Chapter 54
Rod was still steamed about yesterday. First, the kissing episode with Maggie, and then seeing Tracy with Henry. What a bunch of bullshit. What the hell had he ever done to deserve such a rotten day? All he ever did was work his ass off trying to advance himself, and no one fucking appreciated it. And, he supposed, if he had to tell the truth about it, the thing he was most steamed about was seeing Tracy with Henry.
What was it about Tyler men that made them think they could just waltz in and take a woman he clearly had his eye on? First, Preston had forbidden him to pursue Maggie, although in retrospect that was probably more of a favor, even if it wasn’t meant that way. But then, Henry had to go and move in on Tracy, even when Rod had made it as clear as the sun she was his.
The bitch of the whole thing really was, even though it made absolutely no sense, because she had two kids and absolutely no money, Rod really liked Tracy. She reminded him a lot of the first girlfriend he’d ever had when he was fifteen. A buxom little blonde named Anna, who had dropped him for the captain of the high school football team.
He’d really wanted to have a fling with Tracy, sort of relive that first romance, since he first laid eyes on her. Maybe even a long-term fling, like for a month or so. But no. Henry had to go and start dating her and screw everything up.
Anyhow, as illogical as it was, he now found himself standing in front of Tracy’s front door, hoping she would yield to his will, the way so many women had before her, and forget about this nonsense with Henry. And, while it was insincere and guaranteed to make Maggie hate him even more than she already did, he’d thought of a plan to cut old Henry off at the pass.
He rang the door bell and stood patiently in front of it. She kept him waiting for only a few seconds, and answered the door dressed in purple overalls with a white t-shirt on underneath. Her hair was put up into a ponytail and, even with no make up, she looked great.
“Rod, I’m surprised to see you here. What can I do for you?”
How about a good fuck? He wanted to say, but he didn’t. He didn’t want to get sidetracked from why he was here, or screw up what he had planned. “I have something to tell you, Tracy, and I don’t want you to say anything back right away. Just listen to what I have to say, think about it for a while, and then answer me in a few days, okay? Can you do that for me?”
She had a crooked grin on her face and nodded her head. “Okay, Rod. What is it you want to tell me?”
He had to make her believe every word he said, and he was pretty sure all women secretly wanted to be the one woman that could change a playboy. “I know I’ve been a ladies’ man my entire life, but I think it’s time I called it quits and settled down. And I’ve decided it’s you I want to settle down with.” He paused, watching surprise light up in her eyes. “Now, don’t say anything right now. Just think about it like I said, and I’ll come back in a few days to talk about us getting married.”
“Married!?”
“That’s right, babe.”
“You know, Rod, I think-”
“Not now, babe. Later. Think about it for a few days. I’ll be back.”
“But, Rod, I think-”
Without giving her any chance to press him for details, Rod turned around, hopped back into his sports car and took off. A marriage proposal had to be the last thing she ever expected to hear from him. It should blow all that womanizing bullshit Maggie had been feeding her friend right out of the water. Make Tracy not so quick to believe her anymore.
That ought to open the door for his return.
Chapter 55
Henry paced the living room. In fact, he’d walked the length and width of the room so many times now, Preston suspected something had gone wrong with his “big date” last night. And Preston had to admit, he’d much rather see his uncle happily dating Tracy than uptight like this. If he did any more pacing, the carpet was going to shred. “Henry,” he said. “If you don’t stop that worry walk of yours, I’m going to chain you to the sofa.”
Henry stopped momentarily and turned in his direction. “Is that right?”
“Yes, that’s right. What’s up with you anyway? Did something happen on your date last night?”
His uncle hesitated. “Well, yes and no.”
Preston could hardly believe his ears. “Man, I’ll tell you what, if Tracy doesn’t realize what a great guy you are….”
“No, Preston. That isn’t it.” Henry held up his hands, as if to halt the flow of his nephew’s words. “I appreciate your support, but that isn’t the problem.”
“Then what is?”
“It’s something I was told last night that I think you should know about, but I’m not really sure it’s my place to tell you.”
Leave it to a lawyer to answer a question cryptically. Preston felt just the slightest twinge of annoyance. For some reason the first thing he thought of was Rod’s kiss with Maggie. Was that it? “I already know about Maggie kissing Rod,” he spit out, angry at having to say it out loud.
“You do?” Henry looked more puzzled than surprised. “Well if you knew what Rod did to her, then why were you all buddy-buddy with him at the party last night?”
Something about Henry’s phrasing made Preston think they weren’t tracking the same lines of thought. “What exactly did Rod tell you?”
“Are you kidding? Rod didn’t tell me anything. I heard this from Tracy.”
Now he was getting confused. “Maybe you’d better stop and start at the beginning. What did Tracy tell you?”
Henry finally stopped his pacing and sat in the chair across the room. The chair was an old, brown leather one that squeaked and sagged when he sat down on it. It made Henry’s mood seem all the heavier. “Tracy was on her way up to Maggie’s office yesterday when she heard Rod inside the office with her. She said she had heard Rod force a kiss on Maggie, and Maggie push him away and slap him, but she didn’t want to say anything unless Maggie brought it up first.”
