Chapter 1

Five Years Later

The taxi pulled up in front of the Smith Hotels and Towers and the driver switched off the engine and turned to the passenger seated behind him.

She was staring out the window with an absent expression on her rather attractive face, not even realizing that they had arrived at their destination.

"We're here love." The cabbie said gently. Evelyn started slightly, turning from the window and blinked at him in confusion for a few seconds before her hazel eyes cleared and she flushed.

"Sorry, I was thinking about something..." she muttered, digging into her purse for the cab fare. She paid him, gathered the huge stack of shopping in both arms and got out, shutting the door with her foot then hurrying through the drizzling rain into the hotel lobby. She smiled at the doorman who hurried forward to take the bags from her. "Hello Jarvis." she said, glad to finally be rid of the bags. "Is my mother here yet?"

"Yes Ms. Smith, she's waiting in the open cafe. Shall I take these up to the penthouse?" Evelyn thanked him and headed off towards the open center of the hotel.

The Smith was an ultramodern edifice of glass and marble rising fifty stories high and was her family's pride and joy. She followed a succession of exquisite walkways and escalators until she came to the open dome right in the heart of the structure that was the open cafe. The hostess nodded towards where Evelyn's mother sat, next to the marble mini waterfall. "Hi Mom. Sorry I'm late." She bent and placed a fond kiss on her mother's made up cheeks then flopped into the vacant seat opposite. "Stacy insisted on visiting every single shop we passed and time got away from me." Olivia Smith leveled a fond smile at her daughter. "Hello darling. I just got here myself anyway so no need to apologize. How is Stacy?"

Evelyn was momentarily distracted by a waiter who appeared at her elbow. She ordered an iced tea then turned back to her mother.

"Stacy is fine...bridal nerves and all that." she grimaced as she recalled the torment of following her cousin from shop to shop, watching her try on a dozen outfits, all the while Stacy had kept up an excited chatter, while Evelyn had listened absently, wishing she could leave and return to the blessed seclusion of her hotel room. Fortunately, the outing had been cut short by a call from Stacy's fiance, Hardin asking her to lunch. "The wedding is next month, isn't it?" Olivia asked, taking a sip of orange juice while studying her daughter, noting the tired circles under her eyes and the tense shoulders.

"You look tired darling. Have you been over working yourself again?" "Mum, you say that every time you see me." Evelyn said, amused. "And like I keep telling you, I am fine...besides I have been on my feet all morning, so I should look tired anyway."

"There are circles around your eyes and you look like you're about to snap in two, you're that tense." Her mother pursed her lips in disapproval. "I am going to have a word with your father when I get home tonight, see about cutting down the responsibilities at the hotel." Evelyn sighed, drumming her fingertips on the table. Sometimes her mother treated her like she was still sixteen rather than a full grown woman of twenty seven.

"I don't need a cut in my responsibilities mum. As it is all I do is oversee the kitchen staff, not much work is it? Look, I promise to take a week off after Stacy's wedding, does that make you happy?" "I suppose it will have to do." Olivia replied. "How is that man of yours anyway.. Peter was it?" She watched the flush of anger that suffused Evelyn's cheeks at the mention of his name. "Uh oh...trouble in paradise?" Evelyn fought down the swell of emotions that filled her insides as she recalled the scene with Peter last night in his apartment.

Pain and anger struggled for control, the memory of the hurtful words he'd flung at her still felt like a knife in her gut each time she remembered it. Granted, he had had every right to be furious- that was the third time she'd cried off dinner with his parents in the past year- but in her defense, she'd been swamped with work, the hotel had been playing host to a group of top business men from all over the country and Evelyn had needed to make sure the meals served had been nothing less than perfect. Her two year relationship had paid the price for her dedication but she did not regret her decision for one minute. Her family always came first and if Peter did not understand, well..still it hurt and rankled Evelyn to no end.

