Fiance by Fate (2 page)

“What’s the matter with you?” She glanced behind her to see what had Maddie in such a tizzy, and when she did, she immediately understood.

Her fiancé, David, was standing on the other side of the bar, talking to a beautiful redhead. Sabrina’s heart dropped further when he grinned at something the woman said, then handed her a glass of wine.

Sabrina bit her lip until it throbbed. David. With another woman. She had to look away or she was going to be sick.

Maddie placed her hand over Sabrina’s and squeezed. “Hey, I’m sorry you had to see that, but pull it together. Don’t sit here and let him do this to you. You should go confront him.”

Her chest hurt, and she wanted to scream, but she shook her head instead. “No. I couldn’t do that,” she said, trying to control the tremor in her voice. “David wouldn’t want a scene.”

Maddie scowled. “David wouldn’t want a scene? Forget what that jackass wants.”

“No, I—I can’t.”

“Well, don’t you worry,” her friend said, patting her hand. “I personally love a good scene, so I’ll be more than happy to cause one for you.”

Maddie sliding off her stool pulled Sabrina from her daze. She grabbed Maddie’s arm. “No. Don’t. It’s nothing. I’ve seen her before. I think she’s a doctor at the hospital.”

Maddie looked back at David with her eyes narrowed. “A coworker? Maybe. He’s not touching her or making any googley eyes, I’ll give him that much. There are two other men with them, too.”

Relief flooded her senses, and she was able to breathe again. “See?” She picked up her drink and took a healthy gulp. “It’s business. Now sit down before he sees us.
Please
.”

“Oh, fine,” her friend huffed. “Looks like they’re going into the restaurant now anyway.” She sat back down but still looked petulant. “Honestly, Sabrina, you should go over there and say hello. If he’s truly out on business, then neither of you have anything to feel guilty about.”

That was true. But a nauseating sinking of despair held her immobile. What if it
was
a date? What would she do? She couldn’t let him go so easily. She finally thought she could have a family and home of her very own. After everything she’d been through, was that too much to want for herself?

Maddie tilted her head. “Your silence is incriminating. You know what I would do if I were you?”

She was afraid to know, but still asked, “What?”

“Retaliate.”

“Retaliate,” she repeated. She cocked an eyebrow. “What are we, fifteen?”

Maddie shrugged a shoulder, then opened her purse, pulling out a copy of
Boston
magazine. “Okay, maybe ‘retaliate’ is the wrong word. But dating while he makes up his mind is a good strategy. Imagine if David saw you with one of these guys. That so-called temporary break of his would be on permanent hiatus.”

Sabrina peered down at the article entitled “New England’s Most Eligible Bachelors” and rolled her eyes. “Oh my gosh. Are you serious?”

“As a heart attack.”

“Well, put it away before you give me one. I’m not interested in dating any eligible bachelors to make David jealous.”

“Why not? If David is playing the field, you should, too.”

“He’s
not
playing the field.” Maddie just didn’t get it. Sabrina didn’t want to play games. At almost thirty years old, she didn’t have the time or patience for them. She and David had been together for three years and it had been wonderful—a lovely taste of what it was like to be loved and accepted into a family. “Look, I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but I don’t want to date anyone else.”

Maddie ignored her last comment by burying her nose in the article. “Check out this guy. He’s even from Boston.”

Sabrina grudgingly looked. And wish she hadn’t. Jack Brenner’s all-too-handsome face stared back at her. He was posed with his arms crossed, wearing a designer tuxedo, tieless with his shirt undone at least four buttons down from the collar. His thick, dark hair looked playfully mussed, as if some woman had just run her fingers through it.

Sabrina swallowed hard. Good Lord, for a man who worked in finance, he sure had Hollywood-chiseled looks. Unfortunately, he also had that same cocky grin he wore the last time she’d spoken to him—and that was enough to ground her back down to reality.

She shoved the magazine away. “Definitely not that one.”

Maddie did a double-take at his picture, then frowned. “Are you kidding me? Why? He’s the best-looking one in the bunch.”

