The Bridesmaid and the Billionaire

by Shirley Jump

  Not that she cared, of course, what Kane Lennox thought about her appearance. It was simply that this man had her feeling off center. She didn’t care at all if he found her unappealing because she’d just finished giving a poodle a bath.

  Except a part of her did care. And that part was annoyed that she worried whether she had any lipstick left on her mouth. Whether her bangs were askew. Whether she reeked of eau de puppy.

  “What if…” He hesitated. “What if I help you with your work? Will you take this—” he shifted his weight to the opposite foot “—this thing off my hands then?”

  “You’re going to help me give a golden retriever a bath?”

  He dropped the bag of dog food onto the counter. The spaniel watched the kibble transfer and heaved a sigh of disappointment. “Why are you so surprised by my offer?”

  “You don’t strike me as the dog-bathing type. Especially considering the way you’re reacting to your new best friend here.”

  Kane’s stance straightened, consciously, or maybe unconsciously, putting some distance between himself and the small dog. “I’m simply making a business proposition. Quid pro quo.”

  Susannah considered the neatly pressed Kane again. She doubted he had any experience with pets. Nary a shred of shampooing or grooming background. Yet, she’d give about anything to see this stiff, uppity stranger covered in soapy bubbles and dog slobber.

  She thrust out her hand and when he took hers, a spark traveled up her arm, taking Susannah completely by surprise. Attracted? To him?

  She couldn’t be. He was not her type. At all. For one, he had that air of uppercrust about him. For another, he was too vague about who he was, where he was from. She liked the men she dated to be open, friendly.

  Sort of like a good golden retriever, come to think of it. This man was more of a Lhasa apso, too pretty to be a workhorse. But if Kane was willing to take a little of the burden off her shoulders, who was she to turn him down?

  “You’ve got a deal, Mr. Lennox,” Susannah said, attributing her reaction to him as being too tired, too overworked. “I just hope you can keep up your end of the bargain.”

  A slow grin stole across his face. “If there’s one thing I always do, Miss Wilson, it’s make sure that the deal is a win-win for me, too.”

  And as that smile widened, Susannah had to wonder whether she’d just been outwitted—and whether she’d be the real loser in this proposition.

  CHAPTER THREE

  INSANE.

  Kane Lennox never made spur-of-the-moment offers. Every move in his life had an intention, a purpose, a plan behind it. He operated like a Mercedes with a well-tuned engine and a navigational system. No breakdowns, no detours and no surprises.

  Then what on earth had made him open up his mouth and actually volunteer to bathe a canine? He didn’t even like dogs. Or at least, he didn’t think he did. He had no experience with canines, so therefore, no opinion one way or another, except he knew he had no time for that stray, and no room in his life for a spaniel. And yet, here he was, elbow-deep in soapy water beside a way-too-friendly golden retriever.

  He glanced over at Susannah Wilson, who was cooing to the dog as she sudsed the animal’s head, and knew exactly what had possessed him to throw that sentence out there. Her. She’d distracted him nearly from the minute he’d met her. Combined with the day he’d had, the dog and his discomfort at being in a strange town, out of his normal element—

  Oh, hell, it was really all the pretty woman. The way she had half her blond locks tucked behind her ear, the other half drifting along her cheek in damp waves. And the way she stared at him like he was some kind of weird stalker come to invade her town with a highly viral disease.

  The combination—attraction mixed with distrust—sparked amusement in him, and raised his interest in her to a level unlike anything he’d felt in a long time.

  Kane had met hundreds of women over the course of his life. Dated dozens of them. But in the circles he traveled, the women were too perfect, too pampered. Susannah Wilson, on the other hand, had a less finished edge to her, like a diamond that had yet to be cut and polished. She was…

  Unique.

  Intriguing. Very intriguing.

  “Hey, I thought you were here to help. That means holding her steady,” Susannah said.

  “Easier said than done,” Kane grumbled. “This dog is as slippery as an eel in an oil vat.”

  Susannah chuckled, then tightened the rainbow paw-printed lead attached from the top of the deep stainless steel tub to the dog’s neck, which shortened the dog’s roaming room. “Didn’t you ever have a pet?”

