“Don’t tell me the King has spent the last thirty years mixing drinks while everyone thought he was resting in peace.”
She turned and flashed him a look of mock irritation. “If you keep up with these one-liners, I’m going to—”
“Punish me?” He winked. “That could get interesting.”
“Matt Webster, you have the worst mind.” She wagged a finger at him. “You’re supposed to be pretending to be in love with me, not thinking up wild fantasies.”
He grabbed her finger, pulled her to him. “Then come here,” he whispered, “and let’s start pretending right now.” His arm slid around her waist possessively, his chest pressed against hers. The room slipped away, leaving nothing but Katie and him.
When they kissed, Matt forgot where the pretending left off and the reality began. He cupped her face, the soft skin a salve for his rough palms, as if the feel of her could heal the calluses on his hands and in his heart. His mind rocketed down a path of the future, first stopping with Katie in his bed, then Katie at his breakfast table, then seeing her on the porch at the house that he’d always dreamed of building and in her arms, their child, waving a grubby hand—
He yanked himself back. No, he couldn’t have that. He didn’t deserve any of it.
But God help him, he still wanted her. The dream. All of it.
“Matt? Are you okay?”
He didn’t answer. What could he say? Instead, he looked for a distraction. The band announced a break and put on a CD of dance music to keep everyone entertained while they were gone. A sensual Latin rhythm began, pulsing through the floorboards and mocking the rock-and-roll theme of the room. Matt grabbed Katie’s hand and dragged her to the center of the dance floor. “Let’s give everyone something to talk about besides the decor.”
“What do you mean? Dance?” She shook her head, already turning back to the sidelines. “I can’t dance.”
“You can with me.” He placed her left arm along his right, so her hand rested on his shoulder. Then he took her opposite hand with his, angling them outward. “We’re going to tango.”
“You’re kidding me. I can’t—”
“Just follow my lead.” He shifted his weight from foot to foot, without moving. “Do you feel that? Let my body cue you, not the music.”
Did she feel that? Oh, yes, she certainly did. She felt everything when Matt was near.
Sarah’s words about pretend love turning into real love echoed in her head. It had happened for her; maybe it could happen for Matt. Tonight was her best shot at making that happen. She’d met challenges before, head-on, with determination. Matt, though, was a challenge of a whole different sort. She didn’t have the experience or know-how to wrap men around her finger the way other women did. In most areas of love, she was a novice.
On the dance floor, she was even more of an amateur. But she was still game, as long as Matt didn’t let go. “Okay,” she said.
“Now, lift your head, turn it slightly to the side and stay with me. Closer.” He brought her chest to his, their torsos linked. “And think like a cat.”
“Meow.”
“Perfect.”
He took a step back, pressing a hand to her spine to signal her move. She followed his lead, stepping forward, moving with him. He took another step back and again she followed.
It was almost like walking but deeper, more sensual. They moved to the rhythm, crossing the floor with an easy series of steps and follows. The music pulsed through Katie, giving her a natural tempo to obey. “Where did you learn to do this?”
“My mother insisted on a few lessons at Arthur Murray.” He smiled. “I went because it was a great place to meet girls.”
“Shouldn’t I have a rose between my teeth?”
“No. That would make it hard for us to kiss. And what’s a tango without a kiss or two?” He leaned forward and brushed her lips with his, a tease that caused a fire to erupt in her belly. She pressed against him. And promptly lost her footing.
“Easy there,” he whispered. “Think cat, remember? Long, feline-type steps. Now get ready, we’re about to turn. Don’t worry, I’ll make it easy for you.”
He brought his palm tighter against her back and swooped her up off the floor, spinning her ninety degrees. She’d probably only been two inches off the ground but she felt light-headed. Her skirt was still swirling around her legs when he lowered her to her feet. She stumbled once, trying to get the hang of the steps again.
“Feel the music, Katie,” he whispered to her. “For a tango to be done right, you have to pour yourself into the dance.”
The music pounded a seductive beat that tingled through her, murmuring the promises of a bedroom later on. Katie slipped into the easy skin of what lay underneath the restrictions she’d placed on herself. She closed her eyes, letting instinct take over, embracing his body with her own. Every muscle he flexed, every movement he made, pulsed through him and into her. Close, closer still, she moved toward him, becoming one dancer, one person with Matt.
“Ah, Katie, Katie,” Matt murmured against her neck. “I think I’m falling in love with you.”
“I…I feel the same way about you,” she whispered and let the joyful words carry themselves straight to her heart, no longer aware they were in a crowded room, no longer caring if the facade had worked.
The music came to an end, and, with one final swirl, Matt spun her around. She arched her back and flung out an arm, the triumphant dancer finishing the finale of her life. Matt dropped to one knee, clasping her free hand in his.
Applause erupted from the sidelines. When Katie opened her eyes, she realized they were the only people on the dance floor. The entire crowd of nearly one hundred people had gathered around and watched as she and Matt danced.
She knew then that the Conventional Katie moniker was gone for good. And best of all, Matt had said he was falling in love with her. Hope for a future with him sprang to life in her chest, blossoming into a wide smile. She couldn’t remember ever feeling this happy.
