Her ex-lover is back—

right when she discovers her life is a lie.

Ten years ago, Morgan Steele secretly eloped with River Atkinson—only to see her vows betrayed. Now River’s back, made good as CEO of a construction company that rivals her family’s empire. Forced to work together, they give in to long-suppressed desire. But when Morgan discovers she was switched at birth and isn’t the Steele heiress after all, will their second chance be sabotaged by secrets?

ANDREA LAURENCE is an award-winning author of contemporary romances illed with seduction and sass. She has been a lover of reading and writing stories since she was young. A dedicated West Coast girl transplanted into the Deep South, she is thrilled to share her special blend of sensuality and dry, sarcastic humour with readers.

Also by Andrea Laurence

What Lies Beneath

More Than He Expected

His Lover’s Little Secret

The CEO’s Unexpected Child

Little Secrets: Secretly Pregnant

Rags to Riches Baby

One Unforgettable Weekend

The Boyfriend Arrangement

From Mistake to Millions

Discover more at millsandboon.co.uk

From Riches to Redemption

Andrea Laurence

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ISBN: 978-1-474-09258-6

FROM RICHES TO REDEMPTION

© 2019 Andrea Laurence

Published in Great Britain 2019

by Mills & Boon, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF

All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, locations and incidents are purely fictional and bear no relationship to any real life individuals, living or dead, or to any actual places, business establishments, locations, events or incidents. Any resemblance is entirely coincidental.

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Version: 2020-03-02

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Contents

Cover

Back Cover Text

About the Author

Booklist

Title Page

Copyright

Note to Readers

One

Two

Three

Four

Five

Six

Seven

Eight

Nine

Ten

Eleven

Twelve

Epilogue

About the Publisher

One

“Morgan? There’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

Turning at the sound of her brother Sawyer’s voice, Morgan Steele found herself suddenly frozen on the spot. Her eyes were wide and unblinking, her lips trembling but soundless as she stared at the man standing at her brother’s side.

She wasn’t sure what she had been expecting. Probably just another polite and boring chat with one of her parents’ friends and colleagues. Charity fund-raisers for Steele Tools usually meant an endless stream of champagne and small talk with people whose names she wouldn’t remember in ten minutes. Her family hosted events like this at their home all the time. But she knew this man’s name. There was no way she would have ever forgotten it.

He’d grown out of his boyish lanky build and into the strong physique of a man who worked with his hands for a living. His closely cropped beard made him look older and more sophisticated than before, but Morgan would know those eyes anywhere. Those navy blue beauties had seen right through her.

“Morgan, this is River Atkinson. He’s the owner and CEO of Southern Charm Construction. He’ll be working with you this year on our summer housing development project.”

Sawyer continued to prattle on, completely oblivious to the reactions of the two people standing with him. At least to Morgan’s stunned reaction. For River’s part, he actually looked a bit...well...smug. He smiled in a way that told anyone who bothered to look that he was in on the joke. His eyes held a touch of amusement in them as he extended his hand to her.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Steele,” he said.

She knew she should shake his hand. Play along with this ruse and not make a scene. And yet, she couldn’t make herself reach out and touch him. That was the same hand that had caressed every inch of her body. The same hand that had slipped a petite diamond ring onto her ring finger during a small rustic mountain ceremony in the Smoky Mountains. The same hand that had taken a hundred grand from her father and walked away without looking over his shoulder.

“Morgan?”

Her brother’s concerned voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She plastered her practiced grin onto her face and thrust her arm out to shake River’s hand. She had to treat him like any other business acquaintance. Sawyer didn’t know about her past with River. Almost no one did, including all three of her brothers. “It’s nice to meet you, too, Mr. Atkinson. I’m sure our companies will do great things together this summer.”

His shake was firm, but she could tell that he wasn’t interested in immediately letting go of her hand. To be honest, she had a hard time pulling away herself. There was something when they touched—a familiar connection—that lingered there. As though their bodies remembered each other, even if their minds resisted the idea.

Finally, he released her from his grasp. She switched her champagne flute into that hand to let the chilly glass dull the feel of him against her skin. Then she took a large sip to dull the feel of him inside her head as well.

Who the hell had approved this? Her father certainly wasn’t involved. He’d just as soon shoot River on the doorstep as let him inside after what happened back in college. But her family was good at keeping secrets, even from each other. It was news to Morgan that Southern Charm Construction and River Atkinson were one and the same entity. She’d heard mention of the company and never once questioned who owned it.

“Sawyer? Can you come here for a minute?” Their mother’s voice beckoned one of Morgan’s older brothers.

