Return to You (27 page)

Read on for a preview of Summer Montgomery's Story.

Coming soon

From Sourcebooks Casablanca!

“I don't like the sound of this.”

They
never
do
, William Montgomery thought to himself. Why did everyone have to question his motives when all of his decisions in the last five years—in business
and
his personal life—had been raging successes? Montgomerys was at the top of its game; they were a Fortune 500 company with more growth and expansion to come all thanks to his leadership. And as for the family? Well, if it weren't for him, the whole Montgomery line may have come to an end. Yes, sir, William had gone on a one-man campaign to get this young generation to start falling in love and start families.

His own three sons had been more than pulling their weight in that department. At last count, William was a proud grandfather to four beautiful grandchildren and he had high hopes of watching that number grow. He looked over at his brother, Robert, and frowned. “What is there not to like?” he asked.

Robert was younger than William by all of a year, and yet he always came across as being much older; he took life way too seriously and it didn't always bode well for his family. Just recently, Robert's second oldest son, James, had come back to North Carolina after over fourteen years of living apart thanks to the discord between him and his father. William knew his brother loved his kids; he just didn't seem comfortable with really knowing them.

That was William's gift. He was a people watcher by nature, and over the years, he had honed his skills to a science. With just a little bit of time and knowledge of a particular person, he was able to figure out who would be a perfect match for them. It was easy with his own sons, because he was with them all on a fairly regular basis. His niece and nephews? It was taking a little bit longer.

Luckily Ryder and James had already known the women they wanted to spend their lives with; William had just given them a push in the right direction. His eldest nephew, Zach, was a challenge; he was getting ready to head to Alaska on some sort of climbing expedition. If William didn't know better, he'd have sworn his nephew was doing it purposely, to avoid spending time with him. He chuckled. He'd get to him eventually.

“Summer is not cut out for the corporate world, William. Why would you even consider such a thing?”

He shrugged. “It seems to me that she's tried everything else. She's been moping around between your house and ours for almost a month and seems to be a little lost. All I'm suggesting is that we give her a little guidance and see if maybe she could find a place within the company.”

“But why send her to Oregon? Zach will be furious.”

Of that William had no doubt. “Oh, it doesn't take much to make your son furious these days. Eventually we'll figure out what exactly has him in a constant snit. In the meantime, I think Summer could be a great asset to his team.”

Robert let out a mirthless laugh. “Have you met my daughter? William, Summer is flaky and flighty and doesn't know a damn thing about business. She paints; she dances; she sings. None of those things are going to be an asset anywhere within the company!”

William didn't care for his brother's description of Summer. Robert may have been her father, but William felt fairly protective of his niece. “Maybe she does those things because no one ever expected her to do anything more with her life. Seems to me that you just wrote her off as being a spoiled heiress who'd marry well and then be her husband's responsibility.”

“That would make my life a hell of a lot easier,” Robert said wearily. “Seriously, William, I don't see this as being her thing. She doesn't even know anyone in Oregon.”

“Nonsense. She knows her own brother. She's visited the offices there before, so she's familiar with the staff. And then there's Ethan.”

Robert glared at him for a moment. “Ethan? Why would you mention Ethan?”

“Do you have a problem with him? He and Zach have been friends since they were ten years old. He's practically family.”

“That he is, but Summer had a crush on him for the longest time. She thought no one knew, but she was always trailing after him and Zach. I was relieved when the boys finally graduated and went off to school. I'm fairly certain that she's over it.”

“Did he ever do anything inappropriate? Is that why you took that tone?” William asked.

Robert sighed. “No. He was always perfectly respectful. Besides that, he's much older than she is.”

“Six years is hardly a lot these days.” By the look on his brother's face, William realized he wasn't helping the situation. “I'm sure you have nothing to worry about. He probably considers her a sister after all these years. And you said yourself that Summer seems to be over her childhood crush. I was merely pointing out that she would at least have another friendly face in Oregon.”

“Why can't we place her here? In North Carolina? Why send her to the West Coast?”

Why was his brother being so difficult? “She needs to feel like she's doing this on her own, without either of us hovering over her.”

“Zach will hover.”

