her to—that he’d ordered her to. The fact that he hated it was not her fault.
Aggie’s past sins were not Wynne’s fault either. Even if she had unknowingly profited from them.
‘You were about to explain why you’d purchased Aggie’s Retreat.’
Straight to the point. That, at least, he could appreciate.
‘Did you know that Aggie won this establishment in a card game?’
‘So that was the truth, then?’ Luscious lips lifted as if they were unused to such rigorous restraint. They were garnered back under house arrest a moment later. ‘I always thought it was a story my grandmother spun for dramatic impact. She was fond of a tall tale.’
‘It was the truth.’
‘I see.’
If she had any curiosity, she didn’t show it. Xavier swallowed back the acid that burned his throat. ‘My grandfather—Lorenzo Ramos—was the other card player. It was his hotel.’
‘Ah.’ She stared at him for a long moment. ‘Was he in love with Aggie?’
His stomach clenched. ‘Why do you say this?’
‘When you’re next in the foyer, look at the portrait on the wall behind the check-in desk. It’s of Aggie when she was a young woman. She was very beautiful...and a free spirit in a time when that was unusual. She had a lot of admirers.’
Admirers? His grandfather hadn’t simply been an admirer. He’d loved Aggie. And Aggie had taken advantage of that. She’d taken Lorenzo’s heart and had run it through with her deceitful, conniving ways before tossing it aside as if it were...as if it were nothing!
And in his desolation and wretchedness Lorenzo had buckled to family pressure and married the coldest woman Xavier had ever met—his grandmother. Lorenzo’s heartbreak had led to the biggest mistake of his life, while Aggie had lived it up with her ill-gotten gains. Was there no justice in this world?
The smooth skin of Wynne’s forehead creased. ‘Has your grandfather held a grudge all these years? Because she bested him in a card game?’
She clasped her hands on the table, and the incredulity in her eyes burned through him.
‘Or is his grievance because he didn’t win her heart?’
‘He held a grudge because your grandmother cheated in that game of cards.’ Xavier shot out of his chair to pace the length of the room. ‘This motel should’ve been under the Ramos Corporation’s aegis all these years.’ He pointed a finger at her. ‘She manipulated him, made him fall in love with her, and then she...she cheated him.’
He paced some more.
When she remained silent, he spun back. ‘Are you not going to say something?’
She lifted one slender shoulder. He couldn’t blame her for feeling at a loss. ‘Your grandfather told you all this?’
‘On his deathbed.’
She stared, a frown gathering in her eyes. ‘Xavier, when did your grandfather die?’
He had to breathe deeply in through his nose and then let the breath out through his mouth before he could answer her. ‘Not quite five weeks ago.’
For the briefest of moments her gaze softened. ‘I’m sorry for your loss.’
He nodded. ‘Thank you.’
A long silence ensued. All the while he was aware of her scrutiny. It was all he could do to feign indifference beneath it.
Finally she broke the quiet. ‘So... He asked you to...?’
Xavier lifted his chin. ‘Before he died he made me promise to buy the motel back.’
He had the penny piece and the Queen of Hearts card that Lorenzo had given him. He’d sworn to place them into Aggie’s hand himself. Apparently Aggie would know what they signified. He didn’t want to meet the woman who had caused his grandfather so much grief. But he had promised.
None of this is Wynne’s fault.
He took his seat again, biting back a sigh. ‘I am sorry if this gives you pain. I am sorry to be the one to reveal to you such an ugly truth about your grandmother.’
He waited for an outburst—protestations. Instead her gaze was removed from his as she stared down at the hands she’d pulled into her lap. From across the table he couldn’t tell if they were clenched or not.
‘You have nothing to say to this?’
‘Um... Congratulations? You’ve won?’
He stiffened. ‘I do not appreciate your flippancy.’
Her gaze lifted to his. She bit her lip, but it wasn’t pain that threaded through those extraordinary eyes. It might almost be...pity!
‘Oh, for heaven’s sake, Xavier. You expect me to believe the ravings of a dying man? Seriously?’
His head rocked back.
‘And then what? You want to turn this situation—us—into the Montagues and the Capulets? Puh-lease! I have better things to do with my time. And you should have too. One thing you shouldn’t be doing is taking revenge for something your grandfather was too lazy to pursue himself while he was alive.’
‘Too lazy...!’
He couldn’t help but roar the words at her. He pushed himself and his chair away from the table, his stomach cramping as the pain of the loss of his grandfather pounded through him with renewed force.
‘You know nothing about my grandfather! He was the kindest, most gentle of men, and he didn’t deserve what Aggie did to him.’
‘Have you ever noticed that when a man gets his heart broken it’s always the woman’s fault, but whenever a woman’s heart is broken she’s usually found at fault too?’ She shot to her feet, hands on hips. ‘You want to know what your sad little story tells me about your grandfather? That he was a fool risking his motel in a game of cards! What on earth was he thinking?’
A fool? Xavier clenched his hands so hard he started to shake.
‘I also know that Lorenzo married and sired three sons. That doesn’t exactly speak of heartbreak to me. And you needn’t look so surprised. Did you expect me to do no homework on the Ramos Corporation? I know that Lorenzo founded a great hotel empire.’
Lorenzo had thrown himself into work because there’d been nothing for him at home. Not that Xavier had any intention of telling Wynne that.
‘Which means he could’ve bought back Aggie’s Retreat any time he wanted to while he was alive—if it was that important to him.
If? ‘He had his pride!’
Her jaw dropped, but her shock was far from edifying.
‘If he truly loved Aggie, but let pride prevent him from pursuing her, then...then he deserved his broken heart.’
‘You’re as heartless as your grandmother!’
She closed her eyes and dragged in a breath. ‘I’m just pointing out that you know only one side of the story. I can tell you right now that Aggie enjoyed male attention. She never made any secret of it. I can also tell you, with my hand pressed to my heart, that she would never have cheated in a matter of honour. But as you don’t know her I don’t expect you to believe me. And here’s a novel thought for you, Xavier. What happened between Aggie and Lorenzo has absolutely nothing to do with us—it’s none of our business. And I have absolutely no intention of troubling myself with it further.’
The burning in his chest intensified. ‘You do not love your grandmother?’
‘On the contrary—I adore her.’
‘But you do not care that I mean to obliterate every trace