“So you’re a really strong litigator?”
She pressed her lips together then released them. “I’m not sure yet.”
“What do you mean?”
“The other side is usually so ill-prepared that I’m not sure they’re good enough to challenge me.”
He laughed.
Rosalie narrowed her eyes, wondering what he found so funny. She wanted to ask but didn’t want to sully her chances of landing the job of her dreams.
“Sorry,” he finally said. “I’m laughing at the poor slob who walks into the courtroom, looks across the aisle, and sees you standing there. I know the culture in which you work pretty well. You know you’re in trouble, right?” He quickly glanced at her, wearing a sexy lopsided smile.
She thought her heart would beat out of her chest. What in the world was wrong with her? There was no way she could work for Chance Sterling and focus. Plus, she had to admit that deep down she had her doubts about the legitimacy of his offer. Maybe he wanted to keep her close so that he could ruin her bond with Edna.
“I’m in trouble?” she finally asked after a long pause.
“Yep. You both are,” Halo said with a snicker.
When Rosalie turned her chastising eyes on Halo, the woman was still smirking while punching out a message on her phone.
The conversation between Chance and Rosalie came to an abrupt halt. The silence between them was awkward and uncomfortable.
Chance made it to the carport and stopped behind another SUV. It was cream colored, and Rosalie recognized the woman standing at the back, pointing and directing the staff. She was Penelope Sterling, Edna’s only daughter. Every time Rosalie saw Penelope, the woman looked different. This time, Penelope had straight brunette hair flowing down to the small of her back. She wore tight white pants, which made her pencil-thin legs look skinnier, and ultrahigh heels.
“Oh, great. She’s here,” Halo said sarcastically.
Chance turned to glance at her. “Give her a break, Halo.”
“Marie.”
“Who’s Marie?” he asked.
“I told you to call me Marie. Get used to it.”
Chance shook his head. “What the hell is wrong with Halo?”
“It’s a stripper’s name, plus it’s associated with a past that…”
Rosalie and Chance waited for her to finish her remark.
“Forget it. Call me Halo if you have to.”
“I have to,” Chance said.
Halo shrugged as though it didn’t bother her. “Whatever.”
Penelope waved in their direction, and Chance waved back.
“You want to be called Marie? Okay, but it still doesn’t make sense.”
“Well, it does to me. And like I said, it’s no problem. Call me whatever the hell you want, Chance.” She sighed. “But now it’s time to get this show on the road.”
Before Chance could say another word, Halo opened the back door and hopped out.
“Hey, Mom,” she said in a semi-deadpan voice.
Penelope’s face lit up as she opened her arms. “Ah, my angel!”
Despite the trepidation she’d felt seconds ago, Halo gave her mother a big hug.
Rosalie glanced at Chance. “Oh, by the way, thanks for the drinks.”
“You’re welcome.”
She opened the door.
“Oh, and I’m serious about you sending me your résumé. I think you’ll be an asset to our team.”
Rosalie smiled tightly and nodded. She agreed. They stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds too long, then they both had to look away.
Rosalie quickly opened her door and stepped out of the vehicle. Her pulse was racing. She was definitely attracted to Chance Sterling, but it wasn’t because he was a tasty hunk of hotness. He had a way about him that she was finding hard to resist. He was a thoughtful man, slow to speak, but he seemed to listen to and consider all that was said on any subject. There was no doubt that he was intelligent and didn’t feel the need to prove it to the world. Rosalie found that sexy, and not in the way that meant she wanted him to throw her on the bed and make mad, passionate love to her. She wanted him to fill her mind with his observations of the world and make love to her intellect by pointing her in directions that she would’ve never thought to take it.
She and Chance converged at the front of his vehicle.
“Chance, my love, how are you?” Penelope held her arms out, and he walked over to give his aunt the obligatory hug.
Then Penelope held her arms out toward Rosalie. “I’m a hugger.”
Rosalie wasn’t a hugger, but after a brief hesitation, she hugged Penelope anyway.
