Damn, if it wasn’t for Katie, he’d tell her where she could put that money, dollar by dollar… He wasn’t trying to cheat her out of her money—she was the one who had made the offer, and set the price.
Somehow, he maintained an impassive expression. “Two hundred thousand will be fine.”
The surrender surprised her. In actuality, she’d been prepared to go higher if need be. Courtney studied him, looking beyond the tight, firm muscles and the chiseled planes of his face, and far beyond the curling dark blond hair that whispered along his wide shoulders.
He was playing it safe. She would have thought that Gabriel was a risk taker. He had the bearing of someone who would try to outrace the wind for the sheer thrill of it.
Wrong again, she mused.
Courtney tossed aside the pillow and moved forward on the love seat. “Good.”
He wondered if she’d worn that blouse on purpose. Hot pink and tied just beneath her breasts, the jaunty knot strategically drew his eyes to the tempting hint of cleavage that was peering out. It gave a man pause and messed with his head.
Which made her offer even harder to understand. Why would such an attractive woman have to resort to paying a stranger two hundred thousand dollars to marry her? He knew of half a dozen places where she could walk in and just crook her finger. Five or more ready and willing men would be at her side before the motion was completed.
“There is, however,” he told her, “one more thing I do want.”
She arched a brow. Here it came. Demands. Courtney straightened her shoulders, a soldier waiting for the first volley from the enemy. She dropped her voice down to a steely whisper, despite the artificial smile on her face. “And that is?”
John didn’t bother pretending to return her smile. “That you change your tone when you talk to me. Especially around Katie.”
Courtney inclined her head. “Don’t worry, Gabriel. I won’t make her feel as if her father compromised himself.”
That was harsh, and she knew it. Courtney bit her lip, waiting for his reaction. She saw something dark and dangerous move across his face, as if he were struggling to hold on to his temper.
He didn’t like her, Courtney realized. In a way, though she’d gone out of her way to bait him, that bothered her. She didn’t like being disliked. But he liked her money, and in the end, that was all that mattered.
She laughed softly to herself. It was almost a given— in the end, every man always liked her money better than her.
Maybe she was being perverse tonight, or maybe it was to pay him back for disappointing her and turning out to be just another man with no integrity. Whatever the reason, she pushed the envelope a little further.
“By the way, why did you? Compromise yourself, that is. You sounded so lofty earlier, about people not being bought.” Her eyes narrowed, pinning him. “Was it because you didn’t believe I was serious, or because you were hoping I’d come back with a better offer?”
He was reminded of a scene from a classic movie, of Jimmy Cagney shoving a grapefruit into his girlfriend’s face because she’d gotten on his nerves. John knew exactly how old Jimmy’s character must have felt a second before he gave in to his impulse.
His fingers tightened around the widemouthed glass in his hands. Why he was doing it was his business, and would remain that way. If she thought he was some deadbeat, well, that was her mistake. He didn’t much care what she thought of him or his motives, as long as she kept her opinion to herself when she was around Katie.
“A better offer than living with you?” His mouth curved sardonically. “I didn’t think there could be a better offer than that, Ms. Tamberlaine.”
Alarms went off inside her head, but she quelled them. Nothing here she couldn’t handle, she told herself. “Under the circumstances, maybe you’d better call me Courtney.”
“Fine.” He raised his glass, toasting her. “Courtney.”
Her name came out in a purr that stirred something within her. Something deep and recessed. The alarms multiplied ten-fold.
“Let’s get one thing straight, Gabriel. This is strictly a business arrangement. There are ground rules. You help me and I’ll pay you for your ‘trouble.’ You and your daughter will live here after the wedding, but you’ll have your own room and, for the most part, your own life—as long as that life doesn’t embarrass me,” she added pointedly.
It amazed him just how tightly he could hold on to his temper when it involved Katie. “I’ll try my best not to scratch in public.”
“Oh, it goes far beyond scratching, Gabriel. You can see whomever you want in private, but…” Her voice trailed off for a second as she looked for a way to put this that would get through to him. “Do you understand the word ‘discreet’?”
His expression darkened a degree as his eyes held hers. “Do you understand the word ‘insulting’?”
She raised both hands in mock surrender. “Sorry, I forgot. You’re a college graduate.”
He’d had pretty much enough of this game she was playing. “And you are insufferable.”
Well, at least he was honest. And maybe she’d asked for it. “You don’t have to like me, Gabriel. You just have to marry me.” She held up two fingers. “Two years, two hundred thousand dollars. The first installment, fifty thousand dollars, will be placed in your bank account the day we get married. I assume you have one.”
“I have one,” he replied tersely.
That was it, he thought. The bottom line. He was selling his soul for two hundred thousand dollars.
No, for Katie. He had to remember that. He was doing this for Katie. For the one bright spot in his universe. “And after two years?”
She recited it as if it were going to happen to someone else. The only way she had a prayer of getting through this was by keeping it all at a distance. “Two years is the requirement stated in the will. After that, we wait a decent interval, then get a divorce and you go your own way, a lot richer than you’ve ever dreamed.”
