Call It Destiny (4 page)

„I read it last night. It made interesting bedtime reading.“

„Did it?“ she asked aloofly, aware of her parents’ interest. They knew nothing about the prenuptial agreement but were obviously quite pleased at the familiarity between their daughter and Jake Cavender.

„I only made one small change,“ Jake went on, lifting the white napkin off the bread basket to fish around inside for a croissant. „Other than that everything looks in order. I went ahead and signed.“

Heather’s brows came together in concentration as she hastily began to flip through the contract. Ignoring her, Jake and her parents immediately fell to discussing the weather.

„The thunderstorms have been rather heavy this year,“ Paul remarked. „Worst I can remember in quite a while. Did you and Heather get caught in that big one last night?“ A large man, capable of great charm or great wrath, Paul Strand had enjoyed his years as a hotelier. Still a handsome man, he was regally bald, and there was a certain heaviness around the jawline. But he was in excellent shape physically, playing golf several times a week. He had passed along to his daughter the intelligent hazel eyes and the energetic decisive temperament. It was very pleasant these days for Heather to bask in the warmth of his approval. There had been too many years when she’d been unable to enjoy that hearty pleasure.
 

Her mother, Ruth, had been the source of Heather’s bronzed hair. On Ruth it was grayed in a most attractive fashion, however, and she wore it in a short, charmingly windswept style. Both of Heather’s sisters had inherited their mother’s vivid blue eyes and her delicate bone structure. Liz and Ann, married and living nearby, were younger carbon copies of their petite mother. Heather was taller, firmer and not as pretty as Liz and Ann. The eldest daughter had inherited, in short, a great deal from her father.

„We were safely tucked away eating dinner and discussing the, uh, business of our marriage when last night’s storm hit,“ Jake assured Paul. „Would you pass the jam, please, Ruth?“
 

„Of course, dear.“ Ruth handed him the tiny silver jam pot with a fond glance. „Now that everything’s settled I can’t wait to start planning the actual ceremony. I was thinking of having the reception here in the gardens. What do you think, Heather?“
 

Heather only half heard her mother’s question. She had just flipped back the next to last page of the contract and found Jake’s one „small“ change. Heavily lined out was the paragraph regarding the physical side of the proposed marriage.

„Heather? Did you hear me, dear? I was thinking of having the reception right here. Your father and I have always loved this terrace. It would be far enough away from the main lodge so that the hotel guests wouldn’t be affected. We could set up a bar along the brick wall and… Heather?“
 

„Yes, mother?“ Heather’s head came up finally, but though she obediently responded to her parent, her narrowed gaze was focused tightly on Jake.

„I was talking about the wedding plans. Really, dear, you shouldn’t get involved with the business of running Hacienda Strand until after your marriage. You know your father and Jake have tried to keep you away from the office until everything is settled. You’ve been working so hard in San Francisco. You need to take the next couple of weeks off and enjoy yourself. Think of all the fun you’ll have planning your wedding.“

„Fun?“ Heather wrenched her eyes away from Jake who seemed patiently oblivious to the message in the hazel gaze. „Weddings aren’t supposed to be fun, mother. At least not for the bride and groom,“ she said. „Weddings are an ancient way of formalizing a contract between two people. The only important people at a wedding are the guests. They’re the witnesses to the contract. It’s a romantic misconception to think that the bride and groom should enjoy themselves. After all, it’s primarily a business arrangement that’s being concluded, isn’t it?“
 

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Heather could have kicked herself. The chagrined expression on her mother’s soft face was reproach enough. It didn’t take Paul Strand’s uneasy disapproval to make Heather realize she’d made a mistake. She didn’t often make such mistakes these days. But something about the quietly arrogant manner in which Jake had modified the prenuptial agreement had caught her on the raw. She had spoken out of irritation that should have been directed at him, not at her parents.

It was Jake who gave her the opening she needed to recover.

