Married by Contract (12 page)

She’d poured herself some pinot noir and was on her way to
the bathroom when her phone rang.

It was Nick.

“Hey,” she said, smiling as she kicked off her shoes and
flopped down on her bed. “I was just thinking about you.”

“Were you? Good thoughts, I hope.”

“Definitely. How are things going?”

“Really good.” He sounded different, excited. “I found her.”

She sat up straight. “What? Really? How is she?”

“She’s okay. Healthy, I mean. She’s had a pretty rough time,
and she doesn’t trust anyone. I don’t know if she’s going to want to come home.
But at least I found her.”

“Exactly. Oh, I’m so happy! Have you told her parents?”

“Yeah. They’re flying out here tonight, but my job is already
done. I can’t be any sort of mediator or anything. They’re going to have to
work things out themselves. But at least I was able to tell them she’s all
right and where to find her.”

“Of course that’s all you can do! I’m so glad you did it. I
can’t imagine how hard it was for you to track the girl down. You’re amazing.”

He didn’t say anything immediately, and she knew he felt
awkward from the praise. “Yeah, well, I just did my job.”

“You can still be amazing and just be doing your job.”

“I know you can. You do it all the time.”

“Now, don’t get mushy on me when you’re still in Chicago. So
when are you coming back.”

“Soon,” he said, sounding like he was walking. “Really
soon.”

“Are you heading out to get some dinner? You’re not just
eating at fast foods, are you?”

“No, I’m thinking I’ll get something better than that this
evening.” It sounded like he was smiling on the phone.

It made Jenn smile too. “Good. And once you’re back, you
have to stay at home for a little while.”

“I will, although…”

“What?” she asked when he trailed off.

“I was thinking of driving to see my folks on the weekend,
but maybe you wouldn’t mind coming with me.”

She felt a wave of deep happiness, but managed to say in a
natural tone, “Sure! Of course, I’ll come. That would be fun.”

“Good.”

“I really miss you, you know,” she said after a moment’s
pause. “I want you home with me. Right now.”

“Well, sometimes our wishes come true.”

“What does that mean?” She heard something from the front
door and frowned. “Hold on. It sounds like someone is at the door.”

She kept the phone on as she hurried down the hall and
toward the entry way. But before she could reach for the knob, the door flew
open.

She gave a little squeal when she saw Nick standing in the
doorway.

“I told you that sometimes wishes come true,” he said, with
his wry, adorable grin.

She flung herself into his arms, still clutching at her
phone.

Nick was laughing when he released her. “I guess I surprised
you.”

“Yes, you did! Why would you do something like that?”

“I figured it’s good to keep you on your toes. You’re far
too brilliant and competent for your own good.”

She shook her head fondly at the compliment, but her eyes
were scanning Nick closely. He needed to shave, and he needed a haircut. There
were those dark circles under his eyes that proved he hadn’t been getting
enough sleep, and his whole presence seemed to exude a kind of fatigue that
went to the bone. Her face sobered as she murmured, “You look so tired.”

“I am tired,” he admitted, reaching to pull his suitcase
into the apartment and then closing and locking the door behind him. “It was a
long couple of weeks.”

“Well, you’re home now. I’ll fix some dinner while you take
a shower and get comfortable.”

“You don’t have to fix dinner.”

“I want to. You take care of me when I’m all stressed and
overworked, so I can take care of you. I’ll even give you a massage later, if
you want.”

“What do you know about giving massages?” he asked, a sweet
kind of affection in his eyes.

“Well, I haven’t given any before, but I’m sure I can figure
it out. And, if not, how bad can it be to have me touching you.”

“Not bad at all.” He pulled her into a hug. “If it involves
you touching me, then I’m all for it.”

“Then that’s the plan for tonight. You go shower and change,
and I’ll try to be just a little bit domestic.”

“Well, don’t get too domestic. I wouldn’t want you to be
anyone but you.”

She knew he meant it, and the recognition washed over her
like a sappy wave. “I don’t want you to be anyone but you either.”

“I guess it’s a good thing we ended up together, then.”

Jenn couldn’t imagine being with anyone else, and she knew
that she’d never have to, not as long as Nick was alive. He wasn’t going to
leave her. They hadn’t yet given back each other’s rings yet, but she knew it
wouldn’t be too long before they did.

Their marriage was as real as anything in her life, and it
wasn’t going to go away—not at the end of five years or ten years or forty
years.

Both of them were in this all the way.

Jenn was running late.

In the three months since she and Nick had figured out they
were in love, she had only stayed at work after six twice, and both of those
times were for the occasional emergency that invariably came up when you were
trying to run a business.

This evening, however, she wasn’t late because she’d stayed
too long at work. She’d stopped by a wine shop to pick up a good champagne and
then at a favorite restaurant to get takeout for dinner, and both places had
been unusually packed, so she’d had to wait.

She’d planned out this evening to the very last detail, but
it was already veering off track. So she felt stressed and hassled and a little
anxious as she got out of her car in the parking garage, trying to juggle her
satchel, her purse, and three bags.

Then her phone rang.

