She picked up the next file wallet and checked the name. It was one she hadn’t heard of. Vista del Lago. Curious, she thumbed through the thin folders and pulled out a piece of correspondence to see what it was all about.
She got through the first short paragraph before she had to fumble for her desk chair to slide down and sit. She examined the attached notice addressed to residents of Vista del Lago, informing the tenants that they had thirty days to vacate before the building was to be demolished.
The internal company letter to Adam was marked “Personal and Confidential” and listed the reasons why the building should be torn down. It was close to the beach, so the property was worth millions. It was an eyesore with paint peeling and wood trim crumbling, so it would take too much work to restore it. The tenants were mostly senior citizens on fixed incomes, so raising the rent had proved problematic. Better to just evict the tenants and level the building.
Trish’s hands shook as she read the details of the coldly impersonal Notice to Vacate, which gave the elderly tenants thirty days to pack up all their worldly belongings and find somewhere else to live.
The letter reported that the Vista del Lago site would be the ideal place to build luxury condominiums that would garner an excellent return on the company’s investment.
She didn’t know how long she sat there staring into space. She was struck dumb, frozen, unsure what to do next. This was it, the perfect sordid information she’d been seeking ever since she first came to work for Adam.
Her mind bounced back and forth between pretending she’d never seen the letter and shouting its discovery to the rooftops.
Part of her insisted that the letter was none of her business. She should just shove the file back into the drawer and forget she ever saw it.
But how could she do that?
It was documentation, clear and stunning evidence that Adam’s company was about to tear down yet another building-this one filled with defenseless, low-income senior citizens-in order to build something more pleasing to the corporate eye, something like high-priced luxury condominiums with a view of the ocean. Much better than the ugly low-rent senior housing that was currently occupying the space.
Trish’s stomach was doing backflips and not in a happy way. The letter and accompanying notice weren’t exactly a smoking gun, but they were just the sort of dirt the local newspapers would devour like hungry hounds. It might not destroy Adam Duke, but if the press framed the story correctly, it would definitely be a blow to his company’s reputation and Adam’s personal pride would probably take a serious hit. If the news coverage was good enough and the public outrage strong enough, it might even prevent the project from going through.
It was the perfect weapon. Trish knew it. But how in the world could she use it against Adam when she was in love with him?
“No.” The word shuddered from deep in her throat as that realization sank in.
Trish rose from the chair and paced around her alcove. Feeling trapped, she went into Adam’s office and walked to the window overlooking the coastline.
“Oh, no. Absolutely not.” She whipped around, stumbling blindly back and forth across Adam’s office. She didn’t know where to go, what to do, where to hide from the stunning realization that she was in love with Adam Duke.
Barely able to take another step, she collapsed onto the couch.
How could she be in love with him?
She let out a moan, then bent over and buried her head in her hands. It couldn’t be. Please, not Adam. Despite his good qualities, despite the fact that he was her lover, he was still the man responsible for forcing her small family and her beloved neighbors out of their homes. He was the man who’d destroyed the beautiful historic building where she and her grandmother had lived and worked their entire lives. He was the man who’d replaced that lovely, venerable Victorian building with an ugly, soulless concrete block-long parking structure.
He was the same man who would do it all over again to the residents of Vista del Lago, if Trish didn’t stop him.
She sat up, glanced around. Maybe there was a reasonable explanation for his actions. Maybe he didn’t know the whole story. But that was ridiculous. The evidence was sitting on his desk. He had to be familiar with the file.
It was staring her in the face. Adam Duke was about to destroy the lives of yet another group of innocent people.
Sadness crept into Trish’s heart as the inevitability of her situation settled over her. She had to do something. She had to take a stand.
No longer sure of her motives or her feelings, Trish scanned the Vista del Lago paperwork, transferred it onto a CD and slipped the disk into her purse.
Ten
They descended the jet stairway onto the tarmac and Adam inhaled the cold, pine-scented mountain air. He could finally relax and spend these next two days with Trish, uninterrupted by the work that had consumed them over the last few weeks. He planned to keep her busy in bed when he wasn’t otherwise pampering her.
She’d been quieter than usual during the plane ride but Adam chalked that up to her usual anxiety over flying.
“I’m so glad to be back,” she said softly, staring out at the mountains they had just flown over. Then she rubbed her arms. “Oh, but it’s so cold.”
“It’s going to snow.” He took hold of her hand and led her to the waiting limousine. “The driver will take us to the hotel, then come back for the bags.”
He bundled her into the limo and held her close. As the driver sped toward the resort, he considered the woman sitting next to him. He was proud of the work she’d done and didn’t mind admitting that she made him look good. She’d been thrown into the role of his personal assistant and she’d exceeded his wildest expectations. She was a hard worker and a good sport.
But more than that, she was sexy as hell and he couldn’t get enough of her. He was amazed to realize that he hadn’t grown tired of her, amazed that he still wanted her every day and night. He knew it couldn’t last, knew that he would send her away eventually. He couldn’t say when it would happen, but he knew it would. For now, though, he refused to question the fact that he wanted to be with her all the time.
He hoped that when the breakup finally happened, Trish would understand and not take it personally. He would be careful to make sure she knew that it wasn’t her, it was him. Adam had vowed, long ago, never to become too involved with anyone. He didn’t believe in forever, certainly didn’t believe in love. He didn’t trust it. After all, people might say they love you and promise to take care of you, but then they’d dump you off at a hospital entryway and never return. He ought to know. People lied.
After all the pain he’d seen growing up, first in the orphanage, then in all those miserable foster homes, he knew it was unavoidable that people grew to hate and hurt one another. He’d seen plenty of damage done and figured that for most relationships, it was just a matter of time.
Sally Duke had been different, he told himself. The exception to the rule.
But romantic love was doomed from the start. He wouldn’t let that happen to him. And he wouldn’t let it happen to Trish, either. He didn’t want to hurt her so he was determined to avoid anything that remotely resembled a serious relationship.
And Trish had “serious relationship” written all over her.
But for now, for the next two days, he was looking forward to spending time with her and making love with her. And what better place to do that than Fantasy Mountain?
After the elevator delivered them to the top floor, he followed her into the presidential suite and watched with amusement as she twirled around, trying to take in everything. The room was spectacular, if he did say so himself. And needless to say, much bigger than the one Trish had slept in last time.
The walls were constructed of blond wood logs polished to a high sheen, except for one entire wall that was covered in river rock and formed a wide fireplace and hearth. A forest-green suede couch and charming bentwood chairs and tables made up a cozy conversation area. The wide, rounded balcony stretched the length of the suite with doors leading out from both the living room and the bedroom. In the bathroom, a soaking tub was planted in front of windows that looked out at the snow-capped peak of Fantasy Mountain.
