A Merger by Marriage (12 page)

“No reason you can’t,” she murmured, showing him how much she had to offer.

“I guess it’s something we should talk about.”

In her head she was screaming,
Please, can we discuss it now?
What came out of her mouth was a restrained, “I’d like that.”

When the door chimed announcing their dinner, JT slipped on his pants and went to let in the waiter. Violet took a second to throw on a robe and run a comb through her disheveled hair. By the time she entered the living room, her small table had been set for an intimate dinner for two, complete with candles, crystal and china.

“It smells wonderful,” JT commented as he held her chair while she sat down.

Violet lifted the silver dish covers and set them aside. By now she knew JT liked his meat rare and his vegetables steamed seconds beyond crisp. “Sixty-day dry-aged steak straight from Fontaine Chic’s award-winning steakhouse,” she said. “With sides of potatoes rosti and asparagus with aged Parmesan and browned butter.”

“What are these?” JT pointed to three small bowls.

“Red wine sauce, Béarnaise and a truffle sauce that I haven’t yet tried.”

“Sounds wonderful.”

“Only the best for you.” And she meant it. “And for dessert—”

“You’re all the sweet I need.”

With her insides turned to mush, Violet finished, “Berries with cream.”

She watched JT put a piece of steak in his mouth and chew reverently. “This is amazing. There’s nothing to compare at Titanium.”

He was in such a good mood she hated to spoil it with the question that had plagued her all day: what was he going to do about the information Tiberius had dug up on George Barnes?

“I was lucky Chef Baron agreed to open his third restaurant with us,” Violet said, squashing her curiosity.

“I’m sure luck had nothing to do with it,” JT said. “You can be quite persuasive.”

The compliment warmed her faster than a July day on the strip. “When I know what I want, I go after it.”

“I’m very aware of that.” A lopsided grin tugged at his lips. “In fact, I’m amazed that you haven’t asked if I’ve decided to call Charity Rimes. I imagine you’re dying to know.”

“I’d be lying if I said it’s the furthest thing from my thoughts.” She carefully phrased her next words. “But I can’t imagine what a difficult choice you have to make.”

“If you’d found out Tiberius had done something terrible, what would you do?”

The question was fair, but it left Violet with a terrible conundrum. She’d always had faith in Tiberius. He’d taken her in and loved her like his daughter. Her faith in his honesty had never been shaken.

“I’d like to say that I’d turn him in and never doubt myself for doing so.” Violet gave JT’s hand a sympathetic squeeze. “But I don’t think I’d ever forgive myself for being disloyal.”

JT carried her hand to his lips and kissed her palm. “After dinner, let’s call Charity Rimes.”

“Okay.” Delighted that JT trusted her to help, Violet tucked into the meal with gusto. “I’m glad I didn’t order a heavy dessert,” she said as they dueled over the last berry. “I don’t remember the last time I ate so much.”

“Everything tasted so good, it was hard to stop.”

Leaving the dishes for later, JT tugged Violet toward the couch. Together they sank into its softness. With JT’s left arm around her shoulder and his right hand playing absently with the tie of her robe, Violet waited for some sign from JT that he was ready to hear what Charity Rimes had to say.

“Do you think my father belongs in jail?”

“If he stole someone’s identity, yes.”

JT closed his eyes and for a brief moment sadness blanketed his expression. Violet’s chest tightened sympathetically at his pain. She wished she could take it away. She wanted nothing but happiness for him. But she could only offer comfort and support. JT would have to resolve his ambivalence on his own.

“Make the call,” he said, his voice hard and determined.

Reluctant to budge from the circle of JT’s arm, but knowing she had to act while he was still in a mood to find out what the writer knew, Violet snagged her cell off the coffee table and found Charity’s number. She dialed and then held the phone so JT could listen.

“Yes?” A male voice answered.

Violet and JT exchanged a puzzled look. “Hello. I’m looking for Charity Rimes.”

“Are you a friend?”

The man’s question awakened Violet’s anxiety. “Not exactly. My name is Violet Fontaine. She spoke with my father several months ago about a book she was writing. I was hoping to find out what she told him.”

“Can’t you just ask him?”

She wanted to demand he let her speak to Charity, but some instinct stopped her. “He died.” She left out the part where Tiberius had been murdered.

A long silence followed. At last the man spoke. “I’m sorry about your father, but Charity won’t be able to help you right now. She was in an accident. Her car was T-boned by an SUV.”

“Is she okay?”

“She has some broken ribs and a head injury that the doctors want to monitor.”