“Do you remember Rosalie, Mom?” Halo asked. “Pete’s ex-wife?”
“Wait.” Penelope stepped back to observe Rosalie. “Yes, I do. But you look different. Womanly.”
Rosalie smiled, remembering that when she had last seen Penelope, she was such a different person—a little girl, really—who was stuck in the Blushing Green bubble. She had enrolled in Pacifica Community College during the last of the four years she was married to Peter. The only reason he didn’t raise a huge stink about it was because Edna had urged her to do it. Plus, he was finishing his obligatory undergraduate degree at San Francisco University. The fact that she scored high on the aptitude tests surprised her. She was three years out of high school, but fortunately, all the calculus and advanced English came back to her as if they’d never left her. So during her first year of college she had been allowed to enroll in a statistics class, English 104, Chemistry 101, Psychology 101, and an interesting class titled Subconscious Art, which had taken her mind to places it had never gone before.
So Penelope’s observation made her smile warmly even though she could tell Penelope had gotten her greeting out of the way and was done displaying super niceties. Rosalie knew this because she had met Penelope at least four times, and each time, the woman behaved the same—hugs and kisses at first then snubs later. And each time, Rosalie had to reintroduce herself to her. It finally dawned on Rosalie that Penelope was just the sort of fashionista that Halo had said she’d grown wary of—fake and superior without even realizing it.
“Has Grandmother returned?” Chance asked Teresa.
“No, not yet.”
He frowned. “And do you know where she went?”
Rosalie realized that he had asked Teresa that question earlier. But this time, his question was quick enough to catch the maid off guard.
“No, I do not,” she answered.
Teresa did not hesitate, and that was what he was looking for.
“Mom isn’t home?” Penelope asked with concern.
“No, and she won’t answer her phone and apparently hasn’t told anyone where she went,” Halo said.
“Don’t take that out!” Penelope shouted. Her voice was so jolting that everyone turned to see one of the men in the back of the SUV put down a large black case. She turned back to face them. “Well, don’t worry about Mom. She’s just being dramatic.”
“Dramatic how?” Halo asked.
“Oh, come on, angel. You already know the answer, or is your grandmother still your only blind spot? You know what? Don’t answer. So, are you still drinking too much?”
Halo crossed her arms. “No.”
If Penelope were astute, then she would’ve been able to hear the truth in her daughter’s high-pitched tone.
“Good.” Penelope pointed into the cab of her SUV. “Not that one, either.”
“Well,” Rosalie said. There was something quite unnerving about Penelope’s energy, and she needed to escape it. “I’m going inside. Thanks again for the drink, Chance, and the company, Halo.”
“I’m going to find a room too,” Halo said. “It’s been a long morning.”
“No, angel. I need you to help us make calls and get the grounds ready for the party. We don’t have much time and… That’s all. Close the trunk.”
Another SUV turned the corner and rolled up the drive,
stopping behind Chance’s. Susan was driving, and Claire was in the front seat. The Sterlings had always had a thing for big gas-guzzling cars.
“But Mom, I’m tired,” Halo complained in the voice of a child half her age.
“Shit, she’s already here?” Penelope asked through a painted-on smile.
Rosalie turned to make a quick escape.
“Rosalie,” Chance said. “Would you mind taking a walk with me?”
Rosalie’s head felt dizzy as she spun around to face his impatient gaze. It was clear that he also wanted to make a quick escape. The engine of Susan’s SUV turned off, and the car doors opened.
“Sure, why not,” she said.
“This way.” Chance took off, and she had to shuffle to catch up to him. They walked in the opposite direction of the carport. As soon as they rounded the front of the house, he slowed his pace as they walked past the gorgeous lawn. Most grass grew excessively green in Blushing Green but none as green as the grass on Sterling Manor.
Susan called Chance’s name. They sped around the corner and entered the rose garden then slowed to a normal pace as they moved up the redbrick footpath. Being near Chance made Rosalie feel way past nervous, so she focused on the limestone fountain, which sprayed trickles of water from the middle of an ornate bowl.
