made his little boy smile.
He met her eyes once more. “Both Toby’s mother and his maternal grandmother died several months ago. A car accident. Toby was in the car when it happened.”
Natalie made a small sound of distress.
“Toby hasn’t spoken since the accident.”
“Oh… I’m so sorry….”
“His mother and I were divorced. And I…hadn’t seen Toby in a while. That’s why I’m interested in this place. Toby’s doctor says Toby’s making progress, but that he would get better even faster if we had more time together, just the two of us. Time for Toby to learn for certain that he can trust me. And time for me to get to know him better. Does that make sense?”
Those big eyes were full of understanding. “Yes, it does. Perfect sense.” She came away from the banister. “Let me show you the rest of the house.”
He thought that he could stand here talking to her forever, but all he said was “Yes, that’s a good idea.”
She pushed the doors open on two small bedrooms and showed him the bath the rooms shared. “These will go with the rental.”
He looked across the hall at two closed doors. She caught the direction of his gaze and explained, “That’s my bedroom, a bath and a sitting room. There’s a master bedroom and a study downstairs, so I was hoping that maybe we could just leave my private rooms out of the arrangement—if it’s only going to be you and Toby.”
“I see.”
“I’d adjust the rent accordingly, of course.”
“If I take the place, that would be okay with me. There are more rooms than we’ll need, anyway.”
She led him back downstairs, through the study and the big master bedroom, with its private bath. There was also a spacious kitchen, a pantry and laundry room with a half bath. Between the parlor and the kitchen was a formal dining room. And branching off from the kitchen was a breakfast area and a big, open family room, which Natalie referred to as the great room.
Once Rick had seen it all, they settled at the breakfast table to talk things over. Natalie said she’d hoped to find a renter who would take the house “as is,” with all her furniture.
“That would be fine with me. But if we do this, I’d like to use the study for Toby’s bedroom. Sometimes he has nightmares, and I want to be close by.”
“I understand. I wouldn’t mind at all if you brought down one of the beds from upstairs.”
“Great.”
She was grinning. “I think this just might work out.” She braced her elbow on the table and propped her chin on her hand.
It hit him then. He remembered a spread he’d seen in some glossy magazine. A gorgeous redhead sitting at a table with her chin in her hand and an impudent grin on her lips. Her eyes had captured him as he thumbed the magazine: big and brown and soft. Just like the eyes of the woman across from him now.
The caption under the picture had read Fortune’s Face: Your face. Then, now and always…
He couldn’t stop himself from asking, “You said your grandmother was named Kate? Kate Fortune?”
She sighed. “The truth comes out.”
“The Kate Fortune? Of Fortune Cosmetics?”
“Yes.”
“You know, you look a little like—”
“Allison Fortune.” She said the name of the world-famous model and spokesperson for Fortune Cosmetics with resignation. “She’s my sister. Actually, she’s married now. Her last name’s Stone. Allie Stone.”
She didn’t look very eager to say more, and Rick wished he’d kept his mouth shut. He remembered reading how her grandmother, an expert pilot, had died tragically over a year ago. The plane Kate Fortune was flying had crashed in the jungles of the Amazon. The body, from what Rick recalled, had been burned beyond recognition.
“If you decided to take the house,” Natalie said, a little stiffly, bringing them back to the topic at hand, “the groundskeepers from my family’s estate, across the lake, will look after the property, so you won’t have any worries there. And a woman will come in once a week to clean the place.”
“Fine.”
She looked down at her hands, which she’d folded on top of the table.
“What?” he asked.
She met his eyes again, and her white teeth worried her bottom lip.
“You look as if there’s something you don’t quite know how to say.”
She chuckled. “You’re right.”
“Just say it.”
“All right. There’s one condition, if you did decide to take the house.”
“I’m listening.”
“You’d have to take care of Bernie while you’re here.”
He really hadn’t been prepared for that one. “You want me to watch your dog for you?”
Her face was flushed again. “I know, it’s crazy. But Bernie comes with the house.”
“But why?”
She glanced away, then back. “This is Bernie’s home.”
He knew there had to be more to it than that, but she was obviously reluctant to tell him what. Rick considered her request, remembering the sight of his son standing in the doorway, with his hand on the dog’s neck. And there were ten acres of property around the house; enough even for a dog that large.
While he thought it over, Natalie provided more detail about her plans. “I’m renting the house because I want to take a long vacation. I’m going on a cruise of the Mediterranean. I’ll be leaving July twenty-eighth, to return at the very end of August so I can get ready before school starts. But if the time frame’s wrong for you, I can stay across the lake, at the family estate I mentioned, either before or after I leave for my trip. My parents have split up and my father’s living alone at the estate now. He’d be glad to have me.” Her big eyes clouded a little, making him wonder whether there was some problem with her father.
The Fortunes were a very important family. And since Kate Fortune’s death, it seemed to Rick, there’d been a lot of news in the papers about them. A missing heir had turned up, and Fortune Industries stock was down. In fact, Jacob Fortune, CEO of the Fortune companies, had made the front page of the Star Tribune only this morning. The article had not been flattering. Could that particular Fortune be Natalie’s father? If so, it was no wonder she was worried about him.
Rick studied the woman across from him, thinking how uneasy he’d been about this whole “vacation” idea. He was a professional man, after all. He’d started out with nothing, and the whole focus of his life had been making something of himself. He’d
