First Love, Last Love, page 5
Beth became very still. Ten years ago Jake had avoided discussing his childhood. Whenever she had brought it up he had always changed the subject. When she persisted he had told her sharply that his parents were dead and that he didn’t want to talk about it. She had let the matter drop, but the nagging hunch that there was more behind his reluctance than just grief had persisted.
Pain and a sick dread were reflected in the uncertain glance he cast her as he shifted in his chair. I don’t even remember my mother,” he continued in a grim voice, his eyes trained on a spot just beyond her left shoulder. “She took off with some guy when I was little. Not that I blame her. My old man was mean as sin when he was drunk-which was most of the time. I learned early it was best to stay out of his way.” He shrugged, his mouth twisting. “Sometimes I succeeded, sometimes not.”
Resting his ankle on his other knee, Jake idly fingered the knife-edged crease in his trousers. His brows drew together. “The last time he came at me with his fists I was sixteen, and bigger than he was, and I’d had enough. I knocked him flat on his back and left. I’ve never been back.”
Something gave way inside Beth, a crack in the defensive wall she had built around her heart. The thought of a young Jake, neglected and abused, living in heaven knows what kind of conditions with that brute of a man brought a tight, achy feelin to her chest. Helplessly, her eyes went to the crescent-shaped scar on his cheek. Had his father done that to him?
“I bummed around the country for a couple of years before I finally realized that if I didn’t pull myself together and do something with my life I’d end up just like my old man. So I joined the service, took advantae of the programs they offered and managed to pass my high school equivalency test. By the time my hitch was up I knew what I wanted out of life and what I had to do to get it.”
“And you succeeded,” Beth pointed out, her cool expression masking her inner turmoil. “Extremely well. How can you claim to still be unsure of yourself?”
“I never doubted my capabilities, or that I would eventually achieve my goals. And I can hold my own in high-powered business and social circles. But those are acquired skills, learned through study and hard work and practical application. Underneath all those layers I’m still the scruffy kid from the wrong side of town. You can’t change your past. Where you came from.”
Beth frowned, but before she could voice a protest, Jake was speaking aain. “I remember very clearly something that happened when I was about seventeen. It was Christmastime and I was back east somewhere-Boston, I think. I was hungry, broke, had no job and no prospects of getting one. I was walking through a mall”-he paused and laughed shortly, shaking his head at the memory-“mainly to keep warm. There were shoppers everywhere, and in one of the store windows several men were putting up a tree. I remember standing there for hours watching, fascinated. When they were finished they topped it off with an angel, dressed in white with long hair and blue eyes. It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.” He looked up suddenly, his eyes capturing hers. “The first time I saw you, you reminded me of that angel-delicate and beautiful-and out of reach.”
The crack in Beth’s defenses widened, and she stirred restlessly under his penetrating stare. “I’m not an angel, Jake,” she denied firmly. “Or a princess. True, our backgrounds are different; I had loving parents and financial security, but so do many others. That doesn’t make me special.”
A crooked smile tilted his mouth and he gazed at her warmly. “Doesn’t it? You were to me. I loved you from the start, and couldn’t believe my luck when you loved me back. Deep down inside I think I kept expecting something to go wrong. That’s why I was so jealous and possessive. And why I reacted the way I did when I saw you with Ty.”
He shook his head sadly at her confusion. “Haven’t you ever wanted something so much that when you finally got it you were afraid you’d lose it?” he asked earnestly, his eyes pleading with her to understand. “And eventually, because you were so afraid, you did?”
Beth met his silent plea with an impassive stare. A lot of things were clear now. Clear and sad and rerettable. But it didn’t change what had happened. It didn’t wipe out the years and the pain. Finally she released her breath in a long sigh. Her mouth grim, her eyes compassionate but determined, she shook her head. “I’m sorry that you went through all that, Jake, but-“
“Dammit, Beth! I want your understanding, not your pity!” he flared. “I didn’t tell you that story to make you feel sorry for me!”