“About this morning,” he said as they walked past the garden and farther along the west side of the house. They stayed on the pavement, which ran along rows of winter-barren pomegranate trees.
“This morning?” Her brain was still cloudy from being so close to him.
“What you saw from your window?”
“Oh, yes.”
“The woman you saw me with, her name is Kathy Lunsford.”
Rosalie jerked her head back. “I know Kathy. That was her?”
Kathy had been Edna’s secretary for years. But Rosalie couldn’t picture Kathy in baggy jeans and a gray hoodie. She was a very polished woman in her early thirties, and she always wore the most fashionable attire.
“Yeah,” he said with a sigh. “She came incognito.”
“That’s what I was just thinking. But why?”
“My grandmother resigned, and my uncles initiated mass firings.”
“I’m not surprised.”
“Me, either. They fired everyone who was loyal to Grandmother without notice and gave them five minutes to pack up their desks and leave the offices. They were also watched closely by security to make sure they didn’t take anything with them or touch their computers.”
She grunted inquisitively. “They were like the Gestapo.”
“Yes. Now watch this.” Chance took a cell phone out of his jacket pocket and turned it on. The device was old and scuffed. It certainly wasn’t a nice, new, sleek phone that she would have expected a man of his stature to carry.
“Kathy gave me this.”
Now, that made more sense. Rosalie stepped over to stand by his side. Their arms were touching, and she wasn’t too far into discovery mode to notice how thrilling it felt to stand so close to him.
Chance showed her a video on the phone. “This is the San Francisco office.”
The place was a disaster. Drawers were pulled open. Piles of files were stacked on desks and the floor. One long desk had at least fifty laptops on it.
“What in the world were they looking for?” Rosalie asked.
“Kathy says she knows. I’m meeting her tonight. I think you should come with me.”
She didn’t hesitate. “I will. Yes.”
Chance powered off the telephone and put it back in his pocket.
“But I have another question,” Rosalie said.
“Yes, and what is it?”
For some reason, she felt as if she was the student and he was the professor.
“How did Kathy acquire that video? You would think they would’ve taken her keys too.”
“That’s a very good question,” he said pointedly.
“Okay,” she said impatiently, waiting on him to elaborate like his tone suggested he would.
“I asked Kathy how she acquired the video. She didn’t have time to tell me, but she will tonight.”
Rosalie smiled tautly.
He narrowed an eye. “Grandmother wanted you and me to sign those contracts for a reason.”
“True.” She waited for him to say more, but he pressed his lips together. Rosalie cleared her throat and folded her arms. “Um, it seems sort of strange that she’s not here. I wanted to spend time with her. She’s the only reason I’m here.”
Chance’s frown deepened, and curiosity got the best of Rosalie. She unfolded her arms. “Why are you looking at me that way?”
Chance crumpled his forehead. “In what way is that?”
Rosalie felt her eyes expand. Had he found her question contentious? She felt more sensitive about offending him because she didn’t want to jeopardize her opportunity to work for Lord and Lord Enterprises.
She shook her head. “Forget it.”
“No. I want to hear what you have to say.” He smiled sincerely. “Please.”
Her heart went pitter-patter, and she had to look away from his eyes to gather her bearings. After taking a deep breath, she said, “It’s nothing, really. It appears that you’re thinking deeply about something I said or did. I just want to know what you’re thinking.” She scratched the back of her neck nervously. “I mean, if you’re even thinking about me at all. And if you’re not, then forget it.”
Rosalie wanted to die. Did she really just say all of that? Did she sound lucid at all? She was certain she had screwed up her opportunity to work for him.
“Yes,” he said. “You were on my mind.”
Her mouth fell open. “I was?”
“I think you’re smart and…” He frowned again, proving her point—he was thinking. “It’s strange that I never knew my grandmother and you were close. I wonder why she never told me.”
Suddenly, she felt defensive again. “Are you still doubting my intentions?”
