Forged of Steele Bundle (32 page)

“I can’t.”

She decided not to press when she heard the trembling in Leah’s voice. She didn’t have to see her
sister’s face to know she’d been crying and probably still was. “Hey, how about the two of us doing something tonight?”

“Like what?”

“Going to a movie.”

“A movie?”

“Yes, a movie. When was the last time we went to a movie together?” She could just imagine Leah bunching up her forehead trying to remember.

“Um, I think it was when Aunt Susan took us to see
Titanic.
”

“Hey, you’re right,” Jocelyn said smiling as she remembered. “She really liked that picture, didn’t she?”

“Yes, she did. We sat through it twice. After that I didn’t care if I ever saw the ocean again.”

“I felt the same way.” Jocelyn laughed.

“You know,” Leah then said in a quiet voice, “I wish she had been around five years ago. I would have gone to Florida instead of California. For all her proper ways, Aunt Susan was pretty special, wasn’t she?”

Jocelyn nodded. “Yes, she was.” After a brief pause she said, “So how about it? Do you want to do a movie?”

She heard Leah chuckle and liked the sound. “Will going to a movie help you sleep better tonight?” Leah asked with a hint of teasing in her voice.

Jocelyn glanced across the room to Bas. He was still talking to Harry. And as if he felt her eyes on him, he tilted his head and looked at her. The deep intensity of his dark gaze was pinning her to the spot, heating her even more.

It was hard for Jocelyn to keep her voice steady when she replied, “No guarantees there, but it’s worth a try.”

Bas threw the file aside and glanced at his watch. It was almost four in the afternoon. He had a ton of files he still needed to review so there was no reason for Jocelyn Mason to be on his mind.

But she was.

Muttering a curse he leaned back in the chair and picked up a file he had placed to the side. He had done the accounting three times and still the figures weren’t right, but before he jumped to any conclusions, he would do as Jim had instructed him in another letter that Kilgore had dropped off a few days ago. All the note had said was: Talk to Reese first about any discrepancies you may find in the bookkeeping records.

Then, just that quickly, he dismissed the note from his mind as his thoughts wandered to Jocelyn again. He had known she was troubled by something the moment he’d seen her. It was there in her face. She’d had that worried look. And ridiculous as it seemed,
something deep within him had wanted to get rid of whatever was causing her stress.

Luckily all it had taken was a phone call and the use of his connections to make things right and to remove her troubled frown. But as usual, they had almost gotten into another argument, something he hadn’t been up to. After talking with Harry he had quickly left, eager to be gone from Jocelyn’s presence before she found another bone to pick. After a sleepless night and dealing with Sadie that morning, he hadn’t been in the best of moods, either. The last thing they needed was to be at each other’s throats…or lips.

Damn, but he couldn’t get their kiss out of his mind! He shook his head remembering. Whoever said ‘out of sight, out of mind’ didn’t know what the hell they were talking about, he thought, reaching for an apple from the basket of fresh fruit Sadie Robinson had dropped off a few moments ago. The woman had stayed only long enough to lecture him on how much better fruit was than some of the other snacks she’d noticed him gobbling up. He hadn’t found her spiel amusing but Noreen, Mason Construction’s secretary, had.

Noreen Telfair.

The woman’s name suddenly made him recall the accounting issue and why he needed to talk to Reese. The one thing he’d noticed about the attractive
woman was that she appeared to be a good worker who didn’t have much to say. He knew that she was in her late forties, a divorcée with a teenage daughter, and that she had moved to town three or four years ago from Atlanta. He’d discovered that bit of info from reading her employee records, which was something he had taken the time to do on everyone who worked at Mason’s.

“The guys said you were looking for me.”

Bas glanced up when Reese walked into what used to be Jim’s office. Bas took one look at Reese, saw his tense expression and immediately knew something was bothering him. “Hey, man, you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he said, closing the door behind him and crossing the room to sit in a leather chair. “Today’s been a rough one.”

Bas chuckled. “Tell me about it.” He was pretty good at reading people, and although Reese had said things were fine, Bas knew that something wasn’t. But he was a person who made it a point not to get involved in anyone else’s business unless he was asked.

He leaned forward, remembering why he needed to see Reese. “I was going through the accounting records and found several discrepancies. Kilgore delivered a letter to me a couple of days ago that Jim left. In it were instructions that I talk to you first if I found problems with the books.”

Reese sat up straighter in his chair as a confused expression covered his face. “Jim said that?”

“Yes.”

“I wonder why. As far as I know I’m not privy to any information regarding Mason Construction’s accounting records. What’s the discrepancy?”

