Winning It All

by Catherine Mann

  The idea that he might simply need to touch her was a tempting one. Too tempting. She couldn’t let herself fall into that trap.

  Pulling her arm away from his touch, she put some distance between them. “I’m sorry, Connor. I don’t care how good we are in bed. I can’t base a relationship on a single sexual experience. Sure, we could draw out this fake engagement for another six months or a year, but eventually, this will end. And no matter how or when that happens, it’s going to be bad for me. At least if I end it now, I have some hope of getting over you.”

  He studied her features, his expression intense. Serious, in a way she’d never seen before. “What if it doesn’t end? What if I don’t want you to get over me?”

  Her breath caught in her chest. “What are saying?”

  “We make it real. We stay together. We make it work.”

  She backed up a step, sinking onto her sofa when it bumped against her legs. Her heart pounded as she considered his proposal.

  That’s what it was—a proposal. Probably the least romantic proposal she’d ever heard, but a proposal nevertheless. Funny, the complete lack of artifice almost won her over. Normally he was so smooth, so charming. Did this bare-bones proposal stem from genuine emotion?

  And then she remembered what the last six weeks had been like. Watching him charm everyone he came in contact with. Listening to him tell lies so smoothly. Never knowing which Connor was the real Connor. Could she live like that for the rest of her life?

  Shaking her head, she said, “No. I can’t do it. Vanessa told me she thought I was an all-or-nothing kind of girl. That once I fell in love, it would be forever. I think she’s probably right. I don’t want to be in love with you forever.”

  He flinched as if she’d hauled back and punched him in the gut. Then, in an instant, his expression settled into quiet resolve, his jaw clenched. He turned to leave. “Okay.”

  If she hadn’t been watching so closely, she would have missed the flash of pain completely. But she had seen it on his face, and she couldn’t let him go without explaining.

  She leaped to her feet and grabbed his arm before he made it to the door. “Let me explain.”

  He studied her, his expression cold and distant. “You were very succinct. No explanation is necessary.”

  “Connor, it’s not that I don’t want to love you. It’s that I’m afraid to.” She searched his face for understanding. When she didn’t see any, she kept talking. “I’ve watched you this summer. You’re a total chameleon, capable of being anything to anybody. I’d never know how you really felt about me.”

  “That’s all?” he asked. “You’re afraid I don’t love you?”

  She pulled her hand away. “Trust me. That’s enough. I’ve spent my whole life never knowing whether or not my father loves me or if I was just a mistake he had to twist to his political advantage. I don’t think I could stand not knowing if you—”

  He wrapped his arms around her and cut off her explanation with a kiss. It was a breath-stealing, soul-searing kiss she felt down to her very bones, like he was pouring a lifetime’s worth of reassurances into that one gesture.

  When he pulled back, he said, “If you want to know how I feel about you, all you have to do is ask. You make me crazy. You terrify me. You make me do things I never thought I’d do.”

  “Is this bad or good?” she asked hesitantly.

  “Good.” He laughed an all-out laugh. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone else. There’s no one else who knows me the way you do. And I have never lied to you.”

  “The bet—”

  “Forget the bet. It was never about that for me. I would have pursued you hard, no matter what. Do you want to know why?”

  She could only nod.

  “I knew from the minute I met you that I was in serious trouble. I kept telling myself if I spent enough time with you, I’d get over it. That I’d get over you. I didn’t realize until the engagement party that I didn’t want to get over you.”

  She frowned. “The engagement party? Then why—”

  “Did I take so long to come talk to you? Because I wanted to do it right. I was having this made.” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small black jewelry box.

  Flipping it open with his thumb, he went down on one knee. “Brittney Hannon, will you marry me?”

  Brittney gasped. It was the ring he’d described to the older woman. A platinum filigree ring, with a single large diamond in the center and tiny sapphires on each side.

  “I’m tired of doing things halfway, Brit. If you’re an all-or-nothing girl, then I want to be your all-or-nothing guy.” He stood and reached for her, cupping her face in his hands, his thumbs resting along her cheeks. “You said that you were already a little in love with me. Well, then you’re slower than I am, because I’m more than a little in love with you. But I’m not worried. I figure a little in love is a start. And I’m not going anywhere. If I stick around long enough, you’re bound to fall even more in love with me. I can wait.”

  As he spoke, something tightened deep in her chest, making her feel like she couldn’t breath. Like his words were wrapping themselves around her very heart and giving it a squeeze.

