by Lynda Chance
But what else could he possibly want with her? Realistically, she knew her teasing comment couldn’t be it. Could it?
She swallowed hard and answered the woman on the other line. “Yes, ma’am. When would be convenient?”
“Would now be too much trouble?”
“Now?”
“If you can’t get away, I’ll relay the message to Mr. Bennett, and we can set up a better time.”
Jenna thought frantically. She could go now, she just didn’t want to. She was scared to go. Whatever he wanted, it couldn’t be good.
Apprehension tightened her stomach into knots of stress. One thing she knew for sure, she didn’t want to wait. Today was Friday. There was no way she wanted to wait until Monday to find out what this was all about. The waiting would kill her. She would stress out so much it would make her ill.
“I can come now. Where, please?”
“Executive corridor, fifth door on your right. See you in a minute.”
Jenna was left holding the receiver when the other woman hung up.
Nerves were eating her alive, and she quickly stood to her feet, moving toward mahogany row. She attempted to give herself a pep talk. It was best to get this over with. It was probably nothing, just some minor little glitch.
She walked quickly down the corridor until she came to the fifth door on the right. It stood open, and she peeked in and saw a slender woman of about fifty manning the desk outside another office. Jenna tapped lightly, and when the woman looked up and smiled, she walked inside.
“Miss Hardin, Mr. Bennett is expecting you. This way please.” The older woman stood, and swiftly walked across the carpeted room and knocked briefly. Jenna heard a harsh bark to enter from the inside, and the woman opened the door.
“Jenna Hardin to see you, sir.” She smiled at Jenna and stepped back for her to enter.
Chapter Three
When Jenna entered the room, two things happened simultaneously. The secretary closed the door with a firm click, and Jenna looked up and saw the man behind the desk. She heard the door shut her in at the same time she recognized the blistering scowl directed at her. Dear God, she was about to get fired. Her face blanched white, and she froze in the act of moving into the room.
David saw the fear hit the girl full force at the same time as an uncomfortable arrow of arousal hit him in the groin. Damn it! He needed to keep this professional. He didn’t need a goddamn boner fucking with his brain right now.
His eyes wandered up and down her length as he focused on what it was about her that kept screwing with his head. And his body. She was only of medium height, and she wasn’t reed thin like so many of the women he dated. This girl was full of curves. He figured she probably hated the fifteen or so extra pounds that clung to her frame. But, Jesus Christ, he didn’t. She was curvy, no question about it. Her tits were large and full and bouncy, and his fingers itched to sink into her hips and hold her as he slid between her thighs. He knew the ride would be a soft one. He’d fantasized about it more than a few times. He fought to bring his brain back into order and focused on the strained look in her eyes. “Sit down.” The arousal hardened his vocal chords and he grimaced when he heard the bark in his voice and saw her jerk in reaction.
Jenna stumbled to a chair in front of his desk, and collapsed into it. Her legs had barely held her up they were shaking so violently. Her hands gripped the arms of the chair and she couldn’t meet his eyes. She focused on the gold pen on the desk in front of him and tried to slow her breathing.
“I’m David Bennett.” His announcement was unnecessary and blanched any remaining color from her face as she tried to respond.
“Y-yes, sir.” Her voice shook as she lifted her face to his and tried to hold his eyes with hers. He wasn’t smiling, and his face was harsh and almost satanic, except for those dark, liquid filled eyes that held a beauty and depth that swallowed her whole. He was probably mid-thirties, she remembered how tall he was, and his shoulders filled out his dress shirt in a way that had her breath catching again. Really, Jenna? You’re about to get fired and you’re thinking about his shoulders?
The jacket of his suit was casually tossed on the couch a few feet away, and he had loosened his tie already and rolled up his sleeves to reveal thick wrists and muscled forearms glistening with dark hair. His face wore what looked to be a perpetual scowl, and try as she might, Jenna’s eyes dropped away from his.
“You overheard a private conversation, Miss Hardin.” His voice blasted her, and she nodded slightly in acknowledgment. “I guess I don’t need to tell you to keep it to yourself?”
Jenna knew he was waiting for her to respond, but she was too relieved by his opening gambit to speak yet. She had prayed this had nothing to do with her finances, and everything to do with making sure she didn’t repeat what she had inadvertently heard. “I h-haven’t told anyone. I won’t.”
“Thank you.” He picked up the pen and tapped it on the desk and Jenna sat still without saying a word while he continued to watch her with those penetrating eyes. Finally, he spoke again. “What you heard was accurate. I need a wife.”
He stopped speaking and Jenna knew she needed to say something, anything. She took a deep breath and reminded herself if she played this right she could be back at her desk inside of five minutes. “Why—why do you need a wife?” She was curious, but the relief she felt was too new to wonder much about his reasons and this strange conversation they were having. She looked back into his dark eyes and felt that damn impetuosity that always got her in trouble rearing its silly head. “Tired of doing your own laundry?”
He didn’t even crack a smile and a scary premonition slinked through her system.
