Colorado Billionaires Boxed Set (The Wedding Wager, The Wedding Hazard, The Wedding Venture)

by Regina Duke

  She retreated, stopping behind the bar to snag two suitcases and a makeup bag which would be used as an overnight case since her only makeup items fit tidily into her purse.

  Inside her room once again, she realized she hadn’t questioned Kevin about Jeffrey’s comment regarding his one-room apartment.

  “Darn it,” she muttered. She flung the empty suitcases on the bed and plopped into the tapestry chair by the writing table. A little card was teepeed next to a phone charger. It read, “Free WiFi for guests.”

  “My new phone!” She pulled her purse close and dug for her phone. She plugged it in to charge, and then pressed the icon for the internet browser. If Kevin was truly wealthy, there should be information about his family on the internet.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Kevin cleared his throat. “So, how did it go?”

  Jeffrey grinned. “Thanks for letting me do that. What a thrill! Here.” He held up a set of car keys. “You have fifteen days to register it.”

  “I’m glad you were able to entertain yourself while we did our touristy thing this afternoon.”

  Jeffrey opened the fridge behind the bar and pulled out a pair of beers.

  “Want one? No? Good, because I want two.” He popped them open and drained half the first one before continuing the report on his secret mission.

  “I went to that Ford dealership you were talking to yesterday afternoon, and found the fellow you told me about. Explained the situation, about you being a wealthy recluse and all that nonsense, and wham, bam, he says pick out a color. Picked a green gem Ford Expedition, by the way. Looks black in the shade, dark green in the sun. Even got to test drive it for you.”

  “Did you pick out any extras?”

  “Oh, yeah! Four-wheel-drive, AC, the usual, but also leather seats, premium sound system, DVD player for the back seat. Park assist, rear sensors, the whole nine yards. Awesome.”

  Kevin smiled. “Good. You had a good time, then?”

  “The best part was tonight. I pulled up in the limo. The fellow from the limo rental was there, just like you arranged for. He took over the limo, and I walked in with the papers you signed before I left. Wham, bam again. Cash really speeds up the new car purchase, you know?”

  Kevin chuckled. “My mother has been telling me that for years. She’ll be pleased when I tell her she was right.” He pocketed the keys. “You have your ticket?”

  “Sure do.” Jeffrey patted his jacket pocket. “My car is in the parking garage. Sure you don’t mind me hanging out in this suite for an extra night?”

  “Consider it a bonus,” said Kevin. “Just don’t break any laws.”

  Jeffrey grinned from ear to ear.

  Kevin returned to the sofa where the room service cart was within reach. He poked through the plates to see if there was anything else he wanted. He lifted one last lid and his eyes glowed with pleasure at the sight of the pastry array.

  “Come have coffee and dessert. You have everything you need to get your rental car at the other end?”

  “Yep. You sure you want me to keep using your card?”

  “Of course. You’re on the clock. These are my expenses, not yours.”

  “Cool.” Jeffrey waved off dessert and lifted his second beer in the air. But he settled on the facing sofa, unbuttoned his chauffeur’s jacket, and stretched out. “When I came in, it sounded like you and Megan were getting to know each other a little better.” He wagged his eyebrows. “Sorry if I interrupted anything.”

  “Don’t be crude. We were laughing, that’s all. I am allowed to have a laugh or two with my future bride, right?”

  “Grumpy, grumpy. Hey, man, how’s your sister doing? What is she now, fifteen?”

  “Fourteen. She’s having a rough time. Trying to find herself. The old man is threatening to send her to a finishing school in Geneva. That’s the girl equivalent of being sent to military school. It would kill her free spirit to go there.”

  “Free spirit, huh? That’s what they call mental illness these days?”

  “She’s not sick, Jeff. She’s just in a phase.”

  Jeffrey’s eyes grew big. “Okay, then. Have you told Megan about your mentally healthy family and all their phases?”

  “Smart ass. Not yet. That’s the reason we need to drive to Colorado. It’ll give me time to educate her about the family. The whole idea is for this wedding to look as real as possible. I don’t want my dad’s lawyers picking up on any gaps in her knowledge and using that as a lever in a courtroom to suggest I’m just doing this for the trust.”

  “Right,” said Jeffrey. “Whatever you have to tell yourself.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “You and I both know you’re terrified of flying, dude.”

  Kevin made a face. “Well, that is an additional motivator, I admit.”

  Jeffrey laughed. “You’d better be sure she knows what to expect when she gets to the ranch or you’re going to have a mess on your hands.”

  Kevin’s voice was dark and sarcastic. “Gee, thanks for reminding me that this whole charade could get even darker.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  Megan typed Kevin’s name into the tiny phone screen. “Wake” turned out to be a fairly uncommon name. She found “wake surfing sites,” videos of the band “Wake the Dead,” and dozens of references to articles dealing with politics “in the wake of” various gun-related crimes. But no Kevin Wake. She rubbed her eyes. What was Kevin’s father’s first name? She couldn’t remember.

  But surely if the Wake family was wealthy and owned a big ranch, wouldn’t that show up? She found dozens of real estate listings for ranches for sale, but none of them were associated with the surname Wake.

