If the Shoe Fits Read online

  “Stick to your guns. He can’t just kick you out.”

  “He’s not kicking us out. He’s buying us out.” She leaned against the railing, staring down into the greenish water below. A turtle stared back at her, blinking lazily.

  “Well, you know you’re welcome at our house if you need a place to stay when you get back. Maybe it’s time to think about finally working on a degree, at least part time.”

  “Thanks for the offer. I appreciate it.” She ignored his comment about college. Her father came from the mindset that everyone ought to go to college, get a degree, and find a steady, dependable job afterward. It’s what both of his other daughters had done. Elle—as usual—hadn’t followed the expected path.

  “Francesca would be more than happy to help,” he said. Elle’s half-sister Francesca was a professor at the University of Central Florida.

  “I’ll think about it,” she told him.

  The turtle blinked again and ducked beneath the surface, its back legs kicking wildly as it disappeared from sight. Elle fought the urge to follow.

  “I’ll have her call you,” her dad said. “And let us know when to expect you back in Orlando.”

  “I will. Thanks, Dad.” She said goodbye and ended the call, feeling indescribably alone there in that gazebo, as though she were stranded on an island while the rest of the world went on without her. It had been that way ever since her mom died.

  Elle had gone to live with her father and his family, but she’d never quite fit in. Her half-sisters Francesca and Valerie were fifteen and seventeen, while Elle had been just ten. They’d gotten upset every time she mentioned her mother, and when Elle had finally worked up the courage to ask why, Valerie told her to “do the math.”

  It took Elle some time to figure out what that meant, but when she got it, she understood everything. Her father had been married to their mother, Delilah, since before they were born, which meant Elle—as the youngest sister—was the product of an affair. Delilah and her father had worked things out, but Elle was a constant reminder to everyone of his indiscretion, and as a result, her years in their home had been awkward and painful, and there was no way in hell she’d ever move back in with them.

  She shoved the phone back into her armband and cranked up her music, jogging down the wooden bridge out of the gazebo. Ever since her mom lost her battle with cancer, Elle had been forging her own path through life. She wasn’t sure what the next chapter would bring—not yet—but she’d pick herself up and keep on going until she found where she was supposed to be.

  She jogged toward the castle, circling around behind it to see if Megan and Ruby were still at the pool. Now that she’d run off her anger, she might join them. But when the pool came into view, there was only one person standing beside it.

  Theo stood with his hands in his pockets, still dressed in the gray button-down shirt and slacks he’d had on when she’d spoken to him that morning. He gazed toward the woods behind the castle, his expression so intense, so raw, so sad, that she stopped in her tracks. Feeling like an intruder on this private moment and since he hadn’t spotted her yet, she turned and jogged off in the opposite direction.

  Theo worked until the sun set, and then he worked some more. It seemed his obligations as the earl were never-ending. He’d always been heavily involved with the family charity, but now he was expected to show up for photo ops and provide a public “face” for the organization. He’d always known he would someday become the Earl of Highcastle, he just hadn’t expected that day to come so soon. After all, the Duke of Edinburgh was ninety-seven and still active. His grandfather had been only seventy and in great health. Theo had planned to be here at Rosemont Castle this month visiting him, not wrapping up his affairs.

  He didn’t like the way he’d left things with Elle that morning, didn’t like being stuck here in America when he had pressing duties back in England, didn’t like much at all about his current situation. By the time he left his office, the castle was quiet. It was always this way here late at night, but since his grandfather’s death, the silence felt too complete. It seemed to echo down the halls as he walked.

  Hungry and irritable, he stopped in the kitchen for a beer and a handful of Lucky Charms from the box in the pantry. Lucky Charms had always been his favorite cereal, and they were all but impossible to find in London. On second thought, he grabbed the box and brought it with him. As he left the kitchen, the door to the game room caught his eye, and before he realized what he was doing, he’d opened it. He flicked the switch, and light flooded the room.

