The Best Bride

by Susan Mallery

  “You could learn,” Nick said. “You’re going back to college.”

  She wrinkled her nose. “I don’t think I have the math background. I wasn’t very good with numbers in high school and that was nearly thirty years ago. Oh, my. Thirty years. I can’t believe it.”

  Hannah grabbed one of the full cookie sheets and started toward the oven. “Don’t worry about it, Louise. You don’t look your age, nor do you act it.”

  Hannah slipped past him and slid the tray into the oven. Before she could get around him again, he reached out and placed his hands on her hips, then moved his legs so she was trapped between them.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  “I would have thought that was obvious.”

  “It is from here,” Louise said. “Give him a kiss, Hannah, so he’ll let you go back to work. We’ve got a lot of cookies to bake before the kids get home from school.”

  Hannah stared at him. He held in a grin. He’d trapped her neatly, and not just with his legs. She couldn’t very well protest what he was doing in front of her mother. Stealing kisses under false pretenses was pretty low, but she hadn’t given him a whole lot of choice.

  He tugged on the waistband of her jeans, pulling her closer. She bent forward and braced her hands on his shoulders. Their faces were inches apart. He couldn’t move closer, so the kiss was up to her.

  Interesting. Would she or wouldn’t she?

  “You want to,” he murmured so only she could hear.

  A light flared in her eyes. “In your dreams, buster.”

  “You’ve been there lots of times. Want to know what we were doing?”

  “Shut up.”

  “Make me.”

  She pressed her mouth to his.

  Heat flared between them hot enough to bake the cookies. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and haul her against him, but that wasn’t an option. Not with Louise watching.

  Their kiss was brief, chaste, yet it made him want more. It made him want all of her. Next to him, under him, naked, willing, wanting. His arousal was instant and painful, a throbbing need against the fly of his jeans.

  As she was about to pull back, he gently caught her bottom lip in his teeth. A shudder rippled through her. She stared at him and he saw the fire of her desire.

  In that moment, he wanted to make it all real and not just pretend. He wanted to be everything they said he was—her husband of several years, a successful real-estate mogul. He wanted them to be in love.

  Hannah broke free and straightened. He glanced to his left. Louise was spooning out cookie dough as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. In her eyes, it hadn’t.

  “Elizabeth says it’s tacky, but I want to make my own birthday cake,” Louise said.

  “You shouldn’t have to do the work,” Hannah said breathlessly, moving away from him.

  “That’s what she tells me, but I don’t want any of you girls worrying about it, and I don’t want something store-bought.”

  Hannah walked over and touched her arm. “But it’s no bother at all. I’ve already talked to Sandy and Elizabeth about it. We’ve got plans. Please let us do this.”

  Louise shrugged. “If it means so much to you.”

  “It does. Thank you.”

  Louise smiled. “While we’re being honest, I want to know what you really think about Richard.”

  Hannah frowned and glanced at Nick as if asking what her mother was talking about. “We think he’s fine, why?”

  “Well, he is eleven years younger.”

  “I think it’s great,” Nick said. “If Hannah here ever gives me any trouble, I’m going to take up with a younger woman.”

  Hannah rolled her eyes. He could imagine what she was thinking but couldn’t say. Of course, she would probably give him an earful later.

  Louise dismissed him with a wave. “I’m being serious. It’s different with men. People don’t notice that kind of thing. But with a woman it’s different.”

  “Louise, if you care about him, what does his age matter?”

  “Maybe. I just hate not knowing for sure.”

  “What is it about the women in your family?” Nick asked. “You make it so hard on the guy. How long did you resist before finally going out with him?”

  “A couple of months.”

  “Hannah ignored me for nearly a year.”

  Hannah snapped her head up and stared at Nick. What on earth was he going to say now? It wasn’t enough that she was still ready to explode from the passion he’d ignited a few minutes before. Now he had to set her nerves on edge with one of his stories.

  “A year?” Louise looked at her. “How could you do that?”

  “I, ah—”

  Nick cut her off. “After the cruise, I asked her out every week for a year. She never said yes. It nearly drove me crazy.”

  “How could you have turned him down?” Louise asked. “He’s so good-looking and charming.”

  Nick preened.

  Hannah was so impressed with his believable combination of truth and lies that she almost didn’t notice the question.

  “I didn’t think he was serious.” She realized it was the truth. Nick had been asking her out on dates, for drinks, to run away with him, issuing any number of invitations, but she hadn’t believed he meant any of them.

  She was still confused. The more she got to know Nick Archer, the more she liked him. There was no way for her to reconcile the generous, funny, caring man she’d brought on this trip with the criminal she knew from Southport Beach. Which Nick was real?

  She kept trying to tell herself he was an awful person. Her head might still be convinced, but her heart wasn’t buying the story. Liking was uncomfortable but still safe. What if her affections deepened? What if she gave in to the desire?

  Louise gave her a quick hug. “At least you worked it out in the end. That’s what’s important. It doesn’t matter if we grow older as long as we also grow smarter.”

  Nick grinned.

  Hannah suspected he was thinking she hadn’t gotten any smarter at all.

  “Go check the cookies,” Louise said.

