His Daughter's Laughter (Silhouette Special Edition)

by Hudson, Janis Reams

  But no giving huge amounts of cash away to charity, not for Carly. She’d given her friendship to Becky, her loyalty to James, her heart to Amanda and her body and soul to Tyler. With determination, she vowed she would give noth- ing else away.

  She would spend the damned money. On herself. She had never been selfish in her life. It was about time she learned how.

  She was going to buy whatever she wanted, no matter how frivolous, no matter how expensive. She had almost the entire hundred thousand left, and it was, figuratively speaking, burning a hole in her pocket.

  Carly Baker was going shopping.

  It wasn’t working.

  She’d gone to buy new curtains—not exactly frivolous or extravagant, but it was a start—and came home with a desert landscape painting dotted with sagebrush. Trying again the next day, she grimly set out for a slinky, expen- sive cocktail dress in hopes of lifting her spirits. She came home, instead, with two new pairs of jeans.

  She rode the cable cars so long one day that the con- ductors started giving her odd looks. She supposed it was a sign of her improved state of mind that she even noticed.

  At Fisherman’s Wharf she treated herself to crab salad, but couldn’t make herself leave the area without a balloon animal. She had tried for an orange giraffe and ended up with a blue monkey.

  But today, sitting in her driveway with the engine run- ning, she realized her plan was never going to work. She had decided that a person with as much money as she had was just plain stupid to drive an old, dilapidated car that threatened to quit on her every other day. So what had she done? Had she bought the sleek little sports car she’d been after? Oh, no, not Carly Baker. Not her.

  With a heavy sigh, she looked around the interior of her new crew cab dually pickup and shook her head. What the hell was she going to do with a pickup in San Francisco? Not an ordinary pickup, either, but one with luxurious lum- bar captain’s chairs, a full back seat, four doors, a long bed, double rear wheels, and for heaven’s sake, a trailer hitch. And so much chrome, she was sure that when the sun struck it just right, she’d be able to signal clear to Mars and back.

  Carly had been home two months and Thanksgiving was only a few days away when she saw the announcement in the paper that Becky and James were to be married next week.

  Funny, but the thought of Becky marrying James didn’t even hurt anymore. It saddened her to think that James was probably using Becky as he’d used her, but it didn’t hurt. If he really did love Becky, she hoped the two would be happy together.

  Carly paused in the process of folding away the news- paper.

  What if James was using Becky to climb the corporate ladder? What better way to skip most of the rungs than to marry the boss’s daughter, the woman who stood to inherit total control of Blalock’s and all its assets?

  Becky’s not that gullible.

  No? Carly would have sworn that she wasn’t that easily taken in, either. And despite their years of friendship, Becky had believed Carly guilty of embezzling funds. Which proved that people will believe what they want to believe.

  Why? Carly wondered for probably the millionth time. Why would Becky believe something so horrible?

  She tensed, remembering Tyler asking her if she’d told anyone about James having her password.

  No, she hadn’t told anyone. It would have been too em- barrassing, and no one would have believed her. She had opted to let them think she was a thief, so they wouldn’t know she was a gullible fool.

  Was it fair to keep quiet, no matter what anyone thought of her story? Didn’t she owe it to Becky and Walter to tell them the truth and let them decide?

  God, how stupid she’d been. She couldn’t let Becky marry James without at least trying to show her what kind of man he was. If Becky still chose to marry him, well, that would be her problem. At least Carly would know she’d told the truth. She would be taking a stand and openly admitting her mistake in believing in James’s lies. After- ward, no matter what anyone thought, she would be able to hold her head up. It would beat the hell out of slinking around with her tail tucked between her legs.

  Fearing Walter Blalock would not give her an appoint- ment if she requested one, Carly donned her favorite pin- striped power suit and breezed past his secretary. “Don’t bother,” she said with forced cheeriness as a startled Marge reached for the phone. I’ll announce myself.”

  Once inside Walter’s office, Carly let her smile drop. She was over the first hurdle—she’d made it in.

  Walter Blalock, the man who had been like a second father to her most of her life, looked up, startled. For a brief instant, the old warmth and friendship was there. Then, in a flash of memory, the light in his eyes dimmed.

  Panic threatened, but Carly fought it down. She’d come this far. This was something she had to do, for herself, for Becky. “I’d like to talk to you, Mr. Blalock.” She had never called him Walter at work.

  He leaned back in his chair and frowned. “Is this about what I think it is?”

  Carly swallowed. “If you mean the missing money, yes. There’s something I need to tell you, but Becky and James need to hear it, too, and I only want to have to say it once. I’d appreciate it if you would call them in.”

  The man stared at her hard for several moments, and Carly had to fight the urge to wipe her palms on her skirt. She dropped her gaze, knowing he assumed she was there to confess. Not that she had to feign her nervousness, but if he knew the real reason for her presence, he probably wouldn’t even listen.

  While, he tried to decide whether or not to honor her request, Carry lowered herself onto one of the two chairs before his desk. The one angled so she could see the door.

  Finally, lips pursed as if he’d sucked a lemon, he called Marge and told her to have James and Becky come to his office at once.

