A Trap So Tender (9 page)

On the other hand she was in too deep to stop now.

He rode right up next to her and extended his hand. “You’re
on.”

She shook it. She’d never go back on a handshake deal. Whatever
happened she’d stick by this part of their arrangement, even if it meant working
for a man who by then hated her.

She’d just have to make sure that didn’t happen.

Seven

D
inner was served with champagne. “To our
future.” James raised his glass and she met it with hers.

She smiled and hoped it wasn’t too shaky. “I admit I’m a little
worried about the curse of doom hanging over the Drummonds. We haven’t made any
headway toward finding that cup piece.” She cut into her roasted salmon.

“I’d almost forgotten about that.”

“It’s the whole reason you brought me here.”

“Not the whole reason.”

“You knew you were going to propose to me?”

“Let’s just say I had some ideas in that direction.” He sipped
his champagne with a somewhat predatory gaze.

“But you didn’t even know me.”

“I’m a big believer in gut instinct. I can size up a stock
chart, or a start-up company or even a person in a glance. I don’t always act on
my gut, but when I do I’m usually right.”

“And your gut was telling you good things about me.”

“Very good things.” He took a bite of salmon.

Her tiny new potatoes looked huge, and the green beans
threatened to lodge in her throat. Guilt must be killing her appetite. James had
no idea how far off course his gut instinct had led him this time. Still, it was
so arrogant of him to be already planning their engagement when they’d barely
met that he probably deserved it.

“I think the wedding should take place mid next month. It’s
usually a pretty quiet time on the business front, so we can take some time for
a honeymoon. Where have you always wanted to go?”

A honeymoon! She blinked and sipped at her champagne while she
tried to gather her thoughts. “Next month is so soon. It’ll take time to find
the perfect dress.”

“It’ll be easy. You simply choose a good designer and tell them
what you want. Takes all the drama out of shopping. I can recommend an excellent
tailor in Singapore.”

She inhaled carefully. “My family may need some time to get
used to the idea.”

“Why? You’re hardly a child bride.” Then he hesitated and
frowned. “Do you think they won’t like me for some reason?”

His sudden concern touched her. If he only knew. “I’m sure
they’d love you once they get to know you, but you know how people don’t like
surprises. They’ll need to warm up to you a bit.”

“We’ll fly them in next week. Your mom can help you organize
the dress and any of that other wedding stuff you want to do.”

She swallowed. She couldn’t even imagine how her mom and
stepdad in California would react, but her dad in Singapore was bound to blow
his top. “When are we going to have our race?”

“Race?”

“You know, the horse race. Whoever wins…” Her voice trailed
off. She knew she’d brought it up at the wrong moment, but it seemed the only
escape route from this freight train heading down a steep hillside with no
brakes.

“We can do that when we get back from Singapore. In fact, I’d
like to leave tomorrow.” He pulled out his iPhone. “I’ll text my pilot.”

But… But… But.
She couldn’t even
come up with anything. This was his house and if he wanted to leave it and go
somewhere else, she could hardly disagree. Which was more than a little weird,
if they were supposedly getting married. As his wife, or even his fiancée, she
should be able to tell him she preferred to stay in Scotland, or that she had
plans of her own. But their relationship wasn’t on that kind of footing at
all.

It wasn’t a relationship of equals. He had something she
needed, and she was skulking around trying to get it. Obviously, he needed
something, too—marriage to her. She couldn’t figure out his reasons. He seemed
to genuinely like her, but that wasn’t enough. Not for this kind of rush. But
she couldn’t ask about his motives, because then he might ask about hers.

He looked up from his phone after about a minute. “We’ll leave
here at 6:00 a.m.”

“Lucky thing I never finished unpacking. Are we simply
abandoning the search for the cup?”

“I think we’re quite lucky enough without it.”

She took a swallow of champagne, and it burned her throat.
“Yes, I suppose we are.”

* * *

They slept together in James’s bed. She took the big engagement
ring off and left it on the dresser. It felt like taking off a ball and chain.
When they were naked, under the sheets, skin to skin, somehow she could forget
all the complications of their crazy engagement and all her schemes and
underhanded motives.

