She took a step back from him, shaking her head vigorously. “No way. I can’t ask you to do that.”
“Didn’t you just say you wanted someone to take a chance on you?” He crossed his arms. No way was he backing down from his. She had all but asked him for help, and he would make her see sense.
“Yes. A chance. Meaning a loan. Not an invitation to stay at their house.” Bethany flashed him a distasteful look. A look that reminded him a little too much of the ballsy upper-class women in his social circle. It was hard to believe that a woman who had the courage to stand her ground with him didn’t come from money.
“My property is huge,” he informed her. “You’re welcome to stay until you get back on your feet.”
“Okay, that’s crazy.”
He frowned. “What’s so crazy about it?”
“I don’t know how things work where you come from, but where I come from women don’t move into strange men’s houses.” Her lush lips thinned and she held up her hands. “For all I know, you could be a psycho who runs a basement torture chamber. No offense.”
“None taken.” He allowed himself a smile. “It’s more creative theory than what the tabloids come up with.”
“Bored with the usual jet-setting playboy stuff, are you?” Her blue eyes lit up mischievously.
“Definitely. I apologize for being an insufferable cliché.”
“So… the rumor is true, then?” she asked.
He raised an eyebrow. “That I’m a psycho who runs a secret torture chamber?”
“No.” A breathless laughed escaped her throat, the sound exciting him. “Are you a playboy? Do you have a bunch of women at your beck and call?”
The conversation had gone off on an uncomfortably personal tangent, but if answering truthfully put her at ease he’d risk revealing a little of himself. Inviting her to his home was a big deal, and it was only natural for her to hesitate. “Depends on the day. Though, right now I’m so focused on work at the bank that I honestly haven’t been dating much lately. You’ll probably be my only houseguest for the foreseeable future.”
“That’s if I even agree to this,” she said pointedly.
“Bethany, you’ve stalled enough as it is. I’m not letting you sleep in your car for one more night,” he said. “It isn’t safe for a woman to be out on the street like that.”
She rolled her eyes. “You can’t just force me to stay at your house.”
“You came here for my help. Beggars can’t be choosers,” he said. “That means I decide how I’ll help you.”
Uncertainty flashed in her eyes as she started wringing her hands.
“I’ve got a guesthouse on my property if that makes you more comfortable,” he continued. “You’ll have your privacy, and I promise to always respect that.”
She seemed to relax at his words. “Okay. I’ll stay at your guesthouse. But I swear I’ll do everything I can to get a place of my own as soon as possible. I’ve been relying on sewing costumes for most of my income, but I’ll go back and get a job in retail if I have to.”
There was no use in reminding her that he really had meant that she could stay for as long as she wanted. Bethany would only get defiant again, and he didn’t want that. He opened the passenger door of his car for her and she slid inside, crossing her shapely legs as she settled in to her seat. He reminded himself that he was doing her a favor, not trying to get an actual date out of her.
As unorthodox as this living arrangement was, there was a spark in her that fascinated him. She was so passionate about her work. So ambitious. Just like his parents had been before the family had struck it rich. Like them, all she needed was a chance. She wasn’t some spoiled heiress demanding a handout. Bethany was doing her best under trying circumstances. What she needed was a lifeline, and he’d give that to her.
“Um… I hate to ask, but can we stop by my car on the way?” she asked as he got behind the wheel. “All my stuff is inside and I don’t want it to get stolen.”
Kirk started the car and navigated out of the parking lot. “You can keep your car in my garage.”
“That’s so generous of you.” Her voice wavered and she stared down at her hands.
A wave of sympathy hit him, but he didn’t say anything. Saying the wrong thing would only make her emotional, and he sensed that her pride couldn’t handle crying in front of him again.
“I haven’t thanked you,” she went on before taking a deep breath. “So… thank you, Kirk. You’re a life- saver. When I get a job, I swear I’ll pay you back.”
“Paying me back isn’t necessary,” he told her firmly.
All he wanted was to help her get back on her feet. Despite his fascination and unmistakable desire for her, pursuing any kind of romantic entanglement with her was completely wrong. He never wanted her to feel obligated to him in any way. Which meant that, as long as he was helping her, Bethany Walker was off limits.
SHE PULLED HER BEAT-up old sedan into the multi-car garage. Every other car in the place was a luxury vehicle, each one gleaming under the garage lights. Bethany grabbed her bags and scrambled out of her car. Being inside it only reminded her of how terrified she had been about sleeping in it the night before. Now Kirk had come to her rescue, and she approached him as he stepped out of his Mercedes.
“You hungry?” he asked. “My chef can make you whatever you want.”
