“Apparently the guys are doing golf and a kegger.”
An entire day at the spa sounded like a very big time commitment to Angelica. But she reminded herself she was striving for work-life balance. She’d figure out a way to swing it. It would take a few extra late nights, but she’d make up the time.
“Let’s do it,” Angelica said with conviction.
“It’s a date,” said Kayla. “Now, let’s go see how the guys look.” She ushered Angelica and Tiffany toward the doorway.
Leaving the dress shop, they passed through a storefront full of flowers, stemware and satin accessories, then passed under an archway to the tux fitting area.
Though there were several men in the room, Angelica’s gaze immediately zeroed in on Evan. There was no word for him but magnificent. Standing in front of a triple mirror, he wore a classic black tuxedo, with a black vest and a white shirt. His tie was silver, with a subtle stripe of ice pink. The other groomsman, Silas, was wearing an identical outfit, while Matt had differentiated his outfit with a silver vest and a plain, black tie.
“Go stand beside them.” Kayla sounded excited. “Matt, get out of the way.”
“Are you turning into bridezilla?” Matt joked, stepping aside.
“Tiffany says I have two weeks to get everything all my own way.”
Evan’s gaze came to rest on Angelica, sweeping from her head to her toes and back again. It left a trail of heat in its wake.
Tiffany gave Angelica a subtle nudge, reminding her she was supposed to go stand next to Evan. She took a deep breath and forced her feet to move.
His gaze stayed on her as she approached. The warmth in his eyes was unmistakable. But she reminded herself she was angry with him. He’d told Deke their secret, after swearing he wouldn’t.
“Nice dress,” he offered in an intimate tone.
“Nice tux,” she returned a little more crisply.
“Shall we?” He gestured to the big mirror.
Girding herself, she turned.
Her breath immediately caught in her throat. She knew it was the clothing, but they looked like the perfect couple. For a long moment, she was certain, someplace deep down in her soul, that they belonged together.
She frantically shook off the feeling.
“I’ll be taller.” She came up on her toes, trying to do something, anything, to erase the perfect picture. “I’ll have higher shoes.”
“I’ll still have you beat,” he pointed out. He was right. Her height was far from being a match for his.
“It works,” Kayla called out from behind them. “You guys look terrific together. Everybody strike a dance pose.”
Angelica dropped her heels back down to the floor, and shifted sideways. The last thing she wanted to do was hug Evan. But he slipped an arm around her waist, using the momentum to turn her around, and pull her snug against his shoulder.
“Act natural,” he whispered against her ear. “Remember, they think we’re back together.”
She found her voice. “Deke doesn’t.” A welcome wall of anger went up around her feelings. “You told Deke.”
“Smile,” said Evan.
“I lied to my brothers, and you went and told Deke.”
“Can we not talk about this right now?” He took her hand in his and struck a dance pose.
“He told Tiffany. So now she knows.”
Evan snuggled her to his body, and a rush of desire flooded her skin. “Later.”
“Why did you tell Deke?”
“Because it was more dangerous to keep him in the dark.”
“You want me to trust you, yet—”
“I wanted you to trust me five months ago. You didn’t.”
“And it turns out I was right.”
“Angie? Is everything okay?” Kayla’s tone was searching.
Angelica quickly planted a smile on her face. “It’s perfect. I love the dress. Evan is just arguing with me about shoes.”
“What’s to argue?” Kayla asked. “We haven’t even bought them yet.”
“He’s afraid the heels will be too high,” said Angelica. “And he’ll look short.”
“He can always come shopping with us,” Kayla offered.
“Great idea,” said Angelica. “Let’s take Evan shoe-shopping.”
“I’m afraid I’m busy,” said Evan, while Matt and Silas laughed at him.
“We can reschedule, so that you can come along,” Kayla offered sweetly.
“No need,” said Evan. “Whatever the bride wants will be perfectly fine with me.”
“That’s the spirit,” said Matt.
