Not So Snow White (26 page)

Gently, so she didn't discourage Gaby from opening up to her, she said, "Well, you've got a very big match tomorrow. Yo
u need to stay focused on that—"

"I am,
but that doesn't mean I can't—"

Aurora lifted one hand, setting her bracelets to jingling. "You stay focused on the reason you came to London. Yes, you've already accomplished an enormous victory here, but your work isn't done yet. You've worked hard for this chance. And if you're as much like Tess as we all think you are, you will always regret allowing yourself to be distracted and not giving each match your full attention. Your young man won't disappear just because you've got other things on your agenda besides him. And if he does, well,
c
'est la
vie
."

When Gaby didn't say anything right away, Aurora continued. "Perhaps I can have a talk with Max, as well. Once you reach the end of your run here, showing your maturity with poise and dedication, perhaps I can persuade him to give you a little space." She lifted her hand again to squelch the squeal of del
ight she saw was forthcoming. "I'
m not saying he'll let you roam the streets of London, but we could always entertain your young man here at Wexley, perhaps let you take the Glass Slipper limo out for a limited ri
de through town." She smiled. "I'
m sure I'll come up with something that will suit you both."

She could see Gaby was torn. The young girl obviously thought she was wise enough, and mature enough, to handle a more serious, unattended date. But she was smart enough not to thwart the only hand that was presently feeding her what she wanted most. "Oh, Aurora, thank you." With a burst of energy Aurora would have loved to bottle and sell, Gaby leaped from the chair and leaned down to give her a big hug. "I really, really appreciate it. You really are my fairy godmother."

"You're welcome, dear," Aurora said, hugging her back, enjoying the moment despite some lingering misgivings. "Now, perhaps you should think about getting back to your rooms and settling in for the
night. If Tess comes in while I'
m still up, I'll
tell her you asked about her. I'
m sure she'll tell you about anything exciting on your drive over to the grounds tomorrow."

Gaby all but skipped from the room. Aurora sat back and sighed, somewhat exhausted just from being that close to so much energy packed into one young girl. "Oh, Max, darling," she murmured to the room at large, "you really are going to have your work cut out for you with that one."

She picked up her reading glasses and slipped them back on, but her mind refused to stay on the pages of the book.

Nothing was going remotely as she'd planned, But she hadn't become the successful businesswoman she had by being
rigid and uninspired. So Max and Tess weren't falling all over each other. Initially she'd simply wanted Tess to find her path to her financial solvency. And on that score, it appeared that through her liaison with the Fontaines she might indeed find that solution. Though perhaps not in the way Aurora had envisioned. Tess was in hot demand again, and Aurora had no doubt she'd find some way to capitalize on it.

However, Aurora had spent enough time with Tess over the past several weeks to know for certain that she was at a much bigger crossroad in her life than one predicated by financial circumstance. Another endorsement deal wouldn't fix what Aurora was beginning to see was the bigger problem. What was Tess Hamilton going to do with the rest of her life? Even if she invested well and modified her living expenses accordingly, she'd been too hungry, too focused, and far too competitive as a professional tennis player to be remotely satisfied with sitting back on her laurels and living off the spoils of her successes.

Gaby had raved about Tess's abilities as a coach. Mentor. What have you. The press was all abuzz with speculation as to why Tess had taken on the young phenom, though she'd yet to see anyone speculate on the money angle. Which had been a shock, really. But perhaps Tess was seen as being so obscenely successful, it simply didn't occur to anyone to dig in that direction. Besides, Tess had cleverly maintained a very high profile about the whole thing, steering the media juggernaut to her best advantage the entire time.

Of course, that whole business with the possible romantic link to Max had been quite the timely media distraction. Aurora paused in her thoughts, and she slid her glasses off her nose. "No. She wouldn't have." She slid them back on. Surely Tess hadn't intentionally created that entire thing for her own purposes? Toying with Max privately was one thing. He was a grown man, after all, and from what she'd seen, perfectly capable of holding his own with Tess. Making it more the pity that their love match wasn't real. But surely Tess hadn't been using Max or Gaby as some sort of promotional shill. Things had certainly moved in that direction, but Aurora would like to think that it all hadn't been a calculated move on Tess's part. More a serendipitous benefit from her agreeing to help out with Gaby in the first place.

