First Love Last Love

  First Love, Last Love – Ginna Gray

  Chapter One

  “What? You can’t be serious!” Will Prescott bellowed. “For heaven’s sake, Beth! We can’t call off the meeting now! They’ll be here any minute!”

  Will’s appalled gaze was fixed demandingly on his sister-in-law, but Beth made no response. Standing by the floor-to-ceiling window that dominated the rear wall of his office, she remained perfectly still, staring out at noghing. Beyond the glass, torrents of rain hurtled down from the dark, boiling caldron of clouds overhead, lashing through the vast complex of buildings that made up Prescott, Inc., bouncing and dancing across the asphalt parking lot and the tops of cars in a wild frenzy. Lihtning forked across the murky sky. Thunder crashed and rumbled. The faint reflection thrown back by the tinted glass revealed a slender young woman. Although her shoulder-length light brown hair framed a lovely face that was calm and composed, the tumult of emotions raging inside Beth Prescott rivaled the violence of the spring storm.

  Why? Why was this happening? Dear heaven, why? She looked down at the letter she held in her hand, at the bold slash of the signature at the bottom, and a tremor rippled through her. Just looking at it stirred memories – painful, crushing memories, memories she had thought were buried too deep and too long to ever be resurrected.

  Watching her, Will raked his hand through his shaggy mane of graying blond hair and cupped the back of his neck, absently squeezing the tense muscles. Several seconds ticked by in silence. “For pity’s sakke, Beth!” he burst out finally, slamming the flat of his palm against the desk top. “We agreed months ago that this offer from Brester Pharmaceuticals was our best hope of saving the company. It’s a good deal, as good as we’re likely to get. You know that as well as I.” He swiveled his chair around and shook his head at her set profile. “I don’t understand what the problem is. You were perfectly satisfied with their proposal just yesterday.”

  “That was before I knew that Jake Forrest was Brewster’s representative,” Beth replied quietly, her gaze still fixed on the rain-wipped scene beyond the glass wall.

  “Jake Forrest?” Will repeated the name in astonished voice. “You mean that’s what this is all about? You want to call off a multimillion dollar merger because you don’t like this Jake Forrest?” His eyes narrowed as he studied her rigid stance, her pale face. “You do know the man, I take it?”

  Her laugh was short and sharp. There was no mirth in the sound. “Oh, yes. I know him. At one time Jake and I were engaged.”

  Surprised silence followed her words. Leather creaked as Will shifted in his chair. “I see. Well, I can understand why you might feel a bit uncomfortable with the situation, but that’s no reason for you to go into a tailspin. I mean, whatever happened between the two of you must have taken place a long time ago. It’s been over nine years since you married Dan.”

  “It was ten years ago, when we were both in college,” Beth replied in a flat, dull voice that masked her inner turmoil. “He . . . we broke up about a month before I came to work here. Before I met Dan.”

  “Well, there you go. After ten years he’s probably forgotten whatever it was that caused the split. Why, he may even have forgotten you. In fact, I’m surprised you’re making such a big deal out of it. It’s ancient history. Forget it.”

  Pain welled up inside Beth at his words but she pressed her lips together and fought it down. Still staring out the window she shrugged one shoulder. “It may be ancient history, but I still don’t want to see him.”

  Will muttered a searing expletive. “Look, I’m, sorry if this meeting causes you any embarrassement, but . . . well . . . we just can’t call it off. Not now. We need this merger.”

  With dread, anger, defiance and hopeless acceptance mingling in her light blue eyes, Beth gave him a long silent look. Unable to come up with an answer, she firmed her lips into a thin line and returned her attention to the storm.

  The phone on Will’s desk rang and he snatched it up and barked something at the person on the other end of the line. Turning out the conversation, Beth folded her arms across her midriff and hugged herself tightly, unconsciously crumpling the letter in her hand. Idly, she watched a man with an umbrella splash across the parking lot below.

  What Will didn’t understand was that the thing between Jake Forrest and herself had not been just a simple college romance. He had been the center of her world, her universe. She had loved him beyond all reason.