  Hannah crossed the kitchen floor and opened the oven door. “They need a couple more minutes.”

  Before she could return to the counter, Nick grabbed her again, this time pulling her onto his lap. She went willingly. It was just for show, she told herself as she snuggled close. In the safety of his arms, feeling welcome and secure for the first time in years, she let go of that lie and admitted the truth. She wanted to be exactly where she was. And she was very, very glad he was staying.

  Chapter Ten

  “Why do you look so terrified?” Hannah asked.

  Nick shifted his weight and rolled his shoulders. “I’m fine.”

  She grinned. “Don’t worry. It’s not contagious.”

  “I’m just wondering if babies really need all this stuff.”

  He glanced around at the baby boutique. The large, well-stocked shop had a mezzanine level just for clothing. On the main floor, small rooms had been set up displaying several styles of cribs, rocking chairs, changing tables and an assortment of items at whose function he could only guess. Strollers and car seats lined one entire wall.

  “You’re asking the wrong person,” she said and headed for a counter in the center of the room. “I have limited experience with babies. I like holding them, but I don’t know anything about day-to-day child care. Louise said that Jill had picked out a few things here, and if we wanted to get a gift, this would be the best place.”

  He followed her, stepping around boxes, toys and bags of diapers. He hadn’t felt this uncomfortable since he’d tried to buy something sexy for a woman he’d been seeing. All those feminine frills, lace and silk had sent him racing back into the safety of the mall.

  “I just want to get out of here,” he muttered.

  She ignored him and approached the counter.

  “May I help you?” the clerk asked. She was putting price tags on fl
uffy white bears.

  Hannah nodded. “My sister-in-law is expecting a baby. I was told she’d picked out a few things from this store.”

  The clerk smiled and tucked her short red hair behind her ears. “We have everything on our computer. What’s the last name?”

  “Haynes.”

  The woman tapped a few keys on the computer, then glanced at Hannah, her eyes wide. “I guess I’m going to need a first name. There are four Hayneses listed here.”

  “It’s Jill.”

  She tapped again, then the printer on her left began to spit out paper.

  “There’ve been a lot of babies in your family,” the clerk remarked.

  “I know.” Hannah took the offered sheet. “I come from a fertile family.”

  “The pattern she chose is in room twelve. Let me know if you need help finding anything.”

  “Thanks.” Hannah turned to Nick. “Are you ready to shop?”

  “Sure, but don’t expect me to be much help. I don’t know a thing about babies.”

  “I have to admit, with all the children and pregnant women running around in the family, I could get very nervous.”

  He dropped his arm over her shoulders and pulled her close. “I don’t blame you. Sounds like people around here get pregnant simply by thinking about doing it.”

  “That seems unlikely.” She pointed down a walkway. “I think room twelve is over here.”

  They paused in front of a three-sided alcove. The bleached-oak crib had a matching dresser and changing table. Each wall had been papered with a different print.

  Hannah consulted the paper in her hand. “She picked teddy bears and unicorns.”

  Nick pointed. Fat brown teddy bears rode on cream unicorns across a pale sky. Fluffy clouds, bright suns and quarter moons brightened the background. “Not a football to be found,” he said.

  “Jill’s having a girl.”

  “Yeah, right. That family legend. I’d forgotten.”

  Hannah smiled. “Well, that and she had an ultrasound. They’re pretty certain it’s a girl. Apparently, you can’t tell for sure unless it’s a boy and you see his, um, you know.”

  “Yeah, I know. I have one, too. Speaking of which…”

  She raised her eyebrows. “That isn’t what we were talking about.”

  “Uh-huh. Where’s the ex in all of this?”

  “What ex?”

  “Your ex. Ex-husband. Why didn’t you call him in for emergency duty? I’m sure he could have put off his business trip. After all, if you were separated all that time and didn’t bother with a divorce, things can’t be too bad between you.”

  She stared at him, then at the paper. “She’s marked this lamp, but no one has bought it. We could get that.”

  “That’s it?” he asked. “You’re not going to answer the question?”

  “It would appear that way.”

  “After all I’ve done for you?”

  “Oh, yeah. You told my family I could play the piano and sing.”

  “A slight exaggeration.”

  “I think it’s pretty,” she said and picked up the lamp. The base was a porcelain unicorn. The shade picked up the pale lavender of the background.

  Typical of Hannah. Why was she so damned stubborn? He didn’t want details about her relationship with her ex. He just wanted… He shook his head. Whom was he kidding? Of course he wanted details. He wanted to know everything about all the men who had ever been in her life.

  Maybe her ex broke her heart. Nick didn’t want to think about that, but once the thought formed, he couldn’t let it go. If some bastard had hurt Hannah, he was going to find him and rip his lungs out.

  So much for not getting personally involved, he berated himself grimly. He was involved. The only good news was that he still planned to leave in nine days. He would go back to Southport Beach, finish his undercover assignment and get on with the rest of his life. He would never see Hannah again.

  He should have felt reassured. Instead, he found himself wondering how much he would miss her.

  She put down the lamp and picked up a stuffed teddy bear that matched the wallpaper. Overhead lights brought out faint hints of red in her dark hair. She wore a forest green T-shirt tucked into black jeans. Nothing special, nothing overly enticing, but he wanted her all the same.

