Billionaire Bachelors: Stone Read online

  “You mean a nursing home,” Faith said dully. She’d worried about this edict for years. Now, suddenly, here it was. And she was no closer to accepting it than she had been before.

  “She won’t need a nursing home.” Stone put his arm comfortingly around her shoulder as he addressed the doctor. “But if you could give us the names of some reliable sources of personnel, we’ll get more help at home.”

  Stunned, Faith stared at him and he glanced down at her and smiled.

  A moment later, the doctor left.

  Clarice rose. “I guess you won’t need me now,” she said in a small voice. “I don’t know how to help her exercise.”

  “Oh, you’re not getting away from us,” Stone told her in a firm voice, removing his arm from around Faith and standing. He took Clarice’s hands in his. “Unless you want to, that is. Naomi depends on you, and so do Faith and I. If you agree to stay, you’ll be in charge of any personnel who come in to help. It’ll be your job to make sure they’re doing theirs, and that everything is going smoothly.”

  Clarice stared at Stone for a long moment. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. Faith realized the older woman was on the verge of tears. Finally she said, “Thank you. Thank you so much. I don’t have any family and I’ve gotten really fond of Naomi. I would have hated leaving all of you.”

  “And we would hate to lose you,” Faith said, rising and hugging the older lady. “We’re your family now.”

  Clarice went ahead of them to see Naomi as Faith turned to Stone. She swallowed with difficulty and took a deep breath. “I appreciate your support but I know you hadn’t counted on this when we made our agreement. I won’t hold you to anything you said to that doctor.”

  “I know you won’t. But I still intend to hire additional help and keep your mother in our home.”

  “You’ve done enough for us already,” she told him unsteadily. “I don’t think your father meant for you to support us for the rest of our natural lives.” She tried to smile at the weak joke.

  Stone put his arms around her and pulled her head to his shoulder, just holding her for a long, sweet moment. “Your mother means a lot to me, too,” he told her. “She and Clarice have made the house a warmer, livelier place.”

  She pulled back and searched his gaze for a long moment. He appeared to be completely serious. “Thank you.” She didn’t know how she ever would repay him, but she would swallow her pride to make sure her mother was happy and well-cared-for. Putting Naomi in a nursing home would have been devastating for her as well as for Faith.

  “Don’t thank me,” he said, still holding her loosely in his arms. “I mean it. Keeping her at home is really an act of selfishness on my part.”

  “Right.” Although she could have stayed in the comforting embrace forever, she forced herself to move away from him. “You’re a good man,” she said quietly, touching his cheek with a gentle hand before turning to leave the room.

  They visited briefly with her mother. She hadn’t been badly hurt, just severely bruised and she’d broken a bone in her wrist. She would be staying overnight at the hospital for some additional tests and would be released tomorrow. Faith was relieved the fall hadn’t been worse.

  Clarice decided to stay at the hospital for a few hours and told them she would take a cab home later. On the ride home, Stone said, “I haven’t told you how good the den looks. I really like my new chair.” He flexed his fingers on the wheel. “I believe my mother must have chosen the old furnishings. I don’t ever remember it looking any different.”

  “Your mother did a lovely job,” she told him. “The things she chose lasted a long time.”

  “Longer than she did.”

  “I’m not sure that was her choice, entirely.” It was a risk, talking about his mother, but she felt she had to try to share with him his mother’s version of the past.

  The car was uncomfortably quiet for a moment. Then he said, “It’s old news.” He shrugged, frowning as he drove. “Who cares anymore?”

  You do. “She does,” Faith said. “She didn’t want to leave you behind but your father fought her for custody. And limited her visits. She’s always wanted to be a bigger part of your life than she was permitted to be.”

  “And I suppose she told you this during your cozy little luncheon.” His voice was expressionless.

  “Yes.” There was another awkward silence. She waited for him to ask her what she meant, what his mother had said. But he never did.

  Instead he finally said, “We got off the track, I believe. We were talking about the changes in the den.”