Morgan tensed. She didn’t want to be left alone with River. They would hardly be alone in the traditional sense, but being in the same room having a discussion was more intimate than they’d experienced since the day her family pulled them apart.

“If you’ll excuse me.” Sawyer smiled and clapped River on the back before he departed.

With just the two of them standing on the fringe of the crowd together, Morgan wasn’t quite sure what to do. It was more awkward than a junior high dance. What was she supposed to say to the boy—man—who had turned his back on her all those years ago?

“You’re looking well, Morgan,” River said. He was clutching a glass tumbler of scotch in his hand as his dark eyes raked over her from top to bottom. “That emerald dress suits you. It brings out the green in your eyes.”

It seemed they were going for polite, but intimate. “Thank you. I like the beard. It makes you look distinguished.” It was silly, but she wasn’t sure what else to say to him.

River chuckled at her choice of words. “Distinguished. If by that you mean rich and important, then yes, that’s exactly the look I was going for.” He glanced down at her hand as she held her glass. “Not married yet?” he asked.

Morgan couldn’t prevent one dark eyebrow from arching up in surprise and confusion at his question. “Yet? Don’t you mean married again, River?”

He just shrugged off her challenge with a roll of his eyes. “As far as the state of Tennessee and your family is concerned, you’ve never been married, Morgan, and neither have I. That’s what getting an annulment means. It never happened. That’s why you mailed the ring back, remember?”

“Shhh!” Morgan’s eyes widened as she looked around at the people nearby to see if anyone was listening. Thankfully, everyone seemed to be involved in their own discussions. She reached out for River’s elbow and tugged him with her into a far corner of the ballroom where no one could hear them.

“What is all this about, River?” she hissed at him through clenched teeth.

He crossed his arms over his chest, straining the shoulders of his designer tuxedo. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“The hell you don’t. Why are you here tonight?”

“I was invited,” he replied with a satisfied smirk.

Morgan sighed in frustration. He was going to make her spell this out just because he could. “How did our companies end up working together, River? This is the first I’ve heard of it or it sure as hell wouldn’t have been approved. Was this your big idea? To weasel back into the family somehow through your business?”

“Why would I want to be in your family, Morgan? For the few hours I was related to the Steeles, I was treated like dirt. You’ve always been so arrogant. Acting like somehow everything always revolves around your important family and what people want from you.” There was audible venom in his voice. “I didn’t want anything from you but your love, Morgan, and your father wouldn’t even let me have that.”

Morgan watched a flicker of pain dance across his eyes. Yes, he’d been hurt. But he hadn’t been abandoned the way she had been. “No, he wouldn’t, but you seemed all too happy to settle for a fat check instead.”

Her father, Trevor Steele, had tried to reason with her when they got back to Charleston that morning. River wasn’t good enough for her. He was only using her to get to her money. Eloping? Without a prenuptial agreement? A background check? That little stunt could’ve had a disastrous outcome, he had insisted. And the boy she loved had his price. His affections were worth a hundred grand. When her father agreed to River’s price, money in hand, River had stopped fighting and let Morgan go.

River stiffened at her words. Perhaps he wasn’t very proud of that, either. He narrowed his dark sapphire gaze at her for a moment, and then let his arms fall helplessly to his side. “If that’s what you really think of me, it’s probably just as well our marriage was erased from history. We never would’ve made it. You must’ve known that, though. You didn’t seem to mind letting your daddy clean up your mess.”

Morgan’s jaw dropped, her response stolen from her lips. What was she supposed to say to that? Letting her daddy clean up the mess? Really? What did he know of the mess left behind? He hadn’t been there. He had no idea what she had been through over losing him. Over losing everything. He’d extorted a load of money from her father and carried on with his life. She’d been left behind to deal with the aftermath.

“Morgan, Dad says it’s almost time for us to go on stage and beg for money.”

She turned away from River as a wave of relief washed over her. Morgan needed the interruption. Things had escalated quickly with years of words bottled up between them, but now was not the time. She would say something she regretted if she didn’t get away from him right now.

“Do you have your speech ready?” This time it was Sawyer’s twin, Finn, coming to fetch her. The identical twins were a year and a half older than she was, both with their father’s dark blond hair and golden hazel eyes. She could tell this was Finn because of the dimple in his right cheek. Sawyer’s dimple was in his left cheek. She also knew Finn was wearing a bright orange bow tie with his tuxedo to agitate their father. Finn lived to exacerbate Trevor Steele.

