High Stakes

by Cheryl Douglas

  “It doesn’t matter whether Liam and I are together or not.” She pressed her palms into his chest, trying to put some distance between them. “We’re not getting back together. Ever.”

  The buzzer above the door sounded, indicating she had a customer. Before she could find the strength to push Nick away, Matthew spotted them.

  “Oh great,” she muttered, finally finding the strength to force her ex to back off. “That’s Liam’s brother.”

  “What the hell does he want?”

  “We’re about to find out.” Alisa forced a smile as she finger combed her tousled hair. “Hi, Matt. This is a surprise. Are you in town on business?”

  “Uh, no.” He glanced at Nick. “Have you got a minute to talk?”

  Alisa hadn’t heard one word from Liam in the four days since she left Barbados. The final day of silence convinced her he was ready to end their marriage, so she’d called her lawyer to initiate divorce proceedings. “Of course. Nick was just leaving.” She glared at her ex. “You can show yourself out?”

  He raked a hand through his shaggy, sandy blond hair. “This isn’t over, Alisa.”

  “Yes, it is. Now get out.” She smiled at Matt. “My office is the first door on the left down that hallway. I just have to go upstairs and get one of the girls to cover the floor for me.”

  “Sure.”

  Matt seemed reluctant to follow her directions, and when the sound of muted voices followed her up the stairs, she understood why.

  “Why can’t you take a hint, buddy?” Matt asked Nick. “She’s married now.”

  “Not for much longer.”

  “How the hell do you know that? She told you?”

  Alisa took her time walking up the stairs so she could hear more of their conversation.

  “She didn’t have to tell me,” Nick said. “I know that girl better than she knows herself.”

  Alisa rolled her eyes. If he’d known her so well, he would have known that sleeping with another woman was a deal breaker for her.

  “Listen, my brother’s in love with her and she feels the same way about him.”

  “How the hell do you know how she feels?”

  “I’ve seen them together. It doesn’t take much more than that. Hell, they can’t keep their hands off each other. I’ve never seen Liam like that with a woman, ever.”

  The reminder of the intimacy they’d shared hit Alisa hard. She tried to block it out of her mind, the stolen kisses when they thought no one was looking, the passionate lovemaking, how safe and protected she felt in his arms. The sense that she finally found her soul mate…

  “Yeah, well, he may be in love with her, but I can guaran-damn-tee you, she ain’t over me.”

  “Funny, I coulda sworn I just heard her tell you it was over. In fact, she told you to get the hell out. If I were you, I’d take the lady’s advice.”

  Nick chuckled. “Who’s gonna make me? You?”

  “You really don’t know who you’re dealing with, do you, dumbass?”

  “Who the hell are you callin’—”

  Alisa sucked in a breath when she peeked over the top of the railing and saw the two men take a step towards each other.

  “My brother is not a guy you wanna mess with, trust me. We’re talkin’ wealth and power on a whole ’nother level than you’re used to, buddy.”

  Alisa pressed a hand to her stomach. This was quickly going from bad to worse. She knew Nick wouldn’t take the targeted shot to his ego without fighting back. All of his self-worth was wrapped up in his wealth and fame. Without that, he felt like he was nothing.

  “So he’s rich, big deal. Alisa’s grown up around money her whole life. That stuff don’t mean shit to her.”

  “If that’s true, then what in the hell would she see in a loser like you? My brother went to an Ivy League school, built a business worth hundreds of millions from the ground up, raised a daughter on his own, gives back a small fortune every year…” Matt chuckled. “What the hell have you ever done to make yourself worthy of a woman like Alisa?” He laughed again when Nick didn’t respond. “You’ve got a decent singing voice, but that’s all you’ve got to offer her. You really think that’s enough to keep a woman like her happy for the long haul?” When Nick still didn’t respond, he said, “Do yourself a favor, man; go back to your groupies, ‘cause that lady is way outta your league.”