  “I’m glad you like the new look and the new furniture.” She was disappointed that he hadn’t listened to more of his mother’s story, but at least he hadn’t bitten her head off. “I really wasn’t sure about it, but since you told me to go ahead…” Then she followed up on the opening he’d given her. She’d been trying to figure out a way to approach him again for several days. “Now that the job is finished, I’m finding myself with a lot of free time. You know, I’m not sure you appreciate the extent of my computer skills. Surely there’s something at your company that I could—”

  “There really isn’t,” he interrupted her. “But I did want to ask you to do something else.” Without giving her a chance to respond, he said, “I’ve received several wedding gifts at the office and I know we’ve begun to get quite a few more at the house. Would you please write thank-you notes to everyone? I’ll supply you with the addresses you need.”

  “I’ve kept a list of everything. The files are on the computer in your home office,” she told him, disappointment shading her tone. “I’d thought perhaps it was something we could do together.”

  But he shook his head. “I really don’t have the time. I’m sorry. At the end of the week I’ll be leaving for China for a nine-day trip.”

  “China!” She couldn’t believe he hadn’t mentioned this before. How long had he intended to wait before telling her?

  “Yes. We have an incredible opportunity to get our foot in the door with some steel exports.” Unaware of her thoughts, he sounded as excited as she had ever heard him. “And I want to investigate the possibilities of setting up an American division of Lachlan Industries in Beijing.”

  It had been a strange conversation. He’d taken her to the heights of exasperation but now he was sharing his business plans with her…something she’d wanted for so long. Cautiously, afraid he would clam up again, she said. “Lachlan Industries in Beijing?”

  “Uh-huh. The world really has become a global marketplace. If I want Lachlan to be a player on more than a national level, I have to establish a presence around the world. Our plants in Germany produce a number of products for the European market. One in Beijing could serve a sizable portion of the Far East, including Taiwan and Japan.” He was warming to his theme and his tone was enthusiastic.

  “Now I understand why people say you have the Midas touch,” she said. “You never stop thinking of ways to improve.”

  “I can’t,” he said simply, “if I want to stay on top. I’m always looking for the next opportunity. It’s a full-time effort.”

  “When you take over your mother’s corporation, how will you manage both companies?”

  Instantly the light in his eyes flattened and cooled. She saw immediately that she’d said the wrong thing. He shrugged, elaborately casual. “I’ll probably work out some kind of merger. Get everything under one umbrella so I don’t have so many balls to juggle.”

  His too-casual tone, coupled with an explanation that sounded wooden and rehearsed, alerted her to the realization that this wasn’t just business for Stone. Merge the two companies?

  Some of the pieces of the puzzle that was her husband clicked into place as she recalled the odd note of near-desperation in his tone on the night he’d laid out his proposal. Her heart ached for him as a flash of insight showed her the truth. He didn’t want Smythe Corp. because it was a good deal, or even because it was a family tradition. A
merger was something he could control as he hadn’t been able to control the disintegration of his family when he’d been a child—and in a very tangible if symbolic sense, he would be putting his family back together again.

  She wondered if he understood that some things could never be fixed. Quietly she said, “You know, merging these companies is nice, but it isn’t going to help you resolve your differences with your mother. You really ought to sit down and talk with her.”

  But she could tell her impassioned words had fallen on deaf ears. His face drained of expression and when he looked at her, his eyes were as cool as the blustery spring weather outside. “Funny, but I don’t remember asking you for your opinion on what I ought to do with my mother. All I require of you is that you play a part for ten more months.”

  She felt as though he’d slapped her. As a reminder of the time limit she had, it was fairly brutal. She didn’t speak again, and when they arrived home, she got out of the car before he could open her door and hurried inside, heading for her room. Fine, she thought angrily. Let him go to China. Let him count down the days until he rids himself of me. Let him refuse to give me anything meaningful to do.