  “No, never.”

  “Not so much as a gerbil?”

  “No.” Kane snorted. “Let’s just say rodents wouldn’t have gone with my mother’s décor.”

  Susannah gave him a curious look and Kane cursed himself for that slip. He should have lied and told her he’d had half a dozen pets. But he was no better at lying than he was at starting a fire, so his best bet was to keep his mouth shut altogether. Except Susannah—when she didn’t have that look on her face that said she thought he was either crazy or criminal—had the kind of personality that begged friendliness. Openness.

  She had a wide smile, a deep, contagious laugh and luminous green eyes filled with curiosity. They drew him in, making Kane forget his cover story, his life in New York, and had him instead longing for a little of that magic she seemed to possess. The same magic she used to calm dogs, as easily as if she were a human warm blanket and bowl of puppy food.

  Perhaps, Kane thought, studying Susannah’s bent head, then letting his gaze slip along her lithe form, he could add a little female R & R to his holiday? After all, he was the best man, and she was the maid of honor. They’d have to be together for the wedding. Wasn’t it almost expected that they end up sharing a little more than a dance or two?

  The golden retriever squirmed under his inattention, sending a river of water down Kane’s arm. “You better hold on there,” Susannah said with a laugh and a tease in her eyes. “Or I might end up grooming you by accident.”

  “You wouldn’t.”

  She held up the huge water sprayer. “Accidents do happen, you know, all the time in the workplace.”

  He laughed. “What is this, revenge for this morning?”

  “What revenge?” She gave him a look of pure innocence. “I’m just saying—” her finger slipped a teeny bit on the button, sending a quick dribble of water his way “—I’m the one in control of the water here and you better stay on my best side.”

  The woman didn’t seem to have a bad side, at least in the beauty department. From her bright smile to her deep green eyes, to the shapely curves that begged his gaze to slide down her form, everything about Susannah Wilson drew his attention over and over again. Even in jeans and a T-shirt, she looked as beautiful as the runway models he’d known in New York. Maybe even more so, because there was a natural rawness to her looks that set off his libido and had him craving everything about her.

  “You’re in control, huh?” he said, grinning. Then he stepped to the right, fast, ripping the sprayer from her grip before she even saw him coming. He gave her a quick blast on the belly, and she let out a shriek.

  “Hey! No fair.”

  “All’s fair in war and business, didn’t you know that?”

  Susannah squirmed around in his grip, which brought her directly beneath him, and made Kane very, very aware of their close quarters. Of her parted lips. Of how all it would take would be a breath of a movement, and he could be holding her, having her in his arms, and even more, kissing her.

  “Give that back,” she said.

  “Make me.”

  She reached for the sprayer. He feinted to the right. She dodged to the left. They collided, closer. Then again, closer still, and both of them froze.

  A second ticked by on the clock above. Another. Susannah swallowed. Kane leaned forward, the game forgotten, the sprayer falling into the tub, his hands movi
ng to brace on either side of the stainless steel, when the dog, apparently sensing the distraction of the humans in the room, gave a quick shake, bathing all of them in soapy bubbles.

  Kane jerked back. Susannah spun back around and soothed the dog. “We should, ah, get back to work.”

  “Yeah, we should.”

  But he knew—and knew she knew—that as much as they might be pretending to return to all business, there’d been a shift between them from just acquaintances to something a little more.

  “What made you decide to do this for a living?” he asked, changing the subject. Get your mind in the game, Lennox. Or he’d end up covered in dog and suds, possibly ticking off Susannah—which would mean she’d send him home with that spaniel. Definitely not a win-win. “It’s not like dog washing is on the guidance counselor list of career paths.”

  She bristled slightly. Damn. He’d offended her.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”

  “No, it’s okay. This is only a temporary gig anyway. I started walking dogs in high school for extra money, and one thing led to another. Before I knew it, I had a business.”

  “You own The Sudsy Dog?”

  She grinned. “All mine, soap bubbles and all.”

