Bought: His Temporary Fiancée

Two

“That’s blackmail!”

Her heart hammered in her chest as the finality of William Tanner’s words sank in. Surely he couldn’t be serious?

“I prefer to call it a basis for negotiation,” he said smoothly, as if he did this sort of thing every day.

Who knew? Maybe he did. All Maggie knew was that her usually well-ordered world had suddenly been tilted off its axis. Jason had been on the straight and narrow for years. The trouble he’d gotten into as a teen now well and truly behind him. Surely he can’t have been so stupid as to dip into company funds?

She went on the attack. “You’re mad. You can’t do this to me—to us!”

“If by ‘us,’ you’re referring to your brother and yourself, rest assured, I can and I am. Margaret, your brother took a risk when he started playing in the big boy’s league. Embezzlement is never a good look on a résumé. Sure, this is only a beginning, but who is to say he wouldn’t get more daring if I hadn’t picked this up in our audit?”

Maggie watched William in horror. She processed his words as quickly as she’d processed the information in the damning report on her brother’s activities. Whether Jason was guilty or not, it was doubtful that he’d escape from this without some serious scars. The last judge he’d stood before in court had made it quite clear that he was being given one final opportunity to clean up his act—and he had. She didn’t want to even consider what might happen if he went before the courts again.

If what William said was true, then it was just as well that Jason be stopped now. But, in her heart of hearts, she didn’t want to believe a word of it.

“No, he wouldn’t. He promised—” She cut off her words before she gave Mr. Tanner any further ammunition to use against her brother.

“Margaret, please, sit down. Clearly this news has come as a shock, and why wouldn’t it? I understand you campaigned quite hard for your brother to be given the position he now occupies.”

The innuendo in his voice left its mark. He’d already intimated that she could be linked to the fraudulent activity. As innocent as she knew she was, mud had a habit of sticking. She wouldn’t have a position here for long if there was any suspicion she was involved, especially not with the corporate restructuring that was rumored to be in the works. Rafe Cameron’s determined takeover of Worth Industries, and almost instant rebranding to Cameron Enterprises, had left everyone feeling a little precarious with respect to their jobs. It still wasn’t certain what his plans were for the company, and fresh rumors arose each day about the likelihood of the factory work being outsourced to Mexico or, worse, the whole company being moved closer to Cameron’s home base in New York—which would mean the loss of almost all their jobs. Several top-level executive heads had already rolled, or been ousted on the basis of early retirement. And then there was the steady stream of Cameron’s own people coming into those key roles, William Tanner being one of them. A shiver ran down her spine.

She swallowed back the words she longed to say. The words that would set William Tanner straight on exactly where she stood on matters of honesty and loyalty. Common sense held her back. Granted, it had been six years since Jason’s last run-in with the law. She’d lost track of the number of times she’d been called to the local police station to collect him after he’d been picked up for one misdemeanor or another, in the first couple of years after their parents died. But then the trouble had started to get worse—so much so that Officer Garcia could no longer let Jason go with a stern lecture and a promise of dire things to come.

The first—and last—time Jason had been locked up he was eighteen. The experience of being charged as an adult, with all its long-term ramifications, had finally opened his eyes to his behavior. He’d promised her that would be the only time, and that he’d learned his lesson, big-time. He even swore on their parents’ graves that he’d stay away from trouble for the rest of his life. She’d believed him—believed in him—so much so that she’d increased the mortgage over the home they’d grown up in so she could borrow the money necessary to send him to college out of state. Somewhere he could start afresh. Somewhere he could grow into the man she and their parents had always believed he would be.

Was it possible he’d thrown that all away?

“Look—” William butted in on her thoughts “—the way I see it, we’d be doing each other a favor.”

“A favor?” she repeated dully.

What kind of favor saw her lose everything she held dear? She’d fought long and hard to maintain her dignity through years of adversity and a lack of recognition. She had always aspired to do better—to be more. Now it appeared that everything she had ever done had been for nothing. Now she was expected to prostitute herself to save her brother.

“In return for you doing this for me, and believe me, you will be very well compensated, I will ensure that your brother receives nothing more than a reprimand. Obviously he’ll be under close supervision. If he keeps out of trouble, this transgression will be removed from his staff record and he’ll have a clean slate once more.”

“And if I don’t?”

“You will both be escorted from the premises immediately and I imagine that we can arrange for the police to be waiting for you at the front door. It’d probably take some time to go to trial, but I can assure you that if it did, there would be no question of Jason being found guilty.”