  Alisa held her breath, half-expecting to hear the sickening thud of fists flying. But when she stole another glance over the railing, she was shocked to see Nick crossing the store and walking out the door without another word to Matt. Apparently the Bryson brothers had a knack for getting people to see things their way.

  “Can you handle things downstairs for a while?” she asked Megan, one of her part-time sales associates.

  “Sure, no problem.”

  “I’ll be in my office if you need me.”

  Megan followed Alisa down the stairs. When she caught sight of Matthew, she whispered, “Oh my God, that guy’s gorgeous. Is he available, or what?”

  “Or what.”

  “Damn, all the good ones are taken, aren’t they?”

  Alisa knew of one good man who’d be back on the market very soon. The prospect shouldn’t turn her stomach, but it did. If she thought it took her a long time to get over her break-up with Nick, that was going to pale in comparison to the heartbreak of losing Liam.

  By the time Alisa cleared the last stair, Matt was already in her office, so she quickly made her way to the back of the store, anxious to hear what he had to say. Did Liam know he was here? Had he asked him to come? Was Matt going to ask her to give his brother another chance?

  Alisa pushed the door open and smiled at Matt, who was sitting on the small sofa. “I heard the way you handled Nick. Impressive.”

  “I hope I wasn’t overstepping, but the thought of that guy trying to pressure you into getting back together with him after what he did to you really pisses me off.”

  She smiled as she claimed the chair next to him and crossed her legs. “Liam filled you in, I take it?”

  “Yeah, I hope you don’t mind. It’s just that it was really bothering him, knowing that your ex was still in the picture.” He shrugged. “Not a lot of things threaten my brother, but knowing that you had history with this guy made him question whether he could compete.”

  Alisa couldn’t help but laugh. “Liam’s afraid of losing me to Nick? That’s ridiculous.”

  Matt shared in her laughter. “I know, right? That’s what I tried to tell him. The guy’s a loser.”

  She winced at his characterization of her former fiancé. “What does it say about me that I agreed to marry him?”

  “It says you were young and foolish.” Matt smiled, a smile so much like Liam’s it took her breath away. “We’re all allowed to make a few mistakes, right?”

  “I guess so.” She crossed and uncrossed her legs. “So tell me, what brings you here?”

  All traces of humor vanished as Matt suddenly appeared to have the weight of the world resting on his shoulders. “Liam had an episode after you left Barbados.” He released a gusty sigh. “He didn’t want you to know about this, but I thought you had a right, since you are still his wife.”

  Alisa felt a flicker of anxiety invade her stomach. “What kind of episode are we talking about?”

  Matt covered his face with his hands before looking at her. “There’s no easy way to tell you this, Alisa. He had a heart attack.”

  She gasped as she leaned forward. “Oh my God. Are you serious?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  “But he’s young and strong and…” She couldn’t process the thought of the Liam she knew laid up in a hospital bed, incapacitated or worse. “Please, tell me he’s okay.”

  Matt reached for her hand. “He’s going to be, but they had to keep him in the hospital in Barbados for a few days to monitor his blood pressure and heart rhythms.”

  “I don’t understand how this could have happened to someone lik
e him.” He was so vital and always seemed to have boundless energy. “It doesn’t make any sense.”

  “It makes perfect sense to me,” Matt said, scowling, as he released her hand and leaned back on the sofa to extend his arm across the back. “He’s been working seven days a week for as long as I can remember, eats out two or three times a day, never finds the time to visit a doctor, and only exercises to try and relieve stress, which rarely works. Hell, he was a ticking time bomb.”

  Alisa tried to focus on her breathing, forcing air in and out of her lungs at a steady pace, but it did little to help lessen her anxiety about her husband’s condition. “What are his doctors saying?”

  “They told him he can’t go on like this. He needs to cut back, take it easy for a while, make some serious changes in his life, or he won’t be so lucky the next time.” Matt shook his head. “He’s had unregulated high blood pressure for God knows how long. That was one of the major factors that contributed to the heart attack, according to the doctors. They’ve put him on medication, which seems to be working, but that’s only the beginning.”

