A Trap So Tender (8 page)

They ate a leisurely breakfast together, then headed out for a
ride. She rode the adorable Taffy again, and James rode a majestic dark bay
called Solomon. They cantered across the green fields around the estate, slowing
to a walk as they left the manicured swards of grass and ventured out into the
rugged hills. Brown from a distance, up close the hills glittered with colorful
heather, in lavenders and pinks and whites, bursting with life under the bright
sky.

“This landscape is unbelievable.” She looked at James, who rode
along on a loose rein, looking every inch the dashing medieval prince. “How come
it’s not covered with tract homes, or shopping malls?”

He laughed. “Too remote. And the best thing about owning
everything the eye can see is that you can control its future.”

No doubt his modus operandi in the business world, as well.

“This mound dates back at least five thousand years.” He
steered his horse up a narrow track onto a swelling in the heather-clad terrain
that rose about twenty feet above the surrounding plain.

“Why was it built?”

“We don’t know. One of the many mysteries of this landscape.”
From the top you could look down into a green valley where a village hugged the
banks of a river, a church steeple rising above the roofs. “I like to come up
and think about all the people who’ve walked and ridden here before. It gives me
a sense of perspective on my place in the universe.”

“One more in a long line of people to walk this way.” The
thought gave her chills. She felt so small against the grand landscape.

“Exactly.” He jumped down from his horse. “Let me help you
dismount.” Holding his reins in one hand, he approached her.

“Here?” Why would they get off out here in the middle of
nowhere?

He nodded, a tiny smile tugging at his lips. Apprehension crept
over her. A sense of something about to happen. She jumped down to the soft,
mossy turf. Their horses were blowing with exertion, steam rising from their
bodies in the relatively cool air.

James did something with the horses’ reins that kept them
knotted up around their neck, then left them standing together. Both just stood
there, blinking and steaming, as he walked back to her. “Will they simply
wait?”

“They’re trained to, for hunting. Though you can never entirely
tell what horses will do.” He glanced back at them with a smile. As he
approached her she saw him reach into one of the pockets of his dark green
jacket, and an expression of concentration crossed his face.

Her breath came faster as he stopped right in front of her and
reached for her hand. She gave it to him and hoped it wasn’t sweating. Was he
going to kiss her? Her lips tingled in anticipation.

“Fiona…” He paused for a moment and frowned. The intense look
in his slate-gray eyes made her pulse ratchet higher. “Do you ever just know
when something is right?”

“Um, sure.” It was hard to think with him standing there
holding her hand, with that piercing gaze fixed on her. And the two horses
watching like spectators.

He held her one hand in both of his. “I pride myself on my
instincts. They’ve stood me well over the years. And my instincts tell me that
you’re…different.”

She swallowed. Had he realized she wasn’t really there to help
him find the cup? Had he sniffed out her true motive? Fear clawed at her
heart.

But his gaze had softened. “I felt it the moment I met you.
You’re smart, and serious, and you chart your own course in life. I knew
immediately you were someone I could talk to, and you’d understand.”

She nodded, not sure what to say. This conversation was so
strange, with him holding her hand out here in the middle of nowhere. If she
didn’t know better she’d almost suspect he was about to propose marriage or
something crazy like that.

As she had the thought he went down on one knee on the damp
turf and reached into his pocket. Her jaw dropped as her heartbeat bumped up to
maximum speed.

“Fiona, every instinct in my mind and body tells me that you’re
the woman for me. I know we’ve only known each other a short time, but I feel
sure that we’d form a powerful and loving partnership that could take on the
world.” He drew in a steady breath. “Fiona, will you marry me?”

It was lucky he still held her hand or she might have fallen
right over. Had she imagined the whole thing? It seemed too coincidental for her
to suddenly think he might propose—out of the blue and for no good
­reason—then to have him actually do it.

“Uh…” Her brain was a tumbled mess of thoughts, none of them an
appropriate answer. “I…I…” She didn’t know what she thought, or what to say.
No
seemed an obvious answer, but a refusal would
end their short relationship, and she didn’t want to do that.

