“I did,” Gio answered curtly.
“And aren’t you having other guests, also? The Corisis and some of your other friends?” Nick continued.
“Yes.”
“Any single men?” Nick asked in a tone that grated on Max. It was clear Nick was trying to get a rise of out Max, and it was working.
Gio nodded. “A few.”
Nick shook his head in a mockery of concern. “Rich eligible bachelors. I wouldn’t send a woman I was interested in off to a dinner like that alone. But maybe Max doesn’t care. In that case, it won’t matter who Tara leaves with.”
Max slammed a hand down on the back of the chair. “You win. I’ll go.”
Gio smiled for the first time. “Good.”
Luke said, “It would have been better if he’d agreed to come because we’d talked things through.”
Nick shrugged. “We don’t need to talk it out. We all know what’s wrong with us. We are a seriously fucked-up family. Max, you’re right, life is easier without us, but we’re not going anywhere. We’re your brothers.” He pulled Max to him for an exaggerated hug. “And we love you, man.”
Max shoved Nick off him. He looked around the room, and an unexpected feeling welled up in him. No matter how he tried to deny it, it rose within him—hope. “I am deeply worried about the three of you.”
Gio walked over until he was close enough Max worried he was about to hug him also. “I’m glad you changed your mind, Max.”
The sincerity in Gio’s expression made Max uncomfortable. “I’m not agreeing to more than dinner.”
Gio held his eyes. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes, Max. I don’t deny that. But Julia is close to her family, and I want to be close with mine.”
Max made a face. “Please don’t hug me.”
Gio smiled again, but there was a hint of sadness in the gesture. “Come to dinner with an open mind, Max. That’s all I ask. Give us a chance to get it right this time.”
“I’ll be there,” Max said. He thought back to how hopeful he’d been when the four of them had attended Stephan’s wedding. Their truce had lasted only a few days after their return. He swore he wouldn’t get pulled back in again, but his emotions were a tangle of frustration and hope.
Nick slapped Luke on the back. “See, a little blackmail, a little humor—it’s a combination that always works.”
Luke studied Max’s face. “You were lucky. It was only effective because he really likes her.”
Max denied the claim. “I don’t. I realized you were serious about your threat to stay until I agreed to go.”
Nick chuckled. “I’ve never seen Max smitten with a woman before. I can’t wait to meet her. She must be something special.”
Max walked to the door and held it open. “Get out.”
Nick walked through the door first. “Don’t try to back out of tomorrow night. If you do, I will find you.”
Standing beside the open door, Max said, “I’m going. I said it, and I meant it.”
Luke gave him a pat on the arm as he walked past Max and out the door. “You’ll thank me one day for making sure you didn’t miss out on this.”
Max made a doubtful face but admitted, “I know you believe that, Luke.”
Gio stopped in front of him and said, “I believe it, too. I’ll make sure you’re seated next to Tara at dinner.”
“I don’t care—,” Max started to say, but when all three of his brothers gave him a knowing smile, he said, “Thank you,” then closed the door.
He headed off to the bathroom. As he stripped for the shower, he caught his expression in the mirror. He was smiling.
All this about a dinner.
My family is nuts.
But they’re right: I am smitten.
Avoid me all you want today, Tara.
Tomorrow you’ll be mine again.
Patrice Stanfield sat back in her chair and folded her hands on her lap. The simple but elegant beige dress she wore hung loosely on her thin frame. Her white hair was swept up in an elegant, loose bun. She wasn’t an old woman, but her health issues had certainly aged her. The butler who had greeted Maddy and Tara and led them to this sitting room had disappeared along with the woman who had served them tea.
Tara placed her empty cup and saucer back on the tray between them and tried not to be obvious about studying Patrice. Maddy had shared several stories with her on the ride over that didn’t seem believable. This soft-spoken woman had tried to buy off Gio’s fiancée? She had threatened Nick’s?
Patrice’s hands shook as she raised her teacup to her lips. She looked too frail to intimidate anyone. “It’s so nice to have company,” Patrice said with a small smile. “You haven’t come by to see me in a while, Maddy.”
