The Millionaire Plan

by Karen King

  There was no way any gold-digger was going to marry him for his money. No way at all.

  He strode angrily across the room and out of the apartment.

  Chapter Nine

  Rule number 9: Once you’ve hooked him set a date for the wedding right away.

  ‘I’m ready,’ Amber said, smiling as she walked out of the bedroom. ‘Where are we going or is it a surprise …’

  Her voice tailed off as she realised that Jed wasn’t in the room. Where had he gone? He would have had to pass her room to go to the bathroom and the kitchen door was wide open so she could see he wasn’t in there. Then she noticed that the front door was slightly open. Perhaps he’d gone to get something out of the car.

  Ah, here he is, she thought as she heard footsteps and the rustling of bags outside. No it couldn’t be him, the footsteps were too light.

  She stared as the door was pushed open and Callie, walked in, her arms laden with bags.

  ‘You’re a quick worker,’ Callie said, admiration in her voice. She shut the door behind her with her foot. ‘It didn’t take you long to hook Jed, did it?’

  ‘What? You mean you approve?’ Amber asked, surprised. ‘I expected you to give me a lecture about how I should marry Randy instead.’

  ‘Of course not. I was chuffed when I got your message. It’s obvious that you and Jed have the hots for each other so I was delighted when I read that article. Simon brought it over earlier. He said he thought he recognised Jed from somewhere then he remembered the article. Randy’s in it too, you know.’

  ‘Article?’ Amber frowned. ‘What article?’

  ‘The one in Scoop magazine.’ Callie deposited the parcels on the sofa, pushing aside the cream scatter cushion first. ‘Mind you, I thought I’d hid it well behind that cushion – I wanted to show it you myself so I could see the expression on your face.’

  ‘What magazine? What article? Do you mean one of Jed’s wildlife articles?’ Amber asked. She’d love to read something he’d written. ‘Talking of Jed, did you pass him on the way up? He was waiting for me to get ready but when I came out of the bedroom he’d gone.’

  ‘He’s just gone off in a taxi. I thought he was going home.’

  ‘Gone off in a taxi?’ Amber repeated, bewildered. ‘But we were supposed to be going out to dinner to celebrate our engagement. I don’t understand … what are you staring at?’

  Callie, a stricken look on her face, was staring down at carpet.

  Amber followed her gaze and saw a magazine, open, face-down on the floor besides the coffee table. As if someone had read something they didn’t like and had thrown it down in disgust.

  ‘Did Jed sit on the sofa?’ Callie’s voice sounded strangled, as if she had to force it out.

  ‘I’m not sure. I guess so.’ Amber stared at the magazine, a dozen questions flitting through her mind. Had Jed read his article and been annoyed by something in it? She’d heard how editors hacked articles, omitting some things and adding others. Is that why he’d taken off without a word? Because he was angry? But why not tell her? Was he coming back? What about the table they’d booked?

  Callie bent down to pick up the magazine, then handed it, still open to Amber.

  ‘You’d better read this,’ she said.

  Amber took it off her and glanced down. Frowning, she saw the heading ‘Single, Solvent, and Sexy’ above some pictures of dishy men. What had this to do with Jed? Then she spotted his face smiling out at her from the middle of the page and her knees went weak. Her eyes fixed on the article, her hands shaking, she sat down on the sofa and read the paragraph underneath Jed’s photo. It was short but long enough to tell her that far from being a hired hand Jed was a millionaire – no, make that billionaire. Apparently he owned a string of property in America. A property mogul, the article called him. She shook her head in disbelief. It couldn’t be true.

  Couldn’t it? Remember the casual way he fitted into the ‘rich society’, the air of confidence he exuded. That luxury yacht was his, so were the designer clothes. He was loaded.

  Why had he pretended that he worked for a millionaire instead of telling her the truth?

  It took her all of five seconds to work out the answer.

  Because he didn’t want her to marry him for his money. And now that’s exactly what he thought she was doing. He must have found the magazine when she was getting changed, read the article, and jumped to the conclusion she’d hid it behind the cushion.

  No wonder he’d walked out.

  ‘You haven’t read it, have you?’ Callie asked.

