Trade It All

by Ruth Cardello

  Expelling a harsh breath, Emmitt grunted, “I flew up from Texas because I was told you had a situation on your hands.”

  “I do,” Lance said with a self-deprecating smile. “But it’s nothing you can help me with.” With that, Lance walked away from a very pissed-off-looking Emmitt. Normally he wouldn’t have treated anyone that way, but he was irritated Dax had gone against his wishes. And he was at a loss for what his next step should be with Willa.

  In the past he’d chosen to withdraw from the politics of his family and steer clear of emotionally messy situations. He’d been raised to keep his head down, his thoughts to himself, and to put peace within the family above his personal needs.

  That was about to change.

  He strode to the elevator and punched the button to his floor. He was still glowering as he walked through his secretary’s office. She went three shades of red.

  “I’m so sorry. I never would have. Please don’t report this to the temp agency. I’m paying for college on this salary. God, I’m so sorry.”

  Lance waved a hand dismissively. “I’m not going to say anything.” The last thing he needed was something else to feel badly about. His tie was suddenly too tight. He loosened it. “Am I a complete asshole?” he demanded.

  With huge round eyes, the young woman answered, “I’m not qualified to answer that question, sir.”

  Lance paced in front of her desk. “She said the best thing I could do was leave her alone. You’re a woman. Did she look like she meant it?”

  The woman made a pained face and looked down at her desk.

  “I left her alone the last time she asked me to. It made things worse. This time I’m handling it my way.” A euphoric thought accompanied his decision. God, she’d tasted so damn good. If she’d felt nothing toward him, she would have never kissed him the way she had. No, she was holding back for some reason, and he intended to find out why.

  In a weak voice, his secretary said, “If you don’t tell me, I won’t know anything if anyone asks.”

  Lance looked at her and realized she’d gone pale. He replayed his last words in his head and smiled wryly. “I’m not going to kidnap her.” He arched an eyebrow. “Unless you think that would work.”

  The woman accidentally knocked her keyboard off her desk, bent to retrieve it, and looked sweaty and nervous when she met his eyes again. Her mouth opened and closed a few times like a fish trying to catch its breath.

  I should probably tell her I’m kidding before she faints or calls the police. “How about you just order an insanely large bouquet and send it to this address.” He wrote Willa’s address on a sticky note. “In fact, have a bouquet sent there every day until I tell you to stop.”

  With that, Lance returned to his office. He answered several emails regarding the Capitol Complex project. Work always calmed him. It also gave him time to think before choosing his next step with Willa.

  At half past eleven, he woke Clay with a phone call.

  “Who is this?” Clay asked groggily.

  “Lance.”

  “She’s not here,” he mumbled.

  “Good. We need to be clear about something. Willa is mine. She can work for you if she wants to, but if you so much as flirt with her I will feed you your front teeth for lunch. I don’t care if you’re Dax’s friend.”

  With just a hint of sarcasm, Clay said, “Got it. Don’t fuck Willa. Anything else?”

  Lance knew how to use a weakness, in buildings or people, to his benefit. If Clay was looking for a pet project, Lance could work with that. “I need to spend more time with her.”

  “Are you asking for my help?” Clay sounded pleased with the idea.

  Better to have him working with me rather than against. Lance had gone over all the possible ways he could spend more time with Willa and this still made the most sense. “Yes. I want you to bring her with you when you meet with me.”

  Clay laughed. “I’ve never played matchmaker. Sounds fun.” In a much more serious tone, as if he had just thought of something important, Clay asked, “What are your intentions?”

  “My intentions?” Lance asked in disbelief.

  “I’m not setting the two of you up for anything less than the real deal.” He made a contemplative sound. “I feel responsible for her. She’s my first personal assistant.”

  How is this ridiculous man Dax’s best friend?

  “Just bring her with you later today.”

  Lance hung up and stood. What the hell am I doing?

  What I should have done a long time ago.