Matt got to his feet and grasped her waist, bowing with her to another round of applause. “We put on one hell of a good show, according to the audience,” Matt said.
“Yes, we did.”
“I think they really believed our performance.” He looked down at her. She smiled back, letting the happiness brim over and no longer holding back the truth. But then a shadow passed over his face, dropping onto his features like a shade. Matt took a step back. Cold air invaded the space between them. “That little touch I added about saying I was falling in love worked wonders.”
His words lanced through her. Hot, painful tears stung at her eyes and a crushing weight she could barely swallow sunk to the pit of her stomach. “Yeah, I…I guess it did,” she managed. “You’re a great actor.”
He looked away. “So are you.”
“Thanks.” The word came out flat, stale. For the last few minutes, she’d been letting herself hope that maybe he wasn’t pretending. That he hadn’t said he was in love with her just because it was part of their bargain…but because he really did.
“I’ve accomplished what I wanted,” she said, trying to hold the tears in check long enough to get out of the room. “After a finale like that, I think I should go home.”
“Are you sure? We could always try the foxtrot—”
“No. No, I’ve had enough.” She put on her cordial face again, said goodbye to the people she knew and hurried out the door as fast as she could, away from Matt. She’d thought no one could ever hurt her the way Steve had.
She’d been wrong. So very, very wrong.
Chapter Nine
Matt caught up to her in the country club lobby. “Katie—”
She spun around. “Thank you for putting on a great show. The whole act was very convincing.”
He heard the forced brightness in her tone and knew exactly what had upset her. How could he be so stupid? How could he let his feelings get away from him like that? He’d told her he was falling
in love with her and then he’d taken it back.
What had he been thinking? He hadn’t been, and that was the trouble. He’d let himself get swept up in the dance and in Katie, and the words had slipped out. He’d been reacting on emotion, not with his head. “Katie, I—”
Before Matt could finish his sentence, Olivia came striding around the corner. She was holding color swatches in her hands and chatting with a man who looked to be the manager of the country club. When she saw Matt, she froze. “I’ll, ah, catch you later, Stan,” she said to the man beside her. He took one look at Matt, another at Olivia and Katie, and left without a word.
Olivia looked the same as ever, Matt thought, but a little older and harder. She was thin, almost painfully so, and there were lines in her face that hadn’t been there eleven years ago. Maybe the last decade hadn’t been so easy on her, either.
“Matt,” Olivia said. The word came out in a quiet gush of surprise.
“Hello, Olivia.”
“I knew you were in town, but…” She didn’t finish. Instead, she turned to Katie, as if she’d just noticed she was there. Olivia’s features went stony, yet her voice remained cool. “I didn’t expect to see you two together—I mean, I heard about…but…” She recovered and put on a polite face. “Nice to see you, Katie.”
“And you,” Katie said. She took an almost imperceptible step away from Matt. “Olivia has ordered some designs from my shop,” Katie told Matt.
That explained the distance Katie put between them. Never get in the middle of a man and his ex-wife, Matt thought wryly. “What a small world.”
“Indeed,” Olivia said. An uncomfortable silence curled around them until Olivia held up the swatches and waved them vaguely toward the lounge. “I was here to go over a few details for the renovation. Are you here for a something special?”
“A wedding,” Katie said.
“Not your own?” Her laughter seemed forced.
“No, no.” Katie shook her head. “A friend’s.”
“Oh. Well, it was nice to see you again, Katie.” Olivia nodded at Matt. “Are you in town long?”
Seeing Olivia magnified all the guilt and anger brewing in Matt. He tried to cram it back into the recesses of his heart, but he couldn’t. The feelings he’d managed to more or less put away for the past eleven years refused to go quietly. They kept bobbing up, forcing him to acknowledge them. To deal with them.
He was through running away and hiding from the past. He needed to find out the rest of the story. Maybe that would give him the peace he needed to move forward. Or maybe it would send him spiraling off a steeper cliff of self-blame.
“We have some unfinished business, Olivia,” he said. “I’d like to talk—”
Olivia’s face paled ten shades. “I have to go.” She spun on her heel and left.
Olivia wasn’t happy about his return, that was clear. His being with Katie hadn’t been welcome news, either. What had Katie said? Olivia was using Katie’s shop for some floral work. Damn. He hoped that his being with Katie hadn’t hurt her business. He knew she and Sarah were struggling to keep it afloat.
But what could he say to Olivia? It’s all an act? We were just pretending so people would change their ideas of who Katie Dole and Matt Webster really are? Olivia would never believe it.
His return had stirred up a hornet’s nest of a mess. His parents were unhappy with his actions, his ex-wife had more than one resentment left, and his best intentions may have sent Katie’s store further into financial trouble. And to top it all off, he’d just broken Katie’s heart.
Way to go, Matt.
“I need to get home. I, um, have an early day tomorrow,” Katie said.
“I thought the shop was closed on Sundays.”
She flushed. “It is. But I have some things to do.” She started out the door, heading toward the parking lot. Matt hurried after her, but he had a feeling that in her mind, she’d already left him.
