Tahoe Blues (3 page)

Cara shook her head to keep her thoughts from drifting
any farther down that stimulating path of seduction. “I don’t recall sending TJ Reed an invitation. I wonder if he is someone’s guest.” She snickered, positive TJ would be the date of a wealthy elderly patron who wanted a little eye candy on her arm.

Leah shot Cara a
small frown. “I’ve never heard him called that before. I’ve always known him as Tanner James Reed. We went to high school together.” Leah grinned and waggled her freshly waxed brows happily. “The heck with Mark Porter, he’s married. Tanner’s wife passed away in a car accident several years ago. I just might set my sights on him.” Then Leah sighed. A sympathetic look crossed her face, and her voice turned soft with concern. “I know how much he loved Kate. They were together all through high school and college. If I recall correctly, they were married right after graduation. After Kate died, Tanner dropped off the face of the earth. I had no idea he was working as a maintenance man. It seems like a waste of a college education to me.” Leah took a sip from a fluted glass. Her eyes gleamed as the expensive sparkling wine slid down her throat. “I see the family has gone all out again. This champagne is good.”

“It comes from the Napa Valley
, so technically it’s sparkling wine, not champagne,” Cara interjected absently as Leah drained her glass and snagged another from a passing server. Cara’s mind was spinning. Tanner James Reed had made a couple of donations to the Blue Tahoe Blue Foundation, which was second in size only to the ones made by the Alexander family. Cara realized her apartment maintenance man couldn’t possibly be an ordinary laborer.

The
instantaneous quiver she felt at the sight of Tanner in his Armani suit told Cara she was a total snob. She enjoyed the view which TJ had been presenting the last few weeks but she hadn’t given the complex caretaker the time of day. She hadn’t even introduced herself. Now that she knew there was more to TJ, the tool-man, Tanner James Reed, Cara was fairly certain she wouldn’t be ignoring him any longer.

Cara had sub
let the apartment from a friend of a friend when it became clear she was in Leah’s way. With the gala approaching, Leah had been working in high gear to meet all her deadlines, and their two very different schedules weren’t meshing. Leah’s sewing machine hummed all night long, causing Cara to function on little to no sleep. Getting up in time to instruct her eight a.m. class had been beyond difficult. Seeing the dark shadows developing under Cara’s eyes, a fellow professor introduced her to Beth Rainey, a friend who was leaving the country for an extended stay in Europe.

The two women hit it off,
an arrangement was made, and Cara moved into her new apartment a few days later.

The tingling fanning out across Cara’s abdomen diminished sharply when Tanner turned to reveal a stunning blonde on his arm. The young woman looked up at the irresistible Tanner Reed with doe-eyed admiration. Her ruby red lips were parted and thoroughly enthralled as she hung eagerly onto his every word.

Cara studied them intently and
felt a scowl form on her face. Tanner’s head turned in her direction and he caught her gaze. The depth of his piercing blue eyes burned through her. His usually stubbled face was clean-shaven, and he looked like a professional athlete at an awards ceremony.

Tanner
nodded and shot her a quick smile before he turned back to the woman on his arm.

Leah’s shoulders slumped into a dejected sulk.
“Well, that settles it,” she muttered. “Besides the fact that he just smiled at you, he has a date who is a lot younger and prettier than me.” Nothing could ever keep Leah down for long, and a moment later her frown turned upside down. “I love her dress. I’m going to go see if I can figure out who designed it.” Leah nudged Cara’s shoulder and headed off into the growing crowd.

Feeling a little
unsettled, Cara stepped back and checked the time. There were only a few minutes remaining in the cocktail hour. Soon guests would be seated, and the big event would begin. She motioned to a waiter and picked up a glass of the smooth sparkling wine Leah was so fond of, and headed off to find this evening’s Master of Ceremony.

This year she had been lucky enough to snag the local news anchor,
Cameron Caldwell. His celebrity had brought a bigger than average buzz to the night’s event, and his strong personality and stage presence would keep the event flowing and the auction productive.

Cara
drew in a deep breath and released the tension building in her neck. This was it. Her last hoorah. Soon she would join the ranks as an Alexander Clan cast-off. She looked at the beautiful dress she wore and wondered if Duncan would even notice. So much for his little peek-a-boo, blue beaded nightmare. The cocktail dress Leah designed fit her every curve, and it was absolutely perfect. She grinned expectantly, knowing after this evening there would be no more Tahoe Blues for her. She was young and almost free. Cara couldn’t wait to begin her new life.

“What’s that smile for?” Cameron asked as he approached.

A coy smile curved at the corner of her lips. Her eyes sparkled as she mischievously tilted her chin into her shoulder. “Contrary to popular belief,” she said sweeping her arm out across the extravagant ballroom, “I am not completely devastated to be leaving all this behind.”

She locked arm
s with him and guided him towards the bar. “We’ve worked hard. We have some beautiful pieces of art to auction off, and I just happen to be feeling a bit on the joyful side.”

Cameron stepped back and held her out at arm’s length. He
took her in from head to toe and smiled appreciatively. “You are a truly beautiful woman.”

Cara enjoyed Cameron’s company. They had become acquainted during the plannin
g of the gala. It was nice to have a new friend who didn’t care if she was part of the Alexander family and who liked her just for her little ol,’ Cara Green, self. “Any questions about the schedule of events,” she asked, “or anything we need to lock down?”

Cameron
ordered a bottle of water from the bartender and shook his head. “Nope, it’s all lined up and ready to go. I see nothing but smooth sailing ahead.” He raised his drink in salute. “To a successful evening. May we rake in a lot of dough.”

Tapping the edge of her glass to his plastic bottle
, Cara echoed his sentiment, “Here, here.” She took a sip and turned towards the hustle and bustle at the entrance. The excitement, which suddenly filled the air, could only mean one thing. The Alexander family had just entered the Grand Hall.