“I’ll be right there.” She turned back to where River was standing with an expectant look on his face. He’d called her arrogant, and the way he looked at her made her want to slap the smug smirk off his face. She’d settle for making him eat his words. “We’ll have to continue this conversation later, Mr. Atkinson.”

“I look forward to it. I’m certainly not going anywhere,” he said.

As Morgan turned and made her way up to the stage to join her family in greeting the guests and donors at their annual charity event, she worried that River meant every word he’d said.

Whether it was a promise or a threat, River Atkinson was suddenly back in her life and he wasn’t going anywhere.

* * *

River watched Morgan walk away with a grin on his face. He was pleased. For one thing, he’d gotten under her skin. That was exactly what he’d wanted when he set out tonight. And for two, watching the curve of her ass sway in that satin-and-lace gown as she left was a delicious sight that brought back some very hot memories. Her womanly curves had certainly filled out since he’d seen her last. That would make any man smile. Even a man who had spent years plotting to make her regret the way she’d abused his affections.

Those affections for Morgan were long gone now. Swept under the rug with his other youthful naïveté. He should’ve known that his romance with a rich little princess wouldn’t end well. She had just been stretching her wings, rebelling against the tight reins they’d kept on her as a child. That’s what college was for after all. The problem was that they’d both taken it too far. They’d fallen in love.

Even that wouldn’t have been the worst thing in the world. Love wasn’t permanent. Marriage was another matter. It was legally binding. Or at least he’d thought it was until the Steele family lawyers managed to get their little indiscretion wiped away.

And Morgan had let them do it. That was what hurt the most. When Daddy yelled, she’d fallen in line, throwing away everything they’d planned together. He’d been left with an empty bed and a consolation prize, if you could call it that. Some would call it hush money. Or a bribe to walk away and not cause a stink. If there was one thing he’d learned about the Steele family, it was that they hated a scandal. He probably could’ve gotten more money from her father if he’d asked for it. Whatever it took to make River go away.

But, of course, he hadn’t thought to do that. He hadn’t wanted to take the money at all. It felt cheap. What he wanted was his wife back. He wanted the future he’d planned with her.

When River realized that wasn’t going to happen, he knew he had a choice. He could turn tail and go home with nothing but his bruised pride, or he could take the money and make something positive come out of this whole mess. He supposed Mr. Steele thought he would blow every penny on cheap beer and an expensive truck, or whatever he thought poor white trash liked to do with their money.

The joke was on him. River might’ve been poor and lacked all those fancy degrees on his wall, but he wasn’t stupid. He took that money and started his own construction company. He’d practically grown up in this business, following his dad around job sites as soon as he was old enough. With his father’s experience, River’s drive and a housing boom just beginning in Charleston, he’d turned that hundred thousand into a hundred million in cash and assets.

And to keep in touch with his roots, when River made his first million, he bought a six pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon and a tricked out Ford F-250 to celebrate. Couldn’t let ol’ Trevor down, could he?

The sound of applause roused River from his thoughts. The family was done welcoming the crowd and asking for money. That meant his chance to track down Morgan again had come. Unfortunately, the petite brunette was easily lost in the crowd. He supposed she wasn’t too eager to continue their discussion, but like it or not, it was going to happen. It had been festering for ten years now and it needed to be dealt with.

Even then, there wasn’t a rush to return to their argument. He had time, so he made his way to the bar for a refresher and enjoyed some of the cold canapés being passed around. They weren’t particularly filling, but rich people seemed to like fancy foods that cost a lot yet left a gnawing hunger in their bellies.

“Mr. Atkinson?”

River turned to find an older man with a young blonde on his arm. “Yes?”

“Kent Bradford,” he said, thrusting out his free hand to shake with River. “I hear you build some amazing houses.”

River smiled. “I’m glad that’s the word going around, but I like to think of it as well-built homes my customers love. Are you interested in building a property, Mr. Bradford?”

“Call me Kent. And actually, yes I am. Do you work outside of the Charleston area at all? I’ve secured some mountain property near Asheville, North Carolina, and I was hoping to build a cabin.”

His brow went up. “A cabin?” A cabin wasn’t worth the time or energy to travel that far. The man could get a better deal from a local company.

Kent chuckled. “Well, I say cabin, but let’s be honest. A five-thousand square foot, three-story house is hardly a cabin. I just want it to have that mountain cabin feel. With all the modern amenities and luxuries, of course.”

That was more like it. “I haven’t built out there, but I would be happy to discuss it with you.” River reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a business card. “Why don’t you give me a call next week and we can talk about what you’re interested in. I can have my architect draw something up.”

