Love Script (9 page)

Perhaps he’d been a little out of line with her, but he did not regret his words. She needed to hear them.

She needed to understand this was strictly business.

There was no margin for error.

Not feeling up to dealing with Laney, Nick decided to seek out the fitness center. He was tense with anticipation for tonight’s dinner. He needed to work off the apprehension, and putting distance between himself and Laney would be for the best.

Since she was determined to live in the bathroom, he felt safe to change into a pair of gym shorts without scaring her to death.

The journey to the fitness center was a workout in itself. Once there, Nick made for the treadmil . The room was virtual y empty. It was a state-of-the-art gym but it was clear this was a place often ignored by the general public. Nick supposed, unlike him, most people booked passage on a cruise for rest and relaxation. Retreating to a fitness center hours after boarding was not normal. The room was eerily quiet, but Nick didn’t mind the silence. He welcomed it. It would al ow him time to think. He ran a vigorous four miles, did several sets of reps with free weights, and was the only participant in a sixty-minute cycling class. He was exhausted when he finished, but he had managed to pass three hours. Not yet ready to deal with Laney, Nick returned to the treadmil , setting it at a light trot to slow his heartbeat. He linked his fingers together and placed them behind his head. The cycling class had been a kil er. He could feel a dul ache in his stomach muscles he hadn’t felt since he ran track in col ege.

So focused was he on his workout he hadn’t immediately noticed the coy eyes of the women in the room. He had removed his shirt during the cycle class and tucked it in the back of his waistband.

Bare-chested and sweaty, he was on ful exhibit for the women in the room. It was strange to see the women gawk at him. Nick worked hard to keep himself in shape, but he rarely displayed himself. He employed a personal trainer, so the only people who got to see his efforts were the casual bed partners he chose.

He checked his watch. Shit. An hour longer and he would be late for dinner. To the whining of the women, he pul ed his shirt back on. As he crossed the gym, he heard one woman whisper loudly to another, “His wife is one lucky girl.” Nick looked down at his wedding band and gave an empty laugh.

They had no idea how wrong they were.

❧ ❧ ❧

When Nick entered the stateroom, Laney was sitting on the bed. She was wearing a white silk robe that clung to her body, parading the fact that she was only wearing a thin slip underneath. Her hair was pul ed up into a delicate twist on the top of her head.

She wore diamond earrings that framed her face, giving her an elegant look. For a second, Nick was floored by her lovely image.

Laney walked toward him, her hips making a delicate sway with every step. “When you didn’t come back, I thought you had changed your mind.” She waved her hand toward the bed. “I had the housekeeper steam your tuxedo just in case.” He forced himself to pul his gaze away from her and look toward the bed. His suit was laid out perfectly. That was definitely a wifely act on her part.

He was impressed.

“I’m finished with the bathroom,” she mumbled.

“It’s al yours. If we hurry, we can stil make it in time.” He nodded and went to his bags to pul out his shaving kit. He showered and shaved. Wrapping a towel around his waist, he left the bathroom to retrieve his clothes. Laney avoided making eye contact with him. When he final y emerged, ful y dressed, he noticed Laney was dressed and waiting for him. She was wearing a form-fitting black dress.

A shawl was draped across her shoulders, preventing him from seeing her neckline.

He tried not to stare but felt he was coming up a little short. Reminding himself of their time constraint, he turned his attention to adjusting his bow tie. Lifting his chin, he did a rushed but adequate job of the task. Satisfied, he stepped away from the mirror, giving himself a brief once-over before turning to her.

“Ready?” he asked.

She shook her head. She walked up to him and tugged on the ends of his tie. Her hands worked quickly yet were light in touch. As she coaxed the tie into perfection, Nick breathed in her clean scent.

She was the gentle blend of soap and something else he couldn’t quite put his finger on. It was so light, he had to lean close to capture its scent; when he did, he smiled despite himself. Roses. She smel ed of roses in bloom. The scent was intoxicating. He had the heady sense of being drawn to her. She was so close he had only to lean an inch forward to brush his chest against hers.

