Family Man

marrying Nate, have you? Why don't you admit it?”
    “Nate has nothing to do with it.”
    “I don't believe you.” Eden rose and went to stand at the window. She gazed moodily out at the gray skies. “You don't know how lucky you were that he ditched you for me. In fact, the way I look at it, you owe me for having saved you the experience of marriage to Nate Atwood.”
    Katy studied Eden's striking profile. “I know.”
    “The man was a user.”
    “Yes.”
    “He didn't love me. He never loved me. He used me,” Eden hissed.
    “I know.” And he used me to get to you , Katy thought. “But you're free of him now. Thank God Justine had her lawyers handle the divorce proceedings. She protected you.”
    “You think so?”
    Katy frowned, not fully understanding the bitter tone in Eden's voice. “Perhaps not emotionally. No one could protect you in that way. But financially, yes. Nate didn't get much. Just a token amount.”
    Eden closed her eyes briefly. “God, what a bastard he was.” She opened her eyes. “And now we've got another bastard to deal with.”
    “Life's tough, isn't it?” Luke said from the doorway. He glanced at Katy. “You ready? The meeting starts in two minutes.”
    “I'm ready.” Katy gave Eden a last uneasy glance and followed Luke out into the hall.
    Luke slanted Katy a speculative look as he paced beside her down the hall to the boardroom. “What was that all about?”
    “Her divorce.”
    “Cheerful topic.”
    “Not particularly,” Katy murmured. “Gilchrists are rarely—”
    “Don't say it. You know, Katy, sometimes I get a little tired of your generalizing about Gilchrists.”
    “Fair enough.” Katy brightened. Something about sparring with Luke seemed to perk up her spirits. “Sometimes I get a little tired of Gilchrists, too.”
    Fraser Stanfield was standing with a small cluster of management-level people when Luke and Katy walked into the room. He nodded at Luke and smiled at Katy. He came forward to hold a chair for her.
    “What are you doing in town?” he asked under cover of the murmur of conversation.
    “Beats me. I'm told I'm here to advise.”
    “I can believe it. You're good at that. Staying the night?”
    “Yes, as a matter of fact, I am.”
    “Great.” Fraser grinned. “How about dinner?”
    Katy was startled. Fraser had never before suggested anything resembling a date, but after what they had been through together during the past few months she certainly had no objection. “Sounds great.”
    “I'll meet you in the lobby of your hotel at seven,” Fraser said. “Don't worry. We won't go to a Gilchrist restaurant.”
    Katy laughed. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Luke turn his head at the sound. His gaze flicked toward Fraser and then rested for a moment on Katy. He did not look pleased.
    She realized with a jolt of intuition that he had planned to take her to dinner himself. A thwarted Gilchrist was a dangerous Gilchrist.
    On the other hand, she knew she'd narrowly escaped a situation that would have been fraught with sensual menace. She was no good at dealing with sensually menacing situations. She was not the type.
    So why wasn't she feeling relieved? Katy wondered.

    “What the devil is he up to?” Fraser asked later that evening.
    Katy looked up from her menu. It occurred to her that she was being pumped yet again for inside information on Luke's intentions. So much for a pleasant, relaxing dinner date. All day long people had been cornering her to ask what she thought the Bastard planned to do about the Gilchrist situation. With an inner sigh of regret she realized that Fraser was no different.
    She supposed she shouldn't be too hard on him. Fraser had his own future to worry about. On the other hand, she still worked for Luke and had to remain loyal to him.
    “I don't know,” Katy said, and she went back to studying her menu.
    “No hints?”
    “None.”
    Fraser smiled. “Hey, come on, Katy, this is me, Fraser. Your old buddy, remember? We've been in the Gilchrist trenches together for the past six months. You can tell me what's going on. I've got a career here that I'm trying to maintain.”
    Katy reluctantly put down the menu. “I know. I'm sorry, but the truth is, there isn't anything I can tell you at this point. Luke seems to be gathering data. I know he's concerned about the declining situation at Gilchrist Gourmet, and he's looking at the two restaurants that are in trouble. But I don't know what he's going to