A Bet with Benefits

by Karen Booth

  “But I feel guilty. And I feel bad. Will I just be abandoning Sophie and Emma? What about this Benjamin Summers guy and the lawsuit? What if we end up losing the store?” Mindy knew she sounded frantic, but that was the one unsettled area of her life. Yes, it was a big improvement over a month or two ago when her entire existence was in disarray. But still, she didn’t like having such a big thread dangling.

  “First off, I don’t want you to feel guilty. If you make it to the end of the two years, you can still decide to stay at the store. A lot could happen in twelve months. There’s no telling where you’ll be.”

  “You’re right. Things change. They always do.” Mindy gnawed on her fingernail. “I think I’m going to need some lawyer recommendations from you for Eden’s. Our in-house legal team plays it totally by the book and I think we’re going to need to outmaneuver the issue of this lien against the store.”

  “So you come to me for the less-by-the-book people?”

  “You know what I mean.”

  He chuckled warmly. God, she loved that sound. Happy Sam Blackwell was the absolute best. “I actually have an idea, but I think it’ll be more than a little controversial.”

  “Oh, good. Just what you and I need. Controversy.”

  He dropped his arm from her shoulder and stood to face her. “Just promise me you’ll hear me out.”

  “I promise.”

  “Isabel.”

  Mindy blinked. “As in your sister?”

  “She’s an unbelievable lawyer and she’s made the decision to move to New York. She could handle this thing no problem. I swear.”

  Mindy had not been prepared for this idea at all. “I don’t know. My family has just gotten used to one Blackwell. I’m not sure the idea of putting the fate of the store in the hands of your sister is going to fly.”

  Sam shrugged. “Think about it. I know she could do an amazing job.”

  Mindy would have to ponder that thoroughly, as well as find a way to run it by Sophie and Emma. “Okay. I will.”

  “Ready to head out?” Sam asked. “I was thinking we should go for a drive. It’s such a beautiful day.”

  With nothing else planned aside from a quiet dinner at home, Mindy was game. “Sure. Sounds fun.”

  They locked up the building when they got downstairs and walked over to where Sam had parked his Bugatti, near the loading dock. He’d said that he wanted to give his driver the day off, but Mindy also wondered if he’d just used this excursion as an excuse to drive. He loved his car, and living in the city didn’t make it a very practical choice.

  He drove north and eventually hopped on the Palisades Interstate Parkway, which ran parallel to the Hudson River. She just enjoyed the colorful scenery of a late-autumn day, but after about a half hour, Mindy had to ask, “Where are we going? I can’t help but feel like you have a destination in mind.”

  “I have something I want to show you.” He glanced over at her, but his eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, revealing nothing.

  “Something like what?”

  “It’s a surprise. We’ll be there in a few minutes, okay? Just relax. I promise you it’s a good thing.”

  Mindy sat back in the seat. She wasn’t big on surprises, but she figured that whatever Sam had up his sleeve had to be something she would like. He’d figured her out pretty well by now. After another ten or fifteen minutes, he pulled off the main road and they were soon in a residential area with sprawling lawns and extravagant, elegant homes. He turned on a side street and pulled up in front of a house at the very end of the road. He put the car in Park and killed the engine, then turned to her.

  “Well? What do you think?”

  Mindy looked out the window. “It’s beautiful. And massive. And way outside the city.” She turned back to him. “Do you know the person who lives here?”

  He shook his head and removed his sunglasses. “No. But I know the person who wants to live here. And I know the person he’s hoping will move in with him.”

  Mindy didn’t want to be slow to figure this out, but this wasn’t adding up. “What are you saying, Sam?”

  “Come on. Let’s get out of the car and take a look.”

  “Okay.” Mindy climbed out and joined Sam as they walked up to the gate. The house was still very far away, down at the end of a long cobblestone drive. There was a stone fountain in the center of a large courtyard, manicured landscaping as far as the eye could see. Dozens of windows dotted the front of the home, suggesting that there were an awful lot of rooms.

  “I’m sorry. I wish I had the keys so we could look at it,” Sam said, gripping the wrought-iron gate. “Although part of me doesn’t want to look at it if you aren’t into the idea.”

  “You’re saying you want to buy this house?”

  “I’m saying that I want to know what’s next for us. I guess I’m asking you what’s next. I found out the other day that this house was for sale and I looked at it on the website and all I could think is that I loved the idea of getting out of the city, and I loved the idea of doing that with you.”

  “Oh, my gosh. That’s amazing. And also a little surprising. What exactly would we put in a house that big, Sam?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. Kids? A bunch of pets? We could do whatever we want.”

  Kids. Wow. That was a leap she had not seen coming. Forget work priorities, she would need to rethink everything. Still, she turned to Sam and her heart melted. It was a lovely idea, especially with him. She suspected he was eager to build the family he’d always wanted, so he could remember the one he’d once had.

