Tears of the Renegade Read online

  There were things to do, strategies to plan. “How badly will we be weakened?” she asked in a voice that was flatly calm.

  Preston’s arms dropped away completely, and he turned to drag a chair around so he could sit beside her at her desk. “Dangerously. He couldn’t have timed it better. At the moment, our cash flow is restricted because we’ve invested so heavily in projects that won’t begin paying for at least another year, possibly two years. You handled the paperwork on the laser project in Palo Alto, so you know how much we’ve sunk in that one project alone.”

  She did. “Then what about our personal assets? If we liquidate, we can raise enough money to cover the loan—”

  He was shaking his head to stop her, and he smiled wryly at her. “How do you think I raised the money to repay him for the money we used?”

  She sat back, stunned. How neatly Cord had boxed them into a corner! He must have been planning this all along. First he had threatened to bring charges against Preston for stealing, then he had sat back and done nothing, giving Preston time to replace the amount taken, knowing that Preston would have to stretch himself thin to cover that much at one time. He had maneuvered them like pieces on a chessboard.

  Still, she cast around for a solution. “Imogene and I can cover it. We have stocks we can sell, and property in prime locations—”

  “Susan, stop it,” he said gently. “Mother and I were both involved in using Cord’s money, and we both had to sacrifice to replace it. She’s stretched as thinly as I am, and you can’t handle this all on your own. You wouldn’t have anything left if you did.”

  Susan shrugged. The thought of being penniless didn’t bother her. “If we can hold on for a year, two years at the most, then the corporation would be safe. That’s what matters.”

  “Do you really think I’d let you sell off everything Vance gave you? From the moment he married you, he worked to make certain you’d always be comfortable, no matter what happened. He cherished you, and I won’t let you undo all of the things he did for you.”

  “If we can stay out of bankruptcy, everything can be replaced.”

  “Covering this loan won’t guarantee that. What if he buys up another one? He’s obviously got money behind him, enough money to destroy us if he wants to keep pushing. If he buys up another loan, we end up in the bankruptcy courts, even if you do sell everything you own to cover this one.”

  Preston’s logic was irrefutable, and she went cold to the bone. “Then there’s nothing we can do?”

  “I don’t know. We’re going to have to consider everything. The damnable part of it is, he has a stake in this corporation himself, and that isn’t stopping him. He’ll take that loss in order to get back at me. I can’t believe he went this far. I know he hates me, but this is…this is crazy!”

  It was unnerving to think of someone so determined, so ruthless, that he would go against his own best interests in his quest for revenge. He was tightening the screws, pushing, enjoying tormenting Preston. He’d said that he wanted to make the other man squirm. He might have reason enough for the way he felt; she could only guess at the hellholes he’d been in since he’d been turned away by his family, though she had seen the marks they had left on his body. But no matter what the past had been, it was time the senseless hurting was ended. It had gone on long enough, tearing families apart, creating bitter enemies of the same blood. She wanted to take Cord by the neck and shake him until he’d regained his senses, and for a moment she could almost smile at the image of herself shaking someone who was almost a foot taller than she was, and who outweighed her by about a hundred pounds.

  She was exhausted when she went home that day. They had spent the hours poring over financial statements, marshalling their forces to meet this challenge. Preston was a superb corporate tactician, but she’d never before realized the extent of his subtlety and expertise. He knew exactly how much they could sacrifice without dealing themselves a mortal blow, and he’d set the wheels in motion to liquidate the assets he thought the corporation could spare.

  She was late getting home, but Emily was waiting for her with a hot meal, which the older woman made certain she consumed. Somehow, Emily always knew when Susan was tired or depressed, and she would dispense an extra measure of coddling, but not all her tender concern could erase the tension from Susan’s face that night. Thinking that all of her nights out with Cord might be tiring Susan out, Emily asked, “Are you going out with Cord again tonight?”

  Susan started at hearing the name that had been reverberating in her thoughts. “Oh…I don’t know. He said he might be over later tonight. He had to drive to New Orleans to take care of some business.” She felt sick at the thought. What sort of business? Finding another nail to drive into the coffin of Blackstone Corporation?

  “Well, I think you need to get more sleep then you’ve had this past week,” Emily scolded. “You look like a dishrag. Send him home early if he does come over.”

  Somehow, Susan managed a smile for the woman, grateful for her concern. “Yes, I will.” She loved him, but right now she couldn’t be with him. She had the feeling that if she looked over her shoulder, she’d be able to see the handle of the knife that was sticking in her back.

  Perhaps he wouldn’t come. She hoped he wouldn’t. She was too tired, too hurt, too raw from the knowledge of his betrayal. But why kid herself? He wouldn’t see it as a betrayal, because he’d never promised her anything. All he had given her was the coin of physical passion, not a hint of commitment beyond the moment.

  She hoped he wouldn’t come, yet she wasn’t surprised later that night to hear the rumble of the red Blazer that he used for his casual driving. She’d begun to think that she was safe for the night; it was after nine o’clock, and she’d been thinking about taking her bath and going to bed. But now he was here, and she stood in the den, her heart beginning to pound in apprehension. She felt sick; her hands were cold and clammy, and she pressed them against her skirt. How could she face him? Why couldn’t he have waited until tomorrow, when she might be calmer?

  The doorbell rang, but still she stood rigidly in the middle of the floor, unable to force her legs to move. Cold dread rippled down her spine. Seconds ticked past, and the doorbell began an insistent peal as he jammed his finger onto it and held it there. It wasn’t until he began to pound on the door with enough force to rattle it on its hinges that she managed to move, her legs shaking. She crept into the foyer and released the bolt on the door.

  The door crashed open under the impact of his fist, narrowly missing knocking her down. Cord loomed over her, his face dark and savage. He seized her by the arms, his fingers biting into her soft flesh. “Are you all right?” he bit out. “The lights were on, but when you didn’t answer the door I thought something must be wrong. I was going to go around and break out the glass in the sliding doors—” He never finished the sentence, instead pulling her to him with one iron arm locked around her waist, his other hand cupping her chin and turning her face up to him. He bent his head and his mouth closed over hers, hard, hungrily, and for a moment she forgot everything. She was swamped by the exciting maleness of his scent, the coffee taste of his mouth. She clung to him, her fingers digging into the heavy muscles of his back as she rose on tiptoe to fit herself to him.

  His desire rose swiftly, launched from the perfect condition of his superb body. Before she could think, he had lifted her off her feet and started up the stairs, after kicking the door shut. Feeling the last vestiges of control slipping away from her, Susan freed her mouth from his and gasped, “Wait! I don’t—”

  He caught her mouth again, his tongue plunging deep inside, stifling her desperate words as he placed her on the bed. If he had released her then, stepping back to remove his clothes, she might have had a chance, but he stayed with her. He covered her, his mouth taking hers with hard, deep kisses, while his hands delved under her skirt and peeled away her underwear. Stunned by his urgency, after a moment she forgot about the rift between them and h