  It looked exactly like he remembered. The pool table stood prominently in the center of the room, flanked on one side by the shuffleboard table with the heavy wooden gaming table on the other side. Mahogany cabinets along the wall contained—if memory served—chess, checkers, poker chips, cards, and a variety of board games. A dart board was mounted to the far wall near the bar. The faint scent of cigar smoke still lingered in the air. His grandfather had been a traditional man. Not a single game in the room required a plug.

  Theo chewed and swallowed a mouthful of Lucky Charms as he walked to the dart board. He set down his beer and the cereal and grabbed a handful of darts. His first toss went wide, and the dart fell to the hardwood floor with a clatter. His second dart found its home, hitting a double ring. Damn, but he’d spent a lot of hours in here as a kid. His grandfather had taught him how to play every game and then kicked his ass at every single one.

  He smiled at the memory. This had been one of his favorite rooms in the castle when he was growing up. He tossed a few more darts and then walked to the cabinets along the wall. He couldn’t resist the temptation to poke through their contents. As with the rest of the room, nothing seemed to have changed. He felt a rush of nostalgia as he held the hand-carved chess set he and his grandfather had spent so many hours sitting in front of. He’d felt like Superman the first time he won a game.

  The sound of a woman clearing her throat behind him yanked him back to reality. He turned to find Elle leaning against the doorway, her hair a mess of loose curls over her shoulders, wearing a pink tank top and pink plaid pajama shorts, a glass of red wine in one hand.

  He had no idea how long he’d been in here, but it was late. The castle beyond the game room was dark and silent.

  “I didn’t mean to disturb you,” Elle said softly.

  “You didn’t.” He closed the door to the cabinet and stood. “I was just poking around in here and lost track of time.”

  “Either that or you were about to play a game of chess against yourself,” she said, a smile playing about her lips.

  “Believe it or not, I’m not that hard up for companionship.” He was trying very hard not to notice Elle’s breasts beneath the thin fabric of her tank top or the way her nipples had hardened from the cool breeze of the air conditioning.

  “Oh, I believe it. You are the ‘Earl of Lure,’ after all,” she said, her eyes sparkling mischievously.

  “Saw that, did you?” The press in England had lost its mind where he was concerned. It was one thing he didn’t miss while he was here in America.

  She walked a few steps into the room, her gaze locked on his. “Are you going to try to lure me in with one of your smoldering looks?”

  “No.” But he sure as hell wanted to. Right now, he couldn’t think of anything except how much he wanted to touch her, taste her pink lips, kiss her until all the chaos inside him was silenced.

  She held his gaze for a long, loaded moment, then turned to look around at all the various games and decorations lining the walls. “So is this the royal equivalent of a man cave?”

  “I suppose it is.”

  She took a sip of her wine. “I just snuck down to the kitchen for a drink. It’s kind of nice here at night when the place is quiet and empty.”

  He nodded. He’d always preferred the solitude of nighttime at the castle.

  “I mean, don’t get me wrong, Colin and the rest of the staff are wonderful, but it�
��s nice to be able to walk around in my pajamas.” She glanced down, as if seeing herself for the first time as he was seeing her, and crossed her arms over her chest. Her cheeks bloomed pink. “But, well, I wasn’t expecting to run into you.”

  “I worked late. I was just about to head down to the guest house for the night.”

  “Oh. Well, I won’t keep you.” She turned to leave.

  “Wait.” He shoved his hands into his pockets to keep from reaching for her as she turned to face him. She smelled sweet like some kind of flowery perfume, and it was seriously messing with his head. “About this morning…”

  She cocked her head slightly to one side. “Yes?”

  “I was an ass not to at least let you explain your idea.” And the knowledge had been resting uncomfortably in his gut all day. Not only had he been an ass not to hear her out, but by pissing her off, he’d also endangered the chances of Elle and her friends agreeing to take his payout, which was just plain stupid on his part.

  “Yes, you were.” She walked around to the opposite side of the pool table, positioning it between them.