Maddy gave her aunt a pained smile. “I’ve been busy, but I wanted you to meet my friend Tara.”
Patrice’s smile didn’t reach her eyes when she looked Tara over. She nodded in her direction then turned her attention back to Maddy. “Friends are so important, aren’t they? Appreciate them while you have them. As you get older you’ll find yourself with fewer and fewer until you don’t even remember what it was like not to be lonely.”
Maddy’s eyes misted a bit. Tara wasn’t as moved by the comment. It seemed orchestrated to do exactly what it had done. “I would have come by sooner, but . . .”
“But?” Patrice asked.
A heavy silence hung between them. Tara knew why Maddy hadn’t visited Patrice, but Patrice obviously didn’t.
Maddy wrung her hands together. “My father asked me not to.”
“Really?” The expression in Patrice’s eyes was dark and cold even as she continued to smile at Maddy. “It’s no secret Alessandro never liked me.”
Maddy leaned forward. “Why, Aunt Patrice? What happened between you and my father? Tell me; maybe I can help.”
Patrice’s eyes glittered with an emotion that sent a shiver down Tara’s back.
Oh, Maddy, how can you not see the hate in her eyes? This is Max’s mother? No wonder he doesn’t like to come home. I’d want to run as far and as fast as I could from her.
Patrice took another sip of her tea. “It’s ancient history, Maddy. I’m happy, though, that you didn’t let him poison your opinion of me.”
Maddy’s chin rose. “He may not want me here, but he has never said a bad word about you.”
“I find that difficult to believe,” Patrice said coldly. Her lips thinned in an attempt at another smile. “Let’s talk about something happier. How are my sons?”
“They haven’t come to see you?” Maddy asked.
“Would I be asking you about them if they had?” Patrice snapped, then instantly softened her expression. “I’m sorry, my medication makes me emotional. That’s probably why it’s difficult for my sons to be around me right now. They can’t bear to see me ill.”
Oh, I’m sure that’s it,
Tara thought, but kept it to herself.
It’s not your personality, or creepy smile.
“When I see them tomorrow I’ll encourage them to come by. They’re all so busy, I’m sure they didn’t mean for so much time to go by.” Maddy picked up a scone, then placed it back on her plate without tasting it.
“When you see them where?” Patrice asked as casually as if inquiring about the weather.
Maddy answered instantly. “Gio is hosting a big dinner party. Well, he and Julia are. We’re going to plan their wedding. Everyone will be there. I heard even Julia’s father is coming in for it.”
Patrice folded her hands on her lap again. “I don’t recall receiving an invitation.”
Tara sucked in an audible breath.
Awkward.
Maddy leaned forward and placed her hand on Patrice’s. “I’m sure you did. Would you like to come with me? I can swing by and pick you up.”
Patrice laid her other hand on top of Maddy’s in what should have been a warm gesture, but Tara was sure what Patrice really wanted to do was remove Maddy’s hand from hers. “You’re so sweet, Maddy. If my health were better I would take you up on that offer.” The cold expression Tara had seen earlier returned to Patrice’s eyes. “Tell me, is Nick going?”
Maddy nodded happily. “Yes. He and Gio have gotten really close since they’ve been working together. It’s heartwarming to see.”
“I’m sure it is,” Patrice answered and moved, breaking the connection to Maddy. “Is he still with that Rena?”
“Yes, and it looks like they’ll be getting married also.”
“I’m happy for them,” Patrice said, although clearly she wasn’t.
“Even Max is in town, although it’s anyone’s guess if he’ll go to the dinner or be in the wedding. He says no, but I think he’ll change his mind.” Maddy smoothed her hands over her skirt again as if gathering her courage. “What do you think, Aunt Patrice?”
“He may. Max does exactly as he pleases. He always has.”
“Well, I’m hoping to lure him there,” Maddy said and winked at Tara.
Patrice caught the move and pinned Tara down with an icy stare. “Why, Maddy, tell me you’re not still playing that foolish matchmaking game.”