Of course, Gaby was doing quite well, so whatever the case, Tess had more than kept up her end of the bargain she'd made with the Fontaines, regardless of any ulterior motive. Aurora sighed and slid her glasses off for the last time, closing her book, too, for good measure. If only Tess could see what was so plainly evident to Aurora. She stood, and because no one was around to notice, took a moment to massage her aching hip. Getting old was a stone-cold bitch, as Vivian was wont to say.

But it would be an even colder day before Aurora was too old to play fairy godmother She hadn't come this far to give up now. Tess might need a bit mo
r
e of her godmotherly skills than most, but one way or the other, they were all going to live happily ever after. She walked with a soft limp toward the library door. "Even if it kills me, dammit."

Chapter 2
0

"
T
hat's the way to do it, Bobby!" Tess leaped up from her seat, as did Andrea next to her, both of them pumping their fists in the air.

Andrea threw her arms around Tess. "I can't believe it! We're in the quarterfinals!"

Grinning from ear to ear as Bobby and his doubles partner, Tim, saluted the wildly cheering crowd, Tess enthusiastically hugged Andrea back. "Not a bad wedding present, huh? A nice shiny championship trophy?"

"Whoa, don't get ahead of yourself," Andrea said, laughing nervously, but giddy with the excitement of the moment.

The energy in the stands was off the charts, especially for doubles play. It had been a tough, tight, five-set match against the two Australians, ranked fourth in the world, but Bobby and Tim had prevailed in the end.

"So, are you coming out to dinner with us tonight?" Andrea asked, still a bit breathless.

"I wish I could, but with the rain delay this morning, Gaby's match won't go on until late this afternoon, if at all. I'm going to stick around here."

Andrea's expression shifted to a knowing smile, but she didn't say anything.

"What?" Tess asked, holding onto the rail in front of her as the two of them were jostled by the exiting fans. They'd wait until the stands had emptied a little before exiting. Tess tended to cause a bit of a stir, so security had asked her to arrive after matches began and leave after most of the crowd had left. It was that or hire private security, something she'd never been thrilled about and didn't intend to start now—even if she'd had the money to fund a payroll, which of course she didn't.

"It's none of my business, of course," Andrea was saying.

For a split second, Tess thought her new sister-in-law had read her mind and was referring to her financial predicament. Had Bobby told his wife about the dropped endorsement deal?

Then Andrea said, "I know it's probably all a media stunt or something, to sell papers, but I have to admit, you and Max Fontaine make a sharp pairing. He's so enigmatic and serious and you're so outgoing and—"

"Obnoxious?" Tess finished on a laugh.

"No, no, of course not. I'm just saying you two looked rather sweet together."

Tess snorted.
" 'Sweet'? Trust me, nothing between Max and me falls even remotely under that heading."

Andrea waved excitedly at her new husband as Bobby and Tim walked to the far side of the court to give interviews. Tess blew him a kiss.

"So," Andrea went on, eyes still sparkling, "what is it like working with Gabrielle, anyway? Everyone is comparing her to you, and I can see the similarities. Does it feel odd at all?"

Tess was still caught up in the way Andrea all but glowed
when she looked at Bobby. What must it be like to sparkle like that because you cared about someone so fully, knowing they felt
the same way? She'd entered her
past relationships with all the same gusto she did her tournaments, but never with any real idea that they'd last very long. Her constant traveling schedule was very prohibitive. And even if she wanted to date a player, that was almost worse, as their tour schedules were never the same. Of course, she was retired now and could do as she pleased. Date as she pleased. And maybe she would.

Just as soon as she figured out how to earn a living.

"Not odd so much as kind of surreal," Tess said, pulling her thoughts together. "I've never been in the position of teaching or molding anyone's game but my own."

"Gabrielle is having such a marvelous run here, you must be proud to be part of that, at least."

