The Marriage Project

by Leclaire, Day

  Harry stepped forward and held out his hand. “I believe that’s my cue to introduce myself. The name’s Jones. I guess you could say I’m the man who watches out for Bradford. I make sure no one pulls any nasty tricks with his money. I’m also the person who gets to take them down if they try.” He bared his teeth. “Fair warning. When I take them down, they stay down.”

  Linc’s eyes widened. “Jones? Harry Jones?” He stumbled to his feet and backed rapidly away, regarding Harry’s hand as though he’d offered a fistful of razor-sharp claws.

  It was then Madison knew. Her cousin was guilty as hell. She also knew something far worse. Harry was every bit as intimidating as he’d always claimed. Ever since she’d been trapped on the elevator with him, she’d foolishly tried to deny his innate power. She was probably the only person in the entire world who hadn’t recognized it at first sight. Even Rosy understood his dominance. She just chose to contend with it in her own unique fashion.

  Madison closed her eyes. She’d called Harry a lion almost from the first, but she hadn’t believed it, not really. That was why he’d insisted she accompany him. He wanted her to see him for what he truly was. A predator. A man who went for the throat with a ferocious ease that could only come from years of practice. Confronting that truth didn’t change how she felt about him. But it might change how he felt about her, especially once he learned the rest of her background.

  “I gather you’ve heard of me.” Harry addressed Linc. “This will make our discussion much easier.”

  “My uncle warned me—” Her cousin broke off abruptly as he realized what he’d been about to say. “I’d like to call him, if you don’t mind.”

  “You need a criminal attorney, not an accountant,” Madison said gently. “Don’t bother with Dad. I suggest you call Uncle Tyler.”

  She couldn’t take any more. Not only was one of her closest relatives involved in a nasty case of embezzlement, but her father had probably helped. At the very least he would have advised her cousin every inch of the way. And there was another part of this whole horrible incident that distressed her, a piece of her past that she couldn’t bring herself to face.

  Without a word, she turned and left the office. She didn’t stop once outside. The brisk tap-tap of her pumps echoed off the walls, the sound quickening with each step as she bolted toward the entrance to Bradford’s. Shoving open the door, she pelted down the stairs leading to the walkway as swiftly as her heels would allow. She had no idea where she was headed. She simply knew she had to get as far away from Linc and the memories he’d resurrected as she could.

  She never heard Harry coming. One minute she was racing down the walkway and the next an ironlike arm yanked her to a stop and spun her around. “Where are you going?” he demanded.

  “I don’t know. I don’t care.” Her words came in swift, frantic pants. “Anywhere that’s not here.”

  “Why? Don’t you realize how helpful you’ve been? If you’re right about Linc, you’ve probably saved Kent’s company. Or at least a good chunk of it.”

  “Dammit, Harry! Don’t you understand? His name isn’t Linc Smith. It’s Adams. Lincoln Adams. And he’s family, my cousin to be exact.”

  “I’m sorry, Madison.” Compassion vied with ruthless intent. “You know that doesn’t change what has to be done.”

  He still didn’t get it. “Of course, I know. That’s only one of the reasons I’m upset.”

  “What’s the other?”

  She pointed a shaky finger toward Bradford’s and said the words that would damn her in his eyes. “I’m part of all that. That could have been me.”

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Shards of green appeared in his eyes, warning of his anger. “You’re not like him. You never could be. I may not have known you long, but I’ve learned that much about you. I can understand if you don’t want to help take him down, but—”

  She tugged free of his grasp. “No! You don’t understand.”

  “Then explain it to me.”

  “I can’t. Not here. Not like this. Not when—” Her voice broke and she fought to regain control. “Not when my cousin is waiting for you to stalk in there and rip him to shreds.”

  Harry’s face emptied of expression. “Is that what I’m going to do?”

  “It’s the nature of lions, isn’t it?” It was a statement of fact, one neither of them could deny.

