“Do we have one?” Kirk asked in a tight voice.
Cassandra didn’t answer right away; she knew her reply was too important to fling words at him. She closed her eyes. Opening them, she said, “When I came here, I didn’t know what having a future meant. I knew I would always have the security of my father’s money, his influence, and his position in the world. But a future....” She shrugged. “I had no idea what that was. Now I do—or I don’t. And that, Kirk North, will be up to you to decide.”
Hearing the emotion and honesty in her voice was the key to breaking down his last defense. He gazed at her, drinking in her beauty, and made up his mind. “Do you really think you can handle being a cowboy’s wife?”
Cassandra, her heart beating out of control, went up to him, slipped her arms around his back, and stared directly into his warm brown eyes. “I thought you’d never ask.”
~~~~
The week following Cassandra’s confrontation with Kirk passed faster than any other time in her life. She knew how deeply she loved him and was just as sure of his love for her.
She was determined, too, to make certain her father would not stop their marriage. To that end, she and Kirk planned every detail with excruciating calculation.
In exactly seven days, her father would arrive for the final accounting. In seven days, he would get his accounting, and much, much more.
She had asked Kirk not to hand in his resignation yet, but to give it to her father in person. He had agreed, liking the plan she’d developed in order to extract the full pleasure of handing her father his defeat in the face of what Gregory Leeds considered an accepted victory.
Their only argument had come when they discussed marriage. Kirk wanted to wait until they settled everything with her father, instead of sneaking off to be married in secret.
“It doesn’t make any difference,” she’d stated.
“You’ll have the rest of your life to look back on our marriage and wonder if we shouldn’t have waited,” he had advised.
“Are you getting cold feet?” she’d asked jokingly.
“You keep them warm enough,” he’d replied with a smile that made her heart beat faster.
“Then what is it?”
“Sneaking off into the night isn’t the way to get married. And,” he said as his arms tightened around her, “You gave your word to do a job, even if your father did deceive you. You have to see the fiscal year through to its end, if only for your own peace of mind.”
Cassandra gazed at him and kissed him, putting all the love she had into the kiss. When it had ended, she drew back. “You’re right, Kirk. We’ll wait, but not a minute past the appointed hour!”
~~~~
The three-hundred-and-sixty-fourth day was just ending, and the three-hundred-and-sixty-fifth would arrive with the dawn. For Cassandra, it would be the most important day in her life.
When the sun rose, she would face her father, and she would marry Kirk. It was an exciting day looming close for Cassandra—much too exciting to miss out on a single second.
After eating a light dinner with Kirk, she had kissed him good night at her door, and then packed two of the five suitcases she’d arrived with at Twin Rivers. After that, she’d set out the dress she would wear, the dress she and Jane had picked up earlier in the day.
When she was done, she went to bed and tried to sleep, but found sleep elusive. When three o’clock came and went, Cassandra could not stay in bed any longer. She dressed in jeans, a sweatshirt, and a pair of moccasins, and went for a walk.
She returned, still unable to sleep, still restless, and wondering what would happen when she faced her father. She forced herself to lie down and fell into a light, dreamless sleep.
At seven o’clock, Cassandra took a shower and did her hair. At a quarter to eight, she put on the dress she’d bought yesterday, adjusting it so its lines fell smoothly. Even as she did, she heard a knock on her door.
She opened it and smiled at Jane.
“I thought you could use some help.”
“I need the company more,” Cassandra said.
“Nervous?” Jane asked.
“Not about today.”
“Then what?”
“Next year, ten years …”
“Don’t be silly,” Jane advised.
“I can’t help it, Jane. I’ve done a lot of things in my life, but I’ve never done anything quite like this before.”
“Are you afraid it won’t last?” Jane asked, a frown wrinkling her brow as she reached out and adjusted the right sleeve of Cassandra’s dress.
“No. Nothing that simple. It’s my father. He’s always been ruthless. And I’m afraid he might take his anger out on Kirk…blame Kirk for what’s happened.”
