She supported her hands on his chest, breathing erratically, when he stopped kissing her. Neither spoke. Janine wanted to, but none of her faculties seemed to be working. She parted her lips and Zach lowered his mouth to hers again. Only this time it was a full-fledged kiss, deep and probing. His hands slid up her back as his mouth abandoned hers to explore the sweep of her neck.
Several glorious moments passed before he shuddered, raised his head and drew back, although he continued to hold her. “Does that answer your question?”
“No,” she answered, hating the way her voice trembled. “I’m afraid it only raised more.”
“I know what you mean,” Zach admitted, briefly closing his eyes. “This last week apart was an eye-opener for me. I thought I’d be glad to put this matter between your grandfather and us to rest. If you want the truth, I thought I’d be glad to be rid of you. I was convinced you felt the same way.” He paused, waiting for a response.
“The days seemed so empty,” she whispered.
His eyes burned into hers, and he nodded. “You were constantly on my mind, and I found myself wishing you were there to talk to.” He groaned. “Heaven knows you deserve a different kind of husband than I could possibly be.”
“What about you? I’ve heard you say a hundred times that when it comes to finding a wife, you’ll choose your own.”
He blinked, as though he didn’t recognize his words. Then he shrugged. “Once I got to know you, I realized you’re not so bad.”
“Thanks.” So much for wine and roses and sweet nothings whispered in her ear. But then again, she’d had those things and they hadn’t brought her happiness.
“Like I said—and I hate to admit it—our getting married makes sense. We seem to like each other well enough, and there’s a certain…attraction.” Zach was frowning a little as he spoke. “It would be a smart move for both of us from a financial viewpoint, as well.” He took her by the shoulders and gazed into her eyes. “The question is, Janine, can I make you happy?”
Her heart melted at the way he said it, at the simplicity and sincerity of his words. “What about you?” she asked. “Will you be content being married to me?”
The apprehension in his face eased. “I think so. We’ll be good for each other. This isn’t any grand passion. But I’m fond of you and you’re fond of me.”
“Fond?” Janine repeated, breaking away.
“What’s wrong with that?”
“I hate that word,” Janine said through gritted teeth. “Fond sounds so…watered down. So weak. I’m not looking for a grand passion, as you put it, but I want a whole lot more than fond.” She gestured dramatically with her hands. “A man is fond of his dog or a favorite place to eat, not his wife.” She spoke so vehemently that she was starting to attract attention from other walkers. “Would it be too much for you to come up with another word?”
“Stop looking at me as if it were a matter of life and death,” he said.
“It’s important,” she insisted.
Zach looked distinctly uncomfortable. “I run a business. There are more than three hundred outlets in fifty states. I know the office-supply business inside out, but I’m not good with words. If you don’t like the word fond, you choose another one.”
“All right,” she said thoughtfully, biting the corner of one lip. Her eyes brightened. “How about cherish?”
“Cherish.” Zach repeated it as if he’d never heard the word before. “Okay, it’s a deal. I’ll cherish you.”
“And I’ll cherish you,” she said emphatically, nodding with satisfaction.
They walked along the pier until they came to a seafood stand, where Zach bought them each a cup of steaming clam chowder. They found an unoccupied picnic table and sat down, side by side.
Occasionally they stopped eating to smile at each other. An oddly exciting sensation attacked Janine’s stomach whenever that happened. Finally, finishing her soup, she licked the back of her white plastic spoon. She kept her eyes carefully lowered as she said, “I want to make sure I understand. Did we or did we not just agree to get married?”
Zach hesitated, his spoon halfway between his cup and his mouth as an odd look crossed his face. He swallowed once. “We decided to go through with it, both accepting that this isn’t the traditional love match, but one based on practical and financial advantages.”
Janine dropped her spoon in the plastic cup. “If that’s the case, the wedding is off.”
Zach threw back his head and stared into the sky. “Now what did I say that was so terrible?”
