The Beauty Queen's Makeover

“That’s a great idea.”

She smiled. “We think so.”

“But?” he prompted.

“We need funding to get it off the ground and decided to impose on our college ties with Kathryn Price. I contacted her through her agent to be the celebrity face for our project and get the donations going.”

“What happened?”

“She refused.” Her mouth pulled tight. “Rachel James got just a glimpse of her here in Saunders.”

“Rachel is my paralegal.”

“Small world,” Sandra said.

“Yeah. So what did she say?”

“She said Kathryn was wearing a scarf covering most of her face.”

“And big sunglasses?” he asked.

“Maybe. Rachel didn’t mention that. But she said the wind lifted the scarf enough to see there was something wrong with her face.”

“So that explains why she turned you down.”

“No, it doesn’t. Her agent said she refused to even hear the details. So we never got a chance to pitch the idea. I can’t help thinking she’s turned into a snob.”

Anger churned in his gut. “For someone who preaches the truth above everything, you’re certainly jumping to conclusions.”

She looked surprised. “Oh?”

He leaned forward and rested his hands on the table. “There could be a thousand reasons she turned you down.”

“Like what?”

“She’s out of the country on a shoot. She doesn’t like sports. She doesn’t like you or David. She’s busy with a hundred other philanthropic projects that are more near and dear to her heart. Like ballet. Or basket weaving. Or sand sculpture.”

Sandra looked surprised. “Wow.”

Wow, indeed. When did he forget to censor everything that came out of his mouth? He’d learned to do it in college when any slip could result in being the butt of a painful joke. As a lawyer, the health of his career depended on editing his thoughts, words and deeds. But just now, he’d worn his heart on his sleeve. Not smart, Williams, he thought.

“I guess I know where you’re coming from,” Sandra said.

“You do?”

“Yeah. I’d say that was a typical male reaction to an incredibly beautiful woman.”

“Oh.” Good. He wasn’t busted after all. “The thing is, I ran into Katie—Kathryn. I happen to know she has a good reason for turning you down.”

“And what would it be? Surely not sand sculpture,” she said wryly.

“No.” He laughed sheepishly. “I’m not at liberty to say.”

“You know that just makes a reporter more curious and determined.”

“I know.” Snooping reporters were the bane of his existence. But Katie was none of her business. “All I’ll say is that she’s fragile and needs a little time. You need to cut her some slack.”

He hoped that didn’t pique her journalist’s curiosity and get her off the professor only to go after Katie. “Look, Sandra, I came here to convince you to leave Professor Harrison alone. He’s only ever wanted to help students. I think this witch hunt is wrong after all he’s done.”

“Wrong has been done, all right. Students who had the credentials to receive those scholarships were victimized. What about justice for them?”

He read the determination in her expression and knew when he was hitting his head against the wall. “So I can’t convince you to back off?”

“Not on a bet.”

“Okay. Then let me help you.”

“Why?” she asked suspiciously.

“So I can prove you’re wrong about him. That he didn’t do anything improper.”

“You’re on.” She nodded emphatically. “I’ve got a ton of files to go through. As an attorney, you should be into file minutiae.”

“Yeah,” he groaned. “I live for the opportunity to look for a needle in a haystack.”

“I’ll give you a stack to go through. The thing is, Nate,” she said sincerely, “if he acted dishonestly, he should pay the price.”

“Even if good came out of it? Wrong thing, right reason?”

“It’s still wrong.”

The pasta primavera settled like a stone in Nate’s stomach. Her words felt like an indictment of his own life. He represented felons. Not an especially noble profession. He wasn’t the man his grandmother had raised and she wouldn’t be proud of what he’d become. He wasn’t particularly proud of himself, either, and hadn’t been for a long time. It never mattered before, but it did now.

Because of Katie.

Chapter Four

Kathryn glanced at the clock on the desk as she paced back and forth in front of the basic beige couch in her room. It was almost time for her seven o’clock dinner appointment. She refused to call it anything else. Late, late for a very important date. Nate had called her Alice in Wonderland and she was beginning to feel that way. She was late—for life.

This was a cozy room, but it wasn’t home. It wasn’t surprising that she wasn’t anxious to go back to California and not because of the earthquakes. She had no career to go back to. But she had to figure out what to do for the professor as soon as possible because she couldn’t afford an indefinite stay in this room.

And speaking of rooms, what had possessed her to let Nate into her life at all, let alone into her own for dinner?

She hadn’t dated since college and it was scary to be with a man at all. Yet she’d agreed to room service! Most women were smart enough to meet men in public places. But with her face scarred, that was scarier than room service. She wasn’t quite sure how Nate had talked her into this. He must be one heck of a lawyer.

Now the pressure was on and the timing was tricky. Dinner needed to be here within a few minutes of when he showed up so they wouldn’t have too much time alone before room service arrived. But she didn’t want it here too early or the cold food ick factor would set in.

Why should she care if the food turned out to be mush? There was a comforting thought. It’s not as if there would be anything long-term between them. Her future was up in the air and until she got her act together, there wasn’t room for anyone else in this mess she called a life. She couldn’t explain why she’d trusted Nate more than anyone in ten years, but that didn’t mean she could muster a level of trust that would sustain a lasting relationship.