“Thanks for the dance,” Katie said when she reached her car. “It was a lot easier than nailing in two-by-fours. So, now we’re even.” She put out her hand. “And thanks for keeping your end of the bargain and putting on a good performance.”
“This is how you want to end our night, with a handshake?”
“Yes. We’re friends, right? Friends shake.”
“I thought we were much more than friends.”
“No, not really.” But the lie shimmered in her eyes.
Damn, he had screwed up royally. How could he begin to mend the ever-widening rift between himself and Katie? He took her hand, but she pulled it away. “Katie—”
She shook her head. “I’m really tired.”
“Katie, please, let’s go get something to eat and then we can talk.” He had no idea what he’d say if she agreed. All he knew was that he couldn’t let her leave thinking he was the world’s biggest jerk. Even if it was true. “Hey, and afterwards,” he offered her what he hoped was a charming, irresistible smile, “we could tango a little more.”
“It was all a charade, Matt.” Her voice was thin and shaky. “You pretended, I pretended. Everyone fell for it. Bravo.” She clapped her hands together.
Then she turned, got into her Toyota and pulled away before Matt could say the words that would make her stay.
“So? How was the wedding?” Sarah said when she breezed in Monday morning.
“It was nice.” Liar.
Katie focused her attention on the partially completed silk flower arrangement on her workbench. It was easier to concentrate on the perfect place for the faux orchid in her hand than to think about Saturday night and about Matt. She’d worked all weekend, letting cleaning and organizing be her excuse for avoiding Matt and her thoughts. A hearty scrub of the bathtub, two passes over the kitchen floor and even a thorough dusting of the ceiling fan hadn’t rid her system of him. Nothing had.
Sunday, her phone had rung twenty times and she’d ignored it every time. Twice, he’d come to the door and begged her to let him in. She’d turned up the volume on her stereo and pretended she couldn’t hear him. The last thing she wanted to hear right now was Matt congratulating her again on a performance well done.
“Come on, give. I know it was more than ‘nice.’ I can tell by your face that something happened. Did Barbara abandon Steve at the altar?”
“No, but Steve looked like he was about ready to pass out. He went through with it, though. He even apologized to me for being such a jerk before.”
“It’s about time.” Sarah leaned against the counter. “That delivery I need to get over to the Robertsons’ house for their new baby can wait a few more minutes. Tell me, what happened with Matt?”
Katie sighed and gave up on the orchid. She’d bent the stalk in half by jabbing it too hard. She flung it onto the worktable and dropped her head to her hands.
“Katie.” Sarah laid a hand on her shoulder. “What is it?”
She’d thought she didn’t have any tears left. But she did. “Matt and I tangoed, he told me he was falling in love with me, then he compliment me on our great performance.” She sniffled.
“Oh, Katie.” Sarah grabbed a handful of tissues out of the box beside them and handed the stack to Katie. “But, he did say ‘falling in love,’ right?”
She nodded, swiping her eyes. “He also said it was an act.”
“Hmmm.” Sarah tapped a finger on her chin. “I don’t think so. I think maybe Matt let something slip out that he didn’t even realize he felt yet.”
“Sarah, the man was pretending to be my fiancé, because we had a deal. Period. He doesn’t love me. He doesn’t even want a relationship.” Katie picked up another flower. “It gets worse.”
“Worse?”
“On the way out of the country club, Matt and I ran into Olivia Maguire. She wasn’t too happy to see me with him. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if she canceled her order.”
“Looks like you’re right about that one.” Sarah gestured toward the door. Through the glass, Kati
e could see Olivia getting out of her car. Her heart sank.
“I’ll stay. Maybe we can talk her out of canceling, if that’s what she’s here for.”
“Go deliver that arrangement. I’ll be fine.”
Sarah hesitated. “Are you sure? I hate to leave you—”
“Go.”
“Okay. Good luck.” Sarah gathered Katie in a quick, strong hug, then headed out the back door.
A moment later, Olivia entered the store. “I’ve decided to cancel the dish garden order,” she said.
Dread filled Katie’s lungs.
“Although I’m impressed with your work, certain circumstances have made me rethink our business relationship.”
“I can assure you—”
“I’ve got a lot of work coming up, you know,” Olivia interrupted. “Three houses, the country club, a new restaurant that’s opening in Lawford.” She ticked them off on her fingers. “All of these customers could use flowers. Some on a regular basis. I had intended to use your shop. Before I do, however, I want to make sure business is your top priority. I’d thought it was before, but now…” She didn’t finish.
“What do you mean, ‘top priority?”’
“It’s been my experience that small shops sometimes close unexpectedly when the owner finds something else to occupy her time.”
Katie knew precisely where this conversation was leading. “Like a man?”
“I’m not saying that exactly, but yes, sometimes getting involved with someone or getting married becomes a, shall we say, a distraction. Then the shop isn’t there when I need it most.”
“Does this have anything to do with me dating your ex-husband?”
“Of course not.” But the flush that crept over Olivia’s face contradicted her words. She sounded angry, and yet she looked a bit worried. Anger, Katie could understand. But worry?
“I don’t want to commit to a business relationship with your shop right now. Maybe in a few weeks…”
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