It was Matt who answered. “Yeah, take it from me, that’s about all she thinks about all right. You should see some of the things I’ve had to eat. I’ll tell you one thing, the guy who marries Katy had better be as interested in cooking as she is, or he won’t stand a chance with her.”
Katy flushed. Her gaze slid away from Luke’s as she hurried into the kitchen.
Matt looked at Luke. “Hey, you want to give me some more chess lessons?”
“Sure,” Luke said, his eyes following Katy as she whipped out of sight around the corner.
“I’d better warn you, I’ve been practicing.”
A resounding crash from the kitchen interrupted Luke’s reply. The jarring noise was followed by Katy’s unmistakable shriek of dismay.
“You miserable, sneaky, conniving monster,” Katy yelled. “One of these days you’re going to go too far. Do you hear me?”
Luke walked to the kitchen door and glanced around the corner. Zeke was gulping down the leftover pesto. Katy was glowering at the dog, helpless to salvage the remains.
“How did he get hold of the container?” Luke asked with mild interest.
Katy raised her wrathful eyes to his. “I made the mistake of offering him a small bite. I was trying to be kind. I leaned down to put a spoonful into his bowl—just a spoonful, mind you—and the next thing I knew he had snatched the entire container out of my hand. This dog of yours is a disgrace.”
Luke shrugged. “What can I say? He likes your cooking.”
Matt peered into the kitchen. “Look at it this way, Katy. Now you know for sure the stuff is good. A dog wouldn’t lie about a thing like that.”
At ten o’clock that evening Luke made his last move on the chess board and reluctantly got to his feet. He looked at Katy, who was sprawled on the couch with a cookbook. “Guess I’d better be on my way.”
She put down her cookbook and stood up quickly. Her eyes searched his. “Yes. Well, thanks for sampling the new pesto sauce. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Luke gazed at her, all too aware of the sensual hunger gnawing at his gut. “Right. See you in the morning.” He leaned down and kissed her right on her soft, unsuspecting mouth.
He heard her tiny gasp and saw her glance quickly at Matt. Did she really think he was going to pretend there was nothing between them just because her brother happened to be in the room? Luke wondered. He was willing to honor her wishes to be discreet, but Katy might as well learn that he had no intention of hiding their relationship.
Before she could recover, Luke was halfway to the door. “Come on, Zeke. Time to go home.”
Zeke rolled to his feet, picked up his dish, and trotted to the door.
Matt stood up suddenly, his gaze shifting from Katy’s flushed face to Luke’s. “I’ll walk with you partway,” he said. “I feel like some exercise.”
Luke held open the door. He had a hunch he knew what was coming. “All right.”
Katy came to the door. Her cheeks were bright with warm color, and her eyes were anxious. Luke gently closed the door in her face.
Matt was silent for a long moment as they walked toward Luke’s cottage. Luke said nothing, giving the boy time to gather his thoughts.
“I’ve been wondering if you and Katy are like—well, you know—interested in each other,” Matt finally said.
“Yes,” Luke said calmly. “We are.”
There was a short, tense pause. “No offense, but you aren’t exactly her type. Know what I mean?”
“No.”
Matt did not seem to know quite how to handle that roadblock. “Well, it’s just that she thinks Gilchrists are sort of difficult.”
“Your sister can be as difficult as any Gilchrist.”
Matt digested that and tried a new tack. “Look, I don’t want her to get hurt again, okay? It was bad enough when that Atwood jerk dumped her to marry Eden. It wasn’t that I thought Atwood was good for Katy. He wasn’t. I never did like him. But Eden didn’t even say she was sorry or anything.”
“You’re trying to tell me that you don’t trust anyone with the last name of Gilchrist?”
Matt hesitated. “I didn’t mean that exactly.”
Luke came to a halt and turned to face Matt in the cold moonlight. He could see the earnest concern in the younger man’s expression, and he understood. “It’s all right, Matt. I’ll take care of her.”
Matt studied him closely for a long moment. Whatever he saw in Luke’s face apparently satisfied him. “Okay. I just wanted to be sure, you know? I mean, she’s my sister.”
“I know. Good night, Matt.”
“Good night.”
Luke turned and walked on toward the lights of his cottage. Zeke paced beside him to the front door. Luke let himself inside and went to stand at the window overlooking the darkened ocean.
He knew that he had just given Matt a promise and a guarantee. Promises and guarantees were commitments that extended into the future.
The future. Once again he was being wrenched out of the safe, comfortable present and forced to look ahead.
He realized as he gazed out into the night that although he still did not have a clear vision of his own future, he knew now that Katy Wade was very much a part of it.
She alone gave it whatever form or substance it held for him.
CHAPTER TWELVE
The phone rang just as Katy was getting ready to leave the cottage to walk to the mansion. She glanced outside, noticed it was raining, and grabbed the receiver and an umbrella at the same time.
“Katy?” Maureen’s voice sounded heavy with undertones of doom and despair.
“What’s wrong, Maureen?” Katy put down the umbrella. Something told her this was not going to be a quick call.
“I’ve discovered for certain that Eden is seeing Nate Atwood again.”
