“Well,” he said, eyes widening a little as he led his horse around the open barn door’s edge, “I gotta say, this was not what I was expecting to find when I got here. Looks like you started the party without me.”
“Right,” she said, smiling and hoping she didn’t seem as nervous as she felt, “about that. There’s just one last thing we need to talk about. A sort of a hiccup, if you will.”
* * *
Jonah knew there was a problem the second he caught a good look at Virginia’s face. She was trying hard to hide her distress and truthfully, was doing a pretty damn good job. He might have believed everything was fine if she hadn’t been holding so tightly to the neck of her bottle of hooch with her left hand. Her left hand, from which her Easter egg-sized engagement rock was now conspicuously missing.
“A hiccup, huh? What kind of hiccup might that be?” he asked slowly, watching her face carefully all the while. She sighed, took a sip of the bubbly right from the bottle, and then looked at him earnestly.
“Do you remember my mentioning how I came into the money I was going to pay you for this barn?”
“Yeah, I remember a little something about that. Money your grandmother is giving you as a wedding present.”
“Right. Only, as it turns out I’m not getting married anymore, which means we have a problem.”
Jonah hated himself a little for the lurch of disappointment in his stomach. He had known this whole thing was too good to be true from the start. Why he’d gone ahead and put down a deposit on those damn studs was beyond him—a deposit he’d lose with nothing to show for it when he couldn’t come up with the rest of the money. Being out the money was bad enough, but the loss of business was worse. Like a fool, he’d gone ahead and lined up work with a new business interested in what the studs would bring to the table. No studs, no new business, and a line of bad word of mouth as the cherry on top. This was going to put him in a tight spot, and it was his own damn fault.
“Shit,” he groaned, trying not to let himself take his anger out on her. It wasn’t exactly her fault, and if she was dealing with a marriage failed before it ever started, she was probably hurting a hell of a lot worse than him.
“I know,” she agreed, blushing a little, “it’s not ideal. But there’s a still a chance to make things right. I’ve come up with a plan, if you want to hear it.”
“Shoot, if you’ve got something up your sleeve, I’m all ears. Nothing to lose now, right?”
“Right. Now, please don’t rush to judgment on this. Your first instinct might be to say no, but if you hear me out, I think you might be willing to go along with this.”
“Needs that kind of a disclaimer, does it?” he asked, intrigued despite himself.
“It’s a little unorthodox, so yeah, I guess it does,” she said, laughing a little nervously. If anything, that only piqued his interest further.
“Why don’t you just go ahead and say it, sugar? Put us both out of our misery.”
“I was thinking...I was thinking you could be the one to marry me.”
“I’m sorry,” he laughed, “but are you out of your ever-loving mind?”
“No, actually, I’m not. It’s not a romantic proposition, surely you must know that. It would be purely business. My grandmother’s will doesn’t specify the identity of the man I marry. As soon as we tie the knot, I’ll get all of the money I was expecting and everything will go on exactly as we planned.”
“Right, except we’ll be married,” Jonah pointed out. It was lunacy, this plan of hers, which was why it was so disconcerting that it made a weird sort of sense. Virginia seemed to know that he was actually considering the idea, and her nervous expression became tentatively hopeful. She stood, holding the bottle of champagne out for him to take, but for the moment he held off.
“We will be, but it will be a marriage of convenience. Your life will barely have to change. Nearly everything can stay just as it is—but better, because you’ll have that money. All I want is to be able to live my own life, and right now that means starting my own business. I can tell that’s what you want, too.”
“Doesn’t take a genius to see that much,” he put in for his two cents.
“And that’s exactly what you would be getting,” she went on, totally undeterred. “It would be business; no strings attached. After a reasonable amount of time we’ll get divorced, quietly, so it doesn’t make any waves with my wedding business.”
“Don’t you think people will get suspicious?” Jonah asked. The question alone showed more interest than he was comfortable with, but he couldn’t help it; the idea had him hooked.
“That’s true, and it brings me to my next point,” she said matter-of-factly.
“Your next point, huh? You’ve got a genuine business plan here, don’t you?”
“I wouldn’t come to you with anything less,” she answered without missing a beat, “and it’s not anything you don’t already know. Like you said, people would notice if we got married and then divorced the very next week or something. Of course, when it comes to the money, it won’t make a difference. Granny never said I had to stay married in order to inherit. But if we’re both running businesses in this town, we need people to see us as dependable, reliable. Marrying on a whim and divorcing in a hurry would hurt both our reputations.”
“We could just tell people the truth,” he suggested.
“And have the whole town speculating about how much I paid you to marry me? Not on your life. No, the marriage will have to look real from the outside. We’ll have to put on a show and we’ll have to live together, but I don’t think that has to be a bad thing.”
“Oh no?” Jonah countered, “You don’t think faking a relationship twenty-four-seven will be that bad?”
“Nope,” she shrugged, “I don’t. You never know. We might have some fun.”
