Wait for Me / Trust in Me (15 page)

Running blindly down a hallway, Emma didn't stop until she found an empty parlor room. Quickly shutting the door behind her, she collapsed into one of the chairs and tried to catch her breath. She'd just pretty much made a spectacle out of herself in the middle of the party. She'd been in Lucas's arms and it had felt so good, something that she'd ached for, and she'd gone and walked away.

“I'm a damn idiot,” she mumbled and slouched further into the chair.

“No, that's me, I'm afraid,” Lucas said from the doorway.

Emma spun and looked at him. “What are you doing here?”

He chuckled and shut the door behind him. “I thought we already covered that. Twice. The anniversary party? My parents? Any of this ringing a bell?”

“I mean in here, Lucas? Why are you in here? In this room?” she asked, full of exasperation.

“Because it's where you are, Em,” he replied. “That's where I want to be always, where you are.”

No words had ever sounded sweeter, but she was afraid just to give in. “I'm still mad at you, Lucas,” she admitted weakly.

“I know,” he said softly as he came to kneel in front of her and placed a finger over her lips when she went to protest. “I said some pretty hateful stuff that I wish I could take back and erase. Do you think you might be able to forgive me some day?”

Emma stared deeply into his eyes and knew that she already had. The man had that effect on her. “Why did you have the surgeries? You were so set against them.”

Leaning forward, Lucas rested his forehead against hers. “I was scared to. It was safe to stay injured because I knew what to expect. I was afraid of being disappointed again. Having the surgeries and still not being able to do the things that I wanted to? It was too much for me.” He raised his head and looked at her. “Then all the things you said to me came to mind and you were right; I wasn't really living. I was going through the motions, and not very well. I wanted to be able to do all of the things that we did together without having pain. There were more things I wanted us to do together but we couldn't because of my limitations.”

“Oh, Lucas, I don't want to be the reason you did this!” Emma cried, a lone tear streaming down her cheek. “You needed to do this for you!”

“Without you, Em, I'm nothing. I wanted to do this for us. I want to be the man who takes you dancing or hiking or skiing or on endless shopping sprees to furniture stores that are way too big for any normal person to go through on the average day,” he teased. “I want to see what this new life has to offer me now that I'm okay with no longer being Lucas Montgomery, football star.”

“I heard that guy wasn't all that,” she said.

“He was certainly lacking in the most important part of his life.”

“What part was that?”

“His heart, Em. For all of his athletic skills, he didn't have a heart and he certainly didn't have you.” Not wanting to wait another minute, Lucas claimed Emma's lips with his own. It had been too long and he needed to taste her more than he needed his next breath. When they finally resurfaced, Lucas took a steadying breath. “Tell me I'm not too late, that I didn't wait too long. Tell me that we still have a chance for a future.”

Emma ran a hand over his cheek, down the strong column of his throat, studying him, unable to find the words to tell him how much she was feeling.

“I love you, Em. I have for a long time and I know I should have said it before. I should never have walked away from you or doubted what we had. I'm so sorry for that.”

“I love you, too, Lucas,” she whispered, completely in awe of how much she actually did. “You scare me to death with how strong my feelings are for you and it nearly killed me when you walked away.”

“I'll never leave you again, I swear it. Tell me you forgive me,” he pleaded.

Emma leaned in and kissed him again. “There's nothing to forgive. We both needed time to be able to get to this place.”

“I don't know about that. I've been miserable without you. So many times I wanted to come and see you, but I didn't want to do it until after I'd had some time to heal.”

She sighed. “I wish I had been there to help you,” she said sadly. “I would have helped you, Lucas. Who was there for you?”

“My brothers. It took me a little while to get things right with my father but pretty much as soon as Jason took you to get your car, he came to my house and pretty firmly put me in my place. I couldn't even argue with him because, like you, he was right. I made the call the next day and got the surgery scheduled.”

“But your mom said…”

“I know,” he said, stroking a hand down her cheek, wanting nothing more than to keep touching her. “The truth is that I didn't see them for a long time. I went to New York to have the surgeries and didn't tell anyone where I was going because I didn't want anyone coming to see me. I had to do this for myself. I missed Christmas and New Year's, but all with a good reason.”

