to social functions with him. Be relaxed and fun and cool and sexy and incredibly self-assured with him, his friends and family. Kerri knew she couldn’t meet the requirements, and she suspected that deep inside he knew it as well. That was why he’d proposed a temporary arrangement.

She picked up her glass and took a sip. She’d do well to remember a temporary affair was exactly what she wanted too.

*

Late that night, Ethan slipped out of bed, then stopped on the way to his study and looked in on Kerri. He eased the door open and saw she was on her side, her slim back curved. She’d been unusually quiet and pensive after the dinner, and Ethan hadn’t been able to figure out why. He thought she’d be happy to spend time with her best friend and her husband.

Ethan might never be able to figure Kerri out.

Sighing, he went to his study and sprawled in the leather chair at the desk. He dialed the team he’d hired to track down Jacob for a status update.

“Still nothing?”

“Sorry. Not a bleep,” Pattington said.

Ethan frowned. This wasn’t like Jacob. How much cash had he taken to last this long without using his credit card or accessing an ATM for more money? From what people had said, he hadn’t cleaned out the accounts he held jointly with Catherine. Did he have some secret stash no one knew about?