Runaway Heir Read online

  ALSO BY RUTH CARDELLO

  WESTERLY BILLIONAIRE SERIES

  Up for Heir

  In the Heir

  Royal Heir

  Hollywood Heir

  LONE STAR BURN

  Taken, Not Spurred

  Tycoon Takedown

  Taken Home

  Taking Charge

  THE LEGACY COLLECTION

  Maid for the Billionaire

  For Love or Legacy

  Bedding the Billionaire

  Saving the Sheikh

  Rise of the Billionaire

  Breaching the Billionaire: Alethea’s Redemption

  Recipe for Love (Holiday Novella)

  A Corisi Christmas (Holiday Novella)

  THE ANDRADES

  Come Away With Me

  Home to Me

  Maximum Risk

  Somewhere Along the Way

  Loving Gigi

  THE BARRINGTONS

  Always Mine

  Stolen Kisses

  Trade It All

  A Billionaire for Lexi

  Let It Burn

  More Than Love

  Forever Now

  TRILLIONAIRES

  Taken by a Trillionaire

  Virgin for a Trillionaire

  TEMPTATION SERIES

  Twelve Days of Temptation

  Be My Temptation

  BACHELOR TOWER SERIES

  Insatiable Bachelor

  Impossible Bachelor

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  Text copyright © 2019 by Ruth Cardello

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  Published by Montlake Romance, Seattle

  www.apub.com

  Amazon, the Amazon logo, and Montlake Romance are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc., or its affiliates.

  ISBN-13: 9781542005128

  ISBN-10: 1542005124

  Cover design by Eileen Carey

  To my friends who inspire so many of my stories by sharing their own.

  Think no one would sneak to bury someone at night?

  You must not know the same people I do.

  Contents

  Don’t Miss a . . .

  Westerly

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Don’t Miss a Thing!

  www.ruthcardello.com

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  Ruth_Cardello

  Westerly

  Family Tree

  (D): stays with Dereck after the divorce

  (S): stays with Stephanie after the divorce

  Prologue

  Seated near one end of a table that was tastefully decorated with white linen and bouquets of wildflowers, Delinda Westerly watched her youngest grandchild, Nicolette, struggle to navigate the wedding reception. She looked positively miserable while speaking with her eldest brother, Brett. Delinda cringed when Nicolette downed her tulip-shaped glass of grappa in one long gulp.

  We all love her.

  That’s not enough for the young. She needs the truth. The not knowing is eating away at her. It broke Delinda’s heart to see Nicolette upset while the rest of the family was finally getting along.

  At her side, her good friend Alessandro Andrade touched her arm, drawing her attention back to him. “Are you getting tired? Should I track down Tadeas?”

  Delinda’s back instantly straightened, and her chin rose with pride. “I’m perfectly fine, thank you.”

  Alessandro scanned the room. “Just missing your fiancé?”

  “Hush,” Delinda said sternly, more out of habit than from irritation. Old habits were hard to break, and lifelong ones impossible. Alessandro’s mother had been one of her closest friends. He was dear to her heart, but that didn’t stop her from scolding him. “We haven’t made an announcement yet, and Eric and Sage’s wedding is certainly not the place for it.”

  “Queen Delinda,” he teased.

  The look she gave him would have cowed a lesser man. “Tadeas is abdicating his crown. Magnus is ready, so it’s time for Tadeas to . . .”

  “Become a Westerly?”

  With a tolerant sigh, she shook her head. Alessandro always had been a rascal, but she couldn’t imagine not having him in her life. “You’re incorrigible.”

  Alessandro studied her face for a moment. “Love looks good on you, Dee. I’m happy for both of you.”

  “Thank you.” She gave his hand a pat. “I never thought I could feel this way again for anyone, but Tadeas makes me believe in a lot of things I’d thought were impossible.” She looked around. “Like having my family all together in one place.” She blinked back a tear.

  “He didn’t do this—you did. You set out to bring your family back together, and they’re all here. I’ll admit that I often didn’t agree with your methods, but your heart was in the right place. I even saw Dereck and Stephanie having a civil conversation right after the ceremony.” He did a mock half bow. “I’m impressed.”

  Delinda’s gaze naturally sought out the woman who had once been her daughter-in-law. “They have a long way to go, but not yelling at each other in public is a start.” She looked over to where her grandson Eric was dancing with his new bride. “I can’t tell you how happy I am that Eric found Sage. I’ve never seen him more at ease with himself.”

  “Good thing you didn’t have her arrested,” Alessandro chided.

  “Indeed,” she conceded. She might have been wrong about Sage’s intentions, but she wasn’t apologetic about the lengths she would go to for her family. Her gaze returned to Nicolette. “Now there is only one I’m worried about.”

  Alessandro turned in his chair. “Nicolette?”

