by Lacey Wolfe
Darcy had gone this far in this whole charade and since she was considering taking the job, she might as well see where she’d be living if she went through with this.
“Give me a minute to freshen up.” She pushed the plate of half-eaten food away and hurried to the restroom. Part of her couldn’t believe she was seriously considering doing this. Yanking open her purse, she dug out her phone and sent Allison a message.
Girl, you’ll never believe who I’m having dinner with. Steven McDonald. Yes, THE Steven McDonald from high school.
As she waited on Allison’s response, she applied a fresh layer of lipstick.
Allison: What? How?
Darcy: Once again, I’ll have to explain this later.
Allison: The hell you will! If you don’t tell me something, I’m calling.
Darcy: Steven needs a wife, and I might fill that position. I promise, I’ll call you when this evening is over.
Allison: Your ass better!
Darcy tossed the phone into her purse and headed back to the gorgeous man waiting for her at their table. She wasn’t sure what was going to happen, but she probably needed to finish that last beer before heading out. She was going to need liquid courage to make it through this, after all.
Chapter 3
Steven parked the truck outside the beginning of the apple orchard. He glanced at Darcy, trying to catch a vibe from her. They’d had a lot of flirtatious banter in the truck on the way over. She was a lot more talkative than he expected. In fact, she was a lot more fun. He’d kept an image of her being reserved all these years, but she wasn’t. Tonight he’d had more fun than he could remember having in a long time.
Opening his door, he got out of the truck and hurried over to open her door. She held the handle tightly as she stood. Steven couldn’t help but think that she might not have needed that third beer.
He shut her door and offered his arm.
“Such a gentleman.” She slid her hand through the crook of his elbow.
Something about her holding his arm seemed so right.
They began to stroll, each of them quiet for the time being. He could see she was taking in all the scenery. The orchard really was beautiful. His grandfather had done an amazing job, and he was sad to see him retiring. But the old man was stubborn and set in his ways, claiming he wouldn’t leave until Steven was settled down. While Steven was pretty certain his grandfather would retire regardless, a part of him also wasn’t sure. His grandfather’s persistent ways were part of the reason his father would never work for him.
They walked until they came to an opening on the fence.
“If we keep going this way, you can see the house.” Steven pointed ahead.
“Well, that is why you brought me here.” She giggled.
She squeezed his arm, holding him tight. Her fingers made light circles on his bicep, sending a wave of desire through him. Maybe she would be interested in seeing the bedroom they could share.
As they crossed the open lawn in front of the orchard, he tried to take in the house the way she would see it. It looked like a basic ranch-style house with tall trees growing all around it. The house was white with hunter green shutters, and there were several small flower beds around the porch. Looking at it now, Steven could see that it held the potential for the family his grandfather had always hoped Steven would have. He wondered if Darcy saw all of its potential, or if she only saw a plain house with flower beds that desperately needed to be weeded.
The front porch squeaked as they stepped up. He started to unlock the door when Darcy stopped him.
“Wait,” she said.
He looked at her. “Something wrong?”
“Take me around to the backyard first. It’s such a nice night that I’m not ready to go inside yet.”
He guided her off the porch and around to the back of the house, which was mostly wooded. A hammock sat between two trees, so he led her in that direction.
“This place is so cozy. It’s like a vacation spot.” She let go of his arm and lay back in the hammock, closing her eyes. “You might’ve me sold if you promise I can lay out here for hours at a time, lost in a book.”
He gulped, wondering if it would be too forward for him to climb into that hammock with her. “I think you probably could.”
She opened her eyes to meet his, and he held her gaze for a moment.
“Come on, hop in.” She scooted over.
He didn’t have to be told twice. Steven climbed in, being careful not to flip them. Their bodies touched instantly from the addition of his weight toward the center of the hammock. She curled into him so that they were facing each other, her face only inches from his. He ached to kiss her and didn’t have time to dwell on it because she beat him to it. Darcy gripped the back of his head and pressed her lips hard against his. She wasn’t holding back at all. Steven couldn’t believe they were actually kissing. She thrust her tongue into his mouth as Steven slid his hands along her neck and pulled her closer to him. Her hair surrounded him, touching his face and feeling as soft as he’d expected.
“You taste so good,” he said.
Her lips curled into a smirk. “I can’t believe I’m in a hammock with Steven McDonald.”
He couldn’t help but feel a little flattered. “This is a dream come true for me too.” He kissed her again to silence her laughter. He rubbed his hands up and down her velvet-smooth arms. His erection grew and pressed into his zipper. As the kiss became more passionate, he knew he had to stop. “We really should stop before we get too carried away.”
“You kiss so good though. I don’t want to stop,” she pleaded.
Steven groaned. “It’s tempting, but you’ve had a few drinks. I want to make sure you’re doing this because you really want to.”
She threw her head back and laughed. He loved the way her back arched as she let out a genuine full chuckle.
“Believe me, I want to. I fantasized about you for so long. In fact, why don’t you pinch me? I’m worried all this might be a dream.”
