Can't Buy Me Love (12 page)

He ran his hand up the satin length of her arm, across the graceful curve of her shoulder and to the mound of her breast.

Paige stirred and then her eyes fluttered open as he coerced the nipple into a hard little peak. She blinked at him as if trying to remember where and why and how. Then she sighed, giving him a fuller range of motion.

“
Good morning,” he murmured, gently raking his teeth across the skin of her earlobe.

“
You sure know how to wake a girl.”

“
It’s all in the wrist.” He dropped his mouth to hers and neatly rolled her onto her back. “I’ve got to go to work,” he murmured against her lips, then he kissed her again.

“
But you’re the boss.”

Another kiss.

“All the more reason.”

Kiss.

“You could go in late.”

Kiss.

“Yes, I think I will.”

And
sometime really soon, he needed to ask why she hadn’t told him that she was a virgin.

****

“Blake, I need to go into town today. I have some errands to run.”

“
Today?” Blake folded his paper and set it beside his empty breakfast plate. He couldn’t concentrate on it anyway, not with Paige sitting mere feet away. But it had been either read the paper or pull her across the dinette table and make love to her right out here on the porch. Granted loving her just once more he went to the office won hands down, but the kind of things he had in mind were best carried out in private. “You are coming to the fashion show.”

She shrugged.
“I hadn’t really thought about it.”

“
Well, think about it. I want you to be there.” He rose from the table as the pretty shade of pink filtered into her cheeks. He really needed to be getting to work. He had a million and one things to do. But he wanted to kiss her just once more before he left. A kiss to last him the whole day through—until tonight. God, he couldn’t wait that long.

He raised his lips from hers just enough to whisper the words.
“The fashion show starts at three. Come by early. I can think of some interesting ways to christen the conference table.”

“
You’ve got a deal,” she whispered in return. “But I don’t have a way into town. My car’s at the shop.”

“
Take the Cadillac,” he said, then kissed her again.

“
It’s
huge
.”

“
It’s big, but you can handle it.”

“
Blake, the Pacific Princess is big. There’s enough room in that car for eight people in the front seat and the dance band in the back.”

Blake laughed.
“It’s not that big. I’m sure it weighs less than most buses.”

“
Okay,” she sighed. “The truth is I’d rather not drive her car.”

“
I don’t think she’d care.”

Paige shuddered, and Blake had the feeling that it wasn
’t from passion. “But that was your aunt’s car, and she’s...

“
Dead?” Devin supplied as he sauntered into the room.

Paige started guiltily as if she had been caught in the act of necking in the backseat rather than kissing her husband.

“Did Holmes tell you that she died in that car on her way to the hospital? Some people want to die at home, but not our dear auntie. She was much more comfortable in her car. Isn’t that right, Blake?”

Blake straightened but ignored his brother.
He centered his gaze on the side of Paige’s mouth. He knew that if he looked her in the eye neither of them was going anyplace—Devin or no Devin. “Have Anthony drive you into town. He’s not so intimidated by the car.”

“
I don’t want to ride in it either.”

Blake sighed and reached into the pocket of his trousers.
He fished out a set of keys. “Take my car. I’ll drive the Caddy.”

Twenty minutes later Blake stood outside in the fresh early
-summer air, waiting for Anthony to bring around the two-toned ‘68 Cadillac that had been Aunt Virginia’s second pride and joy—right after that pitiful excuse for a dog.

“
Nice day out, ain’t it, Mr. Caldwell?”

Blake turned his face away from the sun and looked to Maurice, the gardener, who was trimming the flowers in the front flower beds with the same careful attention he gave all the blooms on the estate.
It was that same vigilance that made riotous colors explode all over the grounds when other people were just beginning to plan their own gardens. For Maurice it was therapy. Time well spent away from the bottle.

“
Incredible,” Blake answered, his mind more on Paige than the weather.

Just then, Blake
’s white Mercedes came twisting along the winding drive that led to the house.

