Temporary Fiancée (6 page)

The thought cheered her. Breaking the kiss, she stood on tiptoe to whisper in his ear. “Does this mean the dog can stay?”

Chapter Five

Rand ordered himself to let her go, but his body wasn’t buying it. The heat reached flashpoint so fast Rand had forgotten it was supposed to be an exhibition for Angela and her father. He wanted the kiss to look convincing, but as soon as Haley’s arms snaked around his neck, and her small but very feminine body pressed against his, he’d lost it. It had never happened before. If he’d been able to think, he would have pulled back. He had always kept a lid on his passion, or lust, or whatever the hell it was that was twisting his gut at the moment, but her uninhibited response blew his mind. Obviously, he’d been celibate way too long. He was hard as a rock and aching for release.

On some very distant plane, he worried about hypertension. When Haley had stepped from the BMW in the close fitting sundress, his blood pressure rose so fast he thought it would blow through the top of his head. The tiny woman had enough curves to make a dead man salivate. Then her stubbornness over the damn dog raised his pressure even more. However, the heat and intensity of their kiss had elevated him to stroke level. His jeans were uncomfortably tight. With insistent body parts cheering him on, his hands had begun a slow slide down the slight flare of her hips to her nicely rounded buttocks. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he glimpsed the cynicism on Angela’s face, and the lascivious envy on her father’s. Damn! He’d forgotten all about them. He hadn’t felt such a testosterone rush since he was sixteen. He’d been oblivious to everything around him. Hell, if Angela and her father weren’t standing beside them, they’d probably be rolling around on the lawn right now.

When he’d whispered to Haley that the Blakely’s were watching, instead of being embarrassed, she had twisted his arm about the dog. Obviously she hadn’t been as involved in the kiss as he had. The thought disgruntled him, and he was finally able to pull away. Balancing on his good leg, he carefully positioned her in front of him and kept his arm around her waist as they turned to face the Blakelys.

“I hope that little demonstration wasn’t for my benefit,” Angela said coolly, and Rand felt himself flush.

As always, she looked perfect. Her black sleeveless jumpsuit emphasized her golden tan and the luster of her hair, tied in a loose knot at the nape of her neck. Platinum, beautiful, she looked like a goddess. Rand sighed. Too bad she was as amoral as an alley cat.

Angela’s green eyes mocked the couple, dismissing Haley after a brief, contemptuous glance. Within the circle of his arms, Rand felt Haley stiffen, then relax. She chuckled and winked up at him before stretching out her hand toward Angela, a welcoming smile on her face. “Hi, I’m Haley. I’m sorry we didn’t notice you drive in, but Rand and I had an argument, and we were making up.”

Over her shoulder, she threw him a mischievous glance, reminding him that this was his show, and he’d do well to keep up with the script.

The woman really was a terrific actress. For the first time since he’d met Haley, Rand felt himself relax. He grinned down at her, playing along. “We ought to fight more. The making up is so…” he paused drawing her back against him so she could feel his arousal, “energizing.” Haley slid a quick glance at him, and he chuckled at the pink tinge rising in her cheeks.

“Rand, why don’t you introduce us to your new little lady?” George Blakely’s boisterous voice just missed being patronizing.

A handsome, middle-aged man of medium height, dressed in a lightweight summer suit, his face was wreathed in a friendly smile, but Rand noticed the smile didn’t reach his eyes. George had been furious over the broken engagement and had threatened to cancel all merger plans unless there was a reconciliation. When Rand called his bluff and sent out feelers to other companies, George conceded that it would be disastrous to mix business with family problems. This weekend they would finalize the terms for the merger and send the paperwork to their respective lawyers.

On the surface, his relationship with George and Angela appeared civil, but Rand recognized the darker undercurrents. Angela wanted him back. She had told him as much. George wanted to keep the company in the family. Suddenly Rand was very glad Haley was present to act as a buffer for this meeting.

After the introductions, Angela slipped an arm through his, effectively pulling him away from Haley. “Your new playmate is so cute, Rand. I’m sure the two of you will be very happy.” Angela cast him a mocking smile. “Now, how about a kiss for an old friend.” With supreme confidence in her own beauty, she lifted her face toward his.