“Wonderful.” The man accepted the card and slipped it into his pocket. “I’ll be calling you.” With a smile, the man turned and led the younger blonde over to the dance floor.

Tonight wasn’t all about confronting Morgan, despite what she might think.

It was also about business. Working with the Steele Tools company on their annual charity project was good PR for him. Just being in this room put him within shouting distance of damn near every millionaire in the state of South Carolina. While he waited to talk to Morgan, he was happy to pick up a few business contacts. These types were always wanting to build a summer home or a new status-symbol mansion to keep up with the Joneses, and that meant business was good for him.

He figured that eventually he would get a chance to talk to Morgan again. The room was only so large and the night had really just begun. But the next thing he knew, one of the twins got back on stage. River knew she had three older brothers, two of whom were identical twins, but he couldn’t even begin to be able to tell them apart, especially with them all sporting similar, Mark Twain-esque names.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I’m sorry to say this, but we’re going to have to end the event early tonight. We’ve had a family emergency that we need to tend to. If you would be so kind as to see your way out, we would truly appreciate it. Morgan will be in touch with each of you in the upcoming weeks about your support of this year’s Strong as Steele community project. Thank you so much for coming.”

And with that, the twin disappeared from the stage.

That was odd. The family had gone to a lot of trouble and expense putting this event together. Tickets to attend weren’t exactly cheap, either. There must have been something serious going on if they’d chosen to end it and kick everyone out of the house before they got checks out of everyone.

Looking around, River caught a blur of emerald green as Morgan was ushered across the hall by her mother and a large man he didn’t recognize. He looked like the former military type despite his expensive tuxedo. The brothers followed them, and they all disappeared into a far room of the house and didn’t come back out.

He loitered for a while, letting the other guests clear out of the valet lot in the hopes that someone might come out. But soon, he found he was one of the only people in the ballroom aside from the catering crew that was busy cleaning up. He finally gave up and called it a night himself. When he found no fewer than four police cars outside the mansion as he left, he got the feeling the family emergency was going to take up the rest of their night. Knowing the Steeles, whatever happened would require major damage control to keep the family from looking bad.

Strolling outside, he handed over his ticket to the valet driver and waited for his truck. A few minutes later, the attendant pulled around front with his sapphire-blue F-250 Lariat Super Duty pickup. River tipped him and climbed in.

This wasn’t exactly how he’d expected tonight to end. Things felt awkward and unfinished. They’d only begun their discussion when it came to a quick and premature end. Then again, he didn’t really know how he’d wanted it to end, either. Perhaps he’d hoped that the sight of him would cause Morgan to swoon? Or maybe that she would rush into his arms and tell him how wrong she’d been and that she still loved him?

Ha. He pulled away from the Steele mansion with a smirk on his face. That wouldn’t happen in a million years. His ego wasn’t so large as to think she’d given much thought to him over the last decade. He was the poor, unsuitable boy who wouldn’t amount to anything. That wasn’t the kind of person who loitered in your thoughts. Her big mistake.

No, odds were that she’d tried to put him and their relationship out of her mind as soon as possible. To pretend it never happened just the way her family wanted her to. She probably wanted to put him out of her mind right now, but it wouldn’t be so easy this time. River had seen to that by signing an agreement with a representative from Steele Tools who didn’t know who he was. Few people outside of her parents would know their history together and their silence had worked to his advantage. Now he was guaranteed to spend a large chunk of the summer collaborating specifically with the company’s community outreach representative—Morgan.

At best, he’d hoped she would spend the upcoming weeks regretting what she’d done to him. But after seeing her tonight, this summer might prove to be more pleasurable than he’d expected. At least for him. He hadn’t been sure how his former love would look after all these years apart. When she’d turned to him in that stunning green lace gown, he was almost knocked back off his feet. Her exotic green-gold eyes, the high cheekbones, the skin like flawless porcelain... It was as if hardly a day had passed and yet everything was somehow different. Especially when she looked at him with a mix of horror and surprise distorting her lovely face.

The girl he remembered, his bride, had been the prettiest girl he’d ever seen in his life. With her long, luscious dark hair, insightful eyes that saw through his defenses and a sweet-as-sugar smile, he was smitten the moment he’d lain eyes on her. She was older now, perhaps harder, judging by the guarded way she had spoken to him. But even so, he was tempted to fall into her same trap again. Thankfully, he knew better now. Her love came with strings. Baggage. It might come easily, but it could go just as fast.

If Morgan wanted him this time, it was only because he’d achieved his goal and was finally worthy of Daddy’s approval. Nothing had really changed about him as a person. He just had money and prestige. Those things were paramount to Mr. Steele. And to Morgan, River supposed.