"We decided to cool off for a while." She finally replied, taking a deep sip of her iced tea, glad to have something to distract her from the condemnation she was sure to find if she looked at her mother. "Oh Evelyn..really darling?" Olivia sighed in despair. "You need to settle down soon dear. Look at Stacy, you two are the same age and yet she's already getting married. Time waits for..." "Please don't start mum." Evelyn cut in. "I am not Stacy and getting married isn't always what it's cracked up to be. We all can't have perfect marriages like you and dad. Speaking of dad, how is he?" Wisely, Olivia let the matter drop. Her daughter could be head strong when she chose to be and it would not do to push her buttons. Olivia would bring up the matter later..when Evelyn was in a better frame of mind.

"Your father is doing well." she replied with a smile. "He had to leave for Chicago on business..something to do with the shareholders. It seemed urgent anyway." Evelyn leaned forward, her curiosity awakened. "Is there a problem with the stock market? I haven't heard anything on the news about it." Olivia shrugged. "I don't know, all he said was that someone was persuading shareholders to sell and buying them up when they did...nothing else." Her phone shrilled and she dug in her bag for it, taking out the copy of The Cosmopolitan she'd stuffed in there earlier and laying it face up on the table.

Evelyn glanced at the magazine then did a double take, reaching for it and staring at the man on the cover. Her eyes widened as Lucas Martin's face stared back at her with an implacable look, those eyes hauntingly familiar even though it had been five years since Evelyn had seen that face. He looked breathtaking in a dark business suit, dark hair immaculately styled, not a hair out of place. The headline was titled The Perfect Blend of Sex and Success- Lucas Martin. Evelyn flipped open the pages and read the article within, her heart hammering wildly.

The feature hailed Lucas as America's sexiest entrepreneur, taking a small construction company and turning it into a booming conglomerate worthy of being in the Fortune 500 ranks. As she read till the end then set the magazine back on the table and gazed off in the distance.

At her urging, Stacy had broken up with Lucas a week after that ill-fated dinner. Evelyn's lips twisted, recalling Stacy's report of how easily Lucas had taken the news. That had only served to strengthen Evelyn's opinion of the man's true feelings for her cousin. No man who claimed to be in love would simply let his woman walk away without so much as a word or a plea to win her back. Evelyn had bid him good riddance and thrown herself into comforting Stacy.

Eventually, Stacy had gotten over the heart ache and had moved on. She heard her mother gasp and looked up, alarm washing over her at her mother's shocked white face. "Mum?" she called out, rising to her feet and crossing to her mother's side. "Mum. What's wrong? What is it?" Olivia lifted stricken eyes to her daughter trying to force words out from her constricted throat. Finally she managed to gasp out. "Your father..he's had a heart attack."

******

Evelyn stood by her father's hospital bed, gazing at him through tear filled eyes. "What do you mean dad?" she demanded, her voice trembling with the force of her emotions. "We've lost control of the company? That's impossible!" Steward Smith looked white and strained, though he put up a brave front for his daughter.

"Not impossible..." he rasped, wincing at the rawness in his throat from the breathing tubes he'd had to endure for the past four days. Even though it had been removed, his throat still hurt when he spoke. Olivia shot a stern look at Evelyn. "Leave your father be Evelyn. He needs to rest, the questions can come later." "It's alright, I need to tell her what's happened." Steward waved aside his wife's admonishment and looked to his daughter again. "Last week, I received a report from our stock brokers saying that someone had been approaching Smith's shareholders and making irresistible offers in return for their shares and had managed to acquire a huge percentage of stock, enough to have a controlling interest in the company. And I need not tell you how disastrous that is for us."

Evelyn listened with a sinking feeling, her mind struggling to process her father's words. How was it even possible that such a massive buyout had been going on right under their noses and no one had even suspected anything wrong? The very idea was preposterous! Smith Hotels belonged to the family and no one could take that away. She gripped the rails at the foot of the clinical bed till her knuckles turned white and looked at her father. He looked so frail and tired, even worse was the look of defeat in those hazel eyes so like her own. She had never seen him this way before..Steward Smith had always been a symbol of strength and determination and to watch him like this filled her with misery. The door of the private room opened and someone peered in. Evelyn recognized the craggy pale face and man of gray hair as belonging to Jack Young, the company's lawyer.