  Carly breathed a surreptitious sigh of relief. Second hur- dle cleared.

  An uneasy silence filled the room for the several minutes it took James and Becky to arrive. Carly heard their voices in the outer office, so had a moment to compose herself.

  When they entered, they stopped short, stunned to see her.

  “Come in and close the door,” Mr. Blalock told the couple.

  Becky, her face pinched tight, was the first to speak. “Well, well, what do we have here?”

  Mr. Blalock shot his daughter a terse look. “Carly has something she’d like to tell us. I, for one, would like to hear what she has to say.”

  “And high time, too,” Becky muttered. “What prompted you to decide to spill the beans after all this time? . Guilty conscience?”

  Carly fought back a shiver at the animosity in her best friend’s—-former best friend’s voice. “Actually,” she said, “it was the announcement of your wedding that made me decide, to finally come. There are things you need to know, and I thought it best to tell you before you and James were married.”

  Becky sank to the other chair before her father’s desk.

  James stood behind her and glared at Carly. He knew why she was there. He had to. “I don’t think you’ve come here to tell the truth,” he claimed. “I think you’re here to tell more lies, make more excuses.”

  Carly met his gaze and raised her chin. “What lies have I told, James? What excuses have I given?”

  “Good point,” Mr. Blalock said. “You never said a word, except that you didn’t take the money. You never offered any excuses at all.”

  “Because there aren’t any.” Becky gave her a look of icy disdain. “Not real ones.”

  James opened his mouth to add his two cents’ worth, but Carly raised her hand to stop him. “Excuse me. You’ve all had your say ten times over. You let me know from the beginning what you thought of me, and you were quite clear about it. I didn’t come here to listen to all that again. I came here to have my say, to answer all the accusations you’ve thrown at me.”

  “Be my guest.” Mr. Blalock folded his arms across his chest. “Tell us, Carly. And I’d appreciate the trut
h. In view of our past relationship, I think you owe me that much.”

  Carly stared at her hands a moment, feeling how cold they were. Then she looked up at her former boss. “That’s why I’m here. Because I do owe you the truth.” She paused to gather her courage. “This is hard. It’s…embarrassing.”

  “I’m sure it is,” Becky offered with the first note of civility Carly had heard from her since the audit results months ago.

  Carly gave her a sad smile. “As hard as it is for me to say, I have a feeling it’s going to be even more difficult for you to hear.”

  Becky cocked her head, curious.

  “I hope you’ll remember all the years we were best friends, Beck, and understand that that’s why I’ve got to say what I came here for. Because of that friendship.”

  “The friendship you betrayed?”

  Carly shook her head. “I never betrayed you, except by my silence.”

  “Then quit dancing around the subject and get on with this confession.” So much for Becky’s civility. “I have a thousand last-minute wedding details to see to.”

  Carly winced, then steadied herself with a deep breath. “You and James announced your engagement the day be- fore the audit uncovered the missing money.

  “What does that have to do with anything?” James de- manded.

  Carly ignored him and spoke to Becky. “The two of you had obviously been seeing each other for quite some time, for you to decide you were ready for marriage. Yet no one in the office knew anything about it.”

  “This is useless,” Becky told her father. “She’s not go- ing to confess to anything.”

  “Oh, but I am,” Carly said. “That’s why I brought up your relationship with James. During all those weeks or months the two of you secretly dated before you announced your engagement, did he ever tell you why he couldn’t see you on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays?”

  “Of course he did.” Becky frowned. She straightened in the chair and gave Carly a sharp look. “How did you know about that, anyway?”

  “Because for nearly a year prior to the audit, James was with me every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday night.”

  Becky blanched. “You’re lying.”

  “Of course she is,” James claimed. “You know me bet- ter than that, Beck.”

  “No, I don’t think she does, James,” Carly said. “I don’t think any of us ever knew you.”

  “You realize I don’t believe you,” Becky told her.

  “Naturally. He’s very convincing, I know.” Carly spared James a glance, then looked at Becky. “But you might want to ask yourself how I knew he never saw you those three nights each week, when at the time, I didn’t know he was seeing you at all. What was his excuse for all the secrecy, by the way? With me, he claimed it would look bad at work. I expect it was something similar with you.”

  “My God, Carly,” James said fiercely. “Becky and I are getting married next week. You were her best friend most of her life. How can you come here like this and try to destroy our future? No one’s going to believe you, so why not give it up?”

  Carly studied the man she’d once thought she loved. “I see why I fell for you now. You are very, very good, aren’t you? Very persuasive.”

  “She’s lying, Becky. Don’t listen to her.”

  “Why would I make up something like this?” Carly asked. “It only makes me look like a gullible fool, which I’ll admit I was. I didn’t have to come here and say any of this, but I wanted Becky to know before she married you just what kind of man you are.”

  Walter Blalock’s quiet voice broke in. “Just where were you those three nights every week, James?”

  “Don’t be silly, Daddy. He volunteers with several in- ner-city youth groups.”

  Mr. Blalock narrowed his eyes on James. “Which ones?”

  James ground his teeth. “The Y, Big Brothers and Future Business Leaders of America.”

  “You can prove that, of course. That you were there every week?”

