The Wedding Wager

by Regina Duke

  Jeff looked offended. “Hey! I have covered your tracks for years. I can’t stand your old man. The one time we met, he called me names. Why would I ever help him?”

  “My sister Karla heard him talking to a man on the phone. He was calling him Wong.”

  Jeff’s features slid into disappointment. “Patrick!”

  Kevin’s jaw worked. “He’s been helping me with legal stuff for weeks.”

  “And he’s my cousin,” said Jeff. “Anything I talked about during family gatherings, he would have access to. That jerk! I knew he was ruthless about his business, but I never thought he’d stoop this low.”

  “My dad must have offered him a lot of money,” said Kevin. “That’s how he usually works. Sorry I doubted you, Jeff.”

  “Oh, man! Me and my big mouth. Before I left Seattle, I told my mother about our change of plans.”

  “You’re allowed to talk to your family. You had no way of knowing. It’s not like we were keeping national security secrets. But Patrick drew up the prenup.”

  Krystal took Kevin’s arm to secure her balance. “So he knows that you and Megan only met last week.”

  Kevin nodded grimly. “I have to find Megan. Who knows what he might have said to her?”

  Cookie wiped her floured hands on her apron. “You come in and eat, young man. Did you drive all the way here from Seattle?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” said Jeff.

  Krystal said, “Kevin, we’ll take care of Jeff. You go find Megan.”

  CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

  KEVIN STOOD FOR a moment, considering his options. He realized he hadn’t seen Zach around either. He trotted to the metal office building and stuck his head inside.

  “Mrs. Garcia? Have you seen Zach?”

  “No, sir. But he had fences to check, so he’s probably working.”

  “Is your husband around?”

  “No. Mr. Zach sent him on an errand to Denver.”

  Kevin felt a flash of panic. “Not in the last hour, I hope!”

  “Oh, no. He told him yesterday that today he would go to Denver. My Checo, he left at nine this morning.”

  “Okay, thanks.” At least Garcia wasn’t driving Megan to the airport.

  “Oh, Mr. Kevin, I think the ranch truck is back now,” said Mrs. Garcia. “So maybe Zach is back, too.”

  Kevin stepped outside in time to see the ranch truck pull behind the stable. He trotted to the stable and came to a halt next to Honey’s stall.

  Honey snuffled and threw her head back, but when she saw Kevin, she reached out with her nose to be petted.

  “Not now, Honeybun,” said Kevin. “I’m in a hurry.” But he couldn’t disappoint her. “Okay. Just for a few moments.” He laid one hand on her face and immediately felt calmer.

  Zach’s voice came from deeper in the stable. “I told you, didn’t I? It’s hard to rush when you’re holding a brush. Or in this case, touching the horse’s nose. You looking for someone?”

  Kevin turned to face Zach. “How is it you always know what’s happening in my life?”

  “Maybe because I been there before you.”

  Kevin was rubbing Honey’s chin now. “Where is she, Zach? Did she tell you where she was going?”

  “Megan?”

  Kevin gave Honey one last pat and stepped away. He was too agitated to leave his hands on her for long.

  “We think my dad said something to her in town. He’d say anything to chase her away. I just found out he’s had a spy in Seattle watching my every move. So he knows that Megan and I only met last week. But I love that girl. A man can fall in love in a week, can’t he?”

  “People fall in love at first glance,” said Zach. “You could fall in love a thousand times in a whole week.”

  “Well, maybe I’m slow,” said Kevin. “But I knew she was special when I first met her. And then, watching her with my family? She’s perfect. Everything was going great. And then my father entered the picture.”

  “You knew he would. He’s got a lot invested in taking over this ranch. He’ll do whatever he has to do, get rid of anybody who stands in his way. Lord knows he’s tried to get rid of me. But I’m a tougher nut to crack than young Megan.”

  “I need to find her before she does something foolish. I need to tell her how I feel.”

  “Even if it means losing your inheritance? The trust fund? The ranch?”

