by Cora Seton
“Imagine if the tram stopped. It could be days before we were rescued. We’d have to take turns lying down to sleep while the others stood up.”
Days? He dragged his gaze away from the spectacular mountain scenery outside the window and looked down at her, finally catching her evil grin. “It isn’t working,” he ground out.
“What isn’t working?” she asked innocently, pushing him farther into the wall.
“You’re not scaring me.”
“I think I am,” she laughed. “You’re really sweating.”
Damn it, she was right—he was practically dripping. “So I don’t like small spaces, so what?”
“So, it’s kind of pathetic, Moneybuns. This is just a tourist attraction.” She draped herself over him. “A really, really small and confined tourist attraction.”
This time he did push her away, firmly but not too roughly. No need to make a spectacle of himself while the cameras were rolling. “Enough. I know I’m impossible to resist, but you’re going to have to control yourself until you get to the top. Once we’re there, I’ll be happy to indulge your every fantasy.” Out of the corner of his eye he saw the upper station come into view and breathed a sigh of relief. A couple more moments and he’d be done with this ride from hell.
With any luck they’d hike down.
* * * * *
Even scared to death, Evan was hot. Once he succumbed to his claustrophobia he stopped complaining about the hordes of money-hungry women who threw themselves at him on a daily basis, and she was able to remember why she’d found him so attractive. The fact that billionaire Evan Mortimer had an Achilles heel made him all that much more interesting. What had happened to make him so antsy in small spaces?
Bella filed out of the tram onto the top of Whistler’s Mountain, no relation to the famous ski resort far to the southwest, as Madelyn pointed out. The air was noticeably cooler up here, even in the broad sunshine, and the view took her breath away. She only glanced at the upper station, which looked to contain a restaurant as well as a gift shop, before she turned to face the valley spread out below them and the jagged mountains that marched in every direction off into the distance.
Canada had so far exceeded her expectations, she had to admit. She’d heard about Banff and Jasper from many of her friends and family members—since Montana bordered Canada, the park was a popular vacation destination for Chance Creek’s citizens—but their descriptions and even their photographs didn’t do it justice. For one minute all her worries about the show, Evan, her animals and business slid away and she let the light breeze and thin air refresh her. She wished she always had this view in front of her to remind her of the infinite wonder of the world she inhabited. Somehow, in the day to day of life and work, it was all too easy to forget.
“Pretty spectacular, isn’t it?” Evan said, coming up beside her.
“It sure is. Feeling better?”
“Much. No thanks to you.”
“You deserved it,” she said tartly.
“Look, I never meant to imply that your goals in winning this contest are any less worthy than my goals,” Evan said.
“Yes, you did,” she retorted.
“Well, I guess I did,” he admitted. “But I want you to know I do admire your work.”
“I wish I could say the same.” She wasn’t going to fall for his charm again. She’d watched him turn it on and off too many times.
“Oh, yeah? Is your filing and appointment system computerized?”
“Sure. Everyone’s is,” she said. “So what?”
“Mortimer Innovations has five patents that pertain to that software. Do you use the new, longer-lasting lightbulbs?”
“Uh-huh.”
“We helped develop them. Do you care at all if people in Africa have access to clean drinking water?”
She just looked at him.
“We’re a major backer in a plan to deliver simple, low cost technology to a thousand remote villages in the next three years. How about disease control…”
“I get it, I get it. You’re a saint and we’d all be lost without you,” Bella said, waving him off.
“All I’m saying is I’m not a bad guy, Bella. I want to retain control over Mortimer Innovations because I have a vision for the company—one that values improving conditions for human beings all over this planet above stockholder profits. Unfortunately, if I don’t get married I’ll lose control over the company and my brother will take charge.”
“Let me guess; your brother is the devil incarnate and he’ll use his super-powers for evil?”
“Something like that,” Evan said. “Let’s just say his belief in the bottom line trumps everything else. I’m in an incredible position, Bella—I can affect millions of lives for the better.”
