Exquisite Acquisitions

Carter frowned. He hated losing.

The next diamond presented was a ring of less iconic value than the Tarlington diamond, but with two nearly perfect carats of dazzle in a platinum setting, given to the legendary star by her third husband, Joseph Madigan. Carter wouldn’t be outbid again.

“Going once. Going twice. Fair warning, this lot is about to be sold.” A second ticked by in silence. Then the gavel hit the podium. “Sold!”

Satisfaction curled in Carter’s belly. The diamond ring was his. He’d flown across the continent for an engagement ring to impress Jocelyn, and tomorrow night he’d be dishing it up on a silver platter.

Once the auction concluded, Carter made fast work of securing the diamond ring, along with the certificate of sale. He caught Ann Richardson as she was leaving the salesroom. “Ms. Richardson?”

The tall willowy blonde turned and surprised Carter at how young she appeared up close. She blinked. “Yes?”

“Pardon me, ma’am. But I need to speak to you privately.”

“Is there a problem with the sale? You won the bid on a stunning ring.”

“No, I’m happy with the ring.”

“I’m glad. I hope it brings you enjoyment.” She eyed him carefully.

“It will.” Carter smiled. “I plan on proposing marriage to my girl tomorrow.”

The caution in her expression softened. “Oh, well, congratulations, Mr.?”

“Carter McCay.”

She put out her hand and Carter gave a light shake. “I have no connection to the press, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Her eyes widened. Then a guilty smile emerged as if she’d been caught red-handed. “I won’t deny it crossed my mind,” she muttered with a sigh. She glanced around, noting the patrons filing out of the room. She lowered her voice. “They can be brutal.”

Carter nodded. “Is there someplace we can talk privately? It’s about Roark Black.”

Ann’s perfect brows lifted as if that was the last thing she’d expected to hear. Concern mixed with curiosity, and she immediately began walking toward a private exit. “Follow me.”

Her shiny black heels tapped across a stone hallway. Carter fell in step beside her, and it wasn’t long before she ducked into a small office marked Private. She waited until he entered before closing the door. The room was windowless and dark. She flipped a switch and overhead fluorescents brought light into the office. She leaned against a large glass desk and folded her arms. “What about Roark? Is he all right?”

“I hope so. He’s a friend. We go way back. I met him while on duty in Afghanistan. A couple days ago, I got a text from him with your name on it.”

“My name?” She leaned toward him, surprised. She pushed shoulder-length hair behind her ears and took a breath. “Where’s the message?”

Carter pulled out his phone and tapped the screen a few times until the cryptic message appeared. He moved beside her and handed her the phone. She stood there for a second, reading the passage a few times. “He says he doesn’t trust anyone with this information but me. And he’s in hiding somewhere.” She looked into his eyes. “What’s he gotten himself into?”

“I have no idea. He mentioned a statue. Do you know what that’s about?”

She nodded slowly, rereading the message. “It’s the Gold Heart statue. There are only three in existence. He might have stumbled upon something he shouldn’t have.” Ann turned to him again. “He could be in real danger.”

Carter held her stare a moment. “He could be.”

Troubled, she sighed quietly and handed back the phone. “He’s a good man.”

Carter nodded. “Listen, I know Roark. He’s gotten himself into some really tight spots before, and he’s always gotten out.”

Her voice was a mere whisper. “Are you telling me not to worry?”

Carter was concerned his friend was in trouble, but he couldn’t do a damn thing about it until he heard from him again. “No sense in worrying. I have faith in him. Roark knows what he’s doing. But whatever it is, he sure as hell wanted me to get this message to you without going through the normal channels. He’s not sure who he can trust.”

“I understand. Thank you for going through the trouble. Will you promise to let me know if you hear anything more from him?”

“I can do that,” Carter said.

“Thank you.” She walked him to the door. “And congratulations on your engagement. I think any woman would love to have a Tarlington ring on her finger.”

Carter grinned. “That’s the plan.”

She gave him a full-out dimple-inducing smile, and Carter figured she didn’t offer those up too often. “I think your soon-to-be fiancée is a lucky woman.”

Carter thanked her and left Waverly’s with a diamond ring in his pocket and a hum in his heart. He’d accomplished his two goals today.

