Chapter 20

He strode into the room and almost stumbled under the power of her luminous sea-blue eyes. The firelight played over the soft planes of her heart-shaped face and burnished her red-gold hair. His hands shook, and a dollop of hot liquid slopped out of one of the cups and splashed on the floor. Oh man! He sucked in a steadying breath.

“Russ?”

He discarded his fantasy of taking her in his arms and kissing her senseless and managed to stumble the last few steps to her chair without making a complete fool of himself. “Careful, it’s hot.” Her fingers skimmed his when he handed her a cup, and his skin burned at her touch.

He backed away from her all-too-tempting presence and sank onto the couch, keeping a safe distance so he didn’t do something idiotic. Setting his mug on the side table before he spilled the hot drink all over his lap, he focused on slowing his racing heart. What was it about her that made him act like a geeky adolescent?

Shaking his head in disgust, he asked the question guaranteed to cool his ardor, “What are your plans?” With those four words, he forgot her soft lips and focused on his anger at Angus’s betrayal.

“My plans?”

“You’re a wealthy woman now. What are you going to do with your inheritance?”

She pursed her soft lips and blew on her steaming drink.

His heart skipped a beat. Okay, so he was still entranced. The thought of the millions of dollars and the company he’d lost hadn’t cooled his passion. Maybe a cold shower would do the trick, or a swim in the bay. The frigid waters of the North Pacific Ocean would shake some sense into him. Either that or kill him.

“I’ve already told you. I didn’t want anything to do with Angus Crawford’s money. That’s why I followed you to the marina. I was planning to turn everything over to you.”

“And now?” He held his breath.

“I don’t know. I mean, I still don’t want anything from that man, but I’d like to find out why he left me his fortune; why he left me anything at all. I was the daughter of his tenants. I didn’t even know him. Not really.” Her eyes narrowed, and her penetrating gaze pinned him to the couch. “Do you know why he made his will the way he did?”

“No idea.” He struggled to keep the hurt out of his voice. “He led me to believe I’d inherit his money and his business. After my parents died, he took me in. After a year, he offered to make our relationship official and adopted me. I was the closest thing he had to a relative.”

“No wonder you’re upset.” She sat forward, and her breasts swayed under the thin cotton of her blue shirt. “Angus betrayed you.”

The realization she wasn’t wearing a bra smacked him like a blow to the solar plexus. Anger fought with desire. The last thing he wanted was her pity. “It was his money. He could do what he wanted with his assets. I’ll get over it.” He swallowed back the bitter taste of the lie.

“He left you Shelter Island.”

“Yeah. Shelter Island, this cottage, and some shares in the company. Lucky me.” He shot to his feet and stomped across the room to the window and stared out at the raging storm.

Dark, low-hanging clouds scudded across the sky. The wind howled like a wild beast as the gale blasted the trees. Branches swayed, creaking and snapping. The lawn was littered with fallen limbs and leaves. The waves pounded the shore with a resounding roar.

“He was wrong.” Her soft voice reached him over the storm’s fury. “You were his son. He should have left you the bulk of his estate. He shouldn’t have left me anything.”

He turned from the window. “We’ll never know what was going through his mind when he made out his will.” Suddenly, he was exhausted. The emotional turmoil of the past days overwhelmed him, and it was all he could do to stumble to the couch and sag onto the cushions. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

“Jennifer Smythe told me you’re contesting the will.”

Her voice, all velvet and cream, broke through his exhaustion. He opened his eyes and pinned her with a sharp look. “She told you that?”

“I won’t fight you. The estate’s yours. All of it.”

“You made that offer before.” He tightened his jaw. “Are you telling me you were serious?”

She nodded.

He studied her. Suspicion and confusion edged into his lust. Was she for real? He opened his mouth to say something, anything, but the words stuck in his throat. What could he say when she was offering him everything he wanted, everything he’d dreamed of? He rubbed his eyes. Don’t be a fool. She was up to something. He couldn’t for the life of him figure out what that was, but no question—he couldn’t trust her.

The storm raged, but the house was warm and cozy. The only sounds in the large room were the cheerful crackling of the fire and the creaking of the house as the gale force wind buffeted the sturdy walls.

“What will you do with the island?” Her soft voice punctured the tension.

He exhaled. “Sell it, I guess.”

“What if I were to offer you a deal?”

“What sort of deal?” He sat up, all tiredness forgotten.

She sipped hot chocolate. “I’ll give you my share of Angus Crawford’s estate, everything free and clear.” The pink tip of her tongue slipped out, and she licked the chocolate from her lips.

He struggled to focus on what she was saying instead of getting lost in thoughts of kissing the chocolate off her mouth. “What do you want in return? How much money?”

“Don’t you get it?” She plunked down her cup with a clatter and jumped to her feet. “I don’t want anything to do with Angus Crawford’s money. His estate is yours. All of it. Every damn penny.”

Now she had his full attention. “Why would you do that?” Yes. Why would she give up a thriving business and a fortune worth millions? A thousand conflicting thoughts raged through him. He’d spent his life training so one day he could take over Angus’s business. Hell, he’d even gotten that MBA just to make his adoptive father happy. He’d worked hard to help Angus build the company to the success it was today.