“No, not a dream. This is real.” He studied her lips and couldn’t fight the urge any longer. He had to taste once more tonight.
So he did, and she yanked him to her. Her legs spread, inviting him to nestle between them. When their tongues met, she let out a moan of approval. One of his hands crept down to the edge of her dress and his fingers lingered on her thigh, teasing. In response, she opened her legs more, obviously urging him to go further.
“Touch me,” she whispered.
It was taking everything in him to resist her. But he kept reminding himself that she had drunk alcohol and she would feel much different tomorrow—maybe. And he wanted the intimacy that could happen between them not to be induced from alcohol.
Darcy wiggled under him, and a moan escaped his lips when her knee brushed against his erection. He had to get off of her. As he rolled to his side, she suddenly pressed her hands into his shoulders, pushing him back as though she was about to climb onto of him. Before he knew what was happening, they found themselves crashing to the ground.
Darcy landed on top of him and instantly started to laugh.
“Perhaps fooling around in a hammock wasn’t such a good idea.” She climbed off him and propped herself up on an elbow, gazing down at him.
“I think you’re right.” He placed his hands behind his head. Moving at the moment wasn’t an option. “My back is going to kill me tomorrow.”
“Want me to rub it for you?”
More touching was out of the question. He had already let things go too far in the hammock. Which was probably why they were now on the ground.
“I should get you home. I’ll show you the house another day. It’s been vacant for a while, so maybe I should air it out first.”
“My car is at the restaurant though.”
That was a good thing. Being tipsy, she didn’t need to be driving. “I can have it delivered to your apartment. Just give me the key when I drop you off at your home.”
&
nbsp; “So, did I get the job?” she asked.
He reached out and pushed a strand of hair behind her ears. “It’s yours if you want it, but I think you should sleep on it. I’m asking quite a bit from you. Take some time to think about it. I’ll be in touch.”
Darcy yawned and he could tell she was ready to go to sleep. He stood up and then held his hand out to her. Pulling her up, he kept her hand in his as they made their way back to his truck. Tonight had been much better than he thought it would be.
Chapter 4
The next morning, Darcy was lounging on her couch, drinking coffee and waiting on Allison to come over. Her ugly sedan was there, as Steven had promised. She was embarrassed that he’d seen her car, especially after going for a ride in his top-of-the-line truck.
If they saw one another again, she’d have to tell him about the falling-out with her parents. He most likely left there last night very confused to see where she had been living. But Darcy had wanted to make something of herself and use the degree she’d worked hard on. Her parents expected her to follow in her mom’s footsteps. It was fine that her mom enjoyed being a housewife and planning social events. Thank God for women like her mom, but that wasn’t Darcy. She went her own path and had opened her own restaurant. She’d managed to keep it open for a few years before she was so underwater that she had to close down. A master’s degree in business didn’t mean you would succeed. After her business went under, she looked for jobs that would pay good, but in this economy she hadn’t had any luck. For every job, there were numerous applicants. And each place told her the same thing—she was over-qualified.
Pretending to marry Steven wasn’t a job she could put on her resume. The only plus to it would be that she could wait until the right job came around. And in the meantime, she’d get a killer savings account going. She liked to believe money wasn’t everything, but she was beginning to see how wrong she was. Her mother had always called her their hippy child, because she’d rebelled against everything.
A door slammed out front and Darcy checked to see who it was. Allison was there, carrying a rectangular box that Darcy assumed contained doughnuts. After she let her friend in, she took the box from Allison and led her into the living room. “I’m starving.”
“Yeah, you look like you’ve lost some weight.”
“Not like I couldn’t have used it.”
Allison rolled her eyes. “Anyway, I’m ready for the dish on last night. And don’t you dare half-ass the story. Start from the beginning.”
Darcy took a bite of a doughnut and handed the newspaper to her friend. Allison gave her a quizzical look before she finally took the paper. The moment she laughed Darcy knew she’d found the ad.
“You’ve got to be kidding. This is not from Steven McDonald.”
“Shocking, I know.”
Allison grabbed a pastry from the box. “Dish. I want to know how in the world this happened. Don’t leave anything out.”
Darcy did her best to give her friend each and every detail. From seeing the ad, to answering it, and all the way to where she’d made a fool of herself begging the man to take her.
“You kissed him?” Allison’s mouth was wide open.
“It was hot.”
“So, are you going to be his hired wife, fiancée, or whatever?”
Darcy shrugged. “I’ve been thinking about it.”
“Your mom would flip! But you’d be exactly what she wanted you to be—a socialite housewife.”
“Yes, but I think I could do it, temporarily, until I save up enough money to open another restaurant.”
“You want to do that again? You failed last time.”
Darcy groaned. “Don’t remind me, please. It was the location. I had limited funds and my credit was shallow at the time, so I didn’t get the best loan. And since it wasn’t what my parents wanted for me, they wouldn’t help. But enough about them. Just imagine, if I do this charade with Steven for a year, I’d have a good amount saved.”
