Falling For Her Fake Fiancé (The Beaumont Heirs 5) (16 page)

“Oh, fine,” she tried to say lightly. “Just hanging out around the house, trying to avoid social media and gossip columns—the normal stuff, really. Just another day in the life of a Beaumont.”

He took a step closer to her. It made her tense. “You don’t have to do that,” he said, his voice soft and quiet and just for her.

“Do what?”

“Put your armor on. I didn’t come here looking for a fight.”

She eyed him warily. What was this? A single rose? A claim that he didn’t want to fight? “Then why did you come?”

He took another step in—close enough to touch her. Which he did. He lifted his hand and brushed his fingertips down her cheek. “I wanted to tell you that you’re worth it.”

She froze under his touch, the rose between them. “We aren’t in public, Ethan. You don’t have to do this. It’s over. We made a scene. It’s fine. We can go on with our lives now.” Her words came out in a rush.

“Do you really believe that? That it’s fine?”

“Isn’t it?” Her voice cracked, damn it.

“It isn’t. Three days without you has almost driven me mad.”

“I drive you mad when we’re together. I drive you mad when we’re apart—you know how to make a woman feel special.” The words should have sounded flippant. They didn’t. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t convince herself that this was no big deal. Not when Ethan was staring into her eyes with this odd look of satisfaction on his face, not when his thumb was now stroking her cheek.

“Why are you here?” she whispered, desperate to hear the answer and just as desperate to not hear it.

“I came for you. I’ve never met anyone like you before, and I don’t want to walk away from you. Not now, not ever.”

“It’s all just talk, Ethan.” Her voice was the barest of whispers. She was doing a lousy job convincing herself. She didn’t think she was convincing him at all.

“Do you know how much you’re worth to me?”

She shook her head. “Some diamonds, some flowers. A rose.”

He stepped in another bit, bringing her body almost into contact with his. “As of yesterday, I am no longer the CEO of the Beaumont Brewery.”

“What?”

“I quit the job. For personal reasons. My second in command, Finn Jackson, flew in today to take over the restructuring project. We’re still dealing with a little fallout from AllBev, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.” He said it as if it were just a little speed bump.

“You
quit
? The Brewery?”

“It wasn’t my company. It wasn’t worth it to me. Not like you are.”

“I don’t understand.” He was saying words that she understood individually. But the way he was stringing them together? It didn’t make sense. Not a bit.

Something in his eyes changed—deepened. A small shiver ran down Frances’s back. “I do not need to marry you to solidify my position within the company because I no longer work for the company. I do not need to worry about unknown relations trying to overthrow my position because I have given up the position. The company was never worth more than you were.”

She blinked at him. All of her words failed her. She had nothing to hide behind now.

“So,” he went on, his eyes full of honesty and sincerity and hope. All of those things she hadn’t believed she deserved. “Here I am. I have quit the Brewery. I have taken a leave of absence from my company. I could care less if anyone’s listening to what we say or watching how we say it. All I care about is you. Even when you’re messy and complicated and even when I say the wrong thing at the wrong time, I care about
you
.”

“You can’t mean that,” she whispered, because what if he did?

“I can and I do. I truly never believed I would meet anyone I could care about, much less someone who would mean more to me than the job. But I did. It’s you, Frances. I want you when your armor’s up because you make sarcasm and irony into high art. I want you when you’re feeling vulnerable and honest because I want to be that soft place where you can land after a hard day of putting the world in its place. And I want you all the times in between, when you challenge me and call me on my mistakes and push me to be a better man—one who can keep up with you.”

Unexpectedly, he dropped to his knees. “So I’m asking you again. Not for the Brewery, not for the employees, not for the public. I’m asking you for me. Because I want to spend my life with you. Not a few months, not a year—my life. Our lives. Together.”

“You want to marry me?
Me?
”

“I like you,” he said simply. “I shouldn’t, but I do. Even worse, I love you.” He gave her a crooked grin. “I love you. I’d recommend you love me, too.”

Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Not a damn thing. Because what was she going to say? That he’d gotten better at sweet nothings? That he was crazy to have fallen for her? That...

That she wanted to say yes—but she was afraid?

“I’ve seen the real you,” he said, still on his knees. “And that’s the woman I love.”

“Do we get—married? Next week?” That had been the deal, hadn’t it? A whirlwind courtship, married in two weeks.

“I’m not making a deal, Frances. All I’m doing right now is asking a simple question. We can wait a year, if you want. You’re worth the wait. I’m not going anywhere without you.”

“It won’t ever be simple,” she warned him. “I don’t have it in me.”