  “Are you saying you don’t believe me?” James’s eyes widened.

  Mr. Blalock shrugged. “Just curious. I’m also curious as to why Carly has chosen to carry this little tale. This has nothing to do with the missing money.”

  “Oh, but it does,” Carly said.

  Becky stiffened, outraged. “Surely you’re not suggesting James had something to do with that.”.

  “I’m not suggesting anything at all. I just came to tell the truth. And the truth is, James and I dated—secretly— for almost a year before the audit, apparently while he was also seeing you. During that time, he used to tease me by trying to guess my password on the computer system here at work.” She gave a self-deprecating shrug. “It got to be such a long-running joke between us…I finally just told him.”

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake,” Becky cried. “Even if you were telling the truth—which I don’t believe for a minute— what does it prove? Even I know your computer password. All the passwords are written down on a list in the con- troller’s office.”

  “True, but last year when we upgraded the system I had mine changed. No one knew my new one except me, James’s predecessor, Mr. Carson, who’d been our controller for twenty years, and James.”

  “Why are you doing this?” James cried. “No one was going to prosecute you. You don’t have a thing to gain by accusing me, except some perceived revenge. And I’m tell- ing you both,” he said to Becky and Mr. Blalock, “this is all in her head. Everything she’s said so far has been a lie. I never dated her, and she damn sure never gave me her password.”

  “Carly?” Mr. Blalock asked quietly.

  “The only so-called proof you have that I took that money is the use of my password. Well, I’m telling you I did not take the money. You can believe me, or not. But as I’ve said, two other people also had my password. You have no more reason to suspect me than you do them. Frankly, after all the years we’ve known each other, I’ve never understood why you all were so eager to believe I’d betray your trust and friendship that way.” She shook her head and rose from the chair. “But you do believe it, or I’d still be working here.”

  “That’s what this is all about,” Becky cried. “You’re trying to throw the blame on James so you can get your old job back.”

  Carly gave a harsh bark of laughter. “Are you kidding? Work for people who call me a thief? Why in the world would I want to do that?”

  “Because you’re desperate. You don’t have a job, I’d have heard if you did,” Becky said. “You couldn’t have had that much saved up. You must be just about dead broke by now, and Daddy won’t give you a recommendation, so you aren’t about to get hired by a reputable company. You couldn’t even keep your job at Burger Barrel, for heaven’s sake.”

  “Yes, and we both know how I lost that job, don’t we? I never thanked you for that. If it hadn’t been for your interference, I might have been able to hang on quite a while. As it was, I was forced to take a job out of state for a few months.”

  She paused, and for the first time was glad Tyler had practically forced all that money on her. The sudden real- ization that she had no need to accept whatever job came along just to support herself, the feeling of freedom and independence the money gave her, was heady.

  With a smile, she said, That job paid obscenely well. If I’m careful, I won’t have to work for anyone for a long, long time. No, I’m not after a job. I just came to tell the truth. Now, if you go ahead and marry James, I won’t have to suffer a guilty conscience over letting you get into some- thing unawares. And if more money turns up missing around here. I can honestly tell myself, ’Hey, they had all the facts. If they chose to ignore them, what can I do?’”

  Becky leaped from her chair toward Carly. “Why, you dirty little—”

  “Oh, and Beck? I’d have him sign a prenuptial agree- ment if I were you. Just in case I’m telling the truth.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  In one respect, the confrontation at Blalock’s lifted Carly’s s
pirits. She’d done what she should have done months ago. That chapter of her life, as far as she was concerned, was over. Closed. Done.

  But what came next? What was she supposed to do with herself in San Francisco, when she spent her days and nights longing for Wyoming and a pair of blue-green eyes? She still missed Tyler so much she ached with it.

  She wanted to go back. She wanted to be part of his life, part of Amanda’s. She wanted to love him and be loved by him. But how could she jeopardize his right to raise his daughter?

  Marry me. That will settle it

  The memory of those words made her eyes sting. She had tried to tell herself he’d only meant them as a desperate step to retain custody of Amanda. Give her a new mother, and the court might look more favorably on letting him keep her.

  But she knew Tyler better than that. If he hadn’t wanted to marry her, he would never have brought it up. He loved her, she knew he did. No man could look at a woman the way he’d looked at her and not be in love.

  And she loved him. God, how she loved him. Everything about him, from the way he set her blood on fire to the way he made her laugh. His skill with horses, his sharp business sense, his gentle tenderness with Amanda.

  If it weren’t for what everyone thought of her…

  When the hell are you going to stop worrying about what everyone else thinks?

  Her hands started trembling. She couldn’t believe she was actually considering what was running through her mind. To go back to Wyoming without so much as an in- vitation would be incredibly presumptuous. What if he didn’t want her anymore? What if the attorney still thought Tyler’s chances for retaining custody of Amanda were bet- ter if Carly was out of the picture?

  What if…dear God, what if he’d already lost Amanda?

  The questions tormented Carly for days. Traffic on the streets pulled at her nerves. She looked for mountains on the horizon and saw only buildings. She searched the crowds on the sidewalks for a tall, dark-haired cowboy, but never found him.