Dangerous Attraction Romantic Suspense Boxed Set (81 page)

He was still laughing when he shut his door. Kelly whipped into her place, unpacked the refrigerated and frozen items in her grocery bags, and grabbed her purse. She wanted to run to the mailbox before heading to lunch. With any luck, she’d get the final few envelopes she’d been waiting for today.

Kelly crossed the lawn to the large bank of mailboxes that served the entire complex. The letters arriving today would make or break Kelly’s dream.

* * *

Kelly sat at the café table waiting for her friend Jennie to arrive. She usually loved lunches with Jennie – she always had great gossip and funny stories. Kelly could never get over how gutsy Jennie was. She was the queen of espionage when it came to getting the scoop on things. Kelly was never sure why her friend wasn’t in journalism. But Kelly couldn’t get in the mood for lunch and gossip today. With no real job prospects in sight, it was beginning to look as if her bachelor’s degree in political science was every bit as useless as people said bachelor’s degrees were nowadays. To top it off, she’d finally received the last of the results of her scholarship applications for law school.

It was hard to believe she had fulfilled her dream of being accepted into Yale Law School. But, it didn’t matter in the end because she didn’t have the money.

Kelly looked up to see Jennie coming toward the table and pasted a smile on her face for her friend. She didn’t want her bad mood to ruin their lunch and she didn’t want Jennie to feel sorry for her.

“I have juicy gossip today! You won’t believe what I overheard,” Jennie started off but slowed when she saw the look on Kelly’s face. “What’s wrong? You don’t look like…well, like you.” Jennie frowned at her friend.

“I got my acceptance letter to Yale. I got in,” Kelly said, quietly.

“What? That’s fantastic! Kelly, that’s great. Wait, I don’t get it. Why aren’t you happy about this?” Jennie asked.

“I didn’t get enough scholarship money to cover half the tuition there. I thought I had a shot at more grants but they’re getting really tight nowadays. And if I take out that much money in loans, I’ll be paying for the rest of my life.”

“Oh, Kelly, I’m so sorry. It must feel good to know you got in, though, huh?
Ugh
. That’s sounds so ‘hey it’s an honor just to be nominated,’ doesn’t it? I’m sorry, Kel.”

“I know,” Kelly shrugged and tried to smile but she knew it probably came off somewhat sad.

“How much money do you need?” Jennie asked hesitantly.

“Well, it costs $52,000 per year for three years. I managed to get about $22,000 per year in grants and scholarship so when I say I’m short, I mean I’m really short. Even if I defer for a year and work the whole time I’m in school, there’s no way I’ll have enough,” Kelly explained.

Jennie frowned at her friend. “I’m so sorry. I know you had your heart set on Yale, but maybe you can apply to other places? Maybe the state law school?”

Kelly raised her chin. “You’re right. I’ll apply at University of Connecticut next year and save my money until then. UConn is a really good law school, too. Top fifty. It was really stupid of me not to apply there as a backup school this year, but I’ll apply next year. It’ll be fine… So now, distract me.” Kelly pasted another bright smile on her face for Jennie. “Tell me your latest tidbit. What have your secret spy skills found today?”

In hushed tones, so no one around could hear, Jennie launched into the story of the infamous Jack Sutton’s desperate need for a wife. As Kelly listened to Jennie talk she wished she could sometimes be as brash and brave as Jennie. I mean, really, who had the guts to listen in on their boss’s conversations like that? Sounded like her boss would have to find someone. Fast. In fact, she was surprised Jennie hadn’t marched into the room and proposed to Jack right then and there – just for the fun of it.

Propose to Jennie’s boss, Jack…? What if I propose to Jack? What? Whoa! Where did that thought come from?

Sure it was a crazy idea, but why not? If she married Jack Sutton for one year, he’d get his shares, his job and his company would be secure. She’d get the money to go to Yale for three years. She and Jack would go their separate ways at the end of the year. Voila!

Oh. My. God. I can’t believe I’m actually sitting here thinking about this
. Kelly shook herself and tried to get rid of that crazy idea. But the more she thought about it, the more it sounded like a good one. A reasonable idea. The kind of idea she could pull off if she took a page out of Jennie’s playbook for once.

“Is Jack nice?” Kelly suddenly interrupted Jennie.

