Bayside's Most Unexpected Bride

by Kerri Carpenter

  “I can’t. I feel responsible for every single person who walks into that building every day.” He hesitated before continuing. “The thing is, I have an out. Someone has presented me with a proposal. Only I don’t think I can accept it.”

  “Want to tell me about it?”

  More than anything. She was being so patient and so kind. It was killing him not to spill his guts to her now.

  “I would.” He should. “The details aren’t ironed out yet.”

  “What’s stopping you from accepting?”

  He looked deep into her eyes, knowing he could get lost there. Knowing that he could hurt her if he ever accepted Dan’s offer. Then again, he could hurt a lot more people if he didn’t. “It may not be the right thing to do.”

  “Maybe you should talk to your dad. I mean, he ran the paper before you. Plus, he’s crazy smart. I’m sure he would be able to help you sort things out.”

  “No way.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “I can’t tell either of my parents about this.”

  She stepped back and studied him with surprise on her face. “Why not? Who better?”

  “They retired and they deserve this time to relax.”

  “I think they would both smack you for that comment.”

  “Maybe, maybe not. But I can’t burden them with this, especially my dad.”

  The newspaper had been passed down through generations on his dad’s side of the family. Because of Sawyer, his dad had been able to retire early. Even though the idea of taking over an entire newspaper had scared the bejesus out of him, Sawyer had stepped up to the plate. He’d had to because he’d owed his dad. He should have never left Bayside and run off to DC with Rachel.

  “What’s going on in there?” she asked, running a soft finger along his temple.

  “The Bugle is more than a newspaper. It’s my family. We may not have saved lives or found the solution to world peace. But this was the Wallace contribution to society.”

  “Your legacy,” she said with a knowing nod.

  “Exactly. A legacy that is now my sole responsibility.”

  Again she gave a curt nod. “Then I think you should do whatever you need to do to save the newspaper and our coworkers’ jobs. Really, Sawyer. No matter what.”

  The option before him was to either save the newspaper or save Riley. His family’s legacy or Riley. All those jobs or Riley.

  Now she was essentially telling him to pick the newspaper. But doing that would make him lose her forever.

  * * *

  When Riley had donned one of her comfiest outfits earlier and made plans with a box of spaghetti, she’d had no idea her evening would evolve into this.

  She’d been surprised to open the door and find Sawyer standing there. But getting him to finally open up about his troubles meant the world to her. It showed that he trusted her. Really and truly trusted her.

  She was worried about him, though. The stress he felt was palpable.

  Sawyer was such a good man. He was honest and kind. He loved his family and friends. Not to mention how much the Bugle meant to him and how he so wanted to protect it.

  Riley wished she could help. She wanted to soothe the stress line that had formed in the middle of his forehead.

  Maybe there was a way she could.

  She took his hand, which she was still holding, and brought it to her lips. Kissed his knuckles. Then she went up on tiptoe and pressed her lips to his.

  “You are the best man I know, Sawyer Wallace. Trust me that this whole thing will work out.”

  “Riley—” he began, but she cut him off with another kiss.

  “Shh,” she whispered. “Come with me.”

  He didn’t move. “Where?”

  She smiled. “Don’t you trust me?”

  “You know I do.”

  She tugged his hand. “Come.” When he finally budged, she led him through the living room, down the short hallway, and into her bedroom.

  Rather than turn the overhead light on, she moved around the room, lighting the many candles she liked to keep around her room. Then she opened her laptop and set it to play soft music.

  When she was finished, she turned. Sawyer hadn’t moved from the doorway.

  “Are you trying to seduce me, Riley Hudson?”

  She shook her head. “No. I’m trying to make you feel better. Any seduction is simply a happy perk for both of us.”

  “I feel better just being here with you.”

  When he said things like that, she was filled with a tingly sensation that made her breathless and light-headed.

  She held out a hand and he moved to her.

  She pulled him onto the bed beside her. Their mouths sought each other, immediately fusing in an intense kiss. Following suit, their hands were moving over each other, touching, enticing, igniting fires of desire.

  They rolled over and over as clothes were shed. Her breath was coming faster as her heartbeat skyrocketed.

  Finally all clothes were shed and they lay on their sides facing each other. “Sawyer,” she said as her fingers traveled up his side, delighting in all of his angles and curves.

  “Yes?” he answered. His own hands were having one heck of a time tracing the outline of her breast.

  “I have to tell you something.” She bit her lip. I love you. It was on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn’t squeeze the words out. Not yet, even though her heart was full of such love for him.

  “You mean more to me than any other man ever has.”

  He didn’t say anything, but his eyes seemed to darken. She wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing. Suddenly feeling anxious, she blurted out, “I shouldn’t have said that.”

  “Why not?” he asked on a half laugh.

  “Because I know it’s fast.”

  His hand moved up to cup her cheek. “Ri, it’s been twenty-nine years.”

  When he put it that way...

  “Here’s something to hopefully make you feel better. You mean more to me than any other woman has. I never thought I would feel like this.”