“
That’s Mrs. Caldwell,” Maurice said unnecessarily.

“
She must have forgotten something,” Blake added as he watched her wavering progress down the drive. The car gathered speed on the slight incline that led into the circular drive with its ridiculous fountain.

The morning sun flashed upon the windshield, nearly blinding Blake and hiding Paige from his view as the Mercedes bore down upon him.
Surely she would slow down and stop long before she neared him, but she was going fast, too fast.

Blake d
ove head first into the fountain, the shiny chrome bumper missing him by mere seconds.

“
Blake!” Paige’s scream penetrated the whining of the warped tires and the hiss of the German radiator. “Blake, are you all right?”

Blake shook the water out of his ears and wiped his eyes.
“I’m fine.” Physically he was in great shape, but his temper and his ego were not doing so well. He counted to ten, then climbed out of the fountain and surveyed the damage.

“
Are you sure?” Her hands started performing that flighty dance across his wet torso. Blake grabbed them in his own to stop their injury exploration.

“
Did you not see me standing there?”

She shook her head. “The sun was in my eyes. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Peachy.”

“
That was just so scary. I couldn’t control the car.”

Blake shifted his weight and water squirted out of the side of his left shoe.
“Did you think about
stopping
the car? Or did you naturally assume that all cars have brakes like yours?”

“
I didn’t think about the brakes.” She bit her lip, but this time Blake’s libido was firmly in check.

“W
hy were you driving toward the house instead of away from it?”

“
I forgot Bruno. I’m so glad he wasn’t in the car with me. Oh, Blake your head’s bleeding.” She reached up and pressed her fingers to the cut near his hairline.

So far it had been one hell of a morning.

Two hours and six stitches later, Blake was on the phone with an insurance claims adjuster. Just as he had known, the Mercedes was totaled. In the span of a few short minutes his accident prone wife had managed to kill a German car, a hand-tailored Parisian suit, and a pair of Italian wing tips. She was an international menace.

“
Be sure and have the mechanic check the steering column for possible damage. My wife said she had trouble controlling the car. Give me a call later and let me know what you find. You can leave a message with my secretary.”

A hesitant knock sounded at the door just as Blake replaced the receiver.

“I hate to bother you, Mr. Caldwell.” Henry, the janitor, hovered on the threshold to Blake’s office. He nervously twisted the ball cap he held in his hands. “Your secretary wasn’t at her desk...and I..I needed to talk to you. I know I should have told you sooner, but I was worried.”

“
Just what are you trying to tell me, Henry? I don’t have a lot of time. Does this have something to do with the fashion show?” Blake checked his watch. He really needed to be going. He had to make sure everything was in place.

“
No, sir. It don’t have nothing to do with the fashion show. Everything’s all cleaned up down there. It’s just that the other day...I was cleaning underneath the sewing machine. And I’m afraid it’s all my fault. The Singer would have never fallen if I hadn’t left it so close to the edge.”

****

Backstage at a fashion show was an entirely different world. Paige wandered around behind the scenes trying hard to absorb it all and still stay out of everyone’s way. Partially clothed women hurried back and forth between the seamstress and the hairdresser seemingly oblivious to the dominantly male backstage crew. Lydia was undergoing a last minute makeup change, and Blake was discussing his wishes with the lighting man. Her husband amazed her. He had countless, perfectly capable employees and yet he insisted on being intimately involved in the smallest details. It was his caring and concern that had made Caldwell so great.

She could think about that.
She could think about him. What she couldn’t think about was what last night meant to her and her heart. She had fallen in love with Blake. Irrevocably, forever in love with him, a man she had agreed to divorce. Loving him was useless, stupid, a dead-end street. But she couldn’t stop her stubborn heart. She could only make the best of what time she did have with him and hope that Maddie was right and a cardiac specialist could put her heart back together once her marriage to Blake was over.

