The one person I didn’t see was my wife. I moved quietly behind the crowd, although I didn’t think that I could have pulled their attention away with anything short of a gunshot, and headed to the hall.
“What do you mean she’s planning on staying the week? Brendan is going to have a hernia if he finds out. This isn’t some resort. It’s a working ranch, and she’s just going to distract them,” Jillian said frantically to a man who looked big enough to knock me out with one swing.
“She’s already distracting them,” I growled as I walked up behind her. “Sweetheart. Care to explain what your famous client is doing with her butt planted on my kitchen counter?”
Her eyes widened just a little. “Before you get upset, please know that I had no idea that she was coming here. She just showed up because she was upset about not winning the award, and I have an obligation to my client.”
“Jillian, you’re not here to be a therapist. You’re here to be my wife,” I reminded her as I tried to keep my temper in check.
Anger stained her cheeks, and she took a defiant step toward me. “First of all, I can be both. One has absolutely nothing to do with the other. Secondly, as your wife, I should be allowed to have guests here.”
This was new. Now, suddenly, she wanted to play the role of wife? Leaning against the wall, I crossed my arms. “Two seconds ago you were asking the big guy here to leave. Now suddenly she’s a welcome guest?”
“The big guy has a name.” She turned to him expectantly, but he stayed silent. She growled in frustration but carried on. “And he’s Cindy’s bodyguard.”
“Excellent, he can be her bodyguard somewhere else.”
“Brendan.”
“How long has she been here? Thirty minutes? In the thirty minutes that she’s been here, she’s distracted everybody on this ranch. Everybody. I went to close up for the day, and I couldn’t find a single soul. Not to mention that there are at least a dozen horses still out in the pasture who haven’t been fed or closed up for the night. I wanted dinner, Jillian. I wanted to finish up, have a nice dinner, and seduce you, but now I can’t do any of that. She’s not staying the week.”
“Two days. I promise that she won’t make it longer than that. She’s not really the ranch type, trust me, but I actually think some time away from the spotlight might be good.”
“If you want her to be away from the spotlight, then you need to move that damn eyesore away from the ranch before my place is swarming with paparazzi,” I sighed as I relented. “Two days, Jillian. And then I expect her to be gone. And while she’s here, you better make sure that she’s not distracting my people. Got it?”
She bobbed her head up and down. “Yes. Absolutely.”
When she didn’t move immediately, I looked toward the kitchen. “Now, Jillian. I’ve got things I need to do that I can’t do with everyone worshipping her.”
“Right.” She scrambled out, and I turned to look at the big guy. “Bodyguard, huh? Fun job?”
“I majored in art history,” he sighed. “We’ll take a suite if you have one. Or adjoining rooms?”
“This isn’t a hotel, pal. I’ll move Jillian out of the guest room.” At least something good would come of this. “And you can bunk on the sofa unless you want to share a bed with your client.”
“You couldn’t pay me enough.” He grinned. “A sofa will do. I’m Hoss, by the way.”
A big guy like that named Hoss? No wonder he ended up being a bodyguard.
He followed me into the kitchen. Jillian had gotten most of my employees back outside, and I went to check on their progress. I was eager to talk to Gordon about what he’d found, but I had a feeling that he was going to stick around for dinner. In fact, I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to get him to leave that night.
My hopes for a quick and quiet dinner preceding a little coaxing to get Jillian naked again crumbled. It wasn’t just Gordon at the table. It was also Ben, Debra, Kim, and the star herself. Oh, and her art history bodyguard.
The most surprising thing was that my sister was sitting next to Jillian, and they were chatting like old friends.
Jillian’s gaze met mine from across the room, and held a warning. With a sigh, I took my seat.
The actress immediately looked my way and beamed. “You must be Brendan. Wow, nobody told me that you had a face that would give most of my male co-stars a run for their money. And a body to match. I think I see now why Jillian doesn’t return to the city. I wouldn’t either if I was trying to worm my way into your bed. Of course, Jillian can be a bit of a prude when it comes to sex.”