  Yet another surprise. His esteem for her raised several notches. “I’m impressed. Seems like you’re doing really well. A one-woman shop and everything. That’s not easy to accomplish.”

  She shrugged. “It’s not much.”

  He reached out, placing a hand on hers, intending only to get her attention, but when his touch slipped against hers because of the soapy water, a zing went up his arm. The charge detonated in his brain, reigniting the sparks from earlier. When was the last time he’d felt that way?

  Seven years ago. Rebecca Nichols, a woman Kane had met in his business-ethics class. Rebecca hadn’t come from old money or new money, or anything other than a normal apple-pie-eating American family. They’d dated for six months—six fast and furious, amazing months. She’d been the first woman he’d dated who hadn’t been handpicked by his father. And Kane had hoped in some crazy way that Elliott would approve. That his father would see his son’s choice in a woman as bold. Unique. Carving out his own path. Exactly the qualities Elliott always preached about to his employees—then seemed to do his best to squash in his son.

  Kane and Rebecca’s relationship had been fun, exciting and perfect—until Elliott Lennox found out his son was dating an “unacceptable” woman and paid Rebecca’s family enough money to convince them their daughter would find a better education abroad.

  Kane had gotten the message. His father didn’t see his son as bold or determined. Simply headstrong and foolish, particularly when it came to women. Stepping out of line with the family plan would cost him. Dearly. The business and the family image came above everything, even personal happiness.

  Kane had been allowed to stay at Northwestern, but only after agreeing to tightly toe the Lennox family line. And the price Kane had to pay? His father sent him a new roommate—to make sure Kane stayed in line.

  Now, here he was, for the first time in forever, feeling a powerful surge of attraction again. Real, honest desire. For a real, honest woman, not the kind who put on social airs. Damn, it felt good. Real good. Kane caught Susannah’s gaze. Had she been affected, like he?

  But no. She gave him a look as blank as a clean slate, waiting for him to speak. Kane tried to refocus, to remind himself he was here for a short vacation, a work reprieve, not a major life departure. He cleared his throat. “It’s a lot, believe me. Up to fifty percent of all new businesses fail within the first five years. You should be proud.”

  Now her gaze narrowed. “How do you know so much about business?”

  Damn. He had yet to learn the keys to a good cover story. Keep your mouth shut and know your lines.

  He couldn’t very well rattle off his real résumé. Kane Lennox: fourth-generation CEO of the largest gem importing company in the world. Kane Lennox, one of the Lennoxes, the family that had been listed in the Forbes 500 issue for as many years as the magazine had been printed. Kane Lennox: the man with enough personal fortune to buy this town ten times over and still have change left over to line the streets with thousand-dollar bills.

  If he told her any of that, she’d look at him just like everyone else did. With awe. With reverence. She’d step back and stop seeing him as just Kane. And for the first time in his life, he wanted to just be—

  Kane.

  Ordinary man. In ordinary clothes. Doing ordinary things.

  With no butlers. No limos. No expectations.

  “I, ah, just like to read business magazines,” he said finally. “When I’m not at work. You know, in the spirit of getting ahead.”

  “That I can understand.” A soft smile of empathy stole across her face. “Working hard for what you want, right?”

  “Exactly.”

  “That’s my personal philosophy, too.” She shot him a grin. “Who’d have thought I would have anything in common with a guy I met on my sister’s lawn?”

  He echoed her grin. “A barefoot guy at that.”

  She laughed. “And here I usually go for the kind who wear shoes.”

  “I’ll keep that in—” The dog wriggled then, shaking off the soapy water, spraying the room, Susannah and Kane with a fine sheen of bubbles. Kane backed up, warding off the foamy onslaught, cursing under his breath. But that only seemed to encourage the golden dog, who shook even more vigorously, her tail becoming a soap-spraying fan.

  “What is wrong with that animal?”

  Susannah laughed. “If you held on to her, she won’t do that.”

  “What do you think I was doing? She’s not cooperating.”

  Susannah arched a brow.

  “Hey, if you think you can do a better job holding—” Kane said, backing up and waving at the dog.

