Who Gets to Marry Max?

by Neesa Hart

  “I’ll send someone over to get it out of your refrigerator.”

  “It’ll keep until tomorrow.”

  “I won’t.” He covered her mouth in a ravishing kiss.

  His hand was working at the hem of her blouse, tugging it free from the waistband of her black pants when she pulled her lips from his and whispered. “Don’t you need to make a phone call?”

  He raised his head, his expression blank. “What?”

  “A phone call.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?”

  She trailed one finger along the line of his mouth. “Well, it occurs to me that Colleen is probably going to call Natalie as soon as she gets home tonight. And Natalie will ask Paul what Colleen’s talking about. And if Paul has to work out the details of a major contract and a proposed processing plant by tomorrow morning when Warren gets to work, you might want to tell him now.”

  His eyes focused. His lips twitched into a slight smile, and he slid one hand from under her blouse to reach for the telephone on his desk. “Give me five minutes.”

  With a slight laugh, she buried her face in the curve of his neck. “I have a feeling even you are going to need more than five minutes for this one.”

  He grumbled. She smoothed the crease from his forehead. “It’s okay, Max. I understand.”

  “You shouldn’t. You should be furious.”

  “Why? Because you’re a nice man who feels a strong sense of responsibility toward your family?”

  He smoothed a hand down her back. “You’re a remarkable woman, Sidney Grant.”

  “Not really,” she said as she eased off his lap. “I just remember what it’s like to be unhappy.” She glanced away from him. “I wasn’t always this easy to get along with.”

  “You’d never convince me.”

  She laughed. “Ask Uncle Philip. So, as much as I hate to say it, I think this is good night.”

  He frowned. “I don’t want you to leave.”

  “I know. But you need to talk to Paul. You’ve got a lot to do before tomorrow.”

  “Sidney—”

  She tucked her blouse back into her waistband. “It’s late. I should go. I’ve got work to do.”

  “Doing what?”

  She gave him a censorious look. “Running my business, just like you.”

  “I wish you’d let me pay you.”

  “Why? So you could have me at your beck and call?”

  “Yes.”

  That made her laugh. “Oh, Max, you’re hopeless.”

  “At least let me give you the laptop. It’s still in the box.”

  “I don’t need it.”

  He closed his eyes. “Of course you need it.”

  “Can it make chocolates?”

  “No, but it can do a hell of a lot better job at keeping your books than you do now.”

  “But wouldn’t it require me to actually enter stuff into it?”

  “That’s not—”

  She waved her hand. “That’s why I pay an accountant.”

  “Look how well that turned out.”

  “Okay, so that wasn’t the best decision I ever made. I lived and I learned. I have George now. Which, by the way, I’ve been meaning to ask you. Can I afford George?”

  “Of course.”

  “Because you’re paying his fees?”

  “Yes.”

  “At least you’re honest.”

  “Consider it a benefit of doing business with Loden Enterprises.”

  “Do you supply any of your other service providers with free accounting services?”

  “No one else needs them.”

  “How flattering.”

  Max shook his head. “Quit trying to distract me. It won’t work.”

  “I know. You’re never distracted.”

  “You’d be surprised. Lately, I’m distracted all the time. It’s just that I’m distracted by you, not with you.”

  “Oh.” She felt absurdly pleased.

  He gave her a pointed look as he drummed his fingers on the desk. “Yeah. And right now, I’m distracted by the fact that I want you to stay the night. All night.”

  Sidney shook her head. “I can’t. It’s too—awkward.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Max,” she said patiently, “my uncle works here.”

  “He sleeps downstairs. We’re alone.”

  “He also wakes you up and brings you your paper and coffee.”

  “I’ll call him and tell him to take tomorrow off.”

  Sidney rolled her eyes. “Never mind. Just believe me when I say it’s not going to be tonight.”

  “When is it going to be?”

  “Very tacky, Loden.”

  “Yeah, I guess.” He studied her in the dim light. “But I still want to know.”

