Yours for the Taking Read online

  “Hey, Tina.” Gina returned to the kitchen thinking she should put the rest of the food away. “What are you and Sam doing tonight?” She dug through a box, pulled out all the pasta products, and carried them to the walk-in pantry. She remembered Jess had referred to it as a butler’s pantry. As if…

  “Sam’s working tonight so I’m going home to make myself dinner. Why?”

  Gina nudged the box filled with refrigerated food toward the refrigerator. Ben had bought enough to feed a family of five. There was so much perishable food, most of it would end up going bad if she didn’t cook and freeze meals. She’d gone to bed hungry enough times to never allow that to happen. No, wasting food was not something she ever did. “You want to come over after work and see my new place?”

  “Tonight?”

  Milk, cheese, eggs. “If you’re too tired, I understand.”

  “Gina, what’s wrong?”

  “Nothing. I’m fine.” He’d bought her two boxes of butter? It would take her a year to go through that much. “I just thought you’d like to see where I’m living. Hey, why don’t you pack a bag and have Sam come here after his shift.” Steak? She checked the label. Filet mignon. Nice. “I’ll have dinner ready by the time you get here. We can have a sleepover, and then have breakfast with Sam before work in the morning.”

  “You want to have a sleepover?”

  Gina heard concern in her sister’s voice. Madre de Dios. “Forget about it. It was a stupid idea. You’re right.”

  “I’ll be there right after work. I don’t even need to stop at home. I know you’ll have something I can wear tomorrow.”

  “You don’t have to. Really, I’m fine.”

  “Give me the address.”

  Gina did because once Tina started worrying, she’d never let it rest until she checked Gina out in person. The last thing Gina wanted was her little sister worrying about her. Worrying was Gina’s job. She’d been doing it most of her life.

  Gina finished putting the food away and left the kitchen. She picked up her briefcase, determined to put that money in her bank account to good use, and went to sit in the library. The desk looked way too big for her so she curled up on the couch, opened her notebook computer on her lap, and took a deep breath as she signed onto the Internet and Googled Private Detective Agencies. She clicked on the site she’d looked at earlier and dialed the number.

  “Hello, I need to talk to someone about a missing person case.”

  Chapter 4

  “There’s not a box of Mac & Cheese or Hamburger Helper to be found.” Tina spun around in the butler’s pantry, which was larger than Tina’s entire kitchen, and smiled at Gina. “I don’t know what half this gourmet stuff is, but it sure looks good.”

  Tina explored as Gina tossed the salad. The filets were almost done.

  “Do you need help with anything?” Tina asked.

  “No, grilling sure is easy when you have one built into the twelve-burner stove. There’s no crawling out on the fire escape to flip the burgers in this neighborhood.”

  Tina looked out the windows overlooking the garden. “You even have one of those super-deluxe built in barbecues down there. Why do you need two?”

  “Probably because it rains and snows. I guess barbecuing isn’t just for summer anymore.” Gina put the salad on the table and searched the cupboards for serving bowls for the broccoli and rice. She had to get a stool to reach the bowls and ended up handing them off to Tina.

  “Wow, this stuff is real china. And we’re not talking Corelle either. I bet the silverware is really silver.”

  Gina climbed off the step stool. “God, I hope not. Just think of how much time it would take to keep it all polished. Heck, as it is, I’m going to have to clean one floor a day just to keep up.”

  Tina set the small table in the breakfast room. The dining room table probably sat twenty comfortably—not that they’d be comfortable eating there. “It’s definitely not like our place. I can clean everything in under two hours. Maybe you should drape sheets over all the furniture in the rooms you don’t use and just close them off like they did in all those old movies we used to watch when we were kids.”

  “Yeah, that’s where the ghosts got the sheets they’d fly around under. No thanks. This place gives me the willies as it is. I don’t need any help in that department.”

  Spreading her arms out wide, Tina spun around the unbelievably large kitchen. “Is this place really all yours? Ben gave it to you just for marrying him?”