JT frowned and stood. Violet’s gaze followed his tense form as he paced across the room. She could only imagine his disappointment. Since this morning he’d had to assimilate potentially damning news about his father and decide whether or not to pursue the truth. No matter how damaged their relationship, inside JT was a little boy who’d once looked up to his father.

“Please tell her I hope she’ll be okay. Perhaps I can call again at a later date.”

“Do you want to leave your number? I can have her call you.”

“That would be nice.” Violet gave him the numbers for her cell and the direct line to her office phone. When she hung up a gust of air poured from her lungs. “How crazy was that?”

“It appears as if fate has once again beaten me to the punch,” JT replied, his voice wearing a frustrated edge.

“We still have over three weeks until the stockholders’ meeting and your cousin Phil has promised to throw his vote your way.”

“That means we have forty-nine and a half percent. My father wins.” He headed to the bedroom and retrieved the rest of his clothes. “I’d better get back to Titanium. There’s one last relative I can call. I didn’t want to reach out to her, but maybe the favor she will demand in return won’t be as bad as I think.”

Violet could tell this wasn’t the right time to reassure JT that everything would be okay. He was obviously too disappointed in the phone call to Charity Rimes to believe that the future would work itself out for the best.

“I’ll see you at home,” she called before he shut the door behind him.

After a quick shower, Violet dressed and returned to her office just in time to make the first of her rescheduled meetings. Even though it was hard to concentrate, she gave it her all. JT’s problems would work themselves out one way or another. All he needed to do was trust that when the time came, he’d choose the right path.

And what about her? Would he want her beside him? Violet knew she’d better brace herself in case he didn’t.

Nine

“H
e’s leaning. You want to lift his inside shoulder,” JT called. “Trot him in a tight circle.” The young rider did as asked, and JT nodded. “Do you feel him balance himself?”

Her bright smile was answer enough.

JT followed her progress around the area, but his attention wasn’t complete. Part of him was thinking about the stockholders’ meeting a week away while another portion gnawed on his relationship with Violet and what he wanted for the future.

It was relatively easy to drop his guard with her. Her lack of an agenda, coupled with her unflagging positivity, and ability to distract him from his problems made her company a balm to his troubled soul.

She seemed to understand, though not appreciate, that he possessed secrets he didn’t want to share. JT knew it was unfair. She’d given him so much of herself. That he continued to hold back made their relationship uneven. He didn’t know how to fix it without risking losing her. But would she eventually get frustrated with him and leave?

In the beginning, they’d agreed to divorce after the shareholders’ meeting. He hadn’t yet decided how to ask her to give their marriage a little more time. He’d grown accustomed to having her around.

She’d coaxed him out of his shell. He was happy. But was she? And was it fair of him to take advantage of her generosity and give her little in return?

The question plagued him through the rest of the afternoon. He listed the pros and cons of being married to Violet, pitting logic against emotion and measuring the ratio of risk to reward. In the end, after he’d applied all his business decision-making skills, it all came down to what he needed to be truly happy.

That evening, as he waited for her to show up at Baccarat, he faced the troubling reality of his situation. No matter how many objections he’d unearthed for staying married, the biggest factor in his decision was that he was falling in love with his wife. “Good evening, husband,” Violet said, sitting down beside him on the couch. “What has Rick concocted for you tonight?”

JT glanced at the drink in his hand and realized he’d consumed half of it without tasting a drop. “I have no idea.”

“Let me.” She plucked the glass from his grasp and sipped. “Blissful Ignorance. Plum gin, red wine syrup, egg white, lemon juice, rose water and balsamic. One of my favorites.”

He blinked, a little surprised by her memory and vastly turned on by the way she licked her lips and smiled. Everything about her unleashed his desire. No sooner had he figured out one habit that aroused him than she exhibited another. To say she fascinated him would be an understatement.

“A client wants my opinion on a horse that’s for sale in Kentucky,” he blurt without preliminaries. “And I thought I’d take a side trip to my family’s farm outside Louisville.”

“I’m sure your family will be happy to see you.”

“Come with me.”

They could both use a change of scenery and he very much wanted to show her where he’d spent the happiest moments of his childhood.

“I’d like that. When?”

“Tomorrow.”

“I’ll clear my schedule.” Her willingness to drop everything and run off to Kentucky said that she too felt the need to clear her head. “How long has it been since you’ve visited?”

“About six months. I try to get there a couple times a year.” The farm was the only place he’d ever felt completely at home.

“It must be wonderful,” Violet said. “I’ve never seen you look so happy.”

“Never?” He lifted her palm to his cheek and gave her a wolfish smile. “Then you’ll just have to pay close attention later tonight.”

