The Fake Engagement Favor

by Charlene Sands

  “You liked that kiss as much as I did. Admit it.”

  “I will not admit anything,” Gianna insisted. “Besides, it was all for show.”

  “But what if it wasn’t?” Gage asked.

  “I don’t deal in what-ifs, Gage.”

  “I’m just saying, what if that kiss wasn’t a fluke? What if it’s the best kiss either one of us ever had? What if we try it again, just to be sure?”

  “You want to kiss me again? Right here and now? Without an audience? No, thanks.”

  “Nervous?”

  “Gage, be serious. Don’t even go there.”

  “You don’t even know how tempting you are.”

  “Cut it out. I’m going to bed.”

  “I don’t suppose that’s an invitation?”

  * * *

  The Fake Engagement Favor by Charlene Sands

  is part of The Texas Tremaines series.

  Dear Reader,

  Hello and welcome back to the Tremaine family! This time around you’ll meet country music superstar Gage Tremaine, brother of Lily and Cade. Gage is in for the ride of his life when he enters into a fake-engagement scheme to repair his bad-boy image. He’s being considered for a greatly coveted starring role in a family-based movie.

  The only one Gage trusts with this deception is family friend Gianna Marino. She’s the perfect choice for his pretend fiancée—a university professor, a woman with brains and a great reputation in the community. He’s known Gianna for years and their mothers are best friends. Becoming engaged—in name only—to the professor would help elevate him from his fall from grace and secure his future.

  The fun begins when Gage puts a ring on Gianna’s finger. She’s no pushover—Gage has met his match in the girl he always tormented as a kid. But their phony embraces and staged smoldering kisses soon prove that opposites really do attract. Oh boy, do they attract!

  When I set out to write this story, I knew Gage would be cocky but kind, flamboyant but sincere, and then I found brilliant Gianna, the family friend, the one who’d never refuse the Tremaines a favor. I knew there was more to her than her intelligence. She was an equal match for the superstar in all ways and The Fake Engagement Favor was born!

  Happy reading, all, and let me know how you like the story!

  Sincerely,

  Charlene

  Charlene Sands

  The Fake Engagement Favor

  Charlene Sands is a USA TODAY bestselling author of contemporary romance and stories set in the American West. She’s been honored with the National Readers’ Choice Award, the CataRomance Reviewers’ Choice Award and is a double recipient of the Booksellers’ Best Award. Her 2014 Harlequin Desire title was named the Best Desire of the Year.

  Charlene knows a little something about romance—she married her high school sweetheart! And her perfect day includes reading, drinking mocha cappuccinos, watching Hallmark movies and riding bikes with her hubby. She has two adult children and four sweet young princesses, who make her smile every day. Visit her at charlenesands.com to keep up with her new releases and fun contests. Find her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, too: Facebook.com/charlenesandsbooks and Twitter.com/charlenesands.

  Books by Charlene Sands

  Harlequin Desire

  The Texas Tremaines

  Craving a Real Texan

  The Fake Engagement Favor

  The Slades of Sunset Ranch

  Sunset Surrender

  Sunset Seduction

  The Secret Heir of Sunset Ranch

  Redeeming the CEO Cowboy

  Visit her Author Profile page at Harlequin.com, or charlenesands.com, for more titles.

  You can also find Charlene Sands on Facebook, along with other Harlequin Desire authors, at Facebook.com/HarlequinDesireAuthors.

  Dedicated to my sweet daughter,

  Nikki, with all my love.

  You deserve all good and wonderful things in life!

  Happy Birthday!

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Excerpt from Foolish Hearts by Synithia Williams

  Excerpt from Ways to Tempt the Boss by Joanne Rock

  One

  “Are we really going to do this?” Gianna asked handsome, cocky Gage Tremaine. She sat on a patio chair facing the gorgeously groomed Tremaine estate, hardly believing she’d agreed to being Gage’s newfound love. His pretend fiancée, for heaven’s sake, until the country music superstar got his life back on track.

  “Do you have a boyfriend or someone who’d object to this?”

  “Just...uh, no. Not at the moment,” she said quietly.

  “Then I think we’re doing it,” he drawled in the Texas twang that his fans adored. “I hate to admit this, but you’re the perfect choice. You’re out of the public eye and have a very honorable profession. You’re smart and upstanding and a good family friend. It makes sense, Gianna.”

  She was all those things, yet hearing Gage say it made it all seem so...uninspiring.

  “But I’m hardly your type.” She wasn’t. Not by a long shot. She wasn’t stylish or trendy. She wore her hair in a messy bun at the top of her head most times and could barely see a thing without her eyeglasses.

  “Are you suggesting you’re too darn intelligent for me, Professor Marino?”

  Good God. He would go there. At times, she wasn’t even sure she liked Gage all that much. He was always teasing her, about her brains, about her looks. She’d grown up around the Tremaines, and she wasn’t gonna lie, Gage had been like a thorn in her side. But then he’d smile and tell her he didn’t mean it, and she’d forgive him.

  “You know I am.”

  He grinned. “True.”