“Financial and practical advantages! You make it sound about as appealing as a dentist appointment. There’s got to be more of a reason than that for us to get married.”
Shrugging, Zach gestured helplessly with his hands. “I already told you I wasn’t any good at this. Perhaps we’d do better if you explained why you’re willing to marry me.”
Before she could prevent it, a smile tugged at her mouth. “You won’t like my reason any better than I like yours.” She looked around to ensure that no one could overhear, then leaned toward him. “When we kissed a few minutes ago, the earth moved. I know it’s a dreadful cliché—the worst—but that’s exactly what I felt.”
“The earth moved,” Zach repeated deadpan. “Well, we are in an earthquake zone.”
Janine rolled her eyes. “It happened when we were in Scotland, too. I don’t know what’s going on between us or even if we’re doing the right thing, but there’s definitely…something. Something special.”
She wasn’t surprised when Zach scowled. “You mean to say you’re willing to marry me because I’m good at kissing?”
“It makes more sense to me than that stuff about financial advantages.”
“You were absolutely correct,” he said evenly. “I don’t like your reason. Is there anything else that makes the prospect appealing?”
Janine giggled. “You know,” she reflected, “Gramps was right. We’re going to be good for each other.”
A flash of light warmed his eyes and his hand reached for hers. He entwined their fingers as their eyes met. “Yes, we are.”
The wedding was arranged so fast that Janine barely had time to reconsider their decision. They applied for a license that same afternoon. When they returned to the house, Gramps shouted for joy, slapped Zach on the back and repeatedly hugged Janine, whispering that she’d made an old man very happy.
Janine was so busy, the days and nights soon blended together and she lost all track of time. There were so many things to do—fittings and organizing caterers and inviting guests—that for the next five days she didn’t talk to Zach even once.
The day before the ceremony, the garden was bustling with activity. Mrs. McCormick was supervising the men who were assembling the wedding canopy and setting up tables and chairs.
Exhausted, Janine wandered outside and glanced up at the bold blue sky, praying the sunshine would hold for at least another day. The lawn was lush and green, and freshly mowed. The roses were in bloom, perfuming the air with their rich fragrance.
“Janine.”
She recognized his voice immediately. She turned to discover Zach striding purposefullly toward her, and her heart reacted of its own accord. Janine felt as though they’d been apart for a year instead of just a few days. She wore jeans and an old university sweatshirt and wished she’d chosen something less casual. In contrast, Zach was strikingly formal, dressed in a handsome pin-striped suit and dark tie. She was willing to admit she didn’t know him as well as she should—as well as a woman who was about to become his wife. His habits, his likes and dislikes, were a mystery to her, yet those details seemed minor. It was the inner Zach she was coming to understand. Everything she’d learned assured her she’d made the right decision.
“Hello,” she called, walking toward him. She saw that he looked as tired as she felt. Obviously he’d been busy, too, although the wedding preparations had been left to her.
They met halfway and stop
ped abruptly, gazing at each other. Zach didn’t hug her or make any effort to touch her.
“How are you holding up?” he asked.
“Fine,” she answered. “How about you?”
“I’ll live.” He glanced over at the activity near the rose garden and sighed. “Is there someplace we can talk privately?”
“Sure.” Janine’s heart leapt to her throat at his sober tone. “Is everything all right?”
He reassured her with a quick nod. “Of course.”
“I don’t think anyone’s in the kitchen.”
“Good.” Hand at her elbow, he guided her toward the house. She pulled out a chair with trembling fingers and sat down at the oak table. As he lowered himself into a chair opposite her, she gripped the edge of the table. His eyes had never seemed darker. “Tomorrow’s the day.”
He said this as if he expected it to come as a shock to her. It didn’t—but she understood what he was saying. Time was closing in on them, and if they wanted to back out, it would have to be now.
“Believe me, I know,” she said, and her fingers tightened on the table. “Have you had a change of heart?”