Jillian flushed, and I felt my body tighten with anger. This was what Jillian considered a friend? “Actually, Jillian is my wife,” I said coolly. “And I don’t believe her sexual activities are any of your business.”
A hush fell over the table, and everyone looked at Cindy nervously. I half expected the woman to throw a temper tantrum, but she just stared at Jillian. “Married? You’re married? I thought you were dating that professor guy.”
“She was, and now she isn’t,” I cut in. “This is my home, and while you are in my home, you will respect my wife.”
“Brendan,” Jillian said tightly. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”
Cindy waved her hands around and laughed. “Sweetheart, there’s no need for that. He is absolutely right. I start talking, and I don’t even think. But you are going to have to tell me the story of this marriage of yours. You know all of my drama. It’s only fair that I get to know some of yours.”
The tension eased, and I relaxed a little. Soon, everyone’s attention was on the starlet beauty as she regaled them with stories of Hollywood. She was a natural showman, and she just soaked up the attention she was getting. Even Ben, the man that I expected to have a solid head on his shoulders, was taken in by her theatrics.
I kept my eye on Jillian. She was obviously uncomfortable as she ate and kept quiet throughout dinner. I wondered if part of it was because she was used to Cindy or if she was thinking about the remark that Cindy had made earlier.
If only Cindy knew. Jillian sure as well was no prude. Her abstinence from sex had nothing to do with morals and everything to do with pain. Pain that I had helped cause.
It didn’t escape my noticed that Kim also seemed a bit cold to me. Was this how things were going to work with her? She was either going to hate Jillian or hate me?
The atmosphere at the table grew more and more wearisome as the time passed. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Cindy finally announced that she needed to go to bed. Kim immediately jumped up to help her, and Jillian and Hoss naturally followed. Debra and Ben started cleaning up the table.
“Gordon,” I said, snapping my fingers in front of my friend as he stared at the empty hallway. “Focus, man. She’s just a person with a job.”
“Do you think her bodyguard could kill me? I was considering attempting to sneak into her room tonight, but the man looks like he might snap my neck.”
Irritated, I rolled my eyes. “I would snap your neck if you tried that. First of all, that’s creepy. You don’t just sneak into women’s bedrooms without permission, and secondly, you and I have some business to discuss. Do you think that you can hold it together?”
“Huh?” He wrinkled his nose. “Yeah. Sure. Let me just grab my papers out of the car.”
As he stepped outside, I cleared my place and headed to the kitchen. Debra and Ben were by the sink. He whispered something in her ear and lightly rested his hand around her waist. She giggled, actually giggled, and looked up at him. Their lips met briefly, and both of them grinned.
“I hate to interrupt the moment,” I said dryly. “But this is my kitchen.”
They quickly broke apart like two ashamed teenagers. Ben’s face was red as a beat, and Debra’s eyes flashed in temper. “Before you start on us, I’d like to remind you that there’s nothing in our contracts that says we can’t be together.”
“Uh-huh,” I muttered.
“A
nd we’ve been completely professional while we’re at work. This is dinner, personal time, and not work,” she snapped.
“It’s personal time in my kitchen,” I said mildly as I put my plate on the counter.
“Damn it, Brendan, are you going to make a big deal about this?”
Pinching the bridge of my nose, I opened the fridge and grabbed another beer. “You’re the one making a big deal of it. I’m just trying to clean my plate. You want to know my opinion? I think it’s about damn time Ben pulled his head out of his ass and gave you a chance. As long as it doesn’t interfere with work, I don’t care what the two of you do.”
There was a beat of silence, and Ben cleared his throat. “Thank you, Brendan. I appreciate that.”
Clapping my hand on his back, I nodded. “Good. Now go home. I don’t expect to see either one of you here until Monday, and for god’s sake, get some sleep. The two of you look like hell.”