  “Would you like to explain it to me now?”

  She sipped from her wine, her cheeks slightly flushed. “Right now?”

  “If you’d like.” He rested his knuckles against the table’s green felt surface.

  “Well, I don’t have my spreadsheet with me, but I suppose I could bring that to you tomorrow morning if you’re willing to consider my idea?”

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  “Okay.” She sucked in a deep breath, and it was all he could do not to stare at her breasts through that paper-thin pajama top. “You offered to pay us if we’ll treat this like a vacation and leave after a few weeks, but we’d like to propose a compromise. We stay three months and give it our all with the business plan that won us this opportunity from Modern Home and Gardens, plus a few new ideas we’ve had since we got here. Even taking our salaries into account, we think we could generate enough income for you to justify keeping Rosemont Castle in the Langdon family.”

  He studied her, seeing a spark of excitement and determination in her eyes that he hadn’t seen before. “I see what’s in it for you, but what’s in it for me if I’ve already decided to sell?”

  “It’s a chance to preserve a piece of your heritage. You can go home to London, and Megan, Ruby, and I will manage the castle for you. If we’re as successful as we hope to be, we could even turn a profit for you.”

  “And if my feelings don’t change?”

  “Then you can pay us off at the end of three months, and we’ll leave. Or you can use our business as an added selling point to your potential buyers.”

  He came around the table to stand before her. “Why should I give you three months when I want you out next week?”

  She tilted her head up to meet his eyes. “Because your grandfather would have wanted you to.”

  The air between them was charged with something a lot warmer and more intimate than the situation called for. His pulse pounded hot and fast through his veins. “That was quite a sales pitch.”

  “So what do you say?” she asked, her green eyes locked on his.

  Hell no is what he ought to say, but he couldn’t force them to take his offer and leave right away, and three months was a lot shorter than six. “Before I say yes, I need you to understand that my position on selling is unlikely to change.”

  Something new lit in Elle’s eyes, a light and a passion that had nothing to do with the heat still shimmering in the air between them. “Does that mean—”

  “Yes.”

  “Yes?” She leaned forward, so close she almost spilled wine down the front of his shirt.

  “Three months.” He slid the wineglass from her grasp and set it on the pool table beside them. “And then I absolutely must return to London full-time.”

  She nodded briskly, extending her right hand. “We’ve got a deal.”

  4

  Elle wiped at the bead of sweat that had gathered on her forehead and sat back, surveying her work. Two shiny, metal dog crates stood along the back wall of her bedroom, complete with fluffy pillows inside for their future occupants to sleep on. Her closet was filled with supplies: bowls, toys, collars, leashes, and of course food. She, Ruby, and Megan would be picking up their first foster pets today—just as soon as they finished preparing for them—and she was so excited she could hardly stand it.

  “Ms. Davenport?” The locksmith they’d hired stood in the doorway, clipboard in hand.

  “All finished?” she asked as she rose to her feet.

  “The guest rooms have all been outfitted with unique locks. I’ve numbered them and bagged the keys correspondingly, three sets for each room like you asked for,” he told her, holding out a plastic bag.

  “Perfect. Thank you so much.” She took care of the invoice and walked him downstairs to the front door. Since she’d come to an agreement with Theo night before last, she’d finalized a comprehensive “to do” list to get their inn up and running, and she, Megan, and Ruby had worked non-stop to make it all happen.

  They tentatively planned to open for guests a week from Monday, giving them a little over two months in operation to impress Theo. Ruby had been locked away in her tower for the last two days creating their website, and they hoped to begin taking reservations by the end of the week.

  “You’ve been busy.”

  She turned at the sound of Theo’s voice. He stood at the other end of the foyer, hands shoved into his pants pockets. Although she’d thought about him plenty, she’d barely seen him in the last two days. She felt it in the pit of her stomach as their eyes locked.

  “Yes, I have,” she answered him. “We don’t have any time to waste, as you know.”