She didn’t want to ruin her chances of making her father happy.
And she also didn’t want to say goodbye to James. She’d enjoyed their time
together more than…more than anything she could remember. Fear and longing rose
inside her. She wanted to spend more days galloping through the countryside with
him, and more nights folded in his arms.

Blood thundered in her ears as he waited for her answer. “Yes,
I will.” The words burst from her mouth before she even decided to say them.
Somewhere in her autonomic nervous system a button had been pressed and her
future decided without the more complex workings of her ego being consulted.

“Fantastic!” A broad smile spread across James’s face. He rose
to his feet, whipped out a ring, a large sparkling diamond, and slid it onto her
ring finger before she had time to catch her breath.

She blinked. The air around them suddenly seemed so bright and
hot she could hardly see or breathe. Had she really just agreed to marry James
Drummond?

Their lips met in a passionate kiss that was a huge relief
because it meant she didn’t have to come up with any words. His strong arms
around her felt wonderful, but all the time her brain was racing. Why had he
proposed? What made him think she’d say yes? His arrogance was
extraordinary.

Yet she had said yes.

They pulled apart, and she found herself staring at his face.
The chiseled, eye-catchingly handsome face of a man descended from warriors,
with more land and money than some small nations. And he wanted to be her
husband.

“You look rather shell-shocked.”

“That’s because I am.” It was a relief to admit it. They
weren’t actually going to get married, of course. In between now and the
imaginary wedding she’d just agreed to, their relationship would somehow fizzle
out and they’d go their separate ways. It was a temporary fantasy they’d both
agreed to participate in. “In a good way.”

“I’m glad you could see that although we haven’t known each
other long, there’s no reason for delay. You’re decisive. I think it’s the same
instinct that makes us so successful in business.”

“Yes.” She agreed blindly, still incapable of actual thought.
“Absolutely.”

“We’ll get married right away. We’re not kids who need a long
engagement. We can probably do it next week.”

Fiona’s throat tightened. “But…my parents.” She thought
immediately of her dad, who would probably have a stroke if she actually married
James Drummond. But her mom and stepdad would be devastated if she got married
without them present. Not that she was really getting married. “And we should
spend more time getting to know each other.”

“Of course we’ll include them. I know just the planner to
organize an event everyone will remember.”

He held both her hands, and they were definitely sweating. “I
need time to…find the right dress.” Her brain scrambled for roadblocks to slow
down this freight train that seemed to be getting out of control. “And my
bridesmaids and maid of honor.” All things she’d never given a moment’s thought
to.

James’s brow rose, and humor twinkled in his eyes. “Do you
really want those trappings of tradition?”

“Oh, yes.” It was hard to speak with her heart thumping against
her ribs like a caged animal.

“Then you shall have them.” A smile lit up his face and toasted
her heart with its warmth. James Drummond wanted to marry her. It didn’t get any
stranger than this. Why did he have to be so handsome and intelligent and, well,
awesome? She’d never in a million years have dreamed that someone like this
would want to marry her. She wasn’t a jaw-dropping beauty or a brilliant
conversationalist. Even now that she was wealthy, men were hardly stopping her
in the street to invite her out. And this man, undoubtedly one of the world’s
most eligible bachelors, wanted to rush her to the altar. It didn’t make sense.
He must have some ulterior motive. But what?

Taffy had grown tired of standing still and was trying to
stretch her neck down to nibble the heather. “We should probably…” What? The
words fizzled.

“Of course.” James strode toward the horses and untied their
reins, then handed her Taffy’s. She climbed onto the horse with a sense of
relief. She’d probably never needed a good gallop more in her life. The ring
twinkled on her finger like an alien life form. She hoped it wouldn’t fall off
and get lost in the heather.

James beamed with apparent happiness. If she weren’t so freaked
out she’d be touched by it. Had he fallen madly in love with her? It didn’t seem
possible in such a short time, but she knew several people whose romances had
been that sudden and dramatic. Supposedly true love was like that.