“There,” she said, her long lashes fluttering up at him. “That looks better.”

He stepped away to survey her work in the bathroom mirror. Impressed, he asked, “How do you know how to do that?”

She shrugged. “I’ve had a lot of practice.” She picked up her purse. “Now I’m ready.”

❧ ❧ ❧

Nick and Laney entered the huge bal room just as people were finding their seats. An orchestra played a soothing Caribbean melody that brought smiles to the faces of everyone in the room. Nick spotted Wil iam Zelman and his wife at a table across the room. With Laney’s hand tucked securely on his arm, he guided her to their table, where Cooper Wright and his wife were already seated.

Both Wil iam and Cooper stood out of respect to Laney. Nick smiled as he made introductions.

“Mr. Zelman, it’s great to see you again. Cooper.” The men shook hands. “Please al ow me to introduce my wife, Mrs. Laney Sinclair. Laney, sweetheart, this is Wil iam Zelman and his wife, Mrs.

Zelman.”

Zelman clasped Laney’s hand and squeezed it.

“So you are the famous Mrs. Sinclair? It's a pleasure to meet you.”

She smiled, put a little at ease by his warm welcome. “Please cal me Laney.”

Zelman grinned down at her. “Then I insist you cal me Wil . And this is my lovely wife, Vivian.” Nick was surprised to see Laney bend down and openly hug the older woman, before brushing her lips against her cheek.

“It’s an honor to meet you, Vivian. I rarely get to meet any of Nick’s business associates, so this is a double treat for me.” Laney looked up at Cooper.

“And you are?”

Cooper picked up her hint immediately. “I’m Cooper Wright, Mrs. Sinclair. This is my wife, Heidi.” Laney hugged Heidi and shook Cooper’s hand.

Nick inwardly commended her for not offering a hint of recognition that she’d met Cooper earlier. She was playing her role wel . This might just turn out wel for him. He guided her to her seat. She offered her shoulders to Nick, and he wordlessly slipped her shawl off, dropping a light kiss on her shoulder as he whispered words of encouragement. She visibly flinched the instant his lips touched her skin, but she recovered quickly by giving him a nervous giggle and mumbling something about his lips being cold.

Vivian Zelman gasped. “Oh, I remember when Wil used to treat me like that.” She patted her husband’s knee. “We were sil y kids back then but deeply in love.” In agreement, her husband lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. Vivian smiled. “Enjoy every minute of it, Laney. Oh, my!

What an interesting dress.”

Nick turned just in time to see what had caught Vivian Zelman’s attention. He hadn’t looked at Laney since removing her shawl. That had been a mistake.

He was nearly blinded by golden skin. Her dress was simple enough, stopping just above the knee, but her top was held up by thin spaghetti straps. Her cleavage was wel -covered, but the dress pressed against her chest, forcing her breasts to offer a delicate swel . His eyes feasted on her flesh. How soft her skin looked. He was beginning to wonder if he could get through this charade. He would have to have another talk with her. If Laney didn’t stop wearing such revealing clothing, she would soon have him pawing at her every time he so much as looked in her direction. And that could make things very uncomfortable, since they were sleeping in the same room.

“Nick?”

“Huh?” he said, dumbly.

Laney was looking at him, patiently waiting for him to stop ogling her. “Nick, Wil is asking you a question.” There was a trace of annoyance in her voice.

Nick turned to Wil iam Zelman. “I’m sorry. What did you say?”

The elder man gave him a knowing look. “I understand, Nick. I was the same way when I saw Vivian.” He gave his wife a caring look. “I was asking how you two met.”

Cooper leaned forward. “I was wondering the same thing.”

Nick faked a friendly smile toward Cooper.

“Chance encounter, you could say.” Nick didn’t risk looking at Laney again; she was too much of a distraction. “We sort of ran into each other. I pursued her until she agreed to marry me.” It wasn’t too far from the truth.

Zelman laughed. “Good for you. My life had never been more complete until the day Vi agreed to marry me.”

“My sentiments as wel ,” Nick lied. In truth, he had no idea what Zelman meant.