His kisses sent delicious ripples of pleasure coursing through
her. His hands, so assured and yet so tender, made her skin hum. She loved to
touch his body. His competitive instincts kept him active in several sports, and
the results were impressive.

And he seemed to enjoy her body every bit as much as she
reveled in his. He licked and kissed delicate patterns on her skin, making her
gasp when he hit on an erogenous zone. Slow and deliberate, he visited each part
of her body with his mouth, and left it throbbing and pulsing with desire. No
wham bam, thank you ma’am
for James Drummond. He
played her body like a fine instrument, finding the high notes and making it
vibrate with sensations she’d never known before.

She found herself eagerly returning the favor. His subtle,
masculine scent filled her senses, and she enjoyed the roughness of his skin.
Her tongue and teeth trailed over the firm contours of his powerful chest, and
along the fine trail of dark hair to his proud erection.

She was almost ready to explode with anticipation when she
finally climbed on top of him and took him very slowly inside her. James
groaned, and she enjoyed the intense expression that crossed his face as she
took him deep. Why did he have to be so handsome? She’d never kissed a man this
beautiful, let alone been engaged to one. Even under the rather awkward
circumstances, it was enough to make a girl lose her head.

So she let her tiresome, worried thoughts float away and hang
out somewhere near the vaulted ceiling, while the rest of her enjoyed making
love to James.

He was a patient lover, and endlessly creative. He found
positions she’d never imagined that made her toes curl with unexpected pleasure.
Every time she thought she’d reached the point of no return, he’d pull her
carefully back and begin the dance of driving her wild with excitement all over
again. It was like riding a roller coaster, except far more unpredictable and
pleasurable.

Kind of like her life right now.

She made some strange sounds when she finally arrived at her
long-awaited orgasm. She heard them from very far away. James had gathered her
up and taken her into a distant realm where nothing mattered except the present
moment and the fierce passion they shared.

Afterward they lay in each other’s arms. She felt utterly
relaxed and at peace, which didn’t make any sense at all, but that didn’t seem
to matter.

He’s amazing.
James was so kind and
thoughtful, so obviously brilliant, sexy, gorgeous. And for some strange reason
he wanted to marry her, Fiona Lam.

Too weird. Weird and wonderful if it wasn’t for the awkward
family entanglement that had brought her face-to-face with him in the first
place. Her plans had already gone so far off course it was impossible to know
where she would end up. Maybe right here in James’s arms?

At this moment anything seemed possible.

* * *

She told her mom she had “met someone” and wanted them to meet
him. Her mom was thrilled at the chance to visit Singapore, and peppered her
with questions about James. James insisted on paying for everything, so all her
mom and stepdad had to do was book the tickets. Since they were both from
Singapore originally, they had loads of friends and family to visit and couldn’t
wait.

Fiona somehow neglected to mention that she was getting
married. Because she wasn’t getting married.

Or was she? The announcement James had prepared for release to
the
Straits Times
stated that she and James
Farquahar Drummond, Twelfth Earl of Ballantrae, were engaged. She’d told him not
to send it until she had a chance to break the news to them. She didn’t tell him
it contained glaring errors. The announcement included her stepdad’s name, which
was Lam, like hers. Her mom had changed Fiona’s surname when they moved to
California and became hysterical if Fiona ever talked about changing it back.
Maybe that was another reason why she felt the need to try to make so much up to
her father.

But unless James had hired a private detective—which he
apparently hadn’t—he and everyone else thought her stepdad was her real
father.

In the best room at the Four Seasons, at James’s insistence,
her mom pulled clothes from her extensive luggage, while her stepdad
experimented with the TV remote.

“Really, sweetheart, we could have stayed with my sister. I
don’t know why I brought this dress. It’s far too hot here. I forgot how hot it
is. And I still don’t understand why we had to come here in such a rush.”

To help me choose my wedding dress.
Or not. “I wanted you to meet my new…boyfriend.” She couldn’t bring herself to
say
fiancé
to her own mother, when she had no
intention of marrying him.

“You two must be serious.” Her mom paused, a satin negligee in
hand. A broad smile broke out on her face. “I’m so happy that you’re dating. You
never seem interested in boys.”

