Wildest Hearts

carefully. “Bolt?”

    “Yes, sir?”

    “I've changed my mind. We're not going home yet. I want to stop at an address on Lake Washington first.”

    “What's the address, sir?”

    Oliver gave him Paul Shore's address. It was indelibly engraved on his memory, even though it had been years since he had last been there.

    He had gone to see Shore twice following his father's disappearance.

    On the first of those two unforgettable occasions, he had asked Shore for an extension on the loan that had been made to his father. Shore had refused. The fires of the humiliation of that moment would burn forever within Oliver.

    The last time Oliver had gone to the mansion on Lake Washington he had paid off the loan. The repayment became possible after Oliver had sold the Rain home on Mercer Island and plunged every dime of the proceeds into some very high-risk investments in the commodities market. The memories of that period in his life still sent an icy trickle of dread through him.

    He had staked the family's entire future on his knowledge of botany in order to make some educated guesses regarding some crucial harvests. Those guesses had paid off. The harvests had been far better than insiders had predicted. Oliver made his first fortune virtually overnight.

    But he had been well aware of the enormous risks he had taken and he had not liked the feeling. Oliver had never again played the volatile commodities market. He did not like dealing with the random factor of luck. He preferred investments that allowed him a greater degree of control.

    He gazed out the tinted window and recalled the evening he had taken the check to Paul Shore's home.

    Shore's surprise had eaten at Oliver like acid. When Shore had clapped him on the back and told him he might turn out to be twice the businessman his father had been, Oliver had been almost blinded by a red haze of fury. But even then the icy veneer that was to serve him so well was already firmly in place. Oliver had controlled his rage.

    He had simply turned around without a word and walked out the door. He had not spoken to Paul Shore since that fateful evening.

    Anger and a deep, painful sense of betrayal clawed at Oliver's insides as Bolt guided the limo into the elegant residential section that fronted Lake Washington.

    Annie had gone to Paul Shore's home. Oliver's hand tightened into a fist on his thigh. His wife was in the home of his enemy.

    Getting inside was the hard part. Annie, dressed in the first thing she had found in her closet, a slim black sheath, almost didn't make it past the young blond man in the tux who guarded the front door.

    “No, I don't have an invitation,” she explained for the third time. “But I assure you, I have a very good reason for going inside. If you would please just ask someone in authority to come out here, I can explain.”

    The young man, who had the look of an unemployed model, wrinkled his fine brow. “I'm sorry, ma'am, but I'm afraid Mrs. Shore is busy at the moment.”

    Annie decided she had nothing left to lose. “Kindly tell her that Mrs. Oliver Rain is at the front door.”

    “Who?”

    “Mrs. Oliver Rain.”

    The young man consulted a piece of paper. “I'm afraid your name doesn't appear on the guest list.”

    “I know that. I'm trying to tell you…”

    “Annie. What are you doing here?”

    Annie glanced past the moonlighting male model and saw Valerie, stunning in an off-the-shoulder silver evening gown, in the doorway. A good-looking man with dark hair and serious eyes stood beside her. He was dressed in formal black and white.

    “Am I glad to see you, Val.” Annie darted around the blond in the tux. “Look, can I talk to you for a minute? I need to get inside. There's this elephant, you see.”

    “Elephant?” Valerie frowned in surprise. “Never mind. First, I want you to meet Carson.” She smiled tremulously up at the serious-eyed man standing beside her. “Carson, this is my brother's new wife, Annie.”

    “How do you do, Annie?” Carson took Annie's hand in a firm grasp. “Come on inside. I'll tell my parents you're here. I'm sure they'll be delighted.”

    “Thanks.” Annie hurried on up the steps. “Actually, there's no need to say anything to your folks. I just want to find my elephant.”

    Valerie stared at her. “What's all this about an elephant? What's going on? Does Oliver know you're here?”

    “It's a little hard to explain,” Annie said. “But somewhere in this