“What?” Jennie asked. “Oh, well, yeah, I guess he’s a nice boss. Scares the hell out of most of the people he does business with. If you cross him or try to cheat him in a deal, you better look out. But, he’s actually really good to the people that work for him. It surprised me at first. I always thought he would be a real ball breaker.” Jennie leaned forward in a conspiratorial whisper.

“He has a whole division that he calls his security division and they do some security but they’re really mostly there to investigate any companies he’s going to invest in or anyone he’s negotiating with. They say he never goes into a deal blind. If you enter a deal with Jack Sutton or walk up to the negotiating table against him, he’ll already know what color underwear you have on that day.” Jennie prattled on, not understanding where Kelly was headed.

“Well…but I mean, is he a
nice
guy? Like, would you date him or would he be a total jerk?” Kelly clarified.

“Noooo, he’s not bad. He’s a really good guy,” Jennie said slowly, looking at Kelly as if she were trying to figure out what Kelly was thinking. “I’d date him… Oh my God! What are you thinking? Oh my God! Don’t answer that. I know what you’re thinking.” Jennie dropped her voice down to a stage whisper. “You’re thinking you’ll marry him!”

“It could work.” Kelly blushed. “I go in there and ask for my tuition in exchange for a year of marriage. We head to the courthouse, then a neat and easy divorce a year from now.” Kelly had always thought she would marry for love. That when it happened to her, it would be forever. But, she supposed a fake marriage would be okay as long as it had an expiration date and it was to a man she could trust, a good man. It wouldn’t stop her from finding the real thing someday and it meant that she’d be able to get her law degree.

“Besides,” Kelly said, as she continued to justify her plan, “I might as well. It’s not like I’m going to miss out on falling in love with someone else because I tie myself up with Jack Sutton for a year.”

“Kelly, don’t be silly. Of course you’ll fall in love some day. You just haven’t met the right guy yet.”

“Maybe someday, but I’ve dated some really great guys. I mean really, really great. But I’ve never felt more than ‘like’ for any of them – even when they said they were in love with me. I really don’t think love is in the cards for me and even if it is, what are the chances that during the year I take off from dating for a fake marriage, I’ll miss out on the
one
guy that I’m destined to fall in love with? I think the chance of that is slim. And, if it’s true love that’s meant to be, wouldn’t it somehow work out after my fake marriage?” Kelly knew how to push Jennie’s helplessly romantic buttons to win the argument.

Jennie stared at Kelly, shaking her head. Kelly could imagine what her friend was thinking. Jennie was supposed to be the daredevil. Jennie was the one who took risks. She did stupid things. Kelly was the levelheaded, kind, sweet, calm, orderly one. The kind of person who most certainly would never do
this
.

Jennie appeared to be speechless as she stared at her friend. And if Jennie were speechless, things could not be headed in a good direction.

Chapter Four

Kelly arrived at Jack’s office as she and Jennie had planned, a few minutes before three o’clock. She had run home to print up the marriage license application from the New Haven Office of Vital Statistics website. She showered and dressed in black wool slacks and a fitted ivory cashmere sweater from T.J.Maxx.

When Jennie saw Kelly step off the elevator her jaw dropped. “I can’t believe you’re going through with this. By the time I got back to the office, I was sure you’d chicken out.”

Kelly squared her shoulders and stood up to her full height. “I’ve decided I’m not going to second-guess myself on this. I want to go to Yale and I’m going to, damn it. I think if I keep moving without stopping too long to think about it, I can go through with it, so get me in there.”

Jennie raised an eyebrow and Kelly knew she’d owe her friend big time. And this scene about to play out would essentially put her job on the line. By getting Kelly in there she’d be revealing she had spied on Jack. She had a week left in the placement. With this move, she would most likely lose not only this placement but any chance of getting a new placement through the temp agency as well.

“Well, you may be off your rocker, but at least you look good. Jack’s Aunt Mabry and his cousin Chad are already in the office. They’ve only been in there for a minute, though,” said Jennie.

“Here goes nothing.” Kelly took a deep breath and waited for Jennie to announce her.

With a huge grin on her face, Jennie pushed the intercom button on her phone and calmly spoke into the speaker. “Sir, your fiancé has arrived. Shall I show her in?”