Her eyebrows rose. “I’ll make sure I do.”

After a night filled with lots of blissful smiles and very little sleep, they boarded the private jet JT’s client had sent to take him to Kentucky.

“Nice,” Violet murmured, accepting a mimosa from the flight attendant and relaxing into a butter-soft leather chair. “Fontaine owns several corporate jets, but none as nice as this one. Who’s your client?”

“She’s a member of the royal family of Dubai.” JT smiled at Violet’s wide-eyed reaction. “A princess who has a passion for horses and show jumping.”

“I had no idea you were so well connected.”

“We met in Miami many years ago and struck up a friendship. She knew my grandmother’s reputation and likes to get my opinion when she’s planning on spending six figures on a horse.”

“I am impressed.” Violet eyed him over the rim of her glass. “And more than a little turned on.”

JT chuckled. “Then my work here is done.”

The farm where JT was to evaluate the jumper was about an hour away from his family’s farm, Briton Green. The plane touched down at the regional airport less than fifteen minutes away and JT’s cousin Samantha was waiting to greet them. He dropped the suitcases an instant before she threw her arms around him and hugged him hard. Tall and slender, with long, dark blond hair and an infectious grin, she had always been a whirling dervish of energy.

“It’s great to see you.” As soon as she stopped choking JT, she turned her attention to Violet. “I’m Samantha.”

“Violet. JT talked non-stop about you the whole way here. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.” Samantha looped her arm through Violet’s and drew her toward the waiting SUV.

JT followed the two women at a slower pace. Already he felt as if the weight of the world had fallen from his shoulders and they hadn’t even arrived at the farm.

“How are things?” he quizzed as Samantha sped down the highway.

“Wonderful. Dancing Diva had a gorgeous colt. Mom’s convinced he’s the best foal we’ve produced in ten years.”

“That’s saying something.” In the last decade, three national champions had been foaled at Briton Green. “I can’t wait to see him. What can you tell me about the six-year-old I’m looking at over at Cal Rutledge’s place?”

Samantha nodded. “Nice mover. Good legs. Athletic. I think they’ve had a few issues with his work ethic.”

“Meaning?”

“He’s lazy.”

“Worth what they’re asking?”

“I’d offer them thirty-five and see what happens.” Samantha had always been a tough bargainer. “Is the princess open to looking at any other horses?”

“Who’d you have in mind?”

“A client of Roger Simmons has a really nice eight-year-old mare. She’s done really well in the show ring, but she needs a smart rider. Roger’s had trouble finding someone good enough for her.”

“Never hurts to look. Any others you can suggest?”

Samantha laughed. “JT, I could keep you busy for a month looking at all the talent we have in the area.”

“Unfortunately I don’t have a month.”

When they arrived at the farm, they were met by his mother’s cousin, Phyllis, Samantha’s mother. His grandmother and Phyllis’s mother, Adele, had been sisters. When JT’s grandmother had married and moved to Miami, Adele had stayed and taken over the running of the farm. They’d owned stock in Stone Properties, given to them by JT’s grandfather in exchange for startup capital. Tiberius had bought their shares of Stone Properties stock from them months earlier.

JT hugged his aunt and introduced her to Violet. “The farm looks great,” he remarked as they entered the large Greek revival house. “Samantha tells me you had a bumper crop of foals this year.”

“She’s dying to show them off to you.” Phyllis led them into the large living room where a maid had just finished setting a pitcher of sweet tea on the sideboard. “Lunch will be served in half an hour. Would you like something to drink?”

Violet accepted a glass of tea and perched on a damask chair. The house had been built in the late 1850s and had all its original furniture. It was a vastly different from Violet’s two-year-old, ultramodern hotel and she looked overwhelmed by the history embedded in every inch of the home.

“I see you’re wearing my aunt’s wedding ring,” Phyllis remarked, her expression friendly, but slightly curious. “When JT called to tell us he was coming and bringing his new bride, we were very excited to meet you.” She was too well-bred to admit her curiosity, but JT could see her eyes were bright with it.

“I was excited to meet you as well,” Violet said. “I know JT spent a lot of time here as a kid.”

“Where did you grow up?” Phyllis asked.

“In Las Vegas.”

“What do you do there?”

“I manage a hotel and casino on the strip. Fontaine Chic. My grandfather is CEO of Fontaine Resorts and Hotels.”

JT could tell Phyllis was surprised at his choice in wife. Before Violet, he’d gone for style over substance. It made it easier to remain unattached. With Violet, he had the best of both worlds. And he was in way over his head.