His serious eyes took in the small gathering and his boss lying on the bed in one glance. "May I come in?" Olivia looked like she wanted to refuse but held her tongue and turned her attention back to her husband, taking his limp hand in both of hers. Since her mother was not going to reply, Evelyn nodded for Jack to come in, moving away to stand by the windows, her arms folded across her chest.

"Jack!" Steward said by way of acknowledgment. "What news?" Jack cast a quick glance in Evelyn's direction, unsure if it was proper to bring up the discussion while Steward was still weak. Evelyn nodded at him to answer, curiosity eating away at her.

Jack cleared his throat. "The good news is, the family still holds a majority of shares, fifty-six percent to be exact, while Molbourn Enterprises managed to gain con...." "Molbourn?" Evelyn cut in, eyes widening in shock. She gaped at the lawyer, distrusting her ears. "Did you just say Molbourn? The Molbourn Enterprises?"

He gave her a searching look, slightly baffled by her reaction to the name. "Yes, Molbourn Enterprises is behind the buyout..cleverly done though..." Evelyn blanked out the rest of his words as her brain screamed the same word over and over again. Molbourn.

A tremor ran through her entire body and she felt her legs turn to jelly. Mercifully, there was a seat nearby and she lowered herself onto it, her mind in a daze. There had to be some sort of mistake, she reasoned, frantically running through the possibilities.

Molbourn... Lucas's company had just all but effected a hostile takeover of Smith Hotels...surely, this was no coincidence. Or was it? What sort of game was he playing and why now? Why had he chosen to spring this after nearly five of virtually no word or indication of a vendetta against her family?

A picture of him- the same one in the magazine rose in her mind and she shivered at the memory of those cold ruthless eyes staring up at her from the cover. "Evelyn?" her father's voice broke into her thoughts and she started in mild shock, looking up to find them all watching her with varying expressions ranging from worry to puzzlement. "Are you alright? You've gone pale." "I'm fine." she replied.

An idea took root in her mind and she rose, grabbing her purse while aware they were watching her in surprise. "I have to go...out. I'll be back as soon as possible, something important I have to do." Outside the hospital, she hailed a taxi and gave him directions then sat back as the driver pulled into the busy traffic, her mind in turmoil.

*******

"Excuse me, Sir." Lucas's personal assistant's voice came over the intercom. "I know you don't wish to be disturbed, but the reception just called up saying there's someone who's insisting on a meeting with you. She's creating a scene Sir. Should we call security?" Lucas looked up from the plans spread out on the work desk and scowled at the phone.

"I pay you to handle such matters Lilly." He snapped at the invisible personal assistant, his voice the quality of a frosty winter's air. "If there is a woman there, then go the hell down and sort it out." Her contrite voice came over the phone. "I'm sorry sir."

The line went dead and Lucas looked round the room at the small group gathered round the desk. His eyes met Liam's, and the former secretary-now senior vice president- nodded and slipped from the room. Lucas returned his attention to the plans and addressed the group of engineers. "Right. We have to speed up work on the center if we want to meet the six month deadline. Mendez, how is the framework coming?"

He listened while his chief engineer brought him up to speed on the work, though a part of his mind pondered on the identity of the woman creating a scene downstairs. He had a sneaking suspicion of who she might be..after all, he had been expecting something of the sort for a week now.

His lips curled in a self satisfied smile as he imagined the sort of uproar his scheme had caused. He briefly considered the thought that she had come begging but dismissed it. Evelyn Smith would rather cut off her right arm...maybe a leg too before she did anything of the sort. No. Lucas decided with another smile, she was here to yell at him, denounce him as son of a bitch and threaten him with legal action.

