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Zach Lowery looked down at Paul, and Susan was relieved to see his glare soften. “I’m sure he will be. Are you ready?”
“Yes.” she agreed, releasing a sigh of relief. She picked up her purse. As Paul preceded her, she pulled the door closed behind her, making sure it was locked.
“How long have you lived here?” Zach asked as they went down the stairs.
She frowned. Why would he want to know that? She didn’t expect friendship from the man. In fact, she’d decided to keep anything personal out of their agreement. Then she wouldn’t feel quite so bad about taking his money.
“About four years,” she finally said when she couldn’t think of a reason not to answer. This place had been all they could afford after her mother’s death, but she definitely wasn’t going to tell him that.
“It’s not a very safe neighborhood.”
“I thought you didn’t live in Kansas City,” she said, not about to have an out-of towner criticize her home.
“We’re only about fifty miles out of town. I do come to Kansas City occasionally,” he assured her dryly.
“Yes, I’ve seen you in the society pages.”
He ignored her words and led the way to a shiny blue car.
“Wow,” Paul said with a sigh. “I like your car.”
Susan hurriedly hid her smile. Considering the wreck she drove, Paul’s enthusiasm was understandable. Zach Lowery probably couldn’t understand his reaction.
“It’s a rental, but thanks,” he said, smiling at her brother.
Maybe he was a nice man, after all. She hadn’t been sure after he had left the diner.
He came to the passenger side of the car and opened the door. Such attention flustered her. She wasn’t used to it. “Oh, I have to make sure Paul gets his seat belt on,” she said, not slipping into the seat as he expected.
“I can fasten my own seat belt,” Paul protested. He was definitely well past the helpless stage.
“Of course you can. And I’ll show you how these work. They’re a little tricky,” the man said with a kind smile. He waited until Susan had gotten seated, closed her door, then opened the door for Paul. Susan turned and watched over her shoulder as the two males conferred over the seat belt.
Once they were under way, she cleared her throat. After doing some thinking about the evening in front of her, she’d concluded she and her co-conspirator needed to get their stories straight. “I think we need to talk.”
“Want more money?” he asked in a low voice that she hoped Paul couldn’t hear.
“No! I meant we should match our stories. I don’t know anything about you. Or you me.”
“I’m thirty-three, been married once and divorced after three miserable years. No children. I live at the ranch. I attended Kansas University. I like sports, country-western music and beautiful women.” He clicked off his preferences in a rapid-fire fashion, leaving Susan stunned.
When she said nothing, trying to sort out the information he’d given her, he said, “Well? Aren’t you going to tell me about yourself?”
“Of course, I—I’m twenty-five. I work for the Lucky Charm Diner and Catering Company. I’m doing public relations and—and the advertising campaign. I graduated from the University of Missouri here in Kansas City.”
He pulled the car into the hospital parking lot. “And you have Paul.”
Susan realized he was under the misapprehension that Paul was her son, but what did it matter? Paul was hers, whether she’d given birth to him or not. And it eliminated the need to reveal her mother’s sordid past. That information was definitely personal.
“Grampwon’t have the strength to ask much,” he continued. “I’ll do all the talking. If I don’t know the answer, I’ll make one up. After all, he... it won’t matter what I say.”
The emotion in his voice was the sexiest thing about Zach Lowery, and that was saying a lot. He was a man who cared about his grandfather. to the point of doing anything to ensure his happiness.
She nodded.
“Is your grandfather sick?” Paul asked from the back seat
She started to hush her brother, but Zach answered first.
“Yeah, buddy, he is.”
“Are the doctors going to make him better?”
This time Susan spoke first “Paul, you mustn’t ask questions right now. And be very quiet in the hospital. Some people will be trying to sleep.”
He liked the kid.
And Susan was right He was well behaved.
Zach led the way down the long corridor to the intensive care unit Susan followed, holding Paul’s hand. “Is there a lounge where Paul can wait?” she whispered, surprising him.
“He can go in with us. They won’t stop us. Gramp knows the right. people.” When they reached the door, Zach signaled to one of the nurses.
“The doctor said we could see my grandfather,” he said softly, sure the doctor had left word with the nurse. He didn’t want any battles tonight. But there would be one if they tried to interfere.
“Yes, Mr. Lowery. The doctor warned us. Come this way.”