  All her life, she’d never had anyone who was always there for her. She’d never had anyone whose love she could count one. Not her mother who’d so quickly abandoned her. Not even her father, who’d always been there, but not there. And now there was Connor, promising her a lifetime.

  “Do you mean that?”

  He leaned down and kissed her. Slowly, gently. When he finally lifted his head, all her doubts were gone. Of course, he’d always been a persuasive kisser.

  Just in case his kiss alone wasn’t enough to convince her, he said, “I do mean that. I’m not going anywhere. I’m going to be right here beside you until you believe me or fall so in love with me that you don’t care.”

  The smile she could no longer contain broke across her face. “Are you really going to make me wait that long? Because I’m ready now.”

  He took her in his arms and kissed her deeply. Unlike his earlier gentle kisses, this one was tinged with the heat that had marked their first kisses. There was nothing soul-soothing or careful about him. Instead it was fierce and possessive, hungry and joyful all at the same time.

  Before she knew it, his fingers had worked free the buttons of her blouse and his mouth had nudged it off her shoulder. “Thank goodness,” he muttered against her skin. “Feels like I’ve been waiting forever to touch you again.” His hands reached down to cup her bottom. He lifted her against him, and she instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist. “Please tell me I’m not going to have to debate abstinence for another hour before you’ll let me touch you.”

  She threw her head back and laughed. “Let’s talk about it in the bedroom.”

  With one arm supporting her weight and the other across her back, he had carried her a few steps towards her bedroom when the doorbell rang.

  He quirked his eyebrow.

  “Takeout, from Topaz Thai.”

  Connor nodded. “He can wait. I can’t.”

  Which was just fine with Brittney. She’d been waiting for Connor her whole life.

  Epilogue

  Brittney Stone walked into the VIP tent of the 2011 Clearwater Media Polo tournament with her husband’s hand possessively resting on the small of her back. Though her father had pushed for a big summer wedding, she and Connor had decided to have a quiet ceremony in the early spring, right on the shore of Long Pond, surrounded by the crocus blooms. Their wedding was everything she could have hoped for. Small, unpretentious and lacking the drama and scandal that had marked their early courtship. It had been a day filled with happiness and laughter.

  Since returning from their honeymoon to Costa Rica, they’d been living quietly in the city. This was their first big social event as a married couple.

  In the tent, she caught Vanessa’s and Nicolas’s eyes. The married couple waved them over enthusias
tically. Brittney smiled at the sight of tiny baby Gabriella propped on Vanessa’s hip. Vanessa and Nicolas had married at the end of the previous year’s polo season. As they approached their first anniversary, they looked as happy as ever.

  Vanessa gave Brittney a quick buss on the cheek. “Marriage must agree with you. You look fabulous.”

  “You, too.” Brittney leaned back to give her friend an assessing stare while Nicolas greeted Connor. Nicolas and Vanessa had been traveling so much following the polo circuit, it seemed ages since Brittney had seen them. Now, she could only chuckle. “How you manage to still wear your signature white while carrying around a baby, I’ll never know.”

  Vanessa laughed, then leaned forward and whispered, “The baby is actually the trick. She’s so cute no one notices me.”

  “May I?” Brittney asked, with a nod toward Gabriella.

  “Sure.” Vanessa carefully handed the baby over to Brittney.

  Holding her sturdy little body close to her chest, Brittney felt something inside her melt into goo. Gabriella swung out a chubby fist to grab a lock of Brittney’s hair. Gabriella had her father’s soulful eyes and her mother’s sassy smile. In short, she was perfect. Even better, she was obviously surrounded by a loving family.

  On the way into the tent, Brittney and Connor had run into the other members of the Hughes family. Christian, who was now semiretired and well on the road to recovery, had been holding his other grandchild, Christian Fitzgerald Hughes, showing him the polo ponies. Julia and Sebastian, who were hosting the event again this season, were near the entrance mingling with guests. Julia was clearly flourishing as the new VP of PR for Clearwater, and the expression on Sebastian’s face showed just how proud he was of his wife. It was obvious to anyone who saw them that although they worked together, there was nothing businesslike about their relationship.

