Between Marriage and Merger

by Karen Booth

  “Does he know that?”

  “Not yet.”

  Lily snickered. “Okay. When?”

  “Now? I had a client cancel on me this afternoon and Michael is working late.”

  Lily glanced over at Noah. How anyone could look so smoking hot eating a sandwich was beyond her. And the way his lips curved around the glass? She’d never wished so badly to be an ice cube, to slide down and crash into his mouth. “You sure? You don’t have to do this.”

  “Are you kidding? I live for stuff like this. Meet me at the Saks in midtown in thirty minutes?”

  “I’ll have to clear it with Noah first, I guess.”

  “I’m clearing it. If my brother says a peep, remind him that he’s on thin ice with me right now. Plus, if you’re going to be my pretend sister-in-law, we should spend more time together, don’t you think?”

  “Good idea.” It was nice to think that Charlotte could be Lily’s ally in this. She needed someone on her side who wasn’t an impossibly handsome man. Noah wielded too much power as it was. “I’ll see you in a bit.” Lily returned Noah’s phone. “Your sister’s taking me shopping for clothes for the wedding, but she wants me to meet her in a little bit. Can you and Sawyer manage if I’m out of the office this afternoon?”

  “I don’t have much choice. When Charlotte decides something is going to happen, it does. Case in point, our engagement.”

  “She does seem like a force of nature.”

  “She’s always been like that. Even when we were kids.”

  Lily had often wondered what it must’ve been like to grow up on the sprawling Locke estate out on Long Island. “What about you? What were you like?”

  “Quiet. Uncoordinated.”

  “You’re lying.”

  “I’m not. I was always the one in the background. Sawyer was the star. He was the better athlete. He had more girlfriends. He did better in school. Charlotte was the one who was in crisis or kicking up trouble.” Noah sat back and draped his long arm across the back of the booth. Lily hadn’t moved back after scooting closer, so they were only inches apart.

  Lily sat there and stared at Noah, his admission still plain on his face. “I can’t even imagine you like that. It seems impossible.”

  “I assure you it’s more than possible, it happened that way.”

  Lily was seeing Noah in an all-new way and she wasn’t sure what to make of it. Noah always seemed like the cocky golden boy of the Locke family, while Sawyer was the strong type A oldest sibling. Maybe she’d read it all wrong.

  Noah got yet another text. “This is why I hate my phone.” He picked it up from the table, shaking his head when he read the message. “Sawyer needs me to get back to the office. You should take the car to meet Charlotte and I’ll hop in a taxi.” He flagged down the waiter and handed over his credit card to pay the check.

  “You don’t have to do that. It’s only eight or nine blocks for me.”

  “What kind of fiancé would I be if I let you walk in those shoes?”

  Lily had strong thoughts on the answer. Peter had once left her to walk to a gas station two miles away when her car broke down. She’d called and asked for his help, but he’d been at the gym and wanted to finish his workout first. Noah probably had no idea how impossibly sweet he was being right now. “I want to walk. But I sincerely appreciate the offer.”

  “Okay, but I’ll pay for a cab if you change your mind.” He signed the bill when the waiter returned it, then plucked the card from the leather folio and handed it to Lily. “Shopping is on me, too.”

  “You don’t have to do that either. I have money.”

  “You never would’ve been in this situation if it wasn’t for me.”

  Lily couldn’t forget it. It was omnipresent in her brain. It would be interesting to see where exactly the idea resided once she was back from the Hannafort wedding and all was back to normal.

  Noah walked Lily out to the car and opened the door before the driver had the chance. “Tell you what. I’ll send my driver to Saks after he drops me at the office. Then you won’t need to worry about getting back.”

  Again, he was being so sweet. “That would be great. I’ll try to be quick.”

  “As much as Charlotte likes shopping, she does not dawdle. I predict you’ll be done pretty fast.”