  He’d always enjoyed women, enjoyed their bodies and the pleasure they offered. But he’d never connected emotionally. There were lots of reasons. He’d never had a long-term relationship, never saw the need. Women were interchangeable. Long ago, he’d vowed never to hurt that badly again, which meant not falling in love. He wasn’t sure he knew what love was. But he did understand respect and caring, and that’s what he felt for Hannah. She wasn’t an interchangeable person. Maybe that was the appeal. He saw her as uniquely herself.

  “Is that for Jill?” a woman asked. She motioned to the wallpaper and furniture. “I recognize the print and style.”

  He turned and saw Rebecca Lucas standing at the entrance to the alcove.

  Hannah pointed at the lamp. “We were thinking of getting that.”

  “I’m sure she’d love it.” Rebecca came into the room and picked up the teddy bear. “There’s always this fellow. You can never have enough stuffed animals.”

  Hannah glanced at him. “What do you think?”

  He shrugged. “The lamp is more practical.”

  “Spoken like a man,” Rebecca said. “Austin was exactly the same when I was pregnant. He didn’t understand all the fuss over a baby. Then he held Jason in his arms and it made perfect sense.” She smiled at Hannah. “I promise, Nick will be exactly the same when you have your first child together.”

  Nick couldn’t shake the mental image Rebecca’s words had invoked. Him holding a tiny baby, Hannah still in her hospital bed, exhausted but radiant from giving birth.

  He shook off the picture. He and Hannah weren’t a couple and there wasn’t going to be a baby.

  Rebecca placed her hand on Hannah’s arm. “You look stunned. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

  “I’m fine. The thought of having children is a little scary.”

  “Tell me about it.” Rebecca touched her still-flat stomach. “I’ve already had a baby and I’m getting nervous thinking about going through that again.” She motioned to the store. “That’s why I’m here. Jason, our youngest, doesn’t want to give up his room. I’d hoped to move him into a new bedroom and keep his old one for the baby, but that’s not going to work. So now I have to decorate two rooms. I’m here to get some ideas.”

  “There’s so much to think about,” Hannah said. “All the furniture, clothes, stroller, car seat.” She picked up the lamp. “I think we’ll get this. At least I know what it is.”

  Rebecca laughed. “It’s so interesting to watch you, Hannah. You remind me of your brothers, yet in a completely feminine way.” She tilted her head. “Sort of like trying to read something from a reflection in the mirror.”

  Nick moved closer and leaned against the crib. “That’s our Hannah. She’s a product of her destiny and doesn’t even know it. Her looks, her job.”

  The two women continued talking. Nick watched them. Rebecca was slender and delicate. Her flowing calf-length floral-print dress couldn’t have been more different from Hannah’s jeans. They were both attractive but in different ways. While Nick could appreciate Rebecca’s beauty, Hannah was the one who appealed to him. He liked her toughness. Her strength made her vulnerability even more meaningful because he knew what it cost her to expose that side of herself.

  Rebecca glanced at her watch. “I’d better look around while I can. In a little while I have to pick up Jason from his play group.” She wrinkled her nose. “I trade with four other mothers a couple of mornings a week. We have two days with all the children, then eight days off. It’s heaven.”

  She waved and walked toward another cluster of rooms. Hannah watched her go.

  “Do you think it’s true?” she asked. “Is this all destiny?�
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  “Maybe how you look, but the rest of it? I’m not sure.”

  “But I work in law enforcement. Don’t you find that odd? And I look a lot more like my brothers than I look like Louise.”

  “Louise is blond,” he said. “You’d probably look more like her if you had the same hair color.”

  She surprised him by laughing. “Are you saying I should dye my hair?”

  He reached up and tugged on her braid. “Don’t you dare. I like the color of your hair.”

  Her mouth parted slightly. She hugged the lamp close to her body. “Really?”

  Self-protection required that he make a flippant remark. But he couldn’t do it. He smoothed his palm down the thick length of her hair and wished he could see it loose. Just once. He touched the tip of her nose. “Yeah, really.”

  Hannah found herself forgetting to breathe. She could go entire hours without thinking about how handsome Nick was, then something would happen and she would notice all over again. It was very disconcerting to have the air ripped right out of her lungs.

  She studied his face, trying to determine exactly what combination of features, bones, muscles and skin made him so perfect. Was it the vivid blue eyes? Perhaps his irises picked up the color from what he wore, but his shirt was white and his jeans had faded to nearly that color. Maybe it was the strong line of his jaw or his sensual mouth. She found herself studying his lips, remembering the feel of them against hers, the taste of him as he tempted her.

  “As far as destinies go, it’s not a bad one,” he said.

  She blinked several times before she could pull herself together to remember what they’d been talking about. “Law enforcement?” she asked.

  “No, the family. Look at how happy your brothers are. They have great wives and kids. That could be your destiny, too.”

  “I never thought about it that way. With so many people, I was fighting the feeling of being trapped.”

  “They don’t want to hold you to keep you from going away,” he said gently. “They want to hold you because they care about you.”