“I know what you want from me Jake,” she snapped back, meeting his anger unflinchingly. “And the answer is still no.” In the silence that followed she sighed again, her face softening. “But I do understand. At least . . . I do in my head. My heart is a different matter, and that’s where the scars are. I’m sorry, Jake, but the hurt is just too deep.”
Unblinking, he stared at her for several moments, his gray eyes opaque, fathomless. “Love can heal even the deepest wounds, Beth,” he said quietly. Smiling, he rose and started for the door. When he reached it he paused and looked back at her. “But don’t worry. I won’t push. I’ve loved you for a very long time. I can wait, however long it takes.”
“Jake.” Her commanding tone stopped him before he could turn away. Beth rose. Her gaze was direct and challenging and there was a militant tilt to her chin. “I don’t have to put up with this, you know. And I’m warning you, if you persist I’ll leave, not only the company, but Houston. I’ll go somewhere where you’ll never find me.”
Whatever reaction she had expected, it certainly wasn’t the slow, self-assured grin that spread across his face. Watching it, she felt a prickly sensation feather across her skin.
“No, you won’t,” he said confidently. “You signed a three-year contract, remember.”
“I’ll break it.”
“You do, and five minutes after you walk out the door every last Prescott employee will be given his walking papers,” he stated in a calm, level voice that somehow added a chilling degree of menace to the threat.
Beth sucked in her breath, her eyes growing wide. “You’re bluffing,” she gasped.
“Don’t count on it.”
Stunned, she sank down onto her chair and stared at him. His grin was gone, his expression now hard and determined. Unyielding. “You planned this, didn’t you? Will and I thought we were getting such a good deal, but it was really just a trick? A little insurance for you?”
“I don’t want to use force of any kind, Beth, but I will if I have to.” His voice was soft and understanding, but his face remained implacable. “And before you get the bright idea to go over my head and complain to Sam, I may as well tell you that he knows the whole story, and he’ll back me to the hilt.”
As though turned to stone, Beth sat and stared at the door for a long time after it had closed behind him.
Chapter Four
Beth pushed through the plate-glass doors and strode briskly to her car. When she had slid into the plushly upholstered Cadillac and tossed her briefcase and purse onto the passenger seat she closed her eyes, drew a deep breath, then let it out in a long, heartfelt sigh. Thank heaven it was Friday. She had never welcomed a weekend as much as she welcomed this one. Two whole days of peace and quiet. No pressures. No tension. No emotional undercurrents constantly tugging at her. No Jake.
The object of her thoughts stepped out of the building at that moment and Beth quickly started her car, almost burning rubber as she backed out of her slot and peeled out of the parking lot. In the rearview mirror she saw Jake standing beside his rented car, staring after her. His feet were braced apart, his hands on his hips, pushing back the coat of his gray, pin-striped suit. As though he knew she was watching him, he smiled and waved.
Stomping on the gas pedal, Beth shot her car out into the stream of rush—hour traffic, causing an irate mortorist to squeal his tires and blast his horn at her.
“I will not let him get to me, “ Beth muttered tightly, as she made a U-turn under the freeway and started up the entrance ramp. All week long he had been watching her-watching and waiting, his eyes sometimes warm and smiling, sometimes brooding, but always following her. It reminded Beth of the way he had stared at her ten years ago when they first met.
No. No, it wasn’t quite the same, she amended silently, while jockeying for position among the pack of fast-moving cars. Ten years ago Jake had watched her with a kind of desperate yearning that held hunger and hopelessness. Now his gaze was purely predatory. Calculating. Slowly, confidently, he was stalking his prey, sure of his ability to capture it. She had the disturbing feeling that he was merely biding his time, waiting for the right moment to make his move.
So far, as he had promised, he had made no attempt to pressure her into renewing their relationship, but he had let her know in small, subtle ways that he had meant every word, that he intended to make her his. It was there in his eyes whenever he looked at her, in the warm timbre of his voice when he spoke to her.
