Beloved (6 page)

188

Beloved

Diana Palmer

189

party is going to use it to crucify him. I understand his resignation
is forthcoming momentarily."

"What a shame,"
Tira
said honestly. "He's done a wonderful
job. I met him at one of the charity benefits earlier this year and
thought how lucky we were to have elected someone so
capable
to the position! Now, if he resigns, I
guess the governor will have
to temporarily
appoint someone to finish his term."

^“
No doubt he will."

"Maybe he'll slide out of it.
Lots of politicians do."

"Not this time, I'm afraid," Charles said.
"He's made some
bitter enemies
since he took office. They'll love the opportunity
to settle the score."

She recalled that Simon had antagonized plenty of people
when
he held the office of state attorney general.
But it would have taken more than a scandal to unseat him. He had a clever
habit
of turning weapons against their wielders.

She closed her eyes and ground her teeth as she realized
how
pitiful she was about him, still. Everything reminded her of
Simon.
She hadn't wanted to come tonight,
either, but the alternative was to stay home and let the whole city know what a
coward she was.
She had to hold her
head up high and pretend that everything was
fine, when her whole world was lying in shards around her feet.

She hadn't tried to kill herself, but one particularly
lurid news
paper account said she had, and added that it had been over
former
attorney general Simon Hart, who'd
rejected her. It was in a news
paper
published by a relative of Jill Sinclair, a woman who'd been
a rival of
Tira's
for
Simon during the past few years.
Tira
had
been even more humiliated at that particular
story, but when she'd phoned the reporter who wrote it, he denied any knowledge
of Jill
Sinclair. Still, she was
certain dear Jill had a hand in it.

Tira
shuddered, realizing that Simon must have seen the story,
too. He'd know what a fool she'd been over him, which was
just
one more humiliation. Living that down wasn't
going to be easy.
But she did have Charles beside her.
And he had his own ordeal to face, because his sister-in-law would certainly be
present.

A valet came to park the car for Charles, who was torn
between
escorting
Tira
inside or
accompanying the elegantly dressed young
man
assigned to the car placement to make sure he didn't put a
scratch on "Big Red."

"Go ahead,"
Tira
said
with amused resignation. "I'll wait on the steps for you."

"You're such a doll," he murmured and made a
kissing motion
toward her. "How many women in
the world would understand
a man's passion for
his car? Here, son, I'll just ride down with you to the parking lot."

The valet seemed torn between shock and
indignation.

"He's in love with it!"
Tira
called to the young man. "He
can't help
himself. Just humor him!"

The valet broke into a wide grin and climbed under the
steering
wheel.

It was unfortunate that while she was waiting on the wide
porch
for Charles to return, Simon and his date got
out of his elegant
Town Car at the steps and let the valet
drive it off. He looked
devastating, as
usual. He was wearing the prosthesis, she noticed,
and wondered at how much he seemed to use it these days. Just
after the wreck, he wouldn't be caught dead wearing an
artificial
arm.

The woman with him was Jill Sinclair herself, a
socialite, twice
divorced and wealthy, with short black
hair and dark eyes and a
figure that drew
plenty of interest. It would,
Tira
thought wick
edly, considering that her red sequined dress must have
been
sprayed on and the paint ran out at
midthigh
. Advertising must
pay, she mused, because Simon certainly seemed pleased as he
smiled down at the small woman and held her elbow as they
climbed up the steps.

He didn't see
Tira
until they
were almost at the top. When he
did, he seemed to
jerk, as if the sight of her was unexpected.

She didn't let anything of her feelings show, despite the
pain
of seeing him now when her whole life had
been laid bare in the
press. She did her
best not to let her embarrassment show, either.

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Beloved

Diana Palmer

191

She smiled carelessly and nodded politely at the couple and de
liberately turned away in the direction where Charles
and the valet
were just coming into view.

"Why, how brave she is," Jill Sinclair purred
to Simon, just
loud enough for
Tira
to hear her. "I'd never have had the nerve
to face all these people after that humiliating story in the—
Simon!"

Her voice died completely.
Tira
didn't look toward them. Her
face was flaming
and she knew her accelerated heartbeat was mak
ing her shake visibly. She and Jill had never liked each other, but
the woman seemed to be looking for a way to hurt her.
She was
obviously exuding her power since
she'd finally managed to get Simon to notice her and take her out. God knew,
she'd been after him for years.
Tira's
fall from
grace had obviously benefitted her.

Charles bounded up the steps and took
Tira's
arm. "Sorry about
that," he said sheepishly.

"You love your car," she replied with a warm
smile. "I un
derstand."

"You're one in a million," he mused. His hand
fell to grasp
hers, and when she looked inside the
open doors she knew why.
His half brother
was there, and so was his sister-in-law, looking unhappy.

"Gene," he called to his older half brother.
"Nice to see you."
He shook the other
man's hand. Gene was tall and severe-looking
with thinning gray hair. The woman beside him was tiny and
blond and lovely, but she had the most tragic brown eyes
Tira
had
ever seen.

"Hello,
Nessa
,"
Charles said to the woman, his face guarded, a polite smile on his lips.