  “Good to know.” Lily was about to head up Fifth Avenue when Noah grasped her elbow and pulled her closer. Her heart sprang into action, beating double time.

  “I need to kiss you goodbye,” he whispered. “Or else it will seem strange.”

  She nodded, her brain as fuzzy as could be. His words were saying one thing, while his lips were telling her yet another. The kiss was soft and sensuous. Much hotter than the first acquaintance kiss in the car or even the one at Tiffany. Had that really been that morning? So much had happened today and it was only two o’clock.

  “Bye.” She wished the tone of her voice didn’t contain such longing.

  “Bye, honey.” Noah cocked an eyebrow and climbed into the back seat of the car.

  Lily stood on the sidewalk for a moment, processing. She’d kissed Noah four times today. Not bad for a day’s work.

  She began her short trek up to Saks, winding her way through the continuous stream of pedestrians. The air was crisp and cool, but the promise of spring was in the air. It filled Lily with sunny optimism. Despite her strange arrangement with Noah, things weren’t bad.

  She approached Saks Fifth Avenue, with its stony facade and procession of American flags flapping high above the famous windows. The displays, like the weather, were harkening the start of spring with flashes of pretty pastels and flowers. Lily marched through the door and nearly walked straight into Charlotte. “You’re here already.”

  “I don’t like to be late.”

  Lily pulled back the sleeve of her coat to consult her watch. She was still five minutes early. “Where to first?”

  “Follow me.” Through the sprawling cosmetics department, avoiding salespeople threatening spritzes of expensive perfume, up the escalators they went.

  Lily had never even been in this store before, although she had been to the outlet a block or two away. It wasn’t that Lily was averse to spending a lot of money on clothes. It was more the product of growing up in a very middle-class family. It wasn’t something that was done. And she’d always acted accordingly.

  Lily followed as Charlotte got off on one floor and started tooling around like this was a time trial. Even more than five months pregnant, Charlotte was hell on wheels. “For the record, we should not be doing this on such short notice. We leave in three days.”

  Lily hadn’t thought of it in those terms, but Charlotte was right. They’d be leaving for the Florida Keys Friday morning, flying on the Locke private jet, no less. Talk about being plucked from one world and landing in another.

  Lily trailed along as garments flew off the racks in the department of every classic high-end designer you could imagine. Escada. Chanel. Louis Vuitton. Each item was handed to a salesclerk named Delia, whom they’d acquired along the way. Delia smiled, but she was definitely struggling to keep up. It would’ve been hard for most people to stay on pace with Charlotte, even without being loaded down with an armful of clothes. Lily herself was testimony to that fact, shuffling along as Charlotte explained her thinking behind each wardrobe choice she made. A dress for this, a skirt and blouse for that.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to pick anything out?” Charlotte asked. “I don’t want to take over your fashion life.”

  “I’ll let you know if I see anything I love. I trust that you know what you’re doing.”

  “I’ve been to weddings like this before, and you will end up needing several outfits each day. Plus, I don’t know about you, but I feel better when I travel if I have a lot to choose from.”

  Lily nodded. She’d had a
modest upbringing, but her parents had loved to schlep her and her brother on weekend trips when she was growing up. “Yeah. I get that. It seems like a lot of clothes. I don’t want to go overboard when I’m not paying.”

  Charlotte’s eyebrows popped up into high peaks. “For what you’re doing, you deserve to be compensated well. Noah backed us into this corner in the first place.”

  “The video itself wasn’t really his fault. How could he have known that would happen?”

  “He couldn’t. The tabloids aren’t known for giving their prey a heads-up. But still. He’s the one who decided he needed to date half of the women in the city.”

  “I suppose he wasn’t doing himself any favors.” Lily sighed. What exactly was Noah looking for? A good time? If so, it was working. He always seemed very content—lots of women, and plenty happy about it.

  Charlotte took another gander at the department she’d upended. “Anything else?”

  “I trust you. Completely.” Charlotte had classic taste. Everything was fresh and modern, but not overly trendy.