He continued to watch her until finally he spoke. “I need a wife for stability. To solidify a persona of family values, to imply a conservative bent that people might otherwise miss if they are on the outside of my life looking in.” He punched the words out, then questioned softly, “Know anyone that could help me out with that?”
This guy needed help finding a wife? That in itself was impossible to believe. Her blood pulsed quickly through her veins as her mouth went dry and speech became almost impossible. Please don’t let this go where she thought it was going.
She tried to calm her nerves so she could answer his question and get the hell out. “I’m afraid not. I’m new to Cincinnati. I don’t have many girlfriends here yet.” She began to stand. She needed out of this room before he said anymore. “I’m sorry I can’t help you—”
“Sit down.” The demand was sharp.
She sat, her tummy clenching and the butterflies churning.
He continued to tap the pen on his desk as he contemplated her. “What about you?” Tap, tap, tap. “Did you mean what you said in the break room?” Tap, tap, tap. “You want to apply for the job?”
Jenna’s eyes closed briefly and her face lost all color as she was immediately swamped with the same distress she felt every time she found his eyes on hers. But now it was magnified a hundred fold. She sat as still and silent as a woodland creature trying to remain camouflaged from a predator.
His posture straightened as he began laying out his requirements. “I need an arrangement more than a marriage. A business partnership, if you will. Somebody that will agree to marry me for a short period of time. I’m not looking for a love affair, or happily ever after. I just need a marriage façade, and I’d be happy to pay for it.”
Bells started clanging in her brain and nerves tightened her stomach into twists of apprehension so thick it threatened to make her hysteria rise. He seemed perfectly serious and she didn’t want to offend him in any way, shape, or form. Marry him? No way. He was off his rocker. She silently castigated herself for this. This was her own fault she was sitting here. If she had only kept her damn mouth closed. But it was too late to look back and she needed to handle this carefully and diplomatically. This job was the only thing that stood between Jenna and the bread line. Her parents were far away and strugglin
g to make it themselves. She searched his eyes for a hidden motive and tried to answer him without causing offense. “Thank you, n-no. I don’t—”
“Do you have a boyfriend?” David waited for her answer with hooded eyes, his mind already clicking ahead to getting rid of an encumbrance that had his teeth grinding.
“No. It’s just that I don’t really think—”
“So, there’s nothing stopping you from considering it? No boyfriend and your family lives in Texas, right? They’d never even have to know. Do they come here often?” He was glad she hadn’t jumped at the chance right away. A mercenary bitch wasn’t what he was looking for, and his legal team would throw a fucking fit, no matter what kind of spin Craig put in front of them.
Jenna stiffened. He knew her background. She was sidetracked by that question and had to think to answer it. “No, they don’t have a lot of extra money for plane tickets. It was—it was really nice of you to consider me, I’m s-sorry if I gave you the wrong impression the other day. I was joking, I didn’t think you were serious about it.” She stopped rambling and the silence in the room became deafening. She tried again. “I thought it was a joke and I was only kidding.”
She waited while he studied her.
“Do you have debt, Jenna?”
A cold, sick feeling of dread slipped down her spine. What did he know?
“Why do you ask?”
“A lot of young people your age have debt, need money. I can help you out with that. I’m not expecting you to do this favor for me for free.”
She hesitated, then slowly answered him. “I have a small amount of debt.” Her eyes watched him, watching her, and guilt washed through her at the white lie. Then she continued. “But this is more than just a favor.” Her voice remained soft and gentle.
His eyes searched hers. “Look, we need to talk privately about this some more. We can’t do that here. I’ll pick you up at seven, we’ll have some dinner and continue this conversation.”
He was already looking down at the thin gold watch strapped to his wrist and pushing his chair back.
Jenna knew she was being dismissed, but didn’t want to meet him tonight. She came to her feet and stood next to the chair. “I don’t want to marry anybody. There’s no way I can—”
He came around his desk and advanced on her. He took her chin in his hand and casually threw out a bomb. “How about a hundred grand? Will that help sway your decision?”
Jenna hung in silence, shocked at the feel of his rough palm holding her face up to his. Her heart tripped out of time from the effect of his hard body so close to hers and her vocal chords wouldn’t function. His heady scent hit her nostrils. Masculinity radiated from him, and she wasn’t immune to it. Far from it. Her breathing fractured and she bit her bottom lip as his thumb grazed slowly across her cheek.
In the back of her mind, the amount of money he was offering was staggering.
David felt the currents of awareness between them, her soft skin silky against his fingers. As shock held her immobile, the throbbing in his groin intensified as her scent went to his head and he found himself sweetening the deal, extending the length of the commitment he had originally planned. “A hundred grand a year. I need two years, so two-hundred thousand dollars.”
Jenna shook the cobwebs from her mind. She could pay off all her debt with that amount of money. Then she could concentrate on getting a better job, somewhere she could use her education. She could at least listen to what he had to say, right?
“Just dinner? I’m not agreeing to anything yet.” She managed to pull away from him and with jerky movements turned toward the door. She stopped, looked back at him with an expression that conveyed that she didn’t know what the hell she was getting into.
