by Cajio, Linda
Double Dealing is a work of fiction. Names, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
A Loveswept eBook Edition
Copyright © 1987 by Linda Cajio
Excerpt from Flirting with Disaster by Ruthie Knox copyright © 2013 by Ruth Homrighaus.
Excerpt from Taking Shots by Toni Aleo copyright © 2013 by Toni Aleo.
Excerpt from Long Simmering Spring by Elisabeth Barrett copyright © 2013 by Elisabeth Barrett.
All Rights Reserved.
Published in the United States by Loveswept, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
LOVESWEPT is a registered trademark of Random House, Inc.
Double Dealing was originally published in paperback by Loveswept, an imprint of The Random House Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc. in 1987.
eISBN: 978-0-307-79888-6
www.ReadLoveSwept.com
v3.1
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Epilogue
Dedication
Editor’s Corner
Excerpt from Ruthie Knox’s Flirting with Disaster
Excerpt from Toni Aleo’s Taking Shots
Excerpt from Elisabeth Barrett’s Long Simmering Spring
One
Breaking and entering was easier than he had expected.
Jed Waters immediately corrected his exaggeration as he jumped down from the top of the six-foot wrought-iron fence that surrounded the Barkeley estate. He was only trespassing—and in broad daylight. Hell, he thought. Whatever the label for the crime, it was still no way for a vice president of Atlantic Developers to earn a living. But then old Merriman Barkeley always had said eccentricity was the spice of life. He’d proven that long ago. He was the only member of Philadelphia’s premier Main Line family who insisted on living across the Delaware River in New Jersey. Unfortunately, Merriman’s latest eccentricity had been a whopper, and it was costing Atlantic a good deal of time, money, and aggravation. Jed hoped a sensible discussion would correct the matter with a minimum of fuss. The trick, though, was to get Merriman to agree to talk. So far, the old man had neatly eluded all phone calls and letters from the company’s lawyers.
Never do business with friends or family, or certifiable crackpots, Jed reminded himself for the tenth time as he absently touched his mustache. He’d forgotten that Merriman qualified on the first and last counts.
Pushing aside the thick branches of a holly tree, he surveyed the two acres of green lawn that fronted the majestic old Georgian mansion. Satisfied that no human being marred the pastoral scene, Jed continued on his mission. Breaking into a half trot, he followed the line of holly trees which served as a windbreak on three sides of the estate. The Delaware River bordered the fourth. He chuckled. Trespassing beat the hell out of having to trim all four hundred and twenty-three holly trees on a steamy summer afternoon. As a teenager, he’d done that more times than he cared to remember, working at the estate for his father’s landscaping business.
His amusement was replaced by a grimace. Trimming an endless row of holly trees beat the hell out of what he was about to do next, though.
“Barkeley never did make things easy,” Jed muttered out loud. He sighed in relief, as he glimpsed the first of the boxwood shrubs that bordered the old-fashioned garden maze. Situated on the left side of the property, the maze encompassed a full acre. It was Merriman’s pride and joy. It was also the easiest way to get to the house without being seen.
He kept to the cover of the trees until he was opposite the maze entrance. Grateful that the holly leaves were still soft, he pushed his way in between the trees. There was only about a hundred feet of open space between him and the maze. He knew the other entrance was just a few yards from the side terrace. If he’d timed it exactly right, Merriman would be having afternoon tea on the terrace, a ritual the old man performed rain or shine, from the first of March to the end of November, claiming it was good for the lungs. The raw October day would hardly deter him.
Jed hoped he remembered the way through the maze. He’d been seventeen the last time he’d gone through it. Eighteen years was a long time between mazes.