  “Again?” she asked. Surely he wasn’t discounting Rachel. They’d been engaged after all. “You never thought you would feel like this again, you mean.”

  He shook his head. “I’ve never felt this strongly about any woman, ever.”

  She leaned into his hand and he kissed her then. She gave a little push and moved him to his back. Then she straddled him. Looking down into his eyes, she smiled.

  “Really?” she asked.

  “Really. You have no idea what you mean to me.”

  And he had no idea that she’d fallen head over heels in love with him. Maybe she’d always loved him. Maybe they were destined to be together. Riley had no idea, and, instead of telling him, she decided to show him what he meant to her.

  She leaned over and pulled a condom from her bedside table. Quickly she protected him. Then, raising her hips, she lowered herself onto him, slowly, so slowly. Her breath came out as one big, desirous moan. He reared up and covered her mouth with his. They were joined together in every way possible.

  Then she gave him a little shove and he fell back to the pillows. She began to move, never taking her eyes off his. His hands clamped onto her hips, urging her on. She covered his fingers with her hers as she rose and fell above him.

  Their bodies rocked together in total sync, their rhythm increasing with each passing second. Soon the world around her began to blur. When she fell over the edge, he was right there with her.

  She collapsed onto him as his arms came around her heated body—exhausted, sated and more in love than she had ever dreamed possible.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Bayside Blogger @BSBlogger

  Seems like the big @BSBugle gala is bringing all the old alums out of the woodwork. Any guesses which big busine
ss honcho is in town? #Bugle150

  Sawyer read Riley’s latest blog post and stifled the urge to pop an antacid. He knew exactly who she was referring to. Of all times for her to report on Dan Melwood, this was definitely the worst.

  Not that she realized that, of course.

  Now he was going to have to deal with Dan, who would no doubt be displeased. Sawyer felt the beginnings of a headache.

  To think he’d been having a great week. How could he not when he’d been spending every night in Riley’s arms. The way her body moved, the sounds she made when her body was being devoured by his, went a far way to making his life seem better than what it currently was.

  Something had changed between them last weekend. He couldn’t pinpoint it. For a journalist, he was having a tough time coming up with the right words.

  It was no longer the two of them hanging out as friends. And it definitely was a hell of a lot more than sex. She’d always been important to him. But now? It was as if everything revolved around her.

  To celebrate getting through another work week, they’d made plans to see a movie tonight. She was still feeling apprehensive about revealing the shift in their relationship. He was still pretending to be okay with that. At least at the movies they could hold hands in the dark.

  He picked up his ringing phone without glancing at the caller ID. Maybe if he had, he wouldn’t have choked at the sound of Dan Melwood’s voice on the other end.

  “Sawyer, the time has come for your final decision. It’s been weeks now and I need to know if I should move on and invest my money elsewhere.”

  Sawyer stifled a groan. He leaned back in his chair as he considered how to approach this. “I appreciate you giving me time, Dan. This is obviously a big decision.”

  “I understand that, but I’m still wondering why you aren’t jumping on the opportunity for financial help when I know very well that the Bugle is floundering.”

  Leaning back in his chair, Sawyer decided to go for it. “I welcome the financial freedom your company would bring. What I’m struggling with is your very unusual caveat of revealing one of my reporters’ identities.”

  Dan laughed. It was a bitter, almost metallic sound. “I would hardly call a gossip columnist a reporter.”

  “Nevertheless, I can’t tell you the name of the Bayside Blogger, Dan. Journalistic integrity.”

  “I can appreciate that.”

  “You do? Great.”

  “Not so great for you. Without that name, I won’t back the paper. Ethical or not.”

  A weary groan escaped Sawyer’s otherwise pinched lips. “I don’t understand why this is so important to you, Dan. I know the blogger wrote about you last summer and I apologize for that.”

  “Damn blogger was the cause of my divorce.”

  Actually, his infidelity was the real cause, but Sawyer wisely chose to keep that opinion to himself.

  “Again, I’m sorry to hear that. But if I give you his or her name, what exactly do you plan on doing with that information?”

  “I’m not sure yet. But I’ll tell you what. We’re going to keep talking in circles here. You have my proposal and all the numbers and projections. I will be at the Dumont party tomorrow night for the one-hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary of the Bugle. I expect an answer there.”

  With that, Dan disconnected. Sawyer rubbed a hand over his face. Initially, he’d been thrilled when Lilah Dumont offered to throw the Bugle an anniversary party. Of course, he knew Mrs. Dumont was on board with any party, any time, but it wasn’t like he had room in his current budget to celebrate, and one hundred and fifty years was a long time. The entire town apparently thought so, too. He’d seen a recent guest list and it looked like everyone would be there. Despite the current financial climate—or maybe because of it—his reporters and staff had earned the right to a night of celebration.

  One hundred and fifty years. Something to be proud of. Again Sawyer thought about his ancestors. What would they think knowing the Wallace family had continued their legacy?

  More importantly, what would they think knowing he was screwing it up?

