She visually scanned the deck. “Everything seems to be under control. Your guests are apparently content. Except maybe Mr. Lort. He looks a little the worse for wear.”
His mouth twitched at the corner. “Yeah, well, if I’d spent the night with Alice Northrup-Bowles, I’d look that way, too.”
Sidney ruthlessly pushed aside an image of Constance Barlow, wearing a sparkling designer dress, clinging to Max’s tuxedo-clad arm, looking like a “do” example in Town and Country Magazine.
Max snatched a towel from a nearby lounge chair, then slung it casually around his shoulders. “I’ll tell you what,” he said. “Let me change, and I’ll meet you in my office in five minutes. Will that be okay?”
She deliberately ignored the warning bells in her head. More time alone with Max. Great. At this rate, she’d be a basket case by noon. The man raised her body heat into the red zone. “That’ll be fine.”
AS SIDNEY waited for Max to join her in his third-story office, she replayed her conversation with Greg Loden in her head. She couldn’t put her finger on why the incident had disturbed her so much. Philip had told her, often and in detail, the stories of Greg’s misdeeds. It seemed Max was constantly bailing him out of one scrape or another. Generally, the younger Loden brother stayed out of serious trouble. To her knowledge, he’d had no encounters with the law. He’d managed to dredge up some negative publicity a time or two—generally related to his affinity for fast women and fast cars—but, according to Philip, Greg Loden was a decent enough character who lacked any serious direction in life.
Lauren Fitzwater, on the other hand, came from old money and an even older family tradition. Since Greg had begun dating her, he’d calmed down considerably, and it was certainly easy to see why Max felt the relationship was good for his younger brother. Still, the tension between the two men bothered Sidney for reasons she didn’t begin to understand. Worse, she felt somehow trapped in the middle.
“Good morning.” Max strode into the room wearing khaki trousers and a denim shirt that somehow looked elegant. Philip’s scrupulous care of his wardrobe, no doubt. “I’m sorry I kept you waiting.”
Sidney shook her head. “No problem. You’re the boss.”
He frowned at her as he seated himself behind his desk. “I wish you’d quit saying that.”
She blinked. “I’m sorry?”
“I don’t consider you my employee, you know. I consider you—” he paused, “my partner.”
Her stomach started its lurching rhythm again. “I see.”
“I doubt it.” He shook his head. “I’ll explain later. Right now, I want to talk to you about tonight. Greg is waffling.”
She blinked at the rapid change in topic. “What?”
“I spoke with him this morning. He’s having second thoughts about his engagement to Lauren.”
Sidney considered the information relative to last night’s conversation. “He’s an adult, Max. He can make his own choices.”
“He needs her.”
“Max….” She hesitated. “Has it ever occurred to you that maybe Greg needs some purpose in his life?”
“Of course. That’s why I want him to marry Lauren. She’s good for him. She’s stable.”
“And she’s Edward Fitzwater’s daughter.”
“What the hell does that mean?” His voice had dropped to a deceptively quiet level.
“Are you absolutely certain that Lauren’s, ah, familial credentials don’t have something to do with why you’re pushing Greg so hard?”
He bit off a curse. “That was a rotten thing to say, Sidney. You may not have the highest opinion of me, but what kind of bastard do you think I am?”
His vehemence took her back. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
He ignored her. “It’s got nothing to do with Edward Fitzwater. The man would be a fool to merge with anyone else. He dotes on Lauren, it’s true, and her engagement to Greg will make the deal easier for him to swallow, but he doesn’t have much of a choice. He’s overfinanced and undercapitalized. If he doesn’t merge with me, then someone else will take him over. He left himself vulnerable to this.”
“And the vultures are circling?”
“Yes.”
“Then if the merger is a foregone conclusion, why push so hard for the engagement?”
“I told you. Greg needs Lauren. It’s that simple.”
With a sad smile, Sidney leaned forward in her chair to place a hand on his desk. “There’s nothing simple about relationships, Max.”
He looked down at her hand, stared at it for long seconds. She sensed a struggle in him. “No, I don’t suppose there is.”
“If you push Greg into a corner, he’ll fight you.”
He visibly tensed. “If he does, I’ll win.”
“Probably. But if the price is alienating your brother, is it worth it?”
“It’s the right thing for Greg’s future. In time, he’ll understand that.”
“Max—”
He surged out of his chair, rounded the desk, and towered over her. She had to tilt her head back to hold his gaze. His expression looked harder than usual. “I realize this probably sounds ruthless to you, but I’ve spent my life taking care of my family.” He raked a hand over his face. “Sometimes, that means I have to decide what I think is best and make sure it happens. And I’m good at it.”
“And do you always get what you want?”
He studied her for long seconds, that same unnerving gleam in his eyes. Then he carefully took her hand in his larger one. In less than a millisecond, the center of his focus had shifted from his brother’s engagement to rest squarely on her. She sensed it as surely as she had sensed the tension thrumming through him last night. “As of today,” he said quietly, “I’m batting a thousand.”
Having the full force of that indomitable concentration directed at her sent goosebumps skittering along her flesh. Anticipatory goosebumps, she realized as she forced herself not to look away. “Max, I—”
He turned her hand to study her palm. “In fact, I think we should just clear this up right now. It’s been on my mind since last night.”
“It has?”
He nodded. “Very much so. And unless I’m completely off my game, you’ve been thinking about it too.”
“We’re not talking about Greg and Lauren anymore. Are we?”
“No.”
Sidney shivered. “I didn’t think so.”
“I’ve been told that I lack a certain, ah, finesse in situations like this.”
“Really?”
“Yes. But it’s like a business venture—once I know what I want, I don’t see any point in hedging about it.”
“Wastes time.”
“Precisely.” His fingers tightened on her hand. “So do you know why I really asked you to stay out at the estate for the weekend?”
Her brain short-circuited. He didn’t give her a chance to recover. “I want you, Sidney.”
The soft declaration made her ears ring. Her fingers quivered in his warm grasp.
“And you want me.”
Sidney