“What the bride wants is for everyone to be happy,” said Kayla. “So, no more arguing.”
“Yes, ma’am,” said Evan. “I’ll do everything in my power to keep Angie’s temper in check.”
“Excuse me?” Angelica retorted. “You’re suggesting I’m the problem?”
“There is no problem, sweetheart,” said Evan. Then he dropped a kiss on her mouth.
Through the roar of her body’s reaction, she heard Kayla say, “It’s so great to see you two back together again.”
* * *
Angelica knew she had to put some distance between her and Evan. A minivan had followed them home from the dress fitting last night. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out it had been a reporter.
Since the Lassiter mansion was partially visible from the gates, Evan had made a show of walking her to the front door. He’d suggested coming inside to make it look good, but she’d flatly refused, prompting him to give her a lingering good-night kiss. She’d almost kissed him back. She’d come within a split second of giving in when he finally broke away.
Afterward, she’d lain awake half the night in frustration. When she finally fell asleep in the early morning hours, she dreamed of making love to him. She knew she had to get away.
It took her half the day to come up with a viable excuse to get out of L.A. But then Noah Moore, the vice president of LBS family programming at the Lassiter Media offices in Cheyenne handed it to her on a silver platter.
While Evan had been in charge of Lassiter Media, he’d bought up the licensing of several stations in Britain and Australia. Then this morning, Angelica had reviewed the drama series proposal from Conrad Norville. It was an undeniably exciting show idea, targeted to LBS.
She was impressed with Conrad’s work, and made a quick decision to commission a first season. Once she got past the mental roadblock of only using original programming developed in-house on LBS, she realized Lassiter could make an American version of the top-rated shows from the new British and Australian affiliates.
But Noah Moore hated the idea. Which meant Angelica needed to bring him on side. And it made sense for her do that in person. Normally, she’d have asked him to fly to L.A. But right now, she was jumping at the excuse to get out of the city for a couple of days.
At Van Nuys Airport, she went out onto the tarmac and mounted the steps to the Lassiter Media corporate jet. The plane comfortably sat twelve, but it would only be Angelica today, since she didn’t see any need to drag her assistant along.
She’d meet with the managers who worked from the Lassiter offices in Cheyenne, convince Noah Moore of the merit of her plans, then spend some time at Big Blue. There was no place better than Big Blue with its rustic beauty for her to rest and regroup. There wouldn’t be a single tabloid reporter for hundreds of miles.
The jet pilot greeted her at the door. “Welcome aboard, Ms. Lassiter.”
She gave the fiftyish man a smile. “Hello, Captain Sheridan.”
“Looks like a smooth flight tonight.” He stepped back so that she could easily enter the aircraft. “They’re calling for a bit of turbulence over the Rockies, but I think we can avoid it if we take a higher altitude.”
“That’s great to hear, Cap—” As she turned into the body of the aircraft, she stumbled to a halt. “What are you doing here?”
“Is something wrong?” asked Captain Sheri
dan from behind her.
“Going to Cheyenne,” Evan answered with a lazy grin.
He was sitting in the second row, wearing blue jeans and a tan T-shirt, an ankle propped up on the opposite knee. A half-full bottle of beer sat on the table in front of him.
“Who invited you?”
“Chance,” said Evan.
“Ms. Lassiter?” the captain asked.
She turned back. “Evan is not coming with us.”
“I don’t understand. Mr. Lassiter advised us that we would have—”
“Hey, Angie.” Tiffany came into view behind the captain.
“Tiff?” Angelica reached out to steady herself on the back of a white leather seat. “Is something wrong?”
Tiffany grinned. “Everything’s great.”
“Four passengers tonight,” the captain finished.
Deke appeared behind Tiffany. “Good evening, Captain.” He shook the man’s hand. “I’ve never seen Big Blue,” he told Angelica. “I can’t wait.”
“Stop,” Angelica shouted.
Everyone went silent.