Hitting the button on his console to open the gate, River slowed at the entrance to his property on Kiawah Island. When it was finally open, he passed down the lane to the home he’d built for himself once he’d finally had the time and money to make exactly what he wanted. A lot had changed since that awful night all those years ago.

River had taken the older man’s advice along with his check, walking away and making something of himself with that money. Not to prove anything to Morgan or her father. More to prove it to himself. And he had, many times over. He wasn’t the dumb kid he’d been back then. And now it was time for Morgan and Trevor to see how much the man’s investment in River had grown. Maybe, just maybe, they might regret judging someone so harshly in the future.

But even if they didn’t, he wasn’t interested in getting anyone’s endorsement these days. Especially from a controlling bastard like Trevor Steele.

Two

“I have the report ready from the fund-raiser. Accounting just brought it to me.”

Morgan looked up from her computer to see her assistant, Vanessa, coming into her office with a manila folder in her hand. “That was quicker than I expected.”

Vanessa handed over the file. “I’ll let you know when your next appointment arrives,” she said before slipping back out to her desk.

Morgan opened the folder and her brows lifted in surprise as she saw the bottom line. Given that the event had run for less than a third of its usually scheduled time, she hadn’t expected them to raise as much money. They’d never even gotten around to the silent auctions. The family hardly had time to circulate through the crowd and stir up donations. She’d already been planning a contingency for this year’s project, narrowing the scope significantly. Considering she had to work with Southern Charm, a part of her would’ve been okay with cancelling it entirely.

Instead, they’d actually raised more. Apparently, cancelling an event for television-worthy drama in their family made their guests and donors feel bad. And when rich people felt bad, they tended to write a check to feel better again.

Actually, they’d raised enough to build at least three houses in the community this year. And that was just in the month since the event. More funds could still roll in during the next few weeks. Last year, they’d only raised enough for two houses and that had been their all-time high.

That was one bright spot in the dark drama that had plagued her recently. Finding out she had been switched at birth was a major revelation. The news had just come to light and yet, if you asked Morgan, it felt like years since she found out the truth. That sort of news could shift your whole perception of the world. Especially when you realized that your whole life was a mistake.

Normally, time flew by. She lived a pretty busy life, pouring almost all her energy into the family company and its continued success. When she wasn’t at the office, she was at the gym trying to work off the stress and the extra pounds that clung to her hips. She’d always longed for the naturally slender figure of her mother, but instead, her weight was just another item on a list of things that weighed heavily—pun intended—on her mind. But even then, nothing could have prepared her for everything that had happened in her life since that night.

Now, Morgan couldn’t even look in the mirror without seeing some imposter looking back at her. How could she have been so blind all these years to the things that were plainly visible to anyone who bothered to look? There was no way she was a Steele. She’d always had a different appearance from the rest of her family—the dark one among a sea of blonds—but it had never registered in her mind what that really meant before the truth came out.

Now she wondered what her parents had really thought all those years. Had her father believed Morgan was the child of an affair with a dark-haired man? Had they thought a recessive gene had come through? They certainly hadn’t guessed their real baby girl had been switched with an imposter in the maternity ward or she wouldn’t be almost thirty with the last name Steele. Her family would’ve marched back to the hospital and handed over their changeling the minute they suspected something was wrong.

Even after the truth had come out, there wasn’t much they could do. At least at first. The news had come in a double whammy on the night of the charity event: not only had she been switched at birth, but also, the real Steele daughter—Jade Nolan—had just been kidnapped from the steps of their mansion. There was no time to process the impact of the realization. All they could do was dig up ten million dollars to pay the ransom demands.

Morgan had never seen her father that shade of sickly pale before. Not even the night he burst into her honeymoon cabin. Then, he’d been furious. The latest news just seemed to make him heartsick. Even so, he sprang into action in true Steele CEO form. The money was paid, Jade was found safe and the kidnappers had disappeared without a trace. That left a sudden silence where everyone was now absorbing what this news really meant.

Morgan still wasn’t sure what would come of all this. Her whole life, her whole identity, had been tied up in being Morgan Steele. The perfect daughter. The baby of the family. Spoiled and doted upon by her parents and her older brothers. Rich. Well-educated. Poised. The ideal member of the family to represent the Steele Tools outreach program. That identity wouldn’t change overnight, no matter what the DNA tests said. It would take time to come to terms with it all.