Of course that wasn’t the feeling pumping in her heart. More
like sheer terror and confusion tangled up with unexpected lust and passion.
This man was something else.

They rode through a stretch of hilly country, and she had to
concentrate to help Taffy down the winding and narrow trail. At the bottom was a
nearly flat stretch of open grazing land. James looked at her. “Shall we?”

She knew exactly what he meant, and she nodded her reply.
Together they set out across the grass, letting their horses build steam and
stretch out their powerful necks and long legs, until they were both neck and
neck in a flat-out gallop.

If there was a rabbit hole hidden in the grass, a horse could
catch its leg and either of them could die in an instant. But the ground swept
beneath them, firm and steady, and the air whipped her face, as if it might slap
some sense into her. She knew she was grinning from ear to ear as they exploded
through the open country like jockeys on a racetrack.

They slowed as they approached the estate, walking their
sweating horses through a crowd of fluffy sheep. It was only then that Fiona
realized they hadn’t kissed after his proposal. It wasn’t really romantic at
all, almost a business proposition.

She sneaked a glance at James, who glowed with good cheer.
Which made a twinge of unease uncurl in her belly. Could he be so happy thinking
that they would get married? Or was this a practical arrangement for him in the
same way it was for her.

“I don’t think I’ve ridden that fast in years, if ever.” James
patted his horse’s neck.

“Obviously you’ve been riding with the wrong people.” She
couldn’t help smiling. His enthusiasm was infectious. “Though I’m pretty sure
that was the best ride of my life.”

“We’ll have to make a habit of it, though there were moments
when I started to think we were racing each other.”

“Oh, no. If we were racing I’d have won.” She lifted a brow.
Taffy’s broad back rose and fell underneath her, and at that moment anything
seemed possible.

“That sounds like a challenge.” James’s eyes glittered with
amusement.

“Most definitely.” Then a thought occurred to her. A race, with
a prize of her choosing. Not some tarnished piece of an old cup but something
she really wanted. Her dad’s factory. “In fact, I’m throwing down the
gauntlet.”

“You want to race me?”

“Not right this minute. I think our horses have had enough for
one day, but on a date to be determined, each of us on horses of our own
choosing, yes. I’d like to race you.”

He rode along staring at her, hips shifting with the movement
of his horse’s back. “You’re on.”

“What does the winner get as a prize?” Her heart beat faster as
she hoped for the opening she needed.

“Hmm, that’s a tough one, since I suspect we both have
everything we want.” He stared at the gray walls of the estate.

“I’m looking for property in Singapore, and you own some. How
about if I get to choose one of your properties if I win?” Terror soared in her
chest as she laid out her plan. If he said no, it would be harder to come back
and try again. He might get suspicious.

“A property in Singapore.” He frowned. “That sounds doable. But
what do I get if I win? Or should I say,
when
I
win.” His arrogance should have annoyed her, but at that minute she was too
thrilled that her crazy plan might actually work.

But what could she offer him? She was pretty sure he wouldn’t
win. He probably weighed nearly twice what she did, and there was a reason
jockeys were chosen for their light weight. Also, he clearly wasn’t used to
getting up off his horse’s back into two-point, whereas she found it easy. In a
fair race, on evenly matched horses, she knew she would win. “How about six
months of my time working on any project of your choice?”

“As a consultant?”

“Yes.”

“I suppose that would be convenient for both of us since we’ll
be married and living under the same roof.”

She froze. Which wasn’t easy since Taffy still moved underneath
her. She hadn’t factored the whole marriage thing into her wager. How would she
work with him for six months and manage to break off this crazy engagement that
made no sense?

That wouldn’t be necessary, though. He wouldn’t win. She’d win
and get her dad’s factory back, then take off for California and
safety—emotional and otherwise.

“Yes. I’d be able to work on your project twenty-four hours a
day.” She hated herself. First for agreeing to marry a man she barely knew, and
had no intention of wedding, second for fibbing about promising to work for him.
Trying to win her dad’s affection was taking a much larger emotional toll than
she’d expected. For the first time it occurred to her that this plan was flawed
from the get-go.