"Oh, I don't know that I've had that big an influence on her game. We haven't been working together long enough for that. Tucking he
r
away at Sir Robin's place, with the private practice court, has probably done more for her than anything. She's really been able to keep her focus."

"And her composure," Andrea added with a teasing smile. "All that talk of her reputation for being a rebel, slamming rackets and questioning calls, cursing herself, and the like. But other than that little dustup in the second round, she's been almost icy out there. At least from what I've seen and heard."

"Sometimes it's like that," Tess said. "She's doing well, staying on top, so she doesn't need the outlet, the release." Her smile turned wry. "But give her time, give her nerves time. She's stepping into bold new territory now, with some big guns in her immediate sights."

"I can't believe that qualifier took out Justine. Gaby caught a very lucky break there. So you think she can make the quarters?"

Tess beamed, "Oh, I know she can."

The crowd having thinned now, Andrea turned and began making her way from the stands, as Tess followed. She tossed a quick grin over her shoulder at Tess. "You are really enjoying this, aren't you? You play it down, but I can see it. You've got immense pride in your pupil, as well you should."

"She's an amazing talent
,"
was all Tess said. "Like I said, I'm just giving her a little advice is all. She'll find herself a real coach once this is all said and done."

Andrea didn't say anything as they quickly slipped down the side path toward the players' area, flashing their passes at security as they ducked inside. "I don't know," she said, holding the door for Tess. "Seems a shame not to stick with something you enjoy. I'm betting Gabrielle wouldn't mind." She looked past Tess then, and her entire face lit up. "Hi, sweetheart!"

Tess turned to see her brother coming down the hallway, sweaty and grinning from ear to ear. "Hey there, you big winner you," she said, thankful to have that particular discussion thwarted. Just the thought of Gaby moving on had made her heart squeeze a little. Okay, maybe more than a little. And she really didn't want to think about that right now.

As Andrea moved by her, she whispered, "And I don't care what you say, I'm betting Max wouldn't mind if you stuck around, either." Then she threw herself in her husband's arms and let him spin her around as they both giggled
like school-
kids.

Tess stood there and watched the absolute joy they took in just holding each other
…
and for the first time in her life, she felt like maybe she'd missed out on a big part of something important. All the accomplishments she'd made were great, but how much better might it be to share those accomplishments with someone? Fortunately, she couldn't take the time to worry about that. She had other more immediate concerns. Because
unless she figured out how to get paid, the only accomplishment she'd be sharing with anyone was filing for bankruptcy.

"Okay, okay, you two, get a room already," she teased, tugging at her brother's arm. "There are hundreds of honeymoon suites in London, you know."

"Yeah, yeah," Bobby told her with a laugh. "You're just jealous."

Maybe I am,
Tess thought,
just a little.
But she'd die before admitting it t
o him. God help her, knowing her
baby brother, he'd start playing matchmaker. "In your dreams, buddy. Listen, I'd love to stick around with you guys for dinner, but Gaby's match has been delayed and so I'm going to hang out around here."

"Okay, understood." Bobby wiggled his eyebrows. "So, does this 'hanging out' involve your young
protégée's
very eligible brother? You guys are smokin' the pages right off the tabs. What's going on with that?"

"Absolutely nothing. It's all just hype."

Andrea slid her arm through her husband's. "So says she, anyway."

Tess opened her mouth, then shut it again. "I don't know why I bother. Just because you two are sickeningly in love doesn't mean it's for all of us, you know."

Bobby reached out and snagged her wrist and yanked her close, catching her off balance. She fell against him as he planted a big, wet, sloppy kiss on her cheek. "Come in, the water's just fine. Scaredy cat."

Tess made a big show of using Bobby's shirt to wipe off her cheek, then simply stuck her tongue out at him.

They were still laughing as she left them and went the opposite way down the hall. Once she knew they weren't following behind her, probably too busy sticking their tongues down each other's throats, she made her way upstairs. She headed over to
the indoor broadcast soundstages used by the various global networks to beam updates out to the world during the tournament. She paused outside the door to the booth she wanted, ducking as a cameraman stepped out and nearly clipped her with his shoulder gear.