“Oh, no. How did you find out?”
“A client saw her with him. She asked me if they were reconciling. Katy, you have to do something. Justine will never tolerate this. And we both know he’ll only hurt Eden again. You have got to stop him.”
Katy sank slowly down onto the arm of the sofa. She massaged her temple, trying to think quickly. Gilchrists frequently went off half-cocked. It was time to slow down and sort this out. “Have you talked to Eden?”
“No. I can’t confront her with this. You know how she is. She’ll be furious if I try to interfere.”
Maureen was right about that, Katy reflected. Gilchrists frequently got annoyed when people tried to get in their way. “I think you should ask her what’s going on before you do anything drastic, Maureen.”
“I know my daughter better than you do,” Maureen snapped. “Katy, I want that man out of her life once and for all. You introduced him to the family. A great deal of this is your fault.”
“My fault?”
“Go and see him. Find out what he’s after. I’m sure it’s money. Find out how much he wants.”
“Maureen, I can’t offer him a blank check. He’ll bleed you dry. You know that.”
“Find out how much he wants to get out of my daughter’s life. I’ll find the money somewhere.” Maureen hung up the phone.
Katy gazed at the humming receiver and then slowly replaced it in its cradle. The last thing she wanted to do was talk to Nate Atwood. The man was a snake.
Eden knew that. It was Eden who had wanted the divorce. And she was too proud to take him back. She was a Gilchrist, after all. She knew all there was to know about pride.
So what was going on here? Katy wondered. She sat on the arm of the sofa a moment, swinging one foot as she contemplated the situation. Then she picked up the phone again and dialed her own number up at the mansion. Liz answered on the first ring.
“Gilchrist, Inc.”
“Liz? It’s Katy. I’m not coming into the office today. I’m going to take some personal tim
e off. I’ve got some things to do in town.”
“What things?” Liz asked with her usual forthright approach.
“A dentist appointment. Some shopping. Small stuff. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“If you say so. Are you all right, Katy? I think I detect some anxiety in your voice.”
“I’m fine, Liz. I’ll call you this afternoon and pick up my messages. What is Luke’s schedule today?”
“He went into Seattle this morning. He’s got meetings most of the day. He’ll be back this afternoon. Want me to give him a message?”
“No, that’s all right. There’s nothing urgent I need to tell him.” Katy hung up the phone, frowning in thought. If Luke was in Seattle, she dared not meet Eden at corporate headquarters. There was too great a possibility she would run into Luke. He would start asking questions, one thing would lead to another, and matters would get complicated.
Katy glanced at the clock and decided Eden would not have left for her office yet. She dialed her home number.
“Yes?” Eden’s voice was naturally sultry, even on the phone.
“Eden, this is Katy. I have to talk to you. I can be in Seattle in an hour. I want you to meet me at one of the espresso bars near Westlake Mall.”
“What’s this all about?” Eden demanded. “Have you got some information about what Luke is going to do? What is it? What’s happening?”
It occurred to Katy that keeping Eden in suspense might be the most efficient way of getting her to agree to the meeting. “I’ll explain everything when I see you. One hour.” She named the espresso bar and hung up.
* * *
“What the hell do you mean, Katy’s not in the office?” Luke gripped the telephone receiver with one hand and flipped through a file with the other. “Where is she?”
“She said she had some errands to run,” Liz explained. “She’s going to pick up her messages later this afternoon.”
“Have her call me here in Seattle as soon as she checks in.”
“Yes, sir.”
Luke tossed the phone back into its cradle. He paused to read an entry in the file, and then he closed the folder. He looked up at the young man sitting across from him.
Roger Danvers was thin, wiry, and agitated. He was constantly in motion. He fiddled with his earlobes, tapped his feet, and drummed his fingers. It made Luke nervous just to look at him. But Danvers was the best there was at what he did.
“You’re sure about this?” Luke asked softly.
“I’m sure about which access code is being used to get into the restaurants’ accounts and skim money out of them,” Danvers said. “And we both know who that access code is assigned to. It’s possible someone other than that person got hold of it and used it to embezzle the funds.”
“But you don’t think it’s very likely?”
Danvers twitched. “No. Access code security is fairly good here at Gilchrist. The skimming is done during regular working hours and on weekends when that person has been known to put in some extra time. It’s not happening at midnight.”
“So no one is sneaking in after hours to use the computer,” Luke concluded. “All right, Danvers. You’ve done your job. I don’t like the answers, but that’s not your fault. Thanks.”
“Sure. You want me to keep working on the Gilchrist Gourmet situation?” Danvers tugged at his earlobe as he got to his feet.
“Yes.”
“You got it.”
Luke waited until the door had closed behind Danvers. Then he looked down at the report that had been left behind.
“Damn.”
Katy was not going to like this. Luke knew before he even dropped the bombshell on her that she was going to try to talk him out of doing what had to be done. The guardian angel was too soft when it came to this kind of thing. He had better have his ammunition ready. He was going to have to justify the actions he intended to take. He knew Katy was going to put up a fight.
“Damn.”
Katy was definitely complicating his life. Luke scowled at the telephone. Where the hell was she today, anyway? he wondered.