She led them into a bare room, the only furniture a large bed in the center. His grandfather looked so small, lying there with tubes in him. He’d always been a big man, strong and active.
“Gramp?” Zach said softly as he moved to the head of the bed, touching his grandfather’s shoulder.
The old man came awake slowly. “Huh? That you, boy?” he asked groggily.
Zach fought to keep tears from his eyes. “Yeah, it’s me, Gramp. I kept my promise. I brought Susan to see you.” He motioned for Susan to join him, watching his grandfather as she stepped forward. The sudden spark in the old man’s eyes told Zach he’d done the right thing.
“Hello, Mr. Lowery,” Susan said softly, her voice husky and sweet. Without any prompting, she reached out and clasped his wrinkled hand. “I’m pleased to meet you.”
“Me, too, girl. Me, too.” He struggled to sit up, and Susan quickly helped him arrange another pillow beneath his head.
“Would you like me to raise the bed a little?”
“Yeah, that’d be good.” He leaned back in relief.
Zach watched as Susan helped his grandfather get comfortable. He was getting his money’s worth, he’d have to say that.
“Who’s that?” Pete Lowery demanded, staring at Paul, who’d followed Susan around the end of the bed.
Zach had forgotten about the boy.
Susan spoke before he could think what to say. “Paul’s mine. I think he’s the reason Zach hadn’t said much about me. He wasn’t sure how you’d feel about a ready-made family.”
Zach stared at her, stunned by her words. Her explanation made sense, but he hadn’t planned out that much in advance.
“Shame on you, Zach. You know I love kids. Come here, boy. What’s your name?”
Susan eased Paul forward, holding his shoulders as he stood next to the bed.
“Paul,” the little boy whispered.
“You’d be about what, seven, eight years old?”
“Eight.”
“Your ma must’ve been a baby when you were born,” Pete teased.
Paul didn’t know how to answer, turning to look at Susan.
“Yeah, she was,” Zach answered, deciding it was time he took over the conversation. “Has the doctor been in to see you? How did he say you were doing?”
Pete waved away Zach’s questions. “Don’t want to talk about that stuff. Susan, tell me, has this scalawag been good to you?”
She smiled. “Very good.”
As well she should say, Zach thought cynically. She was being well paid. But he had to admit she was giving great value. Gramp liked her, he could tell.
“So why haven’t—” Pete broke off and grimaced, drawing Zach’s attention.
“You shouldn’t talk so much,” he urged, stepping closer and touching his grandfather’s shoulder. Susan stepped forward and tucked in the cover that had come loose.
“Nonsense. It was just a twinge,” Pete insisted. “I want to know when you two are going to get hitched.”
“What’s ‘hitched’ mean?” Paul asked, looking puzzled.
“Married, boy, married. Don’t you want a new daddy?” Pete asked, his gaze on Paul’s face.
Zach almost swallowed his tongue. “Uh, Gramp, that’s not, I mean, we haven’t set a date.”
“Why not? You’re not getting any younger. Me, neither.” He sighed, sort of fading into the pillows, which only underlined to Zach how little time he had left with his grandfather.
“That’s not important right now. We want to concentrate all our attention on getting you well.”
“You want to get me well? Then get yourself married to this little lady. Now, before it’s too late for me to see you happy.” His breathing was becoming noisier and his eyes were closing.
“I think your grandfather is tiring himself out,” Susan said, her soft hands pulling the covers higher again before she tenderly cupped Pete’s cheek. “You need to rest, Mr. Lowery. Paul and I will go to the waiting room and give you a little time alone with Zach.”
Pete’s eyes came open again. “You’re a sweetheart, Susan. You take good care of my boy, okay?”
She leaned down and kissed his cheek. “You just take care of yourself. Zach’s a big boy. He’ll be all right.”
Pete chuckled, a sound Zach hadn’t been sure he’d ever hear again. “Yep, you’re a sweetheart.”
Zach’s gaze met Susan’s as she and Paul walked past him. On a sudden urge, he caught her arm and bent down to brush her lips with his.
He only did it to persuade Gramp everything was on the up-and-up. And to thank Susan for a great performance. His action had nothing to do with the fact that he hadn’t been able to get her off his mind all afternoon. Or those luscious lips of hers.