His eyes darkened. “You don’t know a damn thing about my dreams, lady.”
Had she been standing, Courtney would have taken a step back. She could almost touch his anger.
Catching hold of his temper, John contemplated his glass philosophically. “Wow, married and divorced and I haven’t even finished my drink, yet. The nineties just take your breath away, don’t they?”
The glimpse into his darker side had left her momentarily numbed. Emerging, she rallied. “That sarcasm clause you tossed my way earlier? The one about not having a sarcastic tone when I address you?” John raised a brow, waiting for her to continue. “Well, it goes both ways. I don’t want to hear it, either. When we’re around my friends, and especially my lawyer, I want you to act the loving husband.”
That was going to be a stretch. Humor twisted his mouth. “In your case, I take that to mean refraining from strangling you.”
He was a cocky one. Still, there was something about his smile that got to her. “Right. You can’t strangle me and I can’t shoot you.”
For a moment, he almost liked her. Almost. John laughed, finishing his drink. Leaving the glass on the table, he put out his hand to her. “Deal.”
Sliding her legs out from beneath her, Courtney moved forward on the love seat and placed her hand in his. His grip was strong, firm. His hand seemed to swallow hers up.
“Deal,” she repeated. She slipped her hand from his. The warmth remained with her. “Now, about Katie.”
If there had been an open window for a moment, it was shut again. “Let me worry about Katie.”
What did he think she was going to do, sell her into slavery? She liked the little girl. A hell of a lot more than she liked him.
Courtney ignored his protest. “As she will be my stepdaughter, I should take an interest in her. There are private preschools that—”
“Stick to your poodles.”
There was no mistaking his tone. It vaguely reminded her of her father’s, one of the few times he’d los
t his temper with her. Courtney bristled. “I don’t have poodles.” She waved at the ball of white fluff in the corner. Cuddles was asleep. “The dog is Mandy’s. I’m just letting it stay here until she comes in for a landing.”
It wasn’t the first time Mandy had left Cuddles with her. Courtney rather liked the little dog with its quick pink tongue. At least it was honest in its affection. It didn’t have to be bought.
“Mandy,” John repeated. “Yoursister?” There was a hell of a lot of things he didn’t know about the woman he was binding himself to for two years. How many lovers had she had?
It shouldn’t have been the first question that occurred to him, but it was. He dismissed it. That was her business and not his. He wouldn’t have asked it of a member of a firm he was joining and he shouldn’t be wondering about it now.
“My friend,” she corrected. He was going to have to know that if he was going to be her husband. As the litany of things she was going to have to teach him multiplied in her mind, her head began to ache.
He thought a moment, then nodded, making the logical conclusion. “The petite brunette I saw earlier with her nose pressed against the French doors?”
It was an apt description. “The very same. She’ll be my maid of honor since she suggested you.” Mandy was going to love this, Courtney thought. Her eyes shifted to John. “Would Katie like to be the flower girl?”
Her thoughtfulness toward his daughter surprised him. But she was probably just doing it to please some fantasy she was creating for herself. No sense in giving the woman points where none were due. “Is this going to be a threering circus?”
This was her wedding, she’d have as many rings as she damn well pleased. After all, she was paying for it.
She held up her index finger. “One ring. It would look strange if I didn’t invite some people.” She might as well think of it as a party, Courtney resigned herself.
He’d rather have as few people witnessing this as pos sible. “Maybe they’ll just think you were overcome with love.”
“Maybe.” Actually, it would be something that several of her friends would probably believe, once they saw Gabriel. “How soon can you make yourself available?” He looked at her oddly. “For the wedding,” she added, stifling an unexpected flutter in the pit of her stomach.
His schedule book was painfully blank. “Right now, yours is the only job I have.” He shrugged ruefully. “It’s been a dry season for renovations.”
For a moment, she wondered what that had to feel like, worrying about where your next paycheck was coming from. It had to be horrible.
“Well, it works out because, as of right now, you’re not going to be doing any more carpentry.” She saw rebellion in his eyes. It looked as if every step was going to have to be negotiated. “It wouldn’t look right.”
He balked at having her dictate to him, at having anyone dictate to him, but he had signed on for this and he was going to have to make the best of it. He shrugged indifferently. “You’re paying the tab.”
“Yes,” she said, her eyes on his. “I am.”
This was exactly what she wanted, what she needed. Her prayers were answered. So why the hell did she resent him for doing exactly what she wanted him to do? For selling himself out to her? Why did she feel as if she’d just been cheated of something?
She wasn’t being cheated of anything, she insisted fiercely. She was being assured of her inheritance.
Courtney pushed ahead. “All right. We can get married in twelve days. That still gives us plenty of time to beat the deadline by a good two weeks. And enough time to get a prenuptial agreement signed.”
He couldn’t help grinning. It was all so ludicrous. Any second now, he was going to wake up to discover it was all a bad dream. That Katie was a normal, healthy fouryear-old and Courtney Tamberlaine was just a figment of his overactive imagination.
“Prenuptial agreement,” he echoed. “Do I get to draw up one, too?”