“Or my life for the worse,” she said and walked away.
* * * * *
Evan stared out of the mountaintop restaurant’s huge windows without seeing the incredible panorama spread below them anymore. His first attempt to impress Bella and get her thinking positively about the possibility of marrying him for a year had failed utterly because once again he’d forgotten she wasn’t one of the legions of women back in California throwing themselves at his feet in order to get hold of his money. He wanted to tell her more about what his company could do—why she should look at it as a force for good rather than just another enormous corporation—but if he thought she would be wowed by a list of patents and inventions, he was highly mistaken.
He needed specifics. He needed to prove that his need to maintain control over Mortimer Innovations was just as important and valid as her need to keep control over her veterinary clinic. If he could introduce some doubt into her mind about who deserved to win, he could wrap up this contest in no time. Who could have guessed the little vet from Montana would prove to be such a competitor?
Or maybe he was just getting soft.
If you’re not a winner, you’re a loser.
His father’s favorite saying. Damn it—he wasn’t going to be a loser in this competition. He’d walk off this show with a wife on his arm contractually bound to be where he wanted, when he wanted. Mortimer Innovations was his—no one else’s—and it was going to stay that way. He’d already set up a series of labs and think tanks around the country to provide guidance for ways Mortimer Innovations could lead the United States into a golden age of sustainable technology production.
He noticed Bella picking at her food and wondered what she was thinking about. Probably her precious animals. Didn’t she realize the world was overrun with pets? No amount of money could solve that problem permanently. Still, as he watched her finally raise a bite to her mouth, he found himself memorizing the shape of her lips and all his thoughts of business strategy slipped away. She’d make someone a wonderful wife. She was kind, thoughtful, full of energy. She was the kind of woman who would be a true partner to her husband, bringing her own thoughts, ideas and plans to the marriage.
He had no experience with that.
His mother had been a pampered invalid as long as he could remember, and now he wondered how she came to play that role. He’d have to ask Amanda to do some research. What if he’d had a mother like Bella, a mother who wasn’t afraid to step out of her door, leave her community, and head out into adventures? A mother who encouraged him, rather than tried to hold him back? He frowned, considering this. Between his mother and father, his childhood was by no means ideal, but it had pushed him in the right direction to become the man he was today. So was it all bad? He was determined, strong, competitive to the extreme, refused to be held back by others’ fears… an excellent businessman.
Maybe he should thank them for being so messed up.
Yeah, right.
“Okay, people, finish up,” Madelyn said. “Time for the next challenge.”
Bella met his gaze and rolled her eyes. He grinned despite himself.
Here we go again.
* * * * *
They stood at the end of
the wooden boardwalks that traversed the ground around the upper station. The cameras rolled as Jake gave his spiel. “This contest is different than the previous ones in that it does not require any strength of body to win. Instead, it requires a sharp eye and quick reflexes. The summit of Whistler’s Mountain supports a diverse ecosystem of creatures. You have fifteen minutes to find some of these creatures and photograph them. You’ll earn a point for every different species you photograph.”
Bella tuned Jake out as he shifted into a spiel about the digital cameras they were going to use in the contest. Obviously some company had paid a mint for this particular product placement. Instead she adjusted her hat and covertly studied Evan. She didn’t buy his earlier argument that he deserved to win because his company couldn’t do all the wonderful things it did for the world unless he was running it, but it had changed her perception of him, just a little. Maybe being a billionaire didn’t stop you from being human or caring about other human beings. It didn’t stop him from having irrational fears just the same as everyone else, did it? She stifled a chuckle as she pictured his white-knuckled grip on the handrail inside the tram. Poor Evan. Poor little Moneybuns.
She was still going to beat him.
