by Cara Colter
Audrey just looked at him.
“And you think the little devil is winning, don’t you?” Simon Collier looked as if she might have just called him a whiny, little girl or something equally offensive.
“I’m saying the dog feels the animosity between the two of you, and it’s not helping the situation. Try to be the bigger man here. How about that?” Audrey said, hoping she wouldn’t completely alienate him before she even started the job.
“And how,” he asked, looking not at all pleased, “would the bigger man behave here?”
“He’d realize this is a battle he doesn’t care to fight—”
“You want me to walk away from a fight?” he asked, incredulous again.
“I’m saying that Marion told me you detest wasting time, above all else. Surely you see it’s a complete waste of your time to play mind games with this animal. It’s completely beneath you. Go take over a country or something. Isn’t that more your kind of challenge?”
He looked taken aback and stared at her as if he might be truly seeing her for the first time and found someone worthy of his notice.
Oh, Lord.
Was he furious?
She couldn’t tell.
Finally, as snotty as you please, he said, “I don’t happen to own any countries.”
Then he burst out laughing, and Audrey could breathe again.
“I think we’re going to enjoy working together, Audrey. I’ll see you Friday evening when I get back into town.”
He strode into the garage, got into that sleek, beautiful, black Lexus that looked like a very pretty, fancy toy, whipped it out of the garage and down the driveway and was off.
The dog started crying pitifully and dancing on his hind legs again, obviously feeling he deserved Audrey’s complete attention.
Damn, Audrey thought.
What had she gotten herself into?
Simon couldn’t get the sight of her out of his head, even though she’d covered herself up from head to toe. Which was a damned shame, he thought, to cover up a body like that.
He picked up his phone as he drove down the road and called Marion.
“You didn’t tell me she was gorgeous,” he told Marion.
She laughed. “Since when have you needed me or anyone else to tell you a woman is gorgeous?”
Simon put the phone aside and swore softly.
Marion laughed some more.
“I really don’t need this right now. I still haven’t gotten myself untangled from the last woman I allowed into my life.”
“Believe me, you are the last kind of man Audrey Graham wants, which means you’re perfectly safe with her.”
“And why wouldn’t she want me?” he bristled. “I’m a helluva catch.”
Any rich man was. Rich, single and under forty made it doubly so. It wasn’t his ego talking, simply the facts. There would always be a supply of women who wanted a man with money, and Simon had loads of it.
“I make it a point not to spread tales about other people’s business, Simon. You know that. But I’m sure Audrey would be much more comfortable with you knowing that she just got rid of a man like you and doesn’t want another one.”
“What do you mean, by ‘like me’? Sweet tempered and sexy?”
“Oh, yes. Those are exactly the words that come to mind when I think about you,” Marion said. “Although, I have to say, you seem to be in a much better mood than usual. Are you feeling all right?”
“It’s temporary, I’m sure.”
It was the idea of someone taming the monster-dog, making Peyton happy, making Ms. Bee happy and ensuring she didn’t quit that was easing all of Simon’s headaches.
Or maybe it was just meeting a gorgeous, dark-haired woman with a little attitude who clearly wasn’t afraid to go toe-to-toe with him that was causing his good mood.
There weren’t a lot of women who’d dare.
Or who could make him laugh as he had with her.
“I just need someone to fix the dog and the yard,” he said, maybe to remind himself even more than Marion.
“And that’s exactly what I found you,” she claimed.
“You wouldn’t try to fix me up with her, right? You know better than that.”
Ms. Bee probably was the only woman alive who could live happily with him. He accepted that, was fine with it.
Life was so much less complicated that way.
“It wouldn’t matter if I was. I told you, she most certainly does not want a man in her life right now.”
Which was a damned shame, Simon thought, though he certainly shouldn’t.
He liked a woman who wasn’t intimidated by him, who could spit fire every now and then.
Especially in his bed.
Audrey still couldn’t believe she’d actually done it!
She’d gotten a job! One that came with a place to live that was tantalizingly near her daughter.
The first step of many toward getting back into her daughter’s life.
Not even meeting the ultrascary Ms. Bee could ruin this day.
And Ms. Bee was ultrascary.
Frosty as a cold north wind, squinty-eyed, rail-thin with a spine as straight as a ruler and if possible, even more adept at firing off orders than her employer.
She’d allowed Audrey entrance into her spotless, cavernous kitchen only long enough to get her social security number and reiterate her hatred of the dog and all that Audrey was expected to do without bothering or causing any additional problems for the man of the house or Ms. Bee.
And Audrey was most definitely not to get any ideas about causing the kind of trouble that involved an unworthy woman trying to get her hands on Simon Collier.
Audrey tried to assure Ms. Bee that she wanted no kind of trouble at all in her life at present. She didn’t think Ms. Bee was convinced.
“Whew,” she said to herself when she finally escaped the confines of the kitchen and was safely in the backyard again.
Good thing she wasn’t here to make friends.
She was headed for her car to leave when Tink, who’d been sleeping under a nearby tree, lifted his head and came bounding toward her as if the dog had experienced more than enough of Ms. Bee and couldn’t bear the thought of Audrey leaving him all alone with her.
