The Lottery Winner (24 page)

“Has Logan been by?”

Miri waved her in. “Haven't seen him today.”

“Then I guess he didn't tell you about...meeting my family last night.”

Miri and Ignatius shook their heads. Oh, boy. “My brother found out about Logan's past and...it wasn't pretty.”

“He's an agent with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division,” Ignatius explained to Miri, reminding Jessie he'd done his own investigating of her. “Thinks Logan's after your money, doesn't he?”

“Yes.”

“What money?” Miri asked.

“Jessie's got a little lottery money coming her way. What do
you
think, Jessie?”

A little.
She liked the way he'd understated that. “That's why I needed to talk to you and find out if Logan knew about my...income.”

Ignatius shook his head. “I'm not giving you anything. You either trust him or you don't.”

She looked from Miri to Ignatius and realized she'd wanted them to tell her whether or not she could trust Logan. Because then if they were wrong it wouldn't be her fault.

Her muscles went rigid. She'd always told her students not to fear failure. But she'd spent her life doing exactly that. A sickening feeling turned her skin clammy. Because of her fear she'd relegated herself to being the backseat driver of her own life. And unless she wanted to continue meekly following others' directions, she had to take a risk and take the wheel. This was her life. It was time she started living it on her terms.

Even if she failed, it couldn't be as bitter as looking back on her life and knowing she hadn't tried.

“Do you think there's a way to prove Logan's innocence?”

“For yourself or him?”

“For him. I want to help him do that.”

“Why?” Miri asked.

“Because I love him and I believe in him.”

Ignatius glanced at Miri, then faced Jessie. “There might be.”

“Then I need his address. Please.”

Miri and Ignatius shared another look then Miri took a pad of paper and wrote. “Don't hurt him, Jessie. He's been hurt enough for a lifetime.”

Jessie took the paper, nodded her thanks and left.

Tomorrow the Widow was closed for the holiday, and she was going to visit Logan and get his side of the story.

* * *

L
OGAN
SAT
ON
his back porch, staring at the water and watching the sunrise. It didn't feel like Christmas Eve morning. It felt like Christmas Day morning and he'd woken up to find Santa had left him a stocking full of coal. Everything he'd hoped for with Jessie was an impossibility.

He'd spent the night scouring the internet for articles about her—about
Jessamine
—and her lottery win. Seeing pictures of her with blond hair had been a shock. She hadn't looked like his Jessie.

Because she wasn't his, he reminded himself bitterly.

He'd read the stories about multiple break-ins of her car, home and school, and her subsequently getting let go from her job. The strain on her face in the photos had increased as the weeks and incidents passed until she'd resembled the woman he'd first met. The one without the easy smile or the childlike joy in the simple things he took for granted. The one she'd become in the past few weeks.

Apparently, the press enjoyed seeing winners suffer. They'd gone into great detail about how bad the “poor little rich teacher's” life had become before she'd vanished. Then they'd speculated about whether she'd committed suicide or fallen victim to foul play. They'd listed numerous lottery winners who'd done exactly that. The statistics were not good.

His protective instincts kicked in. He didn't want that for Jessie—Jessamine. Then he reminded himself again that she was not his anything. But at least now he understood why she'd dyed her hair, worn colored contacts and omitted mentioning she had money. That didn't change the facts. She thought he was after her winnings. And he couldn't prove otherwise. That meant they were done.

Someone knocked on his front door. It was too damned early for visitors and he was in no mood for company. He ignored it. The persistent pest knocked again and didn't stop. He'd get no peace if he didn't send them on their way. He stomped inside, crossed the small living area and yanked open the door.

Jessie—Jessamine—stood on the other side. Her hair was the same pale golden shade he'd seen online, and her eyes were the same blue. She was so beautiful she took his breath away. Even prettier than she'd been as a brunette. But still off-limits.

“May I come in?” she asked.

“Why?”

“Because I want to hear your side of the story.”

“I spent three years defending my innocence. I'm done.”