Nope, nothing to do with those things.
Thankfully she wasn’t facing Gramp, because she appeared startled by his action.
“I’ll be out in a few minutes,” he assured her, and winked at Paul.
They slipped from the room.
“Now, tell me why you haven’t married her,” Gramp ordered, his voice sounding much stronger all of a sudden.
“Why did that man kiss you?” Paul asked as soon as they were in the waiting room.
“Because—because he—I don’t know.” Susan knew, but she didn’t want to explain to Paul that she and Zach were lying to Zach’s grandfather.
“I like him.”
She looked at her little brother in surprise. The few times she’d accepted a date, Paul had been...difficult. “Zach?”
“Yeah. And his grandfather, too. Why don’t I have a grandfather?”
It wasn’t the first time Paul had questioned her about his family. She gave her standard answer. “You had two grandfathers, just like everyone else. sweetie, but they died before you were born.”
“Oh.”
“Look, here’s a television. Want me to turn it on? I think Monday night football is playing.”
“Okay.”
Paul wasn’t very enthusiastic, because he intended to be a baseball player, but football was better than nothing.
And maybe it would keep him from asking more uncomfortable questions.
Half an hour later, Zach came into the room.
“How is he?” she asked, surprised at how much she cared about the old man’s health. After all, she didn’t really know him.
“Better. The doctor’s with him now.” He paced around the room, impatient, ignoring both her and Paul.
“Your grandfather is a nice man,” Paul said softly, his gaze following Zach’s movement rather than the football game.
Susan feared Zach might be irritated by Paul’s comment, because it interrupted his private battles. Instead, the man walked over to Paul and touched his shoulder. “Yeah. He is, isn’t he?” Then he sat down by Paul.
“What’s the score?”
The little boy supplied the information, and the two bonded in typical male fashion.
Then the doctor came into the room.
Zach bounded up from the couch and met the doctor before he’d made much progress into the room. Susan couldn’t hear their conversation, but she watched them all the same.
Finally the doctor left the room.
“I’m going to say good-night to Gramp. I’ll be back in a minute,” Zach murmured.
“Then we’ll go home?” Paul asked, yawning. “I’m sleepy.”
“Then we’ll go home, sweetie,” Susan responded as Zach left the room. “Thanks for being so good.”
“It’s okay. I’m going to pretend Gramp is my grandfather. Is that okay, Susan? I won’t tell him, but since I don’t have a grandfather, I’ll just pretend.”
Susan gave her brother a hug. “As long as you don’t say anything to Zach or his grandfather, then that’s okay.”
Zach returned. “Ready to go?”
Susan studied his grim face as she helped Paul off the sofa. Something was wrong. She feared the doctor’s news hadn’t been good. “Do you want us to take a taxi home, so you can stay here?”
“No. They have my number and will call if there’s any change.” His words were abrupt, clipped, as if he were out of patience.
She made no more suggestions.
Once they were in the car, heading back to her apartment, she asked, “Are you going back to the ranch tonight?”
“No, I’m staying in town.”
He didn’t volunteer where, and she didn’t ask. If she’d had more room, she would’ve offered to let him stay with them, but somehow she couldn’t see Zach Lowery stretched out on their lumpy couch.
There were several men hanging around outside the apartment building when they pulled up, and Zach scowled in their direction. “This isn’t a safe neighborhood.”
Susan, recognizing Manuel’s father, smiled and waved before turning to Zach. “We’re perfectly safe. Those are some of our neighbors.”
Opening the car door, she slipped out of the car and reached for Paul’s door. Before she could get the boy out, Zach was at her side.
“I’ll walk you upstairs.”
“Really, that’s not necessary.” She started to thank him for a lovely evening until she realized she’d been working, not socializing.
“Yes, it is. I need to pay you.”
He sounded angry. Fine, she didn’t have to take the rest of the money. The first check would help her out of some financial difficulty. She opened her mouth to tell him, but he grabbed Paul’s hand and her arm and started them toward the stairs at a fast clip.
“You’re going too fast,” Paul protested.
Without a word, Zach swung the boy up into his arms, then reattached himself to Susan’s arm.
“Wow, you’re strong,” Paul said in awe.
For the first time since Zach Lowery had come into her life, he smiled, and Susan realized handsome didn’t begin to describe him.