“Well, I can speak from personal experience that he’s all too aware of that, too.”

Maddie’s mouth hung open. “You’ve met Eligible Bachelor Number Three and you didn’t introduce him to your bestest single girlfriend?”

“Trust me. If I had, we wouldn’t be friends anymore. He’s my boss’s son and one of the mutual fund wholesalers at my company. Thankfully, he covers the state of Connecticut, so he’s rarely in the Boston office. Small favors, since he’s a complete and total player.”

Her friend winced. “A dog, huh?”

“I’m afraid so.”

Maddie looked back at his picture longingly. “Yeah, I guess the article does mention he’s gone through quite a string of women. But I don’t know. Dogs can be fun. Sometimes all they need is the right trainer.”

Sabrina just shook her head. Becoming another notch on someone like Jack Brenner’s bedpost held no appeal to her. The last thing she wanted was to be bounced around in her love life like she’d been bounced around foster homes as a kid. That kind of hollowness was not something she’ d easily forget, which was why she craved stability. And David gave her that. Besides being handsome and intelligent, he was grounded and level-headed. David’s parents loved her, too. Even if she took out Madame Butterfly, there were still so many signs…

“Is he as handsome as his picture?” Maddie asked with a sigh.

Sabrina wrinkled her nose at her friend’s fawning. It never failed. Whenever Jack Brenner entered a room, women felt compelled to fling their panties in his direction like he was some modern-day Elvis He had that kind of effect on women.

On all women except her, that is.

Sabrina shrugged. “I guess so.”

A minor lie. Jack Brenner was a
thousand
times better-looking in person. Even though she was engaged, she could admit that much to herself. After all, any woman would have to be dead and buried in the grave a month not to notice. But that didn’t change the fact that he was heartless and self-centered. He didn’t even have the decency to come back to town when his father was in the hospital last month. The fact that he could so easily dismiss his family in a time of crisis was yet another reason why she couldn’t stand the man.

Maddie stuffed the magazine back in her purse. “I have to hand it to you. You must be head over heels in love to ignore someone like that.”

“I definitely am. David is worth the wait.”

“Well, if I were you and anything happens with your engagement to David—or maybe I should say
doesn’t
happen with him—I’d zero in on this guy in a heartbeat the next time I saw him.”

Sabrina laughed. Yeah. Right. Get mixed up with a playboy like Jack who ate up women who threw themselves at him like they were chocolate bonbons? No. Thank. You. There was no chance of that happening, even if she and David never got back together. Which was highly unlikely in itself.

But she knocked on the wood table for luck anyway.

Maddie eyed her. “All I’m saying is keep an open mind. Don’t get your hopes up that David will be ready to commit just because of a few superstitions and the premonition of a cross-dressing psychic.”

“I
am
keeping an open mind. I may not be Madame Butterfly, but I can safely predict that Jack Brenner is one man who will never, ever be a part of my future.”

…

Jack Brenner walked across his father’s penthouse and stared out the window into the night. The Boston skyline was illuminated before him and he felt content being back in the city he grew up in. This was where he belonged. It took some time, but he’d paid his dues and was ready to make the next step in eventually taking over control of Brenner Capital Investments. He assumed that was why his father had transferred him back to Boston—to make the transition easier. Jack couldn’t wait to get started. He loved his job and he did it well. Aside from his family, this company was the one thing he could say he was truly passionate about.

It was a part of him.

The front door suddenly opened and his father walked in. Leonard Brenner smiled and extended his arms wide as soon as his gaze landed on Jack. “I’m glad you finally made it, son. You look great.”

“Thanks. It’s been a while,” he said, giving his father an extra clap on the back. He stepped away and tried not to appear obvious as he assessed his father ‘s appearance. At least on the surface, his dad looked fit and healthy.

Taking a deep breath, Jack hesitated, not sure he wanted to hear the answer to his next question. “So…how do you feel?”

His dad gave him a crooked smile as he rubbed his chest. “The old heart’s still ticking, if that’s what you want to know. I’m sorry to tell you that it’ll take more than a little angina to force me to retire.” His smile grew wider, and he looked at Jack with a thoughtful expression. “You know, I’m really glad you’re back. Maybe it was worth getting sick to have you home where you belong.”

