As You Wish Read online

  She pushed away from the door and wiped her eyes. What was wrong with her? Why couldn’t she just stand up to all of them? Why couldn’t she look into her mother’s eyes and say she was not going to marry Kent? Not going to spend her life with a man who didn’t love her?

  But then what? Elise had no money. She had a useless education that had prepared her for being a wife to an executive. She’d studied art and poetry, and done lots of exercise to keep herself fit. If she defied her parents, she knew of no one who’d risk their wrath to take her in until she could get on her feet. And that thought terrified her. What could she do?

  In the shower, she washed off the quarter pound of makeup her mother had insisted on. She was trying to combat the “blandness” of Elise, meaning her blonde hair and eyebrows and lashes. What her “family” was planning to do to her wasn’t fair. Where were those parents who said, “We support you no matter what you want to do?”

  She got out of the shower, dried off, put her underwear back on and the thick hotel robe, then began to blow-dry her long hair. Okay, so now she had a second chance, but what had changed? Her parents were going to be so angry that they would cut her off completely.

  Maybe she should have asked Arrieta to go back to when she entered college so she could major in business. But then, when the three weeks were up, her old self would probably still believe she was in love with Kent. What was she going to do? Write herself a letter about her future? No, she needed the years of marriage to show her that Kent wasn’t who she thought he was.

  Her thoughts were interrupted by a low rumble of a sound that she recognized.

  Alejandro’s voice. He was here!

  Elise looked at herself in the mirror. With no makeup on, she was pale, but she knew Alejandro liked that.

  With her hand on the doorknob, she took a deep breath. She reminded herself that at the time of her wedding she’d never met Carmen’s brother. She needed to act that way now.

  Quietly, she opened the door. Carmen and Alejandro were on the far side of the room so she couldn’t see them, but she could hear them clearly. They were talking rather loudly in Spanish.

  “You want me to take care of her?” Alejandro’s voice was disbelieving.

  “I want you to look after her for two or three days, that’s all. Is that too much to ask of my own brother?”

  “You’re up to something, aren’t you? You...” He paused. “You want me to do what? Seduce her? So you can steal her husband?”

  “He is not her husband.” Carmen sounded angry. “You don’t have to do anything with her. Just feed her. She’s so skinny she probably eats a peanut a day. Just keep her hidden for a few days, then put her on a plane to wherever she wants to go.”

  “What the hell am I supposed to do with her? Can she dig flower beds? Spread mulch?”

  “No,” Carmen said. “She can’t do anything. Kent says she is an absolutely useless person!”

  Elise leaned against the door, her eyes closed, trying to take in the hurt.

  Carmen’s voice sweetened, was cajoling. “I know you don’t like this whole thing, but Kent and I love each other.”

  “He’s marrying someone else.”

  “He was, but after this humiliation I don’t think he will. And Kent may lose his job because of her. Why did she have to destroy everything? Stop looking at me like that. You’ve seen this girl. She’s so shapeless I’m not sure she’s a woman. And Kent said she’s really cold. There’s nothing between her and him except business and she knows it.”

  “If she wants the marriage, then why did she run away?”

  “Who knows? Maybe she wants more money. I know she thought that by coming to me I could get Kent to forgive her.”

  Elise gasped at that great lie. “What was that?” Alejandro asked.

  “Nothing. It was in the hall. Will you do this for me or not?”

  “I don’t know. Where’s she supposed to stay?”

  “I’m staying with Diego, so she’ll be with you. In your bedroom.”

  “What?” Alejandro half yelled.

  “Shhh! She’ll hear you. Not that she’d understand, but she’ll hear. If you think I’m going to sleep in the same room as a crazy woman, you’re wrong. She ran away from her own wedding. Who knows what she’ll do next?”

  Elise stepped back into the bathroom and silently shut the door. You’re afraid to go to sleep around me? she thought. So much for her compassion for Carmen. It looked like it wasn’t reciprocated.

  She stood up straighter. Right now, she thought, I need to think about how to take care of myself.

  Since she’d seen the extent of what her parents and Kent would do to get her under control, she had to act wisely. She knew that if she showed herself to them now she’d either marry Kent or be taken away to...to... She didn’t like to think about that.

  She needed food and shelter until she could figure out what to do. Surely there was someone in her life who could help her. She just needed time to think about it all. Even if she could get to Warbrooke, Maine, she didn’t know if she’d find help there. It was years before she’d met Olivia, and years before she got back together with Kit.

  “One day at a time,” she whispered. At the moment, she needed to take care of the necessities, like food and shelter, and the rest would have to follow.

  She opened the door again. Carmen and Alejandro were still arguing. “You’re sure she doesn’t speak Spanish?” he was saying.

  “Absolutely. She’s American. She can barely speak one language, certainly not two. And it’s none of my business but if I were you, I wouldn’t let her know you speak English. Kent says she’s the world’s biggest whiner. She complains all the time. She says no one ever pays any attention to her or spends enough time with her. You’re so softhearted you’ll probably begin to believe her. You might even fall for the skinny girl.”

  “After the mess I just got out of? I’m staying away from all females. I’m going to let Mom choose a wife for me. Some village girl with a hairy upper lip.”

  Carmen laughed. “I’ll believe that when I see it.”

  Elise had heard enough. She started to step into the room, but on impulse, she let the robe fall to the floor. One thing she knew about Alejandro was that he was physically attracted to her.

  She had on a lacy white demi-cup bra that exposed the top halves of her breasts. Her matching panties curved across her—thanks to frequent gym visits—very firm derriere.

  Loudly, she flung the door open. “Carmen!” she said as she strode across the room to the closet, not looking at the two people standing on the other side. “Which of your clothes should I wear? Everything is either too big or too short for me. Your jeans wouldn’t reach to my calves. It’s a curse having such long legs.” Elise pulled out the smallest skirt and held it in front of her in a way that exposed her tight stomach. The upper half of her was nearly bare.

  Turning, she saw Carmen and Alejandro staring at her. Carmen’s frown was so deep she could plant wheat between the furrows. Alejandro was looking at her in stunned silence.

  Was there anything more gratifying than seeing a beautiful man dumbstruck by desire? Elise had never seen it on her husband’s face. And Alejandro had always kept himself under control. She’d seen twinges in his eyes but never this down and dirty look of lust.

  “Oh!” Elise said, trying to sound innocent. “Sorry. I didn’t know anyone else was here. You must be Alejandro.” She pronounced it as Alex-andro. “Did I say that right?”

  She held the skirt up in a way that it covered nothing as she went forward to hold out her other hand to him to shake.

  He just stared at her.

  “Is he okay?” Elise said in a false whisper, and realized she was channeling Tara.

  Carmen was still frowning. “He doesn’t speak English and he doesn’t greet naked women.”

  “Oh