Secret Match

by Victoria Pinder

  Soon he might be her other boss. Her business mind tried to calculate a price point to make her shoe collection sought after as she asked, “What if we create a limited edition shoe line? We could number each shoe, and let the public know it would be a limited batch.”

  Gio looked from his awards to Kiwi. “That’s a great idea for our casual collection in general, what we prepare for the runway shows.” He tapped his fingers on the mantel like he heard a beat she didn’t hear but she saw his excitement. “If it’s a hit then we will create a massive line.”

  The tingling in her skin made her want to run to her phone and call her boss, but she held back and asked, “Do you think Victoria would be interested?”

  “I’m sure she will. She has a business mind, like our father.” Gio hugged her waist, picking her up. “She’s to be my partner, though she’s more the voice on women’s lines as I’ll run the men’s line.”

  Perfect, Kiwi thought. She and Gio might work together for years to come. She wrapped her arms around his neck and asked, “So you’re signing the merger?”

  “I’m leaning toward yes, but I will wait the two weeks.” She could feel his heartbeat near her own before he settled her on her feet.

  Everything might just fall into place. She’d have a family, a great guy, and work on things she loved. Seriously, life seemed impossibly beautiful and attainable now. “Then we live and work together?”

  “I’m glad you are open to staying here, with me.” He lightly kissed her mouth that ached for far more.

  Once she found her voice to speak, she let his neck go and tugged his hand toward the door. “I want us to work as a team. I’ve never liked anyone as much as I like being with you. It’s scary to me, Gio, but we have to try.”

  Instead of walking with her, he pulled her backward. She turned as he went down on one knee. From his back pocket Gio pulled out a diamond bigger than even the one her best friend had, not that she’d ever been jealous. Serenity’s had wowed her and Kiwi had no idea diamonds came even bigger. The weight alone would prevent her from drawing. “And when you’re ready, we’ll marry.”

  Her heart beat faster. Was all this possible? She wasn’t sure. “Don’t push, Gio.” She didn’t need to be married.

  He stood and put the diamond in the palm of her hand. “Keep the ring.” He then closed her fingers around it and leaned closer to her. “When you’re ready, you’ll let me know.”

  If she was a normal girl, she’d have immediately said yes. Part of her wanted to. If there was anyone who was perfect for her, it was Gio. But her heart stilled and whispered she needed time. Everything was so new that she didn’t need to rock the boat. She poised on her tiptoes and kissed his cheeks. “I will. Gio, I just want us to be happy.”

  He traced her body, cupping her hip and backside. “Let’s get back to the house.”

  Now that was exactly what she had in mind though the weight of the ring in her hand pressed into her skin. She ignored it and tugged him toward the door. “Why so slow, Gio?”

  The sun set around them, coloring the sky. He gently pulled her to walk beside him and said, “Once we check on our guests, we’ll head to our room.”

  Our. Gio. Her. His. Their baby. A family was possible. She nodded and took a deep breath before she said, “Then we’ll celebrate our family.”

  “Absolutely.” He quickly kissed her cheek again.

  Tonight she’d be with Gio. The ring meant he possibly wanted it all too and was serious about her. Every inch of her body was filled with hope that love was possible now.

  Chapter 11

  Waking up next to Gio, this man who made her body crave more of him every time he touched her, drove her crazy and excited all at the same time.

  The sun was already high outside the window, so they’d slept away the morning.

  Gio sat up first and kissed her forehead. He must have thought she was still sleeping as he headed to the bathroom where a moment later she heard the shower.

  Kiwi sat up and stared outside the window.

  Birds sang near the grapevines and she heard people laughing below the open window.

  Happiness was clearly catchable—she let out a sigh.

  All of this could be hers, always. She picked up the ring and tried it on her finger.

  The sparkling diamond was in a class all by itself. The shower turned off and she tugged her ring off and set it back on the dresser. Gio came out wrapped in a navy blue towel tied at his waist as he walked toward his closet. He gave her a wicked smile. “Kiwi, did you talk to Victoria about your idea yet?”