Jack tried to smile, too, but a part of him was still worried about his father. He wished he could have been at the hospital when his father was admitted last month. He would have liked to talk with the doctors personally. Since his mom’s death, his dad was everything to him. Unfortunately, his former girlfriend didn’t quite have the same attitude when it came to family matters and neglected to pass on the message until he’d already been discharged from the hospital.

“Yeah, I’m glad to be back. The traffic here is crap as per usual, but, all in all, I’ve missed Boston. And you and Laurie, of course,” he added with a dry grin.

His dad gestured to the living room and took a seat on the white leather sofa. “Well, your sister and I appreciate that. It’s partly why I changed your territory. I assume you know the other reason.”

Jack sat, too. Anticipation coursed through him as soon as his father mentioned business.
This is it
, he thought. The National Sales Manager position had opened up and now with his father’s health not what it used to be, the time was growing closer to pass the baton.

He leaned forward, friction barely keeping him in his seat, but he willed himself to stay in control. “I know exactly why you changed it,” he stated evenly.

“Good.”

“I’ll take it.”

His father paused, deep lines creasing his forehead. “What exactly will you be taking?”

“The National Sales Manager position. I’ll take it.”

Leonard blew out a long breath, drumming his fingers on the arm of the sofa in a nervous gesture that made Jack grow wary. “I don’t know how to tell you this, but I’ve decided not to give you that promotion. At least for now.”

Jack almost fell off the sofa. “What are you talking about? How can I ever take over as president some day if I don’t make this move up in the company now?”

His father’s sudden silence had him breaking into a cool sweat between the blades of his shoulders. Jack narrowed his eyes. “I
am
going to take over this company someday, aren’t I?”

Leonard cleared his throat. “You might be getting ahead of yourself.”

“Ahead of myself? The position just became available. Plus, I’m your son.”

“True. But I could easily give the job to Laurie,” his father countered.

Jack snorted. He knew that wasn’t going to happen. As much as he loved his sister, she wasn’t the type to run a company. Besides having no financial education whatsoever, she loved being a stay-at-home mom and having her house to run. “Come on, Dad, you have to start training me to take over.”

“There’s nothing I would like better than for you to take over for me someday,” his father stated in a somewhat reassuring tone, “but I think you still need a little maturing.”

Jack stared at him blankly. “Maturing? I’m thirty-four years old.”

“Now, that’s just a number,” his father said with a chuckle. “Nothing else.”

“What are you talking about then?”

His dad’s expression quickly sobered. “Well, the stockholders seem to have some…
issues
with your reputation and how it could affect the company in the long run.”

“My reputation? There are no problems with my reputation. I’m your number one wholesaler on the east coast.”

“Yes, but the stockholders have more of an issue with your, ah,
personal
reputation. In short, you change women like you change underwear. I happen to agree.”

“
What?
” Jack shot out of his seat and began pacing the room. He reached up and roughly worked loose his tie, which now felt like a hangman’s noose around his neck. “That’s ridiculous. But even if it were true, it’s my
personal
life. That has no effect on my business life.”

“Well, when your personal life becomes front page news, it does have an effect,” Leonard said, sweeping his arm in the direction of the coffee table where the recent issue of
Boston
magazine lay.

Jack winced. “You, uh, saw that article, huh?”

“Yes, and I’m sure the Board saw it too. The single life may be all fun and games to you, but to them, instability in your personal life translates to instability at work. Managing a company is like managing one giant relationship. And
you
, my dear boy, according to that article, have never been in a relationship longer than a month.”

“That’s not…”
Is it true?
He gave it some thought. He had just broken up with Brianna before he was asked to do the interview. Then before that there was Rachel. Then Mila. Giselle. Hmm…perhaps there was a grain of truth in there somewhere.

His father sighed tiredly. “That’s what I thought.”

Jack rubbed a hand over his face. “I don’t understand any of this. If you have no plans to promote me, then I’m not sure what I’m doing here.”