  Gina spooned the rice into a small serving bowl. “For now, both our names are on the deed, but that will change once we file for divorce. He’ll sign it over to me free and clear. It’s in the prenup.”

  “Are you going to stay here?”

  Gina filled the other serving bowl with broccoli. “No, as soon as the divorce is final, I’ll sell it, buy a place like Rosalie’s, and invest the rest of the money. And believe me, there will be plenty of it. Besides, what would I do with a place like this?”

  Tina folded napkins and placed them under the forks. “I don’t know. I guess you could marry someone who isn’t gay and raise a family.” She carried the food to the table.

  Gina turned off the grill and brought over the filets. “You and Sam are the only family I need. I’m not the maternal type or the wife type. That’s always been your style, not mine.”

  They sat and passed the bowls and platter back and forth, filling their plates until Tina stopped serving herself rice, the spoon mid-air. “You don’t know that. You’ve just never had the opportunity.” She emptied the spoon onto her plate. “That will change. Before I met Sam, I never thought I’d fall in love and get married.”

  Gina laughed as she speared the broccoli. “You might not have, but I knew you would. That’s just the type of person you are. Me, I’m way too selfish for a real relationship. Besides, I like living my own life.”

  Tina laughed. “You’re the least selfish person I’ve ever known. And as for you living your own life, you don’t know what that means. You’ve spent your entire life doing nothing but going to school, working, and taking care of people. You took care of Mama whenever we could find her and you practically raised me single-handedly. I remember all those nights you fed me and didn’t eat anything yourself.” She shook her head. “You did everything for everyone else.” She cut her meat looking more serious than Gina wanted her to. “You know, at first I was really against this thing you and Ben are doing. But maybe I was wrong. Maybe this is God’s way of giving you the winning lotto ticket.”

  Gina shook her head. “Someone was going to get a boatload of money for marrying him, and I couldn’t come up with one good reason why it shouldn’t be me. Still,” she moved her food around her plate, “that doesn’t mean I’m proud of it.” She cut the meat. It was so tender; she could have cut it with the side of her fork. “I almost stopped the wedding halfway through. It’s all a farce, but I still had to say the words. Promising to love Ben in sickness and in health just felt wrong.”

  “It would be different if Ben didn’t know the deal. It’s not as if you were lying to him.”

  “No, I just lied to God. That’s so much better.”

  “Okay, so that was wrong, but it’s nothing that can’t be forgiven. You did it for all the right reasons. That’s got to count for something.”

  Gina brightened up. “Which reminds me. I’m going to make a deposit to your savings account. You and Sam need to start looking for a house in the ‘burbs.’” She did a quick calculation. She’d transferred $15,000 to the detective agency to start the investigation, which left her $35,000 in the bank. “I can write you a check for $30,000 today, and I’ll give you about the same amount next month. Between that and what you and Sam have saved, you’ll have enough for a down payment for your dream house.” Gina took a bite of her steak; it was much more palatable when she discussed what she could do to help Tina. “I’ll send you more every month so we can start paying off the mortgage. By the time Ben and I divorce
, I want us both to own homes free and clear.”

  Gina looked up from her plate and found Tina shaking her head. “Oh no. Sam and I can’t accept that kind of money from you. You know that. It was one thing when you were living with us and paying rent. But to take that much money from you? No way. But thanks for offering.”

  Had Tina absolutely lost her mind? “Thanks for offering? Are you nuts? Call it a loan if you want. I don’t care. I just want to make sure you and Sam will never be put in the position to lose your home. Why do you think I did this, anyway? It wasn’t just for me, it was for you, too.”

  Tina sat back and crossed her arms. “Don’t you dare get mad at me. As I recall, I wasn’t given a choice in the matter. You can’t just do things like this without discussing it with Sam and me. You don’t run our lives, we do. You have to stop this, Gina. It’s time to cut the apron strings.”

  “What apron strings?”

