Playing For Keeps (Emerald Lake Billionaires 2) (18 page)

“She knows enough. I’m more worried about mom and Hayley. If anyone finds them, they won’t be safe. My sister can look after herself, but mom is vulnerable. She gets confused and disorientated.”

Ryan stood up. “Come into the kitchen. I’ll make coffee and we can work out what we’re going to do.”

Sophie followed him out of the office. “Hayley texted me about an hour ago. Tank’s going to move them closer to Bozeman tomorrow. If we’re going to do anything that might compromise their safety, we need to let Tank know straight away.”

Tank was one of John’s most experienced security specialists. He’d left for Fort Wayne within an hour of Hayley’s phone call.

They knew that Hayley and her mom were safe, but they didn’t know where they were. John had assured them that Tank was one of the best security specialists he had. He would look after them, make sure they were safe, and bring them back to Bozeman. If that meant not knowing where Sophie’s mom and sister were, that was something they’d have to live with.

Ryan took two mugs out of the pantry and put them on the counter. “Have you spoken with your lawyer today?”

Sophie nodded. “He called me this afternoon. The manufacturer’s contract isn’t as simple as it looks. I’ll be signing away the rights to my formula. The company will be able to sell the end product for whatever price they want.”

“Are you happy with that?”

Sophie shook her head. “No. We’re going to see how far they’re willing to go in our negotiations. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll go to the other company. And if that doesn’t work out, I’ll go offshore and see if there’s another company that’s able to trial and produce the supplement.”

He put a cup of hot coffee in front of Sophie. “It sounds like it could be a long, drawn-out process.”

“I hope not. You’re not going to need my help around your house in a couple of weeks. I want to make sure the formula is safe and at least scheduled for clinical trials before I leave.”

“What will you do if you haven’t signed a contract by then?”

“I’ll go somewhere safe. Fletcher Security are withdrawing my savings from my bank account. They have a way of making sure the transaction is untraceable. That will give me enough money to live off for the next twelve months. I don’t know if anyone will want to employ me, but I’ll try to find a job.”

“What about your mom and sister?”

“When dad died, he left mom a lot of money. Hayley has access to a special account we set up. As long as she can still access the money, she’ll be fine. But if someone finds out the account belongs to mom, we could be in trouble.”

Ryan took a sip of his coffee. “Why did you think Dorothy was right?”

“Albert Einstein said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing. Ever since I left Chicago, I’ve been trying to hide from the people who are looking for me. It hasn’t worked. I’m tired of running. I want a normal life for all of us. What Dorothy said made sense. If other people hear about the formula, they might be interested in producing the supplement. I’ve got nothing to lose, but you have.”

“I do?”

Sophie took her coffee across to the small, round table they were still using. She sat down and held her mug between her hands. “I’m not your Cinderella. If we make the most of the stories in the media, we’d be telling lies. What if you meet the woman of your dreams while I’m pretending to be your girlfriend? Pretending to be someone you’re not has to be bad luck.”

“Most people aren’t what they seem. The music industry is built around what people look like, who they hang out with, and how much money they’ve got. People wear invisible masks to protect who they really are.”

“You’re not like that.”

Ryan smiled. “Maybe not, but there are times when I push myself to be the person I want to be.”

Sophie sipped her coffee. “What did you think about Dorothy’s idea?”

“I think she’s out of her mind.”

“You don’t think I’d make the perfect billionaire’s Cinderella?” The gleam in Sophie’s eyes was good to see. There hadn’t been much to laugh about over the last few days.

“It’s the glass slippers I’m worried about. You’d end up with pinched toes and blisters by the end of the first day.”

“A modern-day Cinderella would have discovered the joys of living in the twenty-first century. Sneakers could be the new glass slipper.”

“That’s like saying a Lamborghini is the new glass coach.”

Sophie’s smile grew wider. “For some people, it would be. The reporters aren’t going to believe that a country music superstar could fall for a genetic microbiologist. No matter which way you look at it, it doesn’t make sense. It’s worse than a handsome prince falling for a girl who’s got no money, no parents, and no home.”

“Don’t you believe in happy-ever-after?”

Sophie’s smile disappeared. “I believe in true love, not fairy tales.”

“You haven’t answered my question.”

Sophie left the table and rinsed her coffee mug under the faucet. “And I’m not going to. I’ve got too many other things on my mind. Did John tell you when he expects Tank to arrive in Bozeman?”

Ryan stood behind Sophie. “What are you afraid of?”

She turned around and glared at him. “Nothing.”

“Liar.”

“I could recite the periodic table by the time I was seven years old. I was the geeky science girl who fainted when we dissected a frog in biology class. Prince Charming and knights on white horses weren’t part of my childhood.”

“What did you dream about?”

“Dr. Who and the Daleks. All of his parallel universe theory used to keep me awake at night. Did you know that, since 1963, there have been more than 826 episodes of Dr. Who on television?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“I always thought that Tom Baker was the best Dr. Who. He had the craziest hair I’d ever seen. I used to write stories about my adventures on the Tardis.”

Ryan tucked a stray lock of hair behind Sophie’s ear. His heart thumped against his ribs as Sophie’s smile softened. “What did you do with your stories?”

“I read them to Hayley. We used to sit under the dining room table and pretend we were in the Tardis. Sometimes mom would join us. I had a great childhood. What about you?”

“Me?”

Sophie nodded. “Did you ever do anything different, like read stories under a table?”

“Not that I remember.”

“Did you always like country music?”

Ryan thought back over his childhood. “It was the only thing I listened to. It made more sense than the music my friends enjoyed.”