  Sidney thought it over. It was, indeed, a very good question. Until now, they seemed like the most ill-fated pair on the planet. She looked at his rugged features, remembered, for an instant, the look of hurt she’d seen in his eyes when Colleen had hurled her accusations at him, and decided the time had come to leap off the bridge. Sidney drew a deep breath and plunged. “Didn’t you say that you’d asked Lois to rearrange our appointments at the two hotels you wanted to site for this weekend?”

  “Yes.”

  “Tomorrow is Friday. We can see the one in the city tomorrow morning, then drive out to the one on Long Island tomorrow afternoon. We can site the hotel on Saturday, spend a day around the beach, and er, come back on Sunday.”

  His eyes glittered. “Are you telling me that you’re willing to give me three uninterrupted days?”

  Butterflies did the Rumba in her belly. “Yes.”

  “No intruders?”

  “Not unless they’re your intruders.”

  “They won’t be. I assure you.”

  “I’ll take your word for it. And I’ll go home now so you can get some work done.”

  “I’ll drive you,” he offered.

  “No, that’s silly.”

  “Sidney, it’s a two hour drive back to your place.”

  She shook her head. “I have an apartment behind my office. I keep the extra room for this reason.”

  “For when you run out on desperate men in the middle of the night and leave them aching for you in the small hours of the morning?”

  Her lips twitched. “For when it’s too late to go home, and I have to be back in the city for an early appointment. I have several changes of clothes there. It’s not a problem.”

  “Are you sure? I don’t mind driving you.”

  “You’re not fooling me, Max. This is a ploy to get me alone again.”

  “We’re alone now.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “Unfortunately. I don’t suppose it would do me any good to suggest that I have Charlie drive you in the limo.”

  “Lord, no. It’s the middle of the night. Don’t get that poor man out of bed.”

  Max dug in his pocket for the keys to the car. “Any chance you’d let me drive you to your office, then?”

  “Nope. You’ve got work to do. You have to completely rearrange your schedule, and Warren Blake’s life, before tomorrow morning.”

  “You win,” he said as he tossed her the keys. “At least take my car and not the damned subway. I’ll be up all night worrying that you got mugged.”

  “I’ve been taking care of myself for a very long time.”

  “Humor me.”

  She pocketed the keys. “Okay.”

  “And call me when you get there.”

  “I will.”

  “Are you sure you won’t let Charlie drive you?”

  “I’m sure. It’s too late. I don’t want you to bother him.”

  “Hell, Sidney, I pay him for this.”

  She shrugged. “I know, but I don’t. It wouldn’t feel right to me.”

  Max shook his head. “Fine. Just promise you’ll be careful.”

  “Absolutely. I’ll bring your car when I meet you at the h
otel tomorrow morning.”

  “Fine.” He reached for the phone. She turned to go, but he stopped her. “Sidney?”

  “Yes?”

  “I’m not going to let anything get in the way of this weekend. I want you to know that.”

  She winked at him. “You’ll impress me no end if you pull it off, Max.”

  He started punching buttons.

  Chapter Ten

  Philip Grant picked up the phone and dialed the number from memory. On the other end, a smooth, well-modulated voice answered, “Thank you for calling The Keswick.”

  Philip smiled. “How are you, Hector? It’s been a while since I’ve heard from you.

  Hector Jarvis, general manager of the historic Keswick Inn on Long Island, exhaled a pleased sigh. “Philip Grant. What a delightful surprise.”

  “I doubt it, you wily old fox. You know precisely why I’m calling.”

  “I assume this has something to do with Mr. Loden’s scheduled visit this afternoon?”

  It came as no surprise to Philip that Hector knew Max was on his way to the inn. Hector had a way of knowing everything that went on in his small empire. “It does. I wanted to discuss something with you.”

  “I understand that Mr. Loden is bringing a guest.”

  “He is,” Philip told his old friend. “A special guest.”