In the meantime, she woke up most mornings feeling lost. Who was she, really? Who would she have been if she hadn’t been switched in the nursery that day? It was too soon to know all the answers yet, but the time she’d spent with Jade and her parents had been enlightening enough. She certainly wouldn’t have gotten a private school education or gone on to study at Georgetown University. She wouldn’t have gotten a Mercedes convertible for her sixteenth birthday or a two-month trip through Europe as a high school graduation present. Her real parents couldn’t afford all that. Morgan had grown up with every luxury that should’ve been Jade’s to enjoy.

Then again, if they hadn’t been switched, then perhaps Morgan would’ve been free to live her life the way she wanted to. That was one luxury she could never afford, no matter how big her investment portfolio got.

At this point, she supposed she should be happy that her family hadn’t turned their backs on her. This had been their chance to wash their hands of her, and they hadn’t. Although she had the reputation of being the perfect princess of the family, it certainly wasn’t because she was without flaws. She was fairly sure she regularly disappointed her parents in one way or another. Not intentionally, but it still happened.

Seeing Jade with her flawless skin, white-blond hair and big dark eyes—almost a clone of her mother, Patricia Steele—made her feel like even more of a disappointment. She imagined that even bound on the floor of the dirty warehouse where they’d found her, Jade was more like the ideal Steele daughter than Morgan would ever be.

She’d only been able to spend a little time with Arthur and Carolyn Nolan, and only in a group setting, but it made her wonder if she would feel more comfortable with her biological family. Perhaps they would be so happy to spend time with their real daughter that their expectations would be lower. Perhaps they wouldn’t care that she wasn’t a perfect size two or that she’d eloped in college with a poor boy she’d loved more than anything. Maybe they would’ve supported her choices instead of erasing them.

Or maybe she was imagining a perfect situation that had never existed and never could have existed. If she’d been raised as Jade Nolan, she probably wouldn’t have met River at that bar in Five Points. Her life would’ve taken a different path. But there was no going back and no sense worrying about things like that.

A chiming sound came from her computer, accompanied by an instant message from her assistant. Miss Steele, your four o’clock appointment is here, she wrote.

Speak of the devil.

Morgan took a deep breath. And then there was that situation to deal with. It was a horrible thing to say, but the kidnapping had been a welcome distraction from River and his unexpected appearance. As though she didn’t already have enough going on in her life, he had to pop up out of nowhere. In one night—at one party, even—her past had caught up with her in more ways than one.

Now, her ex-husband was sitting just outside her office, ready to talk about how they were going to spend the summer together. She could hardly even imagine how she was going to get through this.

Morgan wanted to back out. She’d build six houses next year to make up for it. But she knew that wouldn’t fly. They’d already announced their partnership with Southern Charm Construction. If they didn’t go through with it, it would raise questions. Questions no one wanted to answer. Besides, if she made a fuss, her father would get involved and that was the last thing she wanted.

If Trevor Steele had taught her nothing else, it was that a Steele stayed poised and professional at all times—even in the face of scandal or disaster. So that was all she could do.

Send him in, she replied to her assistant’s message. Then she locked her computer screen and prepared herself for another argument. There was no way they wouldn’t be finishing what they’d started the other night. If they were going to work together, they needed to clear the air once and for all.

The door swung open and standing in the doorway was River. Today, he’d traded in his tuxedo for a navy suit, but it looked just as amazing on him. He’d found an excellent tailor, she’d give him that. The jacket fit his broad shoulders and narrow waist easily. He was still on the lean side, a runner’s physique, but even with his coat on, she could tell his upper body was cut. She supposed that working construction could build up those muscles. It made her want to squeeze a bicep and feel it flex beneath her fingertips.

He smiled at her and she felt her resolve start to weaken as heat crept up her neck. It made her wish she’d worn a blouse with a higher neckline. Or that she’d thought to button it up to the throat before he came into her office. Or worn a scarf. At the slightest agitation, be it arousal or embarrassment, her chest and neck would turn a blotchy red. At its worst, her face would follow suit and she’d look like a furious cherry tomato. She hadn’t thought about this appointment when she dressed this morning.

Of course, it would help if Morgan didn’t think about his muscles. Or his smile. Or his anything.

It was too late for that. Instead, all she could do was wave him inside. He shut the door behind him and casually made his way across her office to the desk where she was waiting for him.

When her father had first ordered the furniture for her office, she’d hated it. It was bulky executive furniture that weighed a thousand pounds and was far too dark for her taste. It was perfect for a mahogany row office, but that wasn’t the image she wanted to project. Working for charity while sitting at a ten-thousand-dollar desk was tacky.