  “You and I have spent so much time worrying about business and family,” he said. “Now that we’re together, I want to know where you see us going. I cleaned out half of my closet for you, but this would be a lot more than that.”

  Mindy cast her sights at him again. She would have been surprised, but she knew that they would eventually have the commitment talk. When she asked herself the question—what do you want?—the answer was him. She wanted him by her side every day. She wanted to be able to come home to him at night and wake up next to him the next morning. She wanted weekends and holidays, good times and bad. She wanted everything she could get from Sam. Every last drop. “You sound like you’re unsure of what I want.”

  “It’s always easiest if you tell me. I’m a man, Mindy. Not a mind reader.”

  “You’re also a guy who overflows with confidence. You don’t always have to follow my lead. Why don’t you tell me what you want. You’re entitled, you know.”

  Sam pressed his lips together and looked through the gate again, the breeze blowing his hair back from his face. He was so handsome in profile, his strong nose and jaw. The lips she loved to kiss. He turned back to her and she could see just how much he had dropped his defenses. A single tear rolled down his cheek. “I want the fairy-tale ending, Min. I want us to promise each other that we’ll always be there for each other. And I want us to do it in front of everyone we love with rings and champagne and vows. I know you see marriage as a trap, but I promise you that I will never let it be that way for us. I will always be true. I will always be open and honest. I will always make sure you know that you’re loved for the incredible woman you are.”

  Mindy stood perfectly still. This scene between her and Sam was so unimaginable the first time they were together, and the second, and the third... And that was all on her. She’d told herself she wanted him to stick around, but the truth was that it was only at the moments when he said he would that she ended up getting nervous.

  But not anymore. That was the old Mindy. She was not letting Sam walk out on an emotional ledge without being there to catch him. “So you want to get married? Buy a big house and start having kids?”

  He nodded. “I know it sounds ridiculous coming from me. I know this is probably the last thing you ever expected, but it is what I want. I lov
e you, Mindy. From the moment I met you, there was no one else. We are meant for each other. We fit together perfectly.”

  Mindy leaned into him and gave him a kiss. “In more ways than one.”

  “So what do you say? With every other bit of uncertainty ahead, what do you say we place all bets on us?”

  Mindy’s heart felt as though it was doing cartwheels and backflips, a feeling she’d never expected to feel at the prospect of marriage. But she knew now that it wasn’t about the institution or the promise, it was all about the man she loved more than anything. “I’ll take that bet, Sam Blackwell. I’ll take it every single day.”

  * * *

  Don’t miss the other three stories

  in Karen Booth’s miniseries,

  The Eden Empire:

  A Cinderella Seduction

  A Christmas Temptation

  and

  A Christmas Affair,

  available November 2019.

  Keep reading for an excerpt from Power Play by Anna DePalo.

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  Power Play

  by Anna DePalo

  One

  Sera disliked smooth operators, bad in-laws and unwelcome surprises.

  Unfortunately, Jordan was all three, and his sudden appearance in her offices on a sunny spring day in Massachusetts meant she’d better start preparing herself for the unthinkable.

  “You!”

  The exclamation was out of Sera’s mouth before she could stop it. It had been just another day at Astra Therapeutics until Mr. Hotshot-NHL, Underwear-Ad-Hottie Jordan Serenghetti had crashed the party like an errant puck arcing through the air.

  Jordan smiled lazily. “Yes, me.”

  Arms folded, he lounged against the treatment table, as if striking sexy poses was second nature to him—even when propped up by crutches, as he was now. Clad in a casual long-sleeved olive T-shirt and jeans, he emanated charisma. The shirt outlined the hard muscles of his arms, and the jeans hugged lean hips. Not that she was noticing. Not in that way.

  Sera was wary of men who were too good to be true—as if everything came easy to them. Nowadays, Jordan Serenghetti would be at the top of her list. He was smoother than a skate blade hydroplaning over ice. With dark, ruffled hair clipped short, moss-green eyes, and a sculpted face with a chiseled jaw, he could score anywhere.

  Sera had seen him in underwear ads, showing off his package on supersized billboards and fueling thousands of dreams. But she’d learned the hard way to deal in reality, not fantasy.

  “What are you doing here?” she blurted, even though she had a sinking feeling she knew. She’d been told her next appointment was waiting for her in room 6, but she’d had no idea it was Jordan.

  She’d heard he’d suffered a sports-related injury, but figured he was in good hands with the New England Razors hockey-team staff. She so was not going to worry about him, even if her second-worst mistake was now related to her by the marriage of her cousin to Jordan’s brother. In the annals of her bad history with men, Jordan ranked number two, even if it had become clear to her that he didn’t remember their chance encounter in the past.

  She eyed his wrapped left knee. She wasn’t used to seeing Jordan Serenghetti vulnerable...