William Tanner’s voice was adamant. Each word a cold steel nail in the coffin of what had been her dreams.

“How long?” she asked.

“How long what?”

“How long would I have to pretend?”

She injected enough distaste in her voice to make William’s eyes narrow as he appeared to consider his answer.

“Don’t think this would be a walk in the park, Margaret. If you take this on you will have to be convincing in your role.” When she didn’t reply, he continued. “My father has put some pressure upon me to follow in my brothers’ footsteps and find a good woman to settle down with. At this stage of my career that is the furthest thing from my mind. He’s withholding something that is rightfully mine over this issue, and the situation is distressing my mother. I would need you to be my fiancée until I’m assured that the transfer of ownership of property back in New Zealand takes place. Basically, until my family calms down again and continues to act reasonably.”

“So there’s no finite term on this?”

Margaret could feel the walls closing in on her now. With his open-ended proposal and the continued threat of Jason losing his job hanging overhead, this would be a total nightmare. One from which she was afraid she might never awake. And yet this morning had started so promisingly with the inter-office communication confirming that she’d been promoted to being Tanner’s EA. For Margaret, the only way from a position like this was up and her summons to report to his office this afternoon had been something she’d been looking forward to all day.

“Obviously this won’t go on forever. It’s not as if we’ll be getting married.”

He said the words as if the entire prospect of marriage was completely abhorrent to him.

“Let me get this clear. You want me to pretend to be your fiancée for an undetermined period of time. In exchange you’ll recompense me and you will ensure that Jason doesn’t lose his job.”

“That Jason doesn’t lose his job over this incident. Should he push his boundaries and try something a little more sophisticated there will be no more second chances.”

No more second chances. The words were exactly what the judge had said when Jason had been brought before the court. She’d never been certain if it was the judge’s words or the night he’d spent in the county jail’s holding cells that had been the catalyst he’d needed to finally want to break free from the creeps he’d been hanging out with. She hadn’t cared much at the time. All she’d been concerned with was getting her brother back on an even keel. It had cost her far more than money to do so and she wasn’t about to jeopardize things now.

Margaret knew she wasn’t in a position to argue, but never in her wildest dreams had she imagined she would be forced into something like this. It wasn’t enough that the man had infiltrated her private thoughts and fantasies in the six weeks since the Valentine’s Day ball. Now he would control her days as well.

“Why? Why me?” she whispered.

He reached out a finger to trace her lips.

“Because you intrigue me, Margaret Cole. You intrigue me very much.”

Despite her distress, she reacted to his caress as if it was a touch of lightning. Her lips parted on a sharply indrawn breath and deep to her core she felt the sizzling awareness of his touch.

“Margaret,” he continued, “if you truly believe your brother to be innocent in this, you owe it to him to allow him to prove it. He can’t do that if he’s suspended pending further investigation, can he?”

Blood pounded in her ears, almost drowning out his words. Her chest tightened with anxiety. What choice did she have? In her heart she knew that Jason could not have done what he was being accused of, but the evidence said differently. She did owe him the chance to prove his innocence. If she didn’t accede to Mr. Tanner’s demands, all the hard years of work she’d put into Jason, and all the effort he’d made to clean up his act and make something of himself would be in vain.

She drew in a shaky breath.

“I’ll do it,” she said, the words little more than a whisper. She stood up and raised her head to meet William Tanner square in the eye. “I’ll do it,” she repeated, more strongly this time.

Will could barely hold back the rush of excitement that spread with molten heat through his body. She’d agreed. For a few moments there he’d thought she’d refuse—that maybe she’d throw her brother to the wolves and to hell with the consequences. He should have trusted his initial research. Margaret Cole was intensely loyal. Everyone had spoken highly of her, from the factory floor workers who still remembered her parents all the way through to the middle management for whom she’d provided secretarial support. As hard as he’d tried, he hadn’t been able to unearth the smallest speck of dirt on his elusive masked Spanish lady—except for what her brother had handed him on a platter.

And now, she was his. All his.

“I’m glad to hear it,” he said with a quick smile. “I believe it would be best if you went home now. I’ll talk to you in the morning about your instructions.”

“Instructions?” A spark of fire burned in her eyes.

“As to your new duties, of course. You haven’t held an EA role before so I don’t expect you to fall immediately into place. And then, of course, there are your extracurricular duties to discuss as well.”