  Lily went into the dressing room while Charlotte waited in an adjacent lounge, chatting away on the phone while Lily tried on outfit after outfit, parading about and seeking Charlotte’s two cents.

  “That is gorgeous on you,” Charlotte said when Lily stepped out in a flowing royal blue gown with skinny straps and a bit of a plunging neckline. “That’s perfect for the wedding. A definite yes.”

  Lily turned in front of the large dressing mirror. “You think it works?”

  “Yes. Just be careful when you’re wearing it around Noah.”

  Lily felt good in this dress, but thinking about it in the context of Noah seeing her in it made her extremely nervous. “You think he won’t like it?”

  “I think he’ll like it a little too much, but that’s his problem.” Charlotte shooed Lily back into the dressing room.

  A half hour later, Lily had five new dresses, three pairs of pants, six or seven blouses, and a raging headache from being under fluorescent lights for too long. Delia took everything to the register. “Now what?” Lily asked.

  “Shoes,” Charlotte answered flatly.

  “Seriously?”

  “I promise it’ll be quick.”

  Sure enough, as soon as they arrived in the shoe department, an enthusiastic salesman named Roger was waiting for them. Charlotte kissed him on both cheeks and introduced Lily. Charlotte had apparently called him ahead of time, because he presented Lily with some carefully curated options. “These are for travel. Can’t go wrong with classic black pumps.”

  Talk about an undersell. Lily had never imagined she’d own a pair of Christian Louboutin shoes. “Gorgeous.”

  “These are some fun beachcomber sandals you can wear with a sundress or going to the beach.” He set aside the first two boxes and pulled out a third pair—sky-high, sparkly and strappy. Two-thousand-dollar Jimmy Choo heels. “Absolutely gorgeous.”

  “Well? I’m thinking you can wear them for the wedding,” Charlotte said. “And before you say a thing about the price, that’s not the question. I want to know if you like them.”

  “I love them. All of them. But especially the silver ones.”

  “Perfect. Let’s get your size and we’ll get out of here. Roger, can you bring these to Delia?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Five minutes later, it was time to pay. Lily nearly fell over when she saw the total. “I still feel weird about this.” She pulled Noah’s credit card out of her purse and presented it to the clerk.

  “Don’t. This is part and parcel of your job this weekend. Not that you couldn’t with your own clothes, but I think you’ll have more fun if you have some new things.”

  “Okay. Thanks.” Lily might have to wait for her guilt to subside. She wasn’t an extravagant person.

  They took Lily’s packages and hopped on the escalator. As they rode down, Lily couldn’t help but notice that Charlotte was studying her. “Is something wrong?” Lily asked.

  “I think I should warn you ahead of time that my brother is almost guaranteed to try something this weekend.”

  “Try something?”

  “Make a move. When you’re alone.”

  “I’ll be fine. I can handle Noah.” Or so she hoped. The one time they’d been truly alone, in the back of his car, things got very hot and she’d lost her mind in no time at all.

  “I’m sure you can. And I’m not saying he won’t be a gentleman, because I know he will. But I also know that he’s the king of smooth. He’ll be all smiles and kind gestures and compliments.”

  “Isn’t that what all women want?”

  “Precisely why he’s so good at getting them. I don’t see any way he passes up the chance to be with you, especially when you’re staying in the same hotel room. I want you to be prepared.”

  Lily imagined herself as the most willing sitting duck in history. “It’ll be fine. I’m not worried about it. We’ve been alone lots of times in the office and he’s never been anything but professional.”

  Charlotte nodded, but there was skepticism behind her eyes. “I know. He’s handsome and all that. It’s fine if that’s what you want. But know that whatever happens, it won’t last. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

  They stepped off the escalator and rounded to descend to the ground floor. Lily was torn. There were a million reasons why Noah making a pass would be a bad thing—the sanctity of their working relationship, closely followed by the fragility of her own heart. She only wanted to believe in happy endings, and since she’d never had her own, it made her more gushy than most when it came to romance. A guy who only skirted it? He was a terrible idea.