  With that thought, she remembered Eliza’s offer. And she reached for the phone.

  “This place is awesome!” Faith’s former roommate Gretchen bounced into the kitchen of the town house as they completed a short tour of the house several days later. She turned to face Faith, her expressive pixie face alight. “I still can’t believe you’re married to him.”

  “I can’t believe it, either,” Faith said wryly. “It’s a little overwhelming sometimes.”

  “He’s really been great about your mom living here.” Gretchen flung herself onto one of the bar stools. “Tim would wig out if I asked him to let my mother live with us.”

  “It’s a slightly different situation.” Faith felt compelled to defend Gretchen’s steady beau, one of the nicest guys she’d ever met. “I mean, it’s not as though we’re tripping over each other like we would in a small place.”

  “Yeah, I guess the money makes a difference.” The redhead made a little moue of frustration. “Money. I wish it didn’t exist.”

  “Amen.” Gretchen couldn’t know how much Faith meant that. Then her friend’s woebegone expression registered, and she focused on Gretchen. “What’s wrong?”

  Gretchen shrugged. “Nothing, really. Tim asked me to marry him—”

  “When? Why didn’t you tell me?” Faith leaped from her own seat and embraced her friend. “Congratulations!”

  But Gretchen raised a hand and indicated that she should calm down. “Well, frankly, it isn’t that big a deal yet. Tim says he wants to marry me, but he wants us to save some money first. He’s thinking we should buy a house in New Jersey.”

  “And you don’t want to do that?”

  “Are you kidding? I’d love it!” Gretchen waved her hands about. “Big old trees, a little white picket fence and a house with shutters. We could get a dog…we’ve even talked about children.” Her big eyes sparkled with tears. “But he wants to wait until we can make a down payment on a home to get married. I love the stupid man and I want to marry him now!”

  “Why should you wait?” Faith tried to think about it from Tim’s point of view. And failed. People who loved each other should marry. What did money have to do with love?

  “Beats me.”

  “I don’t get it, either.” Faith sighed heavily. “I’m sorry. Men are such dolts sometimes.”

  “You said it, girlfriend.” Shedding her sad mood, Gretchen eyed Faith over the rim of her coffee cup. “That sounded like you had one specific man in mind.”

  Faith smiled slightly. “Without question.”

  “Problems with the tycoon?”

  “A few.” If her friend only knew!

  “Sex,” said Gretchen.

  Faith nearly choked on the coffee she’d just swallowed. “What?”

  “Men are amazingly easy to manipulate if you start with a little physical T.L.C.”

  “They are not.”

  “That’s what all the magazines say.” And that, as far as Gretchen was concerned, made it fact. “So you just have to dazzle him with incredible, unforgettable sex and then talk about whatever’s bothering you. He’ll be much more malleable then.”

  “You are terrible!” Faith began to giggle as she saw the glint of humor lurking in her friend’s eyes. But her amusement faded away as she thought about her marriage. “Anyway, that’s not an option. We don’t—” Oh, my God. She stopped, appalled at her runaway tongue.

  Gretchen was staring at her as if she’d sprouted a second head. “Tell me you are kidding. You have a platonic relationship with one of the most gorgeous men in North America?”

  “Um, yes, that’s about right.” Faith squirmed beneath the incredulous stare.

  “Don’t you love him?”

  Faith nodded sadly. “I do. I never knew it was possible to care for someone the way I care for him. But that doesn’t mean it’s mutual.”

  “Well, if he doesn’t love you and you’re not having wild, bed-wrecking sex every night, then why the heck did he marry you?”

  Well, there was no backing out of it now. If there was a more persistent woman than her redheaded friend on the face of the planet, Faith would have to meet her to be convinced. “He married me because he feels responsible for me,” she said miserably. To an extent, that was true, and it was the only thing she could say to her friend without breaking Stone’s trust. “His father and mine were best friends. When they were killed together, Stone became my guardian.”

