A smug look flashed across his face before he opened the driver’s side door and slid onto the seat. “Well come on, then. We’re late.”
How rude. This guy was something else. He didn’t even open her car door for her. But she figured she could ignore his rude behavior if it meant paying the rent.
She left the protection of the elevator doorway, which caused the doors to swish shut as if angry at being held open for so long. The sound of her heels on the cement echoed through the parking garage. She yanked open the passenger door and plopped down, hugging her satchel to her chest.
He scowled at her for a second. “Toss it in the back.”
As they drove, Madison figured out why they called them luxury cars. The plush seat molded to her body, the ride smooth and quiet. Mr. Jameson even seemed to relax a bit.
“There are a few things you should know, in order to play this part correctly. First, we’ve been dating for four months.”
Madison turned to him, forcing herself not to make a face. That’s why he needed a date so bad. He’d lied to his family. And now they were demanding to see his mystery girlfriend. She pursed her lips.
“We’ve been to the opera, the ballet, and we frequent the art museum.”
What kind of a person lies to their family? Her opinion of him dropped. “Uh huh.” She nodded.
“You’re refined, so it’s important you act the part.”
Did he just call her unrefined? What a colossal jerk. She narrowed her eyes. “Sure.”
“We are on the verge of being serious, but don’t worry, I won’t have to see the family again until Christmas, and by then we’ll have broken up.” He gripped the steering wheel and glanced at her. “Got all that?”
What did he think she was, an idiot? It’s not like he was teaching her trigonometry. “Dating for four months...refined...and on the verge of a break up. Got it.”
He grimaced. “You don’t have to think about the break up. That won’t happen for a few months.”
She lifted an eyebrow. “I should portray a hint of discord between us, so when you eventually tell them, it seems more believable, don’t you think?”
He signaled and changed lanes to pass a slow moving semi truck. “I suppose.”
Madison closed her eyes for a moment, trying to get into her part. She imagined herself being a woman who liked the finer things in life. Someone who would date a wealthy CEO like Mr. Jameson. Her eyes snapped open. “What’s your name? I can’t really call you Mr. Jameson in front of your family.”
“Jared.”
The name fit him somehow. A power name. Muscular. She shook her head. She shouldn’t be thinking about his muscles. “How did we meet?”
His jaw muscles twitched. “I didn’t tell them how we met, so it’s irrelevant.”
“What if someone asks?”
“No one will ask. And if they do, make something up. It doesn’t matter.” He stared straight ahead.
Madison fiddled with her fingers. He wasn’t very friendly, was he? She could see now why he had to pay someone to go out with him. If this was how he treated women, he’d be alone the rest of his life. Even with his handsome face. It’s what’s inside that truly attracts.
She wondered if he was always this uptight. There had to be something she could say to make him loosen up, or this would be a very long evening. “Since I might be working at Jameson Technologies, why don’t you tell me a little bit about your company?”
“We design and build technology like semi-conductors and virtual memory, and we invest in other innovative companies.” The corner of his mouth lifted a little. Not a full smile, but she decided it was progress.
“And Darlene, how long was she working as your administrative assistant before she handed in her resignation?”
His eyebrows raised and he jerked his head in her direction. “What?”
Her face grew warm and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Darlene had not quit yet. Great. Now what was she supposed to do? “Um, a friend of mine overheard Darlene talking. She said she was going to quit her job today. Sorry to break it to you. I guess she hasn’t done it yet.”
Deep laughter bubbled up from his chest, and he smiled – an actual real smile. He continued to chuckle while swerving into the other lane to pass another car.
She couldn’t fathom why he was laughing. Losing an employee was not humorous. She had a sneaking suspicion he was laughing at her. “What’s so funny?” she snapped.
“Darlene threatens to quit three times a week. Never actually follows through.”
Anger festered in her like an ulcer. Jared had no intention of hiring her. “I guess there’s no position for me at your company.” The words came out clipped.