  Tina reached over and took Gina’s hand. “Gina, you know I love you, but I’m all grown up now. You’re not responsible for me anymore. I’m a big girl; I have my own marriage and my own career. I’m settled and happy. Maybe it’s time that you stop worrying about me and worry about you. You’re the only one in this room who’s not happy.”

  “What are you talking about?” Gina looked at her sister and couldn’t help but be hurt. “It’ll be years before you and Sam can afford to move out of the city and start your family. I’m just expediting it.” She pulled her hand from beneath Tina’s. “And I am happy, damn it. Don’t I look happy?” When Tina gave her a skeptical look, she continued. “I have everything I’ve ever wanted.”

  “Oh, yeah, that’s why you married a stranger and moved into this monstrosity of a house. Because you’re oh so happy and have such a full life.”

  “I have the life I always wanted and it’s a beautiful house.”

  “It’s beautiful, but Gina, you gotta admit it’s way over-the-top. It looks like something out of those mansions on One Life to Live. As a matter-of-fact, your life could be a story on a soap opera.”

  Tina didn’t know the half of it, which was something Gina thanked God for every day. Tina had been too young to remember, Gina had been old enough to remember but too young to stop it. She closed her eyes and tried to feel hopeful. It wasn’t working.

  Bringing her mind back to the present, Gina chose to ignore the soap opera comment because she’d spent many a night lying in bed thinking the exact same thing and wondering if she’d wake up and find herself in some kind of reality TV show. Things like this just didn’t happen to women like her—the illegitimate daughter of a whore and a drug addict. She’d spent the last month looking for the catch in the deal but didn’t see one. “I’ll admit the house isn’t my style but it’s an investment.” She’d always seen it as an investment in both their futures, and with a whole lot of luck, maybe Rafael’s too. Now that Tina shot part of that down, there was no reason why it shouldn’t be an investment in she and Rafael’s futures. “Once I sell it, I’ll buy a little place that fits me and invest the rest. Still, I’d be happier if you’d let me—”

  Tina cut her off with a wave of the hand. “Sam and I are happy doing things our way. If he knew you’d even offered—”

  “Oh, he’ll know. I’ll tell him myself. Tina, I always thought I was the stubborn one but now I’m beginning to wonder. You’re cutting off your nose to spite your face. It’s insane not to take the money even if you want to pay it back with interest. Now is the perfect time to buy a house in a nice, safe neighborhood. The real estate market is down; you’ll be able to buy so much more of a house than you could have two years ago, and the interest rates are still so low. They’re only going to go up, just wait. Maybe Sam will be able to talk some sense into you.”

  Tina pushed her plate away. “Ha! A lot you know.”

  “Fine, then at least get out of your place and move in here. There’s tons of room and you and Sam can live rent free for as long as I own it.”

  “You’re doing it again.”

  “What?”

  “Not cutting the apron strings. Besides, don’t you think you should ask your husband about that?”

  Gina picked up her plate and Tina’s and carried them to the sink. “What does he have to do with anything?”

  “He’s only the half owner of this place, until the divorce, that is.”

  Gina shrugged. “So, it’s not as if he lives here. It sounds as if he’s spending most of his time in” —she snapped her fingers twice before remembering it— “Idaho.”

  “I can’t believe you have a hard time remembering where your husband went.”

  “I told you we’re married in name only. We went to the closing together so I could sign the documents. I moved in, then he went his way and I went mine.” Gina didn’t bother telling her little sister about that kiss Ben planted on her before he’d left. She refused to think about that. She’d all but erased it from her memory bank, or she was trying to at least. The only reason she could come up with was the way the cabby was looking at her. Still, it didn’t make sense that Ben would notice or even care.

  “What are you thinking about that has you blushing?”

  “Oh, that’s a good one, Tina. I don’t blush.”

  Tina leaned against the marble counter. “Right, that’s why your cheeks just turned magenta.”