Oh, Maddy, now you’ve done it. I completely believe every rumor about Patrice. If looks could hurt, I’d be bleeding out on the floor.
Maddy defended her bet. “It’s not foolish. Gio is much happier now that he has Julia. And you should see Nick with Rena. He’s a different man. Love is a beautiful thing.”
Patrice’s face went white. “Beautiful? Love is a curse,” she spat. There was an ugliness in her expression that made Maddy gasp. Patrice called for her nurse. A young woman rushed into the room. “I’m tired. Please, take me back to my bedchambers.” The nurse helped Patrice to her feet.
Maddy stood and took a step after her aunt. “Aunt Patrice, I didn’t mean to upset you.”
As she clung to the nurse’s arm with one hand, Patrice clutched her other hand to her chest in a dramatic gesture and made a pathetic wheezing sound. The whole scene felt staged. Tara looked away and rolled her eyes.
Patrice walked with her nurse to the door then stopped just before it and turned back. “Maddy, from now on I believe you should take your father’s advice and stay away from me.”
“You don’t mean that, Aunt Patrice,” Maddy implored.
“I do,” Patrice said coldly. “Give my regards to my sons tomorrow.”
A moment later her butler entered the living room with their coats. Tara said, “I’d say that’s our cue to leave.”
Maddy nodded as they both slid their coats on. “I didn’t mean to upset her.”
Tara walked with Maddy through the foyer and out the front door. Once inside Maddy’s limo, Tara said, “It probably doesn’t take much.”
Maddy looked out the back window of the limo as it pulled away from Patrice’s home. “Have some sympathy for her. She’s very sick, and now she’s alone.”
Tara felt hard-hearted as she spoke, but Maddy had asked her to meet Patrice for a reason, and it wasn’t to sugarcoat what she saw. “She has four sons, three who live within hours of her. If she’s alone, there’s a reason.”
Maddy turned to face forward again. “Gio says he won’t expose Julia to her again. Nick refuses to even talk to her after she supposedly threatened Rena. Does she look like a woman who would threaten anyone?”
“Yes,” Tara said without hesitation.
Maddy shook her head. “When I look at Aunt Patrice all I see is a sad, lonely woman. What do you see?”
Tara laid a hand on Maddy’s arm and said gently, “I see a woman who is so bitter about something, she doesn’t have room in her heart for anything else. Don’t trust her, Maddy. She’s been using you to get information about her sons.”
Maddy raised a shaky hand to her mouth. “Oh, my God, Rena was right. She said I was the reason Patrice knew Gio had met Julia. I told Patrice about Nick and Rena, too. I thought it would bring her comfort to know her sons were doing well.”
“Instead, she used what you told her to try to break them up.”
“I can’t wrap my head around that. What kind of mother doesn’t want her sons to be happy?”
Tara glanced out the back window of the limo.
That kind.
Maddy gasped and said, “Oh, my God. I told her about Gio’s big dinner. You don’t think she would do anything to ruin it, do you?”
Tara shrugged awkwardly. “I don’t know her well enough to say what she’s capable of.”
“I can’t warn Gio. I don’t want to ruin his night, and she might not do anything.” Maddy chewed on her thumbnail. “I can’t tell my father. He doesn’t get upset with me often, but he was furious when he found out I was visiting Patrice.” Maddy gave Tara a sad look. “Even Richard won’t be happy if he hears this. He told me to stay out of it, and he never gets involved in family business. Tell me I didn’t just make a huge mistake.”
Tara scooted closer and gave Maddy a supportive pat on the back. “I’ve never been a good liar.”
When Maddy met Tara’s eyes, Tara knew she was in trouble. “You’re the only one who knows what I just did. You have to help me. Thank God you’re coming to Gio’s dinner.”
Tara shifted away from Maddy. “I’m not. Remember what I said earlier? I’m done. Visiting Patrice was the end of it.”
“But you have to come.”
“No, I don’t.” She remembered how she and Max had spent that morning. “I can’t.”
“I need you.”
“Maddy, you promised me you wouldn’t ask me for anything else.”