It was a crossroads and he knew it. He didn’t want to be tied down, not to anyone, and getting himself into a partnership with Virginia would do exactly that. He’d agreed to the sale of the barn in the first place because he’d been thinking that her business, even if it was run on his property, would be entirely her concern. They wouldn’t work together, they wouldn’t depend on each other, and they wouldn’t have to worry about letting each other down. It had seemed like the perfect setup to him. But now that plan was out the window, and this new idea seemed to be their only shot at fulfilling their dreams.
At the end of the day, though, he needed money for what he wanted, and Virginia’s proposition was the best shot he had for that. Also, although he didn’t love admitting it to himself, he couldn’t help being intrigued by her mention of having some fun. He cleared his throat and pulled the cowboy hat off his head before sticking his hand out in her direction.
“You’re in?” she squealed, sliding her hand into his and shaking it vigorously.
“I’m in, but I don’t want a handshake, woman. I want that damned bottle. If we’re going to fake a marriage, I’m going to need a drink.”
3
“Whoa. Okay, is that you, or is it the barn? Please tell me it’s the barn, Jonah, or we’re going to have a real problem on our hands.”
“Hey, Katie,” Jonah mumbled over his shoulder to his brother’s wife, putting down his shovel and straightening up with a groan. He’d gotten up with the sun just like he did every day, but today he was dragging in a big way. After splitting the bottle of fancy champagne with Virginia and signing away his soul, he’d headed home and kept right on drinking. Now his head was buzzing with just a little bit too much whiskey, and his mouth still tasted stale, despite the morning’s Listerine.
“Hi yourself,” she said with a wry smile, “and may I just say, you look like hell.”
“Gee, thanks. Good to see you, too, sis.”
“Sister-in-law,” she corrected, laughing merrily and rebalancing the tray she was carrying, “which means I can say all of the mean things I want. Seriously, though, what’s going on with you? You look like you’re hu
rting some.”
“Truth time?” he smiled painfully, “I am.”
“Ha! I totally knew it. And I want to talk about it, too, and the text you sent Ian last night.”
“Shit. I sent you guys a text?” Jonah asked, adding mortification on top of the queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.
“Oh, brother of mine, did you ever. And I want to talk about all of it, but first can we please get out of this barn? Like, yesterday? It stinks to high heaven in here!”
“It doesn’t stink, Katie. That’s just the smell of animals. Totally normal.”
“Yeah? Well I for one much prefer the smell of a kitchen full of cooking food.”
Jonah was about to tell her not to be so sensitive but on second thought, kept his mouth shut. Normally, he liked the smell of the barn—but with the hangover he was sporting, getting out of the barn didn’t seem like a bad idea. Instead of disagreeing with her, he grimaced and nodded his head.
“Now that you mention it, I’d have to agree. Come on, give me that tray. What have you got there, anyway?”
“Breakfast. I figured you might need something greasy to soak up the booze,” she said with a smirk. He rolled his eyes, but he was grateful for the gesture. A plate of eggs and bacon didn’t sound half bad with the way he was feeling. Then again, nothing Katie made ever sounded bad—the woman was an amazing cook.
“When you’re right, you’re right. I’m not mad at you for this, I can tell you that much.”
Jonah hunkered down next to the barn, leaning his back gratefully against the side. He was only twenty-nine, by most standards still young, but his partying days were well behind him. He wasn’t used to getting up early and working off a hangover anymore, and it was something he sure didn’t miss.
“Good?” Katie asked, sitting beside him and smiling as he dug into the breakfast.
“Damn good,” he agreed. “Is it one of those healthy things you like to cook?”
“Of course it is,” she laughed, “just like everything else I cook. It’s my thing. Which, incidentally, is not what I came here to talk about. I want to talk about you and that text.”
“Right. Maybe want to refresh my memory on what it said? Some things from last night are a little hazy.”
“I would be glad to. Assuming I got this right, you’re planning on getting married?”
“Ah. Yeah, I shouldn’t have sent that,” Jonah answered, cursing himself inside his head. Katie and Ian were going to have to find out about his plans, there was no way around that. He didn’t intend to lie to his brother, and he had grown very fond of Katie and had no desire to lie to her, either. Still, he could think of plenty of better ways of breaking the news to them than over a stupid drunk text.
“I don’t think the problem is that you sent the message, honey, I think the problem is the plan itself,” Katie answered. Her voice was gentle, there was that, at least. She wasn’t trying to make him feel like a fool or anything. Then again, she didn’t need to. He was doing just fine on that front on his own.
“I don’t know how much the message said, Katie, but I didn’t meet a girl yesterday and suddenly lose my mind and decide to get hitched. It’s not a real wedding.”
“You mentioned that part. Believe it or not, that’s one of my biggest concerns.”
“Hold on, you’d rather it be real?”
“Honestly? Yeah, I think I would,” she said, her voice small and a little sad. Jonah glanced at her between forkfuls of eggs and then looked away quickly. Emotions weren’t his strong point. He could tell she was upset, but he wasn’t sure why and had no idea what to say to make things better. Christ, but women would never make sense to him, not as long as he lived. Even one he liked as well as Katie occasionally did things that left him totally flummoxed.
