Perfect Partners

polite.
    “Charlie and I had a few things in common. That was one of them.”
    Letty pursed her lips. “Not exactly. I think you feel actual disdain for it. Charlie was not disdainful.”
    “Is that right?” Joel did not sound particularly interested.
    “Charlie raised my father after my grandparents died. It was Charlie who financed Dad’s education all the way through graduate school, you know. So you see, he couldn’t have been completely disdainful of the academic life.”
    Joel shrugged. “Charlie believed in letting people do what they wanted with their lives. All he asked was that they leave him alone so that he could go fishing as often as possible.”
    “Yes, I guess that’s true, isn’t it?” So much for trying to ease the tension with idle conversation, Letty thought. She wondered what sort of woman Joel Blackstone dated. Surely if he had a wife he would have brought her to the funeral.
    Whoever his woman was, she would have to be a very sensual creature, Letty decided. A man like Joel would want a woman who could respond to him in a very physical way.
    Of course, she reminded herself, most men wanted that sort of woman. Even Philip, whom she’d thought would not be quite so demanding, had needed a more responsive woman. It was fortunate for all concerned that she had discovered that fact during their engagement rather than after the marriage had taken place.
    “How long will you be out here on the Coast, Ms. Thornquist?”
    “You may call me Letty.”
    “Sure. Right. Letty. How long?”
    “I don’t know yet.”
    Some of Joel’s superficial control dissolved for an instant, revealing a hint of the restless impatience Letty sensed churning inside him. “What do you mean, you don’t know?” Joel glowered at the narrow, winding road through the Jeep’s windshield. “Don’t you have to get back to that college where you work?”
    “Vellacott?”
    “Yeah, Vellacott, or whatever. Don’t you have to get back to your job?”
    “No.”
    “But Charlie said you worked in the library there.”
    “I did. Reference desk. Nearly six years.” Letty gripped the dashboard. “Would you mind slowing down a little?”
    “What?” Joel threw her a scowl.
    “I said, would you mind slowing the car a little,” Letty repeated carefully.
    “Your father’s already pulling ahead of us. Nice car, by the way.”
    Letty glanced at the red Porsche convertible. It was moving swiftly, clinging to the twisting road like a limpet. Morgan had the top down, and Stephanie’s silver-gold hair was secured beneath a white scarf. Stephanie looked good in white, Letty reflected. It suited her ice-maiden beauty.
    “The Porsche belongs to Stephanie,” Letty said. “My father drives a BMW .”
    Joel cocked a brow. “You sound as if you disapprove. Got something against nice cars?”
    “No. It’s just that it’s a little odd to have a stepmother who drives a candy red Porsche,” Letty admitted, “when the most exciting thing I’ve ever driven is a Buick. Please slow down. You don’t have to worry about getting lost. I know how to get to their house.”
    Joel eased his foot off the accelerator. “You’re the boss.”
    Letty smiled, pleased at the sound of that. “Yes, I am, aren’t I? It feels very strange, you know.”
    “Inheriting a company the size of Thornquist out of the clear blue sky? Yeah, I can see where that might feel a little weird.” Joel’s hands tightened around the steering wheel. “Tell me, Letty, do you have any experience in the business world?”
    “No, but I’ve read a great many books and articles on the subject since I learned that Great-Uncle Charlie left me Thornquist Gear.”
    “Books and articles, huh? You know, Letty, there’s quite a difference between the business world and an academic environment.”
    “Is there?” She studied the scenery. Twilight came early in the Cascades, she noticed. The heavily forested terrain was already turning dark and mysterious as the last of the sun disappeared. She was accustomed to wide open spaces and gentle rolling hills. These wild, aggressive mountains were a bit overpowering. Just like Joel Blackstone.
    “A world of difference,” Joel said pointedly. “I don’t know if Charlie ever mentioned it to you, but he and I had a sort of unofficial understanding.”
    “Did you?”
    “I was going to buy him out in another year.”
    “Were you?”
    Joel flicked her another quick sidelong glance. “That’s right. Look, I know