The Wager. Metsy Hingle

      “Or perhaps she’s smart enough to realize that material wealth isn’t nearly as important as most people believe.”

      For a moment Josh thought he saw pain flicker in Olivia’s eyes. Despite the headaches this woman’s refusal to sell the Princess had caused him over the years, he couldn’t help but feel sad for her. Growing up in a family far less reserved than the Jardines, Josh didn’t stop to consider his action. He simply reached across the desk and squeezed Olivia’s fingers. “Whatever her reasons for refusing, the loss is hers, Duchess. She could have learned a great deal from you.”

      “Thank you,” she whispered, and withdrew her hand. She straightened her shoulders, her expression as stern as her voice, then said, “But I have no intention of accepting her refusal. That’s why I’m sending you to San Francisco, so you can convince her to come.”

      Josh shook his head. “Count me out, Duchess. This is a family matter. I’m not about to get involved. Maybe you can send one of your attorneys and let him or her explain to Miss Harte exactly what it is she’s saying no to.”

      “I want you to go, Joshua.”

      “Duchess—”

      “I want your opinion of the girl.”

      “Why? It looks to me like you’ve already checked her out thoroughly,” he told her, motioning to the file folder.

      She dismissed the report with a wave of her hand. “I’m not interested in the opinion of some overpriced detective or lawyer who will candy-coat things and tell me what they think I want to hear.” She leaned forward. “I want your opinion.”

      “I appreciate your confidence in me,” he said, and meant it. “But I don’t see what my meeting her could possibly tell you that you don’t already know.”

      “Modesty doesn’t suit you any better than it did your grandfather, Joshua. I’ve heard you have very good instincts when it comes to people. I want to know if my granddaughter has inherited more than the Jardine eyes. I want to know if she’s got the grit of a Jardine and can be trusted with the Princess.”

      Because he didn’t know what to say, Josh remained silent.

      “Will you do it? Will you go to San Francisco and convince Laura to come to New Orleans?”

      Torn between his own desire to reclaim the Princess and the anxiety he heard in Olivia’s voice, Josh opted to be honest with her. “You know I want the Princess. My helping you bring this Laura Harte here to run it would be like cutting my own throat. You’d only end up turning it over to her. The smart thing for me to do is not to help you and let the place continue to bleed money. Eventually you’ll have to cut your losses. And when you do, I’ll buy the hotel.”

      “But that’s where you’re wrong,” she informed him. “I told you, I’m not interested in selling the Princess. And I assure you, I am not going to change my mind.”

      Frustrated, Josh said, “Then I guess we’re both wasting our time.”

      “Oh, sit down,” she ordered when he started to rise. “I said I wouldn’t sell you the Princess. But if you’ll help me, convince my granddaughter to come home to run the hotel, then I’ll give you a chance to win it.”

      Josh narrowed his eyes. “Win the Princess? How?”

      “The same way that I won her from your grandfather.”

      “I’m listening,” Josh told her, intrigued even though he tried not to be.

      “If my granddaughter turns out to be the woman I believe she is, I’ll turn over management of the hotel to the two of you. You’ll have six months to turn the operation around. At the end of that time if the hotel shows a profit, no matter how small, I’ll sign over ownership to Laura and—”

      “Forget it. I’m not interested in working for you, Duchess. And I’m not interested in a partnership with your long-lost granddaughter,” Josh countered, sure he knew where Olivia was heading. “I’ll buy the Princess from you right now. Name your price.”

      “You’re just as pigheaded as your grandfather was,” Olivia accused, her mouth tightening. “For Simon it had to be all or nothing, too. That’s why he insisted on that foolish wager with my father. If Simon won, I would break my engagement to Henry Jardine and marry him. If I won, Simon would sign over the Princess Hotel to me and get out of my life forever.”

      “And you won.”

      “Yes, I won,” Olivia said. Wheeling over to a secretary situated in a corner of the room, she opened a drawer and retrieved a small package before returning to where Josh waited. She placed a deck of cards bound with a faded gold ribbon in the center of the table, then lifted her gaze to Josh’s. “I’m offering you a similar wager, Joshua. I’ll give you a chance to win back Simon’s Princess. Convince Laura to come to New Or-leans, to work with you and turn the hotel around. If you’re successful, at the end of the six months, the two of you will draw cards just as your grandfather and I did fifty-six years ago.”

      “And the stakes?” Josh asked, unable to believe what she was offering him.

      “The deed to the Princess.” She loosened the ribbon from around the cards, placed the deck in front of him and met his gaze once more. “One game. High-card draw. Winner takes all.”

      “It sounds almost too good to be true.”

      “I asked if you were a risk-taker. You assured me you were—if the stakes were right.”

      The stakes were more than right. They were downright incredible. He shoved a hand through his hair.

      “Joshua?”

      “Six months isn’t much time to turn a hotel operation around,” he argued as he began to analyze the pitfalls in the crazy scheme. “What if we can’t pull the hotel out of the red that quickly?”

      “Then all bets are off. I keep the Princess.”

      “And there’s always the chance that even if we succeed in pulling the hotel out of the red, that Laura will win the card game.”

      “True. But I can’t help thinking you might have better luck convincing Laura to sell you the hotel than you’ll have with me.”

      Of course, she was right. Still, it was too easy, Josh thought. The way she had laid out the plan, the worst thing that could happen is he’d be right where he was now—without the Princess. On the other hand, he could win and end up owning the Princess for nothing more than a little of his time and effort. Or he could find himself negotiating with Olivia’s granddaughter to buy the place. He thought of the woman in the photograph again, remembered the unshakable confidence in those blue eyes, that stubborn take-your-best-shot tilt of her chin.

      “I must admit, I expected more eagerness on your part at a chance to win back the Princess.”

      She was playing with him, Josh realized as he rubbed at his chin. “Unlike my grandfather, I try to look before I leap.”

      “Then why don’t I see if I can help you make up your mind?” she replied calmly. Her lips curved slightly, and he knew she was about to put him between a rock and a hard place. “Either you go along with things as I’ve laid them out, or you’ll have to wait until I’m dead before you get another chance to bring the Princess under the Logan Hotels banner.”

      When he still hesitated, she said, “Just so you know, I had my annual physical last week. Despite whatever rumors you may have heard and the fact that I might use this chair occasionally, my doctor claims I’m in excellent health and could live another twenty years. And if you think that I won’t be able to sustain the losses at the Princess, you’d better think again. The other Jardine properties and investments are even healthier than I am.”

      “You’re a hell of a poker player yourself, Duchess.”

      “So I’ve been told,” she replied.

      Josh