  Not touching her phone to text the idea was an instantaneous hardship but she’d let it go. She stood and didn’t care that he stared at her completely in the buff as she headed to the bathroom and answered, “No. I was with you the whole time.”

  Once she closed the door, she sped through her morning shower routine, and chose a lime green knee-length dress that hugged her curves and then flared out from the hips to her knees to greet the day.

  Gio stood tall as she came out of the dressing room and hung up his phone, tucking it in his pocket. “I’m meeting with my sister to talk about the merger this morning. Can you give me an hour?”

  An hour felt too long and left her slightly aching for him though that was silly. She was an adult capable of taking care of herself so she nodded and said, “Of course. Come find me when you’re done?”

  “Absolutely.” He held the door open for her.

  They walked downstairs together, but then he kissed her near his office door and told her goodbye.

  Her heart sped up as he slipped inside.

  Right. She could do something with her time. Something other than wish for Gio’s presence because her heart beat just a little faster near him. Normal routines would be good. She headed toward the library to get a book and found Jennifer Gonzales, who crossed her arms and looked at her. “Kiwi, I’m surprised to see you.”

  This was Gio’s home, not Jennifer’s, who hadn’t even been invited. How dare the woman judge Kiwi? Kiwi pressed her lips together and reminded herself to be nice and to take things at face value. “Jennifer, did you choose what Morgan you’re going with?”

  Jennifer ignored the sarcastic tone and opened the library door wider so Kiwi could see Caro sitting next to a small breakfast tray with coffee and assorted pastries. Jennifer asked, “Do you have a minute? I don’t have any real friends and I’d like to bounce things off you and Caro.”

  Friends were important. Serenity always listened to her and honestly what Jennifer had done to Peter wasn’t any of her business. Kiwi stepped inside the library as she said, “Sure.”

  “Kiwi, glad you could join us.” Caro handed her a cappuccino after Kiwi chose one of the huge dark green sitting chairs that she could seriously bury herself in.

  The coffee tasted robust and she licked her lips after one sip. Caro turned to Jennifer and asked, “What’s going on?”

  “I don’t know what to do.” Jennifer paced between the chairs.

  Caro, seated on the other side of the tray, said, “Jennifer is deciding between Peter and Anthony.”

  Good. No one was going to make her think about her own life for a few minutes—but then she remembered the ring still upstairs on the dresser. She should have put it away before one of the maids went in to make the bed.

  Drat. Kiwi’s heart raced. She knew better than to leave jewels around where people might steal. She tried to excuse herself when Jennifer said, “I figure Caro knows Peter better, and you, Kiwi, know Anthony.”

  “I don’t know either very well.” Kiwi sat back and hoped she could make a fast getaway if she answered the questions.

  Jennifer clasped Kiwi’s fingers as she said, “Well, I’ve been in love with Peter my entire adult life.”

  “But he didn’t love you.” Kiwi extracted her hand, thwarted from running out like she’d hoped.

  Jennifer flung her arms upward and then dropped them to hug her rounded belly. “But he’s
here now. I’m not sure if I trust he’ll stay.”

  Caro stood, censure in her tone. “You stole his sperm to have his child. It’s hard to build trust this way, especially when he professed his love multiple times for his wife.”

  Right. Kiwi glanced at the door one more time and then forced herself to stay seated. She’d finish the conversation and then go.

  Hopefully everything with the ring would be fine. Gio had known the diamond was there.

  “Belle’s gone now,” Jennifer said defensively. “And I didn’t do anything to her.”

  Caro shook her head. “Other than never let Peter and Belle alone long enough for them to find happily-ever-after.”

  Jennifer let out a long sigh and said, “I wanted to have part of him as he was happily married, but that’s changed now, with Belle gone.”

  Pregnancy had changed her life too, but maybe Kiwi could bring this back to an easier solution. She asked, “Why did you go away with Anthony?”

  Jennifer stepped back and her lips pursed in thought. Finally she said, “I needed fresh air and to get away. I didn’t know he’d love me too.”