He should have known. Preston felt like he’d just been played for a fool. God! What an ass he had been. His only saving grace was he hadn’t been stupid enough to accuse Maggie of anything. Not that what he had said to her about it last night had been much better.
“What’s the matter?” Henry asked. “Isn’t that what you heard?”
“Not exactly.”
“Let me guess, you heard the story from Rod.”
“Yeah, only with the twist that Maggie initiated the kiss in order to prove she was never going to marry me.”
Henry started laughing and Preston couldn’t blame him. The whole idea of Maggie doing such a thing seemed ludicrous now that he’d said it out loud. Was he like the world’s biggest idiot, or what? “I guess I should have figured right from the start there was something wrong with Rod’s version of events.”
Henry raised an eyebrow, but had enough consideration not to agree. “So Rod lied. I’m sorry to say I’m not surprised. I’m sure he was just trying to beat Maggie to the punch, in case she told you what happened. Undoubtedly, Rod wanted to put his own spin on things.”
“I don’t know what I’m going to do about him,” Preston said. In truth, his anger made it difficult to think of anything other than strangling the bastard. Not just for trying to force himself on Maggie, but for lying about it afterward. And for trying to put yet another wedge between her and Preston.
Henry took a deep breath and got up from his chair. Much to Preston’s chagrin, he resumed his pacing. “I’m not going to tell you what to do, Preston. However, I do think it’s time to consider how much further you want to take Rod into your confidence if you can’t believe what he tells you. Particularly now that your bid for the company is about to be announced.”
“I know.” The thought weighed heavily on his mind. He couldn’t help but wonder what else Rod may have done that might come back to bite him in the ass later. “Thanks, Henry. For setting the record straight. And for your loyalty to this family, even when I’m sure we didn’t always dese
rve it.”
His uncle smiled. “No problem. That’s what families are for.”
Chapter 56
Maggie had talked to Henry earlier, before she’d decided to come home and make an early night of it, and she knew their bid for the company had been finalized and formally submitted. A press release had been issued this afternoon.
She had expected to share this moment with Preston only days ago. And now, every time she heard a car drive by, she went to her window and peeked outside. How pathetic was she? But she couldn’t seem to stop herself.
Ever since Preston had come to Key West she’d been at war with herself. The tender, romantic, mostly suppressed part of her still declared love for Preston, and longed in vain for a happy ending. Meanwhile, the realistic, world-weary side of her fought hard against anything that might leave her vulnerable to being hurt. If only Preston could prove to her, once and for all, that she meant more to him than Ty-Ken. Then maybe she could start to believe again in the Preston she used to know, and ease the burden in her heart. Maybe they really could reach the compromise Preston thought he had offered.
She took the opened, but still full, bottle of champagne out of her refrigerator, where it had been since Preston had spent the night. As she watched the liquid bubble and swirl down the drain, she remembered the night it represented, feeling glum and melancholy. He hadn’t even acted angry last night about what Rod had done to her.
She heard another car drive by, and this time stopped herself from going to the window. Instead, she settled down on her sofa, pulling a knit afghan up over the silky, lilac chemise she wore, and turned on the television. Just when she thought she might get comfortable, the doorbell rang. At first, her heart jumped. But she only allowed herself that one moment to think it might be Preston. More likely, it was Tracy. She’d promised to let Maggie know all about her date with Henry and give her an update on how things were going at the bar tonight.
Her heart jumped again when she opened the door.
“Maggie, hi. I, uh …” Preston’s gaze traveled unabashedly over her body. “I wondered if we could talk.”
The way he looked at her made her feel self-conscious and excited, all at the same time. “Come in,” she said. All he had to do was just say the right words. Do the right thing. Show her he was the man she’d always wanted to believe in.
And then her chemise would be on the floor.
He followed her into the living room and sat down beside her on the couch. “Our bid for Ty-Ken has been made. I expect it will be in tomorrow morning’s paper.”
She nodded. “I talked to Henry earlier.”
He looked away from her and started tapping his fingers on the arm of the sofa. Maggie knew he had something more to say, but didn’t want to say it. She moved closer to him. Purposefully, and despite herself.
“I owe you an apology,” he said.
His gaze reverted back to her, and her body tingled in response to his stares. She had expected him to stick to the comfortable subject of business. And while she could think of a dozen reasons why he might owe her an apology, she couldn’t think of a single one that he would be moved by. “Why do you say that?”
“Because.”
She could almost feel the weight of his stare on her breasts, and then on her lips. “Because why?”
“Because I was a jerk to you last night, and I’m really sorry. I was upset because you’d turned down my marriage proposal and I was taking it out on you. But, I should have listened to what you were trying to tell me about Rod.”
“You said he already told you about it. I figured you thought that, since I’d already put him in his place about it, there was nothing more to be done.”
His bottom lip quivered and his hands balled into fists. He looked at her with an anger she had never seen in him before. “If I had known what that son of a bitch had done to you, Maggie, I would have cleaned his clock. The thought of that bastard putting his hands on you, trying to force himself on you, is enough to make me want to feed him to the sharks.”
