The Importance of Being Married (47 page)

“Two million pounds?” Anthony’s face changed suddenly, his blue eyes regaining their twinkle, all signs of anger evaporating.

“Two million pounds.”

“Well, why on earth didn’t you tell me before?” Anthony smiled. “We could have avoided all of this, couldn’t we?”

“Yes, we could,” Mr. Taylor said patiently, “but that’s not what Grace wanted. She rather hoped that you’d marry Ms. Wild here. She wanted you to find out about the two million afterward.”

“Right. I see.” Anthony nodded seriously. “Well, that’s…that’s very interesting. So when do I get the money? Do I need to sign something?”

Mr. Taylor reached into his pocket and brought out a check. “You need to sign these forms,” he said, handing a piece of paper to Anthony. He grabbed it greedily and handed it back. Mr. Taylor folded it, put it in his pocket, then handed Anthony a check.

Anthony took the check immediately; I was still staring at Mr. Taylor in disbelief. “But why didn’t you tell me? You said she hadn’t left any money to her family. You said…”

“I told you what Grace asked me to tell you,” Mr. Taylor said apologetically. “I advised her against it. I pleaded with her, but she was convinced the plan was worthwhile. Either you would find love, she said, or you would find something else just as important.”

“She said that?”

Mr. Taylor nodded. “And did you?” he asked tentatively. “Did you find something else just as important?”

I bit my lip. “I don’t know. I don’t know if I did.”

“Yes you did,” Helen said suddenly. “You didn’t marry him, did you? You found out that you weren’t a total cynic after all. That you do believe in marriage. You know, for the right reasons and everything…”

“I…I guess,” I said uncertainly. “I’m still not sure I deserve the money.”

“I don’t think you deserved what my client put you through,” Mr. Taylor said firmly. “The inheritance, well, I think she knew what she was doing.”

“Well, fun as this has been, I’m afraid that I really do have to leave,” Anthony said suddenly. “I’ve got two million pounds to spend and a honeymoon to take. Marcia, fancy a trip to the south of France?”

Marcia shot him a look of disgust. “You expect me to go away with you now?”

“It’s all paid for. And I didn’t mean what I said earlier. I was just playing around. I adore you. You know that, right?” He held out his hand, his eyes twinkling flirtatiously; Marcia stared at it for a few seconds, then tossed her hair back.

“Fine,” she said, taking his hand. “But I want separate bedrooms. Separate beds, at any rate…”

“Whatever you want,” Anthony agreed. “Jess, see you back at the office?”

Marcia grinned. “Yes, do you mind taking back Project Handbag for me? I promised Chester I’d have some mock-ups with him next week and I really don’t think I’m going to have the time.”

I stared at her in disbelief. “You think I’m still working for you?” I asked Anthony. “You think I want anything to do with Milton Advertising?”

“Frankly I don’t really care.” Anthony shrugged. “I’m not sure I want much to do with it myself now I’m rich. Max won’t mind. Give him my best, won’t you?”

“But the paperwork,” Mr. Taylor said falteringly. “You will sign the rest of the paperwork?”

“Sure.” Anthony waved as they left. “Send it to me in France.”

Roger scratched his head. “Well, I suppose I’d better go and tell everyone,” he said nervously, walking out toward the main church. “Wish me luck.”

“Yes,” Mr. Taylor said distractedly. “I’d better go, too. Get Mr. Milton to sign…I’ll…I’ll be in touch, Ms. Wild. I’ll be in touch very soon.”

“Thanks,” I said vaguely. “Thanks very much.”

He walked out of the church; Helen immediately put her arms around me.

“You did it, Jess,” she said, grinning. “You did it!”

I shook my head. “Hardly.”

“You did it! And you should be a bit more cheerful.” She frowned. “You’ve got the money and the house and you didn’t even have to marry Anthony.”

“I suppose,” I agreed despondently.

“So let’s go and celebrate!”

Helen’s eyes were shining, and I shot her a halfhearted smile. “You go,” I said. “I’ll see you later. Okay?”

“Really? Why?” Helen said uncertainly. “Are you all right, Jess?”

“Fine,” I assured her. “I just need some time alone.”

“Alone,” Helen said looking like I was mad, then she shrugged. “Well, okay, if that’s what you want. I think I’ll go and tell Fenella what happened.” A wicked glint appeared in her eye. She tugged at Ivana’s arm. “I think you guys better come with me—I might need some help when she finds out the wedding’s off.”

Ivana nodded. “I can restrain if required,” she said, her voice low. Then she turned to me. “So, you heff the money? Without merrege?”

I nodded. “Looks that way.”

“Clever,” she said, a look of something approaching respect crossing her face. “Money with no boom boom. I like idea of this.”

“Money
with
boom boom’s even better, though,” Sean said, winking. “If it’s the right boom boom.”

Ivana shrugged. “Maybe.” Then she grabbed Sean and kissed him. “For you, I would have boom boom and no money,” she said. “But only you.”

“Thanks,” I said, as they turned to leave. “Thanks for everything…”

“No problem.” Sean grinned. “It’s been…unreal.”

I followed them out of the church, but instead of walking back to the hotel, I hung around outside. There was a small patch of grass to the right of the door, and I made my way toward it. Then, taking a deep breath, I took out my cream clutch bag that Helen had given me as a last-minute present that morning, dug out my mobile phone, and dialed a number.

“Hello?”

“It’s me, Jess,” I said.

“Jess.”

“Yes.” I took a deep breath. “Just…look, I want to say something to you, and I want you to listen, okay?”

“You’re giving me orders?”

I cleared my throat. “Look, I’ve behaved terribly, unforgivably. So badly, I expect you really dislike me right now. But I have to say something to you so, yes, I’m giving you orders, if you don’t mind.”