It was also obvious from the way he bristled when another man so much as came near her. Especially Greg Rydell. For some reason, Jake had taken an intense dislike to him, and made no effort to hide it. Beth frowned as she recalled the humiliating scene that occurred in her office just three days ago. She’d been working at her desk when her door opened and Greg stuck his head inside.
“Hi, Beth. Got a minute.”
“Sure. Come in and have a seat,” she’d replied, motioning toward the chairs in front of her desk.
He had barely settled onto the leather seat when the connecting door between her office and what used to be Daniel’s, opened and Jake walked in. “What are you doing in here. Rydell?” he asked bluntly, scowling.
Greg’s brows rose in surprise at Jake’s tone but he answered calmly. “I have a few matters I wanted to discuss with Beth.”
“Are they financial?”
“Well . . . not precisely, but . . .”
“Then bring them to me. From now on Mrs. Prescott will only be handling matters pertaining to accounting or finance. So don’t waste her time with anything else. Business or personal.” His voice was clipped, his tone hard and insulting.
Beth couldn’t believve her ears. “Now see here, jake, you can’t just . . .”
“On your way out, Rydell, stop by my secretary’s desk,” Jake instructed, cutting across her angry protest as though she hadn’t spoken. “She’ll give you an appointment.”
It wa a clear dismissal, and after a stunned moment Greg rose awkwardly and mumbled, “Yes, I’’ll do that,” then turned and headed for the door, his face flushed with anger and embarrassment.
“Of all the rude, uncalled for . . .” Beth sputtered to a stop and glared at Jake, so angry she could barely think. “Why on earth did you do that?”
Jake gave her a long, steady look. “I think you know exactly why I did it,” he told her in a soft, vaguely dangerous voice. With that, he turned and walked back into his office.
Beth’s hands tightened on the wheel and her mouth compressed into a thin line. Oh, yes, she knew. At the time she hadn’t, but she’d finally figured it out. It was plain jealousy. Jake was determined to win her back, but until he did, he didn’t want another eligible man within shouting distance of her.
She shook her head disgustedly. The man’s tenacity was amazing. She had tried in every way she could to discourage him. During the past five days she had been alternately cold, spiteful, indifferent, and sarcastic, but he had merely smiled through it all, the look in his eyes telling her he had seen through her tactic.
But not all of her animosity was deliberate. His presence made her constantly on edge. It irritated her that he was occupying Daniel’s office, that during staff meetings he sat in Daniel’s chair at the head of the conference table, that it was Jake making the decisions, asking the questions, giving the orders.
It was irrational, she knew. The whole point of allowing Brewster’s to absorb the company was to save it, and Jake certainly appeared to know what he was doing, but that didn’t stop her resentment from bubbling over. Not two hours ago, she had taken a verbal potshot at Jake. When he had sugested that they hire another agency to handle their advertising she had been unable to stop herself from responding with stinging sarcasm.
“Welll, I must say, you’re certainly consistant. When something doesn’t please you, you quickly replace it.” She’d smiled nastily and snapped her fingers. “Off with the old, on with the new. You never change, do you, Jake?”
The jibe had struck a nerve, and he’d flinched. His expression shuttered, he had stared at her intently for a long moment , then said quietly, “Not about some things, no.”
Recalling the scene, the unsettled feeling in the pit of Beth’s stomach grew worse. The incident had been just one of many, and she didn’t understand it. Every day she had told herself that she would put the past behind her, that she would deal with Jake in a cool, businesslike manner, yet she couldn’t seem to resist slipping the knife in and giving it a little twist every now and then.
Why didn’t Jake get angry? she asked herself as she took the Memorial Drive exit off the freeway. Her barbs were certainly stinging enough. There were times when even she grew angry with herself for giving in to the compulsive need to strike back at him. Yet Jake remained unruffled. No matter how cold she was, no matter how cutting her comments, he was attentive, utterly polite, and maddeningly patient.