  ***

  Ben landed in Boise and tossed his bags into the back of the Land Rover he’d left in the hanger the last time he’d flown out. Someone had given it a wash and even detailed the inside. Not bad. He should leave it here more often. Of course, they may have washed it out of necessity—he’d left the vehicle covered with a thick layer of dust and mud which probably didn’t smell so nice heated to room temperature. He’d spent the weekend winter camping and four-wheeling with his cousins in the desert and had come back so dirty, he had to take off his boots before climbing onto the jet and throw a towel over the seat before he sat down. He’d showered just as soon as they reached cruising altitude and spent the rest of the flight sleeping off a weekend of rock climbing and four-wheeling.

  He headed toward his grandfather’s house on the other side of the Boise Valley, stopping at a light on the rim overlooking the city. He never tired of the view. The white Capital Dome stood out against the brown foothills. The few tall buildings rose before the Boise Front.

  Ben loved Boise; it was an incredible small city with enough culture to keep him happy. Between Boise and New York, Ben had everything he wanted. Well, everything but the ranch. Now that he’d lived up to his part of the bargain, he’d have that too.

  Ben drove to his grandfather’s house in the foothills and parked in the attached garage. He entered the alarm code at the door to the house in case Kate was there by herself, and let himself in. “Kate, I’m home.”

  Ben heard her stomping through the kitchen as he put his bags on the bench in the mudroom. “It’s about time.” He heard something being slapped down on the counter, a towel, or an apron maybe. “What took you so long?” Her reddish-brown hair and tanned face poked through the doorway. “Where’s Gina?”

  Ben dropped his jacket on the hook by the door. “I’m sorry to disappoint, but it’s just me.”

  “You got married without even telling me and then you don’t even bring the girl home to meet me?”

  Ben winced. Kate may be the housekeeper, but she was way more than that—she and her kids were part of the family and Kate had been running his and his grandfather’s lives since Ben’s parents were killed and he’d moved in with his grandfather twenty-five years earlier. She ran the house, the estate, and single-handedly raised Ben and her four kids while living in the guesthouse a stone’s throw away from his grandfather’s.

  Ben pulled her into a hug so he didn’t have to look her in the eye. He didn’t exactly lie, but he didn’t tell the whole truth, either of which, in Kate’s book, was the same as lying. “Gina’s busy getting settled in our new house and she has work on Monday. She has her o
wn career in New York and can’t just drop everything to run here and meet my family.”

  Kate hugged him back and then held his shoulders searching his face. Her short hair curled around her face and seemed to be lighter than usual; could it be it was mixed with gray? He’d never noticed the fine lines feathering around her eyes and mouth as she smiled up at him.

  “Karma told me you proposed to her first.”

  Ben winced feeling like he was sixteen again and getting caught making out on the couch. “I wasn’t going to touch her, Kate, I swear. I was just going to marry her. I needed to get married…”

  She placed her fingers on his lips to silence him. “I know all about it.” She released him and he followed her into the kitchen where she poured coffee and handed Ben his. Ben leaned back against the granite counter and took a sip.

  Kate added cream and sugar to hers. “Believe me, I don’t agree with your grandfather’s ultimatum.” She returned the creamer to the refrigerator and sat beside him on a stool. “I tried to talk him out of it, but you know how stubborn he is. Once Joe has his mind set on something, there’s no talking to him. But that doesn’t make what you’re doing right either. If you weren’t ready to marry, you should have refused.”

  Ben put his coffee down and faced her. “He would have sold the ranch to a developer.”

  “He may have, but Ben, it’s not as if you’re ever going to live there. It’s just a place.”

  “It’s home.”

  “No, this is your home. You’ve lived here longer than you lived in Three Whores Bend.”

  “It’s all I have left of my parents, Kate.” As usual, the pain slammed into him. No matter how old he got, thinking about his parents still hurt. “I can’t lose the ranch too.”

  Kate slid off the stool and held him close. “Honey, I’ve told you, you haven’t lost your parents; they’re with you in your heart. They’re not at that ranch you disappear to every time you need to lick your wounds. Maybe the memories you have of them took place there, but they aren’t. Your parents are with you always.”