Sophie held his gaze. “Your parents must have been proud of you?”

“They didn’t understand how important music was to me. They were disappointed when I didn’t go to college. My dad’s a mechanic and my mom’s a teacher. They wanted me to have a career, something that had a chance of earning good money. I was stubborn and couldn’t see their point of view. We argued a lot.”

“Do you have any brothers and sisters?”

“No. It’s just me. I guess that made it even harder for my parents. If I’d been born into a big family, I would have gotten lost in the numbers.”

“That’s a great name for a song.”

“What is?”

“Lost in the numbers.”

He smiled. Sophie’s gaze connected with his and a jolt of pure need shot through his body. He cleared his throat and stepped away. “I don’t think it’s a good idea to let the world know about the supplement. But if that’s what you want to do, we’ll have to tell Hayley and Tank.”

“I’ll call Hayley. Between her and Tank, they’ll work out what’s best for mom.”

“Are you sure you want to do this? Your life won’t be the same when everyone knows about your supplement.”

“I can handle the publicity about the formula. It’s better than being worried that someone’s going to hurt me. Do you think your ex-wife will stop telling lies?”

“I don’t care what she does anymore. If she wants to take me to court, I’ll let a judge decide what she’s entitled to. I’ll call Dorothy and let her know what we’ve decided.”

“What about the Cinderella headline? Do you think Dorothy can do something to make that disappear?”

“Dorothy’s talented, but even she has her limits. The only thing that will stop that story is a dramatic break-up scene.”

Sophie laughed. “I could tip a glass of expensive champagne over your pumpkin-like Lamborghini.”

“It might work if I owned a pumpkin-like Lamborghini.” He thought about his life and frowned. “I’m sure there are other equally devastating things you could do.”

Sophie stepped toward him. “Is everything okay?”

Ryan knew nothing would be the same again. “I’ll call Dorothy. Let me know what Hayley says.” And before he made their lives even more complicated, he walked into his office and closed the door.

***

Sophie watched Tess hunt through a rack of dresses. In three hours, the final round of the talent show would be starting. “I can’t borrow one of your bridesmaids’ dresses.”

“Of course you can.” Tess pulled a purple dress off the rack and held it up to Sophie. “Put this one with the others.”

Tess had started The Bridesmaids Club with a group of friends. They were sent second-hand bridesmaids’ dresses from women all around the country. When the number of dresses had exceeded the space Tess had available in her apartment, she’d moved their headquarters to a loft above her future husband’s garage. Bridesmaids chose the dresses they wanted from an online catalog, and if they could, they came to Bozeman to try them on. It was a wonderful service that made a lot of people very happy.

Earlier in the day, Sophie had sat down with Tess and told her what was happening. She needed someone to help her get used to all of the media attention and Tess was the best person for the job.

For most of her life, Tess had been a successful model, traveling the world and using the media to her best advantage. As well as being beautiful, she had a shrewd business mind and knew instinctively what would work and what wouldn’t. After she’d told Tess about her supplement and Ryan’s publicity campaign, Tess had offered her a dress from The Bridesmaids Club. Even though Sophie was able to access her money, she didn’t have time to find a dress for tonight.

For the last few hours, she’d been busy making more of her supplement for her mom. She’d sent it to an address Fletcher Security had given her, breathing a sigh of relief when the courier hadn’t asked any questions.

Sophie bit her bottom lip when Tess held out another dress. It was the palest pink silk she’d ever seen. Tiny crystal beads had been sewn across the bodice and down the full skirt. It was the type of dress a princess would wear to a royal ball.

Tess grinned. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

“I can’t wear it,” Sophie whispered.

“It’s exactly the type of dress that a billionaire’s Cinderella would wear.”

“When is everyone going to stop calling me that?”

“Don’t worry. Another story will hit the headlines and you’ll soon be forgotten.”

Sophie hoped the next story would be about her supplement. Last night, Dorothy had sent press releases to all of the major news agencies and online sites.

The company that her lawyer had contacted were considering her proposal to trial and manufacture her supplement. She was hoping that once everyone knew about the formula, the company would do more than consider it. The return on their investment would be huge. If they kept the price low, sales would overtake everything else on the market.

Tess held a green satin dress against Sophie. She tilted her head to the side. “No, not this one. It makes your skin look yellow.”

“These dresses are beautiful, but they’ve been designed for weddings and balls, not the final round in a talent show.”

“It’s not a normal night. We wanted the final competition to be special. And special doesn’t mean wearing jeans and a T-shirt.” Tess put the green dress down and picked up the pretty pink gown. “What’s Ryan wearing?”

Sophie ran her fingers over the silky fabric. “I don’t know.”

“If you want to maximize the publicity you’re getting, you need to give the reporters something to write about. Wearing a beautiful dress is a good start. All Ryan has to do is stay beside you. Try this on and see what you think.”

In the changing room, Sophie took off her jeans and T-shirt and stepped into the dress.

Tess knocked softly on the door. “What does the dress look like?”

Sophie slid the zip up as far as she could reach. She looked at her reflection in the full-length mirror and sighed. It was the loveliest gown she’d ever seen. The length was perfect, and the full, silky skirt sparkled with the tiny beads sewn across the fabric.

She walked into the living room and spun in a slow circle. “What do you think?”

“Wow, that’s the one. We’ve got a hooped petticoat that could go under the skirt, but it would spoil it. It’s perfect the way it is.” Tess looked at her watch. “When were you meeting Ryan?”

“I need to be back at his home by four o’clock. That would give us plenty of time to get ready and drive into town for the show.”