  “Now, that’s a refreshing change from the usual greeting. Too often I get enthusiastic fans yelling my name.” He shrugged. “You’re an antidote to the monotony, Angel.”

  Sera sighed. Fans? Women screaming his name was more like it. Terribly misguided, deluded women. “Don’t call me Angel.”

  “Hey, I’m not the one who named you for a heavenly being.”

  She’d never had occasion to rue her name so much. Serafina served as a topic of easy cocktail-party conversation, but the nickname Angel irked her, especially when uttered by Jordan. So what if she was named for the seraphim?

  “Your type of angel is supposed to be heavenly and fiery,” Jordan went on, unperturbed. “Someone had a kismet moment when they named you. Beautiful and hot-tempered.”

  Serafina rolled her eyes, refusing to be swayed by the way beautiful rolled off Jordan’s tongue. “Am I supposed to be impressed by your grasp of biblical trivia...or backhanded compliments?” Then she scowled at the thought that her response had just proven his point. She dropped her clipboard on the counter. “So you’re here for a physical-therapy session...”

  “Yup.”

  She quelled her irritation. “And I’m supposed to think it’s mere chance that you were assigned to me?”

  Jordan held up his hands, a smile teasing his lips. “No, I’m not going to lie about that part.”

  “Oh, good.”

  “I want the best—”

  Sera was sure Jordan was used to the best in women. No doubt eager females were waiting for him when he exited the New England Razors’ locker room.

  “—and you’ve already got a great reputation. The clinic manager couldn’t stop singing your praises.”

  With a pro athlete of Jordan’s caliber, Sera was sure Bernice had given him his choice of staff. And the clinic’s manager probably thought she was doing Sera a favor...

  Sera thought back to her conversation earlier in the week with Bernice. We’re trying to land a contract with the New England Razors. Their management is looking to outsource some therapy work and supplement the team’s staff. They’re auditioning three outfits, including us. If we land this deal, it could open the door to work with other sports teams in the area.

  Ugh. At the time, she’d dismissed her chances of encountering Jordan, even though he played for the Razors. The gods couldn’t be so cruel. Apparently, however, gods laughed at angels. Jordan had been sent—or volunteered—to test the quality of the clinic’s services. With her. She should have known the minute she stepped into this room, but she’d been in deep denial.

  “You asked for me?” Sera said slowly.

  Jordan nodded and then cracked a grin. “The fact that, when I booked my appointment for today, your receptionist couldn’t stop extolling your cooking skills just sealed the deal for me.”

  “She mentioned my cooking?”

  “And baking,” he added. “Apparently, the homemade dishes that you sometimes bring in for the staff earn you brownie points. So you were clearly the right choice.”

  “Let me remind you of something...we don’t like each other.”

  “Correction,” Jordan said, lips quirking. “You don’t like me. I have
no problem with attractive and passionate women. You, on the other hand, have issues—”

  “Right.” She narrowed her eyes.

  “You should feel safe around me,” Jordan said easily. “We’re practically related.”

  Right. Jordan’s older brother Cole had recently married Sera’s cousin Marisa Danieli. Jordan loved to joke about the couple’s long and winding path to the altar. At one point, Marisa’s former fiancé had been dating Cole’s ex-girlfriend, and Jordan had kidded that his brother and Marisa were engaged by proxy. It did not, however, mean that she and Jordan were related in any meaningful sense of the word.

  Up to now, Sera had done her best to ignore the fact that she and Jordan were technically cousins-in-law. Marisa and Cole had had a surprise wedding, so she’d been spared having to be the maid of honor to Jordan’s best man.

  “I’ll drive you into the ground, Serenghetti,” she harrumphed, changing tactics. “You’ll sweat like you’ve never worked before.”

  It was only a half-idle threat. She expected a lot from her patients. She was good, she was understanding, but she was tough.

  Jordan’s smile stayed in place. “I wouldn’t expect any less.”

  “Are you always so sunny?” she grumbled. “Do the clouds ever come out in Serenghetti Land?”

  He laughed. “I like to rile you, Perini. I may not have clouds, but I can rock your world with thunder and lightning.”

  There it was again. The sexually tinged double meaning. And then a traitorous voice whispered, You already have. Once. The fact that he didn’t remember just made it all the more galling. “You don’t want to get involved with me.” Again. “I’m not a woman you can conveniently walk away from.” This time. “I’m your sister-in-law’s cousin.”

  He arched a brow. “Is that all that’s stopping you?”

  She threw up her hands—because no way was she going to remind Jordan about the past. Their past. And with her bad luck, in the future she and Jordan would be named as godparents to the next Danieli-Serenghetti offspring. As it was, they’d dodged that bullet the first time around since Jordan’s brother Rick and his wife Chiara had done the honors. It seemed Cole was going down the line by order of birth in naming godparents from among his siblings.