  Must be nice to have men lined up. Kiwi kept that comment to herself. Gio was more than enough for her and honestly she didn’t tolerate men in any capacity other than professional. Jennifer had to figure out what she wanted. “Let’s look at this another way.”

  “What way, Kiwi?” Jennifer asked.

  Lord knows she had no right answer to anything. She’d messed up her own life so many times she couldn’t count, but Jennifer’s wide-eyed gaze had her stop and measure her questions to guide her. She’d just sworn not to make decisions for anyone else ever again, but this was only advice. “How do you want to spend your life? Do you want to be with a man who might love you, or the man you love but might not love you?”

  Jennifer crossed her arms, the long flow of silky brown hair falling over one shoulder. “What are you saying?”

  Caro added, “You have to pick the man that makes you happy.”

  Jennifer took that statement and zeroed in on Kiwi. “Pfft, like Gio makes you happy?”

  What in the world? Kiwi’s hands went to her collarbone as she said, “Yes.”

  Jennifer shook her head. “Then why does Piper Lacey still call him?”

  He’d declined the call. How did that relate to Jennifer needing to choose a Morgan? The movie star was so dramatic. Kiwi lowered her hand and hugged her baby inside her as she asked, “How do you know?”

  Jennifer shrugged. “She left a voicemail on the house phone.”

  Seriously, they were guests but this was Gio’s home. Kiwi’s lips parted in disapproval before she asked, “You listened to it?”

  Jennifer patted her rounder, more well-defined mother’s body. “I was in the kitchen getting ice cream when she called and heard it live.”

  None of this mattered. The past was the past and a man like Gio was going to have ex-lovers and girlfriends. What came out of Kiwi’s mouth was, “Gio said he hadn’t seen her in a year.”

  Jennifer stepped around the chairs and back as if restless. “That wasn’t what it sounded like.”

  “What do you mean?” Kiwi instantly wished she’d sealed her lips.

  Jennifer looked down her pretty nose at Kiwi. “She’s in town and wanting to see him, again. The again sounded pretty desperate and sure.”

  “So?” No. She should have shut this entire conversation down already. Who cared if some famous and beautiful woman in Jennifer’s world wanted to see Gio again? He’d asked her to marry him… though she hadn’t said yes.

  Technically, she had no claim on him. Kiwi wanted to shake off the thought.

  Jennifer wiped a tear from her eye. “So, I lost Peter because I stupidly waited and he found another woman. If I don’t choose between Anthony and Peter fast, I could lose them both. And if you don’t grab onto Gio with both hands, you could lose him too.”

  Would she lose him like that? In a blink of an eye? Was Jennifer right? Every conversation they’d ever had, Gio seemed so easy and open. What if he was like that with all the women? She needed to protect herself and her child from being a fool.

  Those thoughts alone were a betrayal when they’d agreed to try. Her face heated as she looked at Caro for guidance as she said, “I don’t want to rush into marriage.”

  “Wait. That’s new.” Caro tilted her head. “Marriage? Has he asked?”

  “Yes.” In her head, Kiwi realized neither one of them ever once said the word love. Not even when he’d proposed. Her hands went into fists at her sides. “He wants us to be a family.”

  Jennifer quickly said, “Say yes and don’t look back. You’ll figure out if you love him later.”

  “I can’t do that Jennifer,” Kiwi said. With both women staring at her, the room seemed to grow smaller and smaller, like she was being pushed into a box.

  Jennifer stepped out of her almost-vertigo-like vision. “I wish I’d married Peter before everything fell apart.”

  Everything normalized. Kiwi’s feet were still planted on the ground. She was seated in the big chair. The world hadn’t fallen off its axis. She blinked and Caro and Jennifer faced each other, both standing.

  Caro clasped her hands together. “Had he ever asked?”

  “No.” Jennifer’s lips curled as she admitted, “I could have asked him before his father died. Mitch liked me and supported my relationship with Peter.”

  Right. The father. Gio hadn’t spoken kindly of him, but Kiwi had no idea if Jennifer was being honest. “Would Mitch have liked me?”