Soon, everyone started talking. Laney dived into discussion with Vivian Zelman, while Nick and Cooper battled for Zelman’s attention. Nick noticed that Cooper’s wife was relatively quiet. She was a bombshel of a wife, with her silky auburn hair, big breasts and pouty lips. Pure eye candy. Cooper had chosen wel , yet her silence was a disappointment.

Laney, with her bubbly personality, took center stage throughout dinner, trumping every woman at the table. And the Zelmans loved her.

Cooper, a natural showman, regaled them with a humorous story, intentional y making dramatic hand gestures to ensure the Zelmans noticed his wedding band, but Laney easily upstaged him by recounting her story of Nick losing her ring down the drain and recently having to replace it. It gave her an opportunity to show off her rings and win her a col ective laugh around the table. Nick didn’t care that she made him sound like an amateur plumber who was pussy-whipped by his wife; Laney was working the table with great ease.

Nick struggled to concentrate on the table discussion, so captivated was he with Laney. She rarely spoke to him directly, yet she was the life of the group. She engaged the wives in a lighthearted conversation about their favorite shops and recipes while Nick and Cooper lured Wil iam Zelman into a debate regarding future trends in retail marketing.

When Zelman casual y hinted to his expectations and recent disenchantment with marketing firms, Nick mental y took note.

The conversation stopped abruptly when Zelman caught the tail end of Laney’s discussion with Vivian Zelman. They were having a political debate about U.S. influence in global affairs. The more Vivian talked, the more Laney disagreed with her. The men sat back quietly while the women went back and forth making their points. Cooper must have instructed his wife beforehand to be silent and look pretty, for that is exactly what she did. At this very minute, silence seemed like a good idea. Nick saw a disaster between Laney and Vivian Zelman unfolding before him. Though cool and reserved, Laney was not backing down. He was just about to intercede when Wil iam Zelman joined the discussion. The conversation immediately turned from the ladies discrediting each other’s views to them joining forces and disagreeing with Zelman.

Wil iam talked until he was red in the face making his point, but the women, now in complete unison, chal enged every point until Wil iam didn’t have a leg to stand on. Nick’s worry eased as he realized what Laney had already discovered. Vivian Zelman liked to argue.

There was no malicious intent behind her words; she simply liked a debate setting to voice her views.

Nick came to his wife’s aid by agreeing with Laney.

He reworded her previous point and used a personal example to justify his reasoning. Cooper quickly joined in, taking Wil iam Zelman’s side. By now, the entire table of strangers were taking turns offering their input, mostly siding with Laney and Vivian.

Wil iam eventual y surrendered. He comical y muttered that if he didn’t agree with his wife, she would make him regret it for the rest of the trip.

Vivian beamed with satisfaction and kissed her husband’s cheek.

Col ective applause erupted when the ship’s captain entered the dining hal . He made a slow transition around the room, introducing himself and giving the customary welcome speech. By the time he made his way to their table, Vivian was practical y bubbling with enthusiasm. Nick amused himself by thinking the guy looked just like the captain in the
Titanic
movie. Even his stark white beard was trimmed to perfection.

“Good evening. I’m Captain Hector Howle.” His bright eyes scanned the table. “Welcome aboard.

We are certainly happy to have you along for our voyage.”

Vivian squealed with glee. “How exciting! Do you real y steer the boat?”

Captain Howle looked down at the excited woman and smiled. “Yes, ma’am, I do. But I have a great crew that helps me every step of the way. You are?”

“Mrs. Vivian Zelman.” She offered her hand. “Its a pleasure to meet you, Captain Howle.”

“The pleasure is al mine.” He gal antly kissed her hand.

Vivian blushed with delight and looked ready to beg for an autograph when her husband cut her off. “I am Wil iam Zelman,” he said, shaking the captain’s hand a bit forceful y. “As you can see, my wife is excited to be here.” He’d emphasized the words
my
wife
, and Captain Howle had the good nature to look abashed. He made a show of looking disappointed at having learned she was unavailable, and Vivian gave a nervous giggle.