“Several deposits of large amounts were placed in an account for Noreen. The last one was a couple of months before Jim died. I verified the signature and he signed off on all of them, but he doesn’t note in the records what they were for.”

“Oh,” Reese said and then sat back and smoothed his hands along the arms of the chair. “I don’t know exactly what they were for, but I have an idea.”

“All right,” Bas said, sensing Reese’s hesitancy in discussing the matter. “Was it a loan? Blackmail? Help me to understand, Reese. We’re talking about a total of over a hundred thousand dollars here.”

Reese shifted nervously in his chair and met the intensity in Bas’s gaze. “No one was supposed to know and I only found out by accident.”

Bas lifted a brow. “You found out what by accident?”

Reese shifted in his chair again and lowered his eyes when he spoke. “That Jim and Noreen were lovers.”

Bas didn’t so much as blink since that had been
one of his suspicions. “Why did they keep it a secret? Jim was a widower and Noreen is divorced.”

Reese shrugged and met Bas’s eyes. “Yes, but there’s the issue of the difference in their ages. We’re talking about fifteen years. And besides that, this is a small town that sometimes feeds on gossip, and Noreen has a teenage daughter they wanted to protect. They were very discreet and most of the time they planned out-of-town trips. They had been together a couple of years before I found out. I happened to be visiting a cousin in Atlanta when I ran into the two of them in a hotel there. Needless to say, it was a very uncomfortable moment because it was the last thing I’d suspected.”

Bas nodded. “Did Jocelyn know?”

“I doubt it. At least Jim and Noreen assumed she didn’t know. I really don’t think she would have had a problem with it had she known. But like I said, Jim was uncomfortable about the difference in their ages. Noreen didn’t have a problem with it.”

“And they were lovers until he died?”

“Yes, and I really thought things would come out then, but Jim made Noreen promise not to say or do anything to give them away. That part was pretty hard on her.”

“I’m sure it was.”

“And he didn’t want to leave her a big chunk in his will like he did for me, to give everyone a reason
to speculate why. That’s why he set up a special account for her in this bank in Memphis. She didn’t know he was doing it until right before he died.”

“I see.”

“That’s probably why he wanted you to come in and check out things before Jocelyn got a mind to call in an independent accountant to audit the records.”

Bas leaned back in his chair. “Thanks for sharing that with me. That clears up a lot.”

“Well, Noreen and Jim cared a lot for each other and although their affair wasn’t made public, they made each other happy, and to me that’s all that mattered. For some people happiness is a rare commodity these days.”

Bas said nothing for a moment after hearing the rancor in Reese’s voice. He remembered having to deal with his brother’s Morgan’s bitterness a few months ago when a woman he was interested in refused even to discuss the possibility of them pursuing a relationship.

Bas quickly made a decision about something. He might as well call it a day since he wasn’t thinking about work much anyway. “So, what are your plans for the rest of the day, Reese?”

Reese stood. “I’m going over to the gym to work out awhile. I feel like hitting something and I prefer it to be a punching bag than a human being.”

Bas nodded. He knew the feeling. He remembered passing the gym when he arrived in town. It seemed like a pretty new facility. He couldn’t remember the last time he gave his body a good workout. “Mind if I join you?”

Reese smiled. “No, not at all.”

“Good. I’ll run by Sadie’s and get my gear and then meet you there in about thirty minutes.” Bas locked the files in the drawer for the night.

Beating up on a punching bag wasn’t such a bad idea.

T
his was the part of construction she loved the best. The finish. Or in this case, the part that was pretty close to being finished, because with Marcella Jones you never knew for sure. But since Bas had explained their pay-if-you-make-any-changes policy, she had kept the changes to a minimum. In fact she had made barely any at all.

Jocelyn glanced around with her hand on her hips. This was indeed a beautiful home and she could imagine how grand it would look furnished. Marcella wasn’t known to skimp when it came to getting what she wanted so there was no doubt in Jocelyn’s mind
that this house would be the talk of the town for a while…at least until Marcella saw another design for a home that suited her fancy in one of those magazines of hers. Then there would be house number four.

“It looks nice, doesn’t it?”

Jocelyn turned and smiled at Reese. “Yes, it does, and from the look of things, we’ll finish on time. That marble tile came this morning and Harry and his crew have already put it down. They’ll be back tomorrow to grout it.”

She then studied Reese with concern in her eyes. She hadn’t seen him yesterday and wondered if he was okay. “And how are you, Reese? Leah told me you saw each other yesterday.”

Jocelyn watched as bitterness lined his lips. “Yes, we did. I should have been prepared but I wasn’t,” he said quietly.

“And I don’t think she was prepared, either.”

