Temporary Groom: Left At The Altar

by J. S. Scott

  “Ah yes,” he said in a condescending tone. “The wildlife conservationist and primitive survivalist who suddenly became a Sinclair, right? I had my people check you out before I accepted your appointment. You have an interesting history.”

  “I’ve always been a Sinclair,” I said through gritted teeth.

  Jerk! Why in the world had he needed my life story just to tell me he didn’t want to sell some property? It had to have been the most boring report he’d ever read.

  Maybe I hadn’t always been part of the high-profile Sinclairs, but my siblings and I had faced a lot of challenges, and we’d always gotten through it. I was pretty proud of that.

  “Just not one of the wealthy ones until recently,” he pointed out. “The Sinclairs on the East Coast have been a powerful family for generations. How did you say you became part of that family?”

  “I didn’t,” I snapped. It was none of Eli Stone’s business how I was related to the Sinclair dynasty. And my father’s bigamist behavior wasn’t something I wanted to talk about, especially not with him.

  The West Coast and East Coast Sinclairs shared the same father. That’s all anybody really knew. My brothers here in California had made it a point not to turn the tragic story into a tabloid scandal. My twin sister, Brooke, had been on the East Coast recovering from her own trauma, and none of us wanted her to find out the news that she was going to inherit a fortune from the gossip papers. She needed time to heal from losing her friends and co-workers in a bank robbery where she’d nearly lost her own life as well. Brooke didn’t even know about the money yet. My siblings and I had all agreed to give her time to deal with the tragedy before throwing anything else on her.

  Honestly, I was surprised that Eli had been able to dig up any information about me or my family. My half-brother, Evan, had gone to a lot of trouble to make sure nobody got to the truth until Brooke was emotionally healed and back on the West Coast again.

  Evan had obviously been successful since Eli Stone apparently hadn’t been able to get access to all the details.

  “I might be willing to bargain on other properties, but not that one,” he said thoughtfully.

  I folded my arms in front of me. “Since that’s the only one I’m interested in, then I guess we’re done here.”

  Maybe I was disappointed that I couldn’t secure the wildlife corridor, but I had the sudden need to get out from under the intensity of his stare. I was pissed off about him digging into my personal life, but I was squirming from his blatant stare. I quickly came to the conclusion that my need to escape was currently more important than my outrage.

  Before I could get up, he said casually, “You’re really quite beautiful, Jade.”

  That stunned me into silence, and I gaped at him as my palms began to sweat. “I don’t understand.”

  His expression had changed mercurially, and so fast it was almost scary.

  He smiled, a calculated grin that I was pretty sure he always used to his advantage. I was certain almost any woman would drop their panties the moment they saw his attractive smile.

  Fortunately, I wasn’t almost any woman.

  “It’s quite simple, actually. I find you attractive,” he answered.

  Nobody had even said that to me during my twenty-six years on the planet. My twin, Brooke, was the pretty one. I was the other twin, the one who went out in the wildness and practiced making traps, finding drinkable water, and kept adding to my survival skills.

  It was something I usually did alone.

  Especially after getting dumped by my one and only boyfriend in college.

  I wasn’t the kind of woman that a guy did a double-take on when I walked down the street, and I was sort of okay with that. I liked being me, even if I wasn’t the kind of woman who attract much attention with my physical appearance.

  Not that I went out of my way to get noticed. I was quiet and shy by nature unless I was with friends or family. Most of the time, I preferred the company of animals instead of humans.

  Yeah, I had the hope that there was a soulmate out there somewhere for me, somebody who would see me underneath my timid, tomboy exterior. But I wasn’t holding my breath until I met him.

  “Can we get back to the subject of the property?” I asked, trying not to let his appreciative looks intimidate me. “If that was a firm no answer, then I won’t waste any more of your time.”

  He moved forward and linked his fingers together on the desk, his intent gray eyes never straying from my face. “I make you nervous,” he observed.