  A thought occurred to him, and he buzzed through to his secretary. “Did you already send out the bouquet?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Shit. “I forgot to tell you what to write on the card.”

  “I improvised.”

  “What did you say?” Do I want to know?

  She cleared her throat nervously. “I’m here when you’re ready—Lance.”

  “I guess that’s better than—I’m done being patient, it’s time to fucking forgive me.”

  There was a light feminine laugh. “I thought so.”

  “What’s your name?”

  “Miss Oliviera.”

  “Miss Oliviera, when my regular secretary comes back, apply for a position in my office. We’ll find something for you.”

  “Thank you, sir.” After a moment, she added, “I still won’t lie to the police for you.”

  Lance laughed without humor and hung up. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.

  Chapter Eight

  Three minutes before noon, Willa stood next to the desk of Kate, Dax’s secretary. “I’m meeting Mr. Landon. He’s using an office here.” She smiled apologetically. “I tried to call and confirm the location but . . .”

  Kate smiled back in understanding. “Mr. Landon lives by his own schedule. Is today your first day?”

  Willa nodded and adjusted her suit jacket. After leaving Lance’s office that morning she’d gone for a long walk. Despite how her feet protested the high-heeled abuse, she felt calmer. Now that she knew her feelings for him were still there, bubbling below the surface, she would make sure she didn’t put herself in a vulnerable position again. All she needed was distance for things to get back on track, to keep the past contained. “Do you know which office we’ll be using?”

  Kate referenced a notepad beside her computer. “Looks like the one right next to Mr. Marshall’s.”

  Only because Kate was so easy to talk to, Willa said, “I get the feeling he wants to keep an eye on us.”

  Amusement twinkled in Kate’s eyes. “He’s becoming quite the family man.”

  Family. Until recently Willa would have said hers consisted of only Lexi and Kenzi. When Kenzi married Dax, and there was no doubt that it would happen, it would make him a brother of sorts. “I’ve never had a big brother watching out for me.”

  “Not even all those Barringtons?”

  Willa shrugged. It hadn’t been like that. Kenzi used to avoid her family as much as possible, so Lexi and Willa had also. Even after moving to Boston to be closer to Kenzi, actual interaction with her family had been minimal. That had changed this past year after she met Dax. Kenzi was doing more and more with her family. It was good for Kenzi, but it did make things uncomfortable sometimes for Willa. None of that was appropriate to share with Dax’s secretary, so Willa didn’t.

  “I suppose I should go see what the office looks like,” Willa said.

  Kate snapped her fingers and stood. “I can’t believe I forgot about it. A box came this morning with your name on it.”

  “Mine? Really?”

  They walked together to the office beside Dax’s. On the desk there was indeed a huge wrapped box with Willa’s name on it. Willa turned to ask Kate for a pair of scissors to open it and discovered that the other woman already had a pair with her. “I figured you might not have one yet.”

  There was a card taped to the outside of the box. Willa tore it open. In beautiful cursive writing it
said, “Congratulations on your new job! Sophie and Dale.”

  Willa read it aloud, trying to hide her surprise, then added, “Kenzi’s parents.”

  “That is so sweet,” Kate cooed. “What do you think they sent? Do you mind if I stay and see?”

  “Of course not,” Willa said. Kenzi had said her relationship with her mother had become much closer recently. Was this an olive branch? A sign that Kenzi’s parents wanted to get to know Kenzi’s friends better as well? Strange, but after all the time she and Lexi spent with Kenzi, she didn’t feel she really knew Kenzi’s parents at all. She and Lexi had interacted with them as little as possible for Kenzi’s sake. The idea was disconcerting.

  Willa didn’t let herself think about how much she missed her own mother. That sorrow was also buried deep within her. She cut the ribbon that held the box closed and ripped the paper away. As Willa took out each item she said the name of it slowly. In all her life she’d never received such a thoughtful gift. “There’s a personalized desk calendar, stapler, letter opener. There’s even a lunch bag with my name on it.”

