Bride by Mistake (2 page)

Meg sighed. “You did.”

Liza leaned forward and squeezed Meg’s hand. “And I’d double for you in a second if you needed me to. Look, Meg, if you help me this time, we’ll never trade places again. Word of honor.”

Liza had just won her case, and they both knew it. “Okay, okay,” Meg conceded. But the moment the words slipped out, she knew she’d made a mistake.

One whopper of a mistake.

“Oh, thank you, sis,” Liza said. “I’ll bring you a present from Chicago.”

“Make it something really big,” Meg said. “Like a yacht.”

Liza giggled with relief.

“You can stay at my house if you want,” Meg said. “It’s an easy drive from Meadow Springs to downtown Chicago.”

“Maybe I will. While first-class travel is pretty nice, I’m sick of big hotels.”

Meg reached into her purse and passed Liza her house key. “Now go call Zach and tell him I’m filling in for you.”

Liza shrugged. “That will just complicate things.”

“But won’t Zach be suspicious?”

“Why would he? We looked exactly alike in high school and still do. Even Mom can’t tell us apart. I’ll take over when I return, and Zach will never know the difference.”

“Bad idea, Liza. Really bad idea.”

“Trust me, it’s easier this way. Besides, Zach wouldn’t be comfortable pretending to be engaged to you. He avoids women since his divorce. I’m no threat, since we’re good friends, but if I tell him you and I are trading places, he’ll call the whole thing off. And with his grandmother being so sick, that would be a shame.”

Liza had just made a case for not telling Zach. Meg sighed again and felt too tired to debate any longer. Besides, she’d learned long ago that winning an argument with a trial lawyer wasn’t possible. “Can we do something fun now?” she asked. “Like see a movie?”

“Sure. Right after I cut your hair.”

Meg frowned. She’d always worn her auburn hair longer and curlier than her sister’s.

“Just a trim, kiddo. I promise.”

“I do need a haircut,” Meg admitted. “But go easy.”

When Liza finished, Meg examined her image in the mirror. Her runaway curls had definitely been tamed. “I look exactly like you now,” she observed. “Sort of lawyerish.”

“Still want to go out?” Liza asked.

Meg yawned. “Let’s just order pizza and watch a movie here.”

“Anything you say.”

They ate their pizza at the kitchen table, then moved into the living room to watch
Sleepless in Seattle
. When it ended, Liza said, “Tomorrow’s a big day for us, so we’d better turn in. I fly out early in the morning, and Zach’s picking you up at eleven.”

Meg bolted upright at the startling news. “Why is Zach picking me up at eleven?”

“He’s taking you to lunch, sweetie. So you can discuss your pretend engagement.”

Meg wished like crazy she’d just stayed in Meadow Springs. As the evening unfolded, it had crossed her mind several times to book a return flight home. But she couldn’t. She’d promised Liza to do her this favor, and she’d honor her promise if it killed her.

And it just might.

Meg paced Liza’s living room, feeling as anxious as a prisoner up for parole. She caught sight of her image in the hall mirror and decided the new haircut made her look more sophisticated. Not at all like the curly-haired, hassled owner of a ballet school that she really was.

The doorbell rang, and when she opened the door Meg caught her breath. There he stood, Zachary Addison in the flesh! Never in Meg’s wildest dreams could she have imagined the tall, darkly handsome, well-muscled man Zach had become. She opened her mouth to speak but her vocal cords went on strike.

Zach grinned. “Hey there, Liza-Lou. Are you excited about our engagement?”

Meg swallowed the panic bubbling up in her throat. She couldn’t speak, but she did manage to nod.

As Zach entered Liza’s living room, Meg tried not to stare. He wore taupe slacks and a tan sport coat that accented his broad shoulders. His bronze tan, jet-black hair, and killer gray eyes left her breathless. He turned to face her and placed his hands on her shoulders. “Thanks for helping me out, kiddo. You’ve gone beyond the bonds of friendship.”

Meg gazed into those dark gray eyes staring fondly at her and tried not to explode. Finally she said, “Glad to help.”

Three words. They sounded weak and high-pitched, but at least they were words.

Zach studied Meg closely, and she hoped her eye wouldn’t twitch. When she got really nervous, her body parts didn’t always cooperate.

“Your hair looks different today. It’s curlier.”

“I needed a change.”

“Very becoming.”

“Do you still plan to announce our, um, engagement at your grandmother’s surprise party a week from Sunday?”

“Sure do. Just like we discussed. We’ll finalize our plans over lunch today. Are you hungry?”

Thanks to Liza’s shenanigans, Meg had barely eaten since her plane landed on Missouri soil. As a food connoisseur, she didn’t count pizza and diet soda as a meal. “Lunch sounds great,” she said. “I’m starving.”

He quirked an eyebrow. “That’s a surprise. You usually just pick at your food.”

Oh, yeah. Meg had almost forgotten she was Liza. While she had a healthy appetite, Liza ate like a bird.

“How’s Chaz on the Plaza?” he suggested.

“Fine and dandy.”

Meg couldn’t believe she’d just said “fine and dandy.” But the prospect of eating lunch with her high-school fantasy made thinking logically impossible.

Zach grabbed Meg’s hand and led her out to his car. The warmth of his fingers wrapped around hers caused Meg’s heart to rebel. Five more minutes of hand-holding, and she’d be spouting pure gibberish.

He opened the door to his silver Lexus and Meg slid in. And thirty minutes later, they entered an upscale restaurant in the Raphael Hotel. As Zach placed his hand on the small of Meg’s back and guided her toward a table, her heart danced like a marionette.
What is happening?
she wondered. Zach’s slightest touch set off a torrent of feelings inside her. It seemed that her emotions were no longer under her control.

