Investment in Love (Contemporary Romance) (8 page)

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Mr. Barnard,” she said. He wondered why she was acting so aloof, but maybe it had something to do with the extra presence in the house. People in Carterville were certainly prone to gossip, and maybe Ellie wanted to avoid being the target of that.

When the door close, he shifted his attention back to the older woman who knelt before him. She was certainly taking her time about making a decision, though she already had a growing pile of trinkets by the door.

The afternoon dragged on, and Kathy still wasn’t done perusing. Calvin gave up on supervising and went into the kitchen to make himself lunch, with a reminder to Kathy to find him if she had any questions. When his meal was done, he fidgeted, full of boredom and nervous energy. He had an overpowering urge to read his great-aunt’s diaries immediately—but Ellie had been so curious and he didn’t want her to feel left out.

Instead he turned his attention to the call from Mr. Greenfeld.
How was the time halfway over?
It occurred to him that soon he would have to go back to New York and back to his job. At first, he had been impatient for his return, but now his old life seemed totally foreign. How could he just leave Carterville behind? How could he leave
Ellie
?

A sudden idea occurred to him. With the inheritance money, he would be able to quit his job. “I could quit my job and move here,” he said out loud, mouth hanging open at the sheer audacity of the idea.

“Did you say something in there?” called Kathy Timmons from the other room.

Oops.
“No, sorry!” called Calvin hurriedly. “Just talking to myself!”

He sat down heavily in a chair. If he moved here, he could see Ellie whenever he wanted. He could enjoy the fruits of remodeling his house, and take all the time in the world to read his great-aunt’s diaries. Calvin realized that, much to his astonishment, he didn’t want to go back to New York. Sure, he would miss his friends, but Carterville felt more like home each day.

There was just one problem. The only way to get the money was to get married, and fast. He reached for his phone and tapped an entry in the address book.

As expected, when the phone rang through to “Mal XOXO” she had quickly agreed to the idea of a date with Calvin. In fact, she hadn’t even waited for him to mention a day or time—instead, Mallory had immediately offered to meet him at the pub that night. He had agreed, and once Kathy Timmons had finally left, taking close to 10 boxes and paying him generously, he had gotten dressed quickly.

Calvin was glad that Mallory still seemed aggressively interested in him. He strode into the bar at 8:17, two minutes late for their date, and caught sight of the woman immediately.

The few other people in the bar wore jeans and T-shirts, but not Mallory. No, she was in a skin-tight, lime-green dress, so short that it barely covered her backside, and high heels that must have been five inches tall. Her black curls tumbled down the open back of her dress, and when she spun and waved to Calvin from the bar, he was pretty sure he could see fake eyelashes on her eyelids.

“Honey, I’m
so
glad you called me,” she purred as he sat down.

“Me too, Mallory,” Calvin said, which was a complete lie. He missed Ellie’s easygoing charm and natural beauty.

“Oh, do call me Mal.” The bartender handed her a martini, and the curvaceous woman held it in one hand while resting her head flirtatiously against the other. “I have to tell you,” she said, “we don’t see guys like you in Carterville often. Powerful, hard-working, successful, stylish, well-off…”

She didn’t say “rich,” but she might as well have. Calvin nearly laughed aloud. Maybe this was going to be easier than he thought. “It is a pretty small town,” he said noncommittally.

“So tell me, what are you doing hanging around here?” She batted her eyelashes.

Perfect.
She was playing right into his hands. Calvin took a breath and then spoke in a carefully casual tone. “Well, it sounds like a joke, but I’m looking for love.” He watched Mallory’s eyes go wide for a moment before she hid her gleeful reaction. “I’ve kind of got money burning a hole in my pocket from my great-aunt’s inheritance, so I figure it’s finally time to settle down.”
Bingo.
At the mention of money and marriage, the woman nearly fell off her stool.

“Well, I think that’s just
wonderful
,” crowed Mallory, flipping her hair and scooting even closer to him.

Each lie came easier to him. Mallory was practically eating out of the palm of his hand. Within the next hour, he managed to make a mysterious reference to his desire to marry quickly, and he even managed to drop a hint that he thought “weddings were too much fuss, and a quick ceremony at the courthouse was much better.”

The only setback came when Mallory asked him where Ellie had been taking him lately. Foolishly, Calvin answered with the truth. “Restaurants for lunch, the park, that sort of thing. Tomorrow she’s showing me a waterfall.”

“The falls? I
love
the falls,” cried Mallory dramatically. “Oh my gosh, I’ve just had the most fantastic idea! Why don’t I go with the two of you? Ellie and I are old friends. It would be
such
fun.”

“Well…” said Calvin. He thought he remembered Ellie saying something different about their possible “friendship.”

“You should come along,” he said reluctantly. He didn’t really want her to go, but he couldn’t think of a polite way to say no.