Had Angela always been so bitchy? Rand wondered. He had been sure it would tear him apart to see her, and touching her should have been pure hell. But Haley’s kiss had his libido still humming on such a level, he was able to briefly touch his lips to the side of Angela’s mouth without feeling much of anything except a vague sense of relief, compounded by a strong urge to drag Haley back into his arms.

The thought scared him. He didn’t want to be attracted to Haley. She wasn’t his type. Mentally he checked off the reasons he shouldn’t be attracted to her: She was a loose cannon who said whatever popped into her mind no matter how inappropriate. She did not have the level of sophistication he’d always set as a criterion for women he was attracted to, and at the top of the list, she was into romance and spontaneity, two areas he had resolutely shunned all his life.

Right now she stood quietly to one side watching his reaction to his former fiancée. She looked sympathetic, as if waiting for him to burst into tears or something. The thought made him chuckle. She really was the biggest romantic he’d ever come across. Gently pulling away from Angela, he turned toward Haley. “Honey, would you get my cane? I’m afraid if I bend over, I’ll fall flat on my face.”

With a blinding smile, she nodded. “Sure, sweetheart. I bet your leg is bothering you. Why don’t you go in the house with our guests, and I’ll take the groceries to the kitchen.” She turned toward the dog, still guarding the fallen cane. “Good girl. Bring the cane here, Delphie.”

Her tone was so sweet, he was glad he wasn’t a diabetic. The dog obediently dragged the cane to Haley who handed it over to Rand with a quick kiss on his cheek.

Rand saw Angela and her father exchange glances and roll their eyes. Good. He hoped the Blakely’s would get the impression that he and Haley were so besotted with each other they would feel uncomfortable enough to finish their business swiftly and go home.

“Haley is going to cook dinner for us tonight,” he said. Then over the Blakely’s protests that it would be too much for her, he added, “No bother at all. She loves to cook. Went through college on a cooking scholarship.”

He knew he sounded fatuous and was beginning to feel as if he were in a badly written play. Angela smirked, and Haley flashed him a warning look.

They had forgotten about Delphine. Bored with sniffing the ground around Rand, she made a beeline for the small gold tassels on Angela’s high-heeled pumps. When the dog made a playful leap at her shoes, Angela aimed a vicious kick at Delphine’s head, which thankfully missed.

“Get this filthy beast away from me!” she shrieked.

Delphine, startled by the attempted kick and the harsh words, darted behind Haley and cowered there, trembling.

Beside him, Rand felt Haley stiffen. Glancing over his shoulder he became alarmed at the ferocious expression on her face. With a low growl of outrage, she tried to move past Rand toward Angela. Rand snaked his arm around her and turned her until her face pressed firmly against his chest. With a sigh of relief, he noted that Angela, oblivious to the danger she was in, had turned toward her father to suggest he get their bags out of the car.

As Haley struggled and sputtered incoherently against his chest, he murmured in her ear, “Let it go. She didn’t touch the dog. You’d better lock Delphine in the garage before she causes any more trouble.”

Haley glared at him then hissed in low-voiced fury, “Delphine did not cause trouble, and I am not locking her in a garage! She’s too sensitive.” She pointed at the cowering dog. “Look at her. She’s terrified!” Still trying to tug herself out of his grip, she added in a fierce whisper, “Your fiancée is the one who needs to be locked in the garage!”

Rand shook his head, his arms still clamped around her. “Calm down. She’s not my fiancée, you are, and you have to cook dinner.”

Wondering if he was losing his mind, he tilted her chin up until he could see the flashing glints in her hazel eyes. “I’ll allow the dog in the house, but you have to keep her away from Angela.”

With a huff, Haley turned away and leaned down to scoop the cocker spaniel in her arms. “It’s okay, sweetie,” she crooned in the dog’s ear. “The wicked witch won’t get you. You can come with Haley into the house.” Without a backward glance, she staggered toward the front door carrying the dog.

“I’ll carry the damn dog,” Rand growled under his breath, tucking the cane under his armpit. “You bring the groceries in and try to act like a normal person.”

Glowering and heedless of his broken leg, Haley dumped the dog in Rand’s outstretched arms. She marched back to the BMW, grabbed the two sacks of groceries, and sailed past him into the house. Angela and George followed, each carrying a garment bag and small, overnight cases.