  Amber shook her head. ‘Jed must have moved the cushion and found it. I guess he thought I left it there. That I only agreed to marry him because I’d found out he was rich.’

  ‘That’s rubbish. Everyone can see that you two are mad about each other.’

  ‘Is it?’ she demanded. ‘And why exactly did you bring that article to show me? Wasn’t it to persuade me to try and hook Jed instead of Randy? Before you found out how rich he was you kept warning me to stay away from him, not to get involved.’

  ‘That’s because you wanted to marry a millionaire to help your parents out.’

  ‘Jed knows it too. That’s why he’s walked out on me.’

  ‘Surely if you tell him that you didn’t know he was rich when you agreed to marry him everything will be OK again.’ Callie sat down beside her. ‘I’ll explain that it was me who brought the magazine home this morning. And that you were already out so never had chance to read it.’

  ‘Don’t you see that even if Jed does believe you I still couldn’t marry him?’ Amber blinked back the tears. ‘Jed didn’t tell me who he was because he didn’t trust me. I told him myself that I’d come here to try and hook a millionaire.’

  ‘You fell in love with Jed despite that. You agreed to marry him when you thought he was poor,’ Callie pointed out.

  ‘Even if I manage to persuade him of that, the doubt will always be there in the back of his mind. He didn’t trust me enough to tell me the truth, Callie.’ Amber’s voice broke into a sob. ‘So there’s no way I could marry him even if he believed me and still wanted to marry me.’

  She ran into the bedroom, slamming the door behind her. Sobbing uncontrollably, she flung herself on the bed, letting the salty tears spill down her cheeks. Her heart had been smashed into smithereens and she’d never be able to put it back together again.

  Sometime later, when the worst of the tears had subsided, Callie knocked on the door. ‘Amber, can I come in?’

  Amber wiped her arm across her eyes and sat up. ‘Yes,’ she sniffed.

  The door opened and her friend walked in, carrying two mugs and a box of tissues. ‘I’ve brought you emergency supplies.’ She sat down on the edge of bed, held out the box of tissues, and waited patiently while Amber took one, wiped her eyes, and blew her nose, then held out one of the mugs.

  ‘Thanks.’ Amber took the mug and her eyes filled with tears again when she noticed the pink marshmallow floating on the top of the hot chocolate. Jed had made her hot chocolate with a marshmallows when they’d been on Blyte Island. The day she’d first realised how strong her feelings were for him.

  And now she’d lost him.

  Swivelling the mug around so she could grip the handle, she took a sip. It was hot and sweet.

  ‘I put in two sugars. I thought you needed it.’ Callie looked at her friend’s swollen eyes and tear-stained face. ‘You really love Jed, don’t you?’

  Amber sniffed. ‘Yes, I do.’

  ‘He loves you too. I know he does.’

  ‘Maybe he does but it doesn’t make any difference. We’re finished.’

  Finished before they’d even really begun.

  ‘If you explained …’

  ‘It would make no difference. Don’t you see that? I told you, he doesn’t trust me. And without trust a relationship is dead.’

  Just like their love. Only it wasn’t dead for her, was it? She felt that she would always carry the loss and p
ain with her. Tears spilled from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks.

  Callie reached out and took the mug from her, placing it on the floor besides the bed. ‘I’m sorry, Amber. It’s all my fault,’ she said miserably. ‘If I’d have taken that magazine into my room instead of shoving it behind the cushion none of this would have happened. You’d still be engaged to Jed. I’ve ruined everything.’

  ‘It’s not your fault,’ Amber told her. ‘I don’t blame you. Once I’d read that article I wouldn’t have been able to marry Jed anyway. How could I?’ She blinked back a tear. ‘I’ll never be able to marry anyone now. I’ll never love anyone like I love Jed.’

  ‘But what about The Millionaire Plan?’

  ‘It’s off. It was a stupid idea in the first place. I should never have gone along with it.’

  ‘My fault again,’ Callie said quietly. ‘I’m the one who talked you into it.’

  Her friend looked so contrite that Amber felt guilty for her outburst. After all, Callie had only been trying to help.