  Kevin spread his hands. His voice betrayed his anguish. “What good does all this do me without her?! She made this place come alive for me. I saw an old-fashioned house. She sees a Victorian treasure. I saw my sister spiraling into mental illness. She sees a creative genius and finds a way to bring Karla out of her shell. Keegan was becoming more and more cut off from the world. Now he has friends! If Megan leaves, it all falls apart.”

  Zach squinted into the distance for several seconds. At last he turned to look at Kevin again, and his eyes were a bit brighter than before.

  “She’s over to Fineman’s Pond, in the fishing cabin. She needed a safe place to hole up for a while and think.”

  “Thanks, Zach.” Kevin turned to leave, but Zach caught his arm.

  “When you were a boy, spending your summers here, you looked up to me.”

  “I still do, Zach. You know that.”

  “Well, listen up real good. If you want me to respect you the same way, don’t you come back here without that woman. It don’t matter what your father says or threatens to do. There’s no fortune on the planet big enough to make up for losing her. You understand?”

  Kevin nodded, then extended a hand. “I’ll bring her home.”

  CHAPTER FORTY-SIX

  KEVIN HEADED BACK to the house, but checked the Ford for keys before he went in. Jeff had left them in the ignition. Kevin got in and drove carefully toward the rutted path that led to Fineman’s Pond.

  As he drove, he wondered what his father had said to her. Had he used the information from Patrick to hammer a wedge between them? Had he told her he was not the wealthy man he’d pretended to be? Kevin had already admitted to that. That couldn’t be the problem. What could his old man have said?

  The scary thing was, Douglas Wake could have said anything, and it didn’t matter to him if it was true or not. He was ruthless. That was one of the qualities that had sent Kevin running clear across the country at eighteen. But Kevin was no longer a boy. He was a grown man, and he had grown in every way. Physically, his father no longer frightened him. Kevin knew if he had to, he could defeat his father in a fight. Not that he would ever want to fight the man. But Megan did not have the reassurance of physical superiority. She was still recovering from her accident. She had financial worries. What could his father have used against her?

  Whatever it was, Kevin would protect her. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing her. It was just too painful. He could not return to life before Megan. Looking back to those days, it felt like he had no heart, no soul, no joy. He got up every day and wished he was someone else. Since meeting her, he wanted to be himself, because that’s who she had fallen in love with. He was sure she had. He could feel it.

  Fifty feet from the cabin, he parked the Ford under the lean-to horse shelter he and Zach had built years before when they spent summers fishing at the pond. He pocketed the keys and headed quietly for the cabin.

  He started to enter unannounced, but caught himself and knocked softly.

  A moment later, Megan called, “Who is it?”

  Kevin wanted to barge in but she hadn’t said come in. He knocked again.

  A few seconds passed, and after what felt like an hour, the door opened.

  Megan’s blue eyes were red-rimmed and her nose was pink. She made a little sound when she saw Kevin, and then she tried to close the door.

  But he was fast. He blocked it with his boot.

  “Megan, please let me in.”

  “Your father made everything extremely clear,” she said. “I know I signed on to be your temporary bride, and it’s not your fault I let myself fal
l for you. But I thought you fell for me, too! I thought you really cared about me. Now I know the truth. You were just proving to your father that you can be as mean and thoughtless as he is!”

  “No, no! That’s not the truth, I swear.” Kevin stepped inside and pushed the cabin door shut behind him. “So, we guessed right. When Karla told us how upset you were, mother immediately thought my father had cornered you and said something to upset you.” He stepped toward her, but she backed away.

  “You told me up front that this was a job, a business deal,” she said. “You would pay my medical bills, and in return I would help you fulfill the obligations of the family trust. I was an idiot to pretend it was more than that.”

  “No, Megan, I’m the idiot. I fell for you hard. I couldn’t even sleep with you in Reno after we got married because I cared so much about you that I wanted you to love me before we actually touched each other. I wanted to make love to you, not have sex with you.”

  His words stopped her cold. “Do you mean that?” she whispered.

