Saving Cinderella! (11 page)

A
LEX
looked at the sad little collection of buildings, and her heart broke for whoever had once tried to make a go of this property and given up. It wasn’t near the bustling Las Vegas strip, the cottages were small, parts of the chapel were tumbling down, and yet…

“Beautiful scenery,” she said, noticing the stark red rocks in the distance.

“There’s that, and also isolation.”

She studied the little cluster of buildings, the small attempts at hominess, planters where non-native plants had died long ago, and the remains of an arching trellis outside the little chapel.

Wandering inside the adobe chapel, partially open to the elements where glass was missing from the deep cut-outs of the windows, Alex stood soaking in the atmosphere. It was the most basic of structures, a bare wood floor, plain wood pews with slatted backs. There was no light source. Someone had scribbled graffiti on the big timbers that held up the roof and on the white walls.

Outside there were benches on the path connecting the cottages, their canopy frames empty and skeletal. Everything was silent, deserted, empty.

Alex noticed other little imperfections—the faded blue
door on one cream cottage, a crooked welcome sign over another door, the flowers painted over the entrance to the chapel that would never have occurred naturally in this landscape and yet…

“There’s something rather charming and winsome about it,” she said.

“You don’t have to say that.”

“I know.”

“Who even
uses
the word
winsome
anymore?”

“I guess I do.”

Wyatt smiled. “Winsome it may be. Commercial? Doubtful.”

“And yet you bought it.”

“I did.”

Maddening man. He knew she was looking for an explanation of why a man who owned one of the most successful, state-of-the-art hotels around had purchased this clearly not-likely-to-be-commercially-successful property. In fact, she was willing to bet that of all the properties available at the time that Wyatt bought this, few had been so…sad.

“You’ll want to make changes.”

He hesitated. “I always make changes. Change is good.”

“How long have you had this?”

“A while. More than a year. Almost two.”

“And yet…no changes?”

“Not yet. No.”

“Why? It can’t be lack of funds.”

“No. Money isn’t a problem.”

“So why no changes?”

She waited while he seemed to consider the question. “It has to be right, and yet…I like it how it is, even though I know it’s not marketable.”

She laughed. “You sound so frustrated with yourself, but
I don’t see what the problem is. If you don’t need the money, and you like it as it is, why not simply leave it alone?”

“To what purpose?”

“Everything has to have a purpose?”

“Some people think so.”

“Do you?”

“Let’s just say that I grew up in a world where everything had to have purpose and worth.”

She opened her mouth.

He shook his head. “Don’t ask me more, Alex. I’ve already told you more than I’ve ever told anyone. I don’t discuss it.”

“You don’t like to talk about it because it’s painful.”

He turned those beautiful wicked green eyes on her. “You are an amazing woman.”

“Because I asked you a personal question?”

“No. Because you asked me a personal question about my shady past when I just told you that I don’t discuss it.”

“It was rude, wasn’t it?” And yet she was consumed with the need to know what made Wyatt tick. She was pretty sure that part of that was pain, and her own heart clenched with pain at the very thought. Which should have totally alarmed her.

This was the very kind of thing she had warned herself about a hundred times. She should back away, maintain a distance. Instead, she couldn’t seem to stop herself from moving forward.

“Why do you want to know my motives?” he asked, catching her off balance.

“I…I don’t know.”

But that wasn’t strictly true. Wyatt interested her far too much, and feeling even one drop of longing for him could lead her straight to heartbreak. In the past, even with the wrong assumptions she’d made about men, she’d at least had some reasonable chance of success, but with Wyatt that chance was
nonexistent. There would never be more than physical attraction on his part. And yet when she looked into those green eyes, and saw that he wasn’t as stoic as most people thought, she couldn’t help wanting to know everything about him. She couldn’t stop herself from feeling things she should be running from.

