by Noelle Adams
Lincoln followed her lead. He didn’t pursue the kiss. He wrapped one arm around her and held her in what must look like a hug to observers. “Y’okay?” he murmured thickly. Right against her ear.
“Yes.” She found the will to straighten up and pull away from him. Fortunately, her legs managed to support her. “I understand what you were trying to do just now.”
His face was slightly flushed. Tense. His eyes were almost urgent. “Do you?”
“Yes. You were trying to prove to Mariana and everyone else that we’re really in love. But please don’t do that again without asking first.”
He nodded. “Understood.”
She turned away from him since his intense expression was too confusing, too unsettling. The first thing she saw on turning was Carter. He was watching her. Frowning in what looked like confused concern.
She gulped and dropped her eyes.
He didn’t understand what he’d just witnessed. And that made perfect sense.
Because Summer didn’t understand it herself.
THE FINAL GUESTS LEFT at almost three o’clock in the afternoon. Four and a half hours of challenging socializing and being the center of attention was definitely Summer’s limit, and she barely had enough energy to thank Mrs. Wilson for throwing the brunch and to give Carter a hug before she limped upstairs to change clothes and collapse on her bed.
She was still lying sprawled out in yoga pants and an oversized T-shirt and with her favorite velvety brown throw over her legs twenty minutes later when there was a knock on her bedroom door.
It was probably Carter. He’d been quiet for most of the brunch, and she suspected he was worried about her. She didn’t care who it was. She wasn’t about to get up to open the door herself. “Come in!”
The door opened and a man stepped in.
It wasn’t Carter.
She lifted her head and blinked in the direction of Lincoln’s familiar form. Despite the fact that his face was shadowed because it was light in the hall but not in her room and he was the same height and build as his younger brother with the same thick brown hair, she could tell the difference immediately. Not just by the fact that Lincoln’s hair was a little too long but also by something in his stance. The way he held his shoulders. His head.
She didn’t need to see his face to know it was Lincoln.
“What?” she demanded.
“Can I come in?”
“Yeah. Sure. What’s going on?” She managed to heave herself into a sitting position.
“Nothing. Just checking on you.”
She frowned, confused and rattled by this unexpected gesture. “I’m fine. Too much fake smiling for me. Socializing tires me out.”
“I know it does. That’s not what I was checking on.” He was unusually serious as he came over and sat down on the bed beside her. “I’m sorry I kissed you without asking first.”
She was so surprised her mouth dropped open. “Oh.”
“I wasn’t thinking. I never think.” His face twisted in a way that proved he was unsettlingly serious about this. “I usually know when a woman wants me to kiss her, and it felt like you...” He shook his head fiercely. “But we’re in a weird situation here. I should have asked first.”
“No, it’s fine, Lincoln. Seriously. I wasn’t... wasn’t ready for it, but it didn’t feel like you were... It’s fine. Thanks for the apology, but we’re fine.”
His expression relaxed into his normal little smile. The one that was usually so annoying but was somehow appealing just now. “Okay. Good. I’ll ask before I do it again.”
She couldn’t help but return his smile.
It felt like she needed to raise a few defenses against him. He was managing to wheedle his way into her affections even though she knew how dangerous that would be. So she said, “I don’t think you’ll need to do it again.”
“Why not?”
“Because we don’t have to go around kissing all the time just to convince the world we’re really married. The wedding rings should do the trick just fine.” She glanced down at her left hand, vaguely surprised to see the wedding band there. It was pretty. Platinum. Engraved with a simple pattern. She didn’t have an engagement ring since she and Lincoln hadn’t had an engagement, and it had been silly to waste the money for a few months of a marriage.
She shifted her eyes over to Lincoln’s left hand, which was resting on the bed between them. He had a matching ring. Larger but made as a set with hers.
Seeing it on his hand made her feel strange and fluttery. She lifted her eyes to discover he was watching her.
She cleared her throat. “So kissing probably isn’t necessary.”
“I don’t know. There are a lot of obtuse people in Green Valley. They might need a lot of convincing. We should probably kiss a lot to make sure no one suspects.”
She laughed. She couldn’t help it.
He was obviously pleased with her response. His eyes warmed and he leaned toward her. “And we should probably do some practicing—just to make sure our kissing performance is at the top of its game. What do you say? You want to practice right now?”
He was so obviously teasing that she wasn’t even offended. She was still laughing as she gave him a gentle shove backward. “No, we’re not going to practice.”
He was grinning as he stood up. He’d changed into jeans and a black T-shirt, and he looked way too good in it. More himself. Somehow even sexier than he’d been in Carter’s suit. “You sure? We wouldn’t even need to do it for practice since we’re pretty good at it already. We could do it just for fun.”
“Kissing you is not fun, Lincoln.” That wasn’t at all true, but she could hardly admit to how much she’d enjoyed their kiss earlier.
“You shouldn’t lie to your devoted husband.” He was heading for the open door of the bedroom, and he said the words over his shoulder, flashing her another smile.
“I’m not lying, you arrogant jackass!” For good measure, she tossed one of the throw pillows on her bed in his direction. Her aim was good, and it bounced off his lower back and onto the floor.