He stood and pulled her into his arms as if she’d said yes, when she wasn’t sure she had yet. The rose, she feared, was a total loss. “I don’t want you simple. I want to know that every day, I’ve fought for you and every day, you’ve chosen me again.”

Was it possible, what he was saying? Could a man love her?

“I expect to be wined and dined and courted,” she warned him, trying to sound stern and mostly just laughing.

He laughed with her. “And what do I get out of this again?”

“A wife. A messy, complicated wife who will love you until the end of time.”

“Perfect,” he said, lowering his lips to hers. “That’s
exactly
what I wanted.”

* * * * *

If you loved Frances’s story, pick up the first four books in the
BEAUMONT HEIRS
series:

NOT THE BOSS’S BABY
TEMPTED BY A COWBOY
A BEAUMONT CHRISTMAS WEDDING
HIS SON, HER SECRET

Available now from Harlequin Desire!

If you’re on Twitter, tell us what you think of Harlequin Desire!
#harlequindesire

Keep reading for an excerpt from
HIS 24-HOUR WIFE
by Rachel Bailey.

We hope you enjoyed this Harlequin Desire story.

You want to leave behind the everyday!
Harlequin Desire
stories feature sexy, romantic heroes who have it all: wealth, status, incredible good looks...everything but the right woman. Add some secrets, maybe a scandal, and start turning pages!

Enjoy six new stories from Harlequin Desire every month!

Connect with us on
Harlequin.com
for info on our new releases, access to exclusive offers, free online reads and much more!

Other ways to keep in touch:

Harlequin.com/newsletters
Facebook.com/HarlequinBooks
Twitter.com/HarlequinBooks
HarlequinBlog.com

http://www.harlequin.com/harlequinexperience

His 24-Hour Wife

by Rachel Bailey

One

C
allie Mitchell straightened her skirt, took a deep breath to calm the butterflies in her stomach and followed the receptionist to Adam Hawke’s office on the top floor of a downtown LA office building. The central operations of his company, Hawke’s Blooms, took up the entire floor and, as CEO, Adam had a corner office, which had to have killer views.

In hindsight, it had probably been a bad idea to stop on the way for a little Dutch courage—especially because it had been alcohol that had started this whole crazy mess—but she’d needed some help. It wasn’t every day a woman had an appointment to see her secret husband.

In fact, she hadn’t seen him once in the three months since their wedding day, so this was quite the momentous occasion. They’d met at an industry conference in Las Vegas just over two years ago and spent an amazing night together, then had hooked up again at the following year’s conference. Third time had been the charm—this year they’d added vows to their rendezvous.

The receptionist opened the door and waved her through and suddenly Callie was standing in front of him. The man she’d spent the most explosive times of her life with. The rest of the world faded away, leaving only him. The oxygen must have faded away, as well, because suddenly she couldn’t get her lungs to work.

The receptionist had slipped out and closed the door behind her, leaving them alone, but Callie couldn’t find a word to say. Although Adam wasn’t saying anything, either.

He was as perfect as she remembered, which was a surprise—she’d been certain her imagination had embellished things, that no man could be that gorgeous. Yet here was over six feet of proof standing before her. His green eyes were as intense, his frame as broad and powerful as the image she had in her mind’s eye. But he was wearing a suit with a crisp white shirt and dark blue tie. Most of her memories were of him stretched across the Vegas hotel sheets wearing nothing but a smile.

He cleared his throat. “You look different as a brunette.”

She’d gone back to her natural caramel brown about three weeks ago, but instead of telling him that, she heard herself say, “You look different with clothes on.”

His eyes widened, and she covered her mouth. That Dutch courage had been a very bad idea.

Then he laughed, a low rumble that seemed to fill the room. “I’m starting to remember why I married you.”

“And what drove you away again,” she said and smiled. After a day spent in bed, gradually sobering up, Adam had suggested a divorce. She’d been having so much fun—and was, in all honesty, so dazzled by the Adonis who’d proposed to her—that she would have given their marriage a shot. But she’d had no rational argument for staying together, so she’d agreed.

Still, after three months, neither one of them had started those divorce proceedings. She didn’t know Adam’s reasons, but there was a small kernel of hope deep in her chest that maybe he wasn’t quite ready to cut all ties with her yet.

He indicated two upholstered chairs near the windows, which, sure enough, offered a premium view of Los Angeles below. “Take a seat. Can I get you a drink?”

She knew he probably meant coffee or tea, but still she winced, remembering the gin she’d stupidly had before coming. “No, I’m fine. I won’t be here long.”