"Hello, Charles,
Tira
,"
Nessa
replied in her soft, sweet voice.
"You both look very nice. Isn't this a good
turnout?" she added
nervously.
"They'll make a lot of money at five hundred dollars
a couple."

"Yes,"
Tira
agreed with a broad smile. "The hospital
outreach

program will probably be able to afford two vans and the services
of another nurse!"

"For indigents," Gene Marlowe said huffily,
"who won't pay a penny of their own health care."

The other three people looked at him as if he'd gone
mad. He glared at them, reddening. "I have to see Todd Groves about a
contract we're pursuing. If you'll excuse me?
Nessa
, don't just stand there! Come along."

Nessa
ground her teeth together as Gene took her arm roughly.
Charles looked as if he might attack his own brother
right there.
Tira
caught his hand and tugged.

"I'm starving," she told him quickly, exchanging
speaking
glances with a suddenly relieved
Nessa
. "Feed me!"

Charles
hesitated for an instant, during which Gene dragged
Nessa
away toward a group of men.

"Damn him!" Charles bit off, his normally
pleasant face con
torted and threatening.

Tira
shook his hand gently. "You're
broadcasting," she mur
mured, bumping
deliberately against his side to distract him. "Come on, before you cause
her any more trouble than she's
already
got."

He let out a weary sigh. "Why did she marry
him?" he
groaned.
"Why?"

"Whatever the reason doesn't
matter much now. Let's go."

She pulled until he let her lead him to the long buffet
table,
where expensive nibbles and champagne were
elegantly arranged.

"This is going to eat up all the profits,"
Tira
murmured wor
riedly,
noting the crystal flutes that were provided for the cham
pagne, and the fact that caviar was furnished as well.

Charles leaned toward her. "It's grocery store
caviar, and the
champagne is the sort they deliver in big round metal
tractor
trucks..."

"Charles!" She couldn't repress a giggle at the
insinuation, and
just as she felt her face going red
from glee, she looked up and
saw Simon's pale
eyes glittering at her from across the room. She

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Beloved

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averted her eyes
to the table and didn't look in that direction again.
His expression had been far different from the one he'd worn
when he'd seen her in the hospital. Now it was
indignant and
outraged, as if he
blamed her for the publicity that made him look
guilty, too.

Charles did waltz divinely.
Tira
found herself on the floor with
him time after time.
People noticed her, and there were some obvious whispers, which probably
concerned her "suicide at
tempt." She was
uncomfortable at first, but then she realized that
the opinion of most of these people didn't matter to her. She knew
the
truth about what had happened and so did Charles. If the others
wanted to believe her to be so weak and helpless
that she'd die
rather than face up to
her failures, let them.

"Doesn't it worry you, being seen with such a
notorious
woman?" she chided when they were
standing again at the buffet
table with more
champagne.

"Notorious women are fascinating," he returned,
and smiled.
His eyes lifted to his half brother
and
Nessa
and his jaw clenched.
The two of them were going out the door and
Nessa
looked as if she were crying.

"You can't," she said, catching his arm when he
looked as if
he might follow them.

"She should leave him."

"She'll have to make that decision for
herself."

He glanced down at her with worried eyes. "She isn't
like you.
She isn't independent and spirited.
She's shy and gentle and peo
ple take advantage
of her."

"And you want to protect her. I understand. But you
can't, not
tonight."

He made a rough sound in his throat. "Damn it!"

She leaned against him affectionately for an instant.
"I'm sorry.
I really am."

His arm slipped around her shoulders. "One day,"
he promised
himself.

She nodded. "One day."

"Why, Charles, how handsome you look!" Jill
Sinclair's high-pitched, grating voice turned them around. "Are you
enjoying
yourself?"

"I'm having a great time," Charles said through
his teeth.

"How about you?"

"Oh, Simon is just the most wonderful escort,"
she sighed and glanced at
Tira
with half-closed eyes.
"We've been everywhere
together lately.
There are
so
many charity dos this
time of year.
And how are you,
Tira
?
I was so sorry to hear about your near
tragedy!" She was almost purring, enjoying
Tira's
stiff posture
and cold face. She raised her voice,
drawing attention from the couples hovering near the buffet table. "Isn't
it a pity that the
newspapers made such a big thing of
your suicide attempt? I
mean, the
humiliation of having your feelings made public must
be awful. And for the gossips to say that you wanted to die just
because Simon couldn't love you back... why he was just
shattered
that you made him look like a
coldhearted villain in the eyes of
his friends.
God knows, it isn't his fault that he doesn't love you!"

Tira
was too shaken by the unexpected attack to reply.
Charles

wasn't.

"Why, you prissy little cat," Charles said with
cold venom,
making Jill actually catch her breath
in surprise at the unexpected
verbal jab.
"Why don't you go sharpen your claws on the cur
tains?"

He took
Tira's
arm and led her
away. She was so shocked and
outraged that she
couldn't even manage words. She wanted to empty the punch bowl over the woman,
but that was hardly the
sort of thing to do
at a benefit ball. Her proud spirit had all but
been broken by recent events. She was still licking her wounds.

Simon was talking to a man near the door that Charles was
urging her toward. He paused in midsentence
and looked at
Tira's
white face with curious concern.

Before he could speak, Charles did. "Never mind
adding your
two cents worth. Your girlfriend said
it all for you."