His attention to her was throwing her off. She was here to ruin him and his family, yet he had been nothing but kind to her. Too kind. The years had hardened her heart far too much for her not to be suspicious. Maybe he was trying to get into her pants. Though inviting her to stay at his place seemed like an awful lot of trouble to go through for a handsome, wealthy man who could probably have any woman he wanted.
“I don’t want to put anyone out,” she said.
“You won’t,” he said. “Come inside and talk to the chef. I’ll have one of the staff take your things to the guesthouse in the meantime.”
With his green eyes probing hers, it was impossible to refuse him. Impossible because she didn’t want to refuse him. Not when he looked at her with so much heat. So much concern. Nobody had cared about her wellbeing in years. Nobody had offered a helping hand. Or doted on her. Now, the one man she was here to destroy wanted to help her.
If she was as soft and sentimental as she had been before her family had lost everything, she would have given up her mission the moment he invited her to stay here. His kindness was overwhelming enough to give someone as jaded as her pause.
But she hadn’t actually lied to him. Everything she had told him about her predicament had been true. Her tears hadn’t been crocodile tears. After going to her landlord for the letter, he really had evicted her. Burdening her family with her woes was out of the question, so she had taken a gamble. Asking Kirk Sterling for help meant that she’d find a way to stay afloat financially while getting close enough to him to find all the dirt she needed to bring him down. Only, she hadn’t counted on him actually inviting her to his home.
She had never dreamed of getting this close to him this quickly, and at first she had hesitated to take him up on his offer. There was a very real danger of Kirk figuring out who she really was, but actually staying at his home was too good an opportunity to pass up. She knew her father would be proud of her when she gave him the news.
“Okay,” she said with a nod.
He placed his hand on her back as he guided her out of the garage. The touch of his hand made her feel so good she forgot herself long enough to enjoy the protective weight of it.
But as they walked up a stone walkway towards the entrance to Kirk’s mansion, she shook herself out of her reverie. Her father had reminded her that no detail was too small to use against the Sterlings.
The grounds leading up to the entrance were immaculate, with a carpet of grass stretching as far as the eye could see. Trees and flowers dotted the front yard, sprinklers watering the shrubbery. A fine mist from the sprinklers sprayed her skin. On the far end of the grounds she noticed a lake, a small rowboat attached to a pier.
Even in the dim light of the evening she could guess how much the property cost to maintain.
As they walked up a short flight of steps to the front entrance, the front door swung open and a uniformed butler walked out. The butler greeted them with a subtle tilt of his head.
“Evening, Rathbone,” Kirk said. “This is my friend, Ms. Bethany Walker. She’s our guest, and she will be staying here for a while.”
“Of course, sir.” Rathbone turned to Beverly. “Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Walker. Allow me to take your bags.”
“Oh. Thank you,” she said, handing her bags over to him.
“Put them in the guesthouse,” Kirk instructed.
As Kirk whisked her through the front entrance, her stomach tightened. The only time she had been to a home this grand in the past ten years was when she had made designs for wealthy clients. Now, all the luxury that had been denied her for so long was surrounding her. Taunting her.
The expansive living room to the right was exquisitely furnished, a stone fireplace tying everything together. From the living room, her eyes trailed past the grand piano to where the hardwood floors of the living room interior met the stone floor of the patio outside. Beyond the patio she glimpsed palm trees and a breathtaking view of the Pacific Ocean.
“It’s beautiful,” she said softly, almost forgetting for a moment that the view belonged to him and not to her.
“I never get tired of the view out here,” he said. “Remind me to show you around the property tomorrow.”
“How long have you lived here?” she asked.
“About five years,” he replied. “It took me a while to believe my family’s good fortune. So, for years I was hesitant to spend much money, but my parents convinced me to finally get a place of my own.”
She chewed her lip as she glanced around, jealousy boiling inside her at the sight of so much comfort. Comfort that had been stolen from her and denied her all these years.
Kirk paused and grimaced. “I must sound like a total ass, complaining about money. Forgive me.”
“It’s fine,” she forced herself to say. “I think I understand. You started from humble beginnings, so this must be a lot to adjust to.”
He nodded and flashed her an appreciative smile. “One day I know you’ll be on the exact same journey, Bethany. I see great things for your future.”
That got her to smile in spite of the dark emotions swirling through her.
“Time to head to the kitchen.” Kirk dropped his hand from her back to take her hand in his.
The sensation of having her hand in his melted her. Try as she might, she couldn’t convince her heart to stop fluttering at his touch.
She walked with him to the enormous ultra-modern kitchen, and nearly choked when she spotted the chef. The chef she recognized from one of her prep school classmates’ homes. Panic at being found out made her want to run for the exit. When the chef looked up from his work to greet them, she desperately hoped that he wouldn’t recognize her and realize who she really was.
