Tempted By Scandal. Karen Booth

heart hammered at the thought of what was only ten or fifteen minutes away, but she took several deep breaths and reminded herself that this was exactly what she’d worked so hard for. Meeting with billionaire businessman Matt Richmond would be intimidating for anyone—few people in the world had as much money and influence as he did—but he was also her client. Her client. Her dreams were coming true. She was here to plan Richmond Industries’ fifth-anniversary extravaganza. She was here to make Matt Richmond happy, and she would rock it so hard he’d never hire another event planner in his entire life.

      The young man running the valet stand rushed to Teresa’s door and opened it. He flashed a warm smile, and her nerves settled. “Checking in, miss?” he asked.

      She left the keys in the ignition and eased out of the car. “I am. Just for the night right now, but you’ll see a lot of me over the next five weeks.” She held out her hand. “Teresa St. Claire. Limitless Events. I’m planning the Richmond retreat.”

      “I’m Michael.” He cocked his head to the side, face full of surprise. Perhaps he wasn’t accustomed to guests introducing themselves, but Teresa made a habit of knowing everyone by name. That’s how you got things done. Plus, he reminded Teresa of her younger brother, Joshua, whom she missed terribly and hadn’t seen in months. “I’ll have the bellman take your suitcase up to your room. Let me know if you need anything at all, Ms. St. Claire.”

      “Nice to meet you, Michael. I’m sure I’ll see you around.” Teresa hooked her navy leather Fendi bag on her arm, straightened her black peplum jacket and marched into The Opulence. The lobby was stunning, but Teresa was already brainstorming ideas to make it better for the retreat. It was an automatic shift in thinking. Her training with Mariella Santiago-Marshall at MSM Event Planning in Santa Barbara had served her well. Mr. Richmond and his guests would be taking over the entire resort and Teresa wanted them to step into an event they would talk about for years. That was how she’d cement Limitless Events’ spot on the map. Billionaires, business moguls and celebrities from all over the world would know her name.

      Teresa stopped at the front desk, and the clerk led her through the lobby, past the bar and down a hall to a meeting room. The space was modest but stately, with a gleaming wood conference table for six and a seating area with beautifully upholstered chairs poised in front of a wide picture window. She wandered over to admire the view of Centennial Falls. Sitting in a front-row seat was the ideal place to meet with Mr. Richmond so she could paint the picture of his perfect event. Mariella Santiago-Marshall had taught her that—tell the client a story, let them imagine their guests stepping into a world unlike anything they’ve ever experienced. That’s how you made memories, and memories were how you made lifelong clients.

      She was about to sit in one of the chairs when her cellphone rang with a call from her assistant, Corinne Donovan. “Hey,” Teresa answered. “I only have a minute. Matt Richmond should be here soon.”

      “Did you not get my messages?”

      “No. What messages?”

      “I left you three voice mails.”

      “There’s a dead zone between Seattle and The Opulence. I’m sure I lost cell service. What’s wrong? You sound frazzled.”

      “A man has been calling the office for you. He won’t tell me his name. He kept asking for your cell number and I didn’t want to give it to him, but then he said it was urgent so I finally just did. He said it’s life or death.”

      Goose bumps raced over Teresa’s skin. “Is he going to call me?” Before Corinne could answer, Teresa heard the beep telling her that she had a call on the other line. “This must be him. I’d better take this.”

      “Call me when you get a chance. I’m worried.”

      So am I. “I’ll fill you in when I can.” Teresa ended the call and answered again. “Hello?”

      “Ms. St. Claire.” Despite Corinne’s report of this being a life-or-death situation, the man’s voice was careful and measured, as if he had all the time in the world.

      “This is Teresa. Who’s calling?”

      “I’m a messenger. I’m calling about Joshua.”

      Teresa’s blood ran cold. By design, very few people knew about her younger brother. “What about him?” She hated that defensive tone in her voice, but it came out by pure instinct. She would do anything to protect Joshua.

      “Your brother has a habit of getting into trouble, doesn’t he?”

      Teresa wasn’t going to answer that question. Yes, Joshua had gotten himself into quite a mess a few years ago in Las Vegas, but she’d gotten all of that cleared up via The Fixer, a longtime associate of Mariella Santiago-Marshall’s husband, Harrison. The Fixer did exactly what his moniker suggested—he made problems go away. “What do you want?”

      “Joshua owes some very important people and he’s not going to be able to weasel his way out of it.”

      “Owes what?”

      “With interest, seven million dollars. Payable now.”

      Teresa’s heart nearly stopped. What could Joshua have done that would get him into that deep a hole? “Joshua doesn’t have that kind of money.”

      “Which is why I went to the person who cares most about keeping him alive.”

      Teresa’s stomach lurched. “That’s preposterous. I don’t have that kind of money, either.”

      “Hunter Price invested in your company. He’s a wealthy man. Surely he gave you something to put away.”

      It truly terrified her that this man knew these details of her life. Her agreement with Hunter had been nothing but discreet. Yes, he had invested in Limitless, but those funds had gone right into the business, for office space, staffing and outfitting the entire operation. “I don’t have seven million dollars.”

      “Then come up with it.”

      “How, exactly?”

      “Not my problem. Just keep in mind that Joshua is running out of time.”

      “Don’t you dare hurt him.”

      The man laughed, a sickening sound that told her he was no stranger to harming people. Teresa couldn’t believe this nightmare was happening again. A cocktail of anger and guilt mixed inside her. She’d always been Joshua’s protector. She’d practically been his mother. Their own mother, Talisa, was scattered and overwhelmed by the world, although it was hard even now to blame her. She’d done her best as a single mom. Nothing had been right after Teresa and Joshua’s father, Nigel, died.

      “I’m a reasonable man. I won’t hurt him right away,” the man continued. “First, I air Joshua’s dirty laundry. See how badly that hurts your business. You work with some very wealthy, important people. I’m sure they’d love to learn what your little brother did in Vegas. Your brother that you practically raised. The brother you’re supposed to be guiding through life.”

      Teresa swallowed hard. Her eyes darted to the window, but the sight of the millions of gallons of water rushing over the rocky drop of Centennial Falls was no longer beautiful. It made her even queasier. None of this was fair. She’d worked hard to help Joshua on track. She’d only needed to see him in jail once before she’d become fully committed to keeping him out.

      But the truth was that since she’d started Limitless and moved back to Seattle, she’d been laser-focused on her career. She hadn’t been keeping close tabs on Joshua. Every time they’d spoken, Joshua assured her he was doing fine. Now she knew he wasn’t exactly keeping his nose clean. She should’ve been paying closer attention.

      “I’m sure your clients will be especially surprised to find out what his big sister did to make it go away.”

      Teresa’s pulse pounded. She quickly glanced at the meeting-room door. No sign of Matt Richmond and that was a good thing. Still, she