Rent a Millionaire Groom

by Judy Christenberry

  Elise did the same and hurried toward the entrance of the hotel.

  The first person Elise saw as she came in was the bride-to-be, her sister Sharon. “Sharon! What are you doing down here?”

  “Elise! I’m so glad you made it. We heard the roads were getting bad,” Sharon said, running to Elise’s side.

  Her greeting had alerted several other members of her family, including her parents. Soon she was surrounded, everyone asking questions at once.

  James came through the door, his shoulders covered with snowflakes and his hands filled with their luggage.

  Elise hurried to his side and brushed the snow off. He took advantage of her closeness to kiss her quickly. “Thanks, honey.”

  Feeling her face turn bright red, Elise faced her family. She hadn’t planned that sweet moment, but it probably made everyone believe their playacting. She’d just opened her mouth to make the introductions, when Sharon screamed.

  Looking around to see what had caused that reaction, she gasped as two of her sisters, Sharon and Melanie, grabbed her left hand.

  “Would you look at that? It’s gorgeous. Did James give it to you?” Melanie asked.

  Before Elise could answer, her sisters and mother asked several more questions. Her father stood there beaming at her before he nodded to James.

  “Evening, James. Glad you’re here.”

  “Yes, sir, thank you. We are, too. The roads are getting slippery.”

  “Want me to help you with the bags?” Sam asked, still smiling broadly at James.

  Elise was amazed at how comfortable her father was with James. Sharon’s fiancé had spent more time with Sam, but he wasn’t as friendly. It was probably because Sharon was his baby, the last to leave the nest.

  James leaned toward Elise. “Should I go ahead and check us in? There’s no line right now.”

  “Oh, yes, thank you, James. Do you want my credit card?” She’d meant to give it to him earlier so they could avoid this conversation in front of her family.

  “Oh, they’re all taken care of,” Sharon hurriedly said.

  Elise stared at her sister. She sounded nervous. Probably wedding jitters. Every bride was supposed to get them, though when she thought about marrying James—as if that would ever happen—she didn’t think she’d have any doubts.

  JAMES ESCAPED the crowd of Fosters and headed for the reception desk. It surprised him to discover the one Elise had called Sharon walking with him.

  He frowned. “I can take care of this…Sharon, is it? You don’t have to—”

  “Yes, I do. You see, there’s a little problem.”

  James came to an abrupt halt. “A problem?”

  Sharon cast a frantic glance over her shoulder toward the others, and James got an uneasy feeling in his stomach. “What problem?”

  “I had two rooms booked for you and Elise. I didn’t want to ask if—well, if you shared, you know? Mom felt better about your having two rooms. But then Michael’s great-aunt decided to come at the last minute. I tried to get another room. Really, I did. But with the snow, the hotel didn’t even have a broom closet available.”

  “I don’t think we’d like a broom closet, anyway,” he said with a slight grin.

  “I know,” Sharon said, shuddering.

  “I’m sure Elise won’t mind sharing with Michael’s great-aunt.”

  “Easy for you to say,” Sharon muttered. “You haven’t met her. Anyway, that’s not a possibility. You see, his great-aunt never travels without her maid.”

  James thought he knew where this conversation was heading, and he didn’t think Elise would be pleased. Hell, he wasn’t, either. It would be difficult to keep his hands off her even in a crowd. If they shared a room, it would be impossible.

  “Isn’t there someone I could bunk in with? I don’t think Elise would—I mean, she likes her privacy.”

  “Probably because none of us had any when we were growing up,” Sharon told him with a grin. “It won’t be so bad. I mean, you two are engaged. You’ve probably already— Not that it’s any of my business,” she hurriedly added.

  They’d reached the desk, and James directed his question to the reservations clerk. “Do you have any empty rooms?”

  “Oh, no, sir. Every available room has been taken.”

  “Can you recommend another hotel in Flagstaff?” Elise would never forgive him if he didn’t find a way out of this coil.