Jane shook her head slowly. “Kirk’s a big boy; don’t worry about him. Turn around,” she ordered. Cassandra sighed and did as Jane requested. “I love the dress. I’m glad I helped you pick it out,” she said, looking over the simple yet elegantly hand-worked western dress. “You’re sure it’s not too…much?”
“No, it really is perfect.”
“Jane—”
“You know, as my cousin once told me, if you worry too much about the future, the past will be all you have.”
“Are you sure your cousin’s a rancher and not a philosophy professor? And,” Cassandra added quickly before Jane could speak, “when am I going to meet him?”
“Cassandra,” Jane began, hesitating as she tried to figure out a way to tell Cassandra just who her cousin was. “I have to—” she began again but a loud knock on the door cut her off.
“Who?” Cassandra asked.
Jane shrugged. “I’ll check,” she said and went to the door. She opened it only wide enough to see it was Kirk, wearing a deep-blue western-cut suit. She held up her hand and turned back to Cassandra.
“Who is it?” Cassandra asked.
“Remember the check you offered me a long time ago for teaching you to ride?” When Cassandra nodded, Jane went on. “Are we friends? Really good friends?”
“Of course,” Cassandra replied, puzzled.
“Okay,” Jane said and took a deep breath. “Cassandra Leeds, I’d like you to meet my cousin—” On the word cousin, Jane opened the door.
Cassandra, surprised, became instantly alert. When the door opened, and she saw Kirk standing there, she didn’t understand Jane’s meaning.
“—my cousin, Kirk North,” she finally said.
Cassandra knew her jaw had dropped, but she couldn’t help but stare into the smiling faces across from her. “He’s your cousin?” she asked, her tone accusatory.
“I wanted to tell you, but I never got the chance.”
Cassandra looked from Jane to Kirk, her head shaking slowly. Before she said anything, Kirk stepped forward. “Are you ready?” he asked, his eyes sweeping over her from head to toe.
Cassandra did the same and her breath caught in her throat. He looked so handsome standing before her that her heart ached with love, Jane’s little deception forgotten.
“I am now,” she whispered, her earlier nervousness gone completely.
~~~~
A half-hour later Cassandra stood on the lawn in front of the main house. Her thoughts tinged with sadness, although she wasn’t sad. “Kirk, I love you, and I want to thank you for being here with me.”
Kirk grinned and came up to her. His arms went around her, and his mouth closed on hers. The kiss was a gently warm reassurance telling her everything would work out right. When they parted, he caressed her cheek.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” To accent his words, the sound of a twin-engine plane reached them. “They’re here,” he said.
“Everything is ready?” she asked.
“Ready and waiting. Let’s go to the office and wait. Jamie is driving them from the airstrip.”
Cassandra nodded and, placing her hand in Kirk’s, they walked the twenty yards from the small house to the main building, where they both went into
her office.
Five minutes later Gregory Leeds, looking as distinguished as ever, arrived. At his side was Murray Charter, a smile fixed firmly in place.
Gregory Leeds stopped when he was halfway inside the office, struck by the change he saw in his daughter. He realized it was not just a change in her looks, but in some indefinable way, a change in her…essence.
Her eyes met his, and he saw power and determination in them. Her deeply tanned skin looked healthier than ever, and when she stood and came around to greet him, he saw she was dressed, not as he had expected, but in a beautiful and obviously well-tailored western dress.
“Hello, Cassandra,” he said, gazing fondly at her, separated by a mere three feet.
“Hello, Father. You do remember Mr. North?” Gregory Leeds smiled, giving his daughter a point for taking him off guard. The sight of his daughter had taken him so far off guard that he hadn’t noticed the general manager.
“Mr. North,” he said, nodding to Kirk for a split second before looking back at Cassandra. “You look…radiant, Cassie.”
“Thank you, Father.”
“But now,” Leeds began, his voice changing as he took on his role of chairman of the board once again. “It’s time for our accounting.”