  “Yes,” he whispered back. He took another step forward. She was pressed against the wall of the cabin now and could retreat no further.

  “What did he say to you?”

  “He told me you were more like him than he ever suspected. He said you fooled me, just like he fooled your mother.”

  “That bastard!”

  “And he, he, he,” she stuttered, not sure about whether to share the rest.

  “Go on,” said Kevin gently.

  “He said he has proof you’re not fulfilling the requirements of the trust and he can prevent you from inheriting. He’s reported my medical bills to a collection agency! And if you’re as broke as I am, and I stay, then you’ll be burdened with those bills, too! So I was thinking the best thing I could do for you is leave. Get an annulment.”

  “No!”

  Kevin opened his arms, and Megan stepped into them.

  “You can’t leave me. And I won’t let you have an annulment. I love you, Megan. My father was lying. He was playing on your worst fears. Patrick Wong has been spying for him, and he told him about the prenup. You’ve never been in debt, so you don’t know how these things work. He was saying whatever it took to get you to run. I know enough about his business to know he can’t just make a phone call and put you on a collection agency list. Only the hospital could do that. And thanks to you, come Monday, I will be a very wealthy man. Even if his lawyers take our lawyers to court, he doesn’t have a leg to stand on. We were married in Reno!”

  Megan leaned back to look in his eyes. “I don’t think he knows that. His spy only caught up to us in Tahoe. He didn’t know about our stop at the courthouse.”

  “Well, that’s even better. He’ll show up tomorrow at the wedding expecting to gloat and hold it over my mother.”

  “Does she know about Reno?”

  “I’ve been trying to tell her. Even during our meeting with her legal team, those guys just keep talking. I still haven’t had a chance to let her know.”

  He took gentle hold of Megan’s arms. “Even if the worst happens, we stand a good chance in court. But it doesn’t matter. Rich or poor, I have to have you in my life. Please say you’ll stay.”

  “Oh, Kevin! I almost made a huge mistake!”

  He kissed her forehead, then her cheeks, then her chin. “No, I’m the one who made the mistake. Megan, my old man can have it all. I don’t care. I just want you.”

  “Oh, me, too!” She kissed him back, planting her lips across the bridge of his nose. Her breath was coming in quick little gasps, but she couldn’t stop talking. “I want you, too! I don’t care about the money. I’m a good waitress. I’ll get a job and start paying my medical bills, a little every month. They’ll just have to settle for that.”

  “I’ll help you. I promised I’d pay them, and we’re married. I’m your husband, and I’ll find a way. You won’t have to worry alone.”

  At last their lips found each other and speech was impossible. Megan surrendered to Kevin’s arms. With one hand, Kevin reached out and closed the curtains over the cabin’s single window.

  CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

  Friday, June 29

  MEGAN LAY BACK on the sheets and sighed with pleasure.

  “You all right?” Kevin lay beside her and traced one finger along her collar bone.

  “I am so relaxed, I can hardly talk.”

  “What’s that? You’re mumbling,” teased Kevin.

  Megan grinned. “Call me Mrs. Wake.”

  “Yep, we’re finally man and wife for real.”

  Megan thumped him gently with her hand. “I mean, literally. Say it out loud for me.”

  “Oh.” Kevin tried to wipe the afterglow off long enough say formally, “Mrs. Wake.”

  “Now say, Announcing Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Fineman Wake.”

  He brushed his lips against her bare shoulder and murmured, “Announcing Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Fineman Wake.”

  Megan giggled.

  “Now say, You’re so hot I could die.”

  Kevin laughed.

  “Hey, that’s not funny,” said Megan, forcing a pout. “Don’t you think I’m hot?”

  “Of course I do. I just think it’s funny that your first official act as my wedded and bedded wife is to put words in my mouth like a ventriloquist.”

  “Not like a ventriloquist,” objected Megan. “My lips are moving.” She pushed her lips toward him and move them from side to side.

  Kevin rolled onto his back and laughed again.

  Megan smiled. “Laughing is good. Not very romantic, but good.”

