“You’re the one, I’ll bet, who’s been phoning at all hours of the night.”
“I’ve never called past ten,” she denied heatedly, then realized her mistake. It probably would’ve been best to pretend she didn’t know what he was talking about.
“The notes on Evan’s windshield have been from you, too, haven’t they?”
She could’ve denied that, but it wouldn’t have done any good. Feeling trapped in Evan’s car, she swung her legs around and gingerly climbed out. “Are you going to tell him it was me?”
“I don’t know,” Damian said thoughtfully. “How old are you now?”
“Fourteen,” she said proudly. “I know Evan’s older, but I was hoping he’d be willing to wait for me to grow up so we could get married.”
“Married!”
Damian made the word sound ludicrous and Jessica bristled. “Just wait until you fall in love,” she challenged. “Then you’ll know.”
“You aren’t in love with Evan,” he said gently. “You’re too young to know about things like that. You’re infatuated with him because he’s older and—”
“I most certainly do love Evan,” she flared, shoving the lipstick in her pocket. She wasn’t going to stand there and let him ridicule her. She might be only fourteen, but she had the heart of a mature woman and she’d made her decision. Someday she would marry Evan Dryden, and Damian would not stand in her way.
“I’m sure my brother’s flattered by your devotion.”
“He should be. The man who marries me will see himself as the luckiest man in the world.” Her words were fed by pure bravado.
Damian laughed.
Jessica had been willing to overlook his earlier statements, but this was unforgivable. Hands on her hips, she glared at him with all the indignation she could muster, which at the moment was considerable.
“You might be older than Evan, but you don’t know anything about love, do you?”
Her question appeared to amuse him, and that only irritated her further.
“When a woman makes up her mind about a man, nothing can change the way she feels. I’ve decided to marry your brother, and not a thing you say or do will have the least effect, so save your breath. Evan is my destiny.”
“You’re sure about this?”
At least he had the courtesy to wipe the grin off his face.
“Of course,” she said confidently. “Mark my words, Damian Dryden. Time will prove me right.”
“Does my brother have a say in this?”
“Naturally.”
“What if he decides to marry someone else?”
“I…I don’t know.” Damian had zeroed in on her worst fear—that Evan would get married before she had a chance to prove herself.
“There’s something else you haven’t considered,” Damian said.
“What’s that?”
He grinned. “I just might want to marry you myself.”
One
Jessica Kellerman’s moment of reckoning had arrived. For the first time in ten years she was about to face the Dryden brothers. Evan didn’t concern her. She suspected he wouldn’t even remember what a nuisance she’d made of herself. Then again, he just might. But Damian was the brother who worried her most. He was the one who’d caught her red-handed—or at least with red lipstick in her hand. He was the one who’d mocked her and suggested her devotion to his brother was a passing fancy. Now she was forced to face him and admit he’d been right. She sincerely hoped Damian would have the good grace not to dredge up the past.
Swallowing her dread, Jessica walked into the high-rise office building in the most prestigious part of downtown Boston. The building was new, with a glistening black-mirrored exterior that towered thirty stories above the ground. The Dryden law firm was one of the most distinguished in town, and in Boston that was saying something.
Jessica’s footsteps made tapping sounds against the marble floor in the lobby. Although she’d been in this part of the city often—the university wasn’t far from the business section—this was the first time she’d been inside the impressive building.
She was nervous, and for good reason. The last day she’d spent any time with either of the Dryden brothers she’d been caught kissing rearview mirrors.
Looking back, she knew she’d been a constant source of amusement to the brothers and their parents, as well as her own. Young love, however, refused to be denied. Risking her family’s exasperation, Jessica had diligently sought Evan’s heart all through high school. It wasn’t until Benny Wilcox asked her to the graduation dance that she’d realized there were other fish in the sea. Sweet, attentive, good-looking ones, too. Yes, Evan had been the man of her dreams, the one who’d awakened her to womanhood. She held her love for him in a special place in her heart, but was more than willing to forget the way she’d embarrassed herself over him, praying he did, too.
Although Jessica had let her infatuation with Evan die gracefully, neither set of parents had. Particularly Lois and Walter Dryden. They thought Jessica’s feelings about Evan were “cute,” and they still mentioned it every now and then, renewing her embarrassment.
When Walter Dryden heard that Jessica had recently graduated from business college with a certificate as a legal assistant, he’d insisted she apply with the family firm. In the beginning Jessica had balked, but jobs were few and far between just then, and after a fruitless search on her own, she’d decided to swallow her pride and face the two brothers.
She was warmly greeted by the receptionist, who gave her a wide smile. Jessica smiled back, hoping she looked composed and mature. “I have an appointment with Damian Dryden,” she said.
The woman, who appeared to be in her early thirties, with large blue eyes and a smooth complexion, glanced at the appointment book. “Ms. Kellerman?”
“That’s right.”
“Please have a seat and I’ll let Mr. Dryden know you’re here.”
“Thank you.” Jessica sat in one of the richly upholstered chairs and reached for a People magazine. She’d dressed carefully for this interview, choosing a soft dove-gray suit with a tailored jacket. The buttons were made from mother-of-pearl with flashes of deep blue and white. She wore high heels, hoping to seem not only professional, but sophisticated. Her glossy brown hair was sophisticated, too, cut in a flattering pageboy. She’d grown up, and it was important Damian know that.
Jessica hadn’t even scanned the magazine’s contents page when the elder Dryden brother appeared. She’d seen Damian often from a distance, but this was the first time they’d actually spoken in years. She’d forgotten how tall he was, with broad shoulders that tapered to slim hips. She remembered how much he enjoyed football as a teenager, and how expert he was at tackling the opponent. From what she recalled about Damian, he preferred to tackle problems head-on, too. She knew him to be aggressive, hardworking and ambitious. He’d taken over the law firm upon Walter Dryden’s retirement three years earlier, and the firm, which specialized in corporate law, had thrived under his leadership.
“Hello, Jessica. It’s good to see you again,” Damian said, stepping forward.
“It’s good to see you, too.” She stood and offered him her hand.
He clasped it with both of his own. He wasn’t an especially large man, and at five eight she wasn’t especially small,