“Katie—” he started, woefully unsure of what he was going to say next.
“Look, I’m not trying to act like a freak, here. All I’m trying to say is that I’ve done what you’re doing.”
“Is there something I need to know about you and Ian?” Jonah cracked, a half-hearted attempt at lightening the mood. Katie ignored it.
“Jonah, I’m pretty sure there are few people on this Earth who are more aware of how badly it can blow up in your face to live a lie.”
“Katie—” Jonah immediately felt guilty for the joke.
“No, just let me say it. I did my best to live a lie when my cooking blog took off. It was going so well, and I just wanted to keep my fans happy, so I kept giving them what I thought they wanted—even if it meant lying and plagiarizing recipes. I had my entire life wrapped up in it, for God’s sake. Like, every single part of it. When the truth came to light, and it always does, it meant my whole world imploded. I lost everything that I’d thought was important—my career, my fans, my reputation. It was brutal, trying to make something good for myself again after that. I don’t even have the words to explain it to you.” She just stared at him when she was done, forcing him to take in the full weight of what she was saying. And he felt it, all right, whether he wanted to or not.
“Shit, I’m sorry, Katie.”
“I’m not trying to make you feel sorry for me,” she said, shaking her head with a small smile, “I don’t want that, I promise you. I just want you to avoid the same thing happening to you. Trying to be something you’re not can ruin you. It almost did me.”
“I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you looking after me, but I just don’t see your situation and mine as the same thing at all.”
“No? How is it different?” she asked, this time with just the faintest hint of a challenge in her voice.
“Well, your deal was public for real—you were a celebrity, with tons of people watching you. This marriage with Virginia, it’s not really public. It’s just in our little town. I don’t feel like that’s enough to destroy anybody. This is just a business move, nothing less, nothing more.”
“I don’t agree,” she countered, “because it’s still a relationship. That’s the funny thing about relationships. Whether they’re in business or personal, by their very nature they’re intimate. I mean, honestly, Jonah, are you really ready to work that closely with someone?”
That hit him at a vulnerable spot. He truly was worried about ending up in a position where he was depending too much on anyone. Life had taught him that it was always better to stand on his own. But that shouldn’t be a problem here…right?
“We won’t be working closely. She gets her space and use of the land and I get the money for the studs I’m looking to buy. There’s not a lot of interaction there, right?”
“Right,” Katie snorted, picking a strip of bacon off his plate, “because there’s no interaction expected from a couple running a freaking wedding business. I don’t know about you, but I don’t see how a business centered around weddings is going to survive without the couple at the center of it being a love match. That’s what people are going to expect to see.”
That made Jonah stop and think for a minute, which was just about the last thing he felt like doing. Like it or not, Katie had a point. Not about the business—no one would expect a rough-edged cowboy like him to be part of the business. That would be Virginia’s show. But if she was going to be selling weddings, everyone would expect her own marriage to be beyond reproach. People were going to be watching them, some of them probably watching pretty closely, too. It wasn’t like he was going to be able to just walk right past her and ignore her like she wasn’t there. They’d already discussed the fact that they would have to be living underneath the same roof. So then maybe it wouldn’t be as cut and dry as he’d let himself believe the night before. Still, that didn’t have to mean it wasn’t going to work.
“I’ll just have to fake it, then,” he finally said.
“What, like a fake it ‘til you make it kind of a thing?” Katie asked, a sly little smile on her face.
“Nope, nothing like that. I’m talking a fake it until we’ve faked it for long enough and then get a
quiet divorce. Fake it ‘til the time for faking is done.”
“Okay, right. Let’s say the two of you get out of that nutty plan unscathed.”
“Good,” Jonah laughed uncomfortably, “let’s do that.”
“Even after the divorce, you and Virginia are still going to be tied to each other,” Katie pointed out with persistence that was starting to border on annoying, “you guys are going to be stuck with each other for the duration if she’s going to have a business on your land.
Jonah opened his mouth, then closed it right back up again. She had a point, and this one was something he couldn’t think up a counterargument for. Because he was tired and hungover, he reminded himself, and because the idea still needed time to marinate. In the end, he didn’t have to come up with an answer right there on the spot, not for her and not for himself. Some things just needed to be dealt with at a later date, and he was officially filing this in the category of one of those things.
4
“Shoot! Shoot, shoot, shoot!”
Virginia muttered the word to herself over and over again like a mantra under her breath, ignoring the sideways glances she got as she hurried up the courthouse steps. This building was considerably larger than the courthouse in their hometown, and her heart was already beating out of her chest when she thought about how she was going to find where she was supposed to be once she got inside. She may have left home for the city as soon as she could get out, but old habits died hard.
She muttered to herself again, louder this time, when she got to the top of the steps and then stopped with her hand pressed to her side. Taking the stairs two at a time and in her heels had given her a stitch in her side. It was only going to make her later, which she hated, but she couldn’t help admiring the building while she waited impatiently for her body to calm down.
The Cowboy’s Contract Marriage: Grant Brothers Series Book Two Page 2