Tempting Fate

by Lisa Mondello

  “Without you, my baby won't have a father.” She brought her hand to her chest and made a fist. “And I know how much that hurts.”

  Maggie waited, chewing on her bottom lip as if she sensed his hesitation.

  It really wasn't as simple as she made it seem. Consenting adults could enter into business arrangements. Bringing a child into the equation changed everything.

  His stomach bunched into a tight knot. “He'll end up blaming me for leaving. You do know that.” Just like he blamed his parents for constantly taking off and casting him aside in a boarding school. He swore he'd never do that to a child.

  She nodded resolutely. “Maybe this wasn't such a good idea.” Bending forward in her seat, she reached for her purse which lay on the floor by her feet. “I'm sorry I wasted your time with all this. I really did have a good time tonight though. Thank you for that.”

  She pulled the handle and the door popped open. Jonah reached across the car and grabbed her by the upper arm before she could escape. She turned around, lifted her face to him, and he saw the disappointment clouding her delicate features. She wanted this. She really and truly did.

  “It's just...the situation is a bit more complicated than I'd anticipated is all.”

  He sighed and released his hold, hoping she wouldn't flee. When had he gotten so desperate?

  He'd be a father, not just a husband in name only. You couldn't be a father in name only. It was impossible.

  Maggie sat motionless with the door slightly ajar. Light replaced the dull pain in her eyes and her expression was a little more hopeful.

  “Think about it. You said you wanted this to be strictly business. I'm agreeing to those terms. I meant it when I said I don't want your money. If you want, we could draw up papers. I'll gladly sign a prenuptial agreement.”

  Rudy would surely insist on that, Jonah thought.

  “This is that important to you?”

  “As much as you want to keep your family home, I want to give my baby a legitimate name. I want him to know that there is someone who cared enough to give him that.”

  “Any child of mine will be entitled to all I have.”

  “No. Having you acknowledge my child and give him a sense of belonging is enough.”

  Pulling her purse strap over her shoulder, she opened the car door fully and stretched one foot to the curb. The rush of humid night air immediately spilled into the air conditioned car.

  “Don't make a decision now. Sleep on it. And if tomorrow you still want to go through with this whole crazy thing, give me a call.”

  Maggie was out of the car and running up the porch stairs before he could stop her.

  He should let her go, Jonah thought. Everything in him told him it would be the right thing to do. This baby wasn't his responsibility. Maggie needed something he simply wasn't prepared or able to give.

  But then he leaped from the car and stood out in the middle of the street, staring up at Maggie on the porch. Why? What could he possibly say? This was lunacy.

  As her hand reached the door handle, Jonah called out to her. “Maggie Bonelli.”

  She angled back to look at him and paused, leaving the screen door wide open. The porch lamp glowed on her bare shoulders and rich dark hair creating a shadowy silhouette against the doorway.

  Jonah's heart pounded furiously in his chest at her sheer beauty. He'd been with beautiful women before. Maggie was no different. Still, his heart hammered.

  “Did I forget something?”

  “No, but I did.” He took a deep breath. Lose Wiltshire or claim Maggie's baby. Was it really worth claiming a child as his own just to keep his family birthright?

  “I think now may be a good time for me to get down on my knee.”

  A wide grin stretched across her lips that seemed to wipe away the rest of the sadness Jonah had seen in her face only moments earlier.

  “Hey, no one's stopping you.”

  Her smile was radiant as she turned away and he actually felt his heart do a flip.

  He walked back to the car and stopped short at the door he'd left ajar. What in God's good name had he just agreed to do?

  He was getting married. That much he could handle. He'd resigned himself to that weeks ago. He punched the key in the ignition and revved the engine a few times more than necessary.

  He was going to be a father.

  No, Maggie hadn't asked him to be her baby's father. Not really. She wasn't looking for a lifetime of little league games, fishing trips, and bedtime stories. She asked him to give her baby a name.