Reese’s dark eyes flashed. “Then that’s tough for her, isn’t it?” He inhaled deeply and said, “Look, Jocelyn, I’d rather not discuss Leah, but there is something I need to know. If you can’t tell me, then I’ll understand.”

“What?”

Reese hung his head and studied the gleaming wood floor for a second then met Jocelyn’s gaze again. “Is Leah pregnant? Is that the reason she’s not in a hurry to leave here?”

Of all the questions she had expected him to ask that sure wasn’t one. “What gave you an idea like that? She definitely doesn’t look pregnant.”

“No, but yesterday morning I walked up on her staring into the display window of that baby store in town…and she was crying.”

“Oh.” Jocelyn pressed a hand to her chest as if she could feel her sister’s pain. Poor Leah. She hadn’t been crying for what she had, but for what she thought she could never have—Reese’s child.

“Well, is she pregnant?”

She heard the anger in his voice and the pain. The thought that Leah might be pregnant with another man’s child had to be hurting him deeply. At least that was one pain Jocelyn could take away. “No, she’s not pregnant.”

“How do you know for sure? She might be and just hasn’t told you.”

“Because I know,” she snapped, feeling the need to come to Leah’s defense, considering everything. “She can’t be pregnant.”

Reese frowned deeply. “You don’t know that.”

“I do know that,” she said, rounding on him angrily. “She hasn’t been involved with anyone since you and—” Jocelyn stopped abruptly, fearing she might have said too much.

“What the hell do you mean she hasn’t been involved with anyone since me? Do you actually
believe that lie?” he asked incredulously. “I never thought you of all people would be that gullible.”

Jocelyn’s eyes flashed fire. “Yes, I believe it because…”

He lifted a brow. “Because what?”

Disgusted with herself and the entire situation and knowing if Neil Grunthall wasn’t dead already he would have been by the end of the day, she released a frustrated sigh. “Look, Reese, forget I said anything.”

“What are you not telling me, Jocelyn?” he asked, grabbing her arm.

She snatched it back, although it cost her to do so. She would love for him to know what she wasn’t telling him. “Look, let it be, okay? All you need to know is that Leah isn’t pregnant.” She turned to leave but Reese called out to her and she turned back around. “What?”

“Just in case I don’t see you in the morning, I’m cutting out a little early tomorrow. Two of Bas’s brothers are coming in and I plan to take them up to Cedar Springs for the weekend to do a little fishing.”

“Fine,” she said, shoving both hands into the pockets of her jeans. “Enjoy yourselves.”

Then she turned back around and continued walking.

“Thanks for a great weekend, Reese,” Bas said on Sunday afternoon as he got out of Reese’s truck and
gathered his belongings. “There were good lodgings, good company, good fishing and damn good beer. What more can a man ask for?”

“Nothing’s wrong with a good woman every now and then,” Reese answered, grinning.

“Hell, but not on a fishing trip. They get too squeamish and want you to have pity and throw your catch back. Women and fishing don’t mix.”

Reese gave a smooth laugh. “You must have never gone fishing with the right woman. Leah could handle just—” He stopped suddenly, then said. “Oh, hell, dammit to three degrees. I promised myself that I wouldn’t mention her name, much less think about her this weekend. She’s not worth the effort.”

Bas shook his head. “Evidently she is. What has it been? Five years? And you’re still carrying a torch? That was some kind of love.”

Reese’s hand tightened on the steering wheel. It would be useless to deny he was still carrying a torch. “Yeah, and she didn’t deserve any of it.”

“Seems you haven’t convinced your heart of that yet. See you around, buddy.”

Moments later Bas entered the cabin he had purchased with his brothers’ blessings as investment property for the Steele Corporation. Reese, Morgan and Donovan had helped him to move in Friday afternoon then they had left to go fishing Saturday morning.

He couldn’t help but ponder the fact that Reese was still in love with a woman who had torn out his heart and stomped on it. Bas was damn grateful he had never been in love. Even when he was engaged to Cassandra, he’d liked her, been fond of her, but not once did he think he loved her. Their marriage would have been a sort of business arrangement. With thirty staring her in the face, she wanted a husband who could keep her in the lifestyle she was accustomed to, and he’d wanted a proper lady who was refined as well as beautiful. What he hadn’t been looking for but what he’d found in Cassandra had also been snobbery to a degree he just couldn’t tolerate.

A half hour later, after taking a very relaxing shower, Bas walked out of the bathroom. Wrapped in a towel, not yet ready to put on any clothes, he crossed the room to look out the window, liking the view. Mountains in the distance and a small stream out back provided a picturesque scene. This could be a place he, his brothers or cousins could use when they just wanted to get away. Privacy was golden sometimes, and everybody needed it on occasion.