  “Fine. I’ll do your job and you can do mine.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You can wash.” She tossed a bottle of shampoo at him and moved away from the dog’s head.

  “No. No, I didn’t mean I’d…” Kane stared at the bottle, then the animal, then Susannah, then the dog again. “There is absolutely no way I can wash this animal.”

  “A deal’s a deal, isn’t it? You said you’d help. You haven’t been much help so far.” She gave him a grin that was more of a challenge. And again, his libido roared to life. “Besides, Dakota here isn’t so bad. Trust me. She’s one of the easier clients I have.”

  “Easier?” Kane snorted disagreement. He looked at the dog again. The dog looked at him, her wide soulful brown eyes seeming to say, “Oh, no, not him.” Kane took in a deep breath, squirted a little shampoo into his hands, then rubbed them together. “Uh, where do I…?”

  “Her back. Just scrub it in, using your nails to really get in good under the coat. Think of it like a doggie massage.”

  Kane made a face. He’d rather massage a person than a dog any day. Specifically the female person beside him. He imagined his touch running down her body, over those luscious curves, followed by his lips, lingering along her long neck—

  Definitely not thoughts he should be having when he should be helping her at work. He couldn’t help it. Susannah Wilson had intrigued him—even if she had put him to work on the least fun end of the dog. “Doggie massage?”

  “Hey, dogs like TLC, too.”

  Kane didn’t want to do anything resembling a doggie massage, but he also didn’t want that stray hanging around his cabin, so he’d suck it up and do what Susannah asked. He leaned forward, splayed his fingers and sunk them into the dog’s deep fur. The dog wriggled against his touch, and seemed to almost…smile.

  Beneath his fingers, the retriever’s fur was thick and heavy, but it parted easily, allowing him access to the animal’s skin. He gave Susannah a dubious glance; she offered him an encouraging smile, and he dug in, doing his best to offer—

  A soapy doggie massage, as insane as th
at sounded.

  Yet his thoughts kept returning to the blond human beside him. Susannah started humming snippets of an old sixties tune, her hips swaying with the rhythm, her hair catching the dance, as if her whole body was part of the concert. So natural, so uninhibited. So different from anyone he’d ever met.

  “I hear people find TLC rewarding, as well,” Kane said.

  “Mmm-hmm.” Susannah stopped humming and stroked the dog behind the ears instead. “That’s a good girl, Dakota. Just a few more minutes, pup.”

  But Kane wasn’t thinking about the canine at all. His thoughts were entirely focused on Susannah. In a few days, the two of them would be at a wedding together, which meant he’d be escorting her down the aisle, then dancing with her at the reception. Holding her in his arms. The anticipation drummed in his veins.

  Maybe…he didn’t need to wait that long. He could ask her out and—

  His cell phone began to chirp, its annoying ring cutting through the room like a bullhorn.

  “Do you want me to get that for you?” Susannah asked.

  “Ignore it. I’m on vacation. Apparently not everyone got the memo.” His assistant was supposed to redirect all calls, but a few must have gotten past her eagle eyes. Either that, or his father was already noting his absence. Regardless, Kane refused to be reattached to the business umbilical already.

  He had more important things to attend to right this second. Things like Susannah Wilson.

  “Speaking of people TLC…do you know a place in this town that has good food? For people, not dogs.” He gave her a grin. “I think I have the dog menu all covered.”

  “You can get great takeout at the Corner Kitchen over on Main and Newberry. The owner makes homemade everything, from strawberry jam to mashed potatoes. It’s nothing gourmet, but—”

  Kane chuckled. “To me, that’ll be exotic, trust me.”

  She gave him a curious look. “How can mashed potatoes and strawberry jam be exotic?”

  He directed his attention to the dog again, using the overhead sprayer to rinse out the shampoo, and to avoid looking at Susannah. Damn. Good thing he’d never gone into the CIA. His cover could have been blown by a three-year-old. “I, ah, eat out a lot. You know, all that nonhome-made food. The Corner Kitchen will be a real treat. I haven’t had food like that since I was a little kid.” Actually, he’d never had any of that kind of food, but at least saying “since I was a little kid” sounded plausible.