He nodded and took the chair across from her. Then his expression turned serious. “What do you need, Callie?”

For a moment all she could focus on was the sound of her name on his lips. His voice was deep and still sent a warm shiver through her. Three months ago he’d whispered her name in the heat of passion. Had murmured it when she’d kissed the smooth skin of his abdomen. Had shouted it as he’d found his release. More than anything, she wanted to hear him say her name again. Then his question registered, and she straightened her spine.

“Why do you think I need something?”

His forehead creased into a row of frown lines. “I just assumed...” He let the sentence trail off. “After all this time, I figured if you were contacting me, you must—”

“I don’t need anything,” she said, holding up her hands, palms out. “I’m here as a courtesy, to let you know something.”

His jaw hardened. “You’re getting married?”

The way his mind worked was intriguing. She remembered that from their short time together—she’d been constantly fascinated by the things he said.

“No, I’m up for a promotion.” Her PR firm had finally given her a chance to make partner—something she’d been working toward for years—and she wasn’t going to let the opportunity go.

“Congratulations,” he said. “So how does this involve me?”

“They’ve given me an assignment. If I handle this project well, I’ll make partner.” At twenty-nine, she’d be the youngest partner in the history of the firm.

He raised one eyebrow. “What’s the assignment?”

“The Hawke Brothers’ Trust.” His company’s new charity raised money for homeless children; it had already made a splash with various events, including a bachelor auction, and was now ready to move to the next level. Something Callie was looking forward to being a part of.

“Ah,” he said, and rubbed the back of his neck. “I didn’t realize Jenna had brought in your company.”

Adam’s future sister-in-law, Princess Jensine of Larsland, had helped to create the charity and was in charge of day-to-day operations. Callie had suspected Adam wasn’t aware that her company had become involved. Which was why she was here, warning him, before she started work on the project.

“There was a good chance we’d run in to each other in a meeting or something, and I wanted to give you a heads-up before that happened.”

“I appreciate it. So,” he said, offering her half a smile, “how have you been?”

Despite being married, they didn’t really know each other well enough to catch up. They had no basic information to catch up on. So she said, “Good, and you?”

“Good,” he said, nodding.

It was awkward, so she took a breath and refocused. “I was thinking that maybe we should have our stories straight in case anyone puts two and two together.”

He rubbed a hand over his chin. “You mean about us being married?”

“Since I’ll be working with members of your family, it’s a possibility.”

“It won’t happen. They don’t know I—” He swallowed. “They don’t know what happened.”

“You didn’t tell your family that you got married?” She hadn’t expected he would brag about a short-lived Vegas wedding, but equally, she hadn’t expected that he’d keep it a secret from his two brothers. In the short time they’d spent together, he’d mentioned he was close to his younger brothers.

He shifted in his seat. “Did you tell your friends and family?”

“I didn’t tell everyone, but I told my sister.” She moistened her lips. “You seriously didn’t tell anyone?”

His face was unreadable. “I don’t generally telegraph my mistakes to the world.”

Asking her for a divorce had pretty much shown he had thought of their wedding as a mistake, but still, there was something in the way he held himself tall in the chair—and in his tone as he said it—that had made her feel small and insignificant. She’d thought of their time together as something wild and crazy, something out of character, where they just went too far. She hadn’t thought of herself as someone’s mistake. It hurt more than she would have expected.

But now that he’d made his feelings crystal clear, the stupid part of her needed to let go.

She took a breath. “While I’m here, we really should talk about a divorce.”

“Already underway,” he said without hesitation. “I’ve filled in the paperwork and was just waiting for my brother’s wedding to be over before filing it.”

“Oh, right. Good.” Everyone knew Adam’s younger brother was marrying Princess Jensine of Larsland, so Callie could see that he wouldn’t want to draw attention when the media could be hunting for stories.

“I didn’t want my alcohol-fueled decision to have ramifications for him.”

Flinching, she stood and hitched her bag over her shoulder. “I should go. Let me know when you’re ready to file the divorce papers.”

“Callie.” He reached out to her as he stood, and then let his hand drop. It was the first time his voice had held a note of tenderness since she’d entered his office. He’d been the only man who’d ever affected her with merely his voice, and she wobbled. “I’m sorry,” he said. “That was probably harsh. I don’t want us to part on bad terms.”

“It’s fine,” she said, summoning a polite smile. “But I’ve taken up enough of your time. I just wanted to give you some forewarning and I’ve done that, so I’d better get back to promoting the Hawke Brothers’ Trust.”