  His incredible blue eyes darkened and then a serious expression stole over his face. “I know this is a lot to ask. But I’m in a bind and Regan Fitzgerald, my manager, came up with this little scheme to make nice with the press. I don’t like it, either, but I have to restore my image. I’ve been at this a long time, and I’m no saint, but I’m also not as bad as people make me out to be. My record sales are down some.”

  “And you need to land that film role in Sunday in Montana.”

  “Bad boys don’t get the lead in a family movie.”

  “I get it. But—but there must be dozens of girls out there who’d like to play house with you, even if it is pretend.”

  “I wouldn’t trust anyone but you,” he said, his eyes clear, revealing the truth. “If word got out, this could ruin me.”

  “Really?” He had that much faith in her? Well, he should. She would never betray a Tremaine. They were her second family, going back decades. Her mother and Rose Tremaine, Gage’s mom, had been like sisters. Rose had been a godsend when her mama got sick. She’d helped pay the medical bills a young local Fairmont University professor couldn’t afford.

  Rose had held her hand when her mama passed on, their quiet sobs binding them ever closer.

  “Yeah, according to Regan, if it slipped that I hired someone to be my fake fiancée, after all the other scandals I’ve had this past year, I’d stand to lose my reputation for good.”

  “You have had quite a few,” she said tactfully. Three scandals, to be exact, and each time, Gage had a valid excuse or reason for what transpired. He made headlines, a
nd often the media printed lies about the eligible bachelor with the deep, sexy voice that drove women wild. Even she had to admit that Gage had immense talent. And she wasn’t even a fan of country music. “You almost lost your life over the last one.”

  Gage put his hand up to his neck, carefully touching the wound that was still visible from the barroom brawl where a broken bottle slashed his throat. “Don’t remind me. I learned my lesson on that one.”

  “Don’t try to rescue a damsel in distress?”

  “Don’t butt in when a girl is arguing with her boyfriend. But, in my own defense, what I saw at the bar was a drunken cowboy manhandling a woman against her wishes.”

  The way Gage told it, once the police arrived, he was bleeding at the throat from a broken bottle, his band members were all banged up and the bar was a total mess. To top it off, the girl had stuck up for her abusive boyfriend instead of siding with Gage. He wound up getting blamed for starting the fight and had paid for all the damages. His photo was splashed across the covers of all the tabloids, taking down his reputation one more notch.

  The other two scandals weren’t violent yet had dragged his name through the mud. Cheating on his girlfriend—and pushing a news reporter to the ground when asked about it—wasn’t a way to win friends and gain influence. Gage claimed his innocence on both, but it didn’t matter. The paparazzi ate it all up.

  Rose walked outside carrying a tray of Texas sun tea and cookies. Gianna’s mind flashed to another time, a happier time. Mom and Rose having their sun tea on this very deck.

  A knot formed in her stomach. It was still so new to her, losing her mother. The pain never went away. She couldn’t stop thinking about her.

  “Have some iced tea, Gianna. Gage, will you pour it?” She set the tray down on a side table.

  “Sure, Mom.” He rose and looked up from the tray. “There’s only two glasses here.”

  “Yes, I’m going to let you two talk some more. I came out here to tell you, Gianna, that there’s no pressure if you refuse Gage’s request.” Rose put a hand on her arm and squeezed. “I know it’s a lot to ask of you, sweetheart.”

  “Look, when we travel, I promise we’ll always get a suite with two rooms. And you’ll have plenty of time to do your research,” Gage said.

  “And it would only be for a month, right?”

  “Six or seven weeks,” he said. “Long enough for me to make some scheduled appearances and nail down that role.”

  That would be most of the summer. “What happens after that?”

  “Well, we haven’t quite figured that out yet. But once summer is over, you’d have to go back to teaching, right?” he asked.

  She nodded.

  “And hopefully, our story would fade into the background if there are no more rumors or scandals. We could have a quiet breakup sometime in the future.”

  “The future? As in how long?”

  Gage shrugged. “Not sure. Does it matter?”

  Rose shot her son a hard look. “Of course it matters. Gianna can’t put her life on hold indefinitely.”

  His assumption that she had no life, or love life, outside of teaching rattled her. She dated once in a while. Okay, but only when her friend Brooke set her up on blind dates. She did have a keen affection for Timothy Bellamy, a history professor at the university. But so far, all they’d had were a few coffee dates. No sparks yet, but she was mourning her mother and focused on her career—she wasn’t exactly in the market for sparks.

  “Sorry, right.” He scrubbed at his stubbled jaw.

  Rose looked her in the eye and smiled sweetly. “Remember, if you decide you can’t do this, everyone will understand. You’re always going to be a part of this family.”

  “Thanks, Rose. That means a lot.”

  Rose kissed her cheek and left the patio.

  She turned to Gage. “Your mom always makes me feel so welcome.”

  “She loves you, Gianna.”

  “She misses Mom almost as much as I do.”

  “Yeah, your mother was pretty awesome.”

  “She was a fan of yours, too, even before your fame.” Though, for the life of her, Gianna couldn’t understand why. She released a deep sigh. “I still can’t believe she’s gone.”