  “My banquet manager informed me that Mr. Loden’s guest is an event planner who is helping with the younger Mr. Loden’s wedding arrangements.”

  “Did he now?”

  “He did.”

  “Did he tell you that Mr. Loden’s guest also happens to be my niece?”

  “Sidney?” Hector said in delight. “Really?”

  “Really.”

  “Well, this is a pleasant surprise.”

  “I’m assuming that Mr. Loden is booked into a suite.”

  “He is. I have him staying in the Commodore. You remember. That’s the two-story suite with the master bedroom and the second bedroom upstairs, and the sitting area and dining area downstairs.”

  “Yes. I remember.”

  “I, uh, assume you know that Mr. Loden has booked only the one room.”

  “I do.”

  “Then may I assume that Sidney will not be staying the weekend?”

  “You may assume nothing of the sort.” Philip smiled.

  “You don’t say?” Hector sounded both pleased and amazed.

  “I do,” Philip assured him. “I consider it a most fortunate turn of events.”

  “Indeed. I thought you’d told me that Ms. Barlow was currently holding Mr. Loden’s attention.”

  “The winds have shifted.”

  “Quite favorably it seems.”

  “That’s how I feel about it.”

  Hector laughed. “And I’m certain that you played no role in any of this. You have such a talent for minding your own affairs.”

  “I played an enormous role in it, I’ll have you know. The entire thing was my idea.”

  “I might have known.”

  “Yes, you might have.” Philip glanced at the clock. “They should be arriving sometime early this afternoon, and I wanted to make certain you understood the situation.”

  “Quite well.”

  “I’d like them to have a very good time.”

  “You may count on me, Philip. You know that.”

  “And I’d like them to have an uninterrupted good time, if you know what I mean.”

  “Naturally. Emergencies only. Anything else?”

  “I’d like to be kept informed of anything extraordinary.”

  “I have your telephone number programmed on my speed dial.”

  Philip nodded, satisfied that he’d done what he could. “Thank you, Hector. I deliberately recommended the Keswick to Mr. Loden because I felt I could count on you.”

  “I’ll do everything I can.”

  “The press may be a problem. Thus far, Sidney hasn’t been with Mr. Loden often enough for word to leak of a relationship, but you know how these things can go. I’m certain Max wouldn’t appreciate having a society reporter yelling ‘Who Gets To Marry Max?’ over the hedgerow. Do you have any reason to believe you’ll be hounded by the paparazzi this weekend?”

  “We have no celebrities in residence at the moment. Everything should be quite peaceful then, unless Mr. Loden decides to make a spectacle of himself.”

  “Always a possibility,” Philip conceded.

  Hector chuckled. “Indeed. But I’ll alert the staff.”

  “I’d appreciate it.”

  “I think she’ll be good for him, Philip.”

  “As do I,” Philip concurred. “As do I.”

  MAX WATCHED Sidney walk toward him across the lobby of the hotel and had to jam his hands into his trouser pockets to keep from pulling her into his arms. She’d looked at him with such sweet longing when she’d left his apartment last night, it had taken every ounce of control he possessed not to beg her to stay with him. This morning, she looked fresh and captivating in navy trousers and a crisp white blouse. Her luxuriant hair was piled on her head in a froth of waves that seemed to beg for his fingers.

  She glided to a stop two feet in front of him. “Good morning.”

  Max looked at her, felt the tug of desire racing through him, then decided caution was a sucker’s game. He toppled her into his arms and kissed her. Hard. After her initial gasp, Sidney stumbled the final two steps toward him, wrapped her arms around his waist, and kissed him back. Max felt euphoric. When he lifted his head, he grinned at her. “Good morning.”

  She reached up to wipe the lipstick from his lips with her index finger. He was coming to adore the way she did that. “I missed you, too,” she said quietly.

  “You look like you slept.”

  “Why, thank you. You’re looking very fit yourself.”