He held her gaze for a heartbeat or two, searching her eyes. Then he nodded and stepped back. “Okay. Let me know if you need anything.”

Callie smiled and slipped out the door. Halfway down the corridor, her cell rang, and she paused in the reception room to answer it. A colleague’s name flashed on the screen: Terence Gibson. He’d recently been up for the same promotion as Callie and his competitiveness had bordered on excessive. Since she’d been offered this project with the chance to win the promotion if she did well, she knew this wasn’t going to be a congratulatory call.

“Hi, Terence,” she said.

“I can see why the partners gave you this assignment,” he said, not bothering to hide the malice in his voice.

She punched the elevator button. “And why is that?”

“Being married to one of the clients will certainly give you an edge.”

She froze.

“Oh, you mean they don’t know about your marriage to Adam Hawke? Oh, dear. I wonder what upper management will say when they find out. It will hardly make them feel as if they can trust you, and I hear they value open and clear communication in their partners.”

The elevator arrived but she ignored it, sagging back against the wall. “How did you...?”

“You really need to work on your poker face, Callie. The expression when they told you it was for the Hawke Brothers’ Trust would have told anyone watching closely enough that you had some sort of connection. The question was only about which brother. After a bit of searching I found that you married one of them three months ago. Although I couldn’t find a record of a divorce anywhere. I assume that’s where you are now? With your husband?”

Her stomach clenched tight. “What do you want, Terence?”

Despite asking the question she had a pretty good idea of what the answer would be.

“Stand back from this assignment and let them hand it to me.”

It was what she’d expected him to say, but still, the gall of the man, the entitled arrogance, was staggering. “You know I won’t do that. It would be handing you the promotion, as well.”

“Then I’ll sell the story to the tabloids,” he said, his voice almost gleeful. “I’m sure you can imagine what a PR disaster that will create. They’ll love an exposé about the future prince’s brother having a drunken wedding in a tacky Las Vegas chapel.”

“No.” It would overshadow her assignment and ruin her chances of the promotion.

“Then step away now and give me a clear shot at the partnership.”

So either she stepped back and let Terence have the partnership, or she stayed and he caused a scandal, meaning he’d probably get the partnership instead of her anyway. Neither of those choices was appealing, but she especially didn’t like giving in to blackmail. She needed time to think. To find a third option. She had to stall him.

“Give me a few days to think about it. Even if I tell the partners I can’t take the assignment I’ll need some time to come up with a believable reason.”

“You have one day. Twenty-four hours.”

The line went dead.

Callie blew out a breath, turned on her heel and headed back to Adam Hawke’s office.

* * *

Adam stood when Rose, his receptionist, buzzed to tell him Callie Mitchell wanted to see him again. It had barely been five minutes since she’d left. He told Rose to let her through, and then had a look around the room for something Callie had forgotten. He couldn’t find anything. But then, he was hardly focused enough to be sure.

Since she’d first made the appointment yesterday, he’d been unsettled. He’d dreamed about her last night, about their time together. About making love to her. Though that wasn’t uncommon—he regularly dreamed about making love to her.

Which just showed how bad she was for his equilibrium. Control over himself and his life was important to him, and Callie made him feel off-center—a feeling he disliked intensely.

Then from the moment she’d appeared through his door this morning, he’d barely had two functioning brain cells to rub together. Hell, he hadn’t even greeted her, just made some inane comment about her hair. Though her reply had been memorable...

He prayed this would be a short visit so he wouldn’t make a fool of himself by blurting out something worse than what she’d said.

After a knock on his door, there she was again, as if conjured from his dreams, her rich, caramel-brown hair hanging sleek around her shoulders, her olive skin smooth. He knew from experience the taste of that skin, and his heart skipped a beat as the memory flooded his senses.

“Did you forget something?” he managed to ask.

She shook her head, her silver-blue, almond-shaped eyes serious. Something had changed.

She tipped up her chin and met his gaze squarely. “We have a problem.”

He was careful not to touch her and set off more memories as he moved behind her to shut the door and lead her to one of the chairs they’d occupied only minutes before.

Once they were settled, he said, “Okay, tell me.”

“A
colleague
of mine,” she said, her emphasis on the word
colleague
telling him much, “noticed my surprise when I was given this assignment and started digging. He’s found our marriage license and is threatening to tell the tabloids.”

Adam swore under his breath. “What does he get out of it?”

“He wants this promotion and he wants me out of the way. He thinks the media coverage of your secret Vegas wedding will overshadow any PR work I do for the trust, and he’s probably right. He wants me to refuse the assignment and let him have it.”