  Alisa thought about the advice she’d given him the other night, the same advice the doctor was giving him now. She wondered if the doctor had better luck convincing him that his habits put his life in jeopardy. “How is Liam handling this?”

  “He’s mad as hell,” Matt said, chuckling. “He’s not used to being told what to do, and the fact that he has to take it easy at home for a while is making him crazy.”

  “He’s at home now?”

  “Yeah, the doc just gave him the go-ahead to fly today. Tracey and Abby flew home on the jet with him to make sure he was okay. But I wanted to come here and tell you what happened in person.” He shrugged. “Liam didn’t want you to know, but I thought you had the right. We’ve managed to keep it out of the papers, since it happened so far away, but that’s not to say there won’t be a leak. If there is… I didn’t want you to hear it on TV.”

  “Liam didn’t want me to know?” She tried to ignore the twinge of sorrow that accompanied those words. Her husband didn’t want her to know that he’d had a medical emergency? That spoke volumes about his commitment to working out the problems in their marriage.

  “He didn’t want to feel as though you were staying with him because of his condition. If there’s one thing my brother hates, it’s being pitied.” He smiled. “Almost as much as he hates hovering.”

  “Well, that’s too damn bad,” Alisa said, getting to her feet. “Because, as his wife, it’s my job to take care of him, so he better get used to it.”

  “Does that mean you’re coming back with me?”

  “Oh yeah, and when I get my hands on him, I’m gonna throttle him for the hell he’s put me through.”

  “I said I’m fine, Mrs. Foster,” Liam said through gritted teeth. In the hour since he’d been home, she made him soup, brought him the newspaper, and now she was fluffing his pillows. “Please, just go back to whatever you were doing before I came home.”

  She scowled at him as she fisted her hands on her hips. “You expect me to pretend this heart attack never happened? How am I supposed to do that?”

  Mrs. Foster had worked for Liam since his daughter was born, and they always had a cordial relationship, but she never crossed the employee/employer line by lecturing him about how he chose to live his life. Judging by the displeasure he saw on her face, he suspected that was about to change. He feared that was the first of many things about to change. In a matter of a few days, his life spiraled out of control, and he hated it.

  “What’s the matter with you? Do I have to remind you that you have a daughter who’s counting on you? If you’re not willing to take care of yourself for your own sake, then do it for her.”

  Liam felt the wallop of her words like a smack to the face. “I always put my daughter first.”

  “Really?” She drew a deep breath. “You know what? Now’s not the time to discuss this. Tracey said you weren’t to be upset right now, and I certainly don’t want to be responsible for your setback. I’m sure you’ll manage that without my help.”

  “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” he asked, tossing his newspaper down on the bed beside him.

  “None of us expect you to follow the doctor’s orders. You put that company above all of us, including your own wellbeing. You’ve proven that. If you had any sense—”

  “Excuse me.”

  Liam cursed when his heart began to race at the sight of Alisa. Surely that’s not what the doctor had intended when he told him to remain calm. “What are you doing here?”

  Alisa ignored him as she stepped into the room and offered Mrs. Foster her hand. “Hello, I’m Alisa Bryson. Liam’s wife.” She smiled. “You must be Mrs. Foster? Abby was just telling me about how much they value your help around here.”

  The older woman blushed at Alisa’s praise as she accepted her outstretched hand. “That’s kind of you to say, Mrs. Bryson.”

  “Please, call me Alisa.” She nodded her head toward Liam as she covered Mrs. Foster’s hand with both of hers. “You mind if I have a few minutes with the mighty dictator over there?”

  Mrs. Foster tried unsuccessfully to hide her smile. “Be my guest. I hope you have better luck with him than I did.”

  Alisa waited for Liam’s housekeeper to leave the room before she started in on him. “Why the hell didn’t you call to tell me what happened?”