  She sat back down on the bed. ‘We were both trying to help my parents,’ she acknowledged. ‘But I should have thought about it a bit more. My dad always said there was more than one way to solve a problem.’

  ‘He’s right, we’ll just have to come up with another money-making plan,’ Callie said, eagerly. ‘I know that Ladzmag are looking for some glamour models and they pay pretty well. I could introduce you to the editor …’ her voice trailed off as she saw the look of outrage on Amber’s face. ‘I guess you don’t fancy it.’

  ‘I most certainly do not!’ Amber said. ‘And before you come up with even more outrageous ideas I’d better tell you that I’ve thought of a solution. That’s why I agreed to marry Jed. I’m going to sell my flat and give my parents the money to pay off their debts.’

  ‘And where are you going to live?’

  Good question. She had intended to live with Jed.

  ‘I guess I’ll move back in with my parents until I sort something out.’

  ‘Move back in with your parents?’ Now it was Callie’s turn to look incredulous. ‘I wouldn’t fancy that. And what about your job?’

  ‘I could commute, it’s not that far.’ Amber told her. About an hour’s drive, actually, but lots of people commuted to work nowadays.

  The catchy tune of Callie’s mobile phone ringing in the lounge interrupted them.

  ‘That’ll be Simon,’ Callie said, standing up. ‘I’m supposed to be going out with him tonight but I could cancel and keep you company …’

  Amber shook her head. ‘Definitely not. I’d rather be on my own. I’ve got some thinking to do.’

  The rings got louder. Callie hesitated at the door. ‘Are you sure?’

  ‘Positive. Now go and answer that before it switches to answerphone.’

  There was no word from Jed all evening. Not that Amber expected him to contact her. He knew she’d see the magazine he’d thrown on the floor, guess he’d read the article and realise the engagement was off. There was no need for any contact from either of them. It was obvious they were finished.

  She decided to go home the next morning and put her flat on the market. There was nothing to keep her in Coombe Bay anymore. Jed was probably already on his way back to America. She’d phoned Randy, thanked him for his proposal but said she couldn’t accept. He’d tried to persuade her but she’d remained adamant. She just wanted to go home and get on with her life.

  She had almost finished packing when Callie returned.

  ‘Where are you going?’ Callie asked, surprised.

  ‘Home.’ Amber snapped the suitcase shut. ‘There’s no reason for me to stay here anymore so I’d prefer to go home and get my flat on the market. The quicker I sell it the better.’

  ‘Stay until my aunt comes back on Saturday,’ Callie coaxed. ‘It’s only a couple more days. It will do you good to have a bit of a rest. And maybe you and Jed can sort things out.’

  Amber shook her head. ‘There’s no chance of that. I need to get away, Callie. You’ve got Simon and your friends so you won’t be lonely. Besides,’ she added, ‘I’ve already booked my seat on the train. I leave at 10.35 tomorrow.’

  Callie hugged her. ‘I’m going to miss you.’

  Amber was shattered but her troubled mind kept her awake. She spent most of the night tossing and turning, trying to block out all thoughts of Jed to no avail. Finally, drifting off as the birds started to sing, she was awake again less than two hours later. Knowing she wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep, she decided to get up. It was no good moping around.

  She’d showered and was drying her hair when the buzzer rang. For a moment a wild hope leapt in her mind that it might be Jed, that he’d come to talk to her, give her a chance to explain.

  ‘Amber. Are you up?’

  Randy. She should have guessed.

  ‘Come on up,’ she called down the intercom, pressing the button to open the entrance doors.

  She left the front door on the latch and went into the kitchen to put the kettle on, then spooned coffee into the cafeteria. She needed a strong fix of caffeine.

  A few minutes later, she heard Randy’s footsteps outside.

  ‘The door’s open!’ she shouted. ‘I’m making a coffee. Do you want one?’ she asked, poking her head around the kitchen door as Randy walked in.

  With his fair hair falling across his eyes and dressed in casual designer slacks and an open-necked shirt, Randy looked every inch a movie star. Which, she guessed, was his intention.