“You weigh a lot less than a bale of hay, Paul,” he said to her brother. “You need to eat more.”
“Susan says I eat lots and lots,” the boy said with a giggle.
“Why do you call her Susan?” Zach asked, frowning.
“’Cause that’s her name,” Paul said simply.
Susan could’ve explained then that Paul was her brother, not her son, but the stairway didn’t seem like a good place for such a private conversation. And she needed to keep her distance from such a handsome man—not get closer.
She got out her keys to open the door, relieved when Zach let go of her arm. His touch had bothered her. As the door swung open, she turned. “Thank you for seeing us to our door. I hope your grandfather’s condition improves.”
She pulled Paul in front of her and turned to go in, but she discovered Zach wasn’t ready to leave. He followed her in.
“We need to talk.”
“About what?”
“Payment, for one thing. Aren’t you interested in the rest of your money?” He gave her a sardonic stare.
Her cheeks flushed as she ducked her head. “I think your first check was sufficient. I didn’t do that much tonight..”
“You more than fulfilled your end of the bargain. Put the boy to bed. Then we’ll talk.”
She didn’t like him giving orders. But he was right. It was past Paul’s bedtime, and the boy’s eyelids were drooping. “Come on, Paul, let’s get you tucked in. And you can read for a little while.”
He was about to protest until she’d tacked on the reward of reading. Paul loved books. “Can I read all of Peter Pan?”
That was his longest book and would prolong going to sleep for almost an hour. With a tender smile, she agreed. “Okay, but don’t blame me if you don’t want to get up in the morning.”
“Do you have any Hank, the Cow Dog books?” Zach suddenly asked.
Paul halted on his way out of the room, a frown on his face. “No. Who’s that?”
“I’ll send you a couple. They’re stories about a cow dog named Hank who takes care of a ranch.”
“Wow!” Paul exclaimed, using his favorite word. “That’d be neat. When will you—”
“Paul,” Susan intervened. “Say thank you.”
“Thank you,” he repeated, and flew across the room to hug Zach around the waist. “I can’t wait.”
Zach rubbed the boy’s head. “I’ll see that you get them right away.”
With a bright smile on his face, Paul ran out of the room. Susan, after sending Zach an apologetic smile, followed him. Zach didn’t realize what a treat new books were to Paul
But she did. Gratitude filled her as she followed her brother.
What an appealing kid. He’d call a bookstore in the morning and have them send over whatever “Hank” books they had on hand.
As memory of what had occurred this evening came back, Zach began to pace the small room. What happened next depended a lot on Susan. And it could be costly to him. But he’d already invested ten thousand dollars in his grandfather’s happiness. And it had paid off.
When he’d left tonight, Gramp was more relaxed than he’d been in quite a while. And he’d had a smile on his face.
Susan came back into the room.
“Is Paul in bed?”
“Yes. Thank you for offering to send him a book. He loves them.”
“No problem.”
There was an awkward moment as Zach tried to think of how to approach the difficult subject.
“Well,” Susan said, a false brightness in her voice, “I won’t keep you. I’m sure it’s been a long day.”
“Yes, it has, but we still have to talk.” He reached in his coat pocket and pulled out his checkbook. Whether she agreed to his plan or not, she had earned the rest of her money for tonight.
“Oh, no! No more is necessary. I mean, the first check was very generous. And I didn’t do much.”
He stared at her, speculation in his eyes. In his experience, women didn’t usually turn down money, whether they’d earned it or not. She must have some scheme already worked out in her head.
“You earned it.”
“No, really. Your grandfather is a very nice man. I enjoyed meeting him.”
“You brought him a lot of happiness.” He wrote out the check and ripped it out. “Here.”
“Zach, really, I don’t feel right about taking the check.”
“You’ll change your mind when you hear what I’m going to ask you to do next.”
Chapter Three
Susan stared at him, confused. “You mean you want me to visit your grandfather again?”
“Well, that’s part of it,” he said, not quite meeting her gaze.
“I’ll be glad to visit him, but—”
“We have to get married.”
He said those words calmly, in a normal tone of voice, as if what he said made sense.
She stared at him. “What did you say?”
“I said we have to get married.”
She sank down onto the lumpy sofa, not sure her legs would hold her any longer. “That’s—that’s ridiculous.”
