“Hi, guys.”
Tom McKnight looked up from his paperwork, and immediately grinned, obviously happy to see him. Syd’s expression was guarded, which meant happy to see him, something on her mind.
“Hi, son.” His dad turned off his computer and slid off the high stool in front of it. He held out his hand and after grabbing it, he pulled Ben into a quick hug. “Good to see you.”
His father had just turned sixty, still a handsome man with brown hair that was liberally sprinkled with silver. There were crinkle lines at the corners of light blue eyes that would always show the shadow of sadness from losing his wife too soon. She’d died from complications of childbirth after Syd was born. As the face of McKnight Automotive, he dressed professionally in a long-sleeved yellow shirt, coordinating striped tie and sharply pressed khakis.
“What can I do for you?” he asked.
“The SUV needs an oil change and tire rotation. Can you do it first thing in the morning if I leave it overnight?”
“Sure. Can you spare it?”
“I’m not on call, so if Syd will give me a lift to the lodge...”
“I’m happy to.” She looked up from the computer, clearly having listened to the conversation. “But why can’t your main squeeze come and get you?”
Ben met his father’s gaze and saw the question reflected there, too. Main squeeze? What was she talking... Oh. Right. Cam. So they’d heard about the diner. He’d forgotten how fast word spread in Blackwater Lake, even though that’s what he’d been counting on. Apparently the plan was working even better than he’d hoped.
“Cam has her hands full at work and I don’t want to bother her.” The first part was true or she wouldn’t have agreed to the bargain. As far as bothering her? He hoped that kiss was bothering her as much as it was him. He looked at his sister. “Besides, you go right past the lodge on your way home.”
That was also true.
“What makes you think I don’t have plans? A date?”
“You told me you were taking a break,” he reminded her. “Speaking of that, how’s the hand?”
She flexed her fingers. “Good as new. You were right about giving it time.”
“Glad to hear that.”
“Bev Thompson from the diner was in today.” His father gave him the what-the-hell-are-you-doing? look. “I didn’t know you were going out with that hotel woman.”
Hotel woman? That made Cam sound like a room-by-the-hour girl and Ben felt a quick spurt of anger. “When I lived in Las Vegas it wasn’t my habit to run past you every woman I went out with.”
“You’re not in Vegas anymore.” His father loosened his tie. “This is where you grew up.”
Ben decided not to debate the point. “Cam is a dedicated businesswoman. Ambitious, conscientious and smart.”
Syd’s eyes widened a little at his sharp tone. “Looks like you hit a nerve, Dad.”
“I didn’t think taking her to dinner was breaking news or that you guys needed advance notice. It’s my private life.”
“In Blackwater Lake nothing stays private,” his father said, stating the obvious.
Ben knew that but hadn’t been prepared for the part of the plan where his family would find out. As fast as word got out about them dating, it could get out about them being a phony couple. He had to play this just right. Best to stick with the truth wherever possible.
“Things with Cam and me happened pretty fast.”
That was true. He hadn’t planned to kiss her, but when Judy appeared out of nowhere it had seemed like an excellent idea. After the fact he wasn’t so sure, because the taste of her had made him burn for more.
Tom McKnight looked at him long and hard, then nodded. “You’re a grown man and I guess you know what you’re doing. But I can’t help worrying about you. It’s what a father does.”
“There’s no need, Dad. But I appreciate it.”
“Comes with the territory, son.”
Ben looked at Syd. “About that ride home...”
“Let me change and I’ll be right with you.” She headed out of the office toward the employee area.
“Why is Syd taking a break from men?” he asked when his sister was out of earshot.
“Beats me.” Tom shrugged. “You’d think in a place that can’t keep a secret someone would know. If they do I haven’t heard.”
“I guess she’ll talk when she’s ready.” Speaking of ready... Ben could barely recall the time before Syd was born when his mother had been with them. To his knowledge, his father had been alone ever since she died. “How are you, Dad? Anyone you want to tell me about? Are you seeing anyone?”
“I have friends and some of them are of the female persuasion. But your mother was the only one for me.” He smiled, but it didn’t fool either of them. Tom McKnight was the kind of man who loved fiercely and only once.
Ben wondered if that was a quality he’d inherited, but seeing Judy again went a long way toward answering part of that question. He felt absolutely nothing for her and wondered now why it had hurt so much when he’d heard she married someone else.
“Your ride is here and it’s leaving.” Syd had changed out of her overalls into snug jeans, a camisole top and red blazer. She’d transformed from a scrappy little mechanic into a beautiful, sophisticated woman. They said clothes didn’t make the man or woman and that was true as far as character, but the change in his sister was truly amazing.
He slid his arm across her shoulders and resisted the familiar urge to rub his knuckles across the top of her head. There would be hell to pay now if he messed up her hair. “You’re a very stylish grease monkey.”
“I’m sure there’s a compliment in there somewhere, but I’ll have to dig it out later.” Her eyes twinkled when she looked up at him. “Are you ready to go?”
“Whenever you are. I’ll see you tomorrow, Dad.”
“Since I’m holding your car hostage, I’ll look forward to it.” He lifted a hand in a goodbye gesture.
