Page 76 of Christmas at the Ranch
“You dropped this.” He took something out of his pocket. “It fell out of the car onto the driveway.”
Drew handed her a silk-covered journal. Samantha turned it over and gasped. It was the diary. Samantha had planned on returning it to Arthur’s library.
“When I picked it up, it fell open.” Drew’s brow furrowed. “I recognized my mother’s name, so I read the first few entries. I had no idea my mother kept a diary. I’ve never seen it before and myfather never mentioned it. Where did you get it and why didn’t you tell me?”
Samantha eyes met Drew’s. She had never seen him look so hurt.
Her stomach turned and she put down the mug.
“I don’t think your father knows. It was hidden in the bookshelf, behind some other books. I was going to tell you,” she faltered. “I didn’t mean to find it. It just happened.”
“You better tell me now.” His tone was brusque. “Because I can’t understand why you have something that was my mother’s, and why you kept it a secret.”
Samantha told him everything: about finding the journal in Arthur’s bookshelf, taking it up to her room by accident. Her suspicions that Diana was his mother, wanting to know for sure before she said anything.
“You should never have started reading it in the first place,” Drew said when she finished. “When you suspected that Diana was my mother, you should have told me. How could I ever trust you when you kept such a huge secret from me?”
“I only found out for sure this afternoon,” Samantha said plaintively. “And it wasn’t my secret. Diana calls herself Marigold now. She changed her name when she moved back to Jackson Hole. She works at the gift shop and we became friends, I had no idea she had anything to do with you. Then I read the diaries and realized who she was. She made me promise not to tell you. She’s afraid of hurting you all over again.”
“You think this doesn’t hurt me?” He picked up the journal. “You should have come to me the moment you had any idea. We could have figured it out together.”
“I’m sorry.” She took a deep breath. “What I did was wrong.But you should meet Marigold. She’s wise and kind. She gave me all sorts of advice before I knew who she was. She loves you, she only wanted to protect you.”
“She abandoned me and my father.” Drew’s face grew hot. “And now she’s hiding out in Jackson Hole. Even if I can’t expect more from her, I did from you.” He glowered. “I have feelings for you and thought you felt the same.”
“I do have feelings for you,” Samantha tried again. “I was going to bring you hot chocolate and tell you everything.”
“When you care about someone, you don’t pick and choose what to reveal and when to reveal it. You trust each other enough to tell the truth.” He stood up. “I’m going out, I’ll see you later.”
Samantha sat on the bed and gazed out the window. She told Arthur she wasn’t hungry for dinner and would make something for herself later.
For a moment, she wondered what it would be like to be at home. She and Socks would be getting ready to celebrate New Year’s Eve with their annual traditions: Socks would eat wet food instead of his usual kibble. Samantha would drink sparkling apple cider while they watched the ball drop at Rockefeller Center on Samantha’s laptop. She never drank champagne alone, and somehow watching the festivities on a proper television made her lonely. It was better to have it playing on the thirteen-inch screen of her computer.
For the first time, she didn’t long to be in her apartment. And Socks was having a good time with Molly. Instead, Samantha wanted to spend New Year’s Eve with Drew. They’d dance andmingle with the other guests. At midnight Arthur would make a toast. She and Drew would find a quiet spot to kiss and she’d never want the night to end.
The chance of that happening now was as likely as Santa Claus appearing with late Christmas presents.
The time on her phone said 9:00P.M. There were twenty-four hours until the party. She had no idea how she could change Drew’s mind, but she had to think of something.
Chapter Eighteen
The next morning, Samantha woke to a feeling of pressure in her chest. She’d barely slept all night. Every time she closed her eyes, she pictured Drew standing in the ranch’s kitchen, holding the diary. He was so hurt and angry. And she couldn’t blame him.
In the middle of the night she took out her notebook and scribbled down a plot for a Sloane Parker book. It’s the first week of January and Sloane receives a letter from Phineas that she’s been fired. Her old nemesis, Clarissa Cooper, is taking over her missions. She immediately calls Phineas and demands to know why. Phineas won’t tell her. British Intelligence information is classified and Sloane has lost her intelligence clearance.
Sloane’s phone rings. It’s Miss Mulberry, Phineas’s longtime secretary. Sloane and Miss Mulberry have been friends for years. Sloane never misses sending Miss Mulberry a Christmas fruitcake.
Miss Mulberry knows why Sloane was fired. Phineas was on his way to Christmas Eve lunch at his club when he saw Sloane at the Savoy with the Russian agent Boris Popov. Phineas assumed that Sloane was giving away British Intelligence secrets and had Miss Mulberry draft the letter the next day.
Miss Mulberry did some sleuthing and discovered the truth. Clarissa Cooper was at the Savoy with Boris. Clarissa arranged to meet Boris at the same time as Phineas’s lunch, knowing Phineas would walk by the restaurant on the way to the club. Phineas would never come inside—he couldn’t be seen talking to a Russian agent. Clarissa positioned herself with her back to the window. She wore the exact same Burberry trench coat that Sloane had for years. She even dyed her hair to be the same color as Sloane’s glossy chestnut.
Sloane asks how Miss Mulberry can be sure. Miss Mulberry and Clarissa go to the same hair salon. Clarissa told her stylist and swore her to secrecy. One can never trust a stylist, they live for gossip.
Sloane calls Clarissa and insists Clarissa turn down the position. Then Sloane calls a friend at Immigration and alerts him that Boris is staying at the Savoy. Boris is deported and Sloane gets her job back, plus a 20 percent raise for the new year.
But writing out the plot didn’t make Samantha feel better. Sloane would never get herself into a mess for love. And Sloane and Phineas have a history. Phineas believes in her.
Samantha idly opened her laptop. She could search for a flight and leave today. But Beatrix had already gone back to New York. Samantha couldn’t disappoint Arthur by leaving before the party.