  She took a deep breath and wondered if she should resort to her mother’s method for calming her fears. Her mother used to say childhood prayers with her. But without her mother’s reassuring presence in the room, Megan didn’t think it would work. Then she was instantly ashamed. After growing up in the household of the two most devout people she knew, she felt she should have carried more of their faith away with her. Maybe she would try again after she finished packing.

  After all, it wasn’t as if she were going to back out of her agreement with Kevin now. She had to go through with this marriage, if for no other reason than she had signed the prenup. Her word was her bond. But beyond that, she desperately wanted her medical bills to be paid and be free of that debt without ruining her financial life before she even got started on a career.

  “Think of this as your first job,” she said rationally. “You will receive a huge bonus when it’s done. Focus on that.”

  Yes, a huge bonus if Kevin was really a wealthy man. And if he wasn’t?

  Maybe the trust was on his mother’s side of the family. It must be. After all, she was the one who wanted information about Megan’s dress size and shoe size so she could get the ball rolling with regard to the wedding on the ranch.

  What was his mother’s maiden name? Didn’t Kevin mentioned it to her during her interview? She squeezed her eyes shut and demanded the interview scene to play in her mind. She used to do that during tests at school, replaying scenes of herself studying a certain topic, and with practice she’d gotten quite good at it. And her old skills did not fail her now. There it was. His mother’s name was Fineman. And he had doodled “Krystal” at the top of his list.

  She opened her eyes and typed the name into the Google search box. The screen filled with links related to Krystal Fineman Wake. She scrolled to the bottom of the screen. There were over ten pages of links related to Kevin’s mother. Dozens of articles had been written about her charitable giving. One of the articles praised her for maintaining her involvement in Colorado ranching while maintaining a home in New York City. A rescue organization for horses devoted an entire page to her donation history. She had also funded special education groups, private schools, and programs to benefit underprivileged children. One such program involved horseback riding as therapy for handicap
ped kids.

  Curious, Megan clicked on the link and found photos of different children perched on the backs of large horses. The kids facial expressions ranged from serene to gleeful. A rugged looking man dressed for working on a ranch was shown leading several of the horses. Megan squinted to read the caption, then remembered that she could enlarge the print with a movement of her fingers. She did so.

  The caption read “Zachary King, foreman of the Finemans’ Rocking Eagle Ranch, assists a young rider.”

  “That must be it,” said Megan. “Okay, his mother’s family owns a ranch and they let kids ride their horses. And she gives lots of money to charity. So he should be able to pay my medical bills.” Reassured, she turned the phone off and began packing for her trip to Colorado.

  It didn’t take as long as she thought it would, because everything she owned, she had purchased the day before. She marveled at how little she had actually acquired. But then, a woman can only do so much in a three hour period at the mall. She hoped she had enough to get her through the next five days. Surely there would be a washer and dryer at the ranch. She sighed wearily.

  The thought occurred to her that she could ask Kevin for a bigger clothing allowance, but she cringed at the idea. She didn’t want this arrangement to turn her into a scheming, money-centered shopping queen. She’d spent her entire life learning how to get by on what was available.

  Then she remembered that she had a thousand in cash in her purse. If she needed more clothes, perhaps she could borrow a car and find the nearest thrift store. Her money would go a long way there.

  Smiling to herself and feeling much more confident about Kevin’s access to funds, she got ready for bed. She knew he was keeping something from her, possibly several somethings, but he had also signed the prenup, and one thing was certain. He needed to get married before his twenty-fifth birthday or he would lose everything.

  Well, he hadn’t put it exactly like that, but Megan had the distinct impression that he was at least as desperate as she was. One way or another she would get those medical bills off her back. Her parents would be appalled at the size of those bills.

  “Mom!” Megan hadn’t called her mother yet! She dug through her purse and found the string of numbers for the Guatemalan home where her parents were staying the last time she’d heard from her mother. She squeezed her eyes shut. “What time is it there?” She glanced at the time display on her phone. “Midnight! Oh, no. I can’t call now. It’s one a.m. there. I’ll wake the whole house.” She sighed. “I’ll call tomorrow, mom. I promise.”

  She wondered as she fluffed her pillow how long they would stay married. Clearly, they would each be expecting to separate at some point and get on with their own lives. She wanted to find a good man for herself, one that never yelled the way her father did. She wanted a man who was strong but gentle, the way Kevin was in the Market, helping her navigate the crowds. She wanted a man with a sense of humor, someone to laugh with. Just like she’d been laughing with Kevin when he threatened her blouse with his onion ring.

  As sleep dragged her into dreamland, she realized with a tickle of surprise that she wanted a man just like Kevin.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Monday, June 25

  Kevin woke up at the first ugly beep of the hotel alarm clock. It was the second worst way to wake up. The first worst was by the ringing of a phone, so he hadn’t requested a wake-up call. His backup was his phone, and by the time he swung his legs over the side of the bed, his phone began singing to him. He turned it off on his way to the shower.

  He’d arranged for early morning coffee and breakfast before he went to bed. He wanted to enjoy as much of the hotel suite as he could, considering the amount of cash he’d handed over at registration.