Taking a deep breath, he ran across the lawn and into the maze. As high boxwoods enclosed him in a shaded corridor, he grinned to himself. Piece of ca—
His self-congratulations went no further, as his ears caught the unmistakable sounds of someone rushing across the grass. He glanced over his shoulder and saw two enormous dogs racing toward him, their jaws open and tongues lolling. Instantly deciding there was only one sensible recourse, he turned and ran for all he was worth deeper into the maze. So much for a smooth entry, he thought. His brain scrambled to dredge up the maze’s “key.” Two right, one left, double back and turn right …
Skidding to an abrupt halt, he gazed in shock at the barrier of solid hedge where there was supposed to be an open corridor. Cursing himself for his mistake, he whipped around just in time to see the two Great Danes enter the outer end of the corridor. They began barking furiously as they closed in on their quarry. He slowly backed away from them. Muscles tensed for fight or flight, he wished he knew what the standing-high-jump record was. He had a feeling he was about to break it.
The huge animals stalked purposively toward him, their growls coming from deep in their massive chests, their fangs glistening. Jed pressed back into the wall of boxwood. In spite of the fifty-degree temperature, sweat trickled down his temples. Ignoring the well-trimmed branches stabbing at his flesh, he tried to press straight through to the other side.
“Hello,” said a pleasantly low, feminine voice from the other end of the corridor. “Were you looking for someone?”
“Just admiring the view,” Jed snapped, never glancing away from the dogs to see who he was talking to.
“It is a beautiful sight, isn’t it?” agreed the woman. “Well, I’ll leave you to it—”
“I’m quite willing to admit I’m trespassing,” Jed interrupted coolly. “Call the mutts off, and I’ll go quietly. Believe me, I’ll be more than happy to go quietly.”
There was a long silence. Jed wished he’d seen the Grand Canyon just once … watched the sun set on the Pyramids before the sun set on him …
“Samson! Delilah! Watch!”
At the sharp command, the dogs instantly became silent. They sat down on their haunches and looked around in bewilderment, like a couple of drunk dachshunds. Still eyeing them, Jed cautiously allowed his body to relax. He risked a glance in his rescuer’s direction, as she came to stand behind the dogs.
Gazing into questioning green-gray eyes, he completely forgot about the vicious animals sitting practically at his feet. He knew those eyes, and the deep midnight-black hair. Nobody could ever forget the exotic combination. The waif-like little girl he remembered was now a woman … a beautiful woman with the delicate features of a cameo portrait, except for the smear of mud she had across a creamy cheek, and her hair falling out of its fastening. The burgundy Shaker sweater and faded jeans covering the slender but very feminine curves were also mud-splattered. So were the unappealing Wellington boots. Somehow, though, her attire didn’t seem at all out of place with her beautiful face and form. Jed wasn’t surprised by the thought. Rache
l Barkeley always had liked to play in the mud.
Thanking his Maker for little girls, he crossed his arms over his chest and smiled.
“You’ve grown up, Rae.”
In dismay, Rachel Honoria Barkeley stared at the man posed nonchalantly at the maze wall. There’d been a time when she considered Jed Waters a big brother, but she knew he was here now for a very unbrotherly reason. It had been a shock to discover that her childhood friend had almost conned a sweet and slightly crazy old man into allowing the Barkeley Estate to be turned into a marina-condominium complex. Almost, she thought with satisfaction. Uncle Merry had finally had the common sense to pull out of the sale and return the down payment.
Rae studied the self-assured stranger who was so different from the shy adolescent she remembered so well. Jed’s physical appearance only enhanced the man he had become. His carrot-colored hair had faded to a deep auburn, and his features were more rugged and sharply defined. The thick reddish-brown mustache made him look even more virile. His hazel eyes were as striking as ever, but there was an experienced quality to his gaze now. He had to be over six feet tall—certainly a good head taller than her five feet eight inches. His lithe, muscular frame was accentuated by the jeans and baseball jacket he wore.
For a brief moment, Rae wondered how the dogs would have fared if she’d left them to their job. Being intimidated by a couple of Great Danes was not a trait of a fast-rising corporate vice president. Even at their friendliest, Samson and Delilah sent most people into a panic, but Jed had simply stood his ground and glared at them.
