The Seduction Of Claudia (18 page)

Claudia would never be able to forget Andrew. It was impossible for her to imagine her life without him. She wanted forever with him, loved him to distraction. Can I confide in him about Patrick Gates? If I do tell him, will he stand by me and against Gates?she wondered. Andrew's father had known Gates since they had attended prep school together; they had shared fifty years or so of friendship. How would Iain and Maggie react to the news that Gates had an illegitimate daughter whom they had never heard of? Let alone the fact that said illegitimate daughter was deeply involved with their son. Would they think I intentionally became involved with Andrew to get at Gates and, that I'm only using him for another purpose?

Nothing could be further from the truth, of course. Claudia wished from the bottom of her heart that this new twist had never come about. Why could nothing ever be easy for her? She had struggled in life since the day she was born and now, she had a chance at happiness, had found the perfect man and she couldn't have him. I want him, she thought, I want him! I will not let Patrick Gates ruin my relationship with Andrew. He is the most important person in my life and I will not let Gates take him away from me without a fight. I have to tell Andrew and get everything out in the open.

Last night's lovemaking had proven to her that she couldn't hold anything back from Andrew. Against him, she was powerless, both physically and emotionally. She realized now that it was possible for a person to belong to another person and that there was joy in the possession and in being possessed. Andrew was hers. She was his. The knowledge came as a shock to her, inspired fear because she hadn't considered that such could be possible. On the other hand, she was giddy with excitement at the thought that they were irrevocably bound.

Having resolved to come clean with Andrew, she slid out of bed, headed to the bathroom to wash up. The corner of her mouth quirked in a smile when she saw that he had retrieved her toiletries from the locked trunk of his car. However, there was no evidence that he had likewise retrieved her clothing – in fact, the outfit she'd worn the night before was nowhere in sight. He was apparently inclined to hold her captive for another day. The difference was that, in light of her newly acknowledged acceptance of the depth of their relationship, she would willingly, even gladly, stay. Captivated, not captive, she thought.

She showered, letting the hot water loosen her overused muscles. She had finished her toilette and was poking around in Andrew's closet looking for something to wear when she heard the apartment door open and close. Her stomach fluttered with nerves. Andrew. She grabbed a thick pair of socks and one of Andrew's button down shirts to cover her nudity. She inspected her appearance in the mirror and saw exactly what she had expected to see. She absolutely oozed sex. Her eyes were lambent, her skin luminous and incredibly sensitive; the fine cotton of Andrew's shirt brushed against her skin like an erotic caress. Her lips were slightly swollen and red. Beneath the collar of the shirt, and scattered in strategic places on her body, were faint bruises and bite marks. She had been thoroughly had. She shivered in delight as she recalled their sinful, decadent lovemaking.

She fluffed her hair and let the loose curls fall around her face and over her shoulders. She sallied forth from the bathroom, eager to see Andrew, wanting to touch him, desperate for him. She was imbued with a new sense of hope for the future and felt lighter, more unburdened, than she had in years at the thought that she would be able to tell Andrew everything about her past. She went down the stairs, following the fragrant aroma of fresh coffee to the kitchen.

She fairly floated through the living room on her way to the kitchen. She felt rather silly that she was so eager to see Andrew. Like a schoolgirl with a crush on some handsome boy. Her stomach was fluttering with nerves and in anticipation of seeing the object of her love in a few short seconds. She was puzzled by the unfamiliar feeling that had descended upon her. With a start, she figured out that it was happiness! Pure, simple happiness. She had always wondered what it would feel like to be happy and hopeful and it was better than she had ever imagined. She fought the urge to laugh out loud with joy, but couldn't hold back the smile that split her face in two.

She reached the kitchen and to her chagrin, it wasn't Andrew in the kitchen at all. It was Patrick Gates. The bubble of contentment that had surrounded her burst abruptly, replaced by despair and anger.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. Gates had evidently not heard her enter the room, the thick socks she wore having dampened the sound of her footsteps. He jumped, sloshing coffee all over the counter where he had been pouring a cup from the carafe.