  The clerk actually laughed. “No, sir. When fresh snow comes, so do the skiers. There’s nothing available in a fifty-mile radius. We tried hours ago to find extra rooms, but they don’t exist.”

  “Please, James?” Sharon pleaded. “We can’t upset Great-Aunt Mabel. Michael said she’s one of his most important family members.”

  He didn’t know what to do. If he continued to protest, Sharon was going to question their engagement, which could reveal their charade. Finally, he nodded, managing a weak smile. “Sure, we’ll be fine sharing a room.”

  “Thanks. Melanie said you were a good sport.” She turned to the clerk and explained their reservation. In no time, James had been given two keys. A bellboy stepped up to take him to the room, but James decided he and Elise had best be alone when he explained their situation. Witnesses would not be a good idea.

  When he started back across the lobby, Elise saw him coming and excused herself from her family, meeting him halfway.

  “The party starts in half an hour, so we’d better get to our rooms.”

  “Uh, yeah,” he said, hoping Sharon didn’t feel it necessary to make an explanation now.

  But she seemed no more interested in being present when Elise found out than he was in having her there. She kissed Elise on the cheek, and told her she loved her ring and she’d see her in a few minutes.

  “The elevators are over here,” James said, nudging Elise in that direction.

  “Are our rooms on separate floors?” she asked, as they entered the elevator.

  “Uh, no. We’re both on the fourth floor.”

  “Oh. At least we’re not on the top floor. I hate that.”

  Neither of them said anything else until the elevator stopped on the fourth floor.

  “Which way?” Elise asked, stepping off. “What’s my room number?”

  “Four-o-seven. This way.” He walked briskly toward their room. He didn’t want to have this conversation in the hall.

  They reached the door, and he handed her one of the keys. She slid the flat plastic card into the slot and pushed open the door to the room.

  James had had his fingers crossed for two double beds. Instead, in the center of the room was a king-size bed. One king-size bed. They were going to have to share.

  “This looks fine,” Elise said with a sigh. “It sure beats being outside in that,” she said, gesturing out the window where the snow was swiftly falling.

  James set down both suitcases.

  “You’d better go unpack, James. We don’t have a lot of time.”

  He drew a deep breath. “Uh, Elise, there’s something I have to tell you.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Elise was removing her coat, but something in James’s voice halted her. She spun around to face him. “Tell me what? Surely you’re not backing out on the arrangement now?”

  “No. But your sister gave away one of our rooms.”

  “She what? Sharon?” When he nodded, she demanded, “What do you mean ‘gave away one of our rooms’?”

  He explained Great-Aunt Mabel and her accompanying maid.

  “Did you ask for another room?”

  “Of course, I did. I even asked about other hotels. It seems the town fills up when there’s fresh snow.”

  Elise knew that was true. She sorted through other possibilities in her head and came up with precisely zero. She looked around the room and then back at James. “You mean you expect to share this room with me?”

  To her surprise, irritation spread across James’s face. “Look, it’s not my fault. I tried to find another
room. If I’d continued to protest, your sister would have started questioning our supposed engagement.”

  “Our supposed engagement doesn’t mean we’re sleeping together!” she snapped.

  “We’re not teenagers, Elise. Who’s going to believe that we’re engaged and not intimate?” He stood there, his feet spread, his hands cocked on his hips, looking like a man in charge.

  He was right. Who would believe she’d resisted this man if their engagement was real? Slowly she sank onto the edge of the bed. “What are we going to do?”

  The challenge went out of his stance, and he smiled ruefully. “Share a room. Do I need to promise you—”

  “No, of course not. I trust you, James, but—but it’s not going to be easy.”

  “Tell me about it,” he muttered.

  Elise licked her lips. “Uh, I have to have a shower.”

  “Yeah. I’ll unpack while you do. Okay if I take the right side of the bed and dresser?”

  “Of course,” she agreed. She looked at the bathroom door, then at her suitcase. “I’ll get what I need from—or I can quickly unpack. That might be best.”

