“Actually I didn’t spend that much time with him,” Beth said truthfully.
Destiny’s lips twitched as if she were fighting a smile. “Very diplomatic. I like that.”
“Are you trying to set me up with your nephew?” Beth asked bluntly.
Destiny’s eyes widened in a totally phony display of innocence. “How could I do that? You and Mack have already met. Either something clicked or it didn’t. I’m sure you know as much about chemistry as I do, perhaps more.”
Beth chuckled. “Some forms of chemistry, yes. The male-female thing is definitely not my area of expertise.”
“My nephew might make an excellent teacher,” Destiny suggested slyly.
“I don’t think so.” Beth grinned at the determined woman. “Does Mack know you’re sneaking around behind his back trying to fix him up?”
“As I said, how could I fix him up with you since you’ve met? You’re two consenting adults capable of making your own decisions,” Destiny said, as if the thought had never crossed her obviously devious mind.
“But a little nudge from you wouldn’t be out of the question, would it?” Beth suddenly recalled Mack’s earlier suspicion that she and his aunt knew each other. “He’s on to you, isn’t he? He thinks you deliberately got him over to the hospital today to meet me. Seeing Tony was simply a means to an end.”
“You called his office,” Destiny reminded her. “He came over there to meet Tony at your request.”
Beth couldn’t argue with that. “Would you have been as quick to intercede if the request had come from one of my male colleagues?”
“Of course,” Destiny claimed. “We’re talking about a sick child.”
Beth wasn’t entirely sure she believed her. Nor, she suspected, would Mack.
“Look, Ms. Carlton—”
“Please call me Destiny. I insist.”
“I appreciate what you’re trying to do, Destiny, or at least what I think you’re trying to do, but it’s a bad idea,” Beth said emphatically. “I’m not interested. Mack’s not interested. Let’s just leave it at that.”
Rather than the disappointment Beth had anticipated, Destiny’s expression brightened.
“Perfect,” Destiny said.
“I beg your pardon.”
“I said that was the perfect response. You’re going to be a challenge,” Destiny explained. “I love that. More important, it is exactly what my nephew needs in his life. Most women are all too eager to fall right into his bed.”
“I don’t have time to be the challenge your nephew needs,” Beth said, beginning to feel a little frantic. She had a hunch that Destiny Carlton was a force to be reckoned with once her mind was set on something. Besides that, the whole image of falling into Mack’s bed was a little too attractive. She needed to stay away from these two. They had money. They had power. And one of them at least had a plan for the rest of Beth’s life, a plan she wasn’t one bit happy about.
“Of course, you have the time,” Destiny said blithely. “Everyone has time for love.”
Love? Love? Sweet heaven, how had they gone from talking about the prospect of her even having a date with Mack to falling in love with him?
“Not me,” Beth said fiercely. “I definitely do not have time for a relationship. Really, Destiny. I don’t have a second to spare. My days are crammed. There are simply not enough hours for all the work I have to do.”
“You made time to have dinner with me at the last minute,” Destiny reminded her. “You could just as easily make time for Mack. Keep that in mind when he asks you out.”
“He is not going to ask me out,” Beth said confidently. “And if he does, the answer will be no.” A resounding no, she thought to herself. Bad enough to have to fight that little twinge of attraction she’d felt for him. She did not need to waste her time trying to fend off his aunt’s machinations as well.
Destiny’s smile spread.
“Stop that,” Beth said. She could practically read the woman’s mind. She was going back to that challenge thing again. “I am not saying no just to play hard to get. I am saying it because I am not interested. Period. That isn’t going to change. I suspect your nephew has enough women saying yes that he won’t waste too much time mourning my rejection, assuming he even asks me out in the first place. We didn’t exactly get off on the best foot. I was being very insulting about him, and he happened to overhear me.”
Destiny looked vaguely shocked by that. “You insulted him?”