Full Bloom

Emily's life. Her grandmother was the only Ravenscroft Emily felt had ever really understood her. She had loved the old woman. "I've always let you and Drake and Mother control my vote, haven't I? I've never tried to interfere with the running of the firm. I don't even take any income from the shares Grandmother left me. I let the money be reinvested in the firm, just as Grandmother stated in her will. Nothing would change even if I did decide to marry Damon."
    She couldn't resist the taunt, and the startled faces of her family was more than enough of a reaction to satisfy her. Until recently Emily had always bowed to the wishes of the family. The truth was, she had never intended to marry Damon, but she was not about to let the rest of her family know that tonight. Emily was surrounded, and she did not intend to give up what little ammunition she had. Let the others sweat a bit. It would do them good.
    It was Drake who responded first. He was a striking man with black hair and the Ravenscroft eyes. He was ten years older than his sister and knew her better than her parents ever would. He was the chief executive officer of RI, the man responsible for day-to-day operations, but he did not perform his duties in isolation. Gifford Ravenscroft still took a very active interest in the running of the family business, as did Catherine. Privately Emily considered her brother something of a genius as well as a diplomat, to be able to hold the reins of power and placate his parents at the same time. The fact that he was here at their parents' home this evening was ample proof that he considered the situation as serious as they did.
    Drake leaned back in his chair, his hands folded under his strong chin as he studied Emily. "Don't be deliberately naive, Em. You pay very little attention to the daily business of the company, but that doesn't mean Morrell would be just as uninterested. We know for a fact he's very interested. It wouldn't take much for him to throw a monkey wrench into things by using you. He could destroy this company. You'd probably start voting the way he wanted you to vote, believing he loved you and only had your best interests at heart."
    "And I assure you," Gifford continued ominously, "that Morrell would use you to cause as much disruption as possible for all of us. He has a vendetta against Ravenscroft International. He would do anything he could to destroy us."
    "Why?" Emily could not resist asking. She felt like a flower being hammered beneath a driving rain. Her family was united in the effort to bring her to heel.
    All the while Jacob Stone stood in the shadows near the window, witnessing the unequal battle. He was just the soldier who had completed his assigned mission. It was up to the Ravenscrofts to bring Emily into line.
    "There's no point in going into the whole tale tonight," Gifford snapped. "It has to do with an incident that took place a couple of years ago. A business matter, pure and simple. Suffice it to say that RI submitted the winning bid and Morrell's firm lost out. Morrell swore he'd get even. We're going up against him again right now. We're competing with him on the Fowler project. He'd like very much to get rid of the competition and take his revenge against us at the same time. Destroying RI from within is his idea of vengeance. He's using you, Emily. Don't you understand?"
    Emily forced her smile up another notch in brilliance. "Have you considered that you may have that backward?"
    "What the hell are you talking about?" Drake demanded coolly.
    "Maybe I'm using Damon." Emily smoothed the skirt of her yellow knit dress. "He's a very interesting man, you know. Handsome, successful, attentive. An excellent conversationalist. What's more, he says he likes flowers."
    Catherine frowned severely as she always did at the mention of flowers. She had never accepted the fact that her daughter owned a florist's shop. "You're being deliberately difficult tonight. Why, Emily? You've heard the evidence Jacob collected. How can you sit there and act like this?"
    "Would you prefer that I break down in tears the way I did two years ago when you decided to get rid of my first fiancé?" Emily asked.
    "Emily, no one wants you in tears," Catherine said impatiently. "Why must you always assume we're deliberately picking on you when all we really want is what's best for you? We want you to understand what's going on here. Jacob has proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Morrell is not interested in