Jared stopped laughing and grew serious. “I said maybe. I didn’t say yes.”
Madison clenched her fists, her fingernails digging into her skin. “And because you wanted me to pretend to be your girlfriend, you lied.”
“You’re overreacting.”
Maybe she was. But he had lied, and she wasn’t going to let him get away with it. “You knew I wanted a job.”
“I’m giving you a job. What’s the matter with you?”
The condescending way he said it made her blood boil. He had manipulated her into doing this. She suddenly felt cheap. Used. And cruising down the interstate miles away from home, there was nothing she could do about it.
She folded her arms across her chest and glared at him. If he wanted her to play a part for his family, she sure would.
But maybe not the refined girlfriend he was hoping for.
Chapter 2
Jared’s stomach tightened as he drove down the winding street to his childhood home. Being in Highland Falls always brought back the painful past. He never seemed to move beyond it.
Madison sat with her hands folded in her lap, silently staring out the window. Her blonde hair brushed her shoulders. Her legs, long and shapely, crossed at the ankles. She was going to be perfect. She really fit the part. If only she hadn’t worn a cheap business suit.
He shook his head. It didn’t matter. His family wouldn’t think much of it. They’d probably assume she came right from work.
The twisty street threaded past large homes with lush green lawns. This was country club territory, the kind of people who cared about appearances and kept their problems locked safely away in the liquor cabinet.
He pulled into the long circular driveway and stopped the car. As soon as he cut the engine, Madison hopped out. He hurried around to her side. “You should have let me open your door.”
Madison frowned. “Why?”
“It’s the proper thing to do.”
“Then why didn’t you open my car door in the parking garage? Or is it only the proper thing to do when someone might be watching?”
He rolled his eyes and started up the sidewalk. No use in arguing with her. She was a temp. Someone to play a part to ease the constant hounding. And he was pretty sure no one was at the window.
They approached his father’s sandstone house. Not quite large enough to be called a mansion, and yet pretentious enough to impress the Joneses. A stone lion sat on either side of the concrete stairs. They always made Jared feel like he lived at a library.
He pressed the bell and Irene, his father’s wife of the month, opened the door. Her long black hair was pulled back in a bun, a couple of chopsticks sticking out of it. She wore a tank top and capris.
“Jared!” She donned her fake smile and ushered them inside. “Please come in.”
“Madison, this is my stepmother, Irene. Irene, this is Madison.”
Madison whacked him in the chest. “Stepmother? Get out! I thought she was your sister.”
He stared at her. What was she doing? But the comment obviously pleased Irene, for she laughed her little twitter of a giggle and took Madison into an embrace.
“Aren’t you a dear? Come meet the rest of the family. They’re already here.”
Of course. She had to get
a little dig in that he was late. He clenched his jaw and followed her through the kitchen to the family room.
When they entered, everyone stopped talking and turned to stare. His gaze landed on Shelly, his aunt, who had been the only constant mother figure in his life since his mother died. Her unnaturally pale face made it obvious her condition was taking a toll on her. His chest squeezed. She was the only reason he came to family events. How many more would she be around for?
Irene put her arm around Madison. “Everyone, this is Madison, Jared’s girlfriend.” She pointed around the room. “That’s Mark, Zachary, and Patricia, Shelly, and of course, Maxwell, Jared’s father. But don’t worry about remembering names, you’ll pick it up. Would you like to sit down while I get you something to drink?”
Madison looked at Jared sideways, and for a second he saw something gleam in her eye. Something almost devilish. Then it vanished. She faced Irene and smiled. “I’d love a drink. Do you have any vodka?”
Jared’s mouth went dry. Was she nuts? He stared at her bright grin and realization crashed down on him. This was on purpose. Payback for saying there might be a position open at his company.
This was going to be a long day.
Irene laughed again. “We have ice water, Coke and tea.”
