The Boss's Fake Fiancee (15 page)

Chapter Seventeen

Garth cracked open one eye. White light stabbed him with its intensity, and he closed his eye just as quickly. Was it morning already? A quick squint at the clock beside his bed demonstrated that it was, indeed, nine o’clock. Meanwhile, sometime during the night a drummer had taken up residence in his head and even now was assaulting him with a relentless pounding.

Cautiously, he surveyed his body. He was still wearing his dress shirt and pants from the day before. A cup of water sat on his bedside table. Two small white pills lay beside the cup. He checked the tiny letters on the white surface and realized that some kind soul had anticipated his pain and left him some aspirin. He took the pills and drank deeply from the glass, but it did little to erase the feeling that someone had shoved a wad of cotton in his mouth. He felt…hung over.

Hung over?

If he focused hard enough—which, he discovered, was an extremely painful undertaking—he could conjure a vague memory of a bottle of Glenfiddich whisky, his study, and a woman helping him to his bed.

That was it. No idea when he’d started drinking, though the why of it returned a few minutes later.

Melissa. Her parents. Two brothers. The world’s worst brunch.

He groaned. Why had he ever agreed to meet them? He should have simply put his foot down and refused. Small social engagements were always a disaster. The pressure of the unexpected hug, the enforced social laughter, and the need to conjure up some sort of playful, entertaining façade was simply too much for him.

He rolled back into the pillow. He must truly be losing his mind, because he thought he smelled a hint of her perfume. He wondered if she’d ever speak to him again.

Hopefully not.

No, scratch that. They needed to keep up the charade for another couple of days. Natalie Orelian had agreed to meet with him on Tuesday morning to discuss investment terms. As soon as the contract was signed, they could call this whole thing off.

Any way you looked at it, he needed to extricate himself from this whole painful situation. As soon as possible.

…

“Are you sure you aren’t getting cold, Nan?” Melissa asked. She picked up the small rubber ball Han Solo had deposited at her feet and tossed it into the yard. The tiny dog raced after it. Chewbacca raised his head for just a moment before settling back into Nan’s lap with a sigh. Luke sniffed around in the grass a few feet away.

“That nurse put so many blankets on me you’d think I was getting ready to go climb Mt. Everest.” Nan wore a thick fleece bathrobe, and had two blankets draped across her lap. Her face looked pale and drawn, and she still coughed more than Melissa would have liked, but a twinkle in her eye and relaxed breathing seemed to signal improving health. “Besides, Chewy is keeping me warm.”

Melissa smiled. “No one wants to see you catch a chill.”

Nan coughed into the back of her hand. Melissa was relieved that the sound didn’t reverberate through her body the way it had when they’d first met.

Han deposited the ball back at her feet and sat down expectantly, his tongue lolling out of his mouth at a jaunty angle.

“How old are your dogs?” Melissa asked. “They seem like puppies.”

“Four years old,” Nan replied. “And really, they’re not mine. They belong to Garth.”

Melissa cocked her head. “That’s not what I heard. He said you rescued them.”

Nan laughed. “I rescued them,” she said, dabbing a handkerchief across her mouth. “Garth kept them.”

“What do you mean?”

“The puppies were in bad shape when I got involved, but we had any number of offers to give them new homes. Garth turned them all down. Once he gets attached to something, it’s hard for him to let go.”

“Like with me?” Jessalyn set down a tray that held a bowl of oatmeal, silver coffee pot, and variety of fruits on a table beside Nan’s wheelchair. She poured a cup of coffee for Nan, and one for Melissa.

Nan
tsk
ed. “Don’t underestimate yourself, Jessalyn.”

“When Nan brought me here,” Jess said to Melissa, “I was a horrible cook and a worse housekeeper. Garth kept me around because I needed help, not because I was good at my job. Now, at least, I make a damned fine cup of coffee. But I still burn his casseroles every now and then. Speaking of which, unless you need anything else, I should go see to dinner.”

Melissa shook her head. “I’m all set. Thank you, Jess.”

“Yes, thank you,” Nan said. “I promise to eat all my oatmeal.”

Jess gave her a mock glare. “You see that you do, young lady. I’ll be back to get your tray in a bit.”

Nan waited until Jess had disappeared back into the house before she continued. “Garth doesn’t open up easily, but when he does, he cares fiercely.” She smiled at Melissa. “But that’s not news to you, is it?”

Melissa shook her head, trying to mask the sudden rush of jealousy she felt for three little white dogs and pink-haired housekeeper. “I guess I’m a lucky girl.”

“Luck has nothing to do with it,” Nan said. “I wasn’t sure if he’d ever find someone to unlock that heart of his, but now that I’ve met you, Melissa, I’m not the least bit surprised he finally did.” She reached over and patted Melissa’s hand. “You know what a hard time he has opening up to people. Finding a woman he could trust is a blessing I wasn’t sure I’d ever see in my lifetime.”

“We still have our differences,” Melissa said, a shiver of guilt racing through her at Nan’s happy tone.

“Of course,” Nan said. “He’s a proud man, and he doesn’t like to admit when he’s wrong. You’ll learn to work through those things. It just takes time.”

Melissa sighed and leaned back in her chair. “How long were you married, Nan?”

“Sixty years.”

“What was your husband like?” Melissa asked. “If you don’t mind me asking.”