Bringing up the rear, Rand tried to discourage the now-cheerful Delphine from bestowing slurpy doggy kisses on the underside of his face. He tried to analyze the uneasiness mounting in him as he watched the Blakelys, until it suddenly dawned on him they were carrying bags. Why were they carrying overnight bags when they were supposed to be staying in a hotel?

Rand mentioned the bags directly after guiding the Blakelys into the living room.

“I’m sorry, darling. Daddy has such a difficult time sleeping in hotels, and you have so much room, I just thought we’d stay here and get acquainted with Holly,” Angela said. “Of course, if it’s inconvenient...” her voice trailed off. Both she and her father were looking at him expectantly

“It’s Haley,” he said curtly. Damn. He did have a lot of room, and Angela knew it. It would be churlish to send them to a hotel when their business would probably take them late into the evening. He hated being manipulated this way. The sudden clink of dishes from the kitchen reminded him that he had a partner to help him deal with the situation.

With a forced smile, he said, “I’m sure we can put you up. Let me just talk to Haley.”

As he moved to walk around her, Angela caught his arm, and turned deliberately so her breast brushed his chest. “I hope your little friend won’t be put out that we’re staying.”

Rand almost laughed out loud. “Haley’s more than my ‘little friend’. We’re getting married next month.” The look on Angela’s face was worth the lie. “And she won’t be put out. She loves entertaining.” Leaving the now frowning Angela behind him, he pushed through to the kitchen.

Delphine lay asleep under the kitchen table. Haley was whipping something in a bowl, a large towel tied around her waist. She looked up when Rand walked in, a look of polite inquiry on her face. Rand realized that he missed her smile. He’d ordered her to tone down her cheerfulness, and now, irrationally, he felt irritated that she’d done it. Although they’d only met that morning, he’d been off kilter ever since she fell out of the taxi.

“Angela and George are spending the night here.” Because she made him uncomfortable, his voice sounded more abrupt than he intended it.

She merely nodded and turned her attention back toward whatever concoction was in the bowl.

“No comment?”

“What kind of a comment did you expect?” The wire whip moved faster in the bowl, but her voice remained even.

He leaned against the closed door. “Haley, stop beating that stuff and look at me.”

Obediently, she set the bowl on the counter and looked directly at him, an expression of mild interest on her face. But Rand wasn’t deceived. She was still angry over the dog incident.

“I’m sorry about Delphine. I won’t make another comment about her if you help me out with Angela and her father.”

She shrugged and grinned back at him. “Okay, boss. What’s the plan?”

Rand was dumfounded. What was with this woman? He had expected to have to grovel to get back in her good graces. But here she was, after the most minimal apology, acting once more like the sunshine girl. She was so easy. Too easy. He bet people took advantage of her good nature all the time.

“I need you to spend the night also. In my room, so the Blakeleys think we really are…”

She shook her head so hard her curls bounced like mattress springs. “Wait a minute!” she protested. “This is a pretend engagement. No bedroom privileges.”

She jumped to conclusions faster than any woman he’d ever met. “Believe me, you’ll be perfectly safe. The bed is certainly big enough for us to sleep in without touching. If you think I’ll be overcome by lust and attack you, I’ll sleep on the floor. You are the most…”

“Okay. Okay.” She reddened and held up a hand. “Don’t finish that sentence. You’ve already told me several times I’m not your type.”

Immediately Rand’s mind went to the kiss they had shared a short while ago. Although she wasn’t his
usual
type, he could no longer say he wasn’t attracted to her. “I’ll make sure they leave tomorrow,” he promised. “We’ll finish up the business end of the deal tonight if I have to stay up all night.”

Haley nodded. “I’d better bring my bag up to your room and put some of my stuff around, in case she decides to snoop.”

Rand felt no burning desire to defend Angela. She probably would snoop if it suited her. As if a blindfold had been ripped from his eyes, he suddenly had a much clearer picture of his former fiancée. He’d been so captivated by her beauty he’d been oblivious to the fact that she was shallow and manipulative as well as amoral. He shuddered, realizing the colossal mistake marriage to Angela would have been.

Later that evening, observing the cleared dining table, Haley mentally patted herself on the back. The dinner had been a magnificent success, and she and Rand had acted the perfect engaged couple. Until his leg started hurting, he’d even helped set the table in the dining room, and then clear it for the dessert of bakery éclairs. Angela and George were effusive in their compliments.