“Coke is fine, although if you dump a little vodka in it I won’t be disappointed.” She winked at Irene and took the three steps down into the family room. She plopped down on the sectional and patted the seat next to her. “Come on, sweetie.”
All eyes turned to him. After he hugged Shelly and said a quick ‘happy birthday’ to his father, he sat beside her.
Patricia, his cousin, smiled at him. Her blonde hair was cut in a pixie style, much shorter than the last time he’d seen her. “We’re so happy you came, Jared. And it’s nice to meet your girlfriend.”
“I’m glad Jared brought me. I mean, I’ll bet you were all starting to think Jared here made me up.” Madison slapped him on the leg.
Hard.
Everyone laughed as heat rose to his face. He pushed down the urge to fire off a retort. She was baiting him. Trying to get under his skin. Instead, he focused on his family. Patricia and Zachary were getting really chummy. She was practically sitting on his lap. It wouldn’t be long before they were making an announcement. Luckily, his father seemed to be the only one in the family with the propensity to exchange his spouse for a new model each year. He’d lost count as to how many ex-wives his father had. His mother was the only one who mattered to him, and she’d died long ago.
Patricia leaned forward. “Tell us about yourself, Madison. Jared’s been so evasive.”
Madison patted Jared on the leg. “He’s so cute. He doesn’t like to talk about himself.”
Mark snorted. “He doesn’t like to talk at all.”
His half-brother from wife number three, Mark had never grown close to Jared. Most of Jared’s time growing up was spent with his cousin, Patricia. The only time he saw Mark was for a few weeks each summer.
Patricia threw a dirty look at Mark. “What do you do, Madison?”
“I’m an actress.” She glanced at Jared, probably to gauge his reaction. He kept his face straight, intent on not giving her what she wanted.
“That’s so cool. Have you been in any movies?” Patricia’s eyes glinted. She was the kind of person who liked everyone, and they all liked her. Perpetually happy, that’s what he used to call her.
“I was an extra in Big Fat Liar.”
The comment caught him off guard and he coughed. He had to admit, she was quick on her feet. If her barbs weren’t pointed at him, he might enjoy her wit.
“And I played the administrative assistant in The Sixteenth Floor.”
Patricia’s eyes widened. “The movie that came out last year? Are you serious?”
Madison nodded. “It was a small part, but I did have a short speaking line.”
“Get out of here. Now I have to watch it again.”
“I have the DVD,” his father said, reaching behind to the cabinet.
Patricia clapped her hands together. “Oh, let’s watch your scene. Shall we?”
“I’m about twenty minutes into the movie.” She appeared to be enjoying the attention.
He leaned over and whispered in her ear. “Wait, you really were in The Sixteenth Floor?”
She glared at him. “Yes. What did you think, I was going to lie about it?”
He shrugged and let it go. The family members crowded around to see the television screen while his father inserted the disc. Irene entered the room, handed Madison a Coke, and sat next to his father.
Everyone seemed impressed with her part, even though she was only on camera for a few seconds. “Nice,” Mark said, which was high praise coming from him. Even Jared reluctantly agreed she looked good on camera.
Zachary put his arm around Patricia. “How did you two meet?”
Madison gave Jared a sideways glance, the corner of her mouth curled up, and he knew something terrible was coming. Time slowed down. The hairs on the back of his neck stood. It was like he was watching two cars heading for each other and had no power to stop either one. The only thing he could do was watch the crash happen.
Madison smiled at Zachary. “I’m so glad you asked. This is a great story.”
Thinking maybe he could save himself from the wreck, he jumped in. “We met at the opera.”
“Yes,” she said, and her smile widened. “In the women’s bathroom.”
A few mouths dropped open and Mark choked on his soda. Jared knew he had to salvage this quickly. “Well, not really inside the women’s bathroom. We met in the hallway.”