  “Yes, I suppose it is.”

  “Just like it’s the nature of snakes to strike when cornered.”

  “Is that a warning?”

  “Absolutely. Linc’s no match for you, but the people who put him up to this will do everything in their power to protect him.” She shivered. “And they have a lot of power.”

  “I’ll be sure to watch my back.”

  “And Kent’s, too.” She swiped at her cheeks and forced herself to give Harry the information he’d need to finish his job. It was the least she could do under the circumstances. “If you want to recover some of the money, I suggest you check for customer accounts that have similar names. Like Sheffield Manufacturing and Sheffield Marketing. Inexperienced auditors don’t always catch the duplication because they think it’s two separate divisions of the same company. But one will be legit and the other bogus. Linc will have syphoned off company money by making payments based on falsified invoices to the bogus firm. You might also check to see if any product has been sent to them. He may have a black market operation going, as well. Though I’m hoping he hasn’t had time to get that started yet.”

  To her relief, Harry didn’t ask how she knew. “At least stay until I wrap things up here.”

  “I can’t.” She couldn’t face Linc again. Not after what had happened, not when so much of it was her fault. “Don’t worry, Harry. I’m not Aunt Dell. I have a lot of practice finding my way home.”

  He must have recognized her determination because he didn’t argue further. “Okay, Madison. Go, if that’s what you want. But this discussion isn’t over. Not by a long shot.”

  “I’m well aware of that.” She turned to leave, then remembered one last thing. “Don’t forget to get the games Rosy requested.”

  “Those games are the least of my worries.”

  “They won’t be if you forget. You’ll never hear the end of it.” She continued to hesitate. “You might also consider introducing Kent to Rosy.”

  “You have got to be kidding me!” He’d thoroughly lost his temper this time. “All hell is breaking loose and you’re matchmaking?”

  She shrugged. “Maybe some good can come out of it. It would help—” Her voice broke again and she knew she had to leave before she fell apart altogether.

  “Honey, please. Stay.”

  “I can’t.”

  “Then promise me you’ll come by the hotel later this evening.”

  “I’ll try. If not, I’ll see you at the office tomorrow.” She suddenly remembered and her pain magnified. “That’s right. We’re finished with everything, aren’t we?”

  “We’re not finished,” Harry retorted. “Not by a long shot.”

  “Somehow,” she whispered, “I suspect we are.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  Principle 9: Sex is Good…

  Making Love is Better.

  THE setting sun had just kissed the Olympic Mountains when Madison entered Harry’s high-rise hotel. She took the elevator straight to the top and walked to the door of his suite. Her palms were damp from nerves and she brushed them against her thighs. She should have changed before coming. Her salmon-colored suit jacket and skirt, which had been crisp and jaunty this morning, had definitely wilted. But as much as she’d appreciate any excuse to turn tail and run, she couldn’t. She owed Harry better than that. Not giving herself time to reconsider, she balled up her fist and banged on the door. It opened before she could do more than take a single, steadying breath.

  Harry stood there and he didn’t appear happy. She couldn’t decide whether the unnaturally rumpled state of his hair tipped he
r off to that fact, or if it was the way his tie hung slightly askew. Or maybe it was the steam pouring out of his ears and the half-crazed expression in his eyes that clued her in. Yeah, that was probably it.

  “Lady, you are in one hell of a lot of trouble,” he announced. Snatching her into his arms, he carried her over the threshold, slamming the door behind them with a single savage kick.

  “Have you lost your mind?” She struggled in vain against his unyielding strength. “Put me down!”

  “Have I lost my mind?” The question rumbled through her, reverberating with anger and frustration and— And could it be fear? It didn’t seem possible considering the source. “That’s rich, coming from you.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  He strode into the living room and dumped her onto her feet. Then he seized her purse and briefcase from one of the chairs and shook them at her. “I’m talking about these. You left them at Bradford’s when you bolted. As soon as I realized you’d forgotten them, I scoured every inch of the city looking for you. Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been, imagining you wandering around trying to find a way home without money or a cell phone at your disposal?”