“Wonderful!” she cried. “I’ll call Ellie in the morning and get a ride with her.” She shifted in the stool, managing to pull her dress down even further in the process. “Now, tell me, what’s it like being a stockbroker? It sounds
so
exciting.”

Calvin suppressed a sigh. It was going to be a long night.

***

Ellie was puttering around her kitchen making a cup of coffee when her phone rang the next morning.

“Hello?” she answered. She hadn’t recognized the number on the caller ID. Maybe it was the movers at Calvin’s house, but she had given them really clear directions the day before.

“Hi, Ellie, honey?”

“Yes?”

“It’s Mallory Evans! I was with Calvin last night, and he mentioned you guys were going to the falls today. I’d
love
to tag along with you when you drive up. I’d have called last night, but it was too late when Calvin mentioned it to me.”

Ellie’s stomach clenched at the other woman’s syrupy-sweet voice.
She had been with Calvin? As in, stayed the night with him?
She didn’t want to think it was true, but… boys had always liked Mallory better than they’d liked Ellie.

“Ellie? Are you there?”

“Yeah, sorry. Yeah. Sure you can ride with me. Not a problem. Just be at my place at two.”

After a few more polite words, Ellie ended the call and sat down numbly at her kitchen table. She felt betrayed. Why had Calvin invited someone else on their adventure? It made sense now that he hadn’t kissed her yesterday, even though she’d practically given him an open invitation.
God.
She’d been falling for him more every day, and he’d been dating Mallory this whole time.

By the time the other woman was in her car, Ellie had developed a pounding migraine. Mallory’s incessant chatter wasn’t improving the headache or her mood, either. The woman would
not
shut up about Calvin.

“He’s
so
sophisticated,” she yammered. “And rich. I can totally tell. But it’s so weird—he told me he wants a courthouse wedding, even though he’s obviously so stylish.”

Ellie’s head snapped to the side so she could stare at Mallory. “You guys have talked about
marriage
?” She tried to sound casual, but some of her intensity came through in her tone.

“Oh, sure,” said the dark-haired woman. “He told me he’s in a hurry to settle down. And I can tell you—I’m planning on being the one he settles down with. I would make the
perfect
society wife for him in New York.”

Tight pain gripped Ellie’s throat at her old classmate’s words. She suddenly remembered what he’d told her about wanting to give the women of Carterville a chance. Clearly, he was giving Mallory more than a chance. Ellie regretted ever introducing them.

Things didn’t get any better when they met up with Calvin. He was outside and leaning against his rental car at the trailhead by the time they pulled up, and even as Ellie put the parking brake on Mallory was jumping out and running to kiss him on the cheek.

“Hey, Ellie,” Calvin said, with Mallory clinging to his arm, when she got out of the car.

“Hi,” she said. “Everything working out okay with the movers?” She was afraid her voice was glacial, but the other option was crying. She would just have to be icy cold to Calvin and cry when she got home that night.

“Sure,” said Calvin. “They seem to know what they’re doing. Showed up bright and early and got down to business. Professional and friendly.”

“Good,” said Ellie, with a faint quiver to her voice. She moved away and let Calvin stay with Mallory.

As they headed down the trail, Ellie led the way, moving quickly. She just wanted to get away from the happy couple behind her. Mallory still hung on Calvin’s arm, and she could hear the woman giggling as they walked.

The idiot woman was wearing heels, as opposed to Ellie’s sensible sneakers, so it was easy to outpace her. For a blissful twenty minutes, Ellie managed to stay far enough ahead that she could pretend she was alone. The path was familiar, and the cool woods were soothing—until a loud squeal echoed from back along the trail.

She jogged back around the corner to see Mallory sitting in the dirt, whimpering, and Calvin sitting next to her feeling the joint of her ankle. “It feels fine,” he said. “Just a sprain if anything. But I think you just rolled it.”

“Ugh!” whined Mallory. “I hate it out here!”

Ellie suppressed a bitter snicker as she walked up alongside the pair.

“I thought you said you loved the falls,” Calvin was saying.

“Oh,” said the other woman stupidly. “Uh, I do. Just not the walk to them.” She grinned winningly up at him, but somehow Ellie thought he wasn’t buying it.

“Owww,” whined Mallory. “Calvin, baby, I don’t know if I can finish the hike. I think we should just go back to the car.”

Ellie expected him to give in right away, but the man looked hesitant. He looked longingly down the trail and then back at his date. “I really want to see the falls,” he said. “And Ellie drove out here just to show me.”

Mallory became immediately petulant. “Really?” she asked, pouting.

“We’re so close,” Ellie chimed in, unable to resist causing trouble. “It’s just a few corners up the trail.”

Mallory’s lower lip quivered under a heavy coat of lip gloss, but Calvin wasn’t swayed. “You’ll be fine here,” he said, patting the woman on the arm.