  Sick of feeling powerless, Sawyer turned to his computer. Whenever he needed help sorting through an issue, he always wrote out each and every detail. Then he would sit back and study the list. Make a pros-and-cons list if necessary. He would do the same now. He started typing Dan’s initial proposal, but then was interrupted by a question from one of his editors.

  He would get back to it, though, because he was determined to figure out the best course of action. He wouldn’t let his family down.

  * * *

  Even though the day was overcast, with thick gray clouds biding their time before they unleashed what was sure to be a huge amount of rain, to Riley it felt like the sunniest of mornings.

  Something was different between her and Sawyer since he’d stopped by last weekend, and she could no longer pretend that their relationship was some kind of fluke. They were together as more than friends, more than coworkers. He was her boyfriend, and she was—she gulped—in love with him. Definitely, irrevocably in love.

  She sat at her desk, unable to contain the grin at that thought.

  “Do I even want to know what that look is for?” Claudia asked as she sidled up to Riley’s cubicle, leaning over the edge and peering down at her with an amused expression on her face.

  “Hmm? Oh, it’s nothing. I’m just in a good mood today.”

  Claudia eyed her for a long moment. “Oh, really? I know that expression. If I had to guess, I would say you’re dating someone.”

  “I might be,” Riley replied coyly.

  “It’s not like you to withhold info. Who is he?”

  Riley opened her mouth and quickly shut it. She couldn’t exactly tell her supervisor that she was sleeping with the big boss.

  “You know, I think I want to keep it to myself a little bit longer.”

  Claudia’s face softened. “Oh, Riley.”

  “What?”

  “You really like this guy, don’t you?”

  More than like. She loved him and she was having a heck of a time keeping that to herself. She wanted to shout it from the roof of the Bugle. Maybe take out an ad.

  Her stomach took a huge dive and Riley knew she was lucky to be sitting down, or else she’d be on the floor.

  Big, fat raindrops began to fall against the window and Riley suddenly understood why she’d been thinking it was sunny earlier. Because she was in love with Sawyer and she hadn’t felt this good in a long, long time. Since she had dated Connor...

  That thought made her sit up straighter.

  Claudia leaned closer. “Okay, I feel like sixteen different emotions just crossed your face.”

  “Um...”

  “I’m not going to push you on this guy because I’m happy for you. But you know what’s interesting? The Bayside Blogger hasn’t picked up on this yet. You and your new man must be really stealthy for her not to write about you.”

  “Uh, yeah, we’ve been pretty discreet.” She quickly looked away.

  “Hey, boss,” Claudia called out as Sawyer made his way out of his office.

  Riley glanced up. Sawyer tripped over a garbage can. He looked really out of it. He removed his glasses, which was a good thing since they were on crooked anyway. His mind was definitely somewhere else.

  She knew how worried he was about the state of the Bugle. They’d spent every night together, eating dinner, watching television, making out. It had been one of the best weeks of her life. Just the two of them, enjoying each other, laughing, kissing. Maybe he was feeling relaxed because he hadn’t mentioned the financial trouble again since he’d finally told her about it last Saturday.

  In fact, he’d looked relaxed all week long at work, too. He’d joked around with their coworkers and brought doughnuts in almost every morning.

&nb
sp; Now those shadows had returned under his eyes. There was definitely something up today.

  “Ready for the big anniversary gala at the Dumonts’ tomorrow?” Claudia asked.

  The expression on his face was enough to make Riley laugh. It was as if Claudia had asked him to cut off his own hand.

  “Come on, Sawyer,” she said. “It’s going to be fun. It’s not like we have to do anything, either. Mrs. Dumont took care of everything.”

  “I still have to put on a tux—again—and go be social.”

  “Maybe Riley will bring her new boyfriend.”

  Sawyer’s head shot up at that. Riley could feel the heat on her cheeks as she studied her desk, suddenly finding her mouse pad extremely interesting.

  “Riley has a new boyfriend?” Sawyer asked, amusement in his voice.

  “Yep,” Claudia said. “It’s serious, too.”

  Sawyer propped his elbows on the top of Riley’s cubicle wall. “Oh, really? How do you know?”

  “Because she won’t tell me who he is,” Claudia said, oblivious to the fact that she was talking to Riley’s new “boyfriend.”

  Sawyer rubbed a hand over his chin. “That is serious.”

  Riley rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out at Sawyer. “Claudia also pointed out how incredible it is that the Bayside Blogger hasn’t written anything about my new relationship.”

  He met her gaze for a long, intense moment. She knew he was remembering her words about the blogger. Anyone else would have been busted by now. Another reason to keep their dating under wraps.

  “You’re lucky,” Claudia said, oblivious to what was passing between them. “And I’m happy for you. About time you found a nice guy. He’d better be treating you right.”

  “He’s...not bad,” she said slyly.

  Sawyer snorted.

  “Has he, you know, stayed over yet?” Claudia asked, her eyes gleaming with curiosity.

  “You know, he has. Although, I have to admit, he snores.”

  Sawyer straightened. “He does not.”

  Riley stifled a giggle as Claudia swiveled toward Sawyer. “And how would you know if he snores or not?”