“I’ll pay you double.”
“I already ripped up your check.”
“Then I’ll give you another. Name your price.”
“This isn’t about money, Maddy.”
And if Max is there with another woman, I don’t want to see it.
Maddy chewed her bottom lip, then said, “Technically, this is not asking you for something new. You promised to go to this party with me. Everyone is expecting you.”
“That was before—” Tara swallowed the rest of her sentence.
“Before what?” Maddy asked.
Before I slept with Max.
“Before I realized how awful I really am when it comes to doing undercover work. I like your family. They’ve been wonderful to me. I don’t want to lie to them anymore.”
Maddy looked down at her hands sadly, then back up at Tara. “If you like them, you should want to help them. I’m not asking you to pump anyone for information. I get that you suck at that. I’ll be there with Richard and the kids, and that can be distracting. I only need an extra set of eyes and ears in case Aunt Patrice tries something. If she does, I’ll go straight to Gio. I promise. And I’ll admit everything.”
Tara felt herself beginning to waver. “I don’t know.”
Maddy took a hand in hers and said, “Consider yourself fired. You don’t work for me anymore. You don’t have to lie about anything. Come because you’re my friend. We are friends, aren’t we?”
“Yes, I guess.” Although Tara could honestly say she’d never had a friend quite like Maddy before. Tara couldn’t believe she was walking away from a hundred thousand dollars, but she felt free from the weight of the lies.
And if Max was there with another woman? Well, maybe it was for the best. If they had any sort of relationship, she’d have to tell him about her job and what had brought her to him in the first place. It was better for everyone if the only thing they had was what he had originally offered her—a few hours of pleasure with no expectations of more.
“Please, Tara, help me one last time.”
Tara gave Maddy’s hand a squeeze. “I’ll go, but if we really are friends you’re going to have to learn how to hear the word no.”
“Snow?” Maddy asked innocently.
Tara started to repeat what she’d said, then saw the glint of mischief in Maddy’s eyes. “I’m serious.”
Maddy flashed her a big, heartfelt smile that Tara was sure she used to her advantage. “And I’m grateful. Thank you, Tara, for agreeing to go. When all of this is over I am going to find you the most amazing husband.” Before Tara had time to say that wouldn’t be necessary, Maddy lowered the window to the driver and directed him to drive to Bergdorf Goodman. “But first, let me buy you the perfect dress.”
Tara told herself she should say no.
But she was only human.
***
That night, Tara let herself into her apartment and stopped dead at the sight of unlit candles scattered all over the living room and kitchenette. Dyson was lying on the couch in lounge pants reading on his tablet. “Are we expecting a power outage?”
Dyson raised his head and waved. “Brigitte comes home tomorrow. Any chance you could make yourself scarce for the night?”
Tara held up her zippered dress bag. “I have a party to go to so I won’t be here anyway.”
Dyson sat up. “I meant all night. Maybe you could hook up with someone? It might do you good.”
It hasn’t been that long. And right where you’re sitting.
“I’m not going home with a man just so you can have the apartment all to yourself.”
Dyson gave her sad eyes.
Tara laid her dress across the back of one of the chairs and said, “Don’t look at me like that. Do I have
sucker
written on my forehead? I am not that easy to manipulate.”
Dyson continued to look at her with his big puppy dog eyes. “Brigitte called to see if I was still here. She said she missed me. Do you want to stand in the way of love?” He held up the magazine. “I’m trying out your friend’s advice.”
“My friend?”
“Maddy, wasn’t that her name? She suggested I give Brigitte a night to remember, then walk away.”
“Really? You’re going to walk away.”
“Yes. Right after I give her the night of her life. That’s why I bought candles. I went shopping for . . .”
Tara raised a hand. “I don’t need the details. I’ll reserve a hotel room for a night.” She waved a finger at Dyson. “But you’re paying for the room. And it’s going to be a nice one. Maybe five-star.”
With a smile, Dyson dropped back down onto the couch. “Send me the bill.”
Tara picked up her dress and threatened, “And I’m going to order a lot of room service. All I can eat.”