“He’s not really a boy.” She couldn’t help smiling. “He’s
several years older than me.”

Her mom waved a hand. “That’s nothing. A husband should be
older than his wife. And he’s Singaporean! I can’t believe I moved across the
world and my daughter goes back home to find a husband.”

“Actually, he’s Scottish.” Even though she was telling the
absolute truth, this whole conversation felt like a horrible wasp’s nest of lies
she was building. “He does a lot of business here. I visited him in Scotland,
though. He has a big castle out in the middle of nowhere.”

“A castle?” Her mom almost dropped the shirt she was putting on
a hanger. “Dan, did you hear that? A castle!”

Fiona nodded. It was hard not to smile. Wouldn’t it be fabulous
if she and James really were madly in love and getting married? It would be like
some kind of fairy tale come true.

But fairy tales didn’t come true. Not in her life, anyway. She
wondered what her mom would think if she knew her whole relationship was phony.
She certainly wouldn’t find it entertaining the way her dad did. He’d chuckled
and promised to keep quiet when the engagement was announced. Her mom was a
gentle person whose main goal in life was to make others happy. She hadn’t been
able to make Fiona’s dad happy, and she’d warned Fiona about expecting too much
from him. Fiona didn’t worry, though. She and her dad were a lot more alike than
her mom gave her credit for.

“So when do I meet this amazing man?”

“At dinner tonight.” Her stomach constricted. James had booked
them a table at the most impossible-to-get-into restaurant in town. Where he was
no doubt going to start conversations about wedding dresses and engagement
parties and guest lists. She doubted the topic of her real dad would come up,
since her mom tended to act as if he’d never existed and her stepdad, Dan, was
her birth father. Still, a situation like this could explode in her face. “But
maybe we should cancel. You’re probably tired.”

“Nonsense. I can’t wait!”

* * *

An hour later she met James at his penthouse apartment. Her
heart jumped as he opened the door, and her lips tingled in anticipation of
their kiss.

Which was rich and full and made her toes curl.

Why did he have to be so delicious? He looked devastating in a
dark suit—apparently this man never wore jeans—with his hair slicked back and
slightly damp. “I’ve missed you.” His low murmur stirred the desire already
rising inside her.

“I’ve missed you, too.” Worse yet, it was true. She’d both
dreaded and longed to see him in equal measure.

“We have an hour and a half before our reservation. Shall we go
pick up your parents and take them out for a drink?”

“No.” She said it too fast. “I mean, they’re resting after
their flight. They’ll meet us at the restaurant. They’re both from Singapore so
they know their way around.”

“Perfect.” He smiled. “Won’t you come in?”

She glanced over his shoulder into the sleek, minimalist
interior. “How about a walk?” She didn’t really want to come in and kiss him and
get all hot and confused. Better to stick to her goals and try to keep this
thing on track. And her dad’s factory was only about five blocks away. “I’d love
some air and a chance to stretch my legs. I’m nervous about you meeting my
parents.”

Truer words were never spoken.

“Don’t be nervous. I’m quite well behaved.” His mischievous
grin was adorable. “And I promise to charm them.”

“I’m sure you will.”

He slipped his arm through hers, which sent a shiver of
excitement right through her. How odd that they’d slept together in Scotland,
but back here he seemed to want them to stay apart. Really, it was better, but
she couldn’t help feeling slightly hurt. Which was ridiculous. “Uh, I haven’t
yet told my parents we’re getting married.”

“Why not?”

“I want them to meet you and like you before I tell them.”

“Sounds like a sensible plan.” His beaming smile made her feel
so guilty. Especially as their stroll took them out of the expensive shopping
district toward the more up-and-coming area where the factory lay. She knew
exactly which building it was, but James had no idea she’d ever heard of it
before. She slowed the pace as they drew near. The concrete shoebox looked even
more depressing than she remembered, with Chinese characters daubed in green
paint directly onto its mildewed surface. Old window air conditioners provided
nesting for local birds, and there was garbage sitting on the front doorstep.
How did you tactfully express an interest in a dump like this?