by Sara Orwig
“All right. I’ll take half this week deposited into my account. I’ll take care of it from there. Then you can pay the remaining half in three months.”
He shook his head. “No. A third now, a third in three months and the final third after we’ve completed our bargain. That’s fair and you know it.”
She thought about it and nodded. A third of a million was still a lot of money, and she’d have it immediately. “Very well. I’ll accept it in thirds.”
He stood in silence, still weighing his options. She wondered how long it would take him to reach a decision. He raised his head and glared at her. “We have a deal. I’ll coach the damned kids! But I promise you that they’ll hate me and I’ll hate them.”
“Done!” she declared, her spirits soaring. She’d held out for a fantastic arrangement. “It’ll do you good to get out again into the real world.”
And she got one million dollars to use as she saw fit. She was no longer Jake’s wife except on paper. He would work with the high-school boys and help them. She hoped she banked her elation enough that he had no idea how happy she was about her victory.
She would get through the six months, take the money and get a divorce. She studied her handsome husband and regrets tugged at her. They could have had so much…
She shook that thought out of her head. Jake was who he was—a man after money and power. To add to the mix, he had political ambitions that would drive him even harder.
His eyes narrowed and his expression changed as his gaze raked blatantly over her, as if she was naked. Her heart thudded and her mouth went dry. She wondered what was running through his mind. She’d have thought he’d be irate with her and want to leave. But the scalding look he gave her didn’t say that he wanted to get away. It was filled with sizzling desire, transforming the clash between them into an entirely different tension.
She drew a deep breath and realized there was a chance Jake could seduce her if they were together often. Yet when she thought about his deception, her fury became an armor that would keep him at bay.
“Maybe I’ve never really seen you,” he said. “I sure as hell didn’t know this side of you.” His voice was low, speculative, hot. She had expected his anger to continue, never anticipating this abrupt switch to a different kind of heat. “You’ve made a bargain with me, Emily,” he said.
With deliberation he took off his coat and tossed it aside without ever taking his gaze from her.
Her pulse roared as he walked up to her and thrust his hands into her hair, tilting her head up abruptly. “What happened to the quiet cooperative secretary I married?” he asked, studying her with those piercing eyes.
“I’m not your secretary now, Jake,” she answered, desire igniting beneath his scalding perusal. She wanted to tell him to take his hands off her. They had an agreement and he was already violating it, but the words were locked in her throat.
“You just bested me, Emily. Something few men have ever done and no woman has. We agreed not to have sex, but I can’t recall any stipulations that I can never kiss you. This morning, you got your way and what you wanted. Now I’m going to take what I want,” he said.
Her heart drummed as she gazed up at him, wanting him and angry with him at the same time, unable to shake either response to him. She shook her head. “No, you’re not,” she whispered, knowing she wasn’t really putting up a fight at all.
“You want me to kiss you,” he said. “It shows in your eyes. Tell me to leave you alone, Emily.”
While he waited, his smoky eyes vanquishing her protest, his arm went around her waist. She wanted to shout at him to go away, but she couldn’t. Her heart hammered and her lips tingled and her toes curled in anticipation. She ached for him and wondered whether she’d really won at all. She’d get what he promised, but he’d take what he wanted and she would give it to him willingly. No matter how furious with him she was, how much she didn’t like or trust him, she couldn’t refuse him.
His gaze went to her mouth and he leaned closer. She was certain he could see her pulse raging.
“No, Jake,” she whispered.
“Everything in you is saying yes,” he said with satisfaction lighting his eyes. His mouth covered hers, his tongue thrusting deep as if he could bend her will to his own.
Her exhilaration over winning evaporated. Enraged with him for his deception, she wanted to shout no, to stand up to him, yet she couldn’t. Why was she letting him kiss her?
Thoughts spun away as his arm tightened and he leaned over her. She knew now she hadn’t really won this major part of their battle.