  “I didn’t want you here.” Liam closed his eyes when he saw the effect of his words. He wasn’t trying to hurt her. He was trying to set her free from any sense of obligation she may feel. She’d already made her intentions clear, she intended to divorce him, and his heart attack didn’t change anything. If she came back to him, he wanted it to be because she realized she couldn’t live without him, not because she feared for his wellbeing without a babysitter to watch his every move.

  She sat down on the end of the bed. “That’s too bad, ‘cause I’m here now whether you like it or not.”

  “My brother told you what happened, didn’t he?” When she didn’t deny his claim, he muttered a curse. “I should have known he couldn’t keep his big mouth shut.”

  “He thought I had a right to know.”

  “Why?” He saw his opportunity to deliver the final blow that would drive her away for good. “You’re nothing to me anymore, remember?”

  Alisa bit her bottom lip and looked down at her clasped hands. “Be that as it may, I just promised your daughter I wouldn’t go anywhere until you were back on your feet, and I intend to honor that promise, whether you like it or not.”

  “I am back on my feet.” He swung his legs around, planting his feet on the floor beside hers. He hadn’t considered the fact that being in close proximity to her may not be the best idea if he was trying to convince her he didn’t care about her anymore. “What’s it gonna take to convince you? You wanna have sex? That oughta prove to you that I haven’t got one foot in the grave just yet.” He smirked, hating himself more with every passing second. “Or is that what you were hoping for? Is that the reason you rushed to my side, suddenly prepared to act like the dutiful little wife? You thought I was getting ready to pack it in and you could cash in on my stupidity… not having you sign a prenup.”

  A tear slid down her cheek and she brushed it away. “Why are you doing this? Why are you trying to hurt me?”

  It was costing Liam his sanity, resisting the urge to pull her into his arms and beg her forgiveness. But he’d be damned if he let her waste her life playing nursemaid to a man she didn’t even want to be married to anymore out of some misguided sense of obligation. “It’s not my fault if the truth hurts, baby.”

  “I thought you loved me,” she said, looking up at him, her blue eyes shining with unshed tears.

  “You thought wrong.” The pain he experienced when he’d had the heart attack paled in comparison to having to tell the woman he loved that she meant nothing to him. “So, did you bring those divorce papers with you
? I’d be happy to sign them now.” If she produced those papers now, he couldn’t trust himself not to tear them up and fall to his knees begging her to give him another chance.

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Whatever.” He winced when he felt a twinge in his chest. The doctors told him he’d been suffering from undiagnosed angina for some time before the heart attack, another one of the many symptoms he was too busy to acknowledge.

  She rested her hand on his back, her eyes reflecting her alarm. “Are you okay? Do you need me to call the doctor?”

  “No, what I need is for you to get the hell out of here,” he said through clenched teeth. “Go back to your boyfriend and leave me the hell alone.”

  “Nick’s not my boyfriend,” she said quietly, setting her hand back in her lap.

  “Maybe not now, but I bet he will be again before the ink’s even dry on our divorce papers.” He was silently cursing himself with every vile word he spoke. “We both know it’s only a matter of time before he wears you down. It’s better this way. The thought of you banging him while you’re still using my last name leaves kind of a bitter taste, ya know?”

  “How can you be so cruel?” she whispered.

  He’d learned to be callous to survive the competitors trying to bring him down, and the women trying to use his money to pave their path to easy street, but he never set out to intentionally hurt someone he loved before. “I’m not being cruel, just honest.”

  “I loved you,” she said quietly.

  He almost doubled over when he heard her use that word in the past tense. Nothing could have prepared him for the pain of knowing she didn’t love him anymore.

  “I thought you felt the same way.”

  He didn’t trust himself to speak, so he said nothing.

  “I promised Abby I’d stick around for a while, to make sure you’re okay, but I’ll try not to get in your way.” She stood up and began walking toward the door. Without turning around, she said, “I’m sorry I bothered you, Liam.”

  “You stupid son of a bitch!” Matt shouted, throwing the door open. “I brought her back here so you guys could work things out, and you managed to make everything worse.”