He promptly jumped up on Audrey, barking excitedly and trying to lick her face again.
Audrey had to work to put on a somewhat stern face and say, “Off,” while giving the dog a little push until he was on all fours again.
Then she knelt down beside him and scratched his pretty black head.
“I have to go, but it’s only going to be for a little while. I promise. And then I’ll be back, and you and I are going to be buddies,” she told him.
He made a half-crying sound, as if he understood that she was leaving and thought he might convince her to stay.
“Oh, baby,” she said, knowing what it was like to feel all alone in the world and unloved. “I just have to get my clothes and some shoes, a few CDs, some gardening books, maybe some treats for you, and then I’ll be here all the time.”
More crying.
Pathetic crying.
The dog could really turn on the sympathy cries when he wanted to.
“I’m sorry. I have to go.” Audrey kissed him on the snout, then stood up to go.
Tink started barking like crazy.
She couldn’t shush him fast enough.
Ms. Bee appeared in the open back door of the house, a scowl on her stern face, clearly ready to rebuke the dog until she saw Audrey and turned her scorn to the adult in the group.
“Oh,” she said. “You’re still here.”
And then she gave a rather theatrical huff, as if it were an insult that Audrey hadn’t left quickly enough, and she stood even straighter, her expression becoming even more annoyed.
“Will you be doing something about that thing or ignoring him until he becomes your responsibility tomorrow?” Ms. Bee asked.
Audrey managed a slight s
mile and what she hoped was an even tone. “Actually, I thought I’d take him for a walk, that a little more exercise might help him quiet down for a while and … um … make your day a little more pleasant.”
If it was possible for Ms. Bee to have a pleasant day.
Audrey wasn’t sure it was.
Ms. Bee looked puzzled by the idea of a pleasant day but simply gave another huff, shut the door and disappeared back into the house.
Audrey took a breath, went and got the dog’s leash from a peg on the inside of the garage, clipped it to the dog’s collar and then unlatched the collar holding his link to the electronic fence around the property. All the while Tink danced with excitement, no doubt knowing he was going somewhere and greatly complicating the entire process.
Audrey didn’t even try to correct his behavior at the moment. She just wanted to put some space between herself and Ms. Bee.
She and Tink set off at a brisk walk, which soon became a fast jog. It was that or let the dog pull her along, another bad precedent to set. So Audrey ran, again taking the path of least resistance, telling herself she’d do better tomorrow, when her job started for real.
They ran past the grand, old near-mansions of Simon Collier’s neighborhood and then took a turn down the sidewalk along the main road that led from his neighborhood to Audrey’s old one.
They ran past the entrance without slowing a bit, nerves pushing Audrey on, boundless energy and the allure of freedom pushing the dog. She sensed that Tink didn’t get to run often and that he really liked running.
They got to the ice cream store on the corner of Maple and Vine, a longtime favorite of Audrey’s daughter, and she couldn’t run anymore.
There were a lot of dogs in the neighborhood, and the owner kindly left a big container of water out for thirsty ones. Audrey stopped to catch her breath and let Tink have a drink.
He was so excited to be out and about in unfamiliar territory that he couldn’t quite decide what he wanted more—to satisfy his thirst or properly explore his surroundings.
He’d take a couple of huge, messy laps of water, then lift his head and dance a bit, checking out cars and pedestrians alike, grinning that silly grin of his and looking at Audrey as if he absolutely adored her for freeing him from the confines of the house and the people there who just didn’t understand or appreciate him.
“Aah, you’re just a big, sweet baby,” Audrey said, scratching his head and giving him another kiss.
He jumped up on her again, as if he just couldn’t get close enough to her, and before she could correct him again, an astonished voice to her right yelled, “Mom?”
She turned toward the voice, and there was Andie, holding a chocolate ice cream cone and looking as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing, and Andie’s friend Jake Elliott, who’d been there to witness so many of Audrey’s sins.
“What are you doing here?” Andie asked accusingly.
“I …” Oh, she’d tried to figure out how to do this a thousand times, and the truth was that nothing would make it easier. Nothing would make this a welcome change to her daughter, Audrey feared. So she just looked her daughter in the eye and said it. “I’ve taken a job in Highland Park. I’m going to be living there.”
Andie looked horrified. Her pupils got big and round, suddenly swimming in tears, and she took a step back, as if even this distance was much too close.
“You can’t,” Andie whispered, Jake coming protectively to her side in a silent show of support Audrey was glad her daughter had, even if they stood together against her.
“It’s true. I did,” Audrey said, standing her ground.
“How could you do this to me?” Andie asked, shaking her head. “Haven’t you done enough already to ruin my life!”
Audrey didn’t know what she would have said to that, but then she didn’t have to respond, because Tink saved her. He must have felt the tension between her and Andie and decided to make it clear that he was on Audrey’s side.
He started growling at Andie and Jake.
“Tink, no,” Audrey said sternly.
He looked at her as if she might be too dumb to understand he was defending her.