  “Oh.” She shrugged. “I called a cab.”

  Her explanation did little to appease him. Tension crackled like electricity, filling the air with threat. “And you paid for that…how?”

  She wouldn’t let him browbeat her. Planting her hands on her hips, she faced him down. “I have a tab with all the local companies. Aunt Dell gets lost so often it seemed like the most logical solution to the problem. Not that this is any of your business. In case you didn’t notice, I’m a grown woman, Harry. I can take care of myself.”

  “If today’s an example of you taking care of yourself, I suggest you reevaluate your criteria.” He paced in front of her, the words exploding from him. “What the hell were you thinking, Madison? You’ve never gone longer than two minutes without a cell phone glued to your ear. No one at the office knew where you were. The Sunflowers were in a flat-out panic.”

  The Sunflowers or Harry? She didn’t have the nerve to ask. “I guess I should have called you, but I needed time to think.” She slipped further into the room. If she gave Harry a wide berth it wasn’t deliberate, she told herself. There were just certain parts of the room she felt more comfortable occupying, all of which kept her as far from a pair of unsheathed claws as possible. It certainly had nothing to do with the tension clinging to him, or the way he paced in perfect imitation of a caged lion. “And I did phone Rosy. I told her to let you know that I’d be over later this evening. I can’t help it if she kept the information from you.”

  His strides ate up the generous-size room. “Remind me to have words with that girl.” He stabbed the air with his finger. “And not just about her lack of communication skills. She’s pushed me as far as I intend to be pushed today.”

  Madison regarded him warily. “What else has she done?”

  “Aside from failing to pass on your message, she broke into my hotel room and redecorated the place.”

  He swept his arm toward the dining room. From where she stood, Madison could see that the table had been set for two, crystal and silver gleaming, blood-red candlesticks awaiting the strike of a match. Instead of the floral centerpiece that had been there on her last visit, an oddly shaped bush squatted in the middle of the table. Okay, so Rosy probably shouldn’t have entered without permission, but this didn’t look too terrible. Certainly not anything to get annoyed about.

  “You might be right about my family trying their hand at a little matchmaking,” Madison conceded. “I guess Rosy decided to set the stage once she found out I planned to drop by.”

  “You think?” He thrust a hand through his hair. “She also brought dinner.”

  “And that’s a bad thing, I gather?”

  “You tell me. Apparently dinner in Rosy’s world consists solely of chocolate, honey and whipped cream.”

  “Oh, dear.”

  “With instructions.”

  Uh-oh. “Instructions?”

  “How-to instructions,” he clarified. “According to Rosy, I need educating on the proper way to—how did she put it? Oh, right. ‘Successfully install my hard drive.’ And just as a side note, you can forget about setting her up with Kent. If you think I’m going to let her anywhere near him, you’re crazy. I’m not about to have him corrupted by that sex-crazed lunatic. He’s a nice kid. You should read some of the kinky stuff she put in that message.”

  Madison blushed. There were a few facts about her cousin she’d rather not know. “Harry—”

  “I’m not finished. Not by a long shot. Not only did she arrange for our dinner, but she put things in my bed.”

  “What sort of things?” Madison asked cautiously.

  “Flowery things.” If matters weren’t so serious, she’d have laughed at his outraged expression. “Petals and herbs that will no doubt end up in places no petal or herb belongs. And if that’s not enough to chase you away, she brought along a tree.”

  Her gaze returned to the shrub decorating the table. “Rosy left that for you?”

  “No. Rosy left it for you. A ‘naughty-but-safe’ tree with leaves made out of very interesting foil packets in every color and style imaginable.”

  “Every size, too?” The question escaped before she could utilize an iota of common sense.