“Did you change something besides your hair?” Zach asked as the two of them settled at a table and the waiter handed them menus.
Here it comes
, Meg thought, as Zach’s intense eyes searched hers.

She swallowed hard. “Nope. Why do you ask?”

“You seem different today.”

“I am different. I’m nervous about the fraud we’re about to perpetrate.”

Zach chuckled. “Spoken like a true attorney. Relax, Liza. And this isn’t fraud—just pretend. Gram’s spoiled me since I was a little boy. And with her health in jeopardy, she’d like to think another woman will spoil me after she’s gone.”

While Zach kept his tone light, Meg saw sadness reflected in his eyes. “I’m sorry she’s ill. You love her very much, don’t you?”

He nodded. “As a kid, I practically lived with Gram and Granddad. My folks were always away on business.”

“Can medication or surgery help?”

“As I told you earlier, she has heart problems. And according to Ian, surgery’s not an option.”

Meg didn’t know who Ian was but figured this wasn’t the time to ask. “I see. I wouldn’t want us to hurt her.”

“We won’t hurt her,” Zach affirmed. “Believe me, what we’re doing will make Gram happy.”

“But won’t she suspect? My grandmother always knew when I told a fib.”

“Gram will be thrilled when I announce our engagement. She won’t be looking for loopholes.”

Meg sighed. “I hope you’re right.”

“What are you having?” he asked.

Meg bit her lip as she studied the options. “I can’t decide between the top sirloin and the Kansas City strip,” she said.

Zach quirked an eyebrow. “Liza O’Malley eating meat? What happened to that vegetarian diet of yours? Most of the time you fuss because there’s nothing vegetarian on the menu.”

Meg felt a zing of panic as she reminded herself, once again, that she was Liza. “Oh, um, I eat meat occasionally,” she murmured. “A recent study showed some vegetarians don’t get enough protein.”

“Hmm. That makes sense.”

Meg expelled the breath she’d been holding. She must remember the ways in which she and Liza differed—and there were many. If she wasn’t more careful, she’d earn a degree in backpedaling before this week ended.

“What can I get the lady for lunch?” asked the waiter.

“I’ll have a Cobb salad, no meat. Better stick to the straight and narrow,” she told Zach.

Her fiancé ordered a sirloin steak and garlic mashed potatoes. Just the name of the entrée made Meg drool. As they waited for their food, Zach reached into his sport-coat pocket and handed her a printout that was several pages long. “Read over this agenda. I’ve planned our romance very carefully.”

Meg’s eyes widened as she stared at the detailed schedule. “Are we pretending to be engaged or merging two corporations?”

He smiled. “What did you expect from a couple of left-brained people like us?”

True. Zach and Liza were left-brained. But Meg was as right-brained as they come.

She glanced at the schedule. Under “Activities,” Zach had listed dancing at the country club, an interview with the editor of the local paper for an article on the wedding, and much more. The final event was, of course, Eloise’s surprise party. She sighed as she realized that each activity had its own set of goals and objectives. Just looking at Zach’s schedule gave her a headache.

“This is more carefully plotted than most novels,” she said as she finished reading and the waiter brought their food.

Zach frowned. “I thought you’d be impressed, Liza. You’re the most thorough person I know. And a true stickler for details.”

“Normally, I am. But in this situation, we should be more…” Meg gazed into Zach’s smoky-gray eyes and lost her train of thought. What had she been about to say?

“We should be more what?” he coaxed.

“Um, more spontaneous. We should definitely be more spontaneous.”

Zach threw his head back and laughed. “Are you kidding me? You don’t have a spontaneous bone in your body, Liza. You’re the most compulsively organized woman I know.”

Oops
. Liza was the meticulous planner while she, Meg, was spontaneous. Another personality difference reared its ugly head.

“I’m meticulous when I write a legal brief,” she said, “but our pretend engagement is a different ball game. This is a people thing, Zach, and it can’t be meticulously planned on paper. We’ll have to put our hearts into this project to make your grandmother believe that we love each other. And that we plan to be married.”

Zach’s smile vanished. “You surprise me, Liza. As I’ve watched you climb the corporate ladder, I’ve sometimes wondered if…” He broke off midsentence. “Never mind.”

“No, go ahead. What have you wondered?”

Zach took Meg’s hand, and his warm touch turned her emotions topsy-turvy. “Don’t misunderstand me. But when you play the role of ruthless attorney on your way to a partnership, I sometimes wonder if you have a heart inside that beautiful body.” He squeezed her hand companionably, which only accelerated the turmoil. “It’s obvious that you do, Liza. A very tender heart.”

Oh, she had a heart, all right. And right now it was beating so furiously it was probably visible above the neckline of her sundress!

Meg’s cell phone rang and she pulled her hand away. Good thing. She needed a wake-up call. “Will you excuse me a minute, Zach?” she asked.

“Certainly.”

“Hello,” she said. Her voice sounded shaky and breathless, and she hoped she could concentrate.

“Meg, honey? Is that you?” When Meg heard Martin’s voice, she almost knocked over her water glass.

“Yes, it’s me.”

“Are you and Liza eating in a tearoom like you always do?”

“Actually, we’re at a café on the Plaza,” Meg said, trying to make her voice behave. “Listen, can I call you back a little later? In an hour or so?”

“Sure thing, sweets. I’ll talk to you then. Enjoy your time with your sister.”

“Thanks. I will.”

Meg’s hand shook as she stuck her phone in her purse. She took a steadying breath trying to get her heart rate back to normal.

“Important business?” Zach asked.

“Very,” she agreed, knowing it was. “But I’ll handle it later.”