  A few cards and phone calls didn't make him a daddy. And to Jonah, there was a very real difference because if he wasn't a real daddy, he didn't have to worry about disappointing this child by breaking promises. If he left after the year was over, before this child had any real attachment to him, he would never break his little heart, leaving Maggie to mend the pieces.

  Jonah couldn't bear the thought of that. He'd seen it too often at the Haven House. He'd felt it too often in his youth. He didn't have his mother around to pick him up. At least this baby had Maggie.

  He could give Maggie's baby a name, he'd have his family's birthright, and at the end of a year, he and Maggie could go their separate ways.

  It sounded simple enough. Too simple.

  One thing was for sure. No matter how adamant Maggie Bonelli was about not taking any money from him, he knew that at the end of the year he could not walk away without making sure both Maggie and her baby were well provided for.

  The first order of business tomorrow was to have Rudy draw up papers to ensure their security. Hopefully, at the end of the year Maggie will have mellowed on the subject.

  As Jonah pulled the BMW through the toll booth and onto the Pike, the impact of what he'd just agreed to hit him hard. A year was long time and a lot was going to change in his life. A baby was on the way, not just a marriage.

  The entire notion filled him with panic.

  # # #

  Chapter Five

  “Are you out of your mind? I mean, are you out of your ever lovin' mind? You're playing with fire, I tell you.”

  Jonah didn't need Rudy Dodd, his attorney and friend for all the years he'd lived in the U.S., to tell him that. Again. He'd told himself that very same thing enough times over the last few weeks. He'd also heard this same speech all before when he'd approached Rudy about a pre-nuptial agreement for Catherine to sign. Given a second chance, it was clear Rudy wasn't about to back down as easily.

  Rudy put on his best concerned lawyer face that Jonah knew his friend had practiced until he played the part convincingly. Unfortunately, knowing he'd practiced it killed some of its effect on Jonah.

  “I heard you the first time,” Jonah said, toying with a paper airplane he'd put together just moments before Rudy arrived at his office.

  “I have no doubt you heard me. You just didn't listen.” Rudy waved his finger back and forth. “And you never used to be this way, my friend.

  “Well, this time I'm just going to have to beat you over the head with it until it sinks in. You can't get married without an ironclad pre-nuptial. You were lucky with Catherine. She did the smart thing and ran off before she got into something too big to handle.”

  “She was in love with Derek. She never intended to marry me.”

  Rudy dropped the glass of Cognac to the table and wagged his other finger. More emphasis.

  “As I said. She was the smart one. Here I thought you were home free, your assets secure from this idiotic idea of yours, and now you up and find some other girl to marry the very same day.” His lawyer shook his head. “I don't know where, but you did it.”

  “It just happened.”

  “Can you hear yourself? You don't up and propose to a woman on the same day you're supposed to marry someone else. She'll take all your money, you know. And that precious estate in England you're trying so hard to protect. Might I remind you that you're a very wealthy man?”

  “I seem to remember that,
” Jonah replied wryly.

  “You could have fooled me. You put the equivalent of a singles ad in the Globe for a wife, sign your name, and you have thousands of woman lined up at your door vying for the position. You're a catch.”

  Jonah sighed, eyeing his friend. “I didn't do anything as ridiculous as place an ad.”

  Rudy's eyes sparked to life and his eyebrows stretched high, creasing his forehead. “Let's just cling to the ridiculous part of that remark for a minute.”

  Rudy stood and paced in a circle before coming face to face with him. His attorney was a shorter man than Jonah, the shiny skin of his scalp defied any attempts Rudy had made to ward off genetics that left both his father and two brothers bald. All four men teamed together in the Dodd law firm that had handled all Jonah's affairs since he'd come to America eight years ago had the same cow-eyed expression and used their intensity and charm to their full advantage.

  But as ridiculous as he had to agree his grandfather's insistence he marry be, Jonah wasn't going to change his mind.

  “Let's not and just draw up the papers. I'd like to be done with it by this afternoon so we can finish making arrangements for the wedding. Maggie has already agreed to sign a prenuptial agreement. She doesn't want my money, not even the one hundred thousand dollars I offered Catherine. What more can you possibly argue with?”