She accepted a laminated card that showed a variety of species of mammals and birds that made their homes on Whistler’s Mountain, and a compact digital camera whose workings proved nearly identical to her own. Taking her place next to the white-taped starting line someone had made near the end of the boardwalk, she waited for Jake’s “Go!” before plunging off it onto the rocky summit of the mountain itself, heading in the opposite direction that Evan took.
With the thud of her camera crew’s boots behind her on the rocks, she quickly realized what the true challenge was going to be in this contest. Gritting her teeth, she kept up her pace until she got a good distance from the crowds near the upper station, and slowed to a walk. She took a moment to peruse the laminated card, absorbing the types of critters she might see, rolled it up and shoved it into her pocket. From now on, she needed to keep her eyes peeled.
As she scanned the barren, rocky ground of the summit, she began to think this challenge was a joke. No sensible animal would make their home here, and even if they did, they’d hide until all the people left.
Except—what was that?
A scurry of movement stopped Bella cold and she crouched, as if that made her less visible on the barren mountaintop. She waved a hand behind her, hoping the camera crew understood she wanted them to stay still, and inched forward. There. Some kind of furry little beast ran around the rocks. She pointed the camera, clicked, and swore as she realized she still had the cap on. Before she could try again, the critter was gone.
Stifling another curse, Bella pulled out the laminated card. Was that a marmot? A glance over the pictures reminded her that birds counted for the challenge, as well, and she scanned the sky, scrambling to lift her camera when she spotted a black dot flying past. It took several moments to zoom the camera and find the bird again, but she snapped the photo and captured it successfully. She had no idea what type of bird it was and she didn’t care. One point.
An intake of breath from Nita had her alert again. The marmot was back. This was almost too easy, Bella thought as she composed the picture and snapped it. Two!
She stood up again and scanned the barren rock all around her, but no other animals came into view. Slowly, she began to walk. As minutes ticked by, her jubilation slipped away, replaced by panic. How many photos had Evan taken? Was he strengthening his lead?
She followed a trail farther away from the upper station, combing the ground for signs of smaller critters hiding among the rocks. Her camera ready in her hands, she stepped as quietly as she could, wincing every time one of the camera crew’s boots scraped against stone.
More minutes passed and her fingers gripping the camera became as sweaty as if she was running a race. Dammit, where were all the animals?
Wait a minute, what was that?
Bella froze, lifted the camera, and focused on what at first appeared to be a rock. This rock, however, had an eye. She took the picture, focused again, zoomed in closer and took a second shot. Satisfied, she moved toward it for a closer look.
The bird erupted from the ground in a flurry of wings, and Bella shrieked, nearly dropping the camera. Behind her, Nita and Paul, normally quiet as church mice, laughed out loud. She turned on them, but after a moment’s anger had to laugh, too.
“Scared me to death,” she gasped, knowing they were still getting all of this on film.
She only had a couple of minutes left, however, so she got back to scanning the ground and sky for more signs of life. When she came upon a spider, she took a quick picture although she figured it didn’t count. She also snapped another bird, but had the sinking suspicion it was the same one she’d photographed before.
When Madelyn hollered from the boardwalk that their time was up, Nita and Paul ushered her back, giving her no time to try to find one more animal. She stalked back over the rocks toward the director and tried to shake the heaviness pooling in the bottom of her stomach. If she didn’t take the lead today, she figured she might not ever pull ahead in this competition.
Jake stood right where they’d left him and as she approached, Madelyn held out her hand for her digital camera. She took out the memory card and plugged it into a laptop computer, which had been rigged up to a larger screen. Evan joined them, his jaw a rigid line. Maybe he didn’t find much to photograph either, she thought with a rush of relief.
“Bella, let’s see what you found here on top of Whistler’s Mountain, in Jasper Park,” Jake said. She’d become used to his stilted way of talking, knowing that when the show actually ran, each day would be broken into two episodes complete with many commercial breaks, after which the viewers needed to be reminded of what was happening and where the contestants were. Out of sight of the cameras Madelyn pressed keys on the keyboard and her first photo popped up on the large screen, a fuzzy image of a black bird in flight. A man Bella didn’t recognize whispered in Madelyn’s ear and she quickly typed something. Jake glanced down at the PDA in his hand, then looked straight at the camera. “Ah, a Cooper’s Hawk, common to these parts. Excellent. That’s one point!”
