Willamina shot out of her chair as if she'd been electrocuted. "What?! " she shouted at Bram, who was leaning back on his creaky chair and smiling.
Snorts, gasps, and shouts of indignation erupted around the office. Only Sam was smiling. Ben and Jesse sat stone still, their faces blank.
"Now, Willa. Don't jump up and down thanking me yet," Bram drawled, his smile widening. "There are some conditions to this little bequest."
Willa stood staring at the television, her fists balled at her sides, her hair all but standing on end.
"Rosebriar's yours, Willa," Bram continued more softly, his expression serious. "The deed's already been put in your name, all of the land, the buildings, and the contents. And Spencer's got a bankbook with your name on it.
"The RoseWind is also yours, girl. Enjoy her. All I ask is that you don't rechristen her."
Sam saw Willa sway on her feet, and he jumped up to steady her.
"My stocks in Tidewater are yours, too, Willa. But here's the catch. You own them only for three months. If you haven't married one of my grandsons by then and turned them over to him as a wedding gift, then they will be sold to Warren Cobb for ten cents on the dollar."
Ben and Jesse jumped up and started cursing, but they were hardly heard over the booming laughter coming from the back of the room.
"Over my dead body!" Jesse shouted, turning to glare at Warren Cobb. Ben stared at Sam. "You're not surprised by this."
"I found out twenty-four hours ago," Sam told him, his arms protectively around Willa, who still hadn't moved.
"Then why didn't we find out twenty- three hours ago?" Jesse took a step toward him. Ben did, too. "How did you find out?"
"I cornered Spencer yesterday. My only reason for wanting to see the will was to protect Willa."
"Protect her from what?"
"Bram."
Jesse kicked one of the chairs, knocking it into another one. Willa flinched, and Sam glared at his brothers.
"Calm down. There's more," he softly told them, nodding to Spencer, who had stopped the tape. Sam pulled Willa back to her chair. Jesse straightened the chair he'd kicked and sat down. Stone-faced, Ben took his chair again. Sam decided to stand behind Willa, keeping his hands firmly on her shoulders. Bram began speaking again.
"Warren Cobb," he boomed, "you'll get your hands on my company only if I've raised three worthless grandsons. But I can tell you now, I have not. One of them will marry Willa, and Tidewater will not only remain intact, it will come gunning for you, you old bastard. Starrtech will be dust at your feet to be
sprinkled over both of our graves."
Bram shot a sinister smile at the camera. "Like I did sixty years ago, I'll beat you again, old friend. Rose married me, and she died a happy woman.
"Boys," Bram continued, "if I could have found a Willa for each of you, I would have. But only one of you can have her. Win her, and you win Rosebriar and Tidewater." He frowned suddenly. "Lose her, and you'll get just what you deserve."
Then Bram nervously cleared his throat, suddenly looking every one of his eighty-five years. "Willa, honey. There's-ah-one more thing. You've got three months to marry one of my grandsons and one year after the wedding to get pregnant. Otherwise, Tidewater gets sold to Cobb."
Willa jumped up again with a shriek. "What? You can't do that, you old rat! You can't make me get married and then get pregnant!" She grabbed for anything on the desk and hurled it at Bram. The television screen exploded with a crash. Pandemonium broke out again as Sam lunged for Willa, and Jesse and Ben fell off their chairs in laughter. Warren Cobb was barking with glee, and all of the other guests were shouting in outrage.
"Willa. Calm down ," Sam growled as she looked for another missile.
"It's not funny, Ben!" she screamed, suddenly heading for him. "It's not one stinking bit funny!"
"You broke the television, Willa," Ben sputtered.
"Well, why not?" Jesse drawled. "It's her television."
Willa froze, and her face drained of color as she stared at the two men.
"I think it's time to clear the room," Sam said.
Spencer hastily jumped up and dismissed everyone.
"Get Ronald to bring in another television," Sam told him as the room slowly cleared. All except for Warren Cobb, that is.
Sam walked over to Bram's desk, picked up the cane leaning against it, and handed it to the man who was grinning at him. "No need to wait around, Cobb. We'll send you an invitation to the wedding."
"You sure there'll be one?"Warren asked.
"There will be."
"To which grandson?"
"I guess you'll have to wait for your invitation to find out." Sam gaveWarren a piercing inspection. "So, Rose married Bram instead of you, is that it?"
"Bram stole her from me."
"I'd say Rose made her choice."
Warrensmiled nastily. "Well, Sinclair, if Willamina Kent decides none of you is worth the trouble, maybe I'll just set my own grandsons after her. If she's been handpicked by Abram Sinclair, that's good enough for me."
"I've had it! Do you hear me? I've had enough!" Willa hollered.
"We hear you, Willa," Sam said, walking over and taking hold of her shoulders. "And so did half ofConnecticut . You need to calm down and take a seat. I'm afraid there's probably more."
"More?" she squeaked. "How much more can there be?" She collapsed onto the chair Jesse had thoughtfully placed behind her.
"Just a few details," Sam assured her. "That's all."
She blinked up, looking so confused and defeated that he wanted to whisk her away as fast and as far as he could.
Damn Abram. The interfering old fool had shocked their partridge senseless. She was beyond comprehension; the details would go right over her head.
But not over Jesse's and Ben's. They'd moved their chairs to flank Willa while Ronald hooked up a new television. Sam seemed to be the only one who understood Bram's puppeteering. This entire fiasco was the old man's attempt to coax a lost little bird out of her hidey-hole and back into life. That, and to get a great-grandchild, even from his grave. Sam couldn't fault Bram's choice of a bride; like his grandfather, he could see the entire woman, ghosts and gifts and gentle soul. The old man was ensuring the future of his dynasty, he was giving a special woman the kick in the pants she needed, and he was telling his grandsons that he loved them enough to cut them free of Tidewater International, giving them all a new chance at life. He was telling the four of them to live as wildly and as fully as he had. Eventually, Jesse and Ben would see that, just as he had. Willa, however, would definitely need prodding in the right direction.
"Now, Willa, honey," came Bram's voice again from the television. "I know you're probably steaming mad right now, but you'll get over it."
Sam glanced over at Willa, who had closed her eyes. But she couldn't close her ears.
"Now, you boys listen up if you're interested in marrying Willa. She's got this fool notion that she's too accident-prone to have a baby. She's afraid she'll end up harming her child, just like she thinks she did her niece." Bram snorted. "It's up to you to convince her that she didn't maim Jennifer but saved the girl's life. So, one of you marry Willa, and get her pregnant." He pointed his finger. "After the wedding!"
Abram slumped in his chair at the table, and his eyes filled with moisture. "Someday you'll thank me, Willa," he said softly. "And maybe someday you'll forgive me. I love you, girl, like the daughter I never had. I wish I'd met you sooner." Bram swiped at his eyes.
Then, he looked up, his eyes warm yet piercing. "I want you boys to understand why I've left everything
to Willa here and not to you. Sam, Ben, Jesse, you're fine, capable men, and you love one another. I know there's no competition among you for Tidewater. And I know you've stayed with the company only for my sake. But it's a good legacy I've built, and I'd like to see it stay intact. But only one of you should have it. You others can move on now. Find good women, have children, and enjoy yourselves.