Tomorrow his life would change forever.

Pajama-clad, Macy stared at her reflection in the hotel mirror, the phone to her ear and her legs stretched out on the massive bed. She never liked reserving a room with a king bed. With her slight frame, too much of the mattress went to waste. But then, getting two doubles made her feel lonely, as if there was someone missing who should be sleeping in the other bed. Macy had offered to share her hotel room with Avery, but her friend had booked with a smaller, more secluded hotel. Macy had respected her privacy.

“Are you still thinking about that cowboy from the auction today?” Avery asked.

She smiled into the phone. The cowboy? Now, he would take up a good portion of her bed and nothing would go to waste. “Guilty as charged. But you can’t blame me, can you? My love life isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. If I only had one-tenth of the lovers MovieMash.com claimed I had, it would be a miracle. I haven’t been on a date for eight months. That qualifies me for that new reality show, Dating Dilemma.”

“Oh, Macy. It only means you’ve been dealing with your mother’s illness and grieving. You’ll know when the time is right.”

Avery, too, had recently lost a parent, a father she’d hardly known, so she could relate to the heartache Macy felt. Avery had been such a dear friend when Tina died. They’d shared the bond of loss together.

“You had the hots for the cowboy. That’s a start,” Avery encouraged.

With a sigh, Macy glanced in the mirror again and shook her head at the simple yellow-and-white flowered nightgown she wore. She made a mental note to buy sexy lingerie. “That’s true.”

There was something about the cowboy that called to Macy. She’d been smitten from the moment she’d spotted him. Smit­ ten. Such a perfect word to describe her feelings for a mystery man who’d helped her get through a tough time today. Not that he’d ever know he’d helped her, but still, Macy had warm feelings for him that went beyond the physical.

“The poor guy,” she said quietly. “He bought the cursed diamond. I overheard him saying he was getting engaged tomorrow.”

“How did you hear that?”

“I have eagle ears, remember? Just as we were walking out of the auction, I heard him tell Ms. Richardson why he bought the ring. I was crushed.”

Avery giggled. She thought Macy was kidding, and why wouldn’t she? Any normal person wouldn’t develop strong feelings for a man she’d just laid eyes on. But Macy couldn’t really share the truth, that as soon as the cowboy announced he was getting engaged, her heart sank and her stomach clenched. The disappointment overwhelmed her. It had hurt Macy to think that her fantasy cowboy was already taken, and now hours later she still couldn’t wrap her head around it. “He hasn’t proposed yet and his marriage is already doomed.”

“You don’t know that for sure,” her friend said. “Wouldn’t you like to think it’s not the diamond rings but really some odd quirk of nature, an imbalance of romance or simply a weird coincidence that those three marriages ended with heartbreak?”

“I don’t know, Av. Maybe you’re right. Maybe it’s not the rings. Maybe I just don’t believe in love anymore. I mean, my mother and all of her close friends have had their hearts broken from love affairs. You know how much my mother loved my father. When he died in that crash, she’d been so angry with him for leaving her alone.”

Clyde Tarlington had been a talented actor in his own right and a loving father to Macy, but gambling and liquor were his true loves. He’d been addicted to both. When he won big, he’d buy rounds of drinks for everyone, and unfortunately one night ten years ago, his big win meant losing the most important gamble of his life. He’d gotten behind the wheel of his car and plowed the front end of his Lamborghini into a tree just three blocks away from their home. His blood alcohol level had been double the legal limit. That night, his luck had run out.

“I know that was heartbreaking for her,” Avery said.

“But she picked herself up and married husband number two and then husband number three. And you know how well those marriages worked out.” Macy’s throat tightened with remorse. “That cowboy bought loser number three’s ring.”

Avery’s voice softened. “Macy, are you going to be okay? I can come over.”

“No, don’t be silly. It’s after midnight. I’m fine,” she fibbed.

Macy had financial woes that made her dizzy with dismay. Avery knew most of it, so there was no sense rehashing her legal problems. She was being sued for refusing to back down on her principles. And now she was paying the consequences, literally, with her mother’s estate. She had an appointment with her New York attorney tomorrow that she wasn’t looking forward to. “I appreciate you being my rock today. I leaned on you and you came through.” She faked a yawn and made it noisy enough for Avery to hear. “I’m pooped. I’m going to climb into this big bed and get some sleep.”