William didn't doubt that for a second. “At first. Then he'll get annoyed and leave her to her own devices and move on. Plus, he's got the whole Denali thing coming up, so she'll actually have a chance to work on her own without any interference from any of us. It could be exactly what she needs to shine.”

“Summer would shine in a room filled with thousand-watt bulbs,” Robert said, unable to hide the pride in his voice.

That made William smile. “She certainly does. Let's give her a chance to shine while showing her that we believe her to be a woman whom we take seriously. I think it would be the perfect thing for her confidence right now.”

“I could kill the bastard who broke her heart.”

William agreed, but he also knew that whoever the man was, he wasn't Summer's true love. William had spent enough time with his brother's family to make quite a few observations. It was almost getting too easy. Soon he'd have to find another hobby, but for right now, he sharpened his Cupid's arrow and prepared it to take flight.

“It's quiet. it's too damn quiet.”

“No. It's peaceful. For the first time in over a month, I can hear myself think.”

Zach Montgomery looked over at his friend Ethan and grimaced. “That's the problem. When Summer is in town, no one should be able to hear themselves think. I'm telling you, something is up.”

“Why are you looking for trouble?” Ethan asked. “For weeks, you've been practically begging for a little peace and quiet, and now that you have it, you're bitching about it. Just be thankful, and long may it last.”

While Zach knew that Ethan had a point, it just wasn't sitting right with him. When his father had warned him that his little sister was coming to Oregon to try her hand at the family business, Zach had been less than enthusiastic. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with Summer, per se; it was just that she was like a force of nature.

And not in a good way.

“Why would she go silent now?” Zach said as he paced his office. “Besides trying to work in every department we have here at Montgomerys and making everyone her new best friend, she has been particularly vocal about this whole Denali thing. I leave in less than thirty-six hours and she goes missing? She's up to something.” He looked to his best friend and company vice president and waited for his agreement. “Right? She has to be up to something.”

Ethan shrugged. “Personally, I'm just enjoying the quiet.” The truth was that Ethan was worried about Summer's whereabouts—maybe even more so than Zach. While Summer had basically been a thorn in his side since she had arrived on the West Coast, he had come to expect to see her around, talk to her. Hear her laugh.

See her smile.

Oh, man, he had it bad. A quick glance at Zach and he was relieved that his friend was too busy staring out at the city skyline to notice what was probably a goofy look on Ethan's face. He'd gotten pretty damn good at hiding his feelings for Summer; hell, he had to. If Zach or any of the multitude of Montgomery males found out that Ethan had a serious thing for Summer, he'd be screwed.

And beaten to a bloody pulp for sure.

Not something he was looking to see happen.

So he hid his feelings, brushed her off, and generally made her feel like she was a nuisance to him. She was far from it. Summer had a light about her, an energy that was impossible to ignore. Sometimes all she had to do was walk into a room for him to feel it. He wanted to embrace it and engage in conversation with her. Unfortunately, there was always one of her brothers or cousins or uncles around waiting with the stink eye whenever he let his guard down. It was pretty damn difficult to keep up with them all.

So right now? Yeah, he was happy to have a little peace and quiet and a chance to just be himself rather than having to watch how he spoke or looked or hovered whenever Summer Montgomery was in the room. He'd take whatever he could get in that department until she moved on to whatever adventure she wanted to take on next.

“Why won't she answer her phone?” Zach snapped, effectively pulling Ethan out of his own introspection.

“Maybe you just finally succeeded in pissing her off,” Ethan said wearily. Honestly, dealing with this family was enough to make him thankful for being an only child. One minute, Zach was complaining about having his sister around, and the next, he was complaining because she wasn't around. It was too much for him to keep up with.

“What's that supposed to mean?”

Ethan stood and walked toward the large picture window to stand beside Zach. “Listen,” he began, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. “You have been less than hospitable since your sister arrived here. You've let her know on a daily basis that you're not taking her interest in the company seriously because you think she's just going to move on whenever the mood strikes.”

“Well?” Zach said with a hint of annoyance. “It's true! She's been…what? She's been a photographer, a choreographer, she's been on Broadway…then there was her whole veterinarian phase. I mean, Summer has a short attention span, Ethan. She's wasting my time and the company's time by coming here and trying to play in the business world like some sort of corporate Barbie.”