He leaned down until she lost her balance and she clung to him while he kissed her. Trying to resist, she stood as still as a statue. But desire scalded her and she had to return his kiss, to stroke his tongue with hers, to kiss him deeply and run her hands over him.
Finally, he released her and looked down at her with a satisfied expression.
“Don’t let it go to your head, Jake,” she whispered. “You know you can kiss me and I can’t resist, but I will say no to anything more. I’m not giving you a baby.”
“We’ve made our bargain,” he said, still leaning over her. His gaze was intense, hot with desire. He swung her up and kissed her hard again, wrapping his arms around her.
His arousal thrust against her and she burst into flame, her breath ragged. She hoped she could live up to her words. She wouldn’t let Jake get her pregnant. She knew he intended to seduce her, get her pregnant and inherit the money, but she wasn’t having his baby.
She kissed him back for a moment, returning it passionately. A part of her wanted to excite him, frustrate him as much as he frustrated her. She thrust her tongue deep in his mouth, stroking and teasing, nipping his lower lip lightly, rubbing against his hard erection.
She felt him inhale, heard a groan deep in his throat. He released her and both of them gasped for breath as they studied each other.
Contradicting the storm in his gray eyes, he placed his palm gently against her cheek. “You’re beautiful, Em. You absolutely take my breath away.”
“How many women have you said that to?” she asked. His jaw hardened and his eyes turned cold.
“Want me to take you to breakfast?” he asked, instead of replying to her question. “After all, you have to eat and it’ll save you money for your charities. We’ll be in public so there’ll be no more kisses. Get your purse and come with me. We don’t even have to talk.” Without waiting for her answer, he turned away to pick up his jacket and pull it on.
In consternation, she started to refuse. But she knew that everything Jake had just said was the truth, so why not let him buy her breakfast? Maybe she could torment him a little more.
In silence she picked up her purse, but paused when she noticed Jake had pulled out his cell phone. “I’ll call my accountant. He’ll have your bank account number and can transfer the first payment to you this morning,” Jake said.
“Thank you,” she said. She made a mental note to open another account that Jake and his staff knew nothing about and move the money. She intended to spend a lot of it as soon as possible, having decided already what she wanted to do and which projects were the most vital. A chunk of the money would go to her father’s church. Her relationship with Jake was so volatile, she wanted to grab the money and run, get it spent so Jake couldn’t take it back.
Barely able to hear his low voice, she listened as he gave the information to his head accountant. Then Jake clicked shut his phone. “It’s done. Now you’ve got a lot of money to spread goodwill over Dallas.”
“Thank you,” she said. “So are we ready?”
He waved his hand toward the door and opened it for her. She swept out ahead of him and he fell into step beside her as they moved to the elevator.
They walked to the car in silence. She was aware of his height, his shoulder occasionally brushing hers. At the car, he reached around her to open the door for her and she caught the scent of his aftershave.
As she slid into the car, she glanced up to see him looking down at her legs. Her skirt had fallen open at the slit, revealing her long legs.
“Thanks,” she said perfunctorily, looking forward and trying to ignore him—which was totally impossible. He walked around the front of the sports car, taking his usual long strides that conveyed self-assurance in every step.
At the restaurant, as they followed the maître d’ to a linen-covered table, skylights let sunshine spill into the dining room. Emily was aware of women turning to look at Jake. Women gravitated to him like iron filings to a magnet. A lot of them wouldn’t have cared what Jake’s motives were for marriage. They’d be deliriously happy with all he could give them. Was she being unreasonable? She didn’t think so. As far as she was concerned, deception was an unforgivable breach of trust.
Jake held her chair, his fingers barely brushing her, so slight on her back and arm that it could have been accidental. But she suspected Jake did very little unintentionally.
He sat across from her and once again, she could see faint amusement in his eyes. He was so damn certain of himself. He knew that he was handsome and sexy and that she couldn’t resist his kisses.