Realizing she was far too interested in him as a man, she turned her attention to the purpose of his visit. Why she had expected Atlantic Developers to just drop their plans for the complex after they lost the sale, she didn’t know. Wishful thinking probably. She reminded herself that she hadn’t reached the age of twenty-seven without learning how to stand her ground too. Jed was in for a surprise if he thought the new owner of the estate was as pliable as her Uncle Merry. Images of bulldozers ripping up the beautiful two-hundred-year-old house and grounds ran through her head, and she suppressed a shudder. The estate’s first owner had been her ancestor, Samuel Barkeley. The estate had passed out of the family during the 1800’s, but it had finally been brought back into Barkeley hands by Uncle Merry. And there it would stay, she promised herself.
She decided the best way to deal with a representative of Atlantic was to act as cool and nonchalant as he did. Being covered in mud was a distinct disadvantage, but she forced herself to ignore her appearance. It was just bad luck that he had arrived when she’d been attempting to locate a broken water line. Anyway, Jed certainly wasn’t dressed in a regulation three-piece Brooks Brothers suit.
“Most people do grow up, Jed,” she said finally, shoving her hands into the pockets of her jeans. “You certainly have.”
“It’s really good to see you again, Rae.” Smiling, Jed took two steps toward her. Instantly alert, the dogs growled a warning at him. He stepped back against the boxwoods again.
“The old place hasn’t changed much,” he commented in a very dry voice.
Rae smiled politely to cover her amusement at his casual attitude. “Oh, a few things have.”
“I see someone is still stuck with the job of trimming the holly trees,” he added.
“Not as nicely as you did,” she assured him. “You should have come up to the house, Jed.”
“I just thought I’d take a look around first.”
“Not a very smart thing to do.”
“I guess not,” he drawled, then pointed to the dogs who growled again. “How do you turn these two off?”
Rae grinned. “You don’t ‘turn off’ Great Danes, Jed, you just hope for the best.”
“Then let’s hope for the best, shall we?”
She shrugged. “Heel!”
Without a glance at their prey, the dogs rose and circled around until they stood next to her. They butted their heads against her thighs in search of affection. Rae absently fondled Samson’s ears, then Delilah’s, as she watched Jed walk toward her.
He scowled at the dogs as they settled back on their haunches. “What the hell do you feed them, anyway? A side of beef laced with megavitamins?”
“Seems like it sometimes,” she said with a chuckle. “Actually, they’re just healthy.”
“A Doberman is healthy, Rae. These two are the Arnold Schwarzeneggers of the dog kingdom.”
“Well, you won’t have to deal with them much longer—”
“Are they going on a doggie break?” he asked hopefully.
She burst into laughter. Jed gave the dogs a last look of disgust, then grinned at her. She managed to subdue her mirth enough to say, “What I meant was, you’ll have to leave now.”
He raised his eyebrows. “I will?”
“Much as I would like to visit with you, I have a broken water line to fix—”
“I wondered where the mud came from.”
“And I have to get back to it,” she finished. She refused to apologize for her appearance. Rather, she congratulated herself on her poise. It was evident that Jed had been trying to throw her off balance with casual conversation, before broaching the subject of the estate.
“Actually, Rae, I came to see Merriman.”
She stared at him in confusion. “Merriman?”
“Yes. Merriman.”
He wasn’t making any sense, she thought. When her uncle had informed Atlantic that the estate was no longer for sale, surely he’d also told them …
“You came to see Uncle Merry?” she asked carefully, interrupting her own thoughts.
Jed frowned, suddenly looking like the boy she remembered. “Your uncle, yes. Look, Rae, I’ll be honest. Merriman agreed to sell the estate to the company I work for, Atlantic Developers—”
“I know that,” she broke in. “But why …” Her voice trailed off, when a horrible thought occurred. “Oh, my God! He did send back the money, didn’t he?”