“That's just cold, Zach, even for you.”

“Look, you've known my sister almost as long as you've known me. Am I exaggerating any of this?” Ethan shook his head. “Summer is a free spirit; hell, my mother must have had an idea at birth because she gave her the perfect name for her nature. She's an amazingly talented and creative young woman; she just needs to channel that energy someplace else and leave me the hell alone.”

“Isn't that what she's doing?” Ethan reminded.

“No, she's being a pain in my ass right now. I wouldn't listen to her constant harping on me about the climb and so now she's off pouting somewhere and probably hoping that I'll cancel my plans because I'll have to go and look for her. Well, it won't work; I'm not buying into it.”

“You can't have it both ways,” Ethan muttered as he turned to walk away.

“Excuse me?” Zach said, his gaze honing in on his friend.

Throwing up his hands in frustration, Ethan turned back around. “I can't keep saying it; you keep saying you don't want her here, so she's not here and now you're ticked off. Make up your damn mind, Zach!”

Ethan was right; Zach knew it and yet it didn't help to put his mind at ease. Stepping away from the window, he sat back down at his desk, resting his head in his hands. “I swear she's like a miniature hurricane; she swoops in, wreaks havoc, and then moves on. I just wish she'd answer my damn calls, so at least I'd know she's all right before I leave for Denali.”

“Have you asked around the office? Maybe she mentioned to someone that she was going someplace.”

Zach looked up and considered Ethan's words. “I hadn't thought of that. She's so damn chatty that I'm sure she had to say something to someone.” He immediately reached for his phone and called his assistant into the room. While he waited, he returned his attention to Ethan. “Gabriella knows everything that goes on in this building; if she doesn't know where Summer is, we're screwed.”

“We?” Ethan said with a laugh. “Sorry, bro; your sister, your problem.”

“Don't give me that,” Zach said dismissively. “You and I both know you're practically family, and I'm sure that deep down, you're a little bit worried about her yourself.”

More
than
you
know.

Luckily he didn't have to respond because Zach's assistant came into the room. Gabriella Martine looked like she had stepped right off the pages of Italian
Vogue
. She was tall and slim with just enough curves to grab a man's attention. Ethan always admired her beauty, but not in a way that made him want to act on it. Gabriella had jet-black hair, crystal-blue eyes, and a cool yet distant disposition.

Ethan seemed to prefer the type with blond hair, dark eyes, fair skin, and a chatty nature.

Summer
Montgomery.

He was so screwed.

“You wanted to see me, Mr. Montgomery,” Gabriella said in her usual cool, clipped voice.

“Have you heard from Summer?” Zach asked, leaning forward at his desk.

His assistant looked at him oddly. “Is there something wrong?” she asked.

“I can't get her on the phone and I wanted to talk to her before I leave tomorrow night.”

“I last spoke with your sister yesterday, before she left. She needed help with some travel arrangements.” She looked curiously between Zach and Ethan. “It didn't seem like a big deal.”

“Travel arrangements?” Zach yelled, coming to his feet. “What? Was she planning on going back to North Carolina without saying a damn word to me? Why didn't you tell me?” he demanded.

Gabriella seemed to shrink back momentarily at his outburst. Ethan was about to intervene, but Gabriella composed herself quickly. “She's not moving back to North Carolina, Mr. Montgomery; she was making plans to get away for the weekend with…a guest.”

“A guest?” Zach repeated, completely stupefied. “Who the hell is this
guest
?” He turned to Ethan. “Did you know about this? Did you know that Summer was dating someone?”

Ethan was too stunned to speak. Summer was dating someone? When the hell had that happened? How did he not know? Wracking his brain, he tried to remember if he had seen Summer with anyone but came up empty. And pissed. Feeling Zach's intense scrutiny yet again, Ethan simply shook his head and turned away.

“Where are they going?” Zach asked his assistant, who was slowly walking backward to the office door. She stopped at her boss's question.

“She…she booked a weekend getaway, one of the hot springs resorts.”

Zach cursed under his breath. “It's just like her, leave it to Summer to drop a bombshell like this right before I have to leave.”