Debra blushed, something I thought I’d never see, but gave me a small smile. As they scampered out, I finished the dishes and chugged my beer. I wasn’t really in the mood for romance, but I liked to see my friends happy.
“I’m back,” Gordon announced as he slapped his briefcase on the counter. “It turns out that Dennis Blackwell has had his hand in a lot of pies for several years. He’s been playing the shell game, and it took a lot of time to dig this information up. You’re paying out the nose for it too.”
“As long as it’s good, I don’t really care what I’m paying for it,” I grunted. “Go for it.”
“He’s been hiding things from his daddy. After sorting through about twenty different shell corporations, I found a small company, and by small, I mean it has only one employee, that has applied for a business license here in the county.”
“Is that one employee Dennis Blackwell?”
“Actually, it’s not. It’s a lawyer. Dennis doesn’t pay him directly, which is why it took us some time to make the connection, and why Harry probably doesn’t know. This lawyer submitted plans to the agricultural planning committee to open a resort on Harry’s land.”
I nearly choked on my beer. “A resort? Who the hell is going to pay to stay on a ranch?”
“People like Cindy Collins,” he said as he nodded at her empty seat. “It’s going to be a luxury style cowboy experience ranch.” He pulled out another piece of paper and slid it across the table. “We’re talking about a lot of development over that land. A rustic bed and breakfast that is supposed to look like a five-star hotel. Three different restaurants. An Olympic-sized pool as well as a golf course and tennis courts.”
“How the hell is anyone going to have the cowboy experience with all that going on?” I demanded.
“They’re keeping room for things like a rodeo and a racetrack. The horses will be forced onto a much smaller amount of land, and he plans to bring in some cattle as well.” Gordon shook his head. “I can already tell you right now that the county would be a fool not to accept the plan. All they’re going to be thinking about is money.”
“It would ruin this town,” I snapped. “Forcing horses on that small of a space is abuse, and the noise alone would ruin this ranch. Not to mention that targeting people who have no respect for anything is a huge mistake. They’d turn this town into their personal playground. There isn’t a chance in hell that Harry will let that happen.”
“You’re right.” Gordon gathered his papers. “We’ll present this to him next week. You’ve won, Brendan. You don’t need Jillian to convince Harry anymore. The charade is over.”
“What charade?” Jillian asked as she walked back into the kitchen. My stomach immediately tightened. If she knew that we could end our little deal right now, would she stay?
Could I take that chance?
“Ben and Debra are together,” I said quickly before Gordon could answer. It wasn’t a lie. It just wasn’t really answering her question.
She flashed me an amused smile. “I think everyone on this ranch knew that except for you.” Opening a beer, she leaned against the counter. “I seem to be out of a bed.”
“You can always come home with me,” Gordon said with a wink.
I glowered at him. “Go home. We’ll schedule a meeting next week. And Gordon? Thank you. You did good work.”
He bowed just a little. “I always do good work. Good night, guys. Brendan, don’t make that woman sleep on the floor.”
As if there was a chance. When he was gone, I looked at her evenly. “What’s it going to be, Jillian? The floor or my bed?”
“Kim offered to share hers,” she said with a mischievous smile. “Seems big enough, and she promises that she doesn’t snore.”
Quick as a flash, I had her in my arms. “I don’t snore,” I grumbled as I moved my head down for a kiss. She opened to me easily and without hesitation, and I deepened the kiss until she sighed with pleasure.
“You do snore,” she whispered. “But that’s okay. You make up for it in other ways.”
She protested, but I sat her beer on the counter and swept her up in my arms. Tonight, she was going to be in my bed. Tonight, I was reclaiming her as mine.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Jillian
Brendan was pissed, but he was doing his best to hide it. I was grateful for that. Cindy had done little to temper her extravagance. It was barely midmorning, and she was perched on Ben’s desk in the stable office with a glass of white wine in one hand and her cell phone in the other.