  “Okay,” he agreed. Without her asking, he swung her suitcase onto the bed.

  “Thanks.”

  For several minutes, each filled the drawers of the dresser with their belongings. Elise watched James out of the corner of her eye until she caught him doing the same thing. Blushing, she turned away, warning herself to stop being silly.

  Quickly gathering up everything she’d need for her shower, she headed to the bathroom. “I’ll hurry.”

  “I’m in no rush,” he assured her. “I think there’s a hockey game on television.”

  She gave him a brief smile and closed the door. Then she collapsed against it. It was going to be impossible to keep her distance from James when they were sharing the same room. The same bed.

  She thought of the classic movie, It Happened One Night, with Claudette Colbert and Clark Gable. They’d shared a motel room, and Clark had strung a cord across the room and hung a bedspread on it to form a wall.

  But they’d had twin beds.

  That was it! Elise would call the desk and switch their room for one with two separate beds! She turned and swung open the door.

  James was hanging up the phone.

  “Did someone call?”

  “No,” he said as he shrugged. “I called the desk to see if they had a room with separate beds.”

  “I just thought of that,” she said, smiling. “And?”

  “Nope.” His laconic answer didn’t give her much information.

  “No? Why not? There are lots of rooms. Surely someone hasn’t checked in yet.”

  “I asked that. They said everyone came in early because of the snow.”

  Elise’s shoulders sagged. “Of course. Well, thanks for trying.” She backed into the bathroom and closed the door. A look at her watch warned her to hurry. It wasn’t until she was under the hot spray of the shower that she grew irritated.

  “Why is he so upset about us sharing?” she muttered. “Is he afraid I’ll demand more for my money than we agreed on?”

  She knew her thoughts were irrational, but she couldn’t make them go away. He shouldn’t have been so anxious about it. She hadn’t attacked him yet. He’d tried to reassure her. Maybe she should have reassured him.

  As if she needed to!

  When she emerged from the bathroom, her makeup perfect, her hair styled, her composure in place, she said, “I hope I don’t need to reassure you that I won’t make any demands.”

  He’d smiled when she started to speak. By the time she finished, he was frowning.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I assumed you tried to find a room with two beds because you were concerned that I might expect…more for my money.” She stood stiffly, staring out the window.

  A chuckle filled the room—deep, enriching, complete. She turned to stare at him. “What’s so funny?”

  To her surprise, he crossed the room and took hold of her arms.

  “You are.”

  She stepped away from his touch. “I was trying to reassure you.”

  “Elise, if you want to have your wicked way with me,” he said, leering at her, “don’t think I’m going to complain.”

  “You seemed pretty anxious to find us a room with two beds,” she pointed out.

  “Damn it, of course I did. I’ve given you my word. I thought it would make things easier on both of us. You already know I’m attracted to you. Crawling into the same bed with you tonight isn’t going to change that. In fact,” he said, pausing as his eyebrow rose, “it will make it worse.”

  She appreciated his concern. She really did. But a little corner of her heart gave a lurch in appreciation as he let her know he still wanted her. “Yes, I—I’m sure we’ll manage, though.”

  He dipped his head for a quick kiss, then released his hold on her and stepped back. “Yes, we will. Until Sunday. All bets are off on Sunday.”

  She frowned. “Sunday, our pretense will be over.”

  “Yes. And when it’s over, you and I are going to have a long talk.”

  “About what?”

  He started toward her, then stopped himself. “The future, Elise Foster. We’re going to talk about the future. Because I don’t think I’m going to go to Hollywood. Not if I have to leave you behind.”

  ELISE WAS AMAZED at how well they managed. Even Friday morning wasn’t all that awkward. James was in the shower when she awoke. When he came out, she went in with scarcely any conversation. He was waiting for her when she emerged.

  “Good morning. Did you sleep well?” he asked, as she circled him, keeping her distance.

  “Yes, thank you. And you?”