Praying it wasn’t Nick telling her he was held up at work or
something, she grabbed it and answered without looking at the caller.

“Hey,” a friendly male voice replied to her greeting. “It’s
Jack.”

“Jack!” she said, surprised but pleased. She stood still,
since she had a cell signal in her parking place but if she walked even a few
feet toward the elevator, she would lose it. “Thanks for calling back.”

“No problem. I got your message yesterday, but it was a
crazy day.”

“No need to apologize.” She shifted from foot to foot,
afraid to put down her bags for fear she couldn’t get them all arranged
comfortably on her arms again. “I don’t have much time right now, but Nick and
I wanted to invite you over to our place on the Friday after next. We’re having
some friends over.”

“Sure. That would be great. I think I’m free.”

“It’s nothing fancy, so be as casual as you want. We just
never have anyone over, so we wanted to start. Nick’s cooking, so it will be
good. I’m just responsible for the drinks.”

“Sounds like a good deal to me. What time?”

“You can come around seven if that works for you. I’ll send
you an email about it. And feel free to bring a date, if you want. What about
your pretty neighbor?”

“Yeah, uh, she’s still not too interested in me.”

“Well, maybe she doesn’t know you well enough yet. If you
bring her, I’ll talk you up.”

Jack laughed. “I can just imagine.”

“Okay. I really have to go before I drop all my bags, but
I’ll send you an email with directions and such. I’m glad you can come!”

When she hung up, she hurried to the elevator, pleased that
Jack could make it. All eight of the people they’d invited had said yes. She’d
never thrown a party before—not once in her life—so she was quite relieved that
no one was blowing them off.

But the upcoming party wasn’t her primary concern at the
moment. Her plans for the evening were far more important.

She took several deep breaths as the elevator ascended, and
then she steeled her will as she walked down the hall to their apartment.

It was going to be a good night. She desperately wanted this
to happen, and she was pretty sure Nick did too. She didn’t want to wait any
longer. If that meant she had to be the one to initiate, then that was what she
was going to do.

She had it all planned out. And she had Nick’s wedding ring
in a little box in her purse.

She was going to give it back to him tonight.

When she stepped inside, the first thing to hit her was a
warm, savory scent. She gasped in outrage. “I said I was bringing dinner!”

Nick stepped out from the kitchen area, frowning. “I sent
you a text saying I decided to make something, so you didn’t have to bother.”

“I didn’t get a text.”

“I sent it to you like forty-five minutes ago. I bet you
were busy and didn’t look.” He was wearing his normal T-shirt and flannel
pants, and his hair was a mess. He obviously wasn’t going for romance this
evening.

“But…but…” She swallowed hard. She’d spent a fortune on the
takeout meals from their favorite restaurant. She’d been planning to fix them
up all nice to make the evening special.

But if Nick was already making something, it would be
strange to tell him to stop cooking it.

“I didn’t see the text, so I brought something for dinner,”
she said at last. “But it will save.”

She half expected him to say whatever he was cooking could
be saved, so they could eat what she’d brought, but he didn’t. He just nodded
and headed back to the stove.

So Jenn felt weird and awkward as she put the takeout
containers into the refrigerator.

“I got a bottle of wine too,” she said. It was champagne,
but she felt self-conscious about mentioning that now.

“No need. I’ve already opened something. Why don’t you just
go change clothes and get comfortable.” Nick wasn’t even looking at her. He was
busily working on whatever was in the pan on the stovetop.

Jenn sighed and stuck the bottle in the refrigerator with
the takeout containers.

So much for her careful, detailed plan. Now she didn’t even
know what to do. She headed back into her bedroom, trying to sort through her
options.

She’d been planning to change into something pretty, but
that would just be strange now. Instead, she put on a pair of soft leggings and
a thin sweater that clung to her body, making her look like she had more curves
than she actually did. At least she looked nice in it, and it was as casual as
Nick’s dinner evidently was.

When she stepped out of her bedroom, she sniffed the air.
“Nick?” she called. “Is something burning?”

“I don’t think so.” She was surprised to hear his voice
coming from behind his closed bedroom door.

“Are you sure? It smells like smoke or something.”

She waited at his door until he swung it open. He sniffed
the air too, frowning when he must have smelled what she’d smelled. He strode
back to the living area quickly.

Jenn followed him, her eyes widening as she saw that he’d
started to make a fire in the fireplace while she was changing clothes. “What
are you doing?” she asked. “I don’t even know if that thing works.”

“Why wouldn’t it work?” he grumbled, hurrying over. The fire
hadn’t really started, but there was smoke wafting out from it.

“I don’t know. Shouldn’t they be cleaned and stuff before
they’re used? Why were you even making a fire? It’s not that cold tonight.”

“I know it’s not cold.” He sounded almost grumpy as he poked
at the fire, but that only made more smoke come out.

“Damn it.” Jenn looked at the smoke for a minute and then
ran toward the windows. “We better open these before the fire alarm goes off.”

“It’s not going to go off.” Nick was scowling at the
fireplace, more bad tempered than she would have expected from such a minor
thing. “I’m sure I can get this thing working.”