  Jennifer pushed her hair back and shook her head firmly. “No. But he wouldn’t have approved of Caro either. She’d been the maid and Kiwi, you were an employee for a company he’d think he owned already. To his mind, Morgans do not interact with the hired help.”

  Kiwi turned toward Caro and said, “Now that sounds like a hateful man.”

  Jennifer gave a tiny shrug. “Caro, he wasn’t completely awful, tell Kiwi what he was like.”

  Caro’s eyebrows lifted and her lips puckered like she’d make a face to scare children on Halloween. “Luke, Peter, and I’m sure your Gio, all have good reason to avoid their father’s opinions,” Caro said. “Kiwi, if you love Gio then marriage is great but you don’t have to rush. It’s the twenty-first century. I took my time with Luke and we’re both happy.”

  Jennifer then made a tisk sound. “I don’t think-”

  “Wait,” Caro interrupted, and her hands went to her hips. “Jennifer, I don’t want you with Peter. I liked Belle and wanted Belle at my wedding. What you did was horrible and you’re the reason she left.”

  Caro’s voice rose. Kiwi thought she heard Gio next door. He shouldn’t have to overhear this conversation, though the idea that Gio would go to Piper if they didn’t work out played in her mind.

  Would she lose him to the movie star? Piper and Jennifer were made from the same cloth and Jennifer had obviously run off Peter’s wife.

  “I didn’t.” Jennifer folded her hands before her like she was praying.

  Caro raised her voice. “You ruined his marriage. I don’t know why Peter is here other than the fact you’re having his baby. I’ve tried to understand you because you’re the closest thing I had to a sister as a girl, but I just can’t.”

  Jennifer rubbed her rounded pregnant belly and nodded like she’d made a decision. “Fair enough. You’re right. My baby is my best weapon. I’ll tell Peter I’ll go back to Miami with him only if he marries me.”

  “Seriously?” Caro looked at the ceiling. “I just want Belle back.”

  Jennifer strutted toward the door but looked back at her as she said, “Kiwi, grab your chance at happiness before it slips away.”

  Kiwi’s mind raced. She wasn’t a bombshell like Jennifer. She didn’t want to run off and lose out on love because someone else stepped in the way.

  And if she said yes to Gio now, did that cement their relationship or was that the way to stop them from ever trul
y being happy?

  If love existed—and maybe it did—rushing sounded like a sure-fire way to lose.

  But if she lost Gio because some beautiful woman kept calling him? A small part of her brain suggested that might be a reason to just say yes.

  Her mind was a whirlwind in a tornado of her thoughts.

  Gio then popped his head inside the library door. “Kiwi, are you ready?”

  His brown eyes seemed so big and clear, making her ache for his grounding touch. “Yes.”

  She waved goodbye to Caro and headed out.

  As soon as he took her hand, she knew she liked being in his arms. But was this love? Or was she just being a fool, wanting to wait to see if she could have it all when she wasn’t sure “having it all” was possible... If she said yes to his proposal now, did that make her the kind of woman she never wanted to be?

  She followed him outside. Hopefully she could clear her thoughts, fast.

  Chapter 12

  Gio Morgan’s rough hands had a few nicks from stitching together a collar-point sample for Victoria in his at-home conference room, but now that he held Kiwi’s hand, life was calmer. As he stood and opened the window in his office, he took a deep breath of air and let the scent of his vineyards wash through him though today had an extra fragrance—Kiwi’s rose perfume made everything more special.

  Kiwi closed the office door behind them. He turned when Kiwi tugged his arm and said, “Can we go up to the room for a minute?”

  “Sure.” He walked beside her as they headed through the house and toward the stairs. “What’s going on?”

  Her brow wrinkled. “I left the engagement ring on the nightstand.”

  “Don’t worry about that.” The Morgan clan didn’t need to steal, and his staff had been with him for years. Kiwi’s concern was good if they were anywhere else though so he gently said, “I’m sure it’s fine, but let’s put it in the drawer.”

  “Not a safe?” They entered the bedroom suite and she let out a huge sigh as she picked up the ring.

  For one second, he thought she might put it on, but then she carefully put it away in the nightstand drawer.