****
That night, David had one thought only. Getting her to agree. He wanted her to agree to his plan, and get the marriage underway as quickly as possible. He had a vague idea of hustling her to Vegas for a quick ceremony.
At seven o’clock, she was waiting for him on the sidewalk of an old brownstone where she rented the basement from an older couple.
He pulled up to the curb and without giving him a chance to get out, she slid in the vehicle. She avoided his eyes and began to fasten her seatbelt.
Jenna hadn’t known what to wear, so she had opted for the middle ground, dress slacks with peep-toed pumps and a red sweater. Fall was definitely in the air, and she knew it would be chilly tonight.
She had been having nothing but second thoughts about this. They weren’t really second thoughts, because he had railroaded her into this dinner meeting. That was the only way she could think of this outing, because it certainly wasn’t a date. Her aim tonight was to make him see reason, and have some really nice food for a change. Counting every penny sucked, and it was a rare treat to get to have a nice restaurant meal. She just hoped her nerves would allow her to eat.
She softly cleared her throat and began to try to make him see reason. “Mr. Bennett—”
“David. My name’s David.”
“Okay. David.” She lost her train of thought as she glanced his way. His eyes were on the road, and she watched him silently. His profile was rugged, his hair badly in need of a trim. All at once it hit her exactly what her co-workers saw in him. She had a moment to study him, without his intense gaze focused solely on her. That predatory attention that usually had her so flustered and disturbed was not focused on her at the moment, and she had a chance to observe his features, to notice the dark beauty his eyes imparted to the rest of his face.
The silence continued until finally, he broke it. “What were you going to say, Jenna?”
Her name rolled off his tongue and slid like molten lava through her. She shook herself and tried to get a grip. She couldn’t remember what she was going to say. She saw the world passing outside the window, and realized they were heading south, toward the river. “Are we going to the riverfront?”
The Ohio River was a natural border between Ohio and Kentucky and separated Cincinnati, Ohio and Covington, Kentucky. The two cities were connected and divided by the river. The stadium of the Cincinnati Reds was on the Ohio side of the river, and the River Center in Covington was a famous tourist spot with lots of floating bars and restaurants. Jenna had been there a couple of times and loved the whole atmosphere.
“Yeah, that okay with you?” His voice was deep and controlled, his Midwest accent vibrating through her.
“Mmm-hmmm.” She continued to stare at the night sky out the window, wondering why she suddenly had that soft, satisfying feeling of safety she usually only felt when it was raining in great sheets of water and she was at home in her bedroom in Texas. It was a pleasurable feeling. It was probably just a visceral reaction to an enclosed space that reminded her of the coziness of home. It confused her, but she didn’t dwell on it.
Soon they were crossing the huge suspension bridge and travelling parallel to the river. She sat up straighter when they continued to pass the restaurants, one by one, and he never chose one. Minutes later, the pleasurable feeling in her stomach was replaced by nerves as he pressed a button, and a black, wrought-iron gate began to open. He pulled into the long drive, and pulled up to a house that was so impressive she thought for a moment they were at a restaurant. But it was too deserted to be anything but a private home, and a feeling of trepidation grew.
She turned to him as he parked the car. “Where are we?”
He deactivated the ignition and popped the handle on his door before answering. “My house.” With that, he swung out of the car and moved around to open her door while she sat, still as a statue.
Chapter Four
Her door opened and he took her hand in his and began leading her to the front door.
David didn’t entirely understand the reasons behind his actions. He knew he wanted her to see his house. He felt like a kid trying to impress a girl at school. But if he could get her to want to live here, see what it was like, maybe it would be one more reason
for her to agree to his proposal.
It was an old, stately home, located on the river. He had a housekeeper that came in every day to take care of the incidentals that he neither had the time or desire to do himself. Mrs. Hudson cleaned for him, cooked his meals and disappeared before he got home from work. He had more or less inherited her with the house when he had bought it five years before. She had worked for the previous owners for years, and knew the house front to back. She had also learned exactly what he expected from a daily housekeeper. They got along fine.
Jenna was still fighting shock at their location when he led her in through the front door. She stood in awe as she admired the cathedral ceiling. She had never been in a private home that even remotely compared to this. It was beautiful, every inch of it decorated in the traditional style, and Jenna didn’t know what shocked her more, the way he lived every day of his life, or the fact he had brought her back here when she thought they were going out to eat in a public setting.
She looked around as he led her to the French doors overlooking the river. The water was beautiful, black and inky, except for where the lights glistened and then you could see for a long distance, everything glowing and shimmering in the night.
“You—you live here?” The serenity she had experienced earlier was gone. She tried to maintain her fragile control as she desperately tried to make conversation. She was entirely out of her element. She had never met a man like him before, and her emotions were conflicted, in turmoil.
“Yeah.” His answer was short, succinct.
“Alone?” She couldn’t hide the dismay in her voice that all of this was for one person.
He chuckled. “Yeah.”
Jenna turned to him and blinked. He was watching her intently.