  “Don’t worry,” said Kevin. “It will get romantic again very soon.” This time when he laughed, it was a deep sexy rumble.

  Megan giggled. “I’m just so relaxed. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this mellow in my life.” She sighed and threw one arm over her head. The sheets on the bed were very expensive, and that meant high thread count, and that meant slippery. Megan had no idea she was so close to the edge of the bed. The momentum of her arm started a slide that neither of them realized would take her off the edge until she landed, thump! on the cabin floor.

  Kevin rushed to her aid. “Are you okay?”

  Megan came up stark naked and laughing.

  When it was clear she was okay, Kevin began laughing, too.

  At last, Megan crawled back up on the bed. “What time is it? Heck, what day is it?”

  They looked at each other and gasped.

  “Our wedding day!” they chorused.

  Kevin put a hand on her arm to keep her from bolting out of bed. “It’s only a ceremony.”

  “I know, but your mother! Your little brother! He’s wearing a suit for us, Kevin. That is huge.”

  Kevin looked miserable. “I was thinking more along the lines of my father.”

  Megan made a face. “I’m sure he’ll think of some way to ruin the day.”

  “Well, he won’t have that chance if we don’t show up, and think how pissed he’ll be about that.” Mischief gleamed in Kevin’s eyes.

  “No way, Mister Wake. Missus Wake,” she pointed at herself, “wants this wedding. I know it’s your mother’s party, and I didn’t care one way or another when we first met. But now, there’s Zach and Keegan and Karla, not to mention Cookie’s buffet! I’m hungry.”

  “Okay, okay, I guess we’re going to our wedding.” Kevin sounded resigned.

  Megan picked up a pillow and bopped him with it.

  They were laughing again, but Megan cut the pillow fight off. “There will be time for that tonight. We have to go! Your mother will be frantic.”

  “And imagine the look on good old dad’s face when we actually show up together.” The anticipation goaded him into action. “Okay, let’s go. Shower, clothes, and coffee. Then we’ll head back. Hey, let me check the car. Maybe Jeff left some food in it.” He grabbed his keys, pulled his boots on and scampered naked to the Ford.

  Alone for a moment, Megan sighed and clasped a pillow to he
r bare bosom. She buried her face in it. It smelled like Kevin. It smelled like love.

  A small twinge of regret threatened to mar the day. As a girl she daydreamed about sharing her wedding day with her mother. Six days ago she wasn’t even sure she wanted to tell her mother what she was doing. Now she wished she’d wired that first thousand dollars to Guatemala with instructions and a map of Colorado. Of course, she’d had no idea then that Kevin would turn out to be the man of her dreams. The course of their romance was anything but ordinary. Even so, it hurt to know her mom wouldn’t be there. But she would make it up to her somehow. And if her father even cared, she’d make it up to him, too.

  CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT

  AFTER A QUICK SHOWER, they dressed in a hurry, then took a decadent half hour to sip their coffee on the porch swing, watching the morning come alive. By eight o’clock they were on their way.

  In half an hour, they were within sight of the house. Kevin spotted Zach emerging from the stable and gave a whistle.

  Zach turned. When he spotted them, even from that distance they could see his smile. Zach lifted an arm in greeting, then headed back into the stable.

  A few moments later, Keegan emerged, spotted them, and began to run toward them. On his heels were Chunky and Creamy, barking and frolicking.

  “They’re here! They’re here!”

  Megan slid out of the Ford and ran to greet Keegan and the pups. She hugged Keegan tight.

  “I missed you, Megan” he said. “I was so afraid you were never coming back.” His eyes teared up.

  “Hey, hey, no tears today! It’s my wedding day. We’re going to have fun, okay?”

  “Okay.” He wiped his eyes and grinned. “Did you have breakfast?”

  “No, and I’m starving!”

  “Pancakes with peanut butter!”

  Megan let him go and he ran for the big house.

  Kevin slipped an arm around her. “You have the magic touch with Keegan.” He kissed her temple. “I love that about you.”

  “I’d better go let your mother know I’m still here.”