“So if Rod didn’t tell you about what really happened, who did? I have a hard time believing Rod would brag about being such a complete ass.”
“Actually, you’d be amazed at what Rod will brag about. All from his own unique perspective, of course.”
“He lied about what happened?” Of course he had. That much should have been predicted with certainty. Rod’s gall knew no limits.
Preston nodded. “Yes. He lied. He said the kiss was all your idea; that you wanted to make sure I knew you didn’t want to marry me.”
She practically laughed. “Oh. That’s a good one. Real creative type, isn’t he?”
“Yes. Unfortunately for him, Henry had the more accurate story. He got a first-hand account from Tracy, who happened to be standing outside your office door when Rod forced that kiss on you.”
“She was?” She wondered why Tracy hadn’t said anything to her about it, and then wondered what version of events Preston would be relying on if there hadn’t been a witness. The significance of his attitude last night took on a whole new meaning. A new wave of hurt rushed over her. “You believed him, didn’t you?”
“Maggie, I….”
“My God, Preston. How could you possibly think I would voluntarily kiss Rod? Of all people? I cannot fathom how you could believe something as outrageous as that.”
“It’s like I said, Maggie. I was reacting more to being rejected by you. I never really believed you would let Rod kiss you. He’s like the poster child of all the narcissism and womanizing you abhor. I like to think I’m a hell of a lot more decent than he is, and even I can’t get the time of day from you.”
His words caught her off-guard. She’d expected him to get defensive, and probably argue with her. Not recite her thoughts as clearly as if they were his own. “I won’t argue with you about that.” She paused, and added, “Except for the part where you think I don’t give you the time of the day. The truth is, you get more time in my thoughts than you think.”
He moved to the couch and slipped an arm around her waist. “What about during the night? Do I get any of your thoughts then?”
She looked into his eyes and lost herself in their misty grey depths. He could be so intense, and yet so mysterious. Her gaze fell next to his lips, and she immediately thought of how it would feel to have him tasting every part of her.
He touched the side of her face, and then stroked his fingers through her hair. “I know why you turned down my marriage proposal, Maggie.”
“Why?”
“Because of your father.”
“My father?” Did he really know how she felt?
“You changed the day he died, Maggie. And I was just too caught up in my excitement over our wedding, and the details of transitioning the company, to see it.”
“I didn’t change, Preston. You did.” Or rather, his priorities changed.
“No, Maggie.”
“You did,” she insisted. “You went from opening art galleries to a Vice Presidency when your father died, to CEO when my father died.”
“You think I did that because I wanted to?”
“Of course you wanted to. Why else would you do it?”
“Because I’m a responsible person, Maggie. The same responsible person who waited until you graduated high school before trying to date you and who waited until you graduated from college before proposing marriage. You always said you liked that about me. That I gave you a feeling of security.”
“You did.”
“So what changed? Because I’ll tell you, Maggie, it wasn’t me.”
She rubbed her temples, feeling almost like she’d stepped into The Twilight Zone. “Maybe you don’t think you changed,” she said. “But from my point of view, it certainly seemed like you did.”
He tipped her chin up, forcing her to look at him. “I think you know better than that. I think if you’re really honest with yourself, you’ll see how different you became after your father died,
and maybe you’ll even ask yourself why.”
Biting on her bottom lip, she felt herself on the verge of tears. “Do we have to talk about this right now?”
He shook his head. “Not if you don’t want to. But when you’re ready to, I’d like to finish this discussion.”
His embrace tightened around her and she pressed herself thankfully into his arms. Desire seeped into her once again, and this time she didn’t wait for him to kiss her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and took his mouth hungrily.
He responded like a long-denied animal, growling and pulling her tight against him. The thin spaghetti straps of her sleepwear slipped down over her shoulders, guided by his hands, and then farther down to her waist, so that he could take her breasts into his mouth. First one, then the other.
Maggie sighed and parted her legs over his hips.
“I want you,” he whispered, fumbling with the zipper on his slacks.
She raised herself just enough over his hips for him to pull them down and then lower her back onto him. She kissed him on the cheek.
“I want you, too.”
Chapter 57
Rod woke up later in the morning than he’d intended. He had two major things on his mind right now, and he was surprised he’d been able to sleep at all. First, he was preoccupied with making sure Tracy accepted his marriage proposal. That would piss old Henry off for sure. Give him a little taste of the revenge he so desperately needed. And secondly, he needed to give some thought to how long of a fling he wanted to have before dumping her. Because, like her or not, no way was he giving up his goal of becoming a jet-set tycoon like Preston. And a working class, single mother wasn’t likely to garner much enthusiasm from the press. Nor would it do his pocket book any good. Life would be so much easier if Tracy had Maggie’s money and background. Then she’d be perfect. The ideal woman.
He climbed out of bed, pulled on some black, silk, bikini briefs, and was about to head into the kitchen to make coffee when his phone rang. With any luck, that would be Tracy calling to say yes. Unable to wait until he came back to hear her answer.
GRATIFICATION (Desire Never Dies) Page 22