Ben followed his sister to the parking lot and got in the passenger side of her sporty red compact. He moved the seat back for more leg room and noticed how close Syd was to the steering wheel. She was a small woman, like their mother.
She fastened her seat belt and turned on the ignition. Before they reached the exit, the doors automatically locked. “Now I’ve got you where I want you.”
“Should I be afraid?”
“A smart man would be. I want to know what’s really going on with you and that woman. Consider yourself lucky that I didn’t push this in front of Dad.”
“Her name is Camille and we’re friends who enjoy each other’s company.”
“Trying to decide whether or not to take it to the next level?”
“Exactly,” he agreed.
“Is she seeing anyone else?”
“No.” He hadn’t actually thought to ask her that question.
“Are you?”
“No.” That he was sure about.
Syd shook her head and tightened her hands on the steering wheel. “I don’t buy it. She’s not your type.”
That’s what Judy had said. And how did they figure that? “What is my type?”
“Not a hotel heiress who went to the slammer, I can tell you that.”
The slammer was a long time ago and everyone was entitled to a second chance. Cam had definitely made the most of hers. “Have you been talking to Judy Coulter?”
“I wouldn’t waste my breath on that...witch.” She glanced over at him. “Why?”
“Cam and I ran into her.”
Syd glanced at him. “You’re trying to change the subject, but it won’t work.”
“What exactly is the subject?”
“Your personal life. I have questions. Starting with: For a guy who’s been avoiding a serious relationship for a very long time, you picked the wrong woman to break the dating fast.”
“That’s not a question, it’s a statement,” he pointed out.
“The question is imp
lied,” she shot back.
“How do you know I haven’t dated?”
The question was a diversion to get her off the scent. When had his sister become so perceptive? Ben hadn’t counted on that either.
“I listen. You should try it sometime.” She flashed him a grin. “The thing is, I tuck away information. And women just know this stuff. There hasn’t been anyone serious for you, not since college. Now the first one you pick is the type to get her name in the papers for all the wrong reasons?”
“For the record, I don’t have a type.”
“And it has to be said, that’s all the debate strategy you’ve got?”
“Yes.” The less he said, the better. “No type.”
“Baloney. You have one and Cam Halliday isn’t it. There’s something fishy going on here.”
“To quote you, baloney. There’s nothing fishy about an attraction to a beautiful, brainy woman with a terrific sense of humor,” he defended. And a body that makes a man’s palms sweat.
What else could he do? If this ruse was going to work, everyone had to believe they were a couple. When the message spread and sank in, women would back off and leave him alone. He’d get peace and quiet at work. Was that really too much to ask?
“She is pretty,” Syd conceded. “And a great dresser. I’d give almost anything to have a shoe wardrobe like hers. But I’ll have to reluctantly take your word for the rest.”
The rest was a petite package who’d kissed him back. A kiss that packed a punch and he hoped she’d “hit” him with it again. The fact that she turned him on would make it really easy to play the part of her boyfriend.
“It sounds like you’re smitten.”
“I definitely am,” he agreed.
“Then you should bring her to dinner Sunday night. It’s family night. We’d all like to get to know her.” She pulled the car into the Blackwater Lake Lodge and braked to a stop by the front door.
Ben released his seat belt and tried to think of a way out of this one. It would be easy to play his part with people who didn’t know him, but him and Cam spending time with his family was a recipe for disaster. If he put up a protest the way he wanted to right now, it would be like pouring kerosene on the flames of his sister’s curiosity. She was already suspicious and would want to know why he was hiding Cam from them.
He hoped he didn’t regret this. “That sounds great. What time and what can we bring?”
“Dad’s barbecuing and we’ll eat around six. Why don’t you bring that seven-layer chocolate cake from the lodge restaurant that everyone in town is raving about?”
“I can tell you from personal experience that it’s fantastic. We’ll be there at five-thirty.”
“Great.” Syd smiled with a satisfaction that was unnerving. “We’ll see you then. Can’t wait.”
“Me either. Thanks for the ride.”
“Any time, big brother.”
Any time little sister had an ulterior motive, was more like it, he thought, watching the taillights on her car move out of sight. He blew out a breath. It was put up or shut up time. He was going to take his fake relationship out for a spin with his father, older brother and baby sister—the three people on the planet who knew him best. If they weren’t fooled it was game over.
Now all he had to do was talk Cam into it.
Chapter Seven
Late Sunday afternoon Cam was sitting in the passenger seat of Ben’s car and not a particularly happy camper. Even though he’d said something about more dinners, she’d been hoping that no further action would be required from her for this bargain. Was it too much to ask that gossip from the diner sighting of them together would hold everyone for a while? At least long enough for her to get over that kiss?
“Tell me again why I have to meet your family and eat Sunday dinner at your dad’s?”
Ben glanced over at her, then settled his gaze back on the road. His dad lived just outside of town, not too far from the lake, and the way was winding. “Red flags will be raised if anyone asks about us and my family hasn’t met you. It’s what a normal couple would do.”