  Kate clapped her hands together happily. “It’s like school supplies you get every year when you start in a new class, isn’t it?”

  “I guess,” Willa said after lining up the items on the desk. “My parents passed away when I was young. We lived at boarding school after that. The school supplied everything. We didn’t get things like this.”

  “That’s so sad,” Kate said sincerely.

  Willa shrugged. Only if I remember. And I don’t want to. “Not really. It’s just the way it was.”

  “Moving in?” Clay asked from the doorway.

  Kate made a quick departure. Willa moved the box off the desk and hastily organized some of the items into the drawers of the desk. She paused when she realized he was watching her. Oh, shit. This is his desk, really. And here I am putting stuff in the drawers like it’s mine. She started taking the items back out. “I’m sorry. This was delivered. I should have asked if you wanted any of it in your desk.”

  Clay leaned against the door jam. “Put whatever you want in here. Consider the office yours. I don’t really do desks.” He walked over and looked into the box on the floor. “Is that a lunch bag with your name on it?”

  Willa blushed and pushed the box aside with her foot. “Sophie Barrington sent it. She must have heard I took this job.” She took a deep breath and fought for inner calm. Seeing Lance that morning had brought everything back. Dark thoughts that had been securely tucked away were fighting for space in her head again. She was keeping it all contained, but it was taking everything she had.

  Clay sized Willa up from head to toe. “And she likes you. Interesting.”

  He’s curious, that’s all. All I have to do is convince him that there is nothing interesting and he’ll move on to something else. “I’ve known the family for a long time.”

  “The Barringtons are an intense bunch, aren’t they? Really uptight.”

  Willa looked away, not wanting to say anything one way or the other. She picked up the stapler to place it off to one side of the desk. “Every family has their good points and their challenges.”

  “Why didn’t it work out between you and Lance?”

  The stapler hit the floor. Willa scrambled to pick it up. She looked straight into Clay’s eyes and lied. “There was never anything between us.”

  “You’re not a good liar.”

  I can’t do this. I won’t do this. Willa straightened her shoulders. “Do you have a list of job responsibilities for me?”

  Clay smiled. “I like you, Willa. You’ve got this genuine vibe going. I respect that. I get that none of this is my business, but it’s like a car crash I can’t look away from. What is it about Lance you don’t like?”

  Willa blushed again and hated that she wasn’t better at hiding how she felt. Lexi would never betray herself that way.

  Clay straightened from the door. “You do like him. Oh, that’s even more interesting.”

  If Clay hadn’t been blocking the only exit, Willa would have withdrawn. Feeling trapped, she forced a smile. “Like I said, I’ve known the family a long time. I like all of them.”

  Clay tapped a finger on his chin as he studied her. “You lie like someone who hates to, but you’re willing to about this. Which means you’re hiding something. Sweet Willa has a secret. That’s it, isn’t it? There’s something you don’t want anyone to know.”

  Willa’s knees buckled beneath her, and she put a hand on the top of the desk to steady herself. There was only one way out of the situation outside of shoving him aside, and that was to convince him he was wrong. Willa straightened. “With that imagination you should write mysteries. There is no big secret. I’m not hiding anything. Now, if it’s okay with you, I’d like get started on what you hired me for.”

  “Great, let’s move this meeting over to Lance’s office. He said he has some preliminary sketches he wants me to look over. You could take notes on what we discuss.”

  Bringing a shaky hand up to her mouth, Willa said, “I—I—”

  Clay smiled again. “You don’t want to go there.”

  Willa hugged her other arm to her stomach. “I don’t want to go there.”

  “Because he slept with your twin?”

  “No.”

  Snapping a finger in the air, Clay said, “He said he wanted to?”

  Oh, my God. How do I stop this? “Mr. Landon. None of this is any of your business.”

  Clay rubbed his chin again. “I feel like I’m close. I don’t believe there was nothing between you. Is he a sick bastard? Does he want to wear nylons during sex or something like that? I knew a guy like that once. Well, I knew his ex-girlfriend. She told me about it.” He shuddered. “Try to get that image out of your head. I haven’t been able to.”