  From the moment they met, Jake had stirred in her an awareness that she had never experienced before. For weeks after that first meeting, whenever he had been around her, he had stared at her intently, as though burning her image indelibly into his brain. It had excited and intrigued her, and frigthened her just a little. An army veteran, jake had been older than the other men on campus, and his maturity, his dark, brooding good looks, and his aloofness, had fascinated her. When he had finally asked her out she had been thrilled. Within weeks, she was head over heels in love, for the first time in her life.

  They were together every day but, to Beth’s confusion and growing unhappiness, their relationship remained static. Jake kissed and caressed her passionately, and she knew he wanted her, but he always stopped before they reached the point of no return. Beth loved him and longed to tell him so, but because of his restraint she remained silent. Until the night that Jake took her back to his apartment she’d had no idea how deep his feelings were.

  Beth trembled as she thought about that night. Even now, after all those years, she could remember every detail, every word. All that evening he had been silent and withdrawn, and when he had asked her if she wanted to go to his apartment, her affirmative reply had not seemed to please him.

  She had been tense and nervous as he led her up the steps to the seedy little garage apartment a couple of blocks off campus. When he opened the door and flipped on the harsh overhead light she had not known what to say. The apartment was only one dismal room, with faded wallpaper, bare, scarred floors, and a few battered pieces of furniture: an iron bed, a sagging, ripped sofa, a card table and two folding chairs, and a dresser with one corner held up by a short stack of bricks. The kitchen was an afterthought that had been crammed into a corner, and the bathroom, such as it was, was barely big enough to turn around in.

  “It’s . . . it’s very nice, Jake,” she stammered when he slammed the door behind them.

  “It’s a dump.”

  Jake stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked to the middle of the room. He stood there for a moment, very still, the whirled around. An unruly lock of dark hair fell across his forehead. His face was hard, angry. Determined. “You don’t have to stay here, Beth. I’ll take you home.”

  “I-I want to stay, Jake.”

  Actually, she wasn’t sure whether she wanted to or not. The apartment, though appalling, didn’t bother her as much as Jake’s attitude. He was furious, and she had no idea why.

  “Take a good look at this place, Beth,” he snapped, flinging his arm out in an angry gesture. “ It’s all I’ve got. All I can afford. It won’t always be this way. Someday I’m going to be a success, but for right now, this is it. You have to accept that, because if you stay, you know what will happen. And it’ll be too late to change your mind then. You’ll belong to me. Do you understand that?”

  Beth’s chest was so tight she could scarcely breathe, but an indescribable joy was building within her. She understood. Oh, yes. She understood a lot of things now. Her eyes warm and swimming with emotion, she held his fierce gaze and walked slowly to him. She stopped just inches away and lifted a hand to gently touch his face. The muscles in his jaw were rigid beneath her fingertips. “I love you, Jake,” she whispered. “I want to belong to you. Always.”


  The words had barely left her mouth when Jake groaned and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his chest. He kissed her hungrily, the restraints he had placed on himself for the past month giving way like a crumbling dam. His need of her, the intensity of his feelings, the deep longings he could no longer hold in check, all came pouring out, engulfing her, thrilling her. Beth responded with all the love she had to give, eagerly twining her arms around his neck and pressing her body to his. The sweet sensations that welled up inside her were almost painful. Nothing else mattered, nothing else existed, but the feelings they shared, and when he picked her up in his arms and carried her toward the bed she made no protest. This was Jake, the man she loved, and she could no more withhold her love from him than she could stop the sun from rising.

  Jake shook with need as he tenderly undressed her. When she lay naked beside him his silvery gray eyes ran over her, worshipping her. “Oh, sweetheart. You’re so beautiful. So perfect,” he murmured in an achin whisper.

  Beth smiled tenderly. She felt no embarrasment, no shame, just a sense of rightness and pride that she could bring that fierce, glowing look of love and desire to his face.

  With frantic haste, Jake removed his own clothes, then stretched out beside her, gathering her close. “I love you, Beth,” he rasped urgently, looking deep into her eyes as though willing her to believe him. “I’ll always love you.”