"So sorry, Miss Hamilton," he said, almost gushing in his haste to make sure she was okay.

"Not a problem," she answered quickly. "Good thing I still have quick reflexes."
Now go
, she silently urged. She had to step inside that soundstage and be instantly "on" and she hadn't had time to mentally gear herself up for what could be the most important moment of her life.

Rumors had been circulating for a few days now, and for once she hadn't been the instigator of them. Word was that one of the major cable networks was thinking about offering her a guest commentating spot for the rest of the tournament. Apparently the ratings had continued to spike the few times she sat in with the regular commentators.

She wasn't nervous about the guest-spot offer. She was nervous because she wanted them to offer her a whole lot more than a guest spot. She'd really enjoyed herself—well, what wasn't to love, she was getting paid to shoot off her mouth, her second-best skill next to playing tennis—but it mattered for so many other reasons. In her wildest dreams she hadn't expected something like this could possibly fall into her lap. And to think, in a way, she had Max to thank for all of it. If he hadn't been so freaked out by the tabloid coverage of the two of them together, she'd have never charmed her way into the broadcast booth that first day of the tournament.

Since the rumors had surfaced she'd given it a lot of thought, and though it meant a good deal more work than she'd had to do filming the occasional commercial or shooting a print ad for
this product
o
r
that, she'd come to realize after working with Gaby these past few weeks that she needed to be working. She needed to have a specific function, something viable and worthwhile that made her feel alive.

Watching Gaby play from the sidelines hadn't been easy. In fact, nothing about being here had been easy. So many memories, many of them wonderful, but now so impossibly poignant, knowing they'd be her last. And yet, hard as it had been, she honestly didn't want to be anywhere else. It felt like she'd come home. The buzz, the excitement, this was the world she knew, the one she thrived in. She'd realized that she didn't want to leave the game completely behind if she didn't have to. Tennis was still her soul mate, her lifeblood. Sure it would take some time to truly come to terms with the reality of no longer being able to compete, she knew that and was prepared to deal with it. Or try to. All she knew was that walking away no longer felt like the rig
ht answer. She wanted to stay…
she just had to find a new reason to be here.

Hence the broadcasting booth she was about to enter. If all went as planned, she would stay involved in the game she loved and, equally important, keep herself out of bankruptcy court.

She'd already planned out what she was going to say to Wade and her father about the job and why she'd sold off all of her other property. She'd simply explain that without the concern of investing new tournament winnings, she'd wanted to downsize, concentrate her assets. She could see her father's nod of approval as she explained that by doing so, she could focus more on her new television career, and, of course, on her charitable endeavors.

But none of that could happen until she worked her way inside the soundstage on the other side of that door
…
and made certain that they knew they were dealing with a hot commodity
they should snap up now, before some other network came calling. "Ch-yeah, right," she muttered under her breath. But if anyone could pull it off, it was her. She took a deep breath, put a broad smile on he
r
face, and pushed open the door, already preparing what smart-ass comment she was going to use to soften them up
…
only to run smack into Max.

"What are you doing here?" they both asked simultaneously.

Tess folded her arms and waited.

Max rolled his eyes. "Don't worry, I wasn't doing anything that would spoil the Tess Hamilton—London love connection."

She narrowed her brows. "Very funny. Interview? Is Gaby here?" She looked behind him.

"Yes, interview. My sister happens to be doing quite well here, in case it's slipped your attention between all the parties and television appearances. They wanted to talk to her, but with her match being delayed, she's a little frazzled by the enforced wait and I didn't want her distracted further. So I offered myself instead." His lips quirked. "I know it comes as a shock to you, but they said yes."

She had to work not to smile. Who knew he could have a sense of humor? "Funny. And I know it will come as a shock to you, but I just got done watching Bobby win his match and move into the quarterfinals. It was pretty raucous in the stands, but I wouldn't exactly call it a party. And unless there were cameras trained on me I wasn't aware of, I wasn't on television, either."