After a curt nod
in the direction of the charity’s founders, Cara turned reluctantly back to Cameron and pouted. “Looks like I have to go make nice one last time.”

Cameron chuckled at the sad look on her face. He
grabbed her arm and pulled her in for a quick hug. “You got this, Cara. Just try not to trip on that lower lip on your way.”

Inga’s smile was immediate when she greeted Cara. “There you are, dear. You look absolutely fabulous.”

They hugg
ed and Cara replied, “Thank you. This is one of Leah’s designs. She made it especially for the gala.” Feeling the icy chill of her father-in-law’s disapproval rake over her, Cara turned away from Weston Alexander and greeted her brother-in-law with an affectionate, “Hi Mark.” Then she nodded a bit more coolly at his wife. “Drew.”

Mark wrapped Cara up in a warm h
ug while Drew conveniently snubbed her under the guise of speaking with her father. The only attribute Drew had, as far as Cara was concerned, was that she had married one hell of a man and she had to wonder what Mark saw in her. Had he been duped as she had, or had he been in it for the money? Cara gave his broad shoulder one last squeeze and stepped back. She wanted to look into his eyes and find the answer to her question, but when Mark released her, she bumped straight into the six foot wall of Duncan Alexander, and nearly spilled her wine.

Duncan
gripped her arm to steady her. He smirked his dashing smile. “Sorry babe. You look gorgeous tonight.” He moved in for a kiss.

Cara
dodged his mouth and forced a peck on her cheek instead. She pushed him firmly away and struck a fashion model pose. “Isn’t this dress amazing?” she taunted.

H
is golden brown eyes turn hard, and Cara knew she had scored one for her side. It was time Duncan accepted the fact that the clock had run out on their marriage and that the game was over. She was no longer his wife or possession, and he had no right to think he could ever press his lips on hers again. “If you’ll excuse me, there are still a few things I need to attend to.”

Cara walked away and began working the room.
Anger surged through her veins but she plastered a smile on her face and soldiered on. She thanked so many guests for attending the gala and supporting their cause that her jaws ached, and her fingers begged to be saved from another crushing hand shake. She began avoiding the extended hands and affectionately touched the shoulders of their benefactors as she expressed her gratitude for their support instead.

Her marriage might have ended in shambles
, but Cara felt a deep sense of accomplishment. With her at the helm, the Blue Tahoe Blue Foundation had gained a strong foothold in the community, and their message was being heard all around the lake. Every lake side park had a sign which reminded visitors that the lake needed to remain clean and healthy. Cara especially enjoyed the little adage for the guests not to put anything in the lake that they didn’t want to eventually have to drink.

According to Newton, every action has an equal and opposite reaction
. When applied to the health of the lake, his third law of physics had never rung truer. The more work that was put into getting their educational message out, the less people polluted. City ordinances had been put into place to restrict when and where construction/renovation could be done, which in turn decreased the amount of hazardous runoff that would end up in the water.

Great strides had been
made, but they had a long way to go before the lake would be as clear and as clean as it had been in the past.

Right on time, Inga Alexander stepped up to the microphone and welcomed their guests, followed by the request for everyone to find their tables.

That was Cara’s warning bell. Two minutes to take a d
eep breath, fix her lipstick, and make her way to the Alexander table so she could take her obligatory walk to the podium. She owed Leah big time for making her big finale stunning as well as dignified. She could only imagine the walk of shame she would have endured had she worn the gown Duncan had picked out, and she had to wonder how much the man hated her.

Approaching
the family table, she saw that everyone was seated, and the only chair remaining was the one next to Duncan. He smiled and pulled it out. The look on his handsomely cold face dared her to defy him and make a scene. Not seeing a graceful way out of the situation, Cara accepted the seat and grudgingly sat down.

Duncan leaned in
for a kiss, but again she drew the line. Reaching in the opposite direction for a glass of water, Cara successfully gave him the cold shoulder once more.

Duncan chuckled in her ear and
piqued her ire again. It was still all a game to him, but this time it was one he didn’t have a chance in hell of winning.

“Thank you,” Inga Alexander
said at the podium. “Thank you for coming out this evening and showing your support for our Blue Tahoe Blue Foundation, a charity which is very near and dear to myself and our family. This gala began twenty-five years ago when my father, Viggo Hansen, saw the need to preserve this wonderful region we all call home. Although I love our winters and the business it brings to our ski slopes, I am very glad to have the snow melted away, and to feel the warm Tahoe sun on my shoulders once more.

“
I have the honor of introducing this year’s chairwoman. As you know, our beautiful daughter-in-law, Cara Lee Alexander, has worked diligently for years to help bring the incredible clarity we once knew back to our lake.” Inga directed everyone’s attention to the bank of windows which overlooked the vast sea of deep blue lapping gently against the wide expanse of Lake Tahoe’s shoreline. “Take a moment and cast your gaze upon the magnificent view of the sparkling waters just outside our backdoor. It’s hard to imagine the lake could be any clearer than it is today. The harsh reality is that a large amount of visibility has been lost.”

Cara
had stopped listening. When they last spoke, Inga agreed to leave out the title of daughter-in-law. She closed her eyes and tried to tamp down the rage she felt building inside. She was shocked that Inga would show just as much disregard for her feelings as her son.

“
Many factors have caused this reduction,” Inga went on, “luckily for you, I’m not going to bore you with a bunch of science this evening, but you are welcome and encouraged to sign up for our monthly newsletter. It will keep you up-to-date and informed while using words I’m sure most of you have never heard before.” The crowd chuckled. When they settled down, Inga nodded in Cara’s direction and said, “Without any further ado, I’d like to turn the floor over to our lovely, Cara.”