“I know you didn't do it, Logan. I want to hear what happened—from your side.”

A balloon of hope inflated in his chest. He popped it. “I got screwed by people I trusted. Nothing more to say.”

“I understand betrayal. I was betrayed by people I thought I could trust, too, although my so-called friends just wanted me to buy them things. They didn't try to frame me for a crime I didn't commit. Tell me about it. Please.”

She believed him. It didn't change anything. “Your brother pretty much summed it up. My exes took off with our clients' money and left me to take the fall. They haven't been seen since. Neither has the money.”

“And you hired Ignatius to find them. To clear your name?”

“He tell you that?”

She laughed. “No. He wouldn't tell me anything. I had to figure it out by myself. Now, may I come in or am I going to be a blood offering to your mosquitoes?”

He opened the door. She walked past him, trailing a hint of strawberries. He would never be able to see a stupid strawberry again without thinking of her.

She turned a circle in his den then walked to the wall of windows looking over the water. “I like this.”

“It's not much. It was Jack's old fishing shack before he married Miri. He held on to it for sentimental reasons, and I bought it from him back before the shit—before everything went wrong. It's the only thing I was able to hold on to.”

“Pretty nice for a fishing cabin.”

“I did some renovations when I moved in three years ago.” Why was he telling her this? “What do you want, Jessamine?”

“I prefer Jessie.” She faced him, looking as defiant as she had the first time she'd confronted him about smothering Miri. “I love you, Logan, and I believe in you, and I want to help you clear your name.”

He refused to play this game. “No.”

“Do you love me?”

He said nothing.

“I think you do. You showed me your world, and you forced me out of my comfort zone. Because of that, I grew in ways I didn't even know I needed to grow. Until you made me see it, I had no idea I'd let my family make every important decision for me—from what to study in school to which house to buy and which car to drive. Me being a doormat wasn't their fault. I was a coward and afraid to fail.

“You are the first person who's ever encouraged me to follow my heart and do what makes me happy. That happened to be my painting. You validated my dreams by helping me sell my work. Then you introduced me to your friends, who offered me the job of a lifetime. And what did you get out of it? Nothing. So let me give you something in return. Let me hire the best investigators we can find to clear you.”

He jumped back as if scalded. “I'm not touching your money.”

“But I could help.”

“No.”

Her eyes filled with hurt. “Then at least admit you love me. I need to hear it.”

He'd shown her in every way he knew how. “Jessie, the press still haunt me. If they find you, they'll find me. Your name will be dragged through the mud and you'll be made a laughingstock for falling for a swindler. I won't let that happen.”

“If I believe you, then what does it matter what anyone else thinks?”

She was killing him. He wanted nothing more than to greedily soak up the love she offered. “You deserve a man who won't always be viewed with suspicion. One your family can...accept.”

Her color drained. The pain on her face eviscerated him.

“Jessie, it's because I...care about you that I have to let you go.”

Her breath came in hiccups and she blinked furiously. Then her shoulders drooped. “Then help me find a way for us to be together.”

She turned and walked out his front door. He felt as if she'd gaffed him through the chest. He followed her, wishing he had the answer.

And then he did. “Jessie.”

She stopped, turned and waited.

“I can only think of one way for us to be together. I'll sign a prenuptial agreement stating I have no claim on your money or anything bought with your money.”

“That's not necessary.”

“It is for me.” He had to say it. She needed to hear it. “I love you. And I want to marry you and spend the rest of my life showing you how much. But I don't want anyone—especially your family—to doubt that it's you I love and not your annuity.”

Her lips quivered and her eyes filled with tears. Then she laughed and pressed her fingers over her mouth.

“What?” he asked.

“My family insisted Aaron, my former fiancé, sign a prenup. He refused and threw a tantrum. He said if I really loved him I wouldn't ask that of him. He tried to make me choose between my family and him. You're doing the opposite. My family is going to love you, Logan. Almost as much as I do.”

He brushed her golden hair back. “Then marry me as soon as your lawyer can draw up the papers. Let me spend the rest of my life showing you how much I love you.”