  But there was this part of her that was so drawn to Noah and his magic—his smile, the way he made her pulse race when he walked into a room. It was impossible not to want more of that. She couldn’t help but want him, even when all logic said he wasn’t attainable. The thought of one night with him was incredibly tempting. And after their one passionate kiss? When he’d run his hand up her skirt and they’d both lost all sense of decorum? Her most base impulse was to throw caution to the wind when it came to Noah.

  But ultimately, she had to preserve not just her job, but her stake in Locke and Locke. Another job she could get. But if she wanted to make the most of that 1 percent? She needed to keep a very close eye on it. Anything less would be reckless and irresponsible.

  Five

  Ever organized, Lily was packed and ready to go thirty minutes early on Friday morning. She was dressed in a brand-new outfit, a wrap dress in coral pink, the new black pumps with the signature Louboutin red bottom and a sparkly necklace, bought on Noah’s dime. If ever there’d been a time when she looked confident and felt nothing of the sort, today was the day. Expectations galore had been foisted upon her for this trip. She had to appear as if she were a woman befitting the handsome and wealthy Noah Locke. And good God it made her nervous.

  After her chat with Charlotte at Saks, she forced herself to reframe her expectations. At that point on Tuesday, a day into her role of fake fiancée, she’d started relishing the part where she got to kiss and touch Noah a little too much. She needed to remind herself why she had no business getting her hopes up about Noah, but she hadn’t figured out how to shock herself into the right frame of mind. Then it came to her that morning in the shower. She needed to watch the video. She needed to see firsthand what was not only horribly embarrassing, but painfully true.

  With twenty more minutes until she had to leave, she sat down at her home computer. An internet search quickly produced what she needed. Since it had first run, the video had been picked up by a spate of gossipy websites. Noah’s dirty laundry was everywhere.

  She pushed Play, sat back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest. The voice-over started right away. Big Apple businessman, Noah Locke, of the Locke
hotel family, has been busy with the ladies over the last several months. And do we mean busy. Then came the barrage of images. Noah’s taste in women was hard to pin down—she’d give him that much, but there was no question that he was indeed a ladies’ man. Some were curvy, some were rail-thin. Some were statuesque, others petite.

  Lily took each image as it came. She was tough. The women in Noah’s life were a fact. She’d known this about him all along. Still, being confronted with the visual evidence created a stabbing sensation in her chest. It’s one thing to hear about a disaster, like a tornado ripping its way through a town, and quite another to see the footage of the actual devastation.

  The worst of it was everything they said about him—that he was just as much of a womanizer as his dad and that he treated women as if they meant nothing. Lily was certain the former wasn’t true, but she wasn’t so sure about the latter. Judging by the breadth of Noah’s female companions, it seemed safe to say that he saw no point in settling down.

  Lily powered off her computer. Why should Noah have to decide anything? Handsome, single and wealthy afforded him the freedom to do whatever he wanted. Why should anyone deny him what was his to have if he so chose? The women in Noah’s rotation had to have known what they were walking into when they agreed to go out with him. The rumor mill in the city was fierce. They had to know that Noah Locke was not the guy you get serious with. He was a fantasy, and a stunning one at that, but he wasn’t for keeps.

  Lily’s phone beeped with a text.

  We’re here. Do you need help with your bags?

  She replied to Noah.

  I’m good. I’ll be right down.

  However rattled she might be by having watched the video, she was glad she’d done it. It was a solid reminder of what this weekend was about—a business transaction designed to convince Lyle Hannafort that Noah could be trusted. Lily was a prop, and nothing more.

  She opened the door and reached for the handle on her roller bag when Noah appeared.

  “Morning.” Everything about him—his deep voice, his penetrating gaze and his casual confidence—stopped her dead in her tracks.