The Legacy of Copper Creek by R.C. Ryan Read Free Book Online

to get by. Besides, working at the resort gave me a place to live.”
    “What about your grandmother’s place in Minerva?”
    “Sold for back taxes.” She scrubbed a plate.
    “Okay. So you were a waitress.”
    “And then I was moved up to hostess and then manager of food operations.”
    “That’s pretty impressive. Why aren’t you still working there?”
    Whit saw the way her hands stilled. “I…needed to get away by myself.”
    “You left a good job to drive across the state to Red Rock and then, after your encounter with No Name Suit-and-Tie, you end up here in the wilderness? Okay, Goldilocks. Something’s going on. Are you in some kind of trouble?”
    She swallowed. “Not the kind you’re imagining.”
    He tugged on a strand of her hair, trying to keep things light. “You can read my mind?”
    She stepped back, away from his touch. “I didn’t steal anything. I’m not wanted by the law. But I…”
    “You what?”
    She twisted the dish towel around and around in her hands. “I really made a mess of things. There was a guy…”
    “Lover?”
    “Jared Billingham.”
    “Billingham.” Whit looked over. “How do I know that name?”
    “His father is the owner of Ghost Mountain Group.”
    Whit snapped his fingers. “That’s it. I’ve seen the name on billboards and commercials. Hotels, condos, vacation villas. And, of course, that fabulous ski resort. So you were swimming with the big fish.”
    She gave a wan smile. “I turned out to be the biggest fish of all.”
    “So you and Jared…” Whit handed her a soapy mug. “You were a couple?”
    She nearly bobbled the mug before catching it. “Yeah. My best friend, Mary Alice, used to refer to him as Prince Charming. Looking back, I think he chased after me because I was the only woman who never bothered to drool over him. He could have had his pick of really beautiful women, who made it clear they were available. Instead he chose plain old me.”
    “Plain? If you think that, you haven’t looked in a mirror lately.”
    Instead of laughter, or even a smile, she shook her head. “I didn’t think I could ever fit in. He knew the right wines, the gourmet foods. I thought he really was the perfect gentleman. But it was all fake. The charm. The quiet, polite manners he showed the world…”
    “I take it Prince Charming morphed into something else.”
    “I didn’t even realize at first what was happening. His jealousy, his controlling nature, were subtle. He’d scold me for spending too much time talking to one of his friends, or even to one of my girlfriends at work. But then it got worse. I found him picking up my cell phone and checking all my messages. One night after work, when I spotted him watching me during my entire shift, seeing who I talked to, who I laughed with, I told him I’d had enough. I didn’t want to see him anymore.”
    “How did that go?” Whit saw the way her lower lip quivered.
    “I guess I expected him to be angry or hurt. Instead, he was icy calm as he told me I was terminated immediately. He demanded my keys, my badge, and my uniform and asked security to escort me from the property. I asked about my belongings. He told me they would be waiting for me at the condo. I’m glad now that I took Mary Alice along with me to pick them up. They were in a box on the front porch. And he was sitting on a bench, waiting. Knowing Mary Alice could overhear, he simply told me that he felt sorry for me. That I was a fool who had allowed my silly childhood dream of writing to take over my life. That my promotions hadn’t been earned because I was such a good worker or so smart but because he’d arranged them, in order to show me just how much power he wielded. And that, with the snap of his fingers, he could take it all away. But, he told me, whenever I came to my senses, he would be willing to take me back.”
    “He sounds pretty impressed with his own importance.”
    Cara nodded. “He’d kept most of his speech cold and