The Tycoon's Proposition

“I hope she does.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because she’ll be in for the biggest shock of her life. We’ll discuss it in the morning.”

All this talk had worn him out. He wanted to go back to sleep. She got up from the chair.

“Thank you for telling me the truth.”

“You sound like it’s the end of the world. It isn’t. Just don’t get any ideas about consoling Parker.”

“The thought never crossed my mind.”

“Maybe not consciously. But two people who’ve both lost a spouse already have something in common. Let’s hope you’re not still blaming yourself for a marriage that wasn’t meant to be.”

“I did at first,” she admitted. “But after a while, I realized Richard fought the chains of marriage. From the little I heard about his aunt and uncle, they were pretty rigid. His parents died in a small plane accident. He never remembered them, and always resented the fact that life wasn’t fair.

“Instead of enjoying his freedom until his thirties, he turned right around and married me after they died. I represented another cage of sorts.”

“He was too immature and possib

ly too self-absorbed to know he’d won the prize. The same could be said of Martha. She lost a man who’s one in a million.”

“I agree.”

Terri knew Ben meant Parker. But Terri also knew Martha could never see past Ben.

“Now my brother thinks he’s in love again. You do have a quality that encourages a person to bare his soul. It’s no wonder he can’t leave you alone. I’m afraid drastic measures are called for.”

She frowned. “What do you mean?”

“As I said, we’ll discuss everything in the morning. Good night, Terri.”

“Good night,” she whispered.

When Terri looked up at the sky the next morning, thick cloud cover prevented any sunlight from breaking through. Ben had told her a storm was brewing. He suggested they go out to the accident site first thing, then come back for breakfast.

They walked to the starboard side of the ship. Two seamen at the landing helped them with life preservers before offering Terri assistance into the tender. Ben followed with his usual deftness.

He nodded to the seaman who started up the motor. Within seconds they sped away from the ship, then traveled parallel to it until they’d gone past the bow.

By now they’d left the protection of the inlet where the wind had picked up. Terri clung to the side of the boat as large swells in the open sea caused the tender to lift, then drop. Another minute and Ben made a hand signal for the seaman to cut the motor. His eyes swerved to Terri’s.

“This is the approximate spot where the accident occurred. I had hoped to explain everything while we were out here, but the sea is too rough. After we return to the ship, I’ll tell you the whole story.”

Terri was glad he’d said that. Now that she’d seen the place where Richard had died, she wasn’t sorry to go back to the ship. The elements were growing fierce.

“Thank you for showing me.”

“It was the least I could do.” He gave a signal to the seaman to turn them around and head back. Their boat rolled with the swells, not reaching safety any too soon for Terri. In the short time they’d been out, the sky had darkened to pitch and the wind had whipped up whitecaps.

The same two seamen relieved her of the preserver and helped her back into the ship. Ben wasn’t far behind. On their way to the private elevator she said, “I have an idea that will save your voice.

“While I fix us breakfast, why don’t you type out the explanation on the laptop I saw on your desk. It may take a while, but if you just use one finger, it shouldn’t hurt your burn too much.”

He flashed her a quick smile of approval. It dissolved her bones. She averted her eyes, afraid to stare at him any longer. They walked to his private elevator in silence.

On the way down to this deck, she’d found out he lived on the fifteenth floor. Terri still had a hard time believing any of this was real.