  But then, by Megan’s measuring stick, he was just playing at money worries. He had to admit, she had a point. It never occurred to him that a bankruptcy was a life ruining decision. In the world of business, people did what they had to do and didn’t attach any shame or failure to a Chapter 11. At least, people on his father’s level gave that impression. And he was embarrassed to admit that he had never given it much thought.

  Megan had, though. The burden of her debt was not yet enough to send her to a bankruptcy lawyer. She didn’t even want to consider the possibility. He was amazed that she had worked two jobs to get through school. He had to admire her character. And to be honest, he was reassured by the fact that she was so scrupulous about money.

  And yet, such a focus on finances could mean that he’d been right from the first. She could still be planning to work some kind of blackmail on him.

  As he soaped and rinsed and shampooed, he chided himself for his lingering doubts. Was this another gift from his old man? Would he go through life suspecting everyone of wanting to get their hands on his money?

  He snorted. It wasn’t his yet. And it wouldn’t be his, until he and Megan were married. What if she changed her mind? He would be powerless to help his sister and kid brother if this thing fell through. And what if his old man found a way to scare her off? Or worse?

  Kevin picked out his clothes with a road trip in mind. He’d been up late packing his bags. A part of him wanted to run by his one-room apartment before he left town, but that would give his situation away, and he couldn’t risk that. No, if he needed anything along the way, he’d just shell out more of his hoarded allowance.

  He’d asked his mother the night before about extra funding.

  “I may need some financial backup on this, mother.”

  “You’ve been hoarding everything I sent you for a long time, Kevin. That’s more than enough to attract a bride. Your primary mission is to get her to the ranch. Once you’re here, I can slip you whatever you need. But I will not do a bank transfer that your father can chase down. I refuse to give him any more ammunition against you.”

  “How do you know I’ve been saving it?”

  “The same way your father will know if I send you any extra.”

  The memory of that conversation only strengthened his determination to prove his father wrong. Was there any part of his life that his old man could not spy on?

  He slipped into a pair of his favorite faded jeans and an olive tee, but he hesitated about his shoes. He’d gotten very comfortable wearing running shoes all day, every day, but for once in his life he wasn’t trying to fit in as an ordinary guy. He actually needed people to perceive him as the man his mother wanted him to be. With a groan of protest at the necessity, he slipped his feet into a pair of expensive Italian loafers.

  He’d forgotten how comfy they were. Okay, so it wasn’t too big a sacrifice.

  He glanced at the clock. Seven a.m. Still time too check email.

  He smiled at the memory of their food fight as he left his suite. He’d captured her right there, next to his bedroom door. She had a very pleasant laugh, and seemed to be genuinely having fun. He warmed at the thought of her lips so close to his. It was probably for the best that Jeffrey interrupted them. He shouldn’t get too involved. He couldn’t let himself be pulled into a situation where he actually cared about Megan. That would make ending their charade much more difficult. He needed to look at the whole situation like a business deal. Just like his father would.

  He heard a soft knock at the door. Room service was right on time. He tipped the waiter and poured himself a cup of coffee. The aroma soothed him. He picked a maple bar off the platter. The cloying sweetness was the perfect mate to the coffee. He opened his laptop and settled on a chair as it warmed up.

  When he went away to college, his sister Karla had only been seven years old and his baby brother Keegan was literally a baby. He saw them sporadically over the years, always when his father was away in Europe or when his mother took them to the ranch for summer vacation. He’d even managed to spend a few Christmases with them, again at the ranch, because Douglas Wake had grown fond of spending his holidays abroad. He called them “working holidays” and claimed that trying to do business with the
children underfoot was pointless.

  Karla worshipped her brother, and for over a year she’d been hinting that he should let her come visit him in Seattle. More recently she even hinted that she might show up unannounced, because things were becoming more and more difficult at home. Whether their father was around or not, he insisted on controlling her life with heavy-handed threats about special schools for unruly girls. Karla was looking for a way out, and Kevin was worried sick that her behavior was escalating along with her desperation. But bringing her to Seattle, even for a brief visit, would only aggravate his father further. In addition, with a one-room apartment and the hours he worked, he wasn’t comfortable with that idea. She was fourteen now and needed her privacy. For that matter, so did he. When this was all over, he would do more for her. If he had to give up his freedom to ensure his siblings’ future, he should at least allow himself a comfortable home, a place where his troubled sister could find refuge.

  Kevin had three different email accounts. He used one for those rare occasions when his father had to communicate with him. The second one was his general email account. And the third was reserved for reaching out to Karla. He checked that account first.

  Karla had sent him an attachment. He smiled. Sometimes she would chronicle her life on her phone, then send him an illustrated journal. This email had only one photo attached. He clicked on “download.”

  The photo popped up on his screen.

  The smile froze on Kevin’s face. His pleasant anticipation faded to grim concern. The photo was captioned, “Self portrait.”

  “Oh, Karla,” he groaned, “what are you doing to yourself?”

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Megan popped out of bed before her alarm sounded. She picked out a pair of pale green capris to go with the touristy tee she’d bought the day before. It made her smile, and she needed all the good humor she could get if she wanted to survive her business arrangement.