Katy, wearing the slender, long-sleeved, mint-green dress she’d put on for work that morning, sat perched on a high stool behind the counter at the espresso bar. She idly stirred a latte as she waited for Eden.
The watermelon and black coffeehouse was crowded with downtown shoppers and business people taking their morning break in true Seattle style. The espresso machine was shrieking in agony. It hissed and roared as it produced an endless stream of lattes and espressos and a host of other interesting coffee concoctions that formed the lifeblood of Seattle’s lively coffee culture. In Seattle even hardware stores and gas stations featured espresso machines for their customers.
Katy took her first sip just as Eden walked through the front door. One did not have to be a trained Gilchrist observer to know that something was very wrong.
Eden appeared every inch a Gilchrist this morning, from the toes of her gleaming black high heels to the wide lapels of her black suit. Her ebony hair was sleek and glossy, and her mouth and nails were crimson. She walked with the familiar Gilchrist stride, arrogant and regal, but there was a haunted look in her green eyes. Katy knew that whatever stress Eden had been under since the divorce had gotten much worse.
Eden saw her at the counter and walked straight toward her. She sat down on the neighboring stool, ignoring the interested gazes that followed her. “This had better be important, Katy. I’m extremely busy today.”
“Are you seeing Nate Atwood again?” Katy asked bluntly.
Eden flinched. “Who told you that?”
“I believe Fraser Stanfield mentioned it first,” Katy said. “Apparently he saw you getting into a cab with Nate. But the real clincher was one of your mother’s clients who mentioned seeing you and Nate together. Maureen came unglued, as I’m sure you can imagine.”
Eden sat frozen on the stool. “Mother knows?”
Katy took another swallow of her latte. “Uh-huh. That’s why I’m here.”
“Stay out of this, Katy. It has nothing to do with you.” Eden’s fingers trembled on the strap of her black leather shoulder bag.
“Eden, we both know Nate Atwood is poison. Why are you getting involved with him again? You just got free of the rat.”
Eden’s jaw tightened. “It’s none of your business, Katy. Just stay out of it.”
“I can’t believe you’d take him back,” Katy said slowly.
“I’m not taking him back.”
“Then why are you seeing him?”
“I’m not seeing him,” Eden bit out. “Not the way you mean. I am not in a relationship with him. There. Does that satisfy you?”
“No. If you’re not involved in a relationship with him, then something else is going on. Is he forcing you to see him?”
“Damn it, Katy, will you please stay out of this?”
“What is he doing to you?” Katy searched Eden’s face. “Is he putting some kind of pressure on you? We all know he was dissatisfied with what he got out of the divorce. Does he want more money?”
Eden’s stricken expression was all the answer Katy needed.
“Good Lord,” Katy muttered. “I should have guessed. Maureen wants me to try to buy him off. How much does he want?”
“You don’t understand,” Eden said desperately. “It’s not that simple. Every time I give him money he tells me it will be the last time. But he keeps coming back for more.”
“But why are you giving it to him?” Katy demanded. “Justine’s lawyers took care of Atwood. Eden, what’s going on?”
Eden closed her eyes in an expression of soul-wrenching agony. “He’s blackmailing me.”
“Oh, my God.” Katy was floored. She groped for the next question. “How? What could he possibly have on you that would make you vulnerable?”
/>
“It’s not me. It’s Mother. He knows something about her. Something that happened a long time ago. Something that would enrage Justine. I can’t tell Mother. She doesn’t know that I know. She would be devastated if she thought anyone in the family knew.”
“And terrified that Justine might find out?”
Eden nodded sadly. “Yes. You know how desperately Mother has tried to please Justine over the years.”
“For the sake of her family,” Katy whispered, remembering the conversation she had had with Maureen in the gallery. “She’s tried to protect all of you from Justine.”
“I realize that.” Eden’s fingers tightened on her purse strap. “And now I have to protect her from Justine.”
Katy was silent for a few minutes, thinking. “What does Nate have on her?”
Eden hesitated and then gave a tiny shrug as if realizing that the damage was already done. “It all happened years ago. Back in New York. Before Mom and Dad were even married. There was a question of fraud.”
“Fraud?”
“Fraud or forgery or something,” Eden said impatiently. “I don’t know the whole story Nate hasn’t told me everything. I don’t think he knows either. But he has some old press clippings.” Eden’s eyes blurred with crystal tears.
“Go on,” Katy urged gently.
“Long ago, when my mother was very young, she was convicted of selling forged art. Nate has threatened to send the clippings to Justine.”
“Unless you continue to pay him off?”
“Yes.” Eden opened her purse and withdrew a black linen handkerchief. She dabbed at her eyes with it and dropped it back into the bag. “I’m going mad, Katy. I can’t get rid of him. No matter how much I give him, he won’t go away.”
“I’ve heard that blackmailers rarely do go away. And we both know Nate would have no compunction about bleeding someone dry.”
“Oh, God, it’s true.”
Katy patted her on the shoulder. “It’s all right, Eden. We’ll find a way to deal with this. Tell me something. Where have you been getting the money to pay him off?”