Emma shook her head.

“Don't be mad at them. They didn't mean to mislead you; they were just letting me handle this my own way. You know I'm not good with social graces,” he said with a smile, reminding her of the time she had accused him of that. “I promise to get better.”

“I don't want you to get better, Lucas. I love you just as you are.”

Standing, Lucas held his hand out to Emma and helped her to her feet. “I would be honored if you'd accompany me back to the party, Em.”

She turned and glanced out the wall of windows. “Oh, look, it's snowing!” she said with wonder.

Lucas led her to the window and then stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her middle. “Then I think we should head to your place.”

Emma turned her head and looked at him questioningly. “Why? I don't think it's supposed to accumulate too much.”

“Doesn't matter,” he said, holding her a little tighter. “The thought of possibly getting snowed in together is too good an opportunity to pass up.”

Unable to help herself, Emma grinned. “Well then, we better get going. I'd hate for one of us to end up in another ditch and have to spend any time recovering.”

“Darlin', the only recovering you have to worry about is from our making up for lost time.”

Emma totally liked the sound of that.

“You're looking pretty smug over there, Dad,” Lucas said as he adjusted his tie.

William lifted his champagne glass to his son and smiled. “I'm not going to lie to you, I'm feeling pretty smug.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah… We've already thanked you enough for your interference.”

“You make it sound like a bad thing. All I did was give the two of you a little push in the right direction. You may have figured it out eventually but I'm not getting any younger and I want grandchildren.”

Lucas rolled his eyes. “Really? You're going to start with that today? It's our wedding day; we're focused on getting down the aisle and going on a much needed honeymoon, and you're starting the grandchildren guilt trip already? Isn't that Mom's job?”

“Oh, don't worry; she's champing at the bit, too. I just beat her to it.”

“Lucky me.”

William stood and helped Lucas finish with the tie he'd been fidgeting with for almost ten minutes. “You're not nervous, are you?” he finally asked.

“What if I hurt her?”

For a moment, all William could do was look at his son with a combination of amusement and sympathy. “We all get hurt at some point in a relationship, Lucas. It happens a lot in a marriage. Even the best ones have someone getting hurt at one point or another. The key is to apologize when you do hurt her and learn from your mistakes. No one expects you to be perfect.”

“I want to be perfect for Emma; she deserves that.”

“Son, do you know your future wife at all? Has Emma ever asked for perfection?” Lucas shook his head. “All she wants is you. Be yourself and that will make Emma happy.”

Deep down, Lucas knew his father was right. In the six months since his parents' anniversary party, there hadn't been a day that had gone by where Lucas didn't say a prayer of thanks that Emma had given him another chance. Their wedding was set in motion before they had gone to bed that first night while the snow was gently falling outside.

“Hey, are you ready?” Lucas turned to see Jason standing in the doorway and Mac crowding the space behind him.

For once, Lucas didn't need to think about his answer. He was ready for whatever the future had in store for him, and looked forward to the endless possibilities of a future with Emma.

William Montgomery was feeling pretty good about himself. As the orchestra played, he watched his youngest son Lucas dancing with his new bride, Emma. They made a beautiful couple and as far as William was concerned, his role as matchmaker was a complete success.

Looking around the room, he saw that everyone was laughing and smiling and having a good time. It filled his heart with joy. This time last year, Lucas was a brooding loner who had cut himself off from just about every aspect of life. But thanks to William's interference, and the help of Mother Nature, Lucas had found himself and fallen in love with the beautiful Emma Taylor, now Emma Montgomery. William had no doubt that there'd be a grandchild in his near future.

A server came over to refill his champagne, and William smiled at him. Why hadn't he thought to do this before? He had three sons who seemed content to stay single. Well, now he had only two to worry about. Mac and Jason were both over by the bar talking with some business colleagues. Why were they talking business when there were eligible women in the room?

William sighed wearily. His sons seemed clueless where women were concerned, at least as far as he could tell. Not that he thought either of them was living the life of a monk, but it would be nice if one of them had a girlfriend.

Or at least a date for their brother's wedding.

