A stroke of anger flashed across his face. “You’re lying. I can see it in your eyes.”
She shook her head. “I’m not. I’m telling you the truth. I have a man. He means everything to me. There’s no room in my life for anyone else.”
At her declaration Raul drew back and his dark eyes grew cold. “We’ll just see about that.”
***
Ransom stared out the window of his hotel room as he held the phone to his ear. The na**d branches reaching up into a bleak sky and the dreariness of the snow-covered landscape almost made him shiver. Boy, was he glad he’d be heading back to sunny Florida soon. This kind of frigid environment, he could do without.
“Uh, huh. I got that but what I want to know is, when he’s going to deliver.” As he spoke into the phone he reached out to slide the pads of his fingers on the glass. It was so cold it felt like his fingers would stick.
He slid his hand into his pocket and listened some more. “Wrong answer, bud. Give me something more positive than that.” He was not liking the direction of the conversation. No project was ever one hundred percent smooth but this one seemed to have more than its share of issues. First, it was the permit then the plumbing and now this. “And the department of transportation and roads is adamant we can’t cut the road through there?”
The answer came back in the affirmative. Ransom bit down on his lip as he did a quick assessment in his mind. “All right, just put things on hold for now,” he said. “I’ll deal with it when I get back.”
He ended the call then checked the time on the cell phone screen. Ten twenty. He might as well head out now. This would be his last chance to see Rafe before he would have to get back to the oil rig. He should be honored, he guessed, that his brother had taken two whole days off so they could connect. Ransom was grateful although he’d be the last to say it out loud. He wasn’t the kind to get all emotional but, no matter what, he loved his brother and he welcomed the chance to see him.
Not that Rafe shared the sentiment. He was as laconic as ever.
Ransom bundled up in coat, scarf and gloves and headed out from the hotel, carefully directing his rental car along the icy road. He wanted to get off that road and inside a warm building as soon as possible.
Within twenty-five minutes of setting out he was pulling into the driveway of Rafe’s hotel. He hopped out and headed for the lobby.
The Princess Royal was a pretty decent hotel with marble tiles on the floor, elegant faux palms in each corner and a granite counter for a reception desk. Here there was a tall vase of fresh-cut roses and these, surprisingly, were real. Ransom cocked an eyebrow. He hadn’t expected fresh flowers gracing a hotel lobby in such a remote part of Alaska but then he did a mental shrug. Why not? Wasn’t that what green houses were for?
The desk clerk, tall and willowy and very blonde, gave Ransom a friendly smile. “Welcome to the Princess Royal, sir. How may I help you?” As he approached she tapped her computer screen. “Do you have a reservation?”
Ransom returned the smile. “No, I’m here to see one of your guests. Rafe Kent. He’s expecting me.”
His greeter nodded and reached for the phone. “I’ll call him for you. Please pick up the receiver at the hall table when the phone rings over there.”
When it did, it was a scratchy-voiced Rafe who came on the phone.
“Don’t tell me you were still sleeping. It’s almost eleven o’clock.”
“It is?” Rafe sounded doubtful. “I went to bed pretty late. Sorry.”
“Yeah, well hurry up and get your butt down here so we can talk.”
Ransom hung up and walked over to the elegantly furnished lounge with its grand piano, handcrafted sculptures and antique furniture. What he saw made him upgrade his evaluation from decent to quite nice. This definitely was no cheap hotel. That was one good sign. As radical as he was, at least it didn’t look like Rafe had taken a vow of poverty.
It took another twenty minutes before Rafe made his way downstairs and by that time Ransom’s stomach was growling. He hadn’t had breakfast and, obviously, neither had Rafe.
“Does this place have a restaurant? We might as well grab some grub.” He got to his feet as Rafe walked into the room.
“Sure. Come on. I’ll take you there.” He set off, not bothering to wait for Ransom. “The food is pretty good. That’s why I stay here every chance I get.”
He was right. Both he and Rafe chose to have a light brunch with Rafe stocking up on some fatty but mostly sugary items while he went for the oatmeal, fruit platter and coffee. Rafe could afford to be lax. He was skinny as a rake.
Soon enough the meal was over and it was time to talk. Ransom got the ball rolling. “Now tell me what it was you couldn’t have told me yesterday.” Pushing his plate to one side he leaned forward, ready to get a resolution to the mystery.
Rafe relaxed in his chair and reached over to pull his glass of water toward him. He took a slow sip before he spoke. “Where do I start?” he asked, not looking at Ransom. “It’s a long story.”
“Start at the beginning.”
Rafe began, and he hadn’t been lying when he’d said it was a long story. He went as far back as a year earlier and, like Ransom should have guessed knowing Rafe, it involved a woman.
“So it didn’t work out. You needed to get away. I get that but what does that have to do with your family? Why cut yourself off from us, especially Mom?”
Rafe’s lips tightened and he looked down at his hands. When he looked up again there was such pain in his eyes that Ransom was taken aback. “This is all about my family, Ransom. Especially Mom.”
Ransom looked at him askance. This was getting more and more confusing by the minute. “What does Mom have to do with it?”
“She’s got everything to do with it. I was too ashamed. I didn’t want to hurt the family…and especially not her. That’s why I decided to stay away.” His face grew solemn as he stared off into space.