“Please don’t even try. The alarms in this building are
interconnected. If one goes off, they’ll all go off, and the entire building
will have to be evacuated.” For the first time, she looked around the room and
saw that he’d set up a small table, complete with white table cloth, crystal
glasses, her best china, and lovely peonies in a vase.

She froze, staring at it. Then looked back at the fire.
“What’s going on here?”

“The damned fireplace isn’t working,” he grumbled. “I better
get a fire extinguisher before everyone in the building hates us.” He hadn’t
turned around, so he hadn’t noticed her expression.

“Why did you fix that beautiful table?” she demanded. Then
her eyes found a silver ice bucket in which was chilling a bottle of champagne,
even better than the bottle she’d bought herself.

She gasped, her hand moving up to her chest. “Nick?” she
asked, her voice wobbling slightly.

Her tone caught his attention, and he turned to look at her.
His face softened at her dazed expression. “I was fixing dinner,” he said, his
voice slightly thick.

“Dinner?”

“I wanted it to be special.” He glanced down at himself, half
wryly and half self-consciously.

Her eyes followed his gaze, and she realized he’d changed
pants. The ones he was wearing were still flannel pajama pants, but they were
new and black with a repeated pattern in the shape of two rings.

Wedding rings.

She gasped again, her eyes flying up to confirm what must be
happening.

He gave a little shrug. “I thought tonight was the night.”

She choked on the emotion rising in her throat. “I thought
tonight was the night too.” She ran over to her purse and pulled out the box in
which she’d put his ring. “I was going to give it back to you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

They stared at each other, lost in deep emotion, until they
were distracted from their sappy daze by the blaring of a fire alarm. First
theirs. Then the alarms in the hallway. Then all over the building.

Nick groaned and ran to the kitchen to pull the fire
extinguisher out from under the sink, where they kept it. He sprayed down the
fireplace, effectively killing the fire, but it was too late to get the fire
alarms to go off.

Jenn had been looking out the window at the sidewalk in
front of their building. “Everyone is already leaving. I think the fire trucks
are even going to come.”

With another groan, Nick grabbed his phone and then reached
for her hand. “I’ll see if I can call them and tell them not to. Shit, everyone
is going to hate me.”

“Yes, I’m definitely going to tell everyone it’s your fault
and not mine. We better turn off the stove, or that’s going to burn and make
everything worse.”

So they headed downstairs, the alarms still blaring, and
Nick was talking to someone at the fire station when the first fire truck
pulled up to the curb.

By that point, Jenn had resigned herself to a big scene, and
that was definitely what it was.

Despite Nick’s assurances that everything was fine and it
was all his fault, the firefighters made them all wait outside until they’d
checked out the building.

Nick sighed as he and Jenn stood on the sidewalk.

Jenn was trying not to giggle.

“Go ahead,” he said, narrowing his eyes at her. “Mock me all
you want.”

“Why were you even building a fire?”

“I thought we could burn our marriage contract,” he
admitted, taking both of her hands in his. “I’d printed out a copy.”

She gasped, torn between amusement and tenderness. “Really?”

“Yeah. I had it all planned out.”

“I had it planned out too, but my plan didn’t include a
visit from the firemen.”

“Mine didn’t either.” His eyes were softening as he gazed
down at her face.

She leaned closer to him. “Where did you find those pants?”

“Online. Do you like them?”

She giggled. “They’re certainly better than your collection
of ancient ones.”

“Don’t mock the pants. I know you secretly like them.” He
leaned down to kiss her and then reached his hand into his pocket.

When he pulled his hand out again, he was holding her
wedding and engagement rings. “I know this isn’t turning out to be a romantic
evening, but I’ve got something to give you anyway.”

She almost lost her breath at the look in his eyes. “I want
you to give them to me,” she whispered. “I don’t care what the evening turned
into.”

“I love you, sweetheart. I’ve loved you for a long time. I
didn’t mean to. I didn’t want to. But now I don’t know how I ever lived without
loving you the way I do. I want to be able to love you forever.” Nick slid the
rings onto the finger of her left hand, his eyes holding hers with a look full
of such love there was no way for her to misinterpret it.

She was tearing up slightly when she took his hand then and
retrieved his wedding ring from the box she still held. She slipped it onto his
finger too. “I love you too. With everything I have in me to love. I didn’t
think it was possible, but I know you’re never going to walk out on me. I trust
you, Nick.”

The words meant something to him. She could see it on his
face.

And she didn’t care if they were standing on the sidewalk,
surrounded by their annoyed neighbors and disapproving firefighters and any
number of cars who’d been trapped by the trucks. She didn’t care that none of
her plans for the evening had worked out in any way or that Nick was wearing
the most ridiculous pajama pants she’d ever seen.

She loved him, and she wanted to be married to him for the
rest of her life.

And she knew—without fear or hesitation—that Nick wanted
that too.

***

If you enjoyed Married by
Contract, you might check out the excerpt from A Princess Next Door, which features
Jack Watson and can be found on the following pages.

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