“That must keep you very busy,” Phyllis remarked, glancing in JT’s direction. “This one here has a very difficult time tearing himself away for a visit.”

“Between Titanium and the ranch, he has way more on his plate than I do.” Violet covered his hand with hers. “Most days I’m lucky if see him at all.”

“I’m sure he understands that a wife should never be neglected,” Phyllis remarked dryly.

No one in the room could have missed what Phyllis referred to. For several seconds there was complete silence. At last Violet spoke.

“It’s fortunate that our work schedules are similar,” she murmured.

“I’m sure.” Phyllis then took pity on her and changed the subject to what was happening with JT’s cousins since they’d last spoken.

After lunch, Samantha took them on a tour of the barns. There were three altogether, housing horses owned by JT’s family as well as their clients. They began in the mare’s barn. Violet lost track of how many horses she’d petted and how many foals she’d seen either peering out from behind their mother or boldly stepping forward to greet the newcomers. She was completely charmed by the time they headed to the training barn.

“Do you ride?” Samantha asked.

In addition to being a breeding farm, Briton Green had an outstanding reputation as a training facility.

“I’m learning.” Violet glanced at JT. “He’s given me a few lessons.”

“She has a good seat for a beginner.”

“We should all take a ride later.”

JT glanced at his watch. “I don’t think we’ll have time. I have a four o’clock appointment with Cal to see what he’s offering to Husna.”

Samantha looked disappointed. “How about you, Violet?”

“I don’t mind going alone to my appointment,” JT said.

As much as she’d love to see more of the farm by horseback, she’d come on this trip to spend time with JT. “Maybe tomorrow before we leave?”

With that settled, they quickly toured the training barn and then JT and Violet headed out.

“It’s easy to see why horses got into your blood,” she remarked as they raced along the country highway in the SUV they’d borrowed from Samantha. “There’s something so grounding about them.”

“They keep you in the moment. A smart rider is one who anticipates that even the most well-mannered horse might react badly to something in his environment.”

“I guess focusing on the present is a good thing for all of us to do from time to time.” She’d been spending too much time speculating about what would happen in the aftermath of the stockholders’ meeting.

“Is that comment meant for me?” he quizzed, without a trace of acidity in his tone.

“Actually, I meant it as a reminder to myself. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the future. Our future,” she clarified, searching his expression for some sign that he had picked up on what was troubling her.

“I’ve given it some thought as well.” He stopped speaking, but didn’t appear as if he’d said all he intended to so Violet waited him out in silence “The shareholders’ meeting is a week away. We agreed to part ways after that.”

Violet held her breath, hoping he felt the same way she did. This time JT’s pause was longer. She couldn’t keep quiet another second.

“I don’t want to divorce you.”

JT took his gaze off the road and let her see the yearning that filled his eyes. “I feel the same way.” He captured her hand and lifted her fingers to his lips. “Having you in my life is the best thing that has happened to me in a long time.”

“Me, too.” And it made her realize that if she hadn’t already been falling in love with JT she never would have suggested they marry in the first place.

“Are you sure you understand what you’re getting with me?” JT asked, holding their clasped hands against his chest. “I’m not the easiest man to live with.”

“I know.” He still had secrets locked up inside him that caused pain and made him retreat from her. She might never know everything about him, but she’d come to terms with that before she’d decided to fight for their marriage. “I also know you don’t fully trust me with everything that happened in your past.”

“Are you sure you can live with that?”

How could she answer him when she didn’t know herself? “I’m going to try.”

As if admitting their heart’s desire had drained the energy available for conversation, they both lapsed into silence. Violet stared at the green landscape around the car and waited for her rapid heartbeat to return to normal.

JT wanted to stay married. She made him happy. The thought thrilled her. But Violet wasn’t a hopeless romantic.

What lay between them still required work and trust in order to grow, but the fact that neither of them appeared ready to throw in the towel gave them a fighting chance.

The conversation in the SUV had cleared the subtle tension between them. To Violet’s delight, JT smiled more readily than she’d ever seen and his kisses grew abundantly more plentiful and passionate.

Snuggling with JT beneath the handmade quilt in the guest room, Violet sighed in utter contentment.

“I’d love it if we could come back here and stay longer,” she told him. “I’ve really enjoyed meeting your family and want to get to know them better.”

“I think they feel the same way.”

“You’re lucky to have them.” She pondered her own lack of extended family and sighed. “Until Scarlett and Harper came along I didn’t have any family but my mom and Tiberius.”

“I get why you weren’t in contact with the Fontaine family, but what about your mom’s relatives?”