“It’s all right,” Audrey told him. “I’ve got it.”
He quit growling but stood by her side bristling and ready to step in, if need be.
“So, you think you’re going to force yourself back into my life? Just like that?” Andie asked.
No, she simply thought she’d live nearby and hope eventually something would change. That Andie would need her.
“I just took the dog for a walk, Andie. I had no idea you were going to be here. How could I? I haven’t seen you in two months.”
“But here? You had to do it here? Where I live? Well, it’s not going to work,” Andie told her. “I don’t care what you do. It won’t work.”
And then she stalked away. Jake stood there for a moment, looking as though he wanted to say something, but in the end just shook his head and walked away without a word.
Tink pitched a fit, barking for all he was worth, chasing away the enemy.
“No,” Audrey tried to explain to him. “That’s my baby. My little girl.”
She stood there watching as Andie got into her car and drove away, and then she sank down onto a bench in front of the ice cream store, shaking, the dog practically in her lap and making that fussing, crying sound, not understanding what was wrong but wanting to help in any way he could.
Chapter Three
Andie was still shaking when she pulled into the driveway at her family house, which she now shared with her father. Jake had tried to calm her down all the way home, but it didn’t work. He’d wanted to come home with her and talk some more, but she wouldn’t let him. Not that he could really do anything anyway.
She was too furious for that.
Plus, it was better to handle things like this on her own. It wasn’t as if she could really count on anybody to help, anyway.
Her life.
Her problems.
It was safer that way.
Still, after everything her mother had done last fall, everything the entire neighborhood was still talking about and probably would be for years, her mother dared show her face here?
And planned to live nearby?
Andie couldn’t believe it!
She got out of the car and slammed the door, then swiped away angry tears. Her father’s car wasn’t in the driveway, which meant he wasn’t home, as usual, but judging by the other car in the garage, his embarrassingly young, snotty, blond girlfriend was.
Great!
If only her parents had held things together for two more years, she’d have been gone to college, and it wouldn’t have really mattered. As it was, Andie couldn’t wait to escape from both of them. How she’d make it through another year and a half living with her father and Barbie—that’s what Andie called her because she was like a Barbie doll come to life—and her mother now living nearby …
Well, that just sounded like seven different kinds of torture.
Andie went inside through the garage door, not quite slamming it but shutting it none too gently, and stalked through the house.
She was nearly to her room before she came face-to-face with the new love of her father’s life. They nearly collided in the hallway, Barbie wearing a robe, slippers and some kind of green gunk on her face.
She gave a huff of displeasure, stopping short just before Andie plowed on by. “I thought you were Richard,” she said.
“At this hour? You’re kidding, right? When was the last time he made it home before dark? I mean, it’s not easy, making enough money for all the things you need. Your new car, and your home-spa days, Barbie.”
Barbie gave her one of those sickeningly sweet smiles that seemed to say, You won’t get rid of me that easily. Or maybe, I’ll outlast you. Just wait and see.
Andie told herself she didn’t care. She went on to her room, fell back onto her bed and pulled out her phone to call h
er father.
“Please, be there. Please,” she whispered. “Just this once.”
She got his secretary, of course, who was actually willing to grant Andie an audience with her own father. This time.
“Dad!” Andie groaned as he came on the line. “The most awful thing happened just now. I ran into mom at the ice cream place. She said she’s going to be living in Highland Park!”
He laughed. “Andie, there’s no way your mother could afford to live there. Unless …”
Unless she’d found another man to support her.
He didn’t have to say it.
Andie knew it better than he did.
Highland Park was as fancy a neighborhood as any in town.
“She claims she got a job,” Andie told him.
“Doing what? She’s not trained to do anything.”
“I know,” Andie said.
Which meant … what? That her mother had lied to her? That was nothing new. She’d told any number of lies last fall.
“I can’t have her back here,” Andie said. “Everything was finally starting to quiet down, and I just can’t go through all that again. Will you just call her and tell her to go away, please? Tell her if she really loves me to stay away.”
“I … Hang on, Andie. I’ve got a call on the other line I’ve been waiting for. I have to take this—”
“Dad, please!”
“I’m sorry—”
“No. Just call her. Promise me, you will. Please—”
And then he was gone.
Andie clicked off her phone, barely managing to resist the urge to throw it across the room.
Of course, he had an important call.
This was only her life, her mother about to ruin it once again, and he had a call. No big surprise there. She was lucky if she could get five minutes of his time in a day, maybe even a week. He’d come back to live in the house these past few months, but he wasn’t really here. Not any more than he had been before her parents separated, she realized.
He breezed in, breezed out, did his own thing, and now he had Barbie to entertain in what little time he did spend here.
She really was all alone.
Audrey didn’t have many things of her own to pack.
She’d left her own home three months ago with nothing but the contents of one suitcase and an overnight bag and arrived at Marion’s two months ago with the same things. In her time here, she’d accumulated no more than what would fit in two boxes, and they were already in her car. She zipped up the suitcase and looked longingly around the tiny guest cottage of Marion’s feeling something akin to sheer panic.