Cassandra smiled. “Don’t bother.”
“Don’t bother?” her father echoed, his powerful front again slipping as a smile of victory curved the corners of his mouth. “You’re conceding?” he asked, puzzled by the ease of the victory.
“No, Father, you didn’t win, you lost,” she stated, letting all the bitterness filling her spill into those few words.
“Lost? Impossible…Cassandra,” he began, but Cassandra cut him off as she stepped back and shook her head.
“Why is it impossible, Father? Is it because you lied to me and to Kirk?”
“Cassandra,” Gregory Leeds began again, but his daughter cut him off once more.
“Did you think I’m such a fool you could manipulate me in any way you wanted? Did you forget who I am? If you did, let me remind you. I’m your daughter! Your flesh and blood! I know I’ve disappointed you for many years. I know when I reached out to you, when I needed you and your love, you were not there. But I never expected you to lie to me. To cheat me out of what I worked so hard to get.”
“Stop, Cassandra. Stop before you say something you might regret.” Leeds turned to Kirk. “Forgive us, Kirk; this should be a private discussion. If you’ll excuse us…”
Kirk stood still, his expression unreadable.
“No, Father. Kirk stays. He’s part of this. Didn’t you think we’d find out?”
“Find out what?”
“Please!” Cassandra snapped. “Spare us your innocence. First,” she said, holding up one stiff finger, “Carway Distributing, a wholly owned subsidiary of Leeds. When you saw my third-quarter report, you ordered Carway to drop their prices so I couldn’t make a profit!
“Two! Security clearance, five point zero. Password, reserve. Wonderful password; too bad it couldn’t keep us out. Would you like to know exactly how much natural gas you expect to pump while you destroy the land?”
“That’s enough!” Gregory Leeds roared.
“No, sir, it’s not,” Kirk said as he stepped forward to hand the chairman of the board an envelope. “My resignation. You would have had it much sooner, but Cassandra asked me to wait until today; and, I dislike being used Mr. Leeds, and dislike being lied to even more.”
“And I, Father, feel the same way,” Cassandra informed him. “Together, Kirk and I proved Twin Rivers could turn a profit. We didn’t because you wouldn’t allow it. But we know we can, and we plan on doing just that.”
“Doing just what?” Gregory Leeds asked, his eyes shifting back and forth from one to the other, his face an expressionless mask.
“Running a ranch—but not as a tax dodge. A ranch that will not have pumps and pipelines destroying it. You may have thought you were putting one over on me, Father, but you didn’t. In the end, you lost.” Cassandra paused to take a breath and then turned to gaze at Kirk, love filling her features. “Ready?” she asked in a soft voice.
“Ready,” he replied, reaching out and taking her hand in his. Without another word, they walked out of the office, out of the house, and went to the Land Rover. As Cassandra started to get in, her father called from a few feet away.
“Where are you going?” Gregory Leeds asked, his voice level, his eyes locked on his daughter.
“Where am I going, Father? To be married, and then wherever my husband and I decide to go.”
A heavy silence filled the air and lasted until Gregory Leeds nodded his head. “Do you know what you’re doing, Cassie?”
Cassandra straightened her shoulders and smiled at her father. “For the first time since I was nine, I know exactly what I’m doing.”
“I see,” Leeds replied dryly. Then he looked at Kirk. “And you, Kirk? Do you think you can keep her ‘down on the farm’?”
Kirk pursed his lips for a moment. He shook his head slowly at the white-haired man. “Mr. Leeds, my father taught me a long time ago, there are only a few things in life that are certain. I know one of the certainties is Cassandra and I love each other deeply. The other is understanding there will always be horses to ride and land to live on. Good-bye, Mr. Leeds,” Kirk said after he sat in the driver’s seat and Cassandra sat down next to him.
“Wait. Please,” he said, walking closer to the open vehicle and gazing in. “You can’t just run off and get married.”