  “Maybe I’m not used to meeting billionaires,” I said.

  He shook his dark head. “It’s not that. I don’t think you’re impressed by my money. I found it intriguing that you inherited your own fortune, but the only thing you’ve purchased was a home. In Citrus Beach. A sound investment since the area is growing fast.”

  Okay. I had to admit that it was a little creepy that he knew so much about me.

  “It wasn’t an investment,” I argued. “It was a home. My home. And I hope Citrus Beach never gets too big. I like it the way it is.”

  I found it unnerving that he seemed to know every move that I’d made since coming into money, and that he’d had the audacity to have me investigated. Who does that just to meet with somebody about a property proposal?

  My outrage was starting to take over my desire to get up and run out of Eli Stone’s office.

  He shrugged. “Time marches forward, Ms. Sinclair. It’s what makes us richer. Citrus Beach will eventually grow. It’s close enough to San Diego to make it a desirable place to live.”

  “I don’t need to get richer. I’m already so rich it makes me a little nauseous. I just want that piece of land.”

  “The money makes you uncomfortable?” he asked.

  “No,” I lied. The last thing I needed him to focus on was how uncomfortable I was with my wealth.

  “You recently finished a fellowship,” he said, completely ignoring my statement. “You’re education is pretty impressive. But what do you do with a degree in wildlife?”

  Scratch the idea that he’d only checked out what I’d done since I’d inherited. He knew my whole damn life!

  “I have a doctorate in wildlife conservation,” I corrected. “My focus is genetics. I think we can someday use genetic material to save species that can’t recover their numbers with the usual methods.”

  He nodded. “Admirable. And the survivalist training?”

  Was there anything that he didn’t know?

  “It’s a hobby. I teach classes now because it’s something I love.” I had no idea why I felt I needed to confirm my life story with an unsettling billionaire, but the words just kept popping out of my mouth.

  “I respect that.”

  “I’m not looking for anybody’s esteem,” I informed him icily. “I just came to buy a piece of land. But since you’ve already refused to sell, we are done.” I stood, unable to sit still with him watching me.

  He got up and moved around his desk as he said, “You’re defensive. Did I make you uncomfortable, Dr. Sinclair?”

  Rarely did anyone use my doctorate title, so I hesitated, trying to decide if he was mocking me, or if he was doing it out of respect for my education.

  I finally told myself it didn’t matter, and I moved toward the exit. I really needed to get the hell away from Eli Stone.

  His large, powerful body stopped in front of me, blocking my path to the door, which ignited my temper. And I almost never got pissed off. But I was tired of playing whatever game he seemed to be enjoying.

  I had no idea how to win this match, and I didn’t plan on being around long enough to complete it.

  “As a matter of fact, yes—you did make me uncomfortable,” I replied. “I don’t appreciate anyone investigating my private life over a proposal. It was completely inappropriate and more than a little creepy.”

  “You’re right,” he conceded. “But I was curious.”

  “Not a good reason to invade my p
rivacy,” I informed him coolly.

  “Maybe it wasn’t,” he agreed, not sounding the least bit contrite.

  Everything about this man made me squirm, and I wasn’t generally a nervous female. But Eli Stone was the most intense guy I’d ever met.

  “Are you upset because I was open about that fact that I wouldn’t mind having you in my bed?”

  His bluntness made my heartbeat kick faster.

  Dear Lord, I’m out of my league.

  I tried to keep my expression blank. I didn’t want him to have the satisfaction of knowing he could rattle me.

  “Did it ever occur to you that I might not want you in mine?” I asked him indignantly. “Does every woman you know fall at your feet after you tell them that they’re attractive? Because it’s really not all that unique.”

  “Did you know that your eyes get a deeper shade of blue when you’re angry?” he asked with a grin.

  Dammit!

  Eli Stone was playing with me, but for what purpose I didn’t know.