He waved her over as the lighting man left.

“The show’s going to begin soon,” Blake said as he wrapped one arm around her waist. “Stay close, okay? After it’s over, I’ll give you your third birthday surprise.”

“
But I thought that’s what last night was all about,” Paige teased.

“
Oh, no.” He shook his head. “But you’re going to like this one almost as much.”

He kissed the corner of her mouth and started toward the stage.

Blake was the natural choice to emcee the show. His voice was deep, smooth and showed that he cared about each of the designs. The press loved the fact that the CEO took such a strong interest in each facet of the company, and each won-over reporter was a potential feather in Blake’s business cap.

Lydia was perfect and beautiful and of course was introdu
ced as Paige Caldwell’s sister. Another feather with the press. The media adored a big company with family values. Paige watched the entire show from backstage, standing so that a heavy curtain separated her from the eyes for the other onlookers, but she could still watch Blake. The night and the morning they had shared had been incredible. She wanted to relive each kiss, each caress, over and over in her mind, but a part of her was afraid that if she dwelt on the passion too much the magic would disappear. No, she shook her head silently. Nothing could change what had happened between them. It had been too beautiful.

“
Before we close for the afternoon, I have an announcement to make.” Blake turned his head toward her. “Paige, could you come out here, please?”

She pointed to herself and Blake nodded.
He hadn’t told her she was going to have to come out in front of all these people to receive her surprise.

“
As many of you know I recently married,” he continued as Paige stepped hesitantly onto the stage and made her way to his side. “But no one knew, not even myself, what a treasure I had found.” He slipped an arm around her waist, comforting and supporting.

“
Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to introduce my wife, Paige Caldwell, the newest member of the Caldwell design team.”

Chapter Eleven

Holding Paige in his arms.
That was all Blake could think about on the drive to the airport. It was all he could think about as he watched Paige hug her sister good-bye. And it was all he could think about as he pulled Devin’s car into the driveway.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.
Last night he had learned every nuance of her expressions. Passion, wanting, need, happiness. The look she wore now was not the joy he had expected to see when she accepted the position at Caldwell. Surely she just needed some time to get used to the idea of working for him—working
with
him. After all it wasn’t every day she went from Happy Millionaire’s Housewife to Professional Designer.

“
How about a drink?” Devin suggested after Anthony had taken the car to the garage and the trio had entered the house. “I think the occasion calls for celebration.”

Blake slipped his arm around his wife.
He didn’t want a drink. He wanted to be alone with Paige. Three may not really be a crowd, but it was one too many for what he had in mind.

“
What occasion?” Paige asked.

Devin paused in the doorway of the study.
“You know. The two of you working together. Keeping Caldwell afloat. Aunt Ginny would have been proud.”

Blake felt Paige stiffen.
She pulled away and met his gaze. “You were serious?

“
Of course.”

“
So do you want a drink, Paige?” Devin asked.

She shook her head.
“I thought it was some kind of press gimmick.”

“
Whatever gave you that idea?”

Paige shrugged.

“I wouldn’t have offered you the job if I wasn’t serious.”

“
What about you, Blake? You want a drink?”

“
You never
offered
me anything.”

“
I
offered you a drink,” Devin said.

Paige turned to Devin.
“And I think I will take that drink now. Thank you.”

“
I wanted to surprise you.” Blake followed her into the study where Devin poured her a glass of wine.

“
Well, I wasn’t nearly as surprised as everyone else is going to be tomorrow when you tell them you were mistaken.”

“
Mistaken? About what?”

Devin raised his glass in toast.
“Here’s to my brother’s thrifty nature. I’ve never before seen a man save two million dollars in such a unique way.”

“
That I would go to work for you,” she said her voice rising in impatience. Then she rounded on Devin. “And you need to learn to keep a secret.”

“
What makes you think I told?”

Paige glared at him.