“What’s going on here?”
Evan rolled to his feet, moving close to her, lowering his voice. “We’re going to Cheyenne.”
“No, we’re not. I’m going to Cheyenne.”
“And the rest of us will keep you company.”
“Is this a joke?”
“No, it’s a con. Remember?” He tipped his head toward the back of the plane. “Let’s talk in private.”
Angelica quickly skimmed through her options. She could stamp her foot and kick them off the aircraft. She could leave herself, refusing to go on the trip. Or she could give in and let Evan get his way.
None of the options appealed to her.
“We’re ready to go, Sheridan,” Evan told the captain.
Angelica opened her mouth to protest. Evan wasn’t the CEO any longer. This was her airplane. The captain was her employee.
“Very good, sir,” Captain Sheridan replied.
Tiffany had flown on the jet in the past, and she helped herself to a mini bottle of wine from the cooler.
“You thirsty?” she asked Deke.
Evan snagged his beer and began backing away toward the rear of the plane.
“Come on,” he told Angelica. “I need to talk to you.”
“I’ll take a beer,” said Deke. “Are those cashews?”
“I can’t believe you’re pulling this stunt,” said Angelica. He was ruining her entire plan. The only reason she was flying to Cheyenne was to get away from him.
He took another backward step. “I can’t believe you’re running away.”
She gave up and followed him. “I’m not running away. Because you’re coming with me. And you’re the thing I’m running from. So, why are you here?”
“Piece of advice, Angie. Don’t ever try to make your living as a con artist. The question on everyone’s mind is, are they reconciling or not? How’s it going to look to someone like Conrad if you take off without me?”
“Like I have a job.”
“It looks better if we’re together.”
“I don’t want to be together.”
There was an edge to his tone as he gestured to the seat in the last row. “Tough break. This isn’t all about you.”
“I never said it was.”
The jet engines whined as the pilot poured on power, and she quickly took her seat.
“It’s about Matt and Kayla,” said Evan as he belted into the seat across the narrow aisle.
“I’m aware of that,” she answered tartly.
The jet began to taxi.
“And we’re all doing things we’d rather not.”
Something in his tone send a jolt through her brain. It was suddenly crystal-clear that he didn’t want to be with her either. The situation was as inconvenient and frustrating for him as it was for her. Difference was, he was taking it in stride, while she was complaining like a little girl.
What was wrong with her? Hadn’t she learned anything from her father’s will? It truly wasn’t all about her. She had to pitch in and serve the collective good instead of being so focused on herself.
“I’m sorry,” she said to Evan.
His jaw dropped open just as the jet rushed to full power, pushing them back in their seats as it accelerated along the runway.
“Excuse me?” Evan asked above the noise.
“You’re right, and I’m wrong. Everybody’s inconvenienced by this. You, me, Tiffany, Deke. But it’s about Kayla and Matt, and I need to shut up and get on with it. The house at Big Blue is huge. I’ll try to stay out of your way.”
The jet lifted off the runway, climbing into the setting sun.
He studied her in silence for a long moment. “You surprise me.”
She wanted to move on. “Why did you bring Tiffany and Deke?”
“I thought you’d be more comfortable with chaperones.”
She nodded. “I am. It was nice of them to come.”
“Deke’s never seen Big Blue. He’s curious.”
Angelica found herself smiling, and some of the tension eased from her stomach at the thought of spending some time on the family ranch. “It’s a fantastic place.”
“It is,” Evan agreed, his posture relaxing. “So, something going on in the Cheyenne office?”
“I need to talk to Noah Moore. He disagrees with a direction I want to take for LBS.”
“That’s what happens when smart people work together. You get different ideas.”
“You still think I’m smart?” The question was out before she thought through the wisdom of asking.
“You’re brilliant, Angie. That’s never been the problem.”
“I’d ask what the problem was, but I’m pretty sure I know the answer.”
“You’re fanatical, controlling and way too myopic.”