  “Have a good day, Mr. Stone. Personally, I wish I hadn’t wasted so much of mine waiting for you when you were already certain you weren’t going to sell,” I said as I pushed around him and made my way to the door.

  He caught my arm as I reached for the door handle. “I was curious as to why you wanted that property,” he explained. “Wealthy people generally don’t seek property that has very little chance of making them money someday.”

  “It’s not useless. Not to me,” I argued. “In fact, it’s pretty damn important for the purpose of preserving wildlife.”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know anybody who cares about that.”

  Then maybe you need to get some new friends,” I retorted.

  I shook off his hold, and then turned back to him, angry that he valued nobody’s time but his own. “You could have called me and asked why I wanted it. I didn’t need to come to the city and then wait for an hour just to hear you tell me no. It’s rude. It’s inconsiderate. And it’s incredibly arrogant.”

  “I guess you still need to learn that people wait for billionaires,” he stated flatly.

  I put a finger to my chest. “Not this billionaire. I guess I’m just not as self-serving or conceited as you are. But I don’t like people waiting for me. It makes me feel guilty.”

  I didn’t mention that I was pretty motivated by guilt all the time.

  I was pretty sure that Eli Stone never suffered much from remorse, so he probably had no idea what I was talking about anyway.

  “Have dinner with me, Jade,” he said, his statement a command and not a request.

  “I have plans,” I threw back in his face. “And I’m hungry. I’m not willing to wait like a pathetic puppy until you decide to feed me.”

  He crossed his arms in front of him with a smile, his eyes dancing with amusement. “Now that I know what a nasty temper you have, I wouldn’t dare make you wait,” he said drily. “I promise that I’ll feed you immediately.”

  “I came here to make a business deal, not to spend a night in a playboy billionaire’s bed.”

  “I’m not playing, Jade,” he said in a low, dangerous tone.

  “Not interested,” I said angrily as I opened the door. “And you really need to get a lot more interesting reading material in your office if making people cool their heels in your waiting room is a chronic thing for you. I’m pretty sure I lost a few points off my IQ from reading your fluffy women’s magazines.”

  I didn’t look back as I rushed through the door, almost certain I could hear a very male laugh as I left Eli Stone’s office like my ass was on fire.

  CHAPTER 1

  Jade

  The Present…

  “I’m not interested,” I said flatly into my cell phone just before I hit the off button so hard I winced at the strain to my finger.

  I glared at the electronic device as I tossed it on the kitchen counter. Right now, my phone was the enemy, and I wished I hadn’t dashed off my couch to answer it. But since it was the middle of the afternoon on a work day, I’d been hoping it was a request for a job interview. I had applications and resumes out everywhere. But I hadn’t exactly been bombarded by opportunities where I could really use my education.

  I’m in a highly specialized field, and getting funding for new studies is difficult.

  Eventually, I’d get the right opportunity. Until then, I’d be jumping every time my phone rang. Unfortunately, it was never a person I wanted to talk to right now. But if I didn’t recognize the number, I had to pick up.

  The call I’d just cut off had been another local guy, somebody who claimed to know me from high school, who wanted to know if I would go out with him.

  It was third such call I’d had since yesterday.

  And what felt like the millionth I’d received in the last several weeks.

  I sighed. Yes, I’d wanted a more active dating life. But not like this. Word had gotten out that I was suddenly a very rich woman, and not one single guy who had called had been interested before I’d come into money.

  Now, every unmarried male wanted to date me.

  Okay, maybe not date me. They wanted to court my money.

  Honestly, I was starting to hate being rich.

  Before I could start dwelling on the fact that no guy actually wanted me for me, I strode back to the living room and flopped down on the couch.

  “Job interview?” my brother Aiden asked from his seat in the recliner.

  “It was nobody,” I answered. “Just another guy who wants to date my money.”

  I looked at the TV. “What are you watching?”