  He sees it, too. As Delinda watched, Nicolette downed another glass of the digestif that was normally sipped slowly. Of all her grandchildren, Nicolette had been the one she’d worried about the least. From the time she’d first learned to speak, no one had ever wondered what that little one wanted. Unshakably loyal to her mother, often inappropriately vocal about her opinions, Nicolette had the heart of a Westerly. Proud. Independent. Fierce. Until her parentage had come into question and she’d withdrawn into herself. This less confident, childishly defiant version of Nicolette was heartbreaking to bear witness to. “She’s not happy. Not tonight, not with her life. She’s lost and scared, Alessandro.”

  “Have you tried talking to her?”

  “Anything I say is taken as a criticism. Like the red dress she chose. I told her it was flattering and simply asked if her generation knows what undergarments are. She stormed away.”

  Alessandro cleared his throat. “I can’t imagine why.”

  Placing one hand over the other on her lap, Delinda said, “I was young once. I unders
tand wanting to shock everyone, but it’s not appropriate for her brother’s wedding. We all want to see her, of course, but not see her.”

  With a deep chuckle, Alessandro turned back to face Delinda. “The dress is not as bad as all that. The young nowadays show more on the beach—”

  “We are not on a beach, are we?” she asked, then noticed Nicolette slipping out a side door. “Where is she going?”

  “Probably to find the ladies’ room.”

  “Perhaps.” Delinda removed her napkin from her lap and placed it beside her dessert plate, preparing to stand. “I have to do something. She hasn’t been herself since she found out my son might not be her father. Dereck has been trying to build a relationship with her, but she’s pulling away from the whole family.”

  “I have an idea . . .”

  “Who is that?” Delinda asked as she noticed a man standing on the other side of the room. “He looks like—”

  “Reese Taunton? He should. That’s his grandson, Bryant.”

  Gripping her napkin tightly in one hand, Delinda said, “What is he doing here?”

  “He was in London on business, so I asked Eric to invite him.”

  “You obviously don’t remember his family’s history with ours.”

  “Reese was a friend of your husband.”

  “Friend? No. He convinced Oliver to invest heavily in a risky venture that failed. Then, rather than admit his own incompetence, he blamed Oliver.” A slow fury began to build within Delinda. “Had it not been for that man, my Oliver might still—”

  “You don’t know that, Dee. Oliver is gone, and Reese is as well. It’s time to put the past and all that anger to rest. I had dinner recently with Bryant’s father, and Maddox said—”

  “Why are you talking with that dreadful family?” Delinda didn’t often get cross with Alessandro, but he’d opened an old wound.

  “It was sad to see how much Maddox still blames you and Oliver for the change in his family’s fortune. They’ve recouped a lot of their wealth, but the mere mention of your name was enough to set Bryant’s father off.”

  “I hope I star in his nightmares. He’s weak, just like his father was. Neither was ever able to take responsibility for their own role in what happened.”

  “What was Maddox’s role? He was still so young, Delinda.”

  “And he grew up to be a spiteful man.”

  “You ruined his father’s reputation, ensured his family was unwelcome in high society. Did you think he would thank you for it?”

  “I did nothing more than was deserved.”

  “Maybe, but vengefulness doesn’t look good on anyone, not even you, Dee. It’s time to let the past go.” One of Alessandro’s shoulders rose and fell. “Bryant’s a good boy. Hardworking. Loyal.”

  “Looks arrogant and cocky.”

  “Sometimes. Without his father’s help, he started his own business and has done well. That can give a man a little swagger.”

  “You like him and that’s sweet, but he doesn’t belong here. Alessandro, I really have no idea why you can’t see that.”

  “Several years ago his mother discovered she had ovarian cancer.”

  Sad, yet not Delinda’s problem. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

  “She was very ill for a long time but didn’t want to be hospitalized, so she was cared for in her home.”

  “Again, why are you telling me this? I no longer have anything to do with that family, nor do I have any desire to.”

  “Bryant had a falling-out with his father over how to care for her in the end. His parents had never divorced, but their marriage hadn’t been a happy one. Bryant left his father’s business, moved in with his mother, and cared for her until she died—then he built up his own company.”

  It was a touching story, but Delinda hardened her heart against it. She gave Alessandro an impatient look.

  Undeterred, Alessandro added, “His father paid the bills, but it was Bryant who stayed by her side, who scheduled the home care. Bryant was right there holding her hand when she died.”

  Oh Lord. Delinda sighed. If anyone else had pleaded the case of a Taunton, Delinda wouldn’t have softened in the least. There was no place in her heart for concern for one, but she did love Alessandro. Without him, she might not have been invited to Eric’s wedding. If he wanted to help a Taunton, she owed it to him to at least hear him out. “Why is it so important for me to meet him? Is he in financial trouble that you feel is my fault? Is that why you brought him here?”

  “This isn’t about money, and he’s not here to meet you.”

  “I’m sorry?”

  “You said it yourself—Nicolette is lost. Bryant is a man who understands what’s most important in life.”