“Stop frowning, William, it's our son's wedding.” His beautiful wife of thirty-five years came and sat down beside him, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek. “There's nothing to frown about today.”

“Says you,” he mumbled.

“What could you possibly have to be unhappy about? Emma and Lucas are deliriously happy and in love. The wedding is lovely and everyone is having a good time.”

“Look at them.” He motioned to their sons by the bar.

“What about them?” she asked.

“When are they going to find women and fall in love and get married?”

“Oh, William, for crying out loud. We're not even done with this wedding and you're already trying to plan the next one?” she laughed.

“I just want to see them happy.”

“Who says they're not?”

“Do you remember Lucas a year ago?” he asked, taking his eyes from his sons to focus on his wife.

“You cannot compare Jason and Mac to what Lucas was going through; the situations are completely different.”

“On some levels, yes. But basically they are too wrapped up in business to have relationships. I don't want them to work their lives away. They deserve to have the kind of love that Lucas and Emma have, and that you and I have.”

She smiled and cupped a hand to her husband's cheek before leaning in and kissing him softly on his lips.

“What was that for?”

“For being wonderful.”

He smiled. “I know that for a while Lucas wasn't thrilled with me for interfering in his life, but maybe this time—”

“Don't you dare!” she scolded. “You were lucky where Lucas and Emma were concerned. They already had feelings for one another. You just had to nudge them along. Neither Jace nor Mac are in that position.”

“Not yet,” William said, turning to kiss his wife again and then watching as she stood to go and talk with some of their guests.

William Montgomery was feeling good about himself right now. He had a purpose and a plan was beginning to form. All he needed was for lightning to strike twice.

“She has to be married.”

“Excuse me?”

“Whoever it is that we choose, she has to be married.” Jason Montgomery was adamant on this point. There was no way he was going to get caught with someone else looking to snag the wealthy boss.

“This is about Lucas, isn't it?” The head of human resources eyed him with a mix of suspicion and humor. In her late fifties, Ann Kincade had been with Montgomerys for almost twenty years and had watched William Montgomery's sons grow up. “Honestly, Jason, you are making a big deal out of nothing.”

“Am I?” he asked incredulously. “Ever since Lucas and Emma got together, I have gone through four different assistants. Why? Because now they all think they can hook up with the boss.”

“That's a slight exaggeration, Jason,” she admonished.

“Is it?” He stood and began to pace his office. “First there was Rose—”

“Rose got promoted to being your father's assistant when Emma left. That had nothing to do with you.”

Jason sighed with frustration. “That wasn't what I was going to say. When Rose moved over to the main suite, you replaced her with Janice.”

“She was a very nice woman. Great organizational skills.”

“She was a damn stalker who I found watching me through the bushes at home with binoculars!”

“Okay, I'll give you that one. But then there was Lynda—”

“Cougar on the prowl. She didn't want to work; she wanted to find a rich,
younger
husband to take care of her.”

“And her typing skills sucked.”

One of Jason's dark eyebrows arched at that comment, but he said nothing. “Then there was Claire.” He stopped and stood in front of Ann, his arms crossed over his chest. “Do I even need to remind you of that little debacle?”

Ann looked down at her pile of files in her lap. “I still think it wasn't what it looked like.”

“The woman was sprawled out on my desk in her underwear. How could that be misinterpreted?” he shouted. A growl of frustration escaped before he could stop it, and he raked a hand through his hair. “Now I have this trip coming up that I need to take an assistant on and I don't have an assistant! I'm walking around on eggshells here because I feel like everywhere I turn, there is someone looking to marry me!”

“We'll have to put an ad out and look for male assistants,” Ann suggested.

“There's no time for that, and what if he's gay?”

Ann let out a hearty laugh before she could help it. “Oh, Jason, do you hear yourself? Now you think that men are going to be after you, too?”

He sat back down behind his desk and put his face in his hands. “I'm going crazy here, Ann. I have a lot to do to prep for this trip. There's a lot riding on it and I can't spare the time to fend off women who are hoping to be the next Mrs. Montgomery.”

“Is it absolutely necessary for you to have someone go with you?” she asked seriously.