Gabriella took a step back toward the center of the room. “No disrespect, sir, but Summer didn't drop a bombshell; she simply did as you requested. She left. She knew that the two of you were going to keep fighting if you left for that…that climb you're doing,” she said then cleared her throat at Zach's arched brow. “So she simply decided not to add to your stress before you left. If you ask me, she was trying to help you.”

Coming around his desk, Zach stalked his assistant until she began to back away again. “Help me?
Help
me
!” he barked. “How is going off for a weekend with some man none of us knows helping me? This little stunt hasn't decreased my stress; it's added to it! Get her on the phone!
Now
!”

“No.”

Both Zach and Ethan seemed to freeze in place at the one softly spoken word from Gabriella. “Excuse me?” Zach said with a hint of a snarl.

“I said no. This is not a business problem; it is obviously a family problem. If you ask me, Summer did the only thing she could do. She didn't agree with what you're about to do and neither do…” She stopped. “If you want to argue with her or yell at her, you'll have to do it on your own, Mr. Montgomery.” She looked at her watch. “I'm going to lunch.” She spun on her ridiculously high stiletto heels and left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

The two men stared at one another, completely dumbfounded. “What the hell just happened here?” Zach asked. “She has never spoken back to me like that! What is going on with all of the women in this place?” He raked a hand through his hair. “This is all Summer's doing. Gabriella never gave me any trouble until now. Until Summer.”

“Dude,” Ethan interrupted, “you have got to stop blaming your sister for everything. You are clearly starting to lose it. I think you are officially done here. Go home; finish packing for the trip. I'll wrap things up around the office, and I'll meet you at the airport tomorrow night. Trust me; you're not going to get anything done here. Just…go home.”

“Dammit, Ethan, how am I supposed to get ready to leave when Summer's out there with some…guy no one knows? I'm supposed to be looking out for her, and she totally took off with a stranger!”

“Okay, dramatic much?” Ethan said sarcastically, hoping to defuse the situation. “Just because you didn't know anything about this guy doesn't mean there's anything wrong with him.”

“She's been here for a month, Ethan. That first week she was here she didn't leave my sight. So she's known this guy for a few weeks. Tops. I don't like it. Maybe I need to go to that spa and talk to her.”

Ethan stopped him before he could walk out of the office. “Zach, get a grip. You are getting ready to do this climb. You need to focus.” He knew he was going to regret his next words, but he couldn't stop them if he'd tried. “I'll go; I'll get the information from Gabriella and go and try to talk some sense into Summer.”

“You're climbing too, Ethan. You don't need to be chasing my sister up and down the coast.”

“You got a better idea?”

Defeat washed over Zach. “No. But if anyone's going to go, it should be me. Summer's my responsibility.”

“And this climb is something you've been looking forward to for a year.”

“And you haven't?”

Ethan shrugged. “It's going to be great, sure. But I'm just along for the ride. I don't have any illusions of making it to the top. That's all you, buddy. I'll be happy if I make it at least to the midway point.”

Zach shook his head. “What's the point in that? You should be right there with me! How cool would it be to stand at the summit and look down at the world around us?” He grabbed Ethan by the shoulders. “You used to want to do all of the same things I did; what's happened to you?”

Taking a step back, Ethan shrugged again. “Nothing's happened to me; I just don't get the rush out of it anymore like you do. You wanted to do this and I think that's great. I'm going to be there with you just like always. If I make it to the top, great; if not, I'll live.”

“Lame. Totally lame.”

“Now you see why it's possible for me to go after Summer; you need to get your head on straight and get mentally prepared. That's what's important. I'll take the drive, find her and talk to her, and make sure this guy's on the up and up, and I'll meet you tomorrow night. I promise.”

Zach took a minute to think. “Just make sure that you do, man. She could be anywhere in the damn state. Those resorts are scattered everywhere. I don't want to do this without you.”

Ethan smiled. “I wouldn't miss it for the world.”

* * *

It took every ounce of will Ethan possessed to be patient while Zach got his things together and left the office. He didn't let out a complete breath until the doors on the elevator closed, and even then, it was a full five minutes before he let himself relax. He checked his watch and noted that Gabriella should be back from lunch any minute. He'd always had an easy working relationship with her, so Ethan figured it wouldn't be hard to get the information he needed about where Summer had gone.