A waitress placed menus in front of them. Emily opened hers and tried to ignore the sparks that danced between them every time she glanced at Jake.
She ordered a huge breakfast, figuring she’d skip lunch and eat on his dime.
With a wink for Jake, the waitress took their menus. Emily looked into Jake’s eyes. “You do impress women everywhere you go,” she said.
“There’s one I don’t impress enough,” he replied. “So if I’d refused to coach, would you really have walked? Admit it, Em. We have a deal now and the money is being moved. Would you have walked out on the million?”
“Yes, I would,” she said. “It doesn’t seem real to me at this point, anyway.”
“After over a year of being married to me, I don’t see how it can’t seem real. Of all the women in the world, I picked the one who isn’t interested in wealth or luxury.”
“As I recall,” she said, smiling at him, “you said that’s what you were searching for.”
“Not to this extent. It never occurred to me anyone would react to money the way you do.” He touched her cheek. “I don’t usually miss the mark as I have with you. Maybe I’m losing my touch.”
“Jake, as the old saying goes, you can’t win ’em all. You always expect to win, that much I know about you. But nobody gets what they want all the time.”
“True,” he said, smiling at her with a flash of white teeth in a warm grin that was an invitation to relax her guard. She wondered how many times he’d coaxed what he wanted out of women with that irresistible smile. And she was as vulnerable to it as any of them.
“Are you free late this afternoon?” she asked sweetly, smiling at him in turn, sure she couldn’t do to him what he could to her.
Pleasure flashed in his eyes. “Sure, I’m free,” he said, reaching over to take her hand in his and lightly rub his thumb across her knuckles. Tingles spun from his touch, fanning an ever smoldering blaze. “And, for you, if I weren’t, I’d get free. What did you have in mind?”
“I’ll call this morning and see if I can catch the boys. You can start coaching late this afternoon,” she said. Jake would hate to start today—all the more reason to make him do so, as far as she was concerned.
Instantly, his eyes turned glacial. He dropped her hand and sat back. “Dammit, Emily, this coaching thing is going to be disastrous. Football is history in my life. And I’m not a teacher.”
“You’re a smart man, Jake, and these are good kids. You’ll manage.” She paused while the waitress appeared with orange juice and cups of steaming coffee.
She fussed over Jake and then left them. “I don’t think our waitress has noticed my wedding ring.” Emily laughed. “Let me tell you about the boys. Orlando Crane and Anthony Day are American. The other two haven’t been in this country long. English is their second language.”
“Dammit, Emily! I can’t talk to them?”
“Oh, please!” she exclaimed, exasperated. “You travel and do business all over the world,” she said, her anger flaring at his stubborn refusal to cooperate. “How many languages do you speak?” Jake clamped his mouth shut and the glacial look returned to his expression. Undaunted, she continued, “Enzo Oquendo is Costa Rican and Tanek Kozlik is from Germany, but that wasn’t where he was born.”
Suddenly Jake sat back and relaxed, a crooked smile tugging up one corner of his mouth. “I can’t believe you’ve managed this.” He leaned forward over the table and his voice dropped. “I want you, Em. I want to make love to you and to get through that iron wall of anger you’ve thrown up between us.”
Her pulse drummed and her nipples became taut as his gaze drifted languidly over her. She wound her fingers together in her lap and hoped she could maintain the iron wall of anger he referred to. “This is one time you won’t be getting your way. You brought it on yourself,” she whispered, leaning toward him; she looked into his eyes and saw the tiny flecks of green near his pupils. “You’re not going to make love to me.”
“We’ll see, Em,” he whispered, touching her throat.
“You want me to need you and beg for your loving, to get wild with you so you can flaunt that male dominance of yours. Not this time,” she said, shaking her head and hoping with all her heart she could live up to her words. Looking into his thickly lashed eyes, she was thankful they were out in public because she was melting right now. Her knees were weak, her insides jelly and she was hot, wanting him and trying to bank the hot images his words called to mind.