  The Hugheses stood talking to Sheikh Adham and Sabrina, who had returned to the Hamptons to celebrate their first anniversary. Brittney had heard through the grapevine about the success of Grant Vineyards and Winery and of Adham’s horse farm. More than just their businesses were flourishing. Sabrina all but glowed as she ran a hand along the top of her heavy belly. Though she looked ready to give birth any day now, it obviously hadn’t slowed her down.

  Since Adham’s mother, younger sister and older brother had accompanied them to the States to attend the birth of the latest addition to their royal family, Sabrina was surrounded by the love of a close-knit family. Even the king pledged he’d fly over the moment she went into labor. It was obvious to anyone watching the couple together that the love affair that had blossomed between Sabrina and her desert prince during the previous season was blazing brighter every day. They were regularly providing the polo community and the paparazzi with more sensational instances of spontaneous passion.

  The sheikh’s family wasn’t the only royalty in attendance, since the VIP tent held its share of Hollywood royalty as well. Matthew and Carmen Birmingham returned to the Hamptons this summer with their three-month-old twin sons. Everyone was convinced the little darlings were conceived the year before at the Hamptons since the couple spent a lot of time behind closed doors, and when they were seen at a polo match you could clearly see the love shining between them. Even though it was only summer and awards season was months away, Hollywood gossip was already touting the Birminghams’ documentary film on the history of the Statue of Liberty as shoo-in for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

  As Vanessa and Nicolas and Gabriella moved on to greet the Birminghams—and no doubt compare baby stories—Connor led Brittney over to Richard Wells and Catherine Lawson. Connor knew Richard from the city, and they’d run into the other couple socially a few times. The men immediately launched into a discussion about the polo team’s season. Brittany gave Catherine a brief hug.

  “You got our RSVP for the wedding, right?” she asked.

  Catherine nodded. “They’ve been flooding in, but I definitely remember seeing yours.”

  Richard and Catherine had planned their wedding for the end of the season. Catherine had confided that she and Richard had both wanted to take the time to get to know each other better before the wedding. It was certainly an approach Brittney could appreciate, though it was obvious how much they adored each other.

  “How’s the riding school going?” Brittney asked.

  Catherine’s face split into a grin. “Huge success! We have plenty of students and we’re making real gains with the underprivileged kids who are being sponsored to attend on weekends. Spring camp was a success, and the summer camp looks to be even better. Thanks for sponsoring some of the kids.”

  “It’s the least I can do,” Brittney said. “Just let us know when we can help again.”

  Catherine positively beamed. “I’m so blessed to have friends like you to support the school. In less than a year, I’ve gone from just dreams to a reality that’s better than I could have imagined.”

  But Brittney knew, watching Catherine’s expression, that the real blessing was Richard, whose financial guidance at the school was just the tip of the iceberg.

  Richard had also succeeded in tracking down the polo team owner/patron who set Catherine’s father up in a horse-doping scandal thirteen years ago. The patron’s assets and horses had been seized, and he was being held in custody while under further investigation by the authorities. He looked to be facing a long time in jail for that and other illegal activities. None of that would bring Catherine’s father back, but she seemed to feel he had been vindicated and his name had been publicly cleared of all scandal. Now, Brittney couldn’t help noticing how happy Catherine looked. She was obviously looking forward to the next stage in her life with a light and happy heart and knew that with Richard by her side she could do and achieve anything.

  After chatting a few minutes longer, Brittney and Connor headed out to the bleachers in hopes of catching a little of the match. Besides, although the social scene was fun, Brittney really just wanted to be alone with her husband.

  Now, just a few months into their marriage, all her initial doubts about Connor had faded. Their love no longer felt fragile and new. He’d been true to his word. He’d shown her how much he loved her every day, in a million tiny ways. And in many not-so-little ways, she thought with a grin as her hand drifted over her belly.

  She didn’t know if she was pregnant—it was too soon for that—but she had hopes, and she had a husband who would be by her side no matter what. What more could a woman ask for?

  ISBN: 978-1-4268-6445-2

  WINNING IT ALL

  Copyright © 2010 by Harlequin Books S.A.

  The publisher acknowledges the copyright holders of the individual works as follows:

  PREGNANT WITH THE PLAYBOY’S BABY

  Copyright © 2010 by Harlequin Books S.A.

  Catherine Mann is acknowledged as the author of “Pregnant with the Playboy’s Baby.”

  HIS ACCIDENTAL FIANCÉE

  Copyright © 2010 by Harlequin Books S.A.

  Emily McKay is acknowledged as the author of “His Accidental Fiancée.”

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