* * *

Jack sat in his office with his aunt and cousin and wondered how the hell to start to explain that there was no fiancé. Andrew had sent a text at two o’clock saying he hadn’t found out anything more and Chad still wasn’t in the office. Andrew said he was working on something. He just didn’t say what he was working on so Jack had no idea if he should stall.

Jack had actually been desperate enough to start calling some of the women he’d dated in the last year or so. He wasn’t exactly a ruthless player, although the tabloids tried to make it look like he was. Sure, he got around, had a few dates a month and slept with some of them but those women all seemed shallow and fake to Jack.

Two of them didn’t answer the phone, one was gushing about her new husband and the third had moved to London when she was offered a modeling deal with a London agency. That was as far as he got in his little black book before his aunt arrived – twenty minutes early. It seemed Chad had been with Mabry this morning because they arrived together and now they both sat, mother and son, looking expectantly at him.

“We’re here to meet Jack’s fiancé,” a smug-looking Mabry announced to Chad. Jack watched a bemused expression come over his cousin’s face.

Chad had to be wondering what the hell was going on. He and Jack were close. They were more like brothers than cousins, so if Jack were getting married, Chad should have been the first to know.

Oh, great. I’m never gonna’ hear the end of this from him.

So there they sat, waiting for an introduction to a fiancé that Jack had never mentioned to Chad, a fiancé Chad had never set eyes on.

Jack leaned forward in his chair, took a deep breath and prepared to come clean. Just then his secretary’s voice cut in and he could swear he heard her say that his fiancé was here.

His head whipped around and he stared at the phone, unable to process what was going on. Jack’s experience in business had taught him to school his expressions and hide his thoughts from those around him and though he was shocked, he did just that. He quickly hid all emotion from his face as he listened to his secretary.

“Sir, did you hear me? Mr. Sutton? Your fiancé has arrived. Shall I show her in?” Jennie spoke again.

Andrew.
Andrew must have sent him a fiancé. How in the hell had Andrew found him a fiancé? I mean, how does one go about that, Jack thought. Oh God, what if Andrew sent him a prostitute?

“Uh, yes, send her in, please.” Jack forced the words out as his mind raced through the possible scenarios.

Jennie opened the door to his office and stepped aside. Kelly swept into the room as if she owned the place. She glided over to Jack’s desk, brushed a light kiss on his cheek, and casually handed him a stack of papers.

“Hello, sweetheart,” Kelly said to Jack before turning to his aunt and Chad. “You must be Jack’s Aunt Mabry and his cousin. He’s told me so much about you. I’m Kelly Bradley.” Kelly took the hand of a very stunned Aunt Mabry and pumped it before she turned to Chad, whose amusement had turned to confused surprise. Kelly shook his hand as well.

“It’s nice to meet you, Kelly,” Chad said, but it came out more as a question than a statement. “I don’t know where Jack has been hiding you but I can see why he wanted you all to himself,” Chad said with a huge grin on his face.

Jack was too busy trying to figure out who had just walked into his office…and what she was doing, to respond to Chad’s dig. This Kelly person had walked in as though she belonged there. As though she and Jack had the kind of intimate, close relationship that lets a woman waltz into a private family meeting and announce herself rather than wait to be invited and introduced.

Jack couldn’t take his eyes off of her. Whoever she was, she was beautiful. Her hair was a deep chestnut color and it fell down her back in loose waves over the soft ivory cashmere of her sweater. She had incredible, bright blue eyes and a lightly freckled complexion. Her snug sweater showed off a soft, curvy figure that begged to be held. Wherever Andrew had found her, he had done well. She was exquisite.

Jack tore his eyes off her and skimmed the papers in his hand while she stood chit chatting with his aunt and cousin as if nothing were out of the ordinary. The papers appeared to be an application for a marriage license for the State of Connecticut. There was a yellow sticky note on the top page that said: One year of marriage for $154,000. He quickly tucked the note in his pocket as his mind flew over possibilities.

Andrew had found him a wife for $154,000.

What the hell?

Had Andrew hired some call girl service? Asked some girl off the street? As he did in all of his deals, Jack quickly scanned all potential scenarios in his head. He assessed and evaluated the merits or drawbacks of each possibility. Obviously, if she was a call girl, the drawbacks were significant. In this case, Jack realized, he was woefully uninformed, and that wasn’t a position he was used to being in.