“Obviously, you do know something about it,” he said. “The company refused the return of the down payment. We negotiated in good faith, and Merriman signed the agreement of sale. We expect him to honor that agreement, Rae. Much as I like him, someone’s got to talk some sense into him. He can’t just go around signing agreements and backing out—”
“It wouldn’t be the first time,” she muttered out loud, realizing that someone had slipped up somewhere. If Jed was intent on seeing her uncle, as he obviously was, then that meant he and Atlantic Developers didn’t know about the estate’s recent change of ownership. She took a sure guess at who had neglected to tell them. Just as he had neglected to tell her Atlantic had refused to take back their down payment. “That dirty, miserable, sneaky old … coot!”
At her angry outburst, the dogs growled menacingly. Jed just raised his eyebrows and waited for an explanation.
“My uncle,” she pronounced in a disgusted tone, more than willing to trade years of love for the opportunity to strangle him, “has not only renounced all worldly pleasures, he’s also renounced his last hold on his sanity! The damn fool never told me Atlantic refused the down payment before he left—”
“What!”
“And he obviously didn’t tell Atlantic that the reason he changed his-mind on the sale was because he deeded the estate to me.”
Jed staggered backward, as if someone had thrown him a right to the chin. His eyes widened in disbelief.
Rae nodded her head.
“Two days ago, Uncle Merry ‘retired’ into a monastery. I own the estate now.”
Two
“A monastery!”
A thousand questions and demands ran through Jed’s brain. He tried to sort them into some semblance of order.
“A monastery!”
Rae nodded again. “Not any old monastery, mind you. One that’s somewhere in the Himalayan foothills of Nepal. He’s totally inaccessible, and I bet he planned it that way.”
“Nepal!” he shouted, wavi
ng his hands in the air. He immediately realized yelling was useless, and forced himself to calm down. “I don’t believe it.”
“Neither do I,” she agreed, shaking her head. “This place was supposed to be free and clear. Wait until I get a hold of Uncle Merry—”
“You own the estate!” he exclaimed in dawning realization. He was still confused and shocked by Merriman’s vanishing act, and Rae’s words were just beginning to sink in. “That’s impossible. We had an agreement of sale with your uncle. It’s still valid.”
“I doubt it,” she said.
“But he couldn’t have sold it to you. Not with the agreement of sale as an outstanding lien against the property!”
Rae smiled. “But he didn’t sell it to me, Jed. He deeded it to me. As a gift.”
“A gift!” he shouted. He didn’t even bother to try and calm himself this time. “Who the hell gives away a two-million-dollar estate as a damn gift?”
“Uncle Merry,” she replied calmly. “Although I feel as if I’ve been given a Trojan horse.”
“Then give it back.” Jed ground his teeth together at the thought of what Atlantic’s president would say when he told him their reluctant seller was in a monastery in Nepal. This was the damnedest stunt Merriman had ever pulled …
“Oh, I couldn’t possibly give it back,” Rae said sweetly, breaking in on his thoughts. “Uncle Merry wanted me to have it.”
He glared at her. “Well, he had no legal right to deed it to you. Any court will uphold the agreement of sale, and I have to tell you, Rae, Atlantic will sue. The company has put a good deal of time and money into the plans for the marina complex. I’m sure you’d like to avoid spending years in litigation with the company—”
“But why would Atlantic sue me?” she asked, a very innocent look in her eyes. “Your problem is with Uncle Merry. Frankly, I wouldn’t blame you a bit if you and your company took him all the way to the Supreme Court. Really, you should. I love my uncle very much, but he pulled a dirty trick on you by not completely clearing up the agreement of sale before he deeded the place to me. I suggest you call his lawyers and inform them of the problem. I have no idea why they didn’t inform your company of the situation in the first place.” Shaking her head, she began to walk down the maze corridor. “Negligent of them, I must say.”