At the moment, however, she was grateful for it. Having a mountain of wood between the two of them was almost enough to make her feel comfortable in his presence. Almost.

Comfortable or not, it was time to take control of this situation. She might not be a Steele, but she’d been raised like one, and she wasn’t going to let River get the upper hand today. She sat up straight at her desk, lacing her fingers together over her leather blotter and crossing her ankles. This was the pose that flipped the switch in her brain to work.

Then she watched River do the opposite. He unbuttoned his jacket and settled into the chair like he was at home on his couch. He made himself comfortable, sitting back and casually crossing his ankle over his knee as though he didn’t have a care in the world. Somehow, that didn’t seem fair to Morgan.

Time to make him as uncomfortable as she was.

* * *

“Before we get started, I have one question for you, Mr. Atkinson.”

“Mr. Atkinson is my father,” he noted with a sigh. Judging by Morgan’s tone, she was ready to finish their little chat from the party. He was glad he was at least in a comfy chair if she was going to lay into him first thing. This could turn into a very long or very short meeting depending on how the next few minutes went. “But ask away.”

“What exactly are you doing here?” Her gaze fixed on him with a pointed expression on her face.

“I’m here to talk about building houses for the poor. Isn’t that why you’re here?” He couldn’t help the sarcasm from slipping into his voice. It was one of the only emotions he had left where she was concerned.

She studied his face for a moment. “I’m serious, River. Why did you sign up for this whole thing? If you only bid on this job to get your chance to tell me off, then just walk away now. This charity project is important to me. If you’re not genuinely interested in helping the community, I’ll find another contractor.”

“Oh, I’m very serious,” he said. And he meant it. “This project is essential to me and my company’s five-year plan.”

“So you’re just using the Steele name to make a name for yourself.”

“I’ve already made a name for myself and my company, thank you, but I’d be a fool if I didn’t use the chance for some good press and free advertising. Hopefully, that will lead to great things in the future for me and my employees. But listen, I am fortunate enough to be in a position to do some good in the community. This was a great opportunity to do that and get the word out about Southern Charm. There’s nothing wrong with that. As the force behind this whole effort, Steele Tools does the exact same thing.”

“We do it to help others less fortunate.”

River watched her expression as she spoke. She really believed what she’d said. “Maybe you do. But your dad and his stockholders go along with it for corporate promotion and tax deductions, I guarantee it.”

“So you really just want to give back? Give your company a little boost?” She didn’t seem convinced of it as she spoke. “You’re telling me that this whole thing isn’t just a ruse to see me again?”

River laughed. Louder than he’d intended to. Enough to make Morgan wrinkle her nose up in irritation. That only made him laugh more. She really was full of herself. “I’m sorry to disappoint, but I’ve been over you a long time, Morgan. If I wanted to see you, there are easier ways than signing my company up for a summer of charity work for zero profits. So no, this isn’t about seeing you again.”

He couldn’t help but notice a painful flicker cross her face for a moment before she pulled herself back together. Was it possible that he’d hurt her feelings? After everything that had happened, he’d wondered if she had cared about him at all. There hadn’t been one word, one email, one text after she left him alone in that honeymoon cabin that night. Just an envelope a few days later with a wedding ring inside.

And for that half a second, he saw the face of the girl he’d once loved. The one overflowing with emotions and vulnerabilities. One that would’ve held out hope that her first love might still carry a torch for her after all these years. Then the poised, ice-cold princess returned.

“Of course, you’re over me,” she said. “I was thinking more along the lines of you wanting to give me a piece of your mind. Maybe tell my father off?”

“While speaking my piece might be therapeutic, no, it’s not about you, little girl. I didn’t even know that I’d be working with you when I started this process,” he lied. He couldn’t have her thinking otherwise or she might believe she had the upper hand in their situation. He might’ve been driven here out of revenge or even masochistic curiosity, but it wasn’t a pining for Morgan.

“I’m a professional. I couldn’t have built my company up from nothing if I wasn’t. Besides that,” River continued, “you seem to be a hell of a lot more upset with me than I am with you, although I have no idea why.”

She straightened in her chair, studying him with obvious disbelief. “Are you serious? You can actually sit there and tell me you have no idea why I would be upset with you?”

“Wait a minute,” River said, holding up his hand before she could go any further. “You really are. Why would you be upset with me?”

That was certainly an unexpected twist on the situation. Especially since he wasn’t the one whose family broke up their honeymoon and wiped their marriage from the books. He wasn’t the one who dutifully packed up and went home the minute his father snapped his fingers.

“I’ve got a hundred thousand reasons to be upset with you, River Atkinson.”