“It's a long trip, with meetings set up with dozens of potential clients. I need someone to be with me taking notes and organizing contracts and getting them back here to the office. I can't do it all myself. As it is this went from a ten-day trip to about three weeks. What am I supposed to do?”

“That's a long time to ask anyone to travel with you, especially if they're married. No one is going to want to be away from their spouse for three weeks.”

Jason frowned. “Damn, I hadn't thought of that.”

Ann started sorting through the employment profiles she held in her lap. “As of right now there are no male candidates. You could always take one of the junior execs with you to—”

Jason shook his head. “No, the ones I talked with can't be spared for that length of time.”

“What about a temp?”

Again he shook his head. “I need someone with a working knowledge of the company. I won't have time for hand holding and training. I need someone who can step right in and get to work. I've got less than two weeks before I leave and I'll need every minute of it to get organized.”

Placing the files down on Jason's desk, Ann stood and frowned. “What you're asking is impossible.”

“I'm relying on you to make it possible,” he countered.

“Jason, be reasonable.”

“I would love to be reasonable, Ann, believe me. Right now there is nothing about this situation that makes things easy for me, either. I cannot afford to take someone with me who ‘accidentally' shows up in my bed or worse, makes a spectacle of themselves at a corporate event. I don't want to lead anyone on or give them the impression that they are with me to play corporate wife!”

She stared at him until Jason started to feel like he was going to squirm. “I'll see what I do, Jace, but I can't make promises.”

He nodded and then she was gone.

* * *

Maggie Barrett did her best to live her life under the radar.

Getting called into the boss's office did not fit with that motto.

She had barely stepped into the executive suite when William Montgomery's assistant Rose told her that Mr. Montgomery was expecting her. With a heavy sigh, and a straightened spine, she walked through the doors.

“Maggie!” William Montgomery boomed. “How have you been?”

Taking the seat he indicated, Maggie sat down and swallowed the nervous lump in her throat before responding. “Fine, sir. How are you?”

“Great, can't complain,” he said with a sincere smile and then he reached for a folder that was on his desk. His expression turned slightly more serious as he read the contents. Quietly he closed the folder and studied Maggie. “Ann tells me that you were offered a promotion.”

Maggie nodded. “Yes, sir, I was.”

“And that you turned it down.”

Again, she nodded.

“Care to tell me why?”

“I'm perfectly happy with the position I have.”

“You are overqualified for the position you have, Maggie; you and I both know that. Now why don't you tell me why you really turned down the job as Jason's assistant.” His tone was firm but gentle.

Her shoulders sagged slightly. “You know why I took this job, Mr. Montgomery. I'm not looking to be anyone's assistant ever again. I'm very happy working in customer service.”

“Answering phones all day is maddening,” he replied. “The move up to an assistant would mean that other people would be fielding the calls, and you could do the kind of work that you are more than capable of doing.”

It probably wouldn't look good for her to cry in front of her boss. Not that he hadn't seen her do that before, but it wasn't something she wanted to repeat. “I appreciate your concern, Mr. Montgomery, I really do. I'm just not willing to be put into that type of situation ever again. I can't.” Her voice trembled on the last word and Maggie silently cursed herself for showing weakness.

“Maggie,” he began hesitantly, “I am not the type of person who throws his weight around. I think you know that about me.” She nodded. “We have a situation that you are the only one qualified for. I'm not asking you if you want the position, I'm telling you that I want you to take the position.”

Maggie's head snapped up as she stared at him with eyes wide. “But you know why—”

William held up a hand to stop her. “Believe me, I remember quite well why you feel the way you do and I think that by now you should know that I am one of the good guys. Have I ever done anything to make you doubt me?”

Silently, Maggie shook her head.

“Have I asked anything of you in all of the time you've worked for me?”

Again she shook her head as she stared down at the floor.

“I wouldn't ask this of you if it wasn't important. You are the only person I can trust for this assignment.”

Raising her head, her brown eyes filled with tears, she asked, “Why? Why me?”

William sighed. “Ever since Lucas and Emma fell in love, Jason has had sort of a target on his back. We can't seem to keep an assistant for him. He's been stalked, propositioned…you name it, these women have done it. Most men would be flattered, but Jason takes his work very seriously and he needs someone who'll do the same.”

