style="font-size:15px;"> Matt’s silvery gaze was steady and open. “I have no problem with Sonya, Danielle. But there is a lot of water under that bridge and I can’t speak for Dad.” Then his voice softened. “Small steps? Starting with you designing the Bridal Rose necklace?”
The Bridal Rose. Emotion almost overwhelmed her. “It would be an honour,” she mumbled, staring fixedly at Blake’s photos to hide a sheen of tears.
Although she was close to her cousins Kim and Ryan, and had never doubted her mother’s love, finding a place she felt she belonged had always eluded her. To have found a new family and have a part in reuniting its members was a privilege. She and Matt seemed to click, just as she and Jarrod had.
Then a more selfish elation sneaked up on her. First, the beautiful yellow diamond upstairs in the safe, and now the pink Blackstone Rose diamonds. What were the chances of being offered two commissions with stones of this calibre? And at only twenty-seven years old! “What a pity the fifth diamond hasn’t come to light.”
“I’m working on that,” Matt said mysteriously. “In the meantime, I’d like you to design the necklace as if there were a fifth diamond—the centrepiece. Can you do that?”
“Of course. Can you give me a couple more weeks to finish what I’m doing here?”
He acquiesced. “I hadn’t thought further ahead than getting an answer from you.”
“Well, you have it.” She smiled happily. “I would love to do it. And I’m rapt you thought of me.”
Matt’s smile was slow to start but it lit up his face.
“You are a very talented designer and a Hammond. The perfect choice.”
They talked for an hour about the jewellery trade and little Blake, and ended on his brother Jarrod’s recent engagement to Briana. Dani thought it must be strange for Matt to see his brother marry his late wife’s sister, but Matt confided he’d always been fond of Briana. More relaxed now, she mentioned the rumours doing the rounds a few weeks ago, suggesting Jarrod Hammond was really the missing Blackstone heir. To her relief, Matt did not seem offended at hearing the Blackstone name.
“Jarrod’s birth mother may have something to say about that,” he retorted.
Dani was surprised. There had been no mention of Jarrod’s birth mother in the newspaper stories.
Matt’s mouth tightened. “I’ve met her. She taps Jarrod up for money every so often, then disappears under whatever rock she crawled out from.”
Her heart went out to Jarrod. Impossibly handsome, a successful lawyer, a beautiful new fiancée, and yet that suave exterior hid its own personal pain.
But at least he knew who his mother was….
As if her cousin had recognised her momentary sadness, he turned it on its head by agreeing to talk to his brother about a family get-together soon. “Briana has dragged him along on one of her modelling assignments overseas. Poor beggar.” He pulled an amused face. “But maybe when they get back, we can have a bit of a get-together.”
It was tentative but, still, it was an overture. “And Blake?” she asked. “And my mother, too?”
“Why not?”
The three of them had a wonderful dinner at a famous outdoor restaurant in the middle of a copse of huge tropical palms. Quinn toasted her when he heard about the Bridal Rose commission, saying it would really put her on the map in the designing world.
He turned to Matt. “I thought I had a lead on the fifth diamond, but the trail has gone cold, I’m afraid. I’ll keep you posted.”
Matt was clearly disappointed but still raised his glass to both of them. “I appreciate it, Quinn. Someone must know something. And Danielle, I am looking forward to working with you on the necklace, hopefully with all five stones.”
It was truly one of the best days she’d ever had. Her mother would be over the moon that Matt had made contact, and to have the opportunity to rewrite the history of the Heart of the Outback Diamond was such a buzz. To think Quinn might have a hand in locating the fifth stone … It was the perfect end to the perfect day.
Until she walked in on them talking business some time later on her way back from the bathroom. She wasn’t eavesdropping, but one palm tree looked much like another and she came in from a different direction to find Matt had moved into her seat and they had their heads together. Something made her pause behind the nearest trunk when she heard the name Blackstone.
“I have already spoken to three of the minor shareholders,” Matt said. “If you were to get behind us …”
She heard Quinn’s voice. “If you’re serious about this, you need Jake Vance on board, not me. I only have a handful of shares.”
“I’m meeting with Jake next week, but listen, they’re on shaky ground. The Blackstone empire is crumbling with Howard gone. Perrini and Ryan snap and snarl at each other and Kim spends all her time calming them down. I just want to keep the pressure on.”
Dani’s rosy wine-glow faded fast, leaving a nasty feeling that her cousin wasn’t playing fair.
She waited to hear how her lover responded.
“I’m not interested in a dogfight, Matt. My few shares are performing adequately.”
Dani relaxed a little and peeked around the tree trunk.
Matt had leaned back and put his hands behind his head. “I thought you’d jump at the chance to shaft a Blackstone, given your history.”
Quinn frowned. “My beef was with Howard, not Blackstone Diamonds.”
“Or,” Matt continued nonchalantly, “maybe you’re mixing business with pleasure.”
She saw Quinn’s eyes glint dangerously and couldn’t expel her next breath.
His voice was low and cool and she had to strain to hear him. “Dani is private business, all right?”
Though her heart was beating loud and fast, mostly for fear of discovery, she heard Matt apologise. “But if I can get Vance on side, you’ll go with us?”
“If Jake says sell, I’ll sell.”
She stayed behind the tree for a few more seconds, trying to make sense of all the emotions. She felt strangely buoyant that Quinn hadn’t denied there was something between them. Keenly disappointed that Matt Hammond clearly wasn’t ready to embrace the reconciliation of the two family factions just yet. Would he ever be?
And somehow uneasy that she was consorting with the enemy. Perhaps two of them.
Seven
“Quinn, have you heard a rumour about a corporate takeover of Blackstone Diamonds?”
His eyes snapped open. That was out of left field.
Quinn had been lying in bed, idly thinking that his sporadic sexual encounters rarely involved morning sex,
