Deep Waters

in order to see who had barged into her office. "Charity."
    Charity came to an abrupt halt. She blinked at the sight of her stepsister in the arms of Brett Loftus. "Oops."
    "What the hell?" Brett slowly released Meredith and turned. His handsome features were set in an annoyed frown. Then he saw Charity. A flush darkened his fair skin. He ran a hand through his sun-colored hair and adjusted his expensive silk tie. "Uh, hello, Charity. This is a surprise."
    "Guess this will teach me not to ignore your secretary, Meredith." Charity started to back out of the office. "Sorry. Just happened to be in town. Thought I'd see if you'd like to grab a bite to eat."
    Meredith glanced at Brett, who raised one brow and shrugged a massive shoulder. Charity was sure she saw a silent message pass between the two.
    Meredith turned resolutely back to Charity. "Lunch sounds great. Let's go to my club. I've got something important to tell you."
    "What can I say?" Meredith gazed at Charity across the expanse of a tablecloth that was whiter than a man's new dress shirt. "You were right last summer when you told me that if I thought Brett was so terrific, I should marry him myself. We're going to announce our engagement in a couple of weeks."
    "Congratulations." Charity dipped a forkfull of plump Dungeness crab cake into a bit of hot wasabi paste. "Maybe I'm psychic."
    She studied her stepsister as the wasabi cleared her sinuses. Meredith looked good, she thought. Better than good. She looked radiant. The corporate world and Brett Loftus obviously suited her.
    Meredith's strawberry-blond hair was swept back and away from her dramatically attractive face. Her black and tan jacket and pencil-slim skirt were exactly suited to her role as a corporate executive. Her specially blended lipstick exactly matched the color of her nails. She looked very much at home here in the confines of one of the most expensive business clubs in the city.
    The only factor that marred the impression of a successful, accomplished businesswoman was the ill-concealed anxiety in Meredith's light green eyes.
    It was about ten minutes after one o'clock. The velvet-lined booths that circled the dining room were filled with men and women dressed in business attire. The muted hum of muffled voices and the soft ting of silver against china provided privacy for the high-stakes conversations taking place.
    The scene brought back memories. Charity thought of the luncheons she had once conducted in this very room. There had been a time, not so very long ago, when the maître d' had called her by name, and the headwaiter had known her tastes so well that she had not even had to look at the menu. She did not miss those days one little bit, she decided.
    Meredith frowned. "Charity, I know the news about my relationship with Brett has come as a shock."
    "Not really."
    "I didn't want you to find out this way. I wanted to be able to tell you—" Meredith broke off, blinking. "What do you mean, not really? You knew about me and Brett? That's impossible. We've been very discreet. How could you possibly know about us?"
    "I didn't say I knew about your relationship. I just said it didn't come as a shock."
    Meredith watched her uneasily. "Are you sure you're all right with this? I mean, it was only a year ago that you were engaged to Brett."
    "Not quite."
    Meredith flushed. "Okay, you were almost engaged to him. You know what I mean. The two of you had a relationship. You were considering marriage, for God's sake."
    "It would never have worked. I knew it long before the engagement party, and I think Brett did, too. I don't know why one of us didn't call it off sooner."
    Meredith glanced briefly down at the grilled salmon on her plate. "Brett told me he had been growing increasingly concerned but that he wasn't sure what was wrong. He thought perhaps the two of you both needed some more time to get to know each other. He assumed the engagement would give you that time."
    "Brett is obviously too much of a gentleman to tell you the entire truth," Charity said dryly. "He and I rushed the whole thing through because we were both reacting to the business factors involved in the situation."
    "I know everyone saw both the marriage and the merger as a good move for both firms."
    "Truitt and Loftus are a natural match. And Brett and I both felt the pressure to do what was best for our families and our companies. We liked each other, but neither of us wanted to admit that business was the motivating