  His gaze shifted to the bed. She’d carefully stored the extra pillows she’d requested in the top of the closet so the maid wouldn’t remove them when she cleaned the room. She’d lined up the pillows along the center of the bed to provide a wall à la Clark Gable.

  “Fine,” he said, shoving his hands in the pockets of the gray flannel pants he wore, topped by a blue sweater and white shirt.

  “You look very nice.”

  “Thanks. So do you.”

  “We’re very polite, aren’t we?” she finally said with a small smile. She missed the friendliness they’d shared at various times during their pretense. But then, maybe that friendliness had been a pretense, too.

  “Yeah. Look, your dad called while you were in there,” he said, nodding toward the bathroom. “He’s invited me to a poker party, since you ladies will be tied up and we can’t get out of the hotel because of the snow.”

  “Oh.” She had to go to the bridal luncheon, which was actually a brunch and started in half an hour. “I’m sorry if it’s not what you want to do. Want me to call Dad?”

  “No. I wasn’t complaining. I’ll enjoy it. When will you be back?”

  “I’m not sure. Mom said something about tying bags of rose petals for tomorrow’s reception after the brunch. I might be busy most of the day.”

  She didn’t want to be. James’s words last night before the party had her anxious to spend time with him. To question him. To see if there really could be any future for the two of them.

  He sighed. “Yeah, I figured.”

  “Do you need some money for the poker game?” she asked, wondering if sudden concern over the unexpected expenditure could be part of the problem.

  “No. I’ll be fine.”

  “Okay. Be sure you put it on your expense report.”

  Those words didn’t make him any happier, if she judged by his expression.

  “Yeah.”

  “I have to go now or I’ll be late.”

  He didn’t come any closer, much to her regret. No goodbye kiss for her.

  Just a casual “See you later.”

  Had she misinterpreted what he’d said? Had she let her heart guide her instead of her head?

  With an abrupt nod, she backed
her way to the hotel room door. When he said nothing else, she opened it and left. She had no reason to linger.

  JAMES SAT ON THE EDGE of the bed and buried his head in his hands. Damn, what was he going to do? Two more days spent in this room with Elise—and he’d promised to keep his hands off her?

  He’d thought he’d never get to sleep last night, knowing that she was sleeping on the other side of the pillow lumps. The temptation to throw the pillows against the wall and slide his arms around her drove him crazy.

  He’d been in a constant state of arousal.

  Which explained the early morning shower. A little cold shower in the middle of a snowstorm ought to bring him back to reality.

  Until he opened the bathroom door to see her sitting on the edge of the big bed, wrapped demurely in a white silk robe, her beautiful hair rumpled, her eyes sleepy. She looked like a virginal bride, waiting for his kiss to awaken her.

  Instead, she’d rushed past him into the bathroom and shut the door.

  Now he had to spend half the day sitting around playing cards. He enjoyed poker with the guys. Of course, he did. But how could he concentrate on cards when all he could think about was Elise?

  He was going to get his clock cleaned.

  “YOU ARE SO LUCKY, Elise,” Roxanne, one of her sisters, gushed, leaning toward her. “James is such a hunk.”

  Elise smiled but said nothing.

  “And he has such beautiful manners,” Melanie added. “When I met him, Elise had just spilled cola all over herself. He still introduced himself. And he was very attentive to her.”

  “You spilled soda all over yourself?” her mother asked, staring at Elise. “How did that happen? You’re usually not clumsy.”

  Elise wanted to tell her mother that it had been James’s fault. But that would only lead to more questions. And she’d had enough questions for one day.

  Before she could come up with an answer, Sharon giggled and said, “She must’ve had her mind on James. He’s enough to distract any woman. Is he good in bed?”

  “Sharon!” Margaret protested. “That’s not a nice thing to ask your sister.”

  “Oh, Mom, move into the new century,” one of her other sisters said. “She’d be an idiot if she hadn’t jumped his bones at the first opportunity.”