When he’d told Ms. Sadie that he had purchased the cabin and would be moving, she had smiled and made him promise to eat properly. But he had a feeling she would continue to show up at the office at lunch time with a fruit basket for him. In a way he
looked forward to her visits, even realizing he actually enjoyed eating fruit.

After a few moments, Bas suddenly felt antsy and considered driving to the office to work on more files, but he quickly decided against it. This had been a relaxing weekend, and he didn’t want to spoil it. He couldn’t help the smile that touched his lips at that moment. He had been glad to see Morgan and Donovan, although he would never admit it to them. And Reese had been the perfect host. The four of them had fished to their hearts’ content, drunk as much beer as their bellies could hold and talked about anything and everything…except women. They hadn’t had much time to think of women, either.

But now, back in the privacy of his little place, Bas’s mind was once again filled with thoughts of Jocelyn. He couldn’t help wondering what she was doing. Had she thought of him any this weekend? Was the kiss they’d shared a few nights ago still seared on her brain the same way it was on his?

His lips quirked. There was only one way to find out. He wanted to see her. He needed to see her. Damn, he needed to kiss her again. He grinned. This was the first time he’d ever gotten addicted to a woman’s taste and he wasn’t sure what he was going to do about it other than feed his habit.

“So you’re Sebastian Steele.”

Bas nodded. If the woman who’d opened the door to him was Leah Mason, then he could understand why after five years Reese hadn’t been able to eradicate her from his heart. She was a woman a man wouldn’t be able to forget easily. But then so was her sister.

“Yes, I’m Sebastian and you’re Leah, right?”

“Yes, I’m Leah. I’m glad I finally got to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Bas refused to throw out the cliché “all good I hope,” since he knew if it came from Jocelyn that would not have been the case. “And I’m glad I finally got to meet you,” he said slipping his hands into his pockets. “I was wondering if Jocelyn is home.”

Leah smiled. “Yes, she’s home but not here. She’s at her place right outside of town. Do you know where that is?”

“Yes, I think I do.” In all honesty, the day she had taken him there he had been too busy trying to survive the truck ride to care about the direction in which she’d been driving.

“It’s real easy to find,” she said, giving him instructions.

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. I’d like to invite you over for dinner one night when you’re free. Dad thought a lot of you and I’d like to get to know you better.”

“Thanks and the same here. Good night.”

“Good night.”

When she closed the door, Bas turned and quickly walked back to his car. More than anything he wanted to see Jocelyn.

Leah smiled, wondering if she should give Jocelyn a call to prepare her for Sebastian Steele’s visit, then decided not to. Whether her sister admitted it or not she knew something was going on between those two. She smiled and went to the sofa to settle back down with her book.

She’d never known Jocelyn to have a boyfriend. Oh, she had gone out on dates but had never gotten serious about anyone. Now it looked like that history was about to change.

Jocelyn tapped a finger to her lips as she glanced around the room. She had gone shopping yesterday and purchased this beautiful hand-carved vase, and she wasn’t quite certain of the best spot for it.

The coffee table or the bookcase?

She was leaning toward the coffee table when her doorbell sounded. She automatically assumed it was Rita, Reese’s brother’s wife from across the lake.

Instead of asking who it was, she snatched open the door, only to find Sebastian Steele. His tall, broad-shouldered frame lounged against her porch
rail, a dark silhouette, barely distinguishable in the faint light spilling out from her foyer.

Caught completely by surprise, she needed a moment before she could say anything. When she found her voice she said, “I usually don’t open the door before finding out who it is first. I assumed you were my neighbor.”

His lips twitched briefly. “I thought we had a serious discussion about the dangers of assuming anything.”

She tipped her head and stared at him. Emotions she didn’t need or want began clogging her throat. “What are you doing here, Bas?” she asked tightly. She hadn’t seen him in three days and she wished to God she hadn’t been counting. But she had.

Bas pushed away from the rail and took a couple of steps forward. He figured if he were to tell her the real reason for his visit—that he wanted to devour her mouth—the door would get slammed in his face, so instead he said, “It’s early. I didn’t want to go to the office, and I wasn’t ready to go to bed yet. We had a great weekend down at Cedar Springs and I could only think of one way to end it.”

“And what way is that?” Jocelyn’s fingers tightened around the doorknob. Her mind was suddenly filled with forbidden yet romantic thoughts. Bas’s gaze was locked on hers and she was beginning to feel this luscious, hot sensation flow all through her.
She even felt the floor beneath her feet give way a little. A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, and in response she felt something tug deep in the pit of her stomach. Her world began to rock and she waited with bated breath for his reply.

“A rematch. I want to play another game of pinball with you.”