“Okay…if you’re sure.”

“I’m sure. I’ll see you for dinner tomorrow before your flight. Have a good night.”

“Same to you, Macy. Sleep tight.”

“I intend to,” she fibbed again.

She wouldn’t get much sleep. Her troubles would follow her into the night.

Carter sat across the table from Jocelyn in a cozy corner in the Russian Tea Room, the muscles around his lips pulling tight. He stared at her with unblinking eyes. The setting, the diamond, everything was perfect. Except her answer. “No?”

“That’s right,” she whispered. “No, I won’t marry you.”

With a shake of his head, he leaned back in his seat in disbelief.

Jocelyn flipped her blond hair to one side, a habit he’d noticed her doing when she was annoyed. The long strands fell over the thin strap of her glimmering gold dress. Her full lips, glossed in cherry red, formed a pout. Then she sighed dramatically, as if the weight of the world was crushing her shoulders. “I thought you knew this thing between us wasn’t serious.”

He kept his tone level. “How was I to know that?”

“We’ve never spoken of the future,” she said. Her eyes flashed to the opened velvet box he’d laid near the edge of the table. “Not in specific terms.”

Carter’s voice elevated. “You mean, when we were lying in bed at night and you’d say how much you wanted a family one day. Three kids, exactly. And when you said you wanted a second home in the Hamptons, those were just random ramblings?”

He had trouble believing her rejection and searched his memory for clues. How had he missed her signals? He thought they wanted the same things in life.

She ignored the question, speaking in a tight voice, “We haven’t known each other long, Carter.”

“A year isn’t long enough?”

“Not with you living in Wild River and me living in Dallas. We haven’t seen that much of each other.”

Raw, ego-deflating pain gutted his insides. The flat-out rejection worked a number on his pride and made him look at Jocelyn in a new light. One that wasn’t flattering. A steady tick began to eat away at his jaw.

“The ring is a stunner, really.” The diamond that would never see her finger sparkled against incandescent candlelight. “But I can’t accept it.” She lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “I don’t love you.”

In one fell swoop, he gripped the plush black ring box and clicked it shut before shoving it into his pocket. He didn’t want to look at the damn thing anymore. “Can’t be clearer than that.”

“Well, I’m…sorry.”

She didn’t sound all that sorry.

“Hell, your apology fixes everything. I suppose you want to be friends now?”

His ego was taking a big hit, but his heart hurt, too. He’d wrapped his future dreams around spending his life with Jocelyn. How had he gone so wrong? He’d known Jocelyn was a high-maintenance woman, but he figured he could make her happy. Now, he felt like a sap.

Her chin angled up, and when she spoke it was as if she were speaking to a dog that should obey. “Don’t be mad, Carter.”

Was she kidding? Anger was only one of the emotions torpedoing his belly. “Don’t tell me how to feel, Jocelyn. Even you’ve got to realize this is a blow to me.”

“You had it wrong. You made a lot of assumptions about our relationship.”

“I made…” Carter kept his anger contained. He spoke quietly, through clenched teeth. “You tempted me into a relationship, in case you’re forgetting. From the first day we met, you were all over me. Remember the Wild River County Fair? You brushed your body up against mine so many times, I needed a dunk in the river to cool myself off. You came after me, as I recall. And we’ve been together ever since. So excuse me if I’m pissed off. Excuse me if I don’t understand.”

And what about all those nights she’d screamed his name and told him he was the best lover she’d ever had? Or the midnight rides they’d take on horseback at the ranch? Or the way she clung to his arm whenever they were out in public, as if he was the most important person in her life? Was it all an act?

“You don’t understand. I wasn’t after you.”

“Like hell you weren’t.”

“You really don’t get it. I thought I was transparent. Clear as glass.” She rose from the table, clutching her small beaded purse. She shot him an unflinching gaze. “I’m in love with Brady. I was trying to make him jealous.” She gestured with a swipe of her hand. “All of this was for Brady’s sake.”

Carter sank back into his seat, his eyebrows denting his forehead. He hadn’t seen this coming. “My cousin?”