A tremor ran through her body. Was it revulsion? He doubted it. Not after the way she’d reacted to him during that all too brief kiss a few minutes ago and especially not after he’d seen the fire leap to life in her eyes as he’d traced the soft fullness of her lower lip with only a fingertip. With her response being so instinctive, so honest, he knew the next few weeks, even months, would undoubtedly be as pleasurable as he’d anticipated from the moment he’d laid eyes on her.

He took a step toward her and tried to tamp down the disappointment he felt when he saw her flinch. Sure, he knew she’d be reluctant. What woman wouldn’t under these circumstances? But he had her exactly where he needed her and she couldn’t run away.

“I don’t need to remind you that this matter between us is completely confidential. Of course there will be questions when news of our ‘engagement’ leaks out, but I’m hoping we can keep them under control if we keep our stories straight.”

“Jason and I share our home. I have to tell him, at least.”

“I’d prefer you didn’t. Obviously I can’t stop you two from discussing the accusations against him, but the more people who know our engagement is a sham the more likely it is to be exposed.”

“Don’t you understand? Jason and I live together. I can’t hide the truth from him.”

“Then you’ll have to convince him that you’re doing this for love.”

“Believe me, he won’t have any trouble with that. He knows I love him.”

“No. Not him. Me.”

To his surprise, a throaty laugh bubbled from her. As delectable as the sound was, the reason behind it wasn’t. He bristled, going on the defensive.

“Is that so very hard to believe?” he pressed. “Don’t you think you’ll be able to act with credibility?”

“No, please, you misunderstand me.” She sobered instantly, the moment of hysteria passed even though traces of moisture still lingered in the corners of her eyes. “You don’t know me or you wouldn’t ever have suggested we could fake our engagement. I don’t go out, I …”

Her hesitation hung in the air between them.

“Yes, you … ?”

She threw her hands up, gesturing to herself. “Well, look at me. I’m hardly the kind of woman you’d go out with under normal circumstances, am I? I don’t move in your circles, I’m … I’m me.” She shrugged her shoulders dramatically, as if that was sufficient explanation for everything.

“Do you want to see who I see when I look at you, Margaret?”

He kept his voice steady and pitched low. Her nervous movements stilled at his tone and he saw her brace herself, physically and mentally, for whatever it was that he had to say.

“I see a woman who hides her true self from the world. Someone who has a deep inner beauty to match the exterior. Someone who would go so far as to sacrifice her own happiness for that of a loved one. I see a woman who doesn’t realize the extent of her own potential, at work or in play. And I see a woman I am very much looking forward to getting to know, intimately.”

The flush that spread up her throat and across her cheeks was as intriguing as it was enticing. Was she really so innocent that she blushed at his suggestion? She hadn’t thought this fake engagement was going to be purely for appearances, did she? There had to be fringe benefits—for them both.

“So you’re going to force me to have sex with you, too, are you?” she asked, her voice wavering slightly.

“Oh, no,” William replied. “I won’t have to force you at all.”

Margaret was still shaking when she made it to her car in the back row of the staff car park. She shoved her key in the door and gave it the customary wiggle she needed to do before turning it and opening the door. She clambered inside and put her key in the ignition. Since her car had been stolen a year ago, both the door lock and the new ignition barrel hadn’t been quite in sync with the key. She’d been lucky that when the car was recovered a few miles from home that it was still drivable. One of Jason’s friends, an auto mechanic, had done the minor repair work for her at cost. It hadn’t been the same since then, though. One day it would let her down, but hopefully not any day too soon.

She rested her head on the steering wheel. It wasn’t the only thing that wasn’t the same anymore. How could she look at Jason now without worrying about whether he was getting himself into trouble again? No matter what William Tanner had dictated, she would tell Jason the truth about their arrangement. Provided he agreed to be sworn to secrecy, that is.

Maggie wasn’t looking forward to what kind of state he’d be in when he got home after the disciplinary panel today, but she knew he wouldn’t be happy with her “engagement.” With a sigh, she straightened in her seat, started up the car and headed for home. She might find some answers there, or at least some solace in being surrounded by their parents’ things.

Grief lanced through her with a sharp, searing pain. Ten years since the accident that had taken both their lives and it still hurt as much as it had when the police had come to the door to give them the news. Where would they be now, she wondered, if her parents hadn’t died that day?

She shook her head. There was no point in dwelling on the past. The present, that was what mattered. Making every day count. Meeting the obligations she’d shouldered when she’d made the decision to forgo college and focus on raising Jason alone. At eighteen to his fourteen it had been a monumental decision—one she’d frequently questioned as she’d faced each new trial. But the Cole family had never been quitters. They stuck to their own, through thick and thin. No matter the cost.