And every morning, a fresh bouquet of violets appeared on her desk.
Frowning, Beth drove into the underground parking garage at the elegant high-rise apartment buildingg where she lived, and brought her car to a halt in her assigned space. She quickly gathered up her purse and briefcase and climbed from the car, slamming the door behind her. Another car came down the ramp and parked one lane over from her, but Beth was too preoccupied to notice.
Well, patience was a finite virtue, she told herself stoutly, her heels clicking on the concrete floor as she marched toward the elevator. No one had an inexhaustible supply. Eventually Jake’s would come to an end, and when it did he would give up. He would have no other choice.
Behind her the sound of hurrying footsteps echoed through the cavernous garage, and when the elevator doors opened Beth stepped inside and automatically pressed the button that held them open. Her eyes were on the selection panel when the man rushed inside. Beth pressed the button for her floor, and as the doors slid shut she turned toward the cubicle’s other occupant.”What floor do you . . .”
She stopped cold, her breath drawing in sharply. “Jake! What are you doing here?” she demanded when she finally found her voice.
Jake smiled and leaned against the metal wall, folding his arms across his chest. His gray eyes skimmed over her like an intimate caress. Amusement lurked in their depths as he observed the outrae buildin within her. Cocking his brows, he opened his mouth to speak, but before he could utter a sound the elevator halted and the doors opened onto the lobby.
Another resident, a stout woman in her late fifties, stepped inside and pushed the button for the thirty-fifth floor. Beth snapped her mouth shut and gritted her teeth, sending jake a furious look behind the woman’s back. He gave a little shrug and returned her lare with a bland smile, which only made her temper soar higher.
By the time they reached the thirty-fifth floor she was about to pop. The instant the doors closed behind the woman, Beth turned on Jake and hissed, “Just what the devil do you think you’re doing?”
“Why, riding in an elevator. What else? He answered innocently.
Beth was not amused. “Jake, I won’t stand for this kind of harassment. I must work with you and be around you at the office, but I will not let you barge into my private life.” The elevator reached the top and when the door slip open Beth put her hand on it to hold it, and gave Jake a hard, level look. “If you’re smart, you’ll take this elevator back to the garage and leave. Otherwise I’ll be forced to call the security guards and have you thrown out.”
She stepped into the short hall, her back ramrod straight, and started for the door marked 40A. Three steps away she realized that Jake was right on her heels and she halted abruptly, almost colliding with him when she whirled around. “Jake, have you lost your mind? You cannot follow me home like this!”
He was so close she could smell his cologne, see the tiny charocoal specks that seemed suspended in his gray irises, and suddenly Beth’s chest constricted painfully. He smiled down at her, his look warm and intimate. “I’m not following you, sweetheart. As much as I love you, I’m not foolish or that desperate. Not yet, anyway.” He shrugged negligently. “I’m just going home. It’s been a hard day and I’m tired.”
Beth’s shocked stare went from him to the door marked 40B across the tiny hallway from hers, then back to Jake. “But that’s impossible! There are only two penthouses up here, and the other one belongs to the Larkins.”
“Who are, as of last weekend, on an extended tour of Europe,” Jake said in a confident tone that sent a cold foreboding slithering down beth’s spine. “I’ve leased the place from them. I moved in last Sunday.”
“What?”
Her jaw dropped, and with a soft chuckle, Jake placed a finger beneath her chin and lifted it. After giving her check a pat, he swung away to unlock the door opposite hers, and stepped inside. Turning to close it, he paused and smiled slowly. “Be seeing you, neighbor.”
Beth stood as though turned to stone, staring at the closed door, her eyes wide and glazed with shock. Jake was going to live here? Right across the hall from her? The two of them were oing to be alone, isolated on the top floor of a forty-story building?
The thought sent panic steaking through Beth, and with a desperate little moan, she turned and struggled to unlock her door, practically tumbling inside when it finally gave way beneath her shaking hands.