“I still don't understand how this involves me.”

“When I took you in with Montgomerys, Maggie, you asked me to do what I could to protect you, right?” She nodded. “One of the things that I did was lie for you. As far as anyone in the company knows, you are a married woman. You and I are the only ones here who know differently.”

Maggie considered his words. “So you think since everyone believes me to be married that I'm a safe bet for Jason's assistant?”

“That's exactly what I'm thinking. Jason isn't looking to seduce anyone and he certainly isn't looking to be seduced. I would think that you, more than anyone, can understand his position.”

She blushed. Maggie tried never to think about the way that she had come to work for William Montgomery, and in the three years she'd been here, this was the first time they'd referred to it. “I can respect the situation, sir; I just don't feel comfortable—”

“Maggie?” he interrupted gently. “It's time. You've hidden yourself down in customer service long enough. I hired you without knowing a damn thing about you: the woman I met needed help, and I gave it. I'm asking you to return the favor.”

How could she say no to that? The man had given her a safe haven, a job where she didn't feel hunted, or that she was there for any other reason than her work. “How can I be sure I won't find myself in the same situation I was in when you met me?”

William's expression softened as he looked at her. “Maggie, I give you my word that you will never, ever find yourself in such a position. Not with Jason and not with anyone here at Montgomerys.”

She stood and looked down at her boss. A simple nod of her head was the only response she gave.

William rose to his feet and faced her. “If at any time, for any reason, you feel like something isn't right, I want you to promise me that you'll call. I'll believe whatever it is you tell me and I'll get you out of there, okay?”

Again, all she could do was nod.

“I'll let Ann know to get the paperwork started. I'll also let Rose know that you'll be working with her the rest of the week to get acquainted with things up here and arrange for you to meet with Jason.” A wild look of panic crossed Maggie's face and William made a quick decision. “We'll meet with him together, you and me, okay?”

Maggie took a steadying breath and agreed.

Then silently prayed that she hadn't just made the second biggest mistake of her life.

* * *

Trapped.

That
was
the
only
word
that
came
to
Maggie's mind as she frantically tried to figure a way out of the situation. She could either go back upstairs to the hotel room that her boss had reserved for the two of them—unbeknownst to her—or she could sleep on the street.

Martin
Blake
had
been
the
model
boss; for a year she'd been his executive assistant, and never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined that something like this would happen to her.

Maggie
looked
around
the
lobby—in search of what, she didn't know. She had no money, no form of transportation, and no form of ID. Martin had seen to that. They were three thousand miles from home on the other side of the country. He was smart to choose now to hatch his disgusting plan. There actually was a conference going on, but Martin had very little interest in it; his focus was seducing Maggie.

She
felt
sick. Any moment she was sure she was going to be ill. Collapsing on one of the opulent sofas in the hotel lobby, tears began to fall. “What am I going to do?” she cried gently, knowing that no one was there to answer her.

“Excuse me, miss,” a gentle voice asked. “Are you okay?”

Tears
streaming
down
her
face, Maggie looked up and saw a man, probably in his late fifties, staring down at her, his face one of calm concern. Who was he? Did Martin send him to find her?

“I…I'm fine,” she lied.

The
man
sat
down
at
the
opposite
end
of
the
sofa, not wanting to scare her more than she obviously was. “Are you sure? Is there someone I can call for you?”

The
thing
was, there wasn't anyone Maggie felt she could call about this situation. She didn't want to alarm her family; she had no close friends who would be able to pay for a flight home for her—especially when she had no ID to present when she got to the airport. Shaking her head, a fresh wave of tears began to fall.

“Whatever it is, I'm sure it will be okay. Please, tell me what's going on? Do we need to call the hotel management? The police?”

As
much
as
Maggie
had
wanted
to
say
yes, Martin's taunting words came to mind. As she had been clawing to get out of the hotel room he mocked, “Go ahead and call the cops or hotel security. I'll just tell them we had a lovers' spat and you are trying to blackmail the boss. I believe they call that extortion, and it's a crime, Mags.”

“No!” she cried, coming back to the present. “No, please…no one needs to call the cops or security. I'll…I'll be fine.”