Falling Awake(86)
Author: Jayne Ann Krentz

“There’s a time for questions,” Farrell said. “That night wasn’t the time.”

“No. But not everyone would have understood that.”

“I trusted you because I knew that Isabel trusted you,” Farrell replied.

“Thanks.”

Farrell sat for a moment, his eyes on the blue expanse of the bay. “I didn’t want to be just successful with the Kyler Method, you know. Every time I thought about Leila, I wanted to be incredibly successful. I wanted to outdo her father. I thought that was what she wanted. It was Isabel who finally brought me up short.”

“How did she do that?”

“She reminded me of what Leila really wanted.”

Ellis reflected on that. “Isabel is good at figuring out what motivates people.”

Farrell studied him with a considering expression. “Which brings me to another subject.”

“What’s that?”

“Your motivations in connection with Isabel. Leila is still a little nervous about the fact that you might be using her in some way.”

Ellis clamped his hands around the arms of his chair and shoved himself to his feet. “Tell Leila that Isabel and I will soon be making a major investment together.”

“Bad idea,” Farrell said dryly. “In case you haven’t heard, Isabel quit her job here at Kyler. She doesn’t have any money. Leila and I will try to help her out with paying off the furniture that got destroyed, but frankly, we don’t have much spare cash ourselves at the moment. And I know for a fact that Isabel won’t go to her parents for help.”

Ellis went to the door. “She won’t need any financial assistance from her family. She’s got two new clients. One of them has very deep pockets.”

“My tax dollars at work again?”

Ellis smiled. “We plan to buy a house and new furniture to go with it. We’re thinking Spanish colonial.”

“Does this mean marriage?”

Ellis opened the door. “It does.”

“Fine by me.” Farrell raised his brows. “But some people—the other members of Isabel’s family come to mind—will feel obliged to point out that you and Isabel haven’t known each other very long.”

Isabel appeared in the hall. She looked past Ellis and smiled at Farrell.

“I just had this conversation with Leila and Tamsyn,” she said. “I’ll tell you the same thing I told them. Don’t worry, Ellis and I have been meeting secretly for months.”

“Yeah?” Farrell asked, skeptical. “Where?”

Isabel put her arms around Ellis and kissed him. His eyes heated and he kissed her back, taking his time about it.

She looked at Farrell and winked.

“In our dreams,” she said.

44

two months later, Ellis led Isabel out onto the floor of the Kyler Method, Inc., reception room and took her into his arms for the first dance of their married life.

A hush fell across the wedding guests. Everyone turned to look at the couple. Ellis did look terrific in a tux, Isabel thought, amused and proud. But then, she had known he would. Hadn’t she dressed him just this way in some of her dreams?

“You are very beautiful, Mrs. Cutler,” Ellis whispered. “I do not have the words to tell you how much I love you. But I do love you and I will for the rest of my life and beyond.”

“You are the most handsome man in the world, Mr. Cutler, and I love you with all my heart.” She laughed with joy and delight, happier than she had ever been in her life. “Although I must admit that I was a tad disappointed when I discovered that you had decided not to wear your dark glasses for the ceremony.”

“Don’t worry, I’ve got them handy.” He grinned. “I may need them later on tonight if you are still glowing the way you are now.”

The musicians launched into a traditional waltz and Ellis swung her into the first slow, gliding turn. The skirts of her elegant satin gown flowed out behind her in gleaming waves the color of candlelight.

She caught sight of Jack Lawson and Beth standing at the edge of the crowd. They were talking to Tamsyn and Ron Chapman. Vincent and Dave stood with a group of people from the Belvedere Center for Sleep Research. Leila and Farrell smiled from the other side of the room. Leila’s eyes glowed with the secret of her very new pregnancy.

“To think this all started because Jack Lawson sent you to recruit me for Frey-Salter,” Isabel murmured.

“That was just an excuse, as far as I was concerned. I never thought that sending you back into a lab was a good idea.”

“I got the impression that your recruitment efforts on Lawson’s behalf were somewhat halfhearted, to say the least.”

“You’re a tango dancer,” Ellis said. “You were born to be out in the world.” He tightened his hold on her waist. “With me.”

“Remember that day on the terrace outside the café when I had lunch with Ian Jarrow and he tried to talk me into returning to the center?”

“I’m not likely to forget it.” His eyes narrowed faintly. “I was worried as hell that he might try to talk you back into his bed as well as back into your old office.”

“I was never in his bed. That’s what we were discussing when you showed up, in fact. Ian had just informed me that our relationship failed because of me, not because of him. He claimed I made all sorts of excuses to avoid intimacy.” She tilted her head a little to the side, smiling. “He was right.”

Ellis raised his brows. “Not your type?”

“No,” she said. “I knew even then that I was waiting for the man of my dreams.”