„Can’t I even have a glass of champagne and some cake at my own wedding?“ he complained around a bite of flaky croissant. „Are you going to spoil all my fun?“

Heather turned to stare at him. His expression of wounded disappointment was so reminiscent of a young boy who has just been told he can’t have any cake on his birthday that she couldn’t resist: „One glass of champagne and half a slice of cake,“ Heather conceded with mock reluctance, as if she was doing him a tremendous favor. „Whether or not you’ll get more will depend on how well you behave.“
 

„Ouch!“ Paul Strand grinned at the younger man as Ruth broke into what sounded like relieved laughter. „I hope you realize you’re marrying a rather strong-willed female.“

„Takes after her father, I’m told,“ Jake said nodding. „But I’m as much a victim of her charm as everyone else around here, so I suppose I will let her lead me to the altar regardless of whether or not she lets me have any cake and eat it, too.“
 

„If I let you have cake> you’re going to have to compromise on a few other issues.“ Heather got to her feet and waved the contract at him. „If you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll go have a look at the kitchens. I promised myself a tour of them today and all this talk about food
has whetted my appetite to speak to the chef and his staff.“
 

„Heather, as your mother just told you there’s no need for you to rush around before the wedding. There will be plenty of time to get to know Hacienda Strand again after the honeymoon.“ Paul frowned at Jake. „Won’t there?“

„All the time in the world,“ Jake agreed equably, polishing off his croissant. „On the other hand, perhaps a tour of the kitchens would keep her out of trouble. I saw her eyeing a motorcycle one of the busboys just bought.“

„A motorcycle!“ Ruth looked momentarily stricken.

Heather saw the shadow of remembered anguish that passed in her mother’s eyes and instantly paused beside the other woman to drop a quick affectionate kiss on her cheek.

„I’m a businesswoman these days, remember? Soon to be married to a solid respectable man. I don’t do wild and reckless things anymore,“ she assured Ruth with gentle humor. „I’m home.“
 

The last two words hung in the air for a moment and then Ruth Strand smiled lovingly and caught her daughter’s hand in her own. „Yes, you’re home, aren’t you? A fully grown woman, a successful businessperson in her own right and about to be married to a wonderful man. What could be more perfect?“
 

„Jake’s turning red,“ Paul Strand interrupted lightly. „All this talk about his wonderfulness is going to his head. Better go on to the kitchens and have that tour, honey.“

„Don’t worry about my ego,“ Jake growled as he took Heather’s arm. „Solid respectability has never been much of a compliment. I’m not likely to let such praise from my future wife go to my head.“

„Oh, but it’s not just your respectability that I admire,“ Heather shot back guilelessly. „I’m vastly impressed with your business talents, as well.“

„That certainly reassures me,“ he said dryly. „Come on. Let’s go tour the kitchens before you sweep me off my feet entirely.“

Paul Strand’s satisfied remark as Heather left the terrace on Jake’s arm followed them down the steps. „I told you they were going to make a terrific team, Ruth.“

Beside her, Jake’s mouth twisted in amusement. „I think he means a perfect management team,“ he murmured so that only Heather could hear. „What do you think?“

„That he might be right. So long as both members of the team remember which of them is ultimately in charge.“ Heather kept her words light but gave the remark a definite emphasis that could not go unnoticed.

„Is that the main reason you came home, Heather? So that you could be in charge of the family hotel?“ As they walked through the lush grounds, Jake glanced around at the elegantly designed complex. The main lodge, as well as the outlying cottages and facilities, were all done in a warm Spanish style. Heavy white stuccoed walls were accented with dark beams and graciously arched windows. The grounds were an oasis in the Tucson desert, rich and green from years of meticulous care. Crushed-gravel walks wandered randomly throughout the hotel gardens and there were guests out enjoying them in the fresh morning.
 

It was not the peak season for the Hacienda Strand. That would come in winter and spring when the freezing winds and blankets of snow up north drove those who could afford it to take a vacation in the balmy Arizona climate. It was a good time to be planning a wedding and learning the ropes of running the hotel, Heather had decided. By the time the busy season approached she would be completely settled in her new life.
 