  “The new big wave competition in Northern California that Eli Stone hosted. They caught some big ass waves that were well over fifty feet. It was pretty crazy. Stone is up right now,” he replied.

  I looked at the television, a big screen that my brothers had insisted I get, even though it barely fit on the wall of my small cottage.

  “That’s the outer edge of the Channel Islands,” I said as I frowned at the TV. “He’s insane.”

  “Not much room for error,” Aiden agreed. “If he doesn’t catch the wave, he’ll end up between an enormous wall of water and the rocks.”

  My heart was in my throat as I watched Eli paddling into the enormous, incoming wave.

  My brothers all surfed, and they’d tried to teach me and Brooke, but neither one of us had been nearly as enthusiastic as our male siblings.

  “Well, fuck me,” Aiden exclaimed. “He made it.”

  I let out a breath I hadn’t even realized I’d been holding as Eli rode the massive wave. “He’s going to kill himself,” I said anxiously.

  “Newsflash,” Aiden said drily. “This happened last winter. He lived. These are just highlights.”

  I made a face at my brother before I turned back to the television again to watch the interview that was happening with Eli Stone.

  And there it was.

  It was the Eli Stone persona that I was used to seeing. He’d already pulled his arms out of his wetsuit, and it was bunched around his waist. His chiseled upper body was hard not to notice, and my eyes roamed over the signature tattoo down his arm.

  But the thing that really stood out was the arrogant smirk on his face. And the lack of emotion in his gorgeous gray eyes.

  There was nothing that told me he was flying high from his latest extreme sports victory. The cocky smile was there, but it didn’t go all the way to his eyes.

  My brother switched the TV off. “Let’s hit the pool.”

  Aiden had dropped over to go for a swim. It wasn’t like he didn’t have his own pool, but I had a feeling he wanted to check on me.

  None of my brothers liked the weird guys I was attracting because of the money I’d inherited. But I wasn’t sure what they planned to do about it. I’d changed my number twice, and it wasn’t like anybody was going to kidnap me. They’d need me alive if they wanted my money.

  It was more of an irritant than fear-inducing.
/>   I hadn’t really had any privacy for the last few months. Somehow, word had leaked to the public about my family’s inheritance, and if I wasn’t fielding men who seemed to be coming out of the woodwork, I was refusing requests from reporters for an interview about how we’d become connected with the rich, powerful Sinclair family on the East Coast.

  Aiden and I didn’t talk much as we settled by the pool and did our laps side-by-side.

  I stopped before my brother, and took a rest.

  When he came to a halt, he finally asked, “So who are you dating?”

  For some reason, all my brothers thought they were entitled to know every detail of my personal life even though they never shared theirs.

  “Nobody,” I said grumpily. “They all just want my money.”

  “Obviously all of them don’t. What’s up with Eli Stone?” he questioned as he hefted his muscular body out of my swimming pool and went to dry himself off.

  “What do you mean?” I asked as I floated on a small raft in the middle of the pool. The water was heated, and I wasn’t quite ready to get out yet.

  “Come on, Jade,” Aiden said. “You had the speaker on when you listened to his message earlier. Are you dating him? The guy makes us look like paupers. You can’t say he’s after your inheritance.”

  No, he’s after my body.

  Really, Eli’s motives weren’t nearly as repulsive to me anymore. At least he’d been bluntly honest. Unlike other men who had started asking me out only because of my money. However, that didn’t make me any more likely to answer Eli’s phone calls or messages. He made me uncomfortable in ways that I still didn’t quite understand.

  Honestly, I’d been surprised to hear Eli’s voice on my messages earlier. For the last several months, he’d been persistent, and he was still calling, even though I’d never answered a single one of his messages over the last five months. But since I hadn’t heard from him for almost a month now, I was pretty sure he’d given up.

  Apparently, I was wrong.

  And the current message from him had been the same as all the others.

  He still wanted me to have dinner with him.

  And I still wanted to avoid him, so I hadn’t ever called him back.