She threw her arms around him. He banded her close and drank in her scent. This was real love, and he'd found it in the arms of a woman too stubborn to give up on him and on them.

He eased her back. “You were voted teacher of the year twice back in South Carolina. You must love teaching. I've started over before. If you want to go back home, I can start over again.”

She smiled. “You've been doing your homework. I do miss my students. And I did love my job. But teaching doesn't allow me time for my art. I wish I could do both...but I can't see a way to make that happen. And this is your home. Your clients are your extended family. I won't take you away from them.”

He kissed her temple. “I'm very good at seeing the big picture. Let me work on it and see if we can find a way. Because helping you make your dreams come true is my job now.”

EPILOGUE

J
ESSIE
COULDN
'
T
STOP
smiling as she and Logan climbed Miri's ramp hand in hand Christmas morning. Logan had indeed found a way to make her dreams come true.

Ignatius opened the door. “Damn, you're early. But that's good. Saves me a call. Come in.”

Miri, still in her nightgown, looked from Logan to Jessie and back. “You look like Santa's been good to you.”

Logan squeezed her hand. “He has. He brought me a woman to love, and one who loves me. Jessie's agreed to marry me.”

Miri clapped her hands. “Then Ignatius and I would like to give you your first wedding present. Dear?”

“I'll get it.” The PI left the room.

Jessie and Logan exchanged surprised glances at the endearment, then Logan said, “So you two...?”

Miri beamed. “I've been harping on you to put the past behind you. I decided to take my own advice. So, yes, Ignatius and I are keeping company.”

Ignatius returned and handed Logan a sheaf of papers. “A buddy at the FBI faxed these reports this morning. Elizabeth is in federal custody. She's confessed everything and is willing to turn over Trent's location and their bank account information in exchange for a lenient sentence. No honor among thieves, I've always said. And by the way, she completely exonerated you.”

Logan went still beside her. “You found her?”

“With Miri's help. Her clearing you means you can go back to your old life if you want it.”

Logan shook his head. “I'm right where I need to be. Together Jessie and I are going to build an art camp for disadvantaged kids. She can teach all summer and paint the rest of the year.”

Miri beamed. “You're a teacher? I knew there was a reason you were so good with our little customers.”

“Logan, if you want to see Elizabeth, I can make it happen,” Ignatius added.

“No. Elizabeth and I are done. That chapter of my life is closed. I see nothing but a bright future ahead. There's no need to look back.”

Jessie squeezed his arm. “If you've been exonerated, we don't need to wait for the prenup.”

He kissed her forehead. “Yes, we do. I'm leaving the world no doubt about my love for you. I's right. The cloud of suspicion will always be there. I want everybody to know—especially your family—that I'm the luckiest man in the world, not because I found a woman with a nice bank balance, but because I found one who stole my heart and promised not to give it back.”

Jessie didn't need guarantees. But she didn't protest, either. She loved Logan enough to let him have his way in this. “Speaking of my parents, I can't wait to tell them, but no matter what they think, I say this is the best Christmas ever!”

* * * * *

Keep reading for an excerpt from AT FIRST TOUCH by Cindy Miles.

Get rewarded every time you buy a Harlequin ebook!
Click
here
to Join Harlequin My Rewards
http://www.harlequin.com/myrewards.html?mt=loyalty&cmpid=EBOOBPBPA201602010003

Get rewarded every time you buy a Harlequin ebook!

Do you want to earn
Free Books
and More?
Join
Harlequin My Rewards
points program and earn points every time you shop.

You can redeem your points to get more of what you love:

Free books
Exclusive gifts and contests
Book recommendations tailored to your reading preferences

Earn
2000 points
instantly when you join—getting you closer to redeeming your first free book.

Don't miss out. Reward the book lover in you!

Click
here
to sign up
Or visit us online to sign up at

http://www.harlequin.com/myrewards.html?mt=loyalty&cmpid=EBOOBPBPA201602010001