“I didn’t ask.”
“That one was for free.”
She leaned her head back on the soft headrest, staying silent as the flight leveled out. She drew a deep breath. “I am working on those flaws.”
His voice was low and slightly cautious beside her. “Okay, now you’re just freaking me out.”
“I know I’m not perfect, Evan.”
He didn’t respond for a moment. “At the risk of bursting this Zen-Angie bubble thing you’ve got going, I have something to ask you. And it’s probably going to make you mad.”
Angelica didn’t particularly like the sound of that. But she promised herself to try to take it in stride. “Ask away.”
“I think you should wear your engagement ring for a while.”
She turned to gape at him.
“It’ll convince everyone we’re serious.”
Her mind galloped to catch up to his words. “You still have my engagement ring?”
“Of course I still have your engagement ring.”
“I don’t understand. Why would you keep it?”
“What would I do with it?”
“Return it. Get your money back.”
He shook his head. “It’s custom-made. And it’s been in dozens of photographs. In the middle of the press frenzy, did you really want the Angelica Lassiter engagement ring to show up for sale on-line?”
“I never thought of that,” she admitted.
“Yeah, well, you were a bit distracted.”
“Thank you,” she found herself saying. “Even when you hated me, you were thoughtful.”
“I never hated you, Angie. I admit, I was mad as hell.”
“So was I.”
A beat went by. Then he reached into his pocket and produced a small, black leather box.
Everything inside Angelica stilled. Her chest went tight with intense anxiety. She gazed down at the familiar solitaire. She’d always loved the way the stylized band winked with tiny white and blue diamonds. It was traditional, with a twist. That was how she’d always thought of her relationship with Evan. It had all the elements of a typical romance, but then
there was the added spice of their energetic lives. At one time, it was enhanced by their mutual love of Lassiter Media with all its facets and foibles. But that was gone.
“Angie?” he prompted.
She moved her gaze from the ring to him. “It would be difficult,” she told him honestly.
“I know. But the press is outright asking why you’re not wearing it. And I’m more convinced than ever that Conrad is calling our bluff.”
“You think he knows we’re faking?”
“I think he suspects. And it’s occurred to me that he might use it as an excuse to mess up the wedding.”
Angelica knew this wasn’t about her, and she knew she had to be tough. But when she reached for the box, her fingers trembled.
“Go get me a really big glass of wine,” she told Evan, determinedly taking the box from his hand. “And I’ll put it on.”
He seemed to hesitate for a moment. “Sure. Okay. No problem.” He unclipped his belt and rose from his seat.
Angelica stared at the beautiful ring, imagined the cool, smooth platinum settling on her finger, the weight of the big diamond, the wink of the band whenever her hand moved across her peripheral vision.
“You okay?” came Tiffany’s soft voice.
“Not really.” Angelica looked up. “Did you know he was going to do this?”
Tiffany shook her head. “Though it makes sense.”
“Never occurred to me in a million years,” Angelica admitted. “I guess I thought Conrad would keep it to himself. Then I thought we’d tell a few friends, and everybody would give us space while we pretended to think about getting back together. But now... How am I going to do this?”
“You don’t have to wear it.”
“Yeah, I do.”
Kayla’s happiness was at stake. Evan was keeping up his end of the deal. Angelica had to step up as well.
She determinedly tugged the ring out of the display slot. Then, without giving herself time to think, she shoved it onto her finger.
“It doesn’t burn or anything,” she joked to Tiffany.
“That’s encouraging,” came Evan’s voice as he returned with a glass of red wine.
“Hand it over,” said Angelica, waving him forward. “And keep ’em coming.”
Six
Evan had always loved the Big Blue ranch. It was symbolic of J.D. and the entire Lassiter family. It could be harsh and unpredictable, but it was self-sufficient and endlessly resilient. It stood like a sentinel, protecting those who sought its refuge.
Reunited with the Lassiter Bride Page 9