“Rosalie, I do not distrust you.”
Silence fell between them. Rosalie crossed her arms and gazed into the trees. The air carried the scent of damp earth, and above the tops of the fruitless trees, thick clouds moved swiftly across the sky. Hearing Chance say he didn’t distrust her meant a lot. But she still couldn’t look him in the eyes, so she studied the sky.
“It’s going to rain again,” she said. “I can smell it.”
Chance looked up. “Every year, it rains on Grandmother’s party.” He lifted one side of his mouth into a sexy lopsided smile. “It’s sort of fitting. Grandmother hates the parties.”
She snickered. “I know.”
They smiled at each other. It felt like the moment when the two people who were falling for each other exchanged numbers or made a date to see each other soon. Rosalie would’ve settled for a hot and sexy kiss. More importantly, she really wanted to let down her defenses. But could she?
“Chance, get over here!” Susan’s voice yelled in the distance.
They both gazed toward the west garden. Susan stood at the entrance with her hand up, gesturing wildly for Chance to come.
“It’ll be after dinner,” he said, still frowning.
“Do you mean we’ll leave after dinner?” Rosalie asked.
“Yes.”
Without another word, he walked toward Susan. Rosalie watched his magnificent frame move. What a man. And he respected her intellect. Peter couldn’t have given a damn about how smart she was. Suddenly, she remembered Chance’s last name—Sterling.
Rosalie took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Don’t ever trust a Sterling man until you’re sure you can trust him,” she whispered.
Those were definitely words to live by. Defy the Sterlings, and they would be words to die by.
ON THE WAY back to the carport, Rosalie passed Penelope and Susan, who pretended Rosalie was invisible. It was clear that they didn’t want her to help with the party, which wasn’t a shock. They were both lookin
g to score points with Edna, and the fewer the people in the competition, the easier it was to win. Only for a moment did Rosalie let herself wonder where Chance was. She had a feeling it was Claire’s job to keep him occupied. Rosalie didn’t want to stick around and risk running into the two of them.
She asked Mr. Garcia to have her car brought around. As she waited, a cargo truck with the words Party Rentals written on the side rolled slowly toward the carport and stopped before reaching the cover. One of the staff jogged toward the truck, speaking in Spanish.
First the guy greeted the driver then directed him back toward the lawn, where the tents would be set up. The truck had cleared the driveway by the time Mr. Garcia was back with her car.
The first thing Rosalie did after buckling up was place a call to Edna, using the electronic system in her car. The line rang twice then went to voice mail. She called three more times and got the same result. This time, after the beep, she left a message, asking Edna to please call her and let her know she was safe. All Rosalie could do at that point was get out of Dodge and wait for Edna to return her call.
On the way off the property, Rosalie passed the party truck and Chance, who was standing on the green grass next to Claire. For at least a solid two seconds, they made eye contact. He had a strange look on his face as if he wondered where she was going. Claire on the other hand pretended she didn’t see her. However, Rosalie did catch sight of a tall, slender figure in smoky-gray skinny jeans and a black bomber jacket with a fur hood, running toward her car and waving like crazy. She recognized the outfit. It was Halo.
Rosalie slowed to a stop and rolled the window down after Halo tapped on it.
Halo’s anxious energy rushed into the car. “Where are you going?”
Rosalie shrugged. “Out.”
“But where?”
“Just out.”
Halo glanced over her left shoulder. “Can I come?”
She shrugged. “Okay.” Her tone was lackluster.
Halo tried to open the door, but it was locked. Rosalie pressed the button to unlock it. She really wanted to be alone for this part of her day. Only seconds before she made eye contact with Chance, she had made a decision to return to her old neighborhood. The land her childhood house had stood on had been sold for a quarter of a million dollars, and what remained after taxes she had put into an investment fund. However, the old neighborhood held all sorts of memories—good ones, bad ones, and confusing ones.
Secrets & Chance (The Sterlings Book 1) Page 11
