Blossom Street Brides (Blossom Street #10)(85)

Reaching out to Annie hadn’t helped. She’d already tried that, but her daughter was as stubborn as they come. Andrew had already attempted to reason with his sister, and he, too, had met with no success. Nothing, no logic, no words of persuasion, no heart-to-heart chat, was able to change Annie’s mind. She was bound and determined to sever all ties with her mother. Because he loved her, Max had reached out to Annie, too, and met with the same icy reception as everyone else.

It went without saying that Grant bolstered his daughter’s resolve. It suited his ego to have Annie stand by his side, no matter what price she had to pay. Although she’d resisted to this point, Bethanne didn’t feel she had any other option but to seek out Grant’s help, which she suspected was exactly what he wanted.

Using the office phone, she called the office where her ex-husband worked as a real-estate broker.

“Southard Realty.” Annie’s voice startled Bethanne, although she knew her daughter had taken a job as a receptionist at Grant’s workplace.

“Grant Hamlin,” she said, as if she didn’t recognize her own daughter’s voice.

“Mom?”

Bethanne hesitated. “Yes.”

“Why do you want to talk to my father?” Heavy emphasis fell on the word “my.”

“I believe that is my business, Annie. Now please put me through.”

Annie paused as though debating a course of action. “It’s about me, isn’t it?”

“Annie, just put me through to your father.”

“No.”

Bethanne’s tempter flared, but she quickly brought it under control. “Don’t you think you’re being just a little bit ridiculous?”

“Maybe, but I don’t care,” Annie returned flippantly. “You made your choice, and I’ve made mine. I want nothing more to do with you. As far as I’m concerned, I only have one parent, and that’s my dad.”

The words cut like the serrated edge of a knife. Bethanne swallowed hard and did her best to breathe normally, despite the pain. The tension between the two lines was taut, stretched tight as a violin string. Neither spoke, and after a few seconds Annie disconnected the line.

In an effort to hold herself together, Bethanne cupped her hand over her mouth. Once she felt she could think clearly, she punched out Grant’s cellphone number. He answered after the first ring, almost as if he’d been waiting for her call.

“Bethanne,” he greeted cheerfully, “it’s great to hear from you.”

She didn’t return the compliment. She could picture him in his corner office, smugly leaning back in his chair. He seemed to think he had her exactly where he wanted her, squirming and needing his help.

“How’s Annie?” she asked.

He sighed, as if she should already know the answer. “Annie’s doing great, and the staff love her working here. It didn’t take long before she got the entire office reorganized. I can’t tell you what an asset she is.”

Bethanne tensed. Grant seemed to enjoy rubbing salt in her wounds.

“It’s a joy having her around,” he finished.

“No doubt.”

“I imagine you must miss her.”

More salt. More gloating. It was tempting to lie, but Bethanne didn’t. “I miss her dreadfully.”

“Annie mentioned that Max stopped by her place. I heard they had a little heart-to-heart, which unfortunately didn’t go well.”

With this comment, he brought out the entire salt canister. Naturally, Grant made it a question, as if he wanted her to fill in the blanks. What transpired between Annie and Max was their business, and she wasn’t about to break confidences. In actuality, Max had said very little about his meeting with Annie. All Bethanne knew was that it had been a wasted effort.

“I know you must be pleased with Annie’s unwavering loyalty to you, Grant, but at what cost?”

“What do you mean?”

Apparently, she needed to spell it out for him. “Annie has a business degree; with her experience and background, she could have almost any job she wanted.”

“I admit, she’s amazing.”

“Do you honestly believe she’ll be satisfied working as a receptionist for long?”

“Time will tell,” he said, seemingly unconcerned.

“Is this what you really want for our daughter?” Bethanne knew her ex-husband could be selfish and self-centered, but not once had she believed he would sink to this level, using their daughter against her.

“I want,” Grant said, steel in his voice, “what Annie wants, and at this juncture, it’s not being around you. If you must know, she’s happy working with me.” All pretense was gone. Grant was angry, and he wasn’t shy about making sure Bethanne knew to what lengths he was willing to sink.

“Grant, you don’t mean that. This is our daughter; don’t mess with her future.”

“I wouldn’t do anything to hurt Annie,” he insisted. “Once she gets a feel for the real-estate business, she can get her license, and if she proves herself, she can work for me.”

For him, not with him; Bethanne caught the subtle difference.

“Now, what can I do for you?” Grant asked, basically telling her that he was a busy man and that she was taking up his valuable time.