He put the mug on the counter with a firm click and glared at her.

"What are you doing here, Gates?" she asked again.

"I could ask you the same question, but then, I don't have to, do I? We both know what you're doing here. Just look at you," Gates said in a mocking tone. Disdainful green eyes that were identical to hers raked her from head to toe. He smirked, "You don't look much like your mother, but it is glaringly obvious that you are indeed, her daughter." Gates lifted his coffee mug to her in a mock salute.

Claudia crossed her arms over her breasts. She felt naked in front of Gates, even though Andrew's shirt covered her more than some dresses she owned. Her vulnerability had nothing to do with how much or how little she was wearing.

"Andrew's not here."

"I can see that. I had intended to talk to him this morning. To warn him about you," he said blandly, moving past where she stood in the kitchen doorway to pace the living area. "But, since you're here, I'll talk to you instead."

"I don't think there's anything we need to say to one another," Claudia said coldly.Warn Andrew about her, indeed! she fumed. "How did you get in here, anyway?"

"I have a key, naturally. Now. Let me ask you a question. How did you find out that Andrew is as close to me as my own kids? I have to admit, it was a pretty clever way of getting to me," he mused.

Claudia flinched at his reference to his 'kids'. She was his kid, his first-born and they weren't close at all.

"Don't flatter yourself, Gates. I met Andrew through mutual friends. He pursued me. He never mentioned you in all the time I've known him, not by name, anyway. And I certainly had no reason to mention you, because you mean less than nothing to me."

"Considering the source, you'll forgive me if I don't believe a word you say," he sneered. "You want me to believe that, by sheer coincidence, my long-lost bastard daughter has wound up in a relationship with my best friend's son? No, I don't believe that for a second. The logical conclusion is that you used him to get to me. What is you want – money? You won't get it, so you might as well give up."

"I don't want your filthy money. I never wanted it," Claudia retorted.

"Don't pretend that you don't want money. All women like you want money. Money is what lubes you up, it's what gets you excited."

"You're disgusting! You don't know a damned thing about me, Gates."

"I know you better than you think. Don't forget – I knew your mother very well. And, I know your father rather intimately," he gestured to himself in exaggerated fashion. His mouth stretched into a facsimile of a smile while his eyes remained coldly calculating.

"Maybe you should be talking to Andrew. I've tried and tried to get him to leave me alone. He won't – can't – stay away from me. He held me here against my will last night. Even now he's hidden my clothes, my purse, my keys, so that I can't leave."

"Ah," Gates said, realization dawning. "You've ensnared him with sex. That was your mother's favorite trick, too. It's how she tried to trap me. It was a near thing, too; she's an incredibly sexy woman - incredibly inventive in bed. Do you take after her in that regard?" he wondered. "At any rate, I was able to escape your mother's clutches. She never was very bright..." he trailed off.

"You pig. I don't have to stand here and listen to this," Claudia said and headed for the stairs.

"How much will it cost to get you out of Andrew's life?" Gates asked, sensing he was about to lose any leverage he might possibly have.

"I told you. Keep your filthy money."

Gates groped in the pocket of his sport coat, pulled out a checkbook encased in a leather cover. He tore off a check. Apparently, he had previously endorsed it and just needed to fill in the amount.

"Come on, Claudia," he coaxed. He walked to the bottom of the stairs and called up to Claudia, who had made it halfway up. He waved the check around, back and forth, as though it was a fat worm and Claudia a hungry fish. "You know you want it. How much? Ten thousand? Fifteen? Twenty? This is an ass backward way to negotiate; I shouldn't let you know just how badly I want you out of Andrew's life. But, there it is. I want you gone, so how much will it cost?"

Claudia stopped in her tracks and turned around slowly, prepared to skewer Gates. She wanted to rip him limb from limb. Her eyes flared wide when she saw Andrew standing just inside the door.

"What's going on? Paddy, what do you mean you want her gone?"