At Angus’s suggestion, he’d agreed to change his name so the company would remain in the hands of a Crawford after Angus passed. Was it any wonder Russ was shocked when the will was read, and he learned everything he’d worked for had been left to a stranger? Now that stranger was offering him a reprieve. He sat forward. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”

“You bet I am. That’s why I followed you to the marina. I needed to talk to you face-to-face, so you’d know I was serious.” She clasped her hands. “What do you think? Will you accept my offer?”

“I’d be a fool not to.” Hope flared, but he tamped down his eagerness. Angus had cautioned him that when something sounded too good to be true, it was too good to be true. “You do realize what you’d be giving up?”

“I do. Jennifer Smythe explained the full extent of the inheritance.”

Maybe she was serious. Maybe she felt guilty for inheriting so much wealth from someone she purported to hate. Yeah, and maybe pigs could fly. He didn’t know what her game was, but she was playing him. No one—absolutely no one—gave up a fortune. Two could play her game. He plastered a shit-eating grin on his face. “Then what else can I say? I accept. Thank you.”

“There is one condition.”

And there it was. He’d known the deal was too good to be true. There had to be a catch. “What’s that?”

A furrow formed between her brows. “I’ll sign over my share of Angus Crawford’s estate if you’ll help me find out what happened to my parents.”

He blinked. He’d expected her to demand any number of conditions—his first-born child, the skin off his back, his left nut—but not this. “Why do you think I can help? I’m not a detective.”

“You have access to Angus’s house, his office, his personal papers, this island. You can search places I can’t. You knew him better than anyone.”

He studied her, trying to see through her guileless gaze to her real reason for offering such a one-sided arrangement. “What if I can’t find what you’re looking for? Will that void the deal?”

“The police didn’t find answers, nor did the private investigator my aunt hired.” Tears welled in her eyes. “No one found out anything; yet my parents vanished without a trace.” She wiped the back of her hand over her eyes. “Someone kidnapped my mother and father, or murdered them, I don’t know, but something bad happened. I want to—” She licked her bottom lip. “—I have to find out what happened.”

“I’m not a trained investigator. Why do you think I’d have any better luck solving the mystery of their disappearance?” He shook his head. “It’s been twenty-three years. Any evidence would have long since been destroyed.” He hated to dash her hopes, but what she was asking was impossible. Whatever occurred on the island that long-ago day would forever remain a mystery. He couldn’t accept her offer and not uphold his end of the bargain.

He wanted to. Damn straight he did. But he wouldn’t.

“The police didn’t know Angus, not like you did. You lived with him.” The pulse in her throat fluttered like a hummingbird’s delicate wings. “You’re my last hope. If you search Angus’s papers, check his filing cabinets at his office and his home, maybe you’ll find something that’ll prove he was responsible for what happened to my parents.”

What she was asking was impossible. He’d loved Angus. There was no way in hell his father harmed her parents.

The ridiculous pants bagged around her ankles and pooled at her feet. The tips of her bare toes peeked out. She steepled her hands in a pleading gesture. “Will you help me, Russ? Can I count on you?”

He couldn’t tear his gaze from the earnest appeal in her sapphire eyes, and he struggled to swallow over the stone stuck in his throat. God help him. He wanted to say yes, but he seriously doubted he could help. “Okay. You have a deal.” He caught his breath. What the hell? Had he just agreed to help her solve a twenty-three-year-old mystery? What was he—one of the Hardy boys? Was he that entranced by her bedroom eyes?

Oh man. He was in some deep shit.

“I knew I could count on you.” Her cheeks flushed. The soft mounds of her breasts swayed against the thin material of the T-shirt.

He struggled to breathe, shoved his libido down, and focused on her astounding offer. “I’ll do what I can to help you find what happened to your parents, but I refuse to accept Angus’s money or his company.” He scrubbed his hand over his whiskers. Had he lost his frigging mind? She’d offered him everything he ever wanted, and he turned her down?

A look of bewilderment crossed her pretty face. “I told you I don’t want Angus Crawford’s money. Or his business.”

“You shouldn’t make such a big decision until you’ve talked to a lawyer.” He was giving up his chance of retaining Angus’s company, but it was the right thing to do.

“I am a lawyer.”

He blinked. “Are you? I didn’t know.”

She nodded.

“Still, you should discuss this with an estate lawyer. Aside from the funds Angus left you, his business is worth a hell of a lot. Only then will you understand the full scope of what you’d be giving up.”

“Okay.” She nodded again. “I’ll talk to the lawyers, and then I’ll give you back your company. Either that or I’ll sell the company and donate the money to charity.”

He rolled his eyes at her stubborn persistence. Was she for real? Was she willing to give him everything she’d inherited if he helped her with her hopeless quest?

Her chin jutted out, and her mouth set in a firm line. “You don’t sound like you want the money. Why is that?”

He shrugged. For the life of him he couldn’t figure his reasons out either. He should accept her proposition and run like hell before she came to her senses. She’d offered him the world he dreamed of, the one he’d been led to believe was his right, and he’d turned her down.