“Yeah.”
That was all, just that one laconic word, as if his bizarre statement didn’t need any more comment. Slowly, she extended her hand, the one that held the check. “I think you’d better take this and go, Mr. Lowery.”
“And break an old man’s heart?” he asked softly, staring at her.
She immediately pictured Pete Lowery in his hospital bed, a sweet smile on his wrinkled face. “No! No, I don’t want to...your grandfather...what are you talking about?”
“Gramp wants us to get married in his hospital room so he can be present. He said it’s the only thing he’ll ever ask of me. He begged me.”
She didn’t need to see the anguish in his eyes. It was in his voice. And she could feel it in her heart. “Oh, Zach, I’m sorry. That’s terrible.”
He crossed the room to sit down beside her. “I knew you’d understand. You were terrific tonight. You’ll handle it well.”
Suddenly things had gotten very personal. Exactly what she hadn’t intended. “No! I mean, I didn’t say I’d do it. You can’t—It would be wrong to marry. No, I can’t do it!” Just the thought of marrying Zach Lowery put her in a tizzy.
“How much?”
His cynical question, accompanied by a look that only underlined his opinion, brought sanity to Susan. “I don’t want your money. And I don’t want to lie to Mr. Lowery anymore. Go find someone else to play games with you.”
He stood and paced across the room. “Good negotiating tactics, Susan. Refuse to do the job when you know you’re the only one who can. He’s already met you, believes you’re my fiancée. I’m supposed to appear with another woman and convince him I’ve found a new fiancée in less than twenty-four hours?”
She bowed her head. trying to think through the situation she’d gotten herself into. “Okay. I realize you can’t get anyone else. Can you talk your grandfather out of the marriage? Maybe we can—”
Anger filled his voice. “Sure I could. I’ll just go tell him to forget it. I don’t care if he dies happy. That’ll do the trick.”
She squared her jaw. He didn’t have to be so...so difficult. “All right. Can we hire an actor to play the minister? Fake the marriage?”
“Gramp wants our minister from home to perform the ceremony.”
“And you’re willing to go ahead with this?”
“I have no choice. So, we’re back to that question I asked earlier. How much? Because I can assure you, you won’t be getting half my net worth, or my ranch from this...marriage. I’ll be generous, but not that generous. Then when...when the pretense isn’t necessary any longer, we’ll part company.”
Susan closed her eyes. The man was serious. “Did the doctor say how long?” She felt like a monster, asking that question, but she had to know.
“No,” he responded, his voice a growl. “He said he couldn’t make any predictions.”
“So we get married, but nothing changes, right? It’s a marriage in name only?”
He stepped closer. “It’ll be whatever kind of marriage you want, honey. I wouldn’t turn down a little... sharing, but whatever kind of marriage it is, it ends when Gramp—when it’s not necessary anymore.”
She felt her cheeks flame as she considered his sardonic words. “Sharing” with this man would be devastating, or it would be when it ended. Somehow she knew that, probably because she shivered every time he touched her.
“No ‘sharing.’ We’ll do what it takes for your grandfather to believe we’re happily married, but that’s all.” She lifted her chin and stared him in the eyes. She wanted no misunderstandings.
“You still haven’t answered my question. How much?”
She held up the check she still had in her hands. “This will do.”
“Come on, honey,” he said, but his tone of voice didn’t match the sweetness of his words, “you could get enough to move out of this dump.”
“Please don’t refer to my home in such a derogatory manner,” she protested stiffly, straightening her spine.
He stared at her, disbelief in his eyes, but she didn’t care. She refused to say anything else.
“Okay, fine,” he snapped. “Tomorrow night. Gramp has the connections to speed things up. I’ll pick you up at six-thirty again. Wear something bridal.” Then he stomped out of her apartment, slamming the door behind him.
The next day, Susan stared at herself in the mirror. Something bridal. She only hoped the dress she’d chosen was what Zach Lowery had had in mind.
At first, she’d tried to find something in her limited wardrobe that she could wear. The closest she came was a blue wool suit. But since it was late August, she didn’t think that would do.
Finally, she’d taken her lunch hour today and found an ivory dress, roaring twenties style, that Megan could use for parties at college. They were about the same size.
She’d added a wisp of a veil anchored to an ivory rose and ivory silk shoes.