  The desperate entreaty in his voice touched her deeply, and Beth’s eyes pooled with tears. Framing his face between her palms she smiled up at him tremulously. “I know, darling. I know.” She lifted her head and kissed him. Against his lips, she whispered, “I love you, too.”

  Jake kissed her with a loving tenderness that pierced her heart. Gently at first, they touched and explored, uttering the age-old words that lovers have exchanged since time began. But soon their kisses became demanding, their caresses urgent. Their need for one another quickly reached a feverish pitch, and when Jake rose above her, Beth opened to him willingly. But she could not stifle the small cry of pain nor keep her body from stiffening when he encountered the delicate barrier, and Jake halted and looked down at her, stunned.

  “Beth.” Her name was shispered in mingled astonishment and remore. “Oh, my love, why didn’t you tell me?”

  “It doesn’t matter.”

  “But . . . “

  Her hands on his back urged him to continue. “Please, Jake. Love me. Please.”

  Biting his lip, Jake searched her face, then with a groan, complied.

  Later, as they lay spent and clinging to one another, Jake raised himself up on his arms and gazed down at her worriedly. “If I had known I wouldn’t have . . .” He stopped and his face hardened, his eyes blazing possessively over her love-softened features. “But you’re mine now,” he declared in a low, fierce voice that sent a delightful shiver down her spine. “And you’ll be mine forever.”

  Forever. Beth sighed and blinked the fog of memory from her eyes. Once again, she looked down at the crumpled letter in her hand and examined the familiar signature. Forever, for them, had lasted all of six mothns.

  Will terminated his conversation, slamming the receiver back into its cradle, and Beth winced.

  “Well, what’s it going to be?” he demanded, addressing the words to her back.. “Do we deal or not?”

  The anger he was trying so hard to hold in check saddened Beth. In the ten years that she had known him, Will had never been angry with her before. When she married his brother he and his wife Mary had welcomed her into the family with open arms, and had always treated her like a cherished younger sister. Beth know that Will’s irritation stemmed from his anxiety over the firm’s future, and she felt a twinge of guilt that she had added to his worries. Also, though neither relished the idea of giving up control of Prescott, Inc., she was well aware that once the decision had been made, Will had begun to look forward to handing over the reins to someone else, to returnin to his beloved lab and to his test tubes and burners and endless experiments. She couldn’t take that away from him.

  In any case, as much as she wanted to deny it, Will was right. Since her husband’s death a little over a year ago, profits had been slowly but steadily falling. Both she and Will had done their best to take up the slack, but management simply was not their forte. When the brothers had started the small pharmaceutical firm, twenty years earlier, they had each brought to it their own special talents. Will was a brilliant chemist, but it had been Daniel’s business acumen that had built the company into a thriving concern.

  At the moment they were still dealing from a position of relative strenght, but if the trend continued, and, unfortunately, there was no reason to hope that it wouldn’t they would love that advantage. They had to make their move now, or risk going under. And the proposed merger was a good deal, not only for her and Will as co-owners, but for their employees also. If only Jake Forrest weren’t involved.

  A long sigh escaped Beth, and her shoulders slumped. She had no choice, and she knew it. She’d known it all along. The thought of seeing Jake again had panicked her for a few minutes, but reason was slowly returning. Will was right; they needed this merger. And as treasurer of the compnay, there was no way she could avoid meeting with Jake.

  With grim resignation, Beth crossed the room and laid the letter on Will’s desk. “All right. We deal. Just don’t expect me to like it.”

  The rhytmic thump of the windshield wipers grated on Jake’s nerves. “Damned miserable weather,” he muttered irritably.

  Hal Thorpe drew his eyes from the freeway traffic long enough to glance at his boss. “It’s just a spring storm. It probably won’t last very long.”

  Jake looked up at the dark sky and grunted. He shifted his position, unsuccessfully trying to stretch out his long legs. It wasn’t the storm that was bothering him, and he knew it. It was this place. Being in Houston always reminded him of Beth. Just thinking her name brought the familiar stabbing ache to his chest, and Jake’s face hardened. Dammit! Why did it still hurt, after all this time?