To her surprise, he chuckled. “You have to be the most straightforward woman I’ve ever met. Do I refuse to talk about my past because it was painful? Well, it certainly wasn’t pretty. My mother didn’t like children, and the uncle she left me with liked them even less. He believed in child labor and that a fist was a useful tool in the parenting toolbox. For my part, I was hell on wheels and not the kind of person you’d want to know. As for why I don’t discuss my childhood…it doesn’t fit the image I’ve created for myself as owner of McKendrick’s. A pathetic story isn’t good for a business in a city based on having fun, and since I intend to be successful, I keep my ugly childhood hidden from view.”

And yet he had shared some things with her. Twice.

“I hate to lose, but I bought The Haven,” he said with a grimace. “She’s certainly a sad little establishment, isn’t she? Flawed, blemished, imperfect in every way.”

Something he had apparently been criticized for by those who should have loved, protected and nourished him. Still, there was affection in his voice.

That was all it took. Alex’s protective instincts immediately kicked in. “It’s really not a bad little place.”

“If you say ‘it just needs love,’ I’m going to have to laugh. You know that, don’t you?”

She wrinkled her nose at him. “It needs attention, and some creativity, and some…some…”

“Don’t say it,” he warned, and she bopped him on the arm.

“Oops,” she said. “That can’t be right. You’re my boss.”

But there was heat in his eyes when she looked up, and she forgot to feel like an employee.

“Alex,” he said with a groan. “Don’t look at me like that. Don’t…”

“Don’t what?” she asked on a whisper.

“Don’t make me want you.”

“I’m not trying to.” But
she
wanted
him
.

“You don’t have to try. I’ve wanted you from day one. I should never have hired you.”

“Because it’s unprofessional?”

“Because I don’t want to hurt you, and I might.”

“Women want you. You don’t want love. It’s a given that hearts would be broken.”

“I don’t want to break yours.”

“You won’t. I won’t let my heart get broken again. I’ve learned to be strong.”

“Then you’d better be strong for both of us, because I’m losing the battle to stay away.”

As if to demonstrate, he leaned close, his lips almost touching hers. She felt the zing of electricity arc between them, felt her lips tingle, and heat, and…

She closed the gap. She looped her arms around him and kissed him long and hard and deep.

He groaned. Alex felt faint with longing, with desire, with things she didn’t want to face. Reality, she thought.
Go away, reality.

But reality ignored her, and she had to admit the truth. She wanted to go on kissing Wyatt, to ask him to take her into one of those rickety little buildings and make love with her. And if she did, he would hate himself for hurting her.

And she would break in every way possible. She would be
disgusted with herself for claiming to be strong and then proving that she wasn’t.

Wyatt advanced, nibbling at her lips, pulling her against his long, lean, hard body. His arms possessed her; his lips enflamed her. His hands…oh, his hands…

Don’t let this happen.
As if Jayne or Serena or Molly were there beside her, the voice of reason found her.
You said you were strong
, she thought.
Be strong.

“Wyatt, I have to stop,” she whispered against his mouth, her words garbled.

But, as if her heart instead of her incoherent voice had spoken to him, he released her. Immediately.

“I have to stop doing that,” he said.

Alex frowned and crossed her arms. “Do not try to take credit for that one. I gambled. I started it. I ended it. And I told you that I’m strong. I’m capable of controlling things.”

As if she’d said something funny, his concerned look turned to a half-smile.

“Don’t laugh at me,” she commanded.

“I wouldn’t think of it. You scare me, Alex.”

“I do?”

“Yes. You do.” Except his voice wasn’t teasing anymore. “I should get you back home.”

“Not yet.”

He raised one eyebrow, questioning.

“We didn’t come here to make love. We came for this sweet little place,” Alex said. “And we’ve ignored her. It’s her turn to get some attention, and it’s clear that you love her.”

He looked at her with those deep green eyes that made her soul ache and yearn. “I don’t love anything or anyone.”

The cut went deep, although Alex didn’t know why. He’d been telling her this from the moment she’d met him. He’d
told her in so many words just moments ago. In fact,
everyone
had been telling her that, and why should she be surprised? A man who came into the world subjected to only hate and hitting would have had all the love beaten out of him. But not the caring, she reminded herself. No matter what he said, she’d seen him be gentle with Belinda. He’d done all he could to help Randy. And as for me, Alex thought, he’s bent over backwards for me. He cared about some things, on some level.