She patted him on the leg. “Jared here doesn’t quite remember, since he was a bit tipsy at the time, but it definitely was inside the women’s restroom. He came stumbling in and ran right into me. Of course, I was startled to say the least, I mean, a man in the women’s bathroom! But he looked so cute with a little bit of drool running down his chin—”
“I was not slobbering drunk.” He didn’t mean to yell, but it came out a bit loud. Heat crept up his neck, and he loosened his tie.
“Oh, no, dear. I said tipsy. Anyway, I helped him out to his car, and we got to talking. Turns out he needed an administrative assistant at Jameson Technologies so he hired me on the spot.”
Was she trying to blackmail him into a job? She had some nerve.
There was no way he was going to spend another second with her after today, much less hire her for anything. He shifted in his seat. “Unfortunately, she couldn’t do the job well enough, so I had to fire her.”
Patricia drew in a sharp breath, and everyone stared at him like he confessed to eating children for breakfast.
Madison glared at him. “But he did offer me a second job—”
“Which she refused, of course, since I had just fired her. She holds grudges. Big, big grudges.”
“And don’t you think I deserved to hold a grudge after being treated like that?” Her cheeks were flushed, and her back straight.
He put his arm around her. “Of course, everything was smoothed over after we started dating and fell for each other. The end. That’s how we met.” He pasted on a smile and she mimicked the expression.
Patricia’s eyes were about as big as he’d ever seen them. “Wow, I can’t believe you agreed to go out with him after what he did.”
“It didn’t happen right away. He kept asking, begging really, and I kept saying no. Then one day he came to my apartment and serenaded me from outside on the lawn.”
Begging? Serenading? Jared couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Shelly put a proud smile on her face that seemed to say, I knew you were romantic deep inside.
Patricia put her hand over her heart. “Awe, that’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard Jared doing. In fact, that’s so unlike him. He must be really smitten with you.”
Madison patted him on the cheek. “It was adorable. I can still see him out there, holding a single rose, kne
eling in the grass, and belting out Hopelessly Devoted to You.”
Patricia, Shelly and Irene were obviously pleased. The guys were all looking at him like he’d put on a dress. Jared pushed down the urge to run from the room.
His father frowned. “Jared can sing?”
“Not really. It was totally off-key. The neighbors opened their windows and cursed. A dog started whimpering. I think someone threw a tomato. But it melted my heart.”
“That’s so romantic.” Irene frowned at her husband. “That definitely doesn’t run in the family.”
Madison raised an eyebrow, and a devilish look flashed across her face again. “You should hear what he did for my birthday.”
Jared stood. “I think they’ve heard enough for now, sweetie. And I’m ready for a snack. Anyone else? I think I saw Irene putting out some cheese and crackers.”
“I was about to invite people to go fill up a plate.” Irene motioned toward the other room. “Dinner will be a while, and I don’t want anyone going hungry.”
As his family stood and made their way to the table, Jared glanced back at Madison’s face. Disappointment flitted across for a second, but then she recovered and hopped off the couch. “Great. Then maybe Jared can share our big announcement.”
Everyone stopped and all eyes landed on him.
Chapter 3
Madison knew she was pushing things too far, but she couldn’t stop herself. She was having way too much fun. The looks Jared was giving her were priceless. She almost broke character and busted out laughing at his expression when she told everyone they met in the women’s bathroom. And now he gawked at her, mouth open like a cod fish, eyes bugged out...she wished there was a hidden camera.
He coughed into his fist. “It’s not an announcement. I mean, there is no announcement. There’s nothing. We’re just normal.” He waved his arm in a lame ‘nothing to see here’ gesture.
She held in a giggle. He was so cute when he was caught off guard. Much better than the corporate grump she’d met earlier. With his tie loose and hair slightly rumpled, he was actually sexy. It didn’t hurt that he had broad, muscular shoulders and a trim waist. She shook the thought out of her head. She couldn’t go soft on him. He hadn’t paid enough yet for being such a jerk.
A Fake Marriage Romance Collection Page 2