  “Anyway, wait until you get a load of the sweet setup at Prescott’s,” Hal continued enthusiastically. “The whole complex was built about five years ago, so they’ve got the latest equipment and an up-to-date lab. They also own additional acreage around the sight, so there’s plenty of room for expansion. But best of all, they’re heavily into veterinary medicine. In the western half of the U.S. their brand dominates the field.”

  “Mmm,” Jake replied noncomittally. “And the owners? Have they agreed to our term?”

  “Mostly. Except for a few minor points, the preliminary negotiations went very well.” Hal flipped the turn indicator and took the next exit off of Interstate 10. Ahead and to the right, set far back from the highway, was the ten-story building that housed the Prescott executive offices. Behind it was the sprawling industrial complex. “Will Prescott is a chemist; accounting is Mrs. Prescott’s area of expertise,” Hal explained. “Neither wants the responsibility of running the firm, and they both prefer our offer over hiring an outsider to take over.”

  As Hal turned the rented car into the entrance, Jake darted a quick look at his assistant, and his mouth twisted wryly. Not for the first time, he’d noticed the warmth in Hal’s voice when he spoke of Daniel Prescott’s widow, and he felt a surge of pity for the younger man. Hal was single and in his late twenties, and though he was a good man a loyal employee, he was still naive where women were concerned. He hadn’t yet learned that they were not to be trusted. Not any of them.

  Realizing where the trend of his thoughts was leading him, Jake cursed silently. He didn’t want to think about Beth’s betrayal, or the hellish turn his life had taken afterward.

  Hal parked the car in a visitor’s slot in front of the building, and they made a mad dash through the rain toward the entrance. Inside, an attractive receptionist confirmed their appointment and directed them to the tenth floor. In the elevator, Jake shifted restlessly from one foot to the other, silently cur
sing Sam Brewster for insisting that he handle the final negotiations. He’d done his damnedest to get out of it, pointing out that Hal had managed just fine this far without his help, and that it was time the younger man got his feet wet. He might as well have been talking to the wind. Sam viewed Prescott’s as a plum acquisition, and he wanted his top man to tie it up.

  Grim determination stamped Jake’s rugged features as the elevator doors swished open and he stepped into the reception room on the executive floor. He’d tie it up all right. He was going to be out of this town by the end of the week, even if he had to cram every clause down the Prescotts’ collective throats.

  The two men were shown immediately into Will Prescott’s office. As they crossed the wide expanse of teal-blue carpet, the middle-aged man rose, but the woman occupying one of the chairs in front of the desk remained seated, her back to them. Jake cast a cursory glance in her direction, but then his attention was diverted as Hal made the introduction and he accepted the hand Will Prescott extended across the desk.

  “How do you do, Mr. Forrest. We’ve been expecting you.” The older man’s tone was polite, his handshake firm, but there was a wariness in his eyes that puzzled Jake. It grew more pronounced when he glanced at the woman. “I, uh, believe you know my sister-in-law.”

  “Ow?” Surprised, Jake cocked one brow, then turned to greet the woman . . . and froze.

  He just stared, unable to speak, unable to move. He couldn’t even breathe. Sitting there looking up at him, her beautiful face calm and remote, her clear blue eyes cool, was the woman who had haunted him for the past ten years.

  “Beth!” Her name was choked out in a strangled voice, but he wasn’t even aware of speaking.

  “Hello, Jake,” she replied quietly.

  “You mean you know Mrs. Prescott?” Hal Thorpe’s gaze jumped back and forth between them, his face a study in incredulity.

  Several seconds ticked by before the question registered on Jake, and even then he was confused for a moment. Distracted, his eyes went briefly to the younger man. “What?” Then it hit him. Mrs. Prescott. Beth is Daniel Prescott’s widow! Pain stabbed through jake, but rage quickly followed-an icy, consuming rage that glittered in his silvery gray eyes as they swung back to Beth. “Oh. Yes, uh ...” He flicked another glance at Hal and smiled coldly. “We . .. met in college.”