His words, or maybe his grin, coaxed one in kind from her. “Don’t worry, you haven’t got anything I want.”
He glanced toward the door, but it was closed. “That wouldn’t sound very romantic if anyone happened to be eavesdropping.”
Courtney let out a sigh. “Along with not having illusions, I stopped being a romantic a long, long time ago.”
And it bothered her, he thought. She was acting as if it didn’t, but the look in her eyes told him differently. “Then we’ve got something in common.” His eyes held hers. “Pity, isn’t it?”
She had no idea what to say to that, but something sad and distant within her agreed with him.
Chapter Five
So you do like her, right, Daddy? I told you you would.”
John could see his daughter’s reflection in the bottom right-hand corner of the beveled mirror. Katie was almost jumping up and down with glee. If she wasn’t careful, he thought with a smile, she was going to use up all the oxygen within the tiny room the priest had brought them to.
Giving the striped tie he’d just put on one final adjustment, John turned and looked down at his daughter. Her enthusiasm was radiating from every single pore.
He wished it was contagious.
Aware of his scrutiny, Katie carefully smoothed down her dress, primping for his benefit She was wearing her first long dress, an icy blue frock that almost looked white in the right light. It just whispered along her new white patent leather shoes.
She looked like an angel, he thought.
Courtney had selected the dress for her, as she had all the clothes for this little play. She’d taken care of all the details, proving to be a veritable whirlwind of activity. He really hadn’t thought she could pull it off. But, to his amazement, everything seemed to be dovetailing now. He had to hand it to her, Courtney was good at organizing and manipulating things.
Just how good, he figured he was going to find out in the months ahead.
John moved his shoulders restlessly beneath his jacket. Though the tuxedo fit as if it were made for him, he still felt constricted. He could move his arms and legs well enough, but that didn’t negate the trapped feeling wafting through every part of his body.
He couldn’t think of himself right now, he had to think of Katie. She was all that mattered.
John crouched down to her level. Her blue eyes were fairly dancing with excitement. She’d been like this ever since he’d worked up the courage to tell her that he was marrying Courtney.
It was a double-edged sword. While watching her anticipation warmed his heart, it saddened it, too.
Katie was the victim in this, he thought. He and Courtney were entering into this business deal with their eyes opened wide and with no illusions, but it was Katie who stood to get hurt. Katie who believed that this was real. More than anything, he wanted to shield her, to keep her from being bitterly disappointed.
How did you tell a child that you were entering a sham? That the only reason you were even considering it was to get enough money for an operation that would make her well again? Once the operation was performed, she would grow up to be like other children. Katie would run and play and be tapped into an endless source of energy, instead of becoming tired so often.
And then maybe, eventually, she would understand why he had done this.
But he couldn’t tell her that now. It was far too much to put on her shoulders. He knew that if he told Katie he was doing this for her, that there was no love between Courtney and him, Katie would feel guilty about his sacrifice.
Far older than her years, Katie understood things like that.
“Well, don’t you like her?”
She was waiting for his answer. Waiting for him to admit that she’d been right. John took her hands in his. He couldn’t bring himself to lie to her. There seemed to be no right way to do this. “Honey, I want you to remember that no matter what happens, nothing is going to change for us.”
Her eyes were laughing at him, as if she thought he was being funny for her benefit. “Yes
, it is. I’m getting a mommy.”
He could see it happening already. There was that look in her eyes. The look that told him Katie was falling in love with Courtney. There was a lot of love in that fragile little heart. He hated that it was being misdirected under false pretenses. Pretenses he was helping to foster.
Courtney was liable to run right over Katie without even knowing it.
Uncertainty returned to gnaw at him. Not for the first time he contemplated just grabbing Katie’s hand and making a run for it. But there was nowhere to run.
And it wouldn’t solve his major problem. It wouldn’t give him the money for Katie’s operation.
Maybe, if he was very careful and kept Katie out of Courtney’s way, the ultimate effect this would have on her would be minimal.
Or maybe Courtney would find it in her heart not to inadvertently hurt Katie too much.
How could Katie not be hurt? She thought she was getting a mother, not a business arrangement. There was no way she could come out of this untouched.
“Honey—” he began again, then stopped.
What could he say to her? Katie was only four, an older four than most, but still four. She didn’t understand about bills and desperation.
There was a knock on the door. Hearing it, he felt as if he’d just gotten an eleventh-hour reprieve from the governor.
“You decent, Johnny?”
John recognized Mandy’s voice. He rose just as the door opened. She didn’t bother waiting for him to answer.
“Ready or not, here I come. Two minutes to show time,” Mandy announced, then stopped dead as she got her first look at him in a tuxedo. She stared unabashedly. “My, oh, my, but some women do have all the luck.”
With a grin, she looked up into his eyes. “We always called Court the lucky one when we were kids.” She glanced down at the exuberant child, explaining. “Courtney could fall into a pile of dirt and come up clean, with a diamond in her hand.” Mandy slanted another look at John, then exhaled wistfully. Her dress, an adult version of Katie’s, rustled as she moved closer to him. “Are there any more like you hanging around the woodpile?”
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