William downed the drink in one gulp and put the glass on the table. “I have some thinking to do.”

“You okay?” Patrick had never been particularly close to his father thinking that he was a very hard and uncaring man.

“No,” he said with a short laugh. “I am afraid I have gotten myself into quite a pickle.”

Patrick came further inside the room and closed the door behind him. “What do you mean?”

He shook his head.

Patrick turned on the overhead light and watched as his father blinked at the brightness of the light. “She is obsessed with me, and I cannot seem to get rid of her.”

“Who are we talking about, Dad?” Patrick felt a frisson of alarm at the look on his face.

“She is threatening to tell her dad and Linda if I stop seeing her,” he continued. “I don’t know what the hell I am going to do.”

“Who is she, Dad?” Patrick asked tightly.

“Sophia McBride.”

Patrick stared at the man he called his dad for a moment not wanting to believe that he was so stupid! The same man who had berated him over and over again about his running around had gotten involved with a girl young enough to be his daughter. Not to mention, his own son’s ex-girlfriend!

“There is really no fool like an old fool, is there?” Patrick said coldly. “Does Mother know?”

“She suspects that I am involved with someone, but she doesn’t know who,” he said heavily.

“I take it that you are the guy she tried to commit suicide over,” Patrick said sarcastically.

“I told her I wanted out.”

They both turned as the door was pushed open expecting it to be Linda, but it was Carrie. “You two are hiding out in here while Linda and I–”She stopped as she saw the expression on their faces. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” Patrick said coldly, taking her arm and steering her out of the room, his grip bruising her.

“You are hurting me.”

He released her instantly and plunged his fingers through his hair. “I am sorry!” he muttered.

“What did I interrupt?”

“It’s none of your goddamned business,” he told her coldly.

Carrie recoiled at his tone and the look in his eyes and turned to leave.

He reached out to grab her, and she pulled away from him. “Leave me alone,” she told him succinctly as she marched away.

She ignored him for the rest of the night, and he watched bleakly as she flirted with Barry Livingston, a movie producer, and bristled as she touched him lightly on the arm as he said something to her. He looked for his mother and saw her serene and regal as she entertained the guests and thought what a sham marriages were!

That night, Carrie slept in one of the other suites and he let her, wanting to be alone with his own thoughts.