By the time Jason arrived home, an hour later than usual, her nerves were tied in knots. The sound of his key being shoved in the front door, followed by the heavy slam as it closed, did not augur well for a rational discussion.

“Are you okay?” she asked as he came through to the kitchen where she was reheating last night’s Bolognese sauce and meatballs.

“It’s un-freaking-believable,” he said. “I’ve been accused of stealing, but not quite enough that they’re going to take my job from me. I’m on some kind of big-brother probation.”

“I know,” she said, struggling to keep her voice calm.

“You know? And you didn’t think to tell me? Give me any prior warning?”

His voice was filled with confusion and accusation. Inside, her heart began to break.

“I couldn’t. I was only told of it right before your meeting with the disciplinary panel.”

Jason dragged his cell phone from his pocket and waved it in her face. “Hello? You could have texted me.”

“I didn’t have a chance. Seriously, you have to believe me. I would have, if I could.”

He dropped into one of the bentwood kitchen chairs, the old wooden frame creaking in protest as he threw his weight against the back of the seat and shoved a hand through his dark hair. Unbidden, tears sprang to Maggie’s eyes. Times like this he reminded her so much of photos of their father when he was younger. All that intelligence, energy and passion. All so easily misdirected.

She dropped down on her haunches beside him.

“Tell me. What did they say?”

He looked up at the ceiling and swore softly under his breath. “You know what they said. They’re accusing me of taking money, but they don’t have absolute proof it was me. Anyone could have made that trail go in someone else’s direction. I’ve been framed. I wouldn’t do something like that.”

Her stomach knotted at the almost childlike plea in his voice. A plea that she, above all others, would believe him.

“Did you, Jason? Did you do it?”

He thrust himself up onto his feet. “I can’t believe you can even ask me that. I promised you I’d be clean after that last time and I have been.”

“Mr. Tanner showed me the evidence, Jason. He said everything pointed to you.”

She felt as if she was drowning. She wanted to believe Jason, really she did. But William Tanner had been very convincing. So convincing she’d agreed to participate in his charade to save Jason’s job.

“So you’d rather believe him than me? Is that it? Are you still so goo-goo eyed after that one kiss at the ball that you don’t want to believe your own brother?”

“Jason, that’s uncalled for,” she replied sharply, but she felt the betraying flush stain her cheeks.

Her brother had teased her mercilessly about the kiss he’d witnessed at the ball, until he’d learned exactly who it was she’d been kissing. William Tanner was a man to be feared. No one knew exactly what his recommendation would be for the now defunct Worth Industries, and the rumors that the business could be wound down here in Vista del Mar had buzzed around the staff like a swarm of angry bees.

“I don’t believe it,” he said, staring at her as if she’d grown two heads. “Even though he’s accused me of being dishonest, you still have the hots for him, don’t you?”

“This isn’t about me.” She tried desperately to get the conversation back on topic. “This is about you. I asked you, plain and simple, Jason. Did you do it?”

“It doesn’t matter what I say now,” he said bleakly. “You’re never going to believe me, are you? I’ll never be good enough, never be able to prove to you that I’m trustworthy again. Don’t wait up for me, I’m going out.”

“Jason, don’t go. Please!”

But his only response was the slam of the front door behind him, swiftly followed by the roar of his motorbike as he peeled out of the driveway. Margaret raised a trembling hand to her eyes and wiped at the tears that fell unchecked down her cheeks.

If Jason was guilty of what Tanner had accused him, then she would continue to do every last thing in her power to protect him, just as she always had. But if he was innocent, what on earth had she let herself in for?

Three

Maggie was beyond worried by the time morning came. Jason hadn’t been home all night. Around four she’d given up trying to sleep and had done what she always did in times of stress—clean. By the time seven-thirty rolled around, the bathroom sparkled, the kitchen bench gleamed and every wooden surface in the house shone with the glow of the special lemon-scented polish their mother had always used.

The scents were in their own way a little comfort, Maggie thought, as she finally peeled off her gloves and wearily went into the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee. She could almost feel her mother’s soothing presence in the background.

The growl of Jason’s bike as he pulled into the driveway had her flying to the door. She yanked it open, then froze in the doorway. Uncertain of whether or not he would welcome her relief at seeing him home safe and sound.

He came to the door slowly, his face haggard and showing a wisdom beyond his years.