  “No,” Delinda said in a horrified voice, coming to her feet. This time Alessandro was wrong. “Absolutely not.”

  “Love is always the answer.”

  In stark contrast to the joyous music that played loudly in the background, Delinda snarled, “Get him out of this wedding and away from my family.”

  Alessandro rose to his feet, looking unusually stubborn. “I will not. It’s too late, anyway. He couldn’t keep his eyes off her when she was in the room and has been watching the door like he’s awaiting her return. I’d say it’s only a matter of time before he decides to . . . Yes, there he goes, off to see where she went.”

  “There is no way I will stand by quietly while a Taunton—”

  King Tadeas appeared beside Delinda. “What did I miss? Tonight is a celebration—why do the two of you look as if you’re about to go to battle?”

  Delinda clutched her fiancé’s arm. “Do you see that man heading out the door? Have him removed from Eric’s home—this instant.”

  Tensing beneath her touch, Tadeas demanded, “Bryant Taunton? I spoke with him earlier. He seemed like a nice-enough young man. What did he do?”

  “Nothing yet, and that’s how I intend for it to stay. Will you have him removed, Tadeas, or must I do it myself?”

  Tadeas looked back and forth between Alessandro and Delinda. “Why do I have the feeling you and Alessandro are not in agreement over this?”

  Alessandro folded his arms over his chest. “Eric invited Bryant at my request.”

  Delinda’s cheeks warmed, and she dropped her hand from Tadeas’s arm. “Is this how it is to be? The wishes of any man will carry more weight than mine?”

  “Any man?” Tadeas frowned. “Alessandro is practically a son of yours. It’s not as if—”

  Squaring her shoulders, Delinda took a step away. “Since neither of you care about the well-being of my grandchildren, I will deal with this myself.”

  Tadeas stopped her by taking her hand in his. “Your family is as dear to my heart as my own. I loved them first because they were a part of you and have come to care for them more over time. Talk to me.”

  Turning back, Delinda said tightly, “Alessandro has overstepped this time. No Taunton will ever be welcome near a Westerly. Ever. If Reese’s grandchild is here, it’s to cause trouble. I’d bet my life on it. And if neither of you will stop him—I will.”

  Tadeas turned to Alessandro, aligning himself beside Delinda. “Explain yourself, Alessandro.”

  With his classic Italian shrug, Alessandro said, “Is tonight not proof enough of the healing power of love? I didn’t do more than put Nicolette and Bryant in the same room. Fate will take it from here. He would be good for her, and she needs to find her smile again. Don’t we all have too much to be grateful for to dwell in the past?” He appealed to Delinda. “I would not have reached out to him if I didn’t think including him would be good for everyone involved.”

  Leaning down, Tadeas murmured, “It sounds as if Bryant is an innocent in a possibly misguided matchmaking scheme that resembles many you yourself have concocted in the past, but if you believe he would indeed bring harm to any member of your family, I will have the boy removed.”

  Given time to think it through, Delinda did not want to do an
ything that would mar the perfection of Eric’s wedding. Bryant was not his father, nor was he his grandfather. Perhaps there was no harm in letting him attend a Westerly wedding. Still . . .

  “If he is anything less than a gentleman to Nicolette—”

  “I will serve you his head on a platter,” Alessandro promised with a wave of his hand.

  “We recently outlawed that practice,” Tadeas responded, as if Alessandro had meant it literally, then put an arm around Delinda’s waist. “Now, how about a dance, Delinda?”

  “I’m not sure you deserve a dance,” she said, but a smile tugged at her lips. Tadeas would never be a man who instantly agreed with her. He had too much king in him. He did, however, genuinely care for her family, and sometimes his calmer nature was a good balance for her more impulsive one.

  I might even tell him that as long as it doesn’t give him a big head.

  His smile told her he knew very well what she was thinking. “Sounds like I shall have to work my way back into your graces—a challenge I find I don’t mind at all.”

  Love swept through her with the kiss that followed his words. Alessandro was right. She would have missed this moment with all the people she treasured if she hadn’t begun to put the past to rest. After Oliver’s suicide, Delinda had been determined that such a loss would never hit her family again. She’d fought for them, fought with them, to make sure it wouldn’t.

  It wasn’t until none of her grandchildren had attended her eightieth birthday that she’d seen how, in protecting them, she had actually driven them away. Alessandro had challenged her to put aside old grudges. He’d been there on that birthday, as he’d been at so many before and each one since. His mother had asked him to take care of Delinda, and he had—as if they truly were related by blood.

  At his prodding, she’d opened her heart again.

  But a Taunton?

  Tadeas raised his head. Alessandro had walked away. Tadeas took Delinda’s hand and led her to the dance floor, twirling her around him, leaving her feeling half her age and laughing. “Forgive me yet?”

  Delinda caressed his proud features with the back of one hand. “How could I not? I’m the one who doesn’t deserve this dance, Tadeas. If not for you, I would have ruined Eric’s wedding.”