“Perhaps. Challenges are always interesting,” he said. Again she received one of those come-hither, crooked smiles that was as seductive as a caress. He drew his fingers along her throat lightly, and she knew her racing pulse would give him satisfaction.
To her relief their waitress appeared with their breakfasts, placing a golden omelet in front of her, along with crisp strips of bacon, flaky biscuits and a bowl of fruit with ripe red strawberries, blueberries and chunks of green melon. She still had no appetite, but knew she should eat. She hadn’t eaten a thing yesterday.
“When I get back to the hotel, the first thing I’ll do is try to make arrangements for this afternoon. I’ll go with you to introduce you to the boys and I’ll bring refreshments.”
Jake looked amused. “If I have to do this, I’ll get the damn refreshments so you don’t have to lug around a cooler. What do they want—cold beer?”
“Don’t you dare take beer to those boys!” she snapped. “Take some soda and get them a pizza and sandwiches. Get them candy bars and cookies, too. They’re always hungry.”
“So am I,” Jake said in a silky voice, letting his gaze roam over her. She knew he wasn’t thinking about food.
“Jake, pay attention,” she said.
“I am,” he answered with great innocence. “I like to flirt with you, Em.”
“That time has passed,” she replied firmly.
He reached over to take her wrist and place his thumb on her pulse. His lips curved in satisfaction. “I don’t think so. Your pulse gives me a different answer.”
Glaring at him, she ate in silence, wanting to return to the hotel and get on with her day. Jake was touching, flirting and trying to beguile her. Everything he was doing was having an effect on her. What woman could resist him when he turned on the charm?
“So tell me about these kids. Why are they important to you?” he asked.
“I know Orlando and Anthony through Dad’s church. They both tutor kids on Wednesday nights. Anthony comes from a broken home. His dad is not around, he has lots of brothers and sisters and he ran away a few months ago. I don’t think his mother cared. To keep him off the street, Orlando took him home. There’s no dad in that household, either, but his mother and grandmother are good people and Orlando is bright.” She wondered if Jake was even listening. She doubted she’d st
irred one shred of sympathy. “The other two families have come here to try to better their lives.”
“All very touching, Em. You’re a bleeding heart, but I suppose that’s the way you were raised. When you’re dad’s a minister, that’s probably all you know.”
“You’re hopeless! I expect you to live up to your part of the bargain.”
“Sure. And you live up to yours.”
She nodded and put down her fork. She’d eaten all she could, but she sipped a little more hot coffee and drank her orange juice.
“We could spend the day together until I have to meet the boys. I can cancel anything I have if you’ll get free.”
She shook her head. “No, thanks. I have things to do—without you, Jake. Be thankful for what you’ve got from me and let it go at that.”
“I’m intrigued. You’re a different person than the one I thought I married. I want to get to know you.”
“You should have thought of that a long time ago. And you should have realized that I prefer honesty over deception.”
“I’ll remember that.”
She finished her coffee and waved the waitress away when she returned for refills and to flirt with Jake.
Jake took Emily back to the hotel, driving through sunny streets that were already growing warm. He stopped beyond the front door so the doorman wouldn’t bother them.
“Thanks for breakfast,” she said, holding the door handle. “I’ll call you as soon as I make arrangements for this afternoon.”
Jake gazed at her speculatively, and she wondered what he was thinking. He merely nodded. “You know how to get me. Want me to help you move home? I can get someone to take your things and pick you up.”
“I’ll manage, thank you,” she answered sweetly.
He stepped out so swiftly, she didn’t even have her door open. He came around the car to hold the door for her and she climbed out, looking up at him. He stood a fraction too close and her pulse jumped. “Thanks for breakfast,” she repeated, not even realizing what she was saying to him.
“Sure,” Jake replied. And as she walked away, she could feel him watching her. She hadn’t heard him close her door yet and knew he must be still standing there. Her back tingled and she moved slightly faster, wanting to get into the hotel.