He laughed as he leaned over and tossed the pillow back. It landed neatly on the bed just beside her. “This brutal attack on my person is clearly the sign for me to make a speedy retreat. But my offer stands. We can have all the fun you want.” He twitched his eyebrows from the doorway. “Just say the word.”
“Get out of here, and take your overinflated ego and your obnoxious smirk with you as you go!” There was laughter in her voice, and she knew he would hear it.
He was chuckling as he disappeared down the hall.
She was about to relax back on her bed when another male figure appeared in her doorway. For a moment she thought Lincoln had returned, but it wasn’t him.
It was Carter. He said, “Hey.”
“Hey. Come on in. What are you doing?”
“Just checking on you.”
She smiled at him as he approached the bed and patted the mattress beside her to invite him to sit. “I’m fine. I don’t need everyone checking on me.”
“I heard Lincoln in here earlier. So he beat me to it, did he?”
“Yeah. But I don’t need all this checking. I’m not some sort of delicate flower. It was just a brunch.”
“Yeah, but it’s an awkward situation, and it puts you in a difficult position.” Carter wasn’t smiling. He looked subdued. “I never should have asked you to do this.”
She reached over and rubbed his back. “It’s fine, Carter. I wanted to help. It’s really no problem. And Lincoln isn’t as bad as I thought.”
Her words didn’t relax Carter as she’d hoped they would. In fact, his frown deepened. “I’m glad you’re getting along. I heard y’all joking in here. Just...”
“Just what?”
“Just be careful.”
“With what?”
“With Lincoln. He’s... he’s good at making people like him. He’s not good at following through.” His eyes scanned her face with ob
vious concern. “Just be careful.”
“I’m always careful, Carter. I’m not going to do something stupid like get a crush on him. Do you really think I’m that stupid?”
“No. Of course not. I never thought that for even a moment. But even if you try to be his friend. He might... disappoint you. I know from experience. It hurts.”
She leaned over to give him a one-armed hug. “I know he’s hurt you before. I don’t blame you for not trusting him right away. But I really do think he’s trying. He’s been... pretty good with me.”
“Good. I’m glad. I hope... I hope he’ll keep it up.” He took a shaky breath. “Just don’t trust him. Not completely. That never turns out well.”
“Okay.” She swallowed hard, her good mood from her conversation with Lincoln earlier sinking into an uncomfortable heaviness. “I’ll be careful. I promise.”
He brushed a light kiss on her cheek and stood up. “Good. Thank you. I’ll let you rest.”
She watched him leave the room, and then she stretched out on the bed again, feeling not quite as good as she had when Lincoln left.
Four
A WEEK LATER, LATE on a Friday afternoon, Summer was sitting next to Lincoln at a conference table in the office of Hiram Graves, the attorney who’d managed her trust fund ever since her grandmother died when Summer was sixteen. He was a competent man in his sixties who’d always done his job and never made any attempt to get to know her even though he’d been appointed her legal guardian for a year and a half until she’d turned eighteen.
Summer had never blamed him for not being anything but professional with her. He wasn’t her family. There was no reason for him to act like he was. She’d spent her childhood being lonely, and her grandmother’s death hadn’t changed her situation in any real way. She’d never expected to be adopted into someone else’s family. She’d just needed someone who was legally responsible for her until she was officially an adult.
Hiram was scrupulous with the administration of the money her grandmother had left her, and she never doubted that he took good care of it. She didn’t have to like him or enjoy her meetings with him.
She’d gotten off work a few hours early, so she was dressed in her skirt, tall boots, and vintage velvet jacket. The heat in the suite was set too high, and it was stuffy in the room.
Lincoln wore jeans and a long-sleeved crewneck. Typically inappropriate for the occasion.
They’d been there for more than an hour already, and Summer was getting bored and restless from the way Hiram was reviewing every single point of the paperwork they were signing.
She already knew all those details. She’d already made her decision.
She didn’t need to sit through the whole thing again and suffer through Hiram’s looks of condescending disapproval.
Lincoln hadn’t said much, but she could sense he was annoyed too. He felt tense beside her—a sure sign something was bothering him. He slanted a sideways look at her, catching her watching him. His thick eyebrows arched with a wordless question.
She gave her head a slight shake, assuming he’d understand the gesture as saying nothing was wrong and he shouldn’t pursue the topic or interrupt Hiram’s monotonous droning.
He did understand, and Hiram droned on undisturbed.
It was another twenty minutes before Hiram got to the final page. Summer reached for the expensive fountain pen that he’d set in front of her. As soon as she signed, this meeting would be over.
Instead of sliding her the page, Hiram met her eyes. “I believe this is a mistake.”
She sighed. “I know that. You’ve told me more than once now. But this is my decision. Lincoln is my husband, so his family business is my family business as well. The terms of the trust allow me to use my money as I want in this situation.”
“When your grandmother set out those terms, she assumed you wouldn’t marry a man for no other reason than to throw your money away.”