  ‘Black, no sugar,’ he said, coming into the kitchen. ‘Look, I’ve been thinking. I proposed much too soon. We need to get to know each other a bit more. Perhaps we could take a ride out today, have lunch at a pub, take in a few sights. What do you think?’

  ‘Sorry, I can’t. I’m going home today.’

  ‘Home?’ He sounded surprised. ‘I thought you and Callie were staying until the weekend.’

  The kettle boiled and switched itself off. She poured the hot water into the cafetiere and let it stand for a couple of minutes while she took two mugs out of the cupboard above her head.

  ‘Callie is but I’m not. I’m going home,’ she told him.

  ‘Why? Has something come up?’

  ‘You could say that.’ She pressed the filter down then poured out the coffee, adding a drop of milk to one mug. She handed the mug of black coffee to Randy. Then perched on one of the bar stools. Randy sat down on the stool besides her.

  ‘Can’t you put it off?’ he wheedled, putting on his most charming smile.

  She shook her head. ‘I’m afraid not. I have to go home.’

  ‘What’s this? Where are you going?’ Callie stumbled into the kitchen, her fluffy bathrobe wrapped around her. ‘Oh, hello, Randy.’

  ‘Just in time to help me persuade Amber not to go home,’ Randy told her.

  ‘I have been trying to persuade her but she’s determined,’ Callie replied.

  ‘I’m sorry, Randy, but I’ve got to go today.’ Amber glanced at the clock on the wall. ‘In fact, my train leaves in just under an hour.’

  ‘Then at least let me take you to the station,’ Randy offered. ‘I can get my chauffeur to pick us up.’

  It seemed churlish to refuse so she nodded. ‘Thank you, I’d appreciate it.’

  Jed narrowed his eyes and thrust his hands deep in his pockets as he watched Amber and Randy walk over to his chauffeur-driven Bentley. Randy was carrying a case – obviously Amber’s – and they were talking, heads so close they were almost touching.

  Well, she didn’t waste much time, did she? he thought bitterly.

  All night he’d been torturing himself that he’d judged her wrong, telling himself she might not have read the magazine, that Callie or her aunt could have stuffed it behind the cushion and Amber knew nothing about it. Convincing himself that she did love him after all. They had been so good together. Surely it wasn’t an act? He wanted to believe in her, in their love.

  In the cold li
ght of the morning he’d felt guilty about walking out without giving her a chance to explain so had decided to come back and talk to her, hoping in his heart that he’d misjudged her. Well, he needn’t have bothered. He’d been right about her. She was just a gold-digger after his money. Realising her scheme hadn’t worked on him, she’d wasted no time in moving on to Randy. After all, there was more than one millionaire to choose from. And by the case she was carrying she’d made her choice and was moving in with him.

  He turned away and walked back towards the marina where the Chenoa was all ready to sail. It was time for him to go home.

  ‘Don’t forget to give me your address,’ Randy said as they made their way to the train station.

  ‘What?’ she asked, puzzled.

  ‘How can I come and see you if I don’t have it? I thought I’d pop over the weekend. We could go to a club or something.’

  Oh dear, he thought she still wanted to go on seeing him. She’d better put him straight.

  ‘Actually, I’m going to be so busy I don’t think I’ll have much time to socialise.’

  ‘You’ll have some time off, surely?’

  When they reached the train station he insisted on coming to the platform to see her off. ‘You’re not going to disappear out of my life, are you? I thought we were an item now.’ He sounded disappointed. Hurt.

  So he really was interested in her. She felt a bit guilty but reminded herself that a man like Randy would soon find someone else to replace her.

  ‘We’ve had some fun but I’m going home now, back to my normal life,’ she said.

  ‘That doesn’t mean the fun has to stop. You haven’t got a boyfriend at home, have you?’ he asked.

  ‘No, of course not. It’s just that, well, we move in different circles, Randy.’

  ‘We don’t have too. You could marry me and move in the same circles.’

  She met his gaze. ‘I told you, I can’t marry you. But thank you for asking me.’

  ‘Why not? We’re good together. Marrying would be a good financial move for both of us.’

  No talk of love. But then she didn’t expect him too. Neither of them loved each other.