He cares about these falling-down cottages
, she thought. Cottages as imperfect as a beaten boy had once been. So she took a deep breath, took a chance. “I take it you brought me here for an objective opinion. So if I told you to tear it down?”

She could see him swallowing. “You wouldn’t do that.”

And now she saw why he had kept this place a secret. “You know that most people would tell you to sell it.”

“Absolutely. If another person had bought it and I was the one giving the advice, that’s what I’d tell them.”

“And you’re sure I won’t do that?”

“I’m reasonably sure of it.”

“Why?”

He gave her one of his rare smiles that made her want to curl closer, to rub up against him. “You like to make things better, not tear them down. Randy was snobbish to you, and you looked for the bright side; when Belinda was in labor, you could have shooed the customers away or sent them to Randy, but you made the best of the situation and helped them. It’s just not in you, Alex, to throw up your hands and walk away. You see the way things might be. So if you told me to tear this place down, I’d know that it really was completely hopeless.”

“I sound like such an idiotic optimist.”

He shook his head. “No, you sound like an admirable woman with good ideas.”

“But you like winning, and you know that despite my ideas, I don’t always win.” She hesitated, remembering all the times she had lost. She had tried to win love and ended up shattered. But…what a ridiculous thought. Wyatt was talking about business, not love. She looked up and surprised a concerned look on his face.

“I’m not putting the success or failure of this venture on you, Alex. I’m just asking for your opinion.”

“Yet you’re a genius in your field. McKendrick’s—”

“Was different. The location alone assured its success.”

“But you built it into more of a success than other people could.”

“Thank you. Let’s just say that my odd fascination with the Haven makes it too personal for me to trust my judgment. I don’t want it to be personal.”

Now at last she saw clearly. “You don’t really want to change it, and yet it doesn’t fit with your ‘change is good, perfection is everything’ motto, so you’re at a standstill.”

“Something like that, yes. I… Maybe I
should
sell it.”

With those words Alex knew that this bit of property held a very personal place in his life, even if he didn’t want it to. It was a misfit, like he had been, and he was fighting his urge to keep it because only winners were allowed in his life.

Her heart hurt at that thought. She was good at many things, but she had been a loser…so many times.

She took a breath, pushing that thought away. This wasn’t about her. It was about Wyatt’s battle with his past and what this place represented. What would happen to this place if he sold it? And how would he feel when the deal was done?

She didn’t know. She only knew that no matter how rundown the Haven was, it was worth fighting for.

“Don’t sell it,” she whispered. “It has…real possibilities.”

He chuckled. “Such as? You said that as if you weren’t sure you believed it.”

Okay, the man saw too much. Alex concentrated. Despite her bad luck with men, or maybe because of it, she’d learned to look for the rainbow in the rain. So what was there to work with here?

“How about adding a small, private rustic garden next to each cottage, with native plants and rocks and a viewfinder, so that the visitors staying can see the birds and the local wild-life and get a closer view of the rock formations? It’s really a starkly gorgeous area. Or add some charm by placing local history plaques in the cottages. Decorate them with antiques. Maybe enlarge one of the cottages and make it a communal gathering area. Make this a rest-stop for those on their way elsewhere or a place to kick back after days of non-stop activity in Las Vegas. Or…”

“Or what, Alexandra?” Wyatt asked, taking both her hands.

“Or you could just leave it as it is,” she said softly. “You don’t have to change it at all. You don’t even have to rent it out. Imperfect as it may seem to others, it’s perfect in its own way if it’s what you like.”

He reached out and brushed her hair back from her face with one hand. “I knew you’d be good for this place.”

His touch was entrancing; his words did wonderful things to her ego, even though she knew he was just being nice. People always teased her about her overeager outlook. Even people who loved her worried that her attitude made her a target for those who wanted to take without giving, and they were right, but…