“Is it what you and Judy did?” There was just the tiniest bit of shrew in her tone and that wasn’t a particularly good thing. Was it jealousy? Or annoyance that he’d only kissed her to make some kind of statement to his ex-girlfriend?
“Judy and I were just kids.” Was it imagination or did his jaw just clench? Did he still have scars from what happened? “Now, a few pointers about the McKnights.”
Ah. He didn’t want to talk about the ex. Cam wasn’t sure what that meant, but was happy to change the subject.
“Anything you can tell me will help,” she said.
“Remember, this is just a low-key dinner. All very normal.”
“I wouldn’t know about normal. Nothing about my life ever was. Especially after my brother died.”
He shook his head in sympathy. “As annoying as they can get at times, I can’t imagine losing one of my siblings. That must have been hard.”
“It was.” Her heart caught as an image of Dean Junior’s handsome, teasing face flashed into her mind. “But before I’d even dealt with the loss, the burden of responsibility that he was supposed to carry shifted to me. In the blink of an eye I was the oldest child of Dean Halliday. As such, I was expected to take over the reins of Halliday Hospitality Inc. someday.” She gripped her hands in her lap. “I rebelled.”
“All kids do.”
“But I elevated it to an art form. Sneaking out of the house in the middle of the night to party with friends I knew my parents didn’t like.” She cringed, remembering the chances she’d taken. “That resulted in more than one ultimatum.”
“They were worried about you.”
“No. They worried that company stock prices would drop. I didn’t care about anyone but myself then. All I could see was that the kids I thought were cool wanted to hang out with me.”
“Every kid goes through that stage.”
“I bet you didn’t.”
“Sure I did.” He glanced over and met her gaze. “To me that all sounds pretty normal.”
“Not when the police get involved. There were brushes with the law. Then I was in the wrong place, wrong time, at the wheel without a driver’s license and someone in the car had drugs. The judge didn’t believe I didn’t know. And my last name is Halliday. He decided to make an example of me.”
“That was a long time ago.”
“Yeah.” She looked out the window, at the scenery going by. The trees were green and serene and when he drove around the lake, the sight of sunlight turning the surface of the water to shimmering blue took her breath away. “I grew up and discovered I have a head for business.”
She glanced over at him and lost her breath again for a different reason. Ben McKnight was an incredibly good-looking man. He would turn women’s heads in Hollywood or New York, cities that had some of the most handsome, sophisticated men in the world. As far as her head was concerned, she was having trouble keeping it on business because of him.
“Cut yourself some slack,” he suggested. “You turned your attention to school and proving yourself to the corporation. That means you’re focused. And you’re going to need to be for the McKnights.”
“Now you’re scaring me.”
“My family has to believe we’re a couple or no one else in town will buy the act.” He glanced at her. “No pressure.”
And if the act was outed, any strides she’d made with the employees at the lodge would disappear. Any career ambitions she’d had would go up in smoke because she would fail the test her father had given her.
She nodded emphatically. “Okay. We’re a couple. Got it.”
“You should also know that my sister is already suspicious.”
“Great.”
“We’re almost there.”
“And the hits just keep on coming,” she mumbled.
He turned off the main road into a tract of homes. After following the road around a curve
, he stopped the car at the curb of a small house with gray siding and white trim. The tops of the pine trees behind it were visible over the roof. In the front a large expanse of grass was green and manicured. There were three vehicles in the driveway—a small, sporty red compact, a big black truck and a silver Cadillac sedan.
Ben met her gaze. “Here we go.”
“I can hardly wait,” she muttered.
After exiting the car, he took the boxed seven-layer cake, then put his hand at her waist, guiding her up the drive to the covered porch. Cam could feel the heat of his fingers through her wool blazer and satin blouse. The touch skewered rational thought just when she needed it the most. He knocked on the door and it was opened almost immediately.
A beautiful, brown-eyed brunette stood there. “Hi. Glad you guys could make it.”
“Me, too.” Ben put his free arm around Cam’s shoulders. “Syd, this Camille Halliday. Cam, my sister, Sydney.”
“It’s nice to meet you.” This is the one who was suspicious. Cam smiled and held out her hand. “Thanks for fixing my flat.”
“You’re welcome.” The other woman shook it as she looked over her outfit, including the black silk-blend slacks and Jimmy Choo heels. An expression somewhere between admiration and envy slid over her face. Sydney was wearing jeans tucked into brown calf boots and a long-sleeved yellow T-shirt.
Two men came up behind her. One was a handsome, slightly older version of Ben and the other a good-looking guy who had a strong resemblance to his sons. Both wore jeans, boots and T-shirts. Ben wore essentially the same outfit, which should have been a clue that Cam was severely overdressed. Her heart sank because you didn’t win hearts and minds by not fitting in.
She shook hands with both of them. “It’s a pleasure.”
“All mine,” Alex said, smiling. He was a local building contractor. “I can’t imagine what a woman like you is doing with my brother.”
What gave her away? She hadn’t really done anything yet and the jig was up. Then she realized the two men were grinning at each other so she deduced that his comment wasn’t about their charade but simple good-natured sibling teasing.
The Doctor's Dating Bargain Page 8