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Claire presses her lips together, and I can see her mind working behind her eyes. “Increase my allowance by twenty percent or you’ll never see Jacob again.”
Whoa. Claire’s more evil than I thought. Would she really keep Elena’s grandchild from her over money?
Elena sighs sadly. “What kind of mother would use her child that way?” But Claire’s not giving in. She crosses her arms, standing her ground. Elena walks over to a picture on the mantel, touching the frame gently right below Jacob’s face. “I see. You know I love Jacob with all my heart, and of course, I wish to see him.”
Claire smiles victoriously and her eyes light up. It’s like she’s tasting her success. Completely disgusted, I glance to Carter, who’s stone-faced and gritting his teeth.
“I don’t like extortion, but if that’s the game you want to play?” Elena looks over her shoulder, double-checking whether Claire truly wants to go down this road. Claire shrugs, unbothered by the accusation. Elena inhales deeply, pinning Claire with a curious look. “I see. Well, very well, then. Remember, it was your choice to play hardball. I will continue to see Jacob . . . if you’d like to continue receiving an allowance. At all.”
“What?” Claire exclaims. “You can’t do that!” She fists her hands at her sides, angry, but I don’t think she’d actually get physical with Elena. Her M.O. doesn’t seem to be bold confrontation, given she’s been lurking in the shadows of Thomas and Elena’s dealings for years.
“I certainly can. It’s still my signature on all the financial dealings. Guess I’ve still got some wits about me, don’t I?” Elena says. It’s a gloat, but she truly seems pretty sad and disheartened by this whole conversation.
Claire seems to have lost her steam because she clamps her mouth shut, glares hellfire and damnation at Elena, and then walks toward the door. As she passes Carter, she sneers at him, “This is all your fault.”
Carter flashes his cocky grin, the one that made me hate him for so long, and Claire growls as she stomps out. A few seconds later, the front door slams.
Changing directions, Elena shakes her head woodenly but meets Stanley’s eyes. “You, dear friend, have nothing to worry about. You’ve given your life to this family, and we will take care of you for the rest of yours. I would never subject you to that.” Elena jerks her head toward the door where Claire disappears. “When you’re ready to retire, my friend, just say the word.”
“Thank heavens,” Stanley says with obvious relief, wiping at his eyes. “Elena, I’m sorry. That woman has been killing me. Tell me this, do that. What she said made sense, and though I’m loyal to you, I didn’t want to be isolated from your family.”
Elena walks to Stanley, who stands. “You are my family. Me and Thomas always felt that way, and I’m sorry if we didn’t let you know that sooner.”
She embraces Stanley, who stays still for a moment before wrapping his arms around her too. A quick second later, he pulls back. “Ma’am.” He dips his chin once, deferentially. “Should I tell Nelda to expect guests for dinner?”
Elena smiles. “Please.”
Stanley escapes, seeming glad to get away from all the drama and shouting, and Elena turns on Carter and me. “First order of business. We need to quadruple-check that every bit of paperwork lists out Claire’s access and allowances. That is . . . if you’d still like to work for the Cartwright estate after all that?”
Carter holds his hand out. “It would be my honor.”
“Good. I thought maybe that’d scare you off and I’d spend dinner with your daddy telling him that I’m snatching you from his good graces.”
Carter chuckles. “No, I’m with you. But fair warning, Dad’s probably going to make your little tiff with Claire look like child’s play.”
CHAPTER
THIRTY-ONE
CARTER
“All right, we’re here. And you are not supposed to be, so what the hell is going on?” Dad growls under his breath as he and Mom come in the door. He manages to look both furious and disappointed at the same time. Mom places a calming hand on his arm, and judging by the tension around her eyes, the drive to Elena’s wasn’t pleasant.
“Good to see you too, Dad.”
I’m lying through my teeth again, something I swore to not do. Which is why I’m glad Dad’s here. I’m ready to move forward with Elena, but the process to get there is going to be painful at best. It’ll be tough love honesty for both of us.
Dad looks past me and sees Luna and Elena, who’ve been chatting about the various art pieces in the front room. I think Luna is basically on cloud nine, hearing the detailed stories of how Thomas acquired each and every piece directly from Elena, and Elena is enjoying sharing Thomas’s excitement with someone who wants to hear every detail.