“Have you?”
“No, but then again, I haven’t had much time to think.”
“I’ve done nothing but think about this wedding,” Zach said, raking his hands through his hair.
“And?”
He shrugged. “We may both have been fools to agree to this.”
“It all happened so fast,” Janine said in a weak voice. “One minute we agreed on the word cherish, and the next thing I remember, we were deciding we’d be good for each other.”
“Don’t forget the kissing part,” he added. “As I recall, that had quite a bit to do with this decision.”
“If you’re having second thoughts, I’d rather you said so now than after the ceremony.”
His eyes narrowed fleetingly before he shook his head. “No.”
“You’re sure?”
He answered her by leaning forward, slipping his hand behind her neck and kissing her soundly. Tenderly. When they broke apart, they were silent. Not talking, not wanting to.
Janine stared into his dark warm eyes and suddenly she could hardly breathe.
“This is going to be a real marriage,” he said forcefully.
She nodded. “I certainly hope so, Mr. Thomas.” And her voice was strong and clear.
Less than twenty-four hours later, Janine stood at Zach’s side, prepared to pledge her life to his. She’d never felt more uncertain—or, at the same time, more confident—of anything she’d ever done.
Zach seemed to grasp what she was feeling. His eyes held hers as she repeated the words that would bind them.
When she’d finished, Zach slid his arm around her waist and drew her close. The pastor smiled down on them, then looked to the fifty or so family friends who’d gathered on Anton’s lawn and said, “I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Zachary Thomas.”
A burst of applause followed his words.
Before Janine fully realized what was happening, they were mingling with their guests. One minute she was standing in front of the pastor, trembling but unafraid, and the next she was a wife.
“Janine, Janine!” Pam rushed to her side before anyone else could. “You look so gorgeous,” she said softly, and bright tears shone in her eyes.
Janine hugged her young friend. “Thank you, sweetheart.”
Pam gazed up at Zach and shook her head. “He sure is handsome.”
“I think so, too.”
Zach arched his brows, cocked his head toward her and murmured, “You never told me that.”
“There’s no need for you to be so smug.”
“My children,” Gramps said, rejoining them. He hugged Janine, and she saw that his eyes were as bright as Pam’s. “You’ve never been more beautiful. I swear you look more like my Anna every year.”
It was the highest compliment Gramps could have paid her. From the pictures Gramps kept of his wife, Janine knew her grandmother had been exceptionally beautiful.
“Thank you,” she said, kissing his cheek.
“I have something for you.” Pam thrust a neatly wrapped box into Janine’s hands. “I made them myself,” she announced proudly. “I think Zach will like them, too.”
“Oh, Pam, you shouldn’t have,” Janine murmured. Sitting on a cushioned folding chair, she peeled away the paper and lifted the lid. The moment she did, her breath jammed in her throat. Inside were the sheerest white baby-doll pajamas Janine had ever seen. Her smile faltered as she glanced up to see half a dozen people staring at her.
Zach’s hand, resting at the nape of Janine’s neck, tightened as he spoke, though his voice was warm and amused. “You’re right, Pam. I like them very much.”
Eight
Janine sat next to Zach in the front seat of his car. Dressed in a pink suit and matching broad-brimmed hat, she clutched her small floral bouquet. Although the wedding had been arranged in seven short days, it had been a lovely affair.
Zach had taken care of planning the short honeymoon. All he could spare was three days, so instead of scheduling anything elaborate, he’d suggested they go to his summer place in Ocean Shores, a coastal town two and a half hours from Seattle by car. Janine had happily agreed.
“So you think I’m handsome?” Zach asked, keeping his eyes on the road. Neither of them had said much since they’d set off.
“I knew if I told you, it’d go straight to your head, and obviously I was right,” she answered. Then, unable to hold back a wide yawn, she pressed one hand to her mouth.
“You’re exhausted.”
“Are you always this astute?”
“Testy, too.”