“I never promised to keep it to myself. I said I would guard your secret as if my brother’s life depended on it. That’s not the same thing, and in the view of the importance of Caldwell Clothing to his life, I felt he needed to know.”

“
The decision wasn’t yours to make.”

Blake stepped between them.
“Paige, perhaps we should finish this conversation upstairs.”

“
There’s no conversation to be finished. I decline.”

“
You can’t decline.” He reached out to touch her, but she moved out of his reach.

“
But I can.”

“
Why?” What was the matter with her? She should be thrilled at the opportunity he was giving her. “I thought you would jump at the chance to be a professional designer.”

She frowned. “
Whatever gave you that idea?
“It’s the chance of a lifetime. Why wouldn’t you want this?”

She shook her head.
“All I have ever wanted to do was take care of the Zumbai Tribe.”

“But I’ve seen your designs. They’re incredible.”

Devin refilled his glass and settled himself down on to the couch.

Blake shot his brother an exasperated look.
“Do you mind?”

“
Not at all. Go right ahead.” He waved one hand in a dismissive gesture.

“
Out. Now.” Blake pointed his finger toward the door.

“
All right. All right.” Devin rose to his feet and sauntered out of the room.

Blake turned his attention back to his wife.
“I need you, Paige. If I don’t hire a designer soon, I’ll have to design part of the line myself, and frankly I don’t have the time or your talent.” Blake could hear the desperation in his voice but he didn’t care. He needed her. In more ways than one. He wanted her in his design room every day and in his bedroom every night.

“
I’m very sorry.” The glittering depths of her turquoise eyes said she wouldn’t back down.

“
What about last night?”

Her face grew abnormally pale; his first indication that he had made a mistake.
“Is that all it was to you?”

“
No,” he replied, but she had already moved toward the door. “Where are you going?”

“
Upstairs.”

“
But we’re not finished.”

“
Oh, yes, we are.”

Her tone was a little under a shout, and Blake realized that they were fighting.
She had lain in his arms last night and she was yelling at him today.

“
I don’t want to fight with you, Paige.”

“
You should have thought about that before you told everybody that I would work for you.”

“
Why don’t you want to, dammit?” Adrenalin pumped through his veins, left over energy from their love making last night, the fashion show this afternoon, and now simply being in the same room with her.

She looked at him for a minute, then turned and left without answering.

That did it
. “Paige!” He followed her out of study and toward the stairs. “Wait. I’m not finished.”

“
I am.”

“
Then you can damn well hear
me
out.” He dogged her heels as she began the ascent to their suite. “I paid for a wife. And now I want her to come to work for me.”

“
That wasn’t part of our agreement.”

“
Our agreement has changed.”

“
Again? That’s the problem with you. You’re always changing the rules to suit your purposes. We have a contract.”

“
You weren’t so concerned with it last night.”

“
Neither were you.” She reached out to open the door to her room.

Blake tried to calm his voice, talk about this rationally and logically.
“Paige, I have let you do whatever you wanted. Now, I’m only asking for one thing in return. Come to work for me.”

“
I already work for you. I cook your meals every day.”

“
Fine then.” His lips compressed together to keep the shout from escaping. “You want to be the cook? You can be the cook. From now on, you’ll cook what I want when I want it. Do you understand?”

He gritted his teeth as she nodded her head.
“And what would you like tomorrow
, sir
?”

“
Meat,” he snapped, hating the fact that this conversation had gotten so out of hand, but unable to stop it. “Steak, hamburger, pork chops, veal. You decide, just as long as its meat.”

****

Paige searched through the freezer, pen and paper in hand and added corn on the cob to her list. If she had to go to the grocery store to buy helpless slaughtered animals, she might as well get the other items they needed.

She had decided during her long sleepless night that she would play the part of the dutiful wife as she had been hired to do and somehow forget the feelings that Blake evoked in her.
What other choice did she have? With any luck there would be no repercussions from their shared passion, such as a baby. They hadn’t taken the time to use any protection, and it seemed almost unnecessary after all the blood tests they had before the wedding. She had thought about birth control once during that incredible night, but it was hard to voice her concerns when she had been otherwise, more pleasurably, occupied.

