“What happened?”
“He doesn’t discuss it, so we don’t, either. I’m sorry I can’t prepare you any better than that. If it’ll ease your mind any, you should know that he’s the handsomest one of us all.”
“Quiet, rich and gorgeous. I could be in love,” Melanie joked.
“Don’t get any ideas,” Richard said. “You’re wildly in love with me, remember?”
“Oh, right,” she said. “Sometimes I lose track of the details in our arrangement.”
“Very amusing,” he said without the faintest hint of humor in his voice. “I guess Christmas would be a good time to put a spin on this you won’t be able to forget.”
Something in his tone alerted her that he was dead serious. “Richard, what is that supposed to mean?”
“Christmas is coming,” he said. “It’s not the time to ask a lot of questions.”
Her heart took a sudden stutter-step. “Richard, don’t you dare do anything foolish.”
“Of course not. I’m stodgy, remember?”
He hung up abruptly before she could remind him that there had been nothing stodgy about his grand gesture the night before, nor about any of the kisses they’d shared. She had a sudden sinking sensation that he was about to top himself. The thought scared her to death.
Melanie was wearing a simply cut emerald velvet suit she’d found at Chez Deux when Richard picked her up on Christmas Eve. She looked amazing. She also looked a little as if she were being carted off to the guillotine. He regretted that he was the cause of that.
“There’s no reason to look so terrified,” he reassured her. “It’s just dinner.”
She gave him a skeptical look. “How many courses?”
“I have no idea. I never counted. What does that have to do with anything?”
“Just dinner is meat, potatoes, vegetables and maybe a pumpkin pie for dessert. Is that what we’re likely to have tonight?”
He grinned. “Doubtful. Okay, I see your point.” She’d been making quite a lot of good ones lately.
“Do you really? Something tells me that this meal is also going to be accompanied by a lot of expectant stares,” she told him.
“Could be.”
“And that doesn’t scare you?”
“This is my family. They don’t scare me,” he insisted.
“Not even Destiny?”
He laughed. “Oh, well, if we’re talking about Destiny specifically, she has put the fear of God into me from time to time.”
“Especially lately, I imagine.”
“Actually I’ve been warming to her mission,” he said mildly, just as he pulled his car into the garage.
Melanie stared at him, obviously convinced she couldn’t possibly have heard him correctly. He took some satisfaction in having caught her off guard.
“What did you just say?” she demanded.
He pretended not to hear her as he exited the car and went around to hold her door. She didn’t budge.
“I asked you a question,” she said, frowning up at him.
“We’ll discuss it later,” he promised. “We don’t want to keep everyone waiting.”
“Something tells me it would be smarter if we did,” she grumbled, but she did get out of the car.
Inside, they found the rest of the family already gathered. Even Ben had put on a tux for the occasion, but he still wore his usual dour expression. Richard worried about the fact that Ben still hadn’t snapped out of his dark, brooding mood, but Destiny insisted that people recovered from tragedy at their own pace.
At least Ben made an effort to smile when Destiny introduced him to Melanie.
“I’ve heard a lot about you,” Ben said.
Melanie glanced at Richard, then back at Ben. “Really?”
“Actually, it’s my aunt who’s been singing your praises. Mack is entirely too absorbed with his own women to mention that Richard is involved with someone, and Richard only calls to see if I’ve remembered to come out of my studio long enough to eat.”
Melanie grinned. “I’ve heard you’re a talented artist. I’d love to see your work.”
To Richard’s astonishment, Ben nodded.
“Come out to the farm sometime,” he told her. “I’m sure Destiny will bring you.”
“If anyone brings her, it’ll be me,” Richard grumbled, oddly disconcerted by the fact that Ben seemed to have taken an instant liking to Melanie. He studied his brother, trying to pinpoint whether his overall outlook had changed or whether this was purely a reaction to Melanie. He couldn’t tell. He hadn’t expected both of his brothers to be thoroughly besotted by her within minutes. Good thing he’d made his own plans to stake his claim.