Ah. That. River had known the moment he cashed that check that it would come back to haunt him. That money was tainted. Dirty. And yet, that same money had changed the trajectory of his whole life. He wouldn’t apologize for making the best of a shitty situation.

Instead, he smiled. He knew that would get to her. “What’s the matter, Morgan? Did you think you were worth more than that? Should I have asked for a million to keep quiet about our indiscretion? I’m sure dear ol’ Daddy would’ve paid anything to get his little princess out of that mess. Tell me, did you panic when you realized the consequences of what we’d done? Did you wait for me to fall asleep that night and call him to come get you?”

“Of course not,” she snapped. “I don’t even know how he found us, much less how he knew we’d gotten married.”

River shook his head. “I’m sure he tracked your cell phone and credit card records, knowing every step you took. You might’ve thought you were an adult living your own life, but he just let you believe that. Trevor had you on a short leash the whole time.” He chuckled to himself and looked around at her well-appointed office. “And now you work for Daddy. He probably invented this whole job just for you. You probably live in one of Daddy’s houses and charge up Daddy’s credit cards. Sounds to me like he’s still got you on that leash.”

Morgan’s eyes narrowed at him in anger. “You shut your mouth. You don’t know anything about the dynamic between my father and me.”

“Don’t I?” he challenged. “The woman I met at that bar by the university was confident and independent. She wanted to go out into the world and make a difference. The girl who crawled from my bed with her tail between her legs was someone else entirely. Would you care to explain that to me since you think I don’t understand what happened on our wedding night?”

Morgan’s pale skin flushed with a crimson undertone along her chest, throat and cheeks. It reminded him of his younger blushing bride. And their wedding night where the blush traveled lower than the low V neckline of the blue silk blouse she was wearing now. Then her jaw flexed tight to hold in the angry words she probably couldn’t wait to spew at him. She looked like she was about to blow.

“My father cares very much about me,” she managed to say between tightly gritted teeth as she gripped her collar and held it closed to block out his prying eyes.

“No. I cared about you. I loved you. You’re just a prop in your father’s perfect family presentation. You have to fall in line or you’re cut from the spotlight.”

“Not everyone wants to be in the spotlight, River. I would’ve much rather lived a life of my choice in the shadows than a life crafted for me on my father’s stage.”

River shook his head. “I don’t believe you for a second. At any time, you could’ve stood up for yourself. You could’ve stood up for me. For our marriage. But Daddy’s money was too important to risk on a future with some poor boy with a little promise but no education. If he’d cut you off, what would life have been like for you? You would’ve had to really work for a living and make do without servants like the rest of us poor schmucks. Or from what I’ve heard, the way you would’ve been raised if you hadn’t been switched in the hospital.”

River watched the blood drain from her face. He went too far mentioning that whole thing. He’d read about it in the papers, but he was sure she was still working through it all. He shouldn’t have let all his emotions out at once. They’d been bottled up for years, festering, with their only outlet being his company and building it to be the best it could possibly be.

“It would’ve been easier if I hadn’t been switched,” she said in a voice barely louder than a whisper. “When you have nothing, there’s nothing to take away.”

“I’d heartily disagree on that point. I’ve lost plenty.” Morgan’s green-gold eyes met his for a moment before she looked away uncomfortably. “It may not have seemed like much to you, just a rebellious fling with an unsuitable boy, but it was everything to me.”

Morgan sat silently, a frown transforming her face into a guilty expression. Her gaze dropped to the blotter on her desk. “We need to stop this. It isn’t going to change the past, so we might as well put it behind us and try to be civil.”

“Of course.” River pressed his fingertips together thoughtfully. “I wouldn’t want to cause a scandal for the Steele family. Again.”

“River...” she warned.

“Like I said before, I want this project to be a success. We have some important work ahead of us. So you’re right, we can’t let our past interfere. Truce?” He arched his brow at her in a challenge. He knew he could behave, but silencing her sharp tongue might prove more difficult.

Morgan breathed a sigh of relief and her practiced smile returned to her face. She seemed confident in her abilities. He almost missed her anger once it was tamped down. At least that was a real emotion.

“Truce,” she said and offered her hand across her desk.

Tentatively, River reached out and took it. Instantly a sizzle traveled up his arm and down his spine, exploding in his groin like a shockwave of arousal. He pulled away as quickly as he could and buried his hand beneath the desk to rub the sensation off his palm and onto his pant leg. It had been like that the night of the party, too, making him both eager and cautious about touching her again.

They might be calling a truce on their fight, but the connection between him and Morgan was far from over.

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