  “You're marrying under duress. That is the problem. And I'll argue that until the cows come home. Some women go to school to learn how to land themselves a wealthy husband. What if she is one of those? Have you thought of that?”

  Jonah had to laugh. Maggie was far from any of the gold diggers he'd ever met. Sure, there had always been plenty of women on his arm over the years. Money and power was always a draw for the curious and had been the allure for some. Okay, maybe more than a few. A lot of the women he'd dated didn't look past the money to see the man. Jonah was sure Maggie wasn't one of them. Not that it really mattered to the arrangement they'd made.

  “She won't sign anything pre-nuptial agreement that gives her money. She's made it perfectly clear. But the baby will be born—”

  Rudy started choking on a gulp of Cognac. “Did…did you say baby?”

  Jonah nodded, and tossed his paper airplane into the air with a sigh. It sailed a few feet before taking a nosedive right in the trash can.

  “You have gone mad. That's the catch. Maggie can go after you with child support and be sitting pretty for years. With your wealth--”

  This line of conversation was quickly wearing thin on Jonah. Normally, he let Rudy rant and rave for a while. Most of the time it was a bit amusing even. Rudy was good at what he did. It was the reason Jonah was still handling all his affairs with the Dodd law firm. But Jonah's reasons for marrying Maggie or the agreement made between them weren't anyone's business but theirs.

  Jonah cut him off by standing. “If I'm setting up a trust for the child, Maggie doesn't even need to know about it, correct?”

  “Well, technically, no.”

  “Then draw up the papers and I'll sign them. That way you can sleep at night knowing my assets are safe and I can sleep at night knowing that Maggie and the baby will be provided for.”

  Rudy looked at Jonah for a brief moment before standing. “Did you ever think it might be a lot easier to let the old man sell the place in England?”

  Jonah sighed heavily. He'd hired Rudy to protect his interests and he did a damned good job of it. But there were times, like this, when Jonah wished he'd grown up a poor boy on the streets of London like Cam. No one harassed Cam about his interests when he dated a woman. No hungry lawyers hovered about, secretly devising ways to prevent eventual collapse of his financial empire.

  Jonah supposed he should be grateful. He'd grown up with a silver spoon at every meal while many of the children he met at the Haven Houses he'd set up barely had the meal or an affectionate hug to let them know they mattered.

  “I know, I know.” Rudy finally threw up his hands in defeat when Jonah walked to his office door and yanked it open.

  “Just draw up the papers and I'll sign them. I'll be in the office most of the week.”

  He watched Rudy as he exited to the corridor. Leaving his office door ajar, Jonah sank into the soft leather seat behind his sturdy desk and listened to the silence.

  The office was quiet once again. All the money in the world didn't change that.

  * * *

  There were more than a few raised eyebrows at City Hall. As strange as his situation with Maggie was, even he had to admit two wedding ceremonies in one week was cause for speculation and gossip. Jonah ignored the stares from the clerk, who filled out their wedding license. They'd had to wait a full three days for the blood tests to be completed.

  Although he was under time constraints from his grandfather, Jonah had been willing to give Maggie a wedding ceremony. Catherine hadn't wanted a formal wedding. But she had wanted a honeymoon, which explains the reason she'd wanted to drive them to the airport.

  Well, money or jealousy and past mistakes aside, he was getting married to Maggie today. He'd woken up with only one panic attack, which quickly faded as soon as Maggie and her mother, Rhonda, arrived at City Hall.

  He'd had Michael pick them up in the limo, remembering what Maggie had said about limousines only driving down her street for weddings. She wasn't going to have a traditional fanfare for this wedding. It was the least he could do to make this day memorable in her mind.

  Introductions of his new mother-in-law to be moved from awkwardness to strained silence as they waited in the lobby for their turn with the justice of the peace.

  “Is it going to happen here? Right here in the lobby?” Rhonda asked, glancing around the bland surroundings.