„I didn’t come home just to run the place,“ Heather informed him evenly. „I could have had that opportunity at more than one hotel in California. I’m here because… because I’m ready to be here.“

„And you weren’t ready when you were eighteen, is that what you’re saying?“

„That’s right.“ She shook the contract in her hand, anxious to change the subject before he could probe too deeply. „Jake, about that clause you marked out. I think we should discuss it immediately and come to terms.“

„What terms?“ he asked flatly. „I agreed to every other clause in the contract, including the one that stipulates that if the marriage is dissolved both of us will leave with only that which was our own property before the wedding. I agreed that anything bought by both of us during the term of the marriage would be split fifty-fifty at the time of a divorce. And I went along with the part that said anything bought independently during the marriage remained the private property of the party that made the purchase should the marriage be dissolved. Having agreed to all that, I can’t see you have any cause to complain just because I crossed out one small clause.“

„A rather important small clause!“

He glanced down at her. „You think a nice solid respectable man like me is going to throw himself on his bride on the wedding night and demand his rights? You think I’d rape you, Heather?“

She flinched and turned her head. „Of course not.“

„Then why do you need that clause about giving the marriage six months before deciding whether or not to take matters beyond the platonic level?“ he asked.

„I wanted to give our relationship time to grow and develop. You and I barely know each other, Jake. On the few occasions when I’ve been back to visit my parents during the past couple of years, you and I have met and talked on only a very casual basis, and even those times were the result of my mother’s rather obvious matchmaking. If all goes according to schedule we’ll be married at the end of the
month. Four weeks is hardly long enough to rebuild the relationship with my
parents, let alone develop one with you. We need time before we carry this marriage beyond the business level and that clause was a way of assuring us both time. Knowing that there won’t be any pressure to consummate the marriage in the next six months will take a burden off both our shoulders.“
 

„Thanks, but I think I can handle the strain of making love to my wife,“ he replied sardonically. „Granted, not every man could bear such a burden, but when duty calls….“

„This is not a joking matter!“ she told him tartly.

His mouth tightened. „I’m not joking, Heather. When you proposed to me last week I accepted on the assumption that the marriage would be a real one. As you took such pains to point out last night, you and I have a lot to offer each other. But I have no interest in contracting a purely business arrangement. I want a real marriage.“
 

„Oh, it will be real, all right. My mother’s got a guest list with nearly two hundred names on it and my father has told every one of his golfing buddies that he’s going to have three different brands of champagne at the reception plus a full bar. My sisters called yesterday to say they’ve found the perfect gown and that my little nephew is going to be the ring bearer. Believe me, that sort of pomp and circumstance makes everything very real!“
 

Jake stopped and put his hands on her shoulders, turning her to face him. Something softened in his expression. „You’re getting nervous, aren’t you?“

„I am not nervous.“ She tried to twist out from under the strong grip of his fingers and found it impossible to move. In rigid annoyance she stood quite still and lifted her chin challengingly.
 

„Are you sure you’re not starting to wonder just what you’ve gotten yourself into by coming back to Tucson to play the role of the returning prodigal daughter?“ Jake went on gently.
 

„I’m not playing any role. I’m home, Jake, because this is where I want to be. This desert and those beautiful mountains are in my blood. They’ve always been a part of me. Just as my family is a part of me and just as the Hacienda Strand is a part of me. I had to leave at eighteen or all these things that are a part of me would have smothered me. I didn’t know which battles were worth waging and which simply weren’t important. I had to rebel against almost everything because I didn’t know which factors would control me and which I could control. I could not accept my father’s money then
because I had to prove I could earn my own. I couldn’t accept Hacienda Strand then because I had to prove I deserved to be in charge of it. I couldn’t accept the love of my family because I didn’t know how to keep my family from controlling me.“
 

„But now you can handle it all? Is that what you’re saying?“

„I’m a woman now, not a child. I’ve proven myself.“