  “No. Only one.” Brilliant green lights appeared in his eyes, warning that she’d be wise to keep any future smart-mouthed remarks to herself. “Fortunately, Rosy seems to have more confidence in that regard than you. We’re talking about a tree covered in nice, big oak leaves. Not a single scrawny pine needle in sight.”

  Heaven help her! She wouldn’t get that image out of her head anytime soon. She scrambled to stay focused. “I’m sorry Rosy upset you. I’ll have a talk with her first thing tomorrow.”

  He stopped pacing, pausing a scant few feet away. “She’s not the one who upset me. She’s the one I’m taking my temper out on so I don’t go after the real culprit.”

  It didn’t take much brainpower to figure out who he meant. “Me.”

  “You. And I don’t mean your disappearing act. That’s just part of it.”

  “Then what?”

  “I’m talking about the way you’ve been shying away from developing a relationship with me and your fear of commitment. I’m talking about your reaction to what happened at Bradford’s today. And I’m talking about how you run at the first sign of anyone getting too close.” He folded his arms across his chest and fixed her with his lion’s stare. “What’s going on, Madison? Explain it to me.”

  She took a deep breath. No more ducking the issue. Harry deserved total honesty and that’s what she’d give him, no matter how much it hurt. “I don’t think it’s working out between us.”

  “Why?”

  The single, razor-sharp word tipped her off that his emotions still ran hot and passionate, despite his current air of calm. She crossed to the window and swept aside the drapes, fabricating an intense interest in the view. Not that the cityscape made much impression. She was too keenly aware of the man standing behind her to focus on anything else. “We’re too different.”

  “This is because of Linc, isn’t it?”

  “My cousin doesn’t have anything to do with my decision. He simply brought home certain facts.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like…” She risked a quick glance over her shoulder. The lion had stalked closer and she inched to one side. “Like we come from worlds that have nothing in common.”

  He matched her movements, shifting positions just enough to keep her on edge, while at the same time managing to block all avenues of retreat. She swiveled to face him. It was utterly unfair that he was so large, she silently stewed. An average-size man wouldn’t have been able to get away with those sorts of tactics.

  “I’d say we had a lot in common,” Harry argued.

  “You’re wrong.”

&nbs
p; “Am I? Let’s see…” He reached for his tie, ripping at the knot. “We’re both practical.”

  She lifted her chin with a touch of defiance, pretending not to notice his actions, pretending even harder not to be unnerved by them. “I recently discovered that I’m nowhere near as practical as I once thought. Now that I think about it, I haven’t acted with any practicality at all these last couple of weeks.”

  The tie came free and he tossed it aside without a second glance. “We both excel at business.”

  “You mean you excel at business. Apparently, I excel at playing at business.”

  He continued as though she hadn’t interrupted, tugging at the buttons of his shirt as he spoke. “We both have a knack for telling people what to do with their money.”

  “Don’t you dare pretend we’re in the same category,” she stormed. “If my father knows who you are that means you’re big. Very big.”

  “I warned you about that right from the start.” She found the gentleness of his tone disconcerting, perhaps because it was at direct odds with the fierceness of his gaze. “If you chose not to believe me, I can’t be held responsible. And while we’re on the subject of choosing what to believe and what not to, need I mention the word ‘intimidation’? I seem to remember telling you I’d been called that on more than one occasion, too.”

  “Don’t remind me. I knew you were a lion the first time I saw you,” she complained. “I should have trusted my instincts from the beginning.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  “Because by then we’d—In the elevator I’d—You’d—” She released her breath in an exasperated huff. “You know what I mean. It was very unfair of you to kiss me like you were a normal person and then turn around and be someone else when the lights came on.”

  “I was trying to reassure you, not mislead you.” He’d finished with the buttons lining his shirt and glanced down to remove his cufflinks. They were heavy nuggets of misshapen gold and he discarded them onto a nearby coffee table as though they were cheap bits of plastic. “The reason you ignored the truth was because you didn’t want to face the ramifications.”