She’d never told Hiram the real reason she’d married Lincoln, but he wasn’t a fool. The quick marriage followed immediately by the large investment in Wilson Hotels told a clear story. But suspicions were different from knowing for sure, and he couldn’t do anything to block the investment unless he knew for sure that the marriage was a scam.
She gave him a cool glare. “I’m not throwing my money away. I’m investing in a business I believe in.”
Hiram shook his balding head. “Your belief in it is based on personal affection and not on facts or numbers. Wilson Hotels has a history of being a bad investment that eats up every—”
“Enough,” Lincoln broke in curtly. His voice was sharp but not loud.
Both Hiram and Summer turned to him in surprise.
Lincoln continued, “She’s made her decision. She isn’t a child. She’s a mature, intelligent woman who has decided what she wants to do with her own money. You’ve voiced your concerns. Your job is done. The decision is Summer’s, so allow her to make it.”
Hiram curled up his lip—obviously unused to being talked to that way—but he slid the final page over to Summer so she could sign and date it.
She felt weirdly fluttery as she did so. Her hair fell forward as she leaned over the table, and when she’d signed, she peeked through it over at Lincoln.
He wasn’t looking at her. He was staring at an empty spot on the table.
She’d been on her own since she was sixteen, and she’d felt alone for long before that. She’d had to make her way through the world by herself. She’d had to face problems on her own and fight all her own battles.
She wasn’t used to someone taking up for her the way Lincoln just had.
Obviously the marriage wasn’t real, but it was kind of nice. To have a husband who stuck up for her. To have someone who was on her side.
Hiram said a few more things after she’d signed. She wasn’t really listening. And a few minutes later she and Lincoln were leaving the office.
She kept shooting him little looks, wondering what he was thinking. He was uncharacteristically quiet as they walked through the reception area outside Hiram’s office and into the main hallway of the law firm.
“Why do you keep peering at me?” Lincoln murmured, his eyes focused straight ahead.
She had no idea how he’d known she was watching him. “No reason.” She felt her cheeks flushing slightly, although she didn’t know why she would be embarrassed. “Just... thanks.”
He stopped and turned to face her. “For what?”
“For that. Back there. For taking my side.” She dropped her eyes but raised them again because she wanted to see his expression. “I’m not used to it.”
He was frowning thoughtfully. “Not used to what?”
“I’m not used to not facing everything alone.” She gulped, hardly believing she’d said something so vulnerable.
For just a moment she thought her words had affected him. His features twisted just slightly, like he was processing some sort of emotion. But then his mouth turned up in a little smile. “The man is a patronizing asshole, and I wanted him to shut up. It was way too hot in that room.”
Ridiculously, she was disappointed in the way he’d turned her gratitude into an ironic joke. “Still.”
He nodded, his smile fading into something else. “He was definitely being an ass, but he’s right, you know.”
“Right about what?”
“About your making a mistake.”
She took an awkward step backward, wanting to put a little space between them. He always stood way too close. “I’m not making a mistake.”
“Yes, you are. And deep down, you have to know it.” He moved forward as she moved back until she was pinned against a wall, blocked by the position of his body. “Admit it.”
She was tempted to push him away, but that would feel like a defeat. She tightened her jaw and glared up at him, her earlier fluttering gratitude transforming into indignation in an instant. “I’m not going to admit anything of the kind. I’ve thought everythi
ng through. I know what I’m doing.”
“But you’re not doing it because you believe in the future of Wilson fucking Hotels. You’re doing it because you love Carter.” He’d grown angry just as quickly as she had. His voice was soft and rough, and his body was shuddering with pent-up feelings.
“What’s wrong with that? Carter is as close to family as I’ve ever had. You do things for family that you wouldn’t do for strangers. It’s not wrong, and it’s not unnatural. I have the money. It’s only a very small amount—”
“It’s millions of dollars. It’s not a small amount.”
“It’s a small amount compared to the amount I have. I’ve got this huge pile of money. It was given to me. I did nothing to earn it. Why shouldn’t I use a little of it to help someone I love? Tell me, Lincoln. Why shouldn’t I?”
“You can do anything you want.” His skin was damp with a faint sheen of perspiration. She didn’t know if it was from the heat of the office or the intensity of whatever he was feeling. “Exactly as I told Graves. But you’re throwing your money away. You know that, right? You’re throwing it away.” He planted a hand on the wall next to her shoulder and tilted his head down toward hers.
Lincoln was standing only a few inches from her. She could reach out and touch him. She wanted to so much that she had to clench her fingers at her sides. “You say that because you assume I’m expecting to get the money back. I’m not. It’s not an investment for me. It’s a gift. It’s a gift, Lincoln. Carter needs it, and I have it to give him. You don’t expect to get a gift back.”
He was breathing heavily. She could hear the raspy rhythm of it. See his chest rise and fall.
“Why does it make you so angry?” Summer demanded. “Why do you care what I do with my money? Why does it have anything to do with you?”
“Maybe I’m tired of seeing it.”
“Seeing what?”
“Seeing you throwing your heart away to Carter when he’s never—never—going to want it the way he should. He’s never going to recognize what it’s worth.” His eyes were on fire, flashing with a passionate resentment that made her breathless.