“I don’t mean to be,” she apologized. She’d been up since before five that morning and in fact, hadn’t slept well all week. This wasn’t exactly the ideal way to start a marriage. There was an added stress, too, that had to do with the honeymoon. Zach had made it understood that he intended their marriage to be real, but surely he didn’t expect them to share a bed so soon. Or did he?
Every now and then as they drove, she glanced in his direction, wondering what, if anything, she should say. Even if she did decide to broach this delicate subject, she wasn’t sure how.
“Go ahead and rest,” Zach suggested. “I’ll wake you when we arrive.”
“It should be soon, shouldn’t it?”
“Another fifteen minutes or so.”
“Then I’ll stay awake.” Nervously, she twisted the small floral bouquet. Unwrapping Pam’s gift had made her all the more apprehensive, but delaying the subject any longer was impossible.
“Zach…are we going to…you know…” she stammered, feeling like a naive schoolgirl.
“If you’re referring to what I think you’re referring to, the answer is no. So relax.”
“No?” He didn’t need to sound so casual about it, as if it hardly mattered one way or the other.
“Why do you ask, Janine? Are you having second thoughts about…that?”
“No. Just some reservations.”
“Don’t worry. When it happens, it happens. The last thing we need is that kind of pressure.”
“You’re right,” she answered, relieved.
“We need some time to feel comfortable. There’s no reason to rush into the physical aspect of our marriage, is there?”
“None whatsoever,” she agreed quickly, perhaps too quickly, because when she looked at him again, Zach was frowning. Yet he seemed so willing to wait, as though their lovemaking was of minor importance. But as he’d said, this marriage wasn’t one of grand passion. Well, that was certainly true.
Before another five minutes had passed, Zach left the highway and drove into the resort town of Ocean Shores. He didn’t stop in the business district, but headed down a side street toward the beach. The sun was setting as he pulled into a driveway and turned off the engine.
Janine was too enthralled with the house to say a word.
&
nbsp; The wind whipped at them ferociously when they climbed out of the car. Janine held on to her hair with one hand, still clutching the flowers, and to Zach with the other. The sun cast a pink and gold reflection over the rolling hills of sand.
“Home, sweet home,” Zach said, nudging her toward the house.
The front door opened before they reached it and a trim middle-aged man stepped onto the porch to greet them. He was grinning broadly. “Hello, Zach. I trust you had a safe trip.”
“We did.”
“Everything’s ready. The cupboards are stocked. The firewood’s stacked by the side of the house, and dinner’s prepared.”
“Wonderful, Harry, thanks.” Zach placed his hand on Janine’s shoulder. “This is my wife, Janine,” he said. “We were married this afternoon.”
“Your wife?” Harry repeated, looking more than a little surprised. “Why, that’s fantastic. Congratulations to you both.”
“Thank you,” Janine said politely.
“Harry Gleason looks after the place for me when I’m not around.”
“Pleased to meet you, Harry.”
“So Zach got himself a wife,” Harry said, rubbing his jaw in apparent disbelief. “I couldn’t be more—”
“Delighted,” a frowning Zach supplied for him, ushering Janine toward the front door.
“Right,” Harry said. “I couldn’t be more delighted.”
Janine tilted back her head to survey the sprawling single-story house.
“Go on inside,” Zach said. “I’ll get the luggage.”
Janine started to protest, suddenly wanting him to follow the traditional wedding custom of carrying her over the threshold. She paused, and Zach gave her a puzzled look. “Is something wrong?”
“No.” She had no real grounds for complaint. She wasn’t even sure why it mattered. Swallowing her disappointment, she made her way into the house. She stopped just inside the front door and gazed with wide-eyed wonder at the immense living room with its three long sofas and several upholstered chairs. A brick fireplace took up an entire wall; another was dominated by a floor-to-ceiling window that looked over the ocean. Drawn to it, Janine watched powerful waves crash against the shore.
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