Victory!
With a polite smile, Ellie took off back down the trail. Maybe Calvin saw right through Mallory after all. She was so nasty, and Calvin seemed so wonderful. Still, she couldn’t forgive him enough to talk openly like they had been.

The pain of his betrayal hit her all over again, and she took off at a fast pace again, leaving Calvin a few steps behind. Their feet thumped against the dirt trail, but otherwise the silence of the woods was unbroken. Ellie took deep breaths, trying to feel serene, and it almost worked. She really did love it out here.

Calvin was quiet, but he stared around in all directions, and Ellie wondered what he was thinking about.

“It’s just down the hill,” she said, gesturing at the corner of the trail. He nodded, and she took a breath and said what she really wanted as they walked forward. “So, you and Mallory, huh?”

“No,” said Calvin, sounding startled. “Uh… Well, yes, but…” Ellie stared at him in disbelief, and he just looked defeated. “I guess.” They picked their way down the hill together, and he continued, “Thanks for bringing me out here. I’m sorry I didn’t ask about inviting Mallory—she kind of invited herself.”

Against her better judgment, Ellie softened. “It’s fine. I just—I guess I was just hoping—”

***

“Hoping what?” Out of the corner of his eye, Calvin could see that they had reached the waterfall, but he was only looking at Ellie.

He watched her take a deep breath before speaking. “I guess I was hoping that you would be interested in me. I don’t mean to be a bad sport about it, though.”

Her voice was tiny and pitiful and defeated sounding. “Oh, Ellie…” he said, feeling helpless and startled. He took a step closer to her.
I was hoping that too,
he wanted to say—but he couldn’t.

“Sorry,” she said very softly. She finally looked up at him again and he could see tears shimmering in her eyes. That was the final straw.

Without stopping to overthink things, Calvin lifted her chin and met her lips with his own.

For a moment, Ellie stood frozen, not resisting but not doing anything else, but then she relaxed into his embrace. Her lips softened and her arms went around his neck as he deepened the kiss. The world around him was entirely lost except for her soft skin, the sweet smell of her perfume, and the gentle caress of her lips against his.

He felt Ellie sigh a little, and he responded by pulling her closer, but suddenly she stiffened up.

“What is it?” Calvin asked, breaking the kiss but staying very close.

Ellie pushed back out of his arms. “You’re with Mallory,” she said uncomfortably.

“But Ellie, listen, I—”

“No.” She whirled away and headed back up the path. “There isn’t anything left to talk about.”

The euphoric feeling of joy faded from Calvin’s brain, and he was left standing there hopeless as Ellie jogged away.

He didn’t want to be with Mallory in the least, didn’t even want to see her again. The woman had been stupid enough to wear heels hiking, and then audacious enough to whine when she hurt her ankle. On top of that, she’d literally thrown herself at him the night before, and he’d barely managed to stave her off with an excuse about not liking “casual sex.”

Her sloppy, forced kiss had been nothing like what had just happened with Ellie. Beautiful, kind, wonderful Ellie, who had claimed his heart almost as soon as he arrived in Carterville. Ellie, who he had been falling in love with for weeks. Calvin suddenly made a decision and took off up the trail.

By the time he reached Mallory, she was standing up indignantly with her hands on her hips—with no sign of a hurt ankle. “Calvin, baby, you just
left
me, and Ellie just ran by me and
ignored
me! She is such a cow!”

“This isn’t going to work.”

The woman gaped at him. “I—Wha—”

“Us. We are not going to work. Come on. I’ll take you home.” Calvin slowed his pace to make sure she could keep up, but walked forward without looking back. He ignored every single thing that Mallory whined at him, desperate to catch up to Ellie, but by the time they reached the parking area she was long gone.

Mallory climbed in his car and glared sullenly. “Oh my God. I knew it. You and
Ellie.
”

Yes
, sang Calvin’s heart, but he didn’t say anything in response.

When he got home, there were still a few men that he didn’t know moving chairs into a truck
.
He waved but didn’t bother talking to them. He was in far too much of a pickle to be friendly and social, and they seemed to be managing things just fine. Instead, Calvin jogged upstairs to the guest room and called Ellie’s number.

She didn’t answer, which didn’t surprise him, so he just left a quick message saying that he’d see her the next day and that they’d talk then. If he remembered right, she should be coming in to check on the moving crew—and if she didn’t show up at the house maybe he’d find a reason to drop by the store.

With that done, he flopped over on the bed and stared at the wall. The bedside table had the box of diaries, which reminded him painfully of Ellie, and even worse, that opal ring that she’d thought was so pretty. A heartfelt sigh escaped his lungs.
What am I going to do?
He couldn’t possibly be with anyone but Ellie. That was clear now. But he only had a month to marry before he lost the inheritance.

There were no easy answers to the dilemma, so Calvin gave up thinking on it and went to find the oldest box of his great-aunt’s diaries. He was going to start at the very beginning and read all of them. At least he could find the answer to one question.