Now in the light of day, Paige thought about the possibility of having Blake
’s baby. A child would certainly form a problem during the divorce. There was nothing concerning offspring in the pre-nuptial agreement, and she knew Blake wasn’t the type to forsake his own blood. His household staff was made up of criminals and vagrants, and if he would support a poodle he hated, he would certainly demand rights where his child was concerned. It would be best for them both if she wasn’t pregnant. Or if she was, she could always hope that by the end of the twelve months she could make him fall head over heels in love with her.

Now
that
was some serious wishful thinking,

She had found a cook book in the pantry and glanced through it as the muffins she mixed up for this morning
’s breakfast baked. The book contained recipes—meat-filled recipes—that looked promising, and she would give them a try. But if the old adage was correct and good food was the way to win a man’s love...well, she may be in a world of hurt.

Paige dug a little bit deeper into the freezer, surprised to find a small package of ham.
She thought she had given all the meat in the house to Bruno, but apparently this parcel had escaped her purging.

She was just about to place the package back on the shelf when the idea struck.
She would make Blake a meal he would never forget.

****

When Paige sat his breakfast in front of him, Blake thought perhaps she had given up the kitchen duties and had hired a cook. He looked around, but only his wife and his brother were on the sun porch. He turned his gaze back to the most beautiful omelet in the history of eggs filled with the juiciest, pinkest, tastiest looking ham he had ever seen.

Paige walked around the table and sat across from him.
“Well, don’t just sit there with your mouth open. Eat your breakfast.”

“
What have I done to deserve this?” His gaze shifted between Paige and his plate. He had demanded that she cook him a meat-filled meal, but he hadn’t expected her to actually comply.

“
Consider it a peace offering.”

He took a bite and considered the
omelet his own little piece of heaven. “You ought to try this, Dev.”

“
No, thanks. I don’t want anything that...heavy.” Devin snatched up one of the warm muffins and smeared it with a liberal amount of butter.

“
It’s terrific. A little on the spicy side, but really good. What kind of ham is this?”

“
I’m not sure. I found it in the freezer this morning.”

“
Get some more of it next time you’re at the store. It has a really unique flavor.”

Blake took another bite and closed his eyes savoring that flavor.
Devin just didn’t know what he was missing. Neither did Paige. They both sat eating muffins and watching him as he devoured the first half of the omelet.

Thank God for the little things.
That he was neither hung over like Devin or a vegetarian like Paige and he was able to enjoy the simple pleasures of life. Or at least he would be, if not for one small, but important, detail.

Blake swallowed his mouthful and turned a hopeful gaze upon his wife.
“Does this mean you’ll come to work at Caldwell?”

“No.”

“But what about—”

She shook her head.

“Mr. Caldwell, the Mercedes is here,” Anthony called from the entrance to the porch. “I think you’d better come take a look at it.”

Blake turned to face the chauffeur who never drove him anywhere but crazy.

It was too soon for his new car to be here. He just ordered it yesterday.

Then he remembered.
It wasn’t
his
car that was here, but Paige’s. With all the hubbub and accidents, he had forgotten all about ordering her a Mercedes. It was part of the package deal of her employment at Caldwell. After all, he couldn’t have his top designer driving around in an aging Volkswagen, now could he?

Blake put his fork back on his plate and wiped his mouth on his napkin.
“The blue Mercedes I ordered?”

“
Well,” Anthony drawled. “The one you ordered might be blue, but the one they delivered sure ain’t.”

The car that sat in front of the fountain where the last Mercedes had died was...pink.
Incredibly, undeniably,
obscenely
pink. The color was a second cousin to fuchsia; the bastard child of magenta. It would have been a terrific color—if it had been nail polish.