"Oh! Andrew, you're back" Gates said jovially. "You must have misunderstood me. I promised your mother I would look in on you today since you and your, ahem, friendleft so abruptly last night. Naturally, she was worried about you."

Claudia was amazed at how easily Gates lied. Andrew set his newspapers and the box of pastries on the table and came further into the room. As he neared them, he could feel the tension swirling around between Gates and Claudia, felt like he was wading through it.

"What's that?" he asked, neatly nipping the check from Gates's fingers. "Why'd you make out a blank check to Claudia?"

He looked back and forth between Claudia and Gates suspiciously.

"Somebody better tell me what's going on."

"Well, your mother told me Claudia plays with a fine group of musicians. I'm throwing a birthday party for Pam next month and am going to hire Claudia and her group. That's the deposit," Gates finished the lie smoothly.

Andrew cocked his head, pondering what Gates had said. He wasn't completely satisfied with the answer because it didn't explain the tension that had gripped them when he'd entered the room. He decided to play along with them for the time being. He'd figure out what was going on soon enough.

Claudia stood stock still on the stairs, her eyes wide with disbelief. This is so surreal, she thought, I can't believe this guy. Patrick Gates and my mother were tailor-made for each other! What are the odds that two such soulless, conniving people would find each other? she mused.

"Come on down and have breakfast, Legs. I got your favorite - pain au chocolat. You must be starving. Paddy, would you like to join us?" Andrew asked, harboring hope that if he could get Claudia to sit down and talk to Paddy, she would realize that she had been wrong about him.

"Unfortunately, I've got a meeting. I'll stop by again, when I have more time," Gates said smoothly. With a mocking bow, he said to Claudia, "Until we meet again, Ms. Beaumont. I'll leave your check on the table – just fill in the amount yourself," he said, implying that they had reached an agreement. "See you later, Andrew."

Claudia watched Gates leave the apartment from her vantage point on the stairs. When the door had closed behind him, she slowly descended. Andrew was waiting for her with open arms when she reached the bottom. He closed his arms around her, kissed her.

"I love the way you look in my shirt," he murmured against her neck. "But I'd hoped you would still be in bed when I got back. I had planned to bring you your breakfast in bed and then keep you there all day."

Claudia stood in the circle of his arms, her head resting against his shoulder. She had awoken a short time earlier with optimism and happiness in her heart that there might be some way for her to continue her relationship with Andrew, convinced that everything would somehow be okay. He had been right when he'd said that they would belong to each other after the previous night's passion. Andrew was in her blood. Parting from him, which she now knew she must do, would be like cutting off one of her own limbs.

Tears welled in her eyes as she realized that there was no hope for them. The visit from Gates showed her that he would stop at nothing to see her and Andrew broken up. He would feed poisonous lies about her to the Conals and they would think she was some sort of gold-digger. Andrew would be forced to choose between his family and her when they found out and she didn't want him placed in such an impossible situation, didn't want him to be hurt. She couldn't tell him the truth of her parentage after all. It would cause everyone too much pain.

She had only recently learned to accept Andrew's presence and status in her life. She had given herself over to his keeping, given her heart to him. She had begun feeling comfortable with the fact that she needed him. And now, after scarcely an hour of accepting the inevitable and before she was truly accustomed to all of the changes in herself, she had to unlearn what it meant to be in love with and loved by Andrew.

She swallowed against the lump in her throat, blinked back the tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. If she let them fall, she knew she would never stop crying.Crying will do no good, Claudia, she admonished herself. Pull yourself together and get through this. Act normally, eat your breakfast and then escape as soon as conceivably possible.

Feeling stronger now that she had some semblance of a plan in place, she leaned back in Andrew's arms. Pasting a smile on her face, she beamed up at him. She almost broke when she saw his adoring gaze. She wished for a future with him where he would always look at her that way.

"I figured you had a diabolical plan in that head of yours," producing the teasing tone took an enormous amount of effort. "I noticed that my clothes were curiously absent from the apartment this morning."

"You caught me. I wanted to serve you breakfast in bed. And then... Well, let's just say that you wouldn't have been needing your clothes any time soon."