That would be the Evelyn Smith he knew...the woman he had had under surveillance for the better part of two years. The door opened and Liam came back in, moving to stand beside his boss. "She insists on seeing you." he murmured for Lucas's ears only. "Says she won't leave until she has spoken with you." Lucas smiled. How so like her, he thought. A loud, he said. "Where is she now?"

"I brought her up. She's waiting in Lilly's office." "Offer her some iced tea and tell her I'll see her when I can." Liam nodded and slipped out again and Lucas turned his attention back to the meeting. Lucas dismissed his staff an hour later, then asked Lilly to send Evelyn in. He took his seat, an impressive leather swivel designed in tandem with the massive desk to intimidate and leaned back, waiting.

A minute later the door opened, admitting Lilly and the woman who had wrecked havoc on his relationship. He watched her with an inscrutable expression as she matched towards his desk, his eyes sweeping over the tailored blue suit with its short skirt, showing off long shapely legs and curves that had probably turned many heads, and up to the face that had been the object of vengeful thoughts many a time. Right now, those hazel eyes were glaring at him, mouth set in a thin line.

"You!" she snarled, her eyes flashing brown fury. "I knew you were behind this...how dare you..." "That will be all Lilly." Lucas cut in, dismissing his assistant who watched the scene in wide eyed fascination. She flushed and hurried out, shutting the door behind her, while Evelyn looked even more furious at being so rudely interrupted. "To what do I owe this..pleasure?"

Lucas asked, his voice hard and cold. He deliberately let his gaze run over her from head to toe, his look insulting and he had the satisfaction of seeing her bristle at the rudeness of the action. "It has been a while Ms. Smith..." Evelyn slammed the palms of her hand down on the table, shaking with the force of her fury.

"You bastard!" she hissed at him, leaning close to look him in the eye. "You filthy good for nothing asshole! What the hell do you think you're playing at?" "I will advise you to watch how you hurl those insults Evelyn." his voice was still devoid of any emotion whatsoever and that obviously rankled her more if the snarl she emitted was any indication.

"This is my office, my property and I do not take kindly to verbal insults." "Who are you to tell me what to do?" she raged, balling her fists. "If you think for one fucking minute that I or my family are going to sit back and watch you take away our hard earned source of income, then you have another think coming Lucas Martin. I don't care who the hell you are, but you will lay off my family or...." "Or what?" He cut in, his tone silky and calm...though to Evelyn, he looked like a predator about to devour his prey.

"I will fight you with every thing I've got." she shouted at him. "Your silly scheme will never work...for gods sake, this is the most childish display of retribution I have ever seen. Are you mad? Is that it? Is that why you're trying to hurt my family?" He chuckled and leaned forward. "Sit down Evelyn." the command took her by surprise, shocking her enough that she complied without thinking about it.

He leaned back and formed a steeple with the tips of his fingers while his eyes bored into hers. "Good." he said when she was seated. "Now listen carefully Evelyn Smith, because I will not repeat myself. Five years ago, you called me an opportunist and took what was mine. Now I will strip you of every inch of dignity you possess, everything you hold dear until you come begging for mercy. Buying those shares was the first step Evelyn, I have barely begun my quest to completely humiliate and make you regret ever uttering those words." Lucas paused and watched her reaction.

She had gone completely white and looked as though a gust of wind would knock her over. Good. He thought, reaching into the top drawer of his desk and pulling out an iphone. He slid it across the table and she stared at it in confusion. "Keep that with you, I will be in contact soon. Good day Ms. Smith."

She just kept staring at him till color flooded back to her face. She rose with a snarl, picking the phone and hurling it at his head. Lucas ducked just in time and the device hit the wall behind him, breaking into two. "If you think you can blackmail me or succeed in your ridiculous plan, then you are less the man I think you are." she glared at him in disdain, while shaking with fury.

"If you do anything to harm my family, then I will personally murder you. Stay away from me." She turned and stalked out of his office, slamming the door with enough force to crack a window.