  Ignoring her sarcasm, he wrapped one arm around her shoulders and headed toward the banquet manager’s office. “My point is, if you missed me half as much as I missed you, you wouldn’t have slept at all. I didn’t.”

  Sidney slanted him a flirtatious look that had him seriously considering blowing off the morning’s appointment. “Is this a good time for me to advise that chilled cucumber slices do wonders for eliminating bags under the eyes?”

  “Order me a gross,” he said as they stepped onto the elevator. “I have a feeling I’m going to need them.”

  Sidney laughed. The sound simultaneously delighted and bewitched him. “I’m sort of counting on it,” she said quietly.

  Max made a conscious decision to get through the morning’s business with all possible haste.

  AN HOUR LATER, they were settled in his car, heading out of Manhattan toward the Keswick Inn. Her hand was nestled in his, and Max’s only regret was that he hadn’t had the foresight to ask Charlie to drive them.

  “What would he do all weekend?” Sidney asked.

  Max hadn’t realized he’d voiced the sentiment out loud. “He could have come back into the city.”

  “It’ll be easier if we have the car.”

  He slanted her a dry look. “I’m aware of that. I’m also aware that if Charlie were driving, I’d be free for—other things.”

  “Oh.”

  He squeezed her hand. “I adore you. Have I mentioned that this morning?”

  “No.”

  “Well, I do. Thank you for giving me this weekend.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “Did it put too much of a strain on your schedule?”

  Sidney shook her head and several more tendrils of her hair cascaded to her shoulders. “Kelly is extremely capable. We only had two events scheduled, and one is relatively minor. She can handle it.”

  “You’re lucky to have her.”

  “Incredibly.”

  “And she’s lucky to have you.”

  She gave him a surprised look. “Why do you say that?”

  “Because good business people like Kelly are relatively easy to find. Creative geniuses like you are r
are. Without you, she couldn’t do what she does.”

  “I never thought of it that way.”

  “It’s symbiotic. I have that same relationship with several members of my staff. They need me, and I need them. Knowing that is what makes a good leader a great leader.”

  “You know, Max, you’re really a remarkable man.”

  He raised their joined hands to press a kiss to the back of her fingers. “I’m awfully glad you think so.”

  HECTOR JARVIS met them on the front steps of the Keswick Inn. Designed in the charming style of an English country home, the large inn catered to a decidedly sophisticated clientele. Hector had served, during his long tenure, in almost every position at the inn. He was now one of the most respected concierges in the business because of his hallmark service and the almost fanatic loyalty of his customers.

  He shook Max’s hand with open affection. “It’s so very nice to see you, Mr. Loden. I was delighted when my banquet manager told me you were considering the Keswick for your brother’s reception.”

  Max nodded. “I’ve got great memories here, Hector. You run an excellent operation.”

  Hector beamed. “We certainly try.” His gaze shifted to Sidney. “It’s a pleasure to see you again, Miss Grant. How is your uncle?”

  “He’s well,” she assured him, trying not to squirm as she realized that Hector Jarvis knew precisely why she was here.

  Hector signaled a bellhop to retrieve their bags from the trunk of Max’s car. “I’ve booked you into the Commodore,” he told Max. “I trust that will be satisfactory.”

  “Of course.” Max looped his fingers beneath Sidney’s elbow and began walking up the stairs. “I knew I could count on you, Hector.”

  “I’m pleased you thought so.” The older man waited while a doorman swung open the impressive brass-trimmed door. “You’ll also be happy to know that I expect things to be relatively quiet here this weekend. You should be able to enjoy a very refreshing couple of days.”

  Sidney stifled a groan. For his part, Max seemed oblivious to her discomfort. “Thank you.”

  “We aim to please, Mr. Loden.”

  Once inside, Max paused beneath one of the massive crystal chandeliers. “We were scheduled to meet with your banquet manager this afternoon. Do you think it would possible to postpone that meeting until tomorrow? We’ve had a long trip.”