“Yes, you have behaved terribly. And I do mind. I mind a great deal. But I will listen. Go ahead.”

I took another deep breath. My palms were sweating so much, I was worried I was going to drop the phone.

“Thank you,” I said uncertainly, “okay, here’s the thing. I…” I hesitated, then closed my eyes. I couldn’t believe I was really going to do this. But then again, I had nothing else to lose. “I like you, Max. I like you very much. Always have. Since I met you. And I know that romance and love are unreal and dangerous and that you get your heart broken. I mean me. I’ll be the one to get my…Oh, it doesn’t matter. What matters is…Well, I just wanted to say it. Because I used to think it was strong to not. Say it, I mean, or even feel it. But now, now I think that maybe it’s stronger to do the opposite. To take a risk. Even though things might go wrong. Like now. I mean, they could go awfully.”

“Awfully? You mean like the wedding? Or nonwedding, I suppose I should say.”

I gulped. “That would, I suppose, count as awful, yes,” I said.

“You told Grace you were married to Anthony.”

Max’s voice was level, unreadable. “It was stupid,” I agreed. “But I never thought…I mean, I didn’t know she’d leave me her estate. I just wanted her to be happy, that’s all…”

“Yeah, that’s not what I’m concerned about.”

“It’s not?” I asked worriedly. “Well, I’m sorry about everything else, too…”

“Hmmm. You see, I just have one question.”

“You do?” I asked.

“You were really going to marry Anthony? I mean, you were actually planning to go through with it?” he asked, his voice soft now. I was pressing the phone to my ear as tightly as I could.

I shook my head. “No. I mean, yes, but…I thought I had to. For Grace. And then I thought he really wanted to…”

“But you couldn’t actually go through with it?”

“No. No, I couldn’t. I thought I didn’t believe in marriage, but I do. When it’s real. When it means something.”

“I see,” Max said.

“And it was all a setup.” I sighed. “Grace had it all planned…”

“I know.”

“You do?” I frowned. “How?”

“I was listening to you, in the church.”

“You were there?”

“I still am.” I felt someone next to me; slowly, tentatively, I turned around to see Max looking at me. “It was two setups, actually, if you think about it,” he said, one eyebrow raised. “First Grace, then Anthony. They both set you up.”

I nodded dismally. “Two setups.” I felt my face getting hot, my hands getting clammy; I dropped my phone.

“You know, to fall for something like that once, well, that’s almost understandable. But twice?”

He was so close I could almost feel him breathing. But did he hate me? Did I think I was an idiot? I had no idea.

“So, the question?” I asked, my voice catching as I spoke. “You said you had a question.”

“Ah, the question,” Max nodded. “Yes, I do have a question.”

“Which is?”

He pulled back slightly. “Why Anthony? Why did you tell Grace you were in love with Anthony?”

I swallowed with difficulty. “Because it wasn’t true,” I said. “Because it made the whole story ridiculous in my mind. It made the whole story easier to tell because it was so obviously fiction.”

“So you weren’t in love with him? Even a little bit?”

“Not even a little bit,” I said, my voice catching slightly.

“I see,” Max said thoughtfully. “Even when you thought he was in love with you?”

“No,” I said firmly. “I knew he was never in love with me. I thought he was in love with Jessica Wiiild, who had shiny hair and high-heeled shoes and who had an ex-boyfriend called Sean. God, I can’t believe I was so gullible.”

“I don’t think you were gullible. He might have fallen in love with you.”

“No, not with me,” I said, shaking my head awkwardly. “I’m not his type. And he’s not mine.”

“And I am?”

“No,” I said, then bit my lip. “I don’t have a type. I just like you.”

“I’m not made up.”

I met Max’s eyes; I felt like a furnace. “No, you’re not.”

“And you really like me?”

I nodded. “But it’s okay if you don’t…I mean, last night you said you couldn’t…Which is fine…”

“Last night you didn’t let me finish my sentence. You were too busy telling me that you couldn’t, either, that you were getting married the next day.”

“I…I didn’t?” I asked, catching my breath.

“No, you didn’t,” Max said. “I was going to say I couldn’t believe you were marrying that idiot,” he said. “I was going to say I couldn’t bear to watch you walk down that aisle tomorrow.”

“You were?” My eyes opened wide. “Really?”

Max put his arms around me. “Really.”

“So you actually like me?”

Max nodded. “You did a good impression of being in love with Anthony, though,” he said archly.

“I told you, that was just…you know, a project,” I said, embarrassed.

“Not the project. Before that. I thought you were in love with Anthony when you first joined.”

“You did?” I asked incredulously.

He shrugged. “Everyone did. You walked into a glass door after your interview.”

“The wall…” I gasped. “That was you, not Anthony.”

“Me?”

“You grinned at me.”

“I did?”

I nodded sheepishly.

“Like this?” He grinned at me, his eyes twinkling, his arms pulling me closer.

“Just like that.” I felt short of breath suddenly, like the world was going into slow motion.

“So let me get this straight. You like me, you’re single, and you’re rich?”

My own mouth started to inch upward. “Sounds about right.”

Max nodded thoughtfully. “Well, in that case, perhaps you might agree to have dinner with me? Your treat?”

“Dinner?”

“You might want to get changed first, of course. But yes, dinner. If you’re free?”

My eyes lit up. Actually, my whole body lit up. “I…I may have to check my calendar,” I said carefully.

“I already have,” Max said, his voice suddenly husky. “There was something about a wedding in your diary, but I figured it wasn’t important, right?”

His arms were wrapping around me and I nodded, my eyes shining.

“The wedding?” I managed to say, as his lips moved toward mine. “Absolutely not. You see, Max, there are more important things than getting married. As I’ve been trying to tell you, in the great scheme of things, getting married really isn’t that important at all.”