Cassandra shook her head even as she took Kirk’s hand in hers. “We aren’t running off. We waited to tell you. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have an appointment at the judge’s house. The wedding will take place in exactly one hour.”
“I see,” Leeds said as he continued to look from Kirk to Cassandra. Then he smiled disarmingly. “I know you won’t believe me, but I’m glad for both of you, very glad.”
“You’re right,” Cassandra snapped, but Kirk squeezed her hand tightly in unspoken caution.
“Cassandra, I knew by sending you to Twin Rivers you would either be defeated or become the person you were always meant to be. Your fear of horses has held you back all your life, and I knew if you were able to conquer that fear, the world would be yours for the asking.”
“I never wanted the world, Father.”
“Whether you did or not, it was waiting for you.”
“Under your guiding hand? Tell me, Father, if I...we hadn’t found out about your deception until later on after everything was over, would you have forced me to keep my promise?”
“If you hadn’t found out about it by now, you never would have,” he replied, avoiding the heart of her question.
“But it’s all rhetorical now, isn’t it?” she responded.
“No, it isn’t!” Leeds stated in a firm voice. “You did what you set out to do. You made yourself independent. You have a life you’ve created for yourself. For that alone, I deserve a thank you.”
Cassandra clutched Kirk’s hand even tighter. “You do, Father. Thank you.” Cassandra realized, as she blinked back tears, that she meant what she’d just said. She saw, too, in the depths of Gregory Leeds’ eyes, he had spoken the truth as he saw it.
“Are you really going to get married?”
Cassandra stared directly at him. “Watch us, Father.” Then she turned to Kirk with a smile. “Ready?”
Kirk released Cassandra’s hand and started the Land Rover. He looked at Cassandra. Cassandra gazed back at him with an unwavering stare. Kirk pressed the accelerator and drove away from Twin Rivers for the last time.
~~~~
When the Land Rover disappeared from view, Gregory Leeds walked back into the house. The smile on his face was a reflection of his innermost feelings.
“Greg, are you all right?” Murray Charter asked his oldest friend.
“Absolutely.”
“But this marriage?”
“Kirk North is a good man,” he st
ated. Then he shook his head slowly. “Murray, I’m going to call Eleanor and tell her she’s about to become a mother-in-law. Why don’t you make the phone call we discussed earlier?”
The comptroller nodded his head and walked over to an empty desk, while Gregory Leeds stood still. The broker who handled all the Leeds stock dealings answered his call. Murray Charter spoke only a few words. The man at the other end didn’t reply.
“Finish the Barwell Industries takeover” Murray Charter had ordered.
When he hung up the phone, he nodded to Gregory Leeds.
Gregory sighed. “Please find out where they’re going to be married.” Then he turned and went into Cassandra’s office. He would tell his wife what had happened and how they had both been right when they’d decided to push their daughter into a corner to make her find some direction in her life.
One day soon, he hoped, she would really understand his actions.
~~~~
The sun graced the garden with a soft majesty that bathed the four people standing in the middle of it with a golden light.
Cassandra and Kirk held hands lightly, their eyes fixed on each other as the judge proclaimed them husband and wife.
“You may kiss the bride,” he said with a warm and solemn dignity.
Kirk lowered his head, and Cassandra raised her mouth to him. Their lips met in a kiss that sealed the promises they had just spoken.
When they parted, and as Cassandra and Kirk looked at Jane they saw twin trails of tears sparkling brightly on her cheeks.
“You’re supposed to be happy for us,” Kirk said teasingly.
“I am. I just never thought it would happen. Do you know how close to insanity the two of you nearly drove me?”
“Not close enough,” Kirk retorted.
“Thank you,” Cassandra whispered. She went to Jane and embraced her.
Cassandra stiffened. Over Jane’s shoulder, she saw her father watching them with a proud smile on his face.
“Kirk,” she called.
Kirk saw she was staring at her father. His eyes locked with Gregory Leeds’, who nodded his head once, turned, and walked away.
Silken Threads Page 20