First, she complained that her Twitter feed wasn’t loading fast enough, and when it did load, all she did was look at the posts congratulating the other actress on her big win the other night.
“If it upsets you, stop looking at it,” I said with a sigh as I tried to read the most recent emails from my advisor. It was starting to look like my most recent draft of my dissertation was going to be a winner, but I was too cautious to pump my hands in the air just yet. There were still things that needed fixing.
“How can I avoid it?” she wailed. “It’s all over Twitter! Sheryl Letter’s stupid face and everyone congratulating her!”
“Then close Twitter. Cindy, you’re at a horse ranch. Have you ever been to a horse ranch before?” I was about to look up at her when another email caught my eye.
Don?
“No. It’s not exactly on my bucket list.”
The disdain in her voice distracted me. “Cindy, no one dragged you out here. You came on your own, and Brendan is letting you stay even though he’s not happy about it. You’re a guest. Be respectful. Maybe do a little exploring while you’re here. What if the next big role you get is working on a ranch? You can say that you have a working knowledge of a ranch.”
Cocking her head, she slowly lowered her glass of wine. “Jillian, you are absolutely right. I should be taking this loss as a kick in the ass to work harder. Where is that hunky husband of yours? I’m going to grill him on his job.”
Whoops.
Grimacing, I tried to stop her. Not thirty minutes ago, Brendan had taken his paperwork, shot us both an ugly glare, and stormed out. I was sure the last thing he wanted was Cindy grilling him, but she was a hurricane, and I couldn’t stop her.
Not that I actually tried too hard. There was something going on with Brendan, and I had no idea what that something was. Maybe Cindy could irritate him enough to tell me what was on his mind.
Alone in the office, I pulled my email back up and stared at it. In the six weeks since we’d broken up, he hadn’t once tried to get in contact with me. I’d barely even thought of him, so what was this about? Were he and my advisor talking again about my dissertation? I thought I’d made it clear that I didn’t want Don reading it.
Steeling myself, I opened the email up and nearly fell out of the chair. It wasn’t a professional email at all. It was a plea for a second chance.
Well, plea was a strong word for someone like Don. Rather, it was a stiffly worded short thesis on why he believed we should give our relationship a second chance. I
n it, he’d outlined all the ways in which we were alike, and as I read them, I felt myself dying a little inside.
Professional.
Goal-oriented.
Motivated in both academics and application of academics.
Not distracted by personal emotions.
It read like a resume, and it made us both seem cold and robotic. Was that really the woman that I’d turned into? Someone who would have read this email and been flattered?
I growled low in my chest as I read the last of the email.
But, my dear, I shall forgive you for your faults and also forgive you for the current unfortunate situation in which you find yourself. With my blessing, utilize this time to focus on improving your dissertation. When you return to real life, I will fully support a quiet divorce, after which, we shall marry quickly.
A wave of nausea cascaded through me. I grew so dizzy that I nearly fell out of the chair. Standing, I gripped the desk and tried to right myself.
“Jillian? Christ, what’s wrong?” Brendan was at my side and steadying me as he circled his hands around my waist. “Take a deep breath. Maybe you should sit back down.”
“I don’t need to sit down,” I managed as I straightened and braced myself against his body. He was rock-steady as I took a deep breath. “Just a little dizzy spell, that’s all.”
“You’re so pale. What happened, baby?”
I’d just had a good and hard look in the mirror. Nothing major.
“Just looking through my emails.”
“Probably staring at the screen too long. Happens to me all the time,” Cindy declared behind Brendan. “Or maybe it’s because you realized that you’re about the hottest therapist in the city.”
I glared at her. I’d had a long talk with her last night about not discussing the invitation with anyone and that included Brendan. Once again, my words had gone through one ear and out the other.
“Easy,” Brendan murmured as he pulled me closer and kissed the top of my head. “Keep breathing. Want me to get you some water?”
Reclaiming My Wife Page 19