  Gage nodded. He was quiet for a while, staring out to the landscape before him. He wasn’t always cocky and smug. Sometimes he was nice, and she couldn’t imagine turning down his request. She owed the Tremaine family her loyalty, and this would be one way to repay their kindness. Her heart hurt every day, and maybe helping Gage would take her mind off her grief for a little bit.

  “I’m a terrible liar,” she blurted. “I’m in a committed relationship with the truth.”

  Gage blinked, his head jerking back, and he took a few moments to process her blunt declaration. “Most of what we say will be the truth. We’re childhood friends, and we became reacquainted this summer. And we realized our feelings for each other...”

  “After you were injured in that brawl?”

  “That works. You’re not such a bad liar after all.”

  “I’m a problem solver, Gage. Not a liar. We need to puzzle this out before the public sees us together.”

  “So, then, you’re sure?”

  She nodded, totally unsure, but she wasn’t going to refuse to help a Tremaine. Even if it meant going against all her well-honed instincts. “When do we get engaged?”

  Gage grinned, his teeth flashing in a bright smile. He was good-looking to a fault, and talented, a golden boy who somehow had to pretend to be in love with her.

  It would put his acting chops to the test. He could probably pull it off.

  But could she?

  * * *

  “You know the last person who lived in this guesthouse ended up falling in love with my brother Cade,” Gage’s sister, Lily, told Gianna.

  Gianna flopped onto the sofa next to Lily, grabbed a pillow and tucked it under her arms. Over the years she’d stayed on the property many times, sometimes at the main house, sometimes here in this cottage guesthouse. She enjoyed the privacy afforded her here, where she could pull her thoughts together without interference. “I’ve met Harper. She’s perfectly suited for Cade. And vice versa.”

  “I know. I’m happy I had a hand in getting them together. Though not purposely. But it all worked out. Who knows what will happen between you and Gage?” Lily grinned at her, and Gianna’s mouth dropped open.

  “Lily, whatever you’re thinking, don’t. Nothing like that’s going to happen between me and Gage. He’s...he’s...not my type.”

  “You have a type?”

  “No. Yes. I suppose I do. Someone who’s into fine art, history and philosophy.”

  “Ah, so you mean, not someone who sings for his supper and has women dropping at his feet?”

  Gianna rolled her eyes. “I’m not impressed by those things.”

  Lily didn’t appear convinced. “I’m just saying, Gage can be charming. He may just surprise you.”

  “I’m fully prepared to deal with Gage. When the time comes.” She could go head to head with him in mental battles all day long. It was the other part of the deal that worried her. She’d always been true to herself and honest in her feelings. So this pretense didn’t come naturally to her. Like she’d told Gage, she was committed to telling the truth. And she’d meant it.

  “That time may be coming sooner than you think. We have one week before the family’s big Fourth of July celebration. That’s where Gage plans to announce your engagement.”

  This was all becoming very real. In a week’s time, their little charade would begin, and a part of her welcomed the distraction. It would keep her grief at bay, but a larger part of her felt uncertain and wary. Gianna rose from the sofa and walked over to the beveled glass window, catching her reflection through the pane. She saw a grieving woman with pale o
live skin, plain clothes and thick-rimmed glasses. Her shoulders drooped, and she turned to Lily. “Do you think anyone’s going to believe that Gage and I are in love?”

  “Gage will convince them.”

  But Gianna needed more than that. She needed to feel confident that she could pull this off. “Lily? I think I need your help.”

  “With?”

  “You’re an interior designer and quite talented at what you do. But have you ever worked with exteriors?”

  “Yes, sometimes. I’ve reworked and renovated outdoor patios and verandas and such. In fact, I just finished revamping a pool and lounge exterior for the Goldens’ estate down the road.”

  “I meant, human exteriors?”

  Lily caught her meaning and gave her a look. “You want a makeover?”

  “No, I don’t want a makeover, but I think I need one. It’s not going to be easy pretending, especially since I don’t fit into Gage’s world. At all. But if I looked the part, it might make it easier for me.”

  Lily gave her an assessing once-over. Gianna removed her eyeglasses and immediately began to squint.

  “Have you ever tried contacts?”

  “Yes, but they irritate my eyes.”

  “Actually, your face is well suited for glasses. You don’t need contacts. And honestly, you’re quite lovely, Gianna. You just need to highlight your best features. Just a little. And maybe have a wardrobe renovation.” Lily smiled.

  “So, you’ll do it?”

  “Of course. It’s not going to be a drastic change, but you’d be surprised what a little makeup and a new hairstyle can do for a woman. Here, let me show you what I mean with your wardrobe.”

  She followed Lily to the foyer mirror.

  “Some things need to be tweaked,” Lily said. “Like this boxy white blouse you’re wearing. It’s long and gives you no shape at all. But watch this,” Lily said, rolling up the sleeves above her elbows and unbuttoning the bottom three buttons of the blouse. Next, she took the tails of the blouse, pulled them taut and tied a knot right at her waistline. “There. Take a look at the difference. From baggy to stylish, with just a little ingenuity.”