Allison crossed her arms and leaned back into the cushion. “At least you get to look at Steven every day.”
Darcy grinned. “You’ve got that right. Then again, he might not offer me the job after I begged him to take me last night. Which, I should add, he was quite the gentleman about and refused to take advantage of me.” Was that a good thing? “Perhaps he’s not attracted to me, and that’s why it would work. It would never get messy.”
“Not attracted to you? Oh, please.”
“I don’t compare to the women he’s used to dating.”
“You’re right, you don’t. You’re a natural beauty, and I bet when they take off their eight layers of makeup, they are anything but pretty.”
Allison had been her best friend since childhood and there was a reason. She always knew how to make Darcy feel better. Every girl needed a friend like her.
“Is he gonna call you?”
“I assume. I kinda passed out on the ride back.”
“Well, as soon as you know the details, let me know. I’ll get the gossip started.”
“Oh, I’m sure my mom will be right there with you.”
Darcy grabbed another doughnut and took a bite. She briefly remembered Steven telling her to sleep on it to make sure this was what she wanted. One minute she was positive she would and the next she decided against it. Maybe by the evening she would know.
* * * *
Steven shut the door to his office. He’d just finished up a meeting with his grandfather. The old man was losing it, Steven was positive. He made no sense and demands Steven didn’t understand.
It was then he’d let something slip he never should have. After all, Darcy hadn’t agreed yet. He’d told his grandfather he’d been seeing Darcy White and he was going to pop the question. His grandfather knew just who the Whites were since Darcy’s father was a hotshot lawyer. This was going to get out before he even had a chance to email her. In fact, her parents had probably already heard and Darcy was most likely getting a phone call she wasn’t expecting—if her family spoke to her. Steven still didn’t know exactly what was going on with that situation. But he was sure that before long he would know.
Steven shook the mouse so his computer would wake. He then sat down to compose Darcy a message. If luck was with him, which he was positive it wasn’t, she’d get the email before the shit hit the fan.
Steven was halfway through composing his message when his phone rang. He answered it, and his receptionist told him Mr. White was on the line. Crap!
“This is Steven McDonald. How can I help you, sir?”
“Steven, I just heard the news from your grandfather. I had to call and see if it was true since our daughter doesn’t speak to us any longer.”
Maybe by the end of this phone call he would know the story, he just had to play along. Darcy was going to kill him. “Yes, sir, it’s true.”
“Brenda and I are old-fashioned. Were you planning on calling us to ask our blessing?”
“It crossed my mind, but I wasn’t sure with the state of y’all’s relationship.”
Mr. White groaned loudly. “Have you talked any sense into her yet?”
Give me more than that. “She’s pretty stubborn.”
“She gets that from me. But following in my or her mother’s footsteps wasn’t an option for our dear daughter. So, I was thinking, we need to have dinner soon. Your family and ours to discuss the wedding. Please, however, tell my daughter that before we give our blessing, I want her to come see us.”
Oh God, Darcy was going to slaughter him. “Yes, sir.”
“Call me Derek. After all, we might be family soon.”
“Okay, Derek. Well, I’ll have Darcy get a hold of you soon. I’m sure she’ll be happy to oblige.”
Derek laughed. “Doubtful. It’s been over a year since she spoke to us.” He disconnected the call.
Steven looked back at the email he’d been composing. He needed to tell her about this mess in person, so when she passed out, he could catch her.
* * * *
Darcy grabbed the few bags of groceries from her trunk before slamming it shut. She made her way down the breezeway to her apartment. She set the bags down and opened her purse to dig out her keys. As she was about to place the key in the lock, she saw an envelope jammed in the door. Great, she had a feeling she knew what that was.
Taking the envelope, she unlocked the door and opened it. She picked up the groceries, and went inside. Dropping the bags on the table, she opened the envelope. As she’d expected, it was a warning from her landlord. Rent had been due today and Darcy didn’t have it. Nor was she going to. She’d call them in the morning and apologize. Maybe she could borrow the money. Or maybe she should take the job as Steven’s fiancée.
Darcy put the envelope down. She was going to cook something and hopefully enjoy the evening, somehow. Her cellphone began to ring. She pulled it from her purse, flipped it over, and then dropped it.
Her mom was calling.
Chapter 5
Why in the world was her mother calling? When Darcy walked out of her parents’ house a year ago, they made it clear she was cut off and it was up to her to contact them when she was ready to admit defeat. So far, she hadn’t been ready—she was close though.
Maybe someone was hurt or worse, passed away. She picked her phone up off the table from where she’d dropped it. After unlocking the screen, she was about to call back when someone knocked on her door. Setting the phone down, she went to see who it was. God, please don’t be the landlord. She opened the door and saw Steven standing there, with flowers in hand.
“Hi,” she said.
“Can I come in?”
“Um.” Did she really want him to see her place?
“I need to talk to you. It’s important.”