Carter had met Jocelyn one day when she was visiting her grandmother, Brady’s neighbor. She’d come by Brady’s place and the three of them, Brady, Carter and Jocelyn, had driven out to the county fair.

He stood abruptly and towered over her, pinning her with a glare. A bitter taste formed in his mouth. “So all this time, you were trying to make Brady jealous? How’s that working out for you?”

She stiffened and her gaze narrowed to two eye-lined slits. “Shut up.”

She made a move to pass by him, to escape his wrath, but he wasn’t through with her yet. He took hold of her arm, garnering her full attention. “You played me for a fool.”

She straightened her stance, holding her head high, like a member of royalty. “You are a fool. You’re a dumb stupid hick who let me string him along.”

His teeth ground together and his words came out low, from deep in his gut. “I’ll make sure to tell Brady you said that. Being as we’re related, that means he’s a dumb stupid hick, too. He was right about you. Yeah, the dumb stupid hick doesn’t think too highly of you. And this time, I’m not disagreeing.”

She flinched. His victory was small consolation, and while he knew better than to speak that way to a woman, he couldn’t stop himself because her indiscretion had been much worse.

He released her at the same moment she yanked her arm free. “Leave.”

She did. She walked away, and Carter didn’t bother to watch her exit. He headed for the bar, unnerved and feeling like hell. He needed to soak his sorrows with a double shot of whiskey. Jocelyn wasn’t the woman he thought she was. She’d been using him all along. Yeah, but he had to admit, she had him good and fooled.

No woman would ever fool him again, and after his liquor arrived, Carter downed the drink in celebration of escaping the hangman’s noose.

Thirty minutes later and fortified with the best whiskey money could buy, Carter stepped out of the restaurant and was hit with a blast of humid August night air. It was the only thing about New York that reminded him of Texas—cloistering humidity. The heat crept up his collar and made him sweat.

All of a sudden a crowd emerged, swarming a woman who was trying to enter the restaurant. Bulbs flashed, the rush of footsteps sounded on pavement, shouted questions flew through the air. More than a dozen paparazzi crammed her as she made a feeble attempt to push her way out. Her shoulder was bumped once, twice. She swiveled right, then left, trying to break away. Questions were leveled at her like grenades. When her eyes met his, in that brief moment, Carter saw a caged animal struggling to get free. She was trapped.

Recognition struck him smack between the eyes. She was the woman he’d glimpsed at the auction yesterday.

Someone yanked at the scarf hiding her jet-black hair. Long, luxurious curls spilled down her shoulder, and she reached behind her head to put the scarf back in place. Carter had seen enough. He muscled his way through the crowd, giving a few well-placed shoves himself to get to her. When he finally faced her, he gripped both her hands in his, firm but gentle. She gazed at him with desperate, deep lavender-blue eyes. Carter had no time to dwell on her beautiful face. He blocked a cameraman’s shot with his body, and the Stetson riding low on his forehead lent another measure of concealment. Use everything in your arsenal, he’d learned in the marines.

He leaned in real close. “I can get you out of here. But you have to trust me.”

Two

Fraught with panic, Macy faced the man from the auction, certain she was hallucinating. It couldn’t be him. She’d dreamed about him last night, and this morning, when she should have forgotten all about him, he’d still marched into her thoughts during quiet moments.

Shouted barbs, flashbulbs snapping and body heat from tabloid junkies brought her back to the here and now.

“Got yourself a cowboy,” shouted a photographer from the back of the pack.

“Are you doing nude scenes with him, Macy?” another asked.

The vultures chuckled.

It angered her that they called her by her first name, as if they were her friends, when the question itself was rude enough to warrant enemy status. Tina knew how to handle the paparazzi. Macy did not. And she paid the price for not being as charming as her famous mother had been.

Her heart pounding, her body abused and her head clouded with uncertainty, Macy glanced down to find her tightly wound fists encased in strong, protective hands. When she gazed up into the cowboy’s eyes, he reassured her with a nod. His words had been like velvet to her ears.

Trust me.

She did.

Someone bumped her from behind, and the cowboy’s gaze grew fierce, giving the photographer ample warning. “Back off.”

Then he met her stare again. “You coming?” His voice was a little more insistent this time.