  “In the office,” Maggie said, staring down at the bouquet of white tea roses Jonah had just given her. She looked like an angel, delicately touching the soft petals of a rose. She wore a simple cream dress that hung almost to her ankles. It was fitting in the bodice, accentuating her full breasts, but not revealing any cleavage, and fanned out, flowing over her hips. She wore her hair pinned back in a twist of some sort, anchored with a large comb decorated with tiny pink and yellow flowers. She was quite a contrast from the woman wearing a dried food stained waitress uniform the day they'd met. He thought she was beautiful then, but it didn't compare to now.

  And she was as nervous as he felt. That much was evident by the way she tapped her cream pumps in a staccato rhythm on the beige tiled floor and kept glancing at the large numbered clock on the far wall.

  Rhonda leaned close to Maggie and said in a whisper that was clearly meant for everyone to hear, “It's not right. You should have married in the church.”

  “Ssh. Mom, we've been through this.”

  Rhonda lifted her eyes to Jonah. He would have taken venom from a rattle snake to the stare she'd cast him.

  “It's just not right. A girl dreams of a real wedding. You know, flowers and bridesmaids and...dried baked stuffed chicken at the reception that nobody wanted but her mother.” Rhonda rose up high in her chair. “You're marrying my daughter with no church wedding? No honeymoon? Is that how you plan to treat--”

  Maggie grabbed Rhonda's arm and stood just as the door to the Justice of the Peace's office opened. “Mom, it's time.”

  She turned to Jonah, peering up at him with her blue eyes wild with sudden excitement and a smile so sparkling it stole his breath away. He had to tell himself to breathe. It was easy to forget that this was just a marriage for show, that he and Maggie weren't really in love.

  And yet, her excitement was so contagious, he found himself getting dizzy himself. Hooking his arm around hers, Jonah led her into the Justice of the Peace's office.

  There was no aisle to walk down, no father of the bride to give her away and that made Maggie's reasons for marrying him abundantly clear. The enormity of what they were embarking on crashed down around him. Was this really worth it? Marrying a stranger just to fulfill the insane wishes of an ol
d man?

  They recited their vows in utilitarian fashion, sitting down in front of the desk while the Justice presided. When it came time to kiss his bride, Jonah was struck with a sense of guilt. Everything about what they were doing seemed so sterile.

  Maggie hadn't asked for anything. Although marriage had never played a part in his life plan, he knew that weddings and such were something women dreamed of. Somehow it didn't seem right that he hadn't given her at least something more of a wedding for her to remember.

  “Well? What are you waiting for?” the Justice said.

  Jonah looked at the Justice, then at Maggie.

  Standing on the opposite side of Maggie, Rhonda propped her fists on her hips. “It's not legal in my book if you don't kiss the bride.”

  Jonah couldn't help himself. A quick kiss would have sufficed under the circumstances. But Jonah couldn't help but let his mouth linger on Maggie's full, sweet lips. She tasted of mint and smelled of lilac. But not heavy like perfume, more clean, like the fragrance of soap. No other part of them touched. When he pulled away, he saw that her face was flush as he felt, and he wondered if the temperature gauge in the room had suddenly been turned up to 100 degrees.

  “Welcome to the family, Jonah,” Rhonda said, her eyes heavy with unshed tears. She lifted her finger and pointed to him, her venom stare slicing through him. “You take good care of my daughter or I'll shoot you.”

  * * *

  “Wow,” was all Maggie could think of saying as she stepped out of the cool limousine into the steam bath afternoon when they arrived at Jonah's house. His house. Yeah, right, it looked more like a hotel, for cripes sakes. The English Tudor style home was three stories high and ran the length of what looked the equivalent of city block.

  When they'd driven down the tree-lined driveway, she'd seen that there was a tiny courtyard in the back of the house leading into a garden filled with flowers in shades of rose, periwinkle, and bright yellow.

  “It'll be much cooler inside the house. The back verandah has a nice breeze, too.”