  “What’s next?” he asked, walking closer.

  “Animals, actually. We’re going to the shelter this afternoon to pick up our first foster pets for the Fairy Tails program.”

  “Hmm.” He was still watching her, and she could feel a blush starting to warm her cheeks from the intensity of his stare.

  “They need time to settle in, and we need time to get to know them before we introduce them to potential adopters,” she told him. “We’ll start with three or four dogs and a few cats and take it from there.”

  “Colin’s been keeping me up-to-date on your progress,” he said, tucking his hands into his pockets. “I have to hand it to you. You’ve really thrown your heart and soul into this project.”

  “Of course.” She pulled herself up straighter. “This job is really important to me.”

  “I see that. Well, good luck.” And with that, he turned and walked away.

  Elle pressed a hand to her chest. Her heart was racing, and she was slightly out of breath. She needed to get this attraction to Theo under control ASAP. It wasn’t like her to get all weak-kneed over a man like this, and certainly not for a man as totally off limits as Theo.

  Huffing in frustration, she turned and started up the stairs to see if Ruby and Megan were ready. She found Megan sitting on her bed, cell phone pressed to her ear and a wide smile on her face. Elle pointed to her own bedroom to let her friend know where she’d be. Then she walked next door and flopped in the middle of her bed.

  Maybe Theo hated dogs, or even cats. That would help cool her off where he was concerned. Or maybe he’d go out with one of the society ladies vying to date him. A man who was taken was a total turn-off for Elle.

  “I just got off the phone with the shelter,” Megan said from the doorway. “They’ve pre-approved us to foster three dogs and two cats to start with. Once everyone’s all settled, we can see about bringing in more animals. They’ve narrowed down some dogs and cats they think would be a good fit for the program to show us today.”

  Elle pushed Theo out of her mind. “That sounds perfect.”

  “I’m going to get Ruby.” Megan headed for the stairs.

  Thirty minutes later, they were in their rental car headed for the shelter. On the way t
here, they drove through Towering Pines’s downtown area, bustling with quaint shops and restaurants with outdoor patios.

  “Okay, we’ve got to make time to come back here and explore before we open for business,” Elle said.

  “Definitely,” Megan, who was driving, agreed. “We can do lunch and some shopping.”

  “If there’s time. We’ll be really busy once we bring home our first foster pets,” Ruby said with a slight frown, glancing out the window.

  “There’s always time for lunch and shopping,” Megan said, shaking her head with mock disapproval. “Be careful, Ruby, or your inner cat lady might show.” She yelped as Ruby flicked her ear.

  “Who says I’m trying to hide my inner cat lady?” Ruby asked, deadpan, before a smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “Megan, don’t forget to photograph the guest rooms for me tomorrow so I can get them posted on the website.”

  “Already on my morning to-do list,” Megan told her.

  They left the downtown area behind and headed into the rolling hills beyond. Here the road twisted and curved, at times almost doubling back on itself as they wound their way downhill. Megan was uncharacteristically quiet, her hands clenched around the steering wheel, her expression tense.

  “Toto, we’re not in Florida anymore,” Elle said as they finally reached a straightaway and Megan’s grip on the steering wheel loosened.

  “No kidding. One of you guys gets to drive back.”

  Elle looked over at Ruby, who was staring right back at her with a “not me” expression on her face. “Rock, paper, scissors?”

  Ruby nodded, making a fist. They tapped their knuckles, and then Ruby held out two fingers at the same time Elle extended a flat hand.

  Ruby whooped victoriously. “Scissors cut paper.”

  “Fine. I’ll drive.” Elle had never driven on a windy mountain road like this before, but today was as good a day as any to learn. Florida was, well…flat. In Orlando, the only things tall enough to obstruct her view were manmade. Big, shiny hotels and theme parks filled the skyline. The air was hot and thick with humidity. Nothing like the fresh mountain breezes here in Towering Pines. Every day, Elle found that she liked the change of scenery even more.