Macy didn’t have to think twice. She was out of options. The crowd herding her had become more curious now that the cowboy had intervened on her behalf, peppering her with questions as to who he was.

She honestly didn’t know.

But she was about to find out.

She nodded, and he gave her a fast smile. “Let’s go.”

The cowboy’s grip was steady on her hand as they took off at a run. Mentally she cursed the Paciotti pumps slowing her down. She struggled to keep pace with his strides.

“Don’t look back,” he ordered. He guided her down an alleyway, dodging garbage cans. She ran on the pads of her feet to keep from stumbling on three-inch heels. her scarf flew off her head, clinging on by the knot at her throat. The material whipped at her shoulders. Sweat beaded on her forehead and her nerves rattled as the cowboy led her away from the tabloid hounds dogging her.

The sound of labored breaths and footsteps shuffling from behind dropped off a little at a time as they hurried along the narrow alley. It wasn’t a herd following them anymore, just several hangers-on. Those few were persistent, and the cowboy tightened his hold on her hand when they reached the end of the alley. He took half a second to glance both ways on the side street before gesturing to the right. “There.”

She followed him, running quickly to a shiny black Lincoln Town Car. “Get in and we’ll be off.” She glanced behind her to see four photographers snapping pictures at the base of the alleyway.

Her savior opened the back door for her, surprising the chauffeur, who was eating a burrito in the front seat. She climbed inside and slid over. He joined her a second later. “Give it some gas, Larry. And be quick.”

“Yes, sir.” The chauffeur tossed his food down and fumbled for a second, obviously caught off guard. Then the engine revved to life. Before the paparazzi got within twenty feet, they had pulled out, Larry driving as fast as traffic allowed.

“Wow.” Macy leaned back in the seat and closed her eyes. The past twenty minutes were a blur. One second she was on her way to meet Avery for dinner, and the next she was being pursued by overly zealous tabloid maniacs.

She tried to slow her breathing, but then there was the Stetson-wearing cowboy to think about. From the moment she’d laid eyes on him, he’d thrown her off balance.

She turned to face him and caught a whiff of his musky cologne. The scent was a turn-on in its own right, but on him, now that was really something. She’d already put him in white knight status; he didn’t need any more help. “I don’t usually accept rides from strangers,” she offered, clearing the air.

He chuckled and deep twin dimples appeared, softening the sharp planes of his face. Okay, this was just not funny anymore.

“But you made an exception for me?”

“I knew I could trust you. I saw you yesterday at the, uh, the auction. I was there, too.”

He gave her an appraising stare. “I know.”

“You know me?”

“No, can’t say that I do. But I noticed you. You were trying your best not to look conspicuous. Guess the designer sunglasses and scarf gave you away. It’s kind of hard not to notice a beautiful woman covering herself all up. Not that I blame you for trying to disguise yourself.” He gestured with a tilt of his head to the direction they’d just come from. “Does that happen to you often?”

He thought she was beautiful, even under the disguise. “Lately, yes…unfortunately.”

They were traveling down the street, and Macy had no idea where they were headed. All she saw behind him through the window was a flash of streetlights and neon signs.

He took care with removing his hat and laid it between them. He continued to watch her. Normally she’d squirm under the heat of a stranger’s stare, but oddly all she felt was excitement, as if she was living out her fantasy. She still couldn’t believe she was in his car, driving toward who knows what.

Then she reined in those thoughts. He was engaged. Or going to be soon. Her fantasy was over. “I’m Macy Tarlington.”

His eyes flickered with recognition. “Tarlington?”

His recognition wasn’t aimed at her. He didn’t know who she was. It was the Tarlington name that turned heads in every civilized country around the world. Apparently, the cowboy had never seen any of the work Macy had done on film. She wasn’t a star by any rights, but most people in the know would recognize her on the street. “My mother was Tina Tarlington.”

“I’ll be damned.” He shot her a charming smile then put out his hand. The large capable hand she’d already held. “Carter McCay. I’m from Wild River, Texas.”

Of course, he was a Texan. With that charming accent, where else could he be from? “Hollyweird, California.”

His lips quirked up and they sat staring at each other, their hands entwined in a slow shake.