  Willa blinked a few times then shook her head. I have to get out of here. She picked up her purse. “I really want to work for you, but this whole conversation is inappropriate.” She looked pointedly at the door, hoping he’d get the hint and step aside.

  In a much more serious tone, Clay asked, “Did he hurt you?”

  Willa froze. She opened her mouth to say he didn’t but no sound came out.

  All amusement left Clay’s expression. “He did hurt you.”

  “It was a very long time ago.”

  Clay folded his arms over his chest. “I don’t think I want you seeing him.”

  There was an absurdity to the conversation that put a sad smile on Willa’s face. “As I said it’s not any of your business.”

  “A woman like you deserves someone nice.”

  “Like me?” For some reason his words struck a chord with her. The overwhelming memories she’d been pushing aside since she’d seen Lance that morning came rushing back. She thought about how she’d all but thrown herself at Lance the night they’d been together, how she hadn’t told him about the pregnancy after she knew. She thought about how close she’d come to aborting the baby and how she’d lost it anyway after she’d decided to keep it. She’d been so angry after it happened that she’d slept with a few men she didn’t care about just because she wanted to wipe Lance out of her mind. All that had done was make her feel worse. “You don’t know me.” Tears filled her eyes as she said the words.

  “What the hell is going on in here?” Dax’s voice boomed into the office, making Willa’s humiliation complete.

  “She’s not crying because of me. Okay, partly because of me, but mostly because of your future brother-in-law Lance.”

  “Fuck,” Dax said, pushing past Clay and closing the door behind him. He came to a stop a foot from Willa. “What did he do?”

  “Nothing,” Willa said, trying to blink away her tears.

  “He did something,” Clay said with authority. “But she won’t tell me what.”

  Dax glared at his friend. “You couldn’t stay out of my family, could you? You had to dig and dig until you found something. What am I supposed to do with this?�
��

  Willa started to edge her way out of the office. “Nothing. This is just a big misunderstanding.”

  Dax took out his phone. “I’m calling Kenzi.”

  “No,” Willa said and grabbed his phone. “Don’t. Please don’t.” Dax and Clay looked at her as if she was losing her mind. Willa held his phone to her chest. “There is nothing to tell her because nothing happened.”

  There was a cold anger in Dax’s eyes that sent a shiver down Willa’s spine. “Willa, if he hurt you in any way . . .”

  Willa closed her eyes briefly as the enormity of where this was going sunk in. Kenzi had just confessed to her family that she’d been raped as a teenager. Dax was the first person Kenzi had told. He was looking at this situation through that lens. “It’s not what you’re thinking, Dax.”

  Dax stepped closer to her. “Did. He. Hurt. You?”

  A tear spilled down Willa’s cheek even as she lied. “No.”

  In a gentle tone Dax said, “Don’t protect him, Willa. And don’t be afraid. No one will think any less of you.”

  Angrily wiping her tears away, Willa said, “Why are you doing this?” More tears spilled over. “I need to get out of here.” She handed his phone back to him and pushed past both of them.

  Dax stepped in front of her. “Kenzi thought the truth would turn people away from her, but it didn’t. If something happened, even with her brother, she could help you.”

  “Please let me leave.”

  Dax folded his arms across his chest. “I will if you can look me in the eye and tell me that Lance didn’t hurt you.”

  It was too much. Too emotional. Too confusing. Willa said more than she meant to. “He didn’t mean to. We were young. He’d been drinking when I went to see him . . .” Willa’s voice trailed away as she realized that the way she’d said it fit with what Dax thought. “It isn’t what you think.”

  Dax seemed to grow taller with anger. He turned to Clay. “Where is Lance now?”

  “At his office, I imagine. We had planned to meet him there,” Clay said.

  Turning on his heel, Dax strode out of the office.

  Willa stood in frozen horror, then bolted after him. “Don’t do this, Dax.”