  “Your guardian? How Victorian!” Gretchen’s eyes were wide. “And because of that he felt compelled to marry you?” Her eyes narrowed and she gave a snort of disbelief. “Uh-uh. I don’t buy it.”

  “It’s true,” Faith said glumly. “That’s why we haven’t—we don’t—”

  “Give me a break.” Gretchen hopped off her stool and paced around the kitchen. “Look me in the eye and tell me that if you were as homely as a mud fence he’d have married you.” When Faith’s brow wrinkled and she hesitated, Gretchen stabbed her index finger at her. “See? I knew it! No man would sacrifice himself like that. He wants you.”

  “He doesn’t.” Faith stopped, remembering the passionate kisses they’d shared, and her expression reflected her lack of conviction.

  “Ha! I knew it.” Gretchen was grinning at the look on her friend’s face. “He does want you. He’s just trying to be, I don’t know, noble or something. I guess he’s got some hang-up about that guardian stuff. Still…if he’s hot for you, there’s hope. You just have to seduce him.”

  “Seduce him? You are insane.”

  “No, no, I’m serious.” And her freckled face did look surprisingly sober. “I might have been kidding before, but I am so totally not joking about this. Faith, you were meant to be with this guy. And he was meant to love you back. He’s just too dumb to know it. You’re going to have to go after him big time.”

  “No way.” She shook her head, remembering the way he’d rejected her before, and the way he’d reacted two days ago when she’d tried to encourage him to mend his fences with his mother. “He’s made it clear what his position is.”

  “Oh, come on. Aren’t you the girl who came to town without a job or a place to live, and found both the very first day? If you really want him, he’s toast. You just have to go for it.”

  “This is a ridiculous conversation.” Faith rose and began stacking dishes. “Come on, I’ll take you in to meet my mother and her companion before you have to get back.”

  But Gretchen’s words lingered in her mind long after her old roommate had left. If he’s hot for you, there’s hope.

  Seven

  The trip to China lasted three days longer than he’d planned. By the time Stone left LaGuardia behind and slipped his key into the lock of his town house, he was exhausted. The meetings had been long and ultimately fairly successful from a business standpoint. Bu
t the strain inherent in communicating his ideas effectively to people of another culture had worn him down. But it wasn’t only that. For the first time in his life, he’d been impatient to conclude his business and get home. Not so that he could get back to work, but so he could get home.

  Impatient. Right. How about so nervous he couldn’t even spit? He checked his watch. It was nearly ten in the evening. He’d been away for twelve days and they’d seemed like twelve hundred.

  He’d hated traveling. No, he thought, trying to be honest. He’d hated traveling alone. God, he’d never imagined feeling lonely simply because a certain woman wasn’t at his side. He’d never expected to be seized with a barely controllable urge to hop a flight and fly home simply because that’s where she was. He’d never, ever thought about a woman so much that it shattered his concentration and turned his brain to mush in the middle of important meetings.

  But thoughts of Faith had done all that to him and more. He’d lain awake aching for her, knowing that even if he were in New York he’d still be aching for her…and wishing he were there, anyway, because then at least he’d be close to her.

  He must have been crazy when he’d married her, he decided as he took the stairs two at a time. How could any man be expected to ignore the temptation of her lithe young body day after day after day? It was natural for him to want her, to ache for her. It was just a physical reaction.

  He walked through the house, noting the lamp that was always lit now in the hallway that led to the kitchen. Faith had begun leaving it on for Clarice, in case she came to get something from the kitchen at night. He’d gotten used to seeing the small glow.

  He walked down the hallway to his bedroom door, noting that Faith’s was firmly closed. Would she come to greet him when she heard him moving around? Probably not. He’d have to wait until morning.

  Morning. He realized he’d actually missed mornings at home. On the days he hadn’t run from the house at dawn, he’d shared breakfast with Faith and sometimes her mother and Clarice. He’d always imagined he’d find having other people around first thing in the morning annoying, but it was surprisingly pleasant.