Family Man

the table. He looked extremely nervous. “Uh, I thought I'd see if Mr. and Mrs. Gilchrist would care for anything.”
    Maureen looked up. “Why, yes. My husband and I will be joining this party. I'll start with a martini, please.”
    “You can bring me a manhattan,” Hayden said pleasantly.
    Luke swore silently, aware that he had lost whatever privacy he might have had left in which to talk to Katy. When he looked at her he saw the laughter in her eyes and knew she was once again being amused by the overbearing Gilchrist clan.
    It occurred to him that if she found them so humorous, she could not possibly hate them.
    Or could she?
    Hayden settled back and assumed a thoughtful expression. “Maureen and I have decided it's time to get a few things out on the table, Luke. It's obvious from what you've done for Darren and Eden that you aren't out for revenge against the entire family. But I must insist on knowing what your plans are for the company.”
    Katy spoke up quickly. “He's told you what he's going to do for Gilchrist, Inc. He's going to put it back on its feet.”
    Hayden frowned. “Yes, but are you still intending to take the Pacific Rim as your fee? That's what I want to know.”
    “Sure,” Luke said. “Why not?” He glanced around the interior of the restaurant again. “I think this is going to be a damn good investment, although I may have to get rid of the chef.”
    Maureen gathered herself for an impassioned speech. Hayden looked funereal.
    Katy tapped her knife crisply against the edge of her plate and gave Luke a quelling glance. “I think it would be best if we all avoided that topic of discussion tonight. Luke's plans have not been finalized.”
    Luke's brows rose. “They haven't?”
    “No,” she said firmly. “And I think we should all wait until the end of the six-month period before making any rash statements.”
    Maureen gave Katy a shrewd glance and then nodded. “Very well. Perhaps it would be best to wait.”
    Hayden started to argue and then appeared to change his mind after exchanging looks with his wife. He sighed heavily as he turned back to Luke. “You know, my boy, I wouldn't blame you if you did bring the whole damn company down. I'm hoping you won't, of course. It's my children's inheritance, and I have a vested interest in protecting it. But I would understand.”
    Katy wrinkled her nose. “Only a Gilchrist would.”
    Hayden shrugged. “Perhaps. The thing is, what Justine did thirty-seven years ago was unforgivable.”
    “And sure enough, Luke's side of the family never forgave her.” Katy shook her head in amazement. “Typical.”
    “That's enough, Katy,” Luke warned. He was not in the mood for any of her Gilchrist generalizations.
    “You know,” she continued, paying no attention to him, “I've always wondered about something. Since we're getting all this juicy old gossip out in the open tonight, maybe this is a good time to ask.”
    “What's that?” Maureen asked.
    “I understand why Thornton Gilchrist ran off with Cleo. He was wildly in love, and Gilchrists do dramatic things, especially in dramatic circumstances. But why do you suppose he never bothered to at least send a note to my mother so that she wouldn't have to endure the humiliation of being left at the altar?”
    Luke stared at her, aware that Hayden and Maureen were also staring. No one had an answer. For the first time in his life Luke felt some of his unquestioning loyalty to his parents waver. Katy was right. His father could at least have let poor Deborah Quinnell know she was going to be abandoned.
    “I don't know why he didn't contact your mother,” Maureen finally said. “Probably didn't even think about it. He was undoubtedly more concerned with marrying Cleo and protecting her from Justine's wrath than anything else.”
    Hayden squeezed Maureen's hand gently. “It was unfortunate, but I can see how it would have come about. Thornton was probably afraid Justine would try to get rid of Cleo if she had any warning of his intentions. And if Deborah Quinnell had learned of the elopement in advance, she would have naturally said something to her father.”
    “Who would have gone straight to Justine to find out what was going on,” Maureen concluded. “You have to understand just how powerful Justine was in those days. The whole family shivered when she so much as sneezed. Thornton was right to be afraid of what she might try to do to Cleo.”
    Katy looked at her. “What could