She let out the breath she didn’t know she’d been holding.
“Second photo. A yellow-bellied marmot—very common on top of Whistler’s mountain and throughout the park. That’s two points. Let’s see what’s next. Oooooh,” he let out an exaggerated sound. “Excellent shot, Bella. That’s a ptarmigan—very hard to spot when it’s camouflaged against the rocks. Well done—three points!”
Bella cringed, knowing what would come next. She wasn’t wrong.
“Oh, dear. Spiders are not mammals, Bella. I’m afraid this photo doesn’t count.” Madelyn flipped to her final photo, and an intense whispered conversation erupted between her and the man beside her, whom Bella now assumed was a local biologist. Madelyn typed furiously at her keyboard and Jake glanced down at his PDA again.
“While this photo shows the Cooper’s Hawk very clearly, the show’s producer has determined it to be the same bird you photographed before, Bella. I’m very sorry,” he didn’t look sorry at all, “but we can’t award a point for that shot.” He shook his head. “But three points is a fine effort! Now Evan, let’s take a look at your photographs.”
* * * * *
Evan considered tossing the camera at Jake—let’s see how good your reflexes are, buddy—but decided he’d better hand it over the normal way. He balled his hands into fists as he waited for Jake to pass it to Madelyn, and for her to fiddle around with the equipment until everything was connected.
The screen next to Jake remained blank.
Jake half-turned to the screen, one hand pointing toward it, ready to launch into his host-patter as soon as Evan’s first photograph came up, but after several long moments, he began to fidget.
“What’s the holdup, Maddie?” he said,
finally.
“I’m not finding any images. What the hell did you do to your camera?” She straightened from her laptop and glared at Evan.
“Nothing. There are no pictures.”
“No pictures?” Jake repeated. “I don’t understand. Maddie, I don’t understand what’s happening here.”
Only by sheer force of will did Evan refrain from smashing his fist into Jake’s face. He hadn’t seen a single animal—not one, single animal, and he’d become so obsessed with finding one, that he obviously hadn’t spent enough time looking up into the air, because he hadn’t seen the damn bird Bella photographed, either. Instead, he’d gotten angrier and angrier—sure this was some sort of trick the network had played on them—until he’d come back and seen Bella’s stupid marmot and ptarmigan.
“Evan, where are your pictures?” Madelyn demanded.
“I have none. There were no animals on my side of the mountaintop. None. Not a single one!” He didn’t realize he was advancing toward Jake until the man’s smirk was a foot in front of his face. “What the hell did you guys do—send your goons to scare them all away?”
“Okay, Evan—calm down. It’s just one challenge,” Madelyn said, shoving the laptop into Ellis’s hands and trying to push between Evan and Jake. “Look—I get it. Tensions are high, the contest is close and you like to win, but you can’t win every time, can you?”
“Like hell I can’t!” He knew he was making an ass out of himself but he didn’t care. No way was he going to lose this show. No freaking way. Not with an audience of millions. “This contest was fixed. You don’t want Bella getting too far behind, so you rigged things against me. Don’t think you’re fooling anyone, because you’re not. It’s all fake!”
“Sore loser.”
Evan spun on his heel to face Bella, who stood with her fists on her hips.
“What did you say?”
“Sore. Loser.” She enunciated the words carefully. “You’re really showing your true colors now, Mr. My-Innovations-Will-Save-The-World. Gee, you’re such a humanitarian. You really care about other people’s well-being, don’t you? One thing goes wrong for you and you’re ready to use your fists to get your way. Forget about the sore part—you’re just a loser.”