“Oh no!” Nan smiled. “Arthur was a lot like Garth. He worked too hard, and was a bit of a loner. He relied on me to set up all our social engagements. He always said that after he died, he’d wait outside the Gates of Heaven for me, so I could introduce him around.”

Melissa grinned. She could see Garth making a joke like that someday. If he ever did get married. “Garth said you spent a lot of time at Seesaw, because you had more of a community there.”

Nan stroked Chewy’s head. “I did, and I loved my friends in Essex. But the real reason we stayed there was that I didn’t think the city was a good place for a child to spend the summer. Whenever school was out I took his mother, and later Garth, to Seesaw. I wanted them outside, playing and swimming. Arthur wanted to be with us, but his job was very demanding. He always came out for the weekends, though, or sometimes even just for the night.”

“Were you happy?” Melissa asked. “It sounds like that could have been very lonely.”

“I was very lucky to be able to spend that time with my family. It was only hard after Garth’s parents died.” Her smile fell away. “I tried to arrange for him to have lots of camps and activities while we were there, but after the accident…well, it was a difficult time for both of us.”

“I’m sure it took a while to adjust to the loss.” Melissa pictured Howard Fendle teasing Garth at his most vulnerable moment in life, and her hands tightened into fists.

“It did. To be honest, I don’t know that Garth ever really recovered. He had always been a serious boy, but after the accident, things got so much worse. And nothing that woman suggested even came close to helping him with his…”

“Melissa? What are you doing here?”

She spun around guiltily, wishing desperately for Nan to finish her sentence, but then her heart lurched at the sight of Garth, framed by the patio doors. He wore reflective sunglasses that covered half his face, and his mouth was set in a thin, impatient line.

“Garth, that’s no way to speak to your fiancée!” Nan chided.

If anything, the line of his mouth grew even narrower. “I have a headache. Forgive me. I thought I dropped Melissa off at home yesterday. I’m surprised to see her here.”

He stalked over to them, radiating annoyance. Even Han seemed intimidated by Garth’s dour mood. The small dog approached his master slowly and immediately flopped onto his back in submission.

“I, ah…” Melissa fumbled for an excuse for her presence. She hadn’t considered the possibility that Garth would completely forget her arrival last night.

“I called her,” Nan supplied, coughing gently behind her hand. “I needed a little company.”

Melissa flashed her a surprised look. Did Nan know what had happened the night before? Jess could very well have filled her in this morning, though Melissa wondered if she would have revealed the extent of Garth’s inebriation.

“Is that right?” Garth raised an eyebrow over the rim of his glasses. “You just arrived this morning,
dear
? How exactly did you manage that?” He leaned over and pressed a kiss on her cheek. The icy touch made her shiver.

“Don’t be such a grump,” Nan said, brushing past his question. “I sent a car to pick her up.” She fixed him with a piercing stare. For once, Melissa could see how the two were related. “Do you have a problem with that?”

“Of course not,” he said after a pause. “It’s just a busy week. I’m surprised Melissa wanted to spend all that time in the car for a short visit. Or was she planning to take the day off from work and stay all day?”

Nan’s chin jutted out. “We’ve had a lovely visit already. I assumed you would take her with you into town.”

“Fine.” Garth’s words fell like individual icicles. “I’ll be leaving for the office in a few minutes. Melissa, are you ready to go?”

She nodded. Starting the morning driving to work with a pissed-off Garth wasn’t high on her to-do list. Then again, she’d lost control of that list long ago.

…

As soon as they pulled away from the house, Melissa braced for Garth to interrogate her about when exactly she’d arrived and why she had agreed to stay, but he didn’t. She wanted to rip the glasses from his eyes and demand that he talk to her, but by now she knew better than to try to budge him when he had made up his mind about something. So they rode in silence, and Melissa felt tears building up behind her eyes.

With every mile that passed, sitting beside him and feeling his presence became more and more painful. Because the moment she got into the car and looked at the unrelenting line of his jaw, and then at the shimmering aquamarine ring on her finger, she realized she’d done something stupid.

Something dumber than believing her noxious ex-boyfriend when he said he needed to pay an “emergency” visit to his computer lab at eight o’clock on a Friday night.

Something far more dangerous than making up a story about being involved with her notoriously reclusive boss.

She’d fallen for him. She’d fallen for Garth Solen.

They’d spent eighteen days together. He’d slid two different rings on her fingers, made love to her countless times, and gotten down on bended knee once.

The numbers meant nothing. The vulnerability in his eyes the day before, when he’d told her how he couldn’t handle making conversation at brunch, and the aching tenderness in the way he’d pulled her close last night, meant everything.

He had some feeling for her. She didn’t doubt that. Meeting her parents had been painful for him, and he’d wanted her with him last night to soothe that hurt. But Garth wasn’t like other men she’d known. No, his fear of getting close to people was as exceptional as his intellect. Getting past his defenses would require climbing barbed wire, digging under rock walls, and possibly setting off some dynamite. Then, if by some miracle she got inside, Melissa had little doubt that the door to his heart would be locked, and even he might not know where he’d hidden the key.

With a screech of tires, Garth tore into his parking space under the Solen Labs offices and finally removed his sunglasses. Melissa didn’t look him in the eye. Yesterday, he had held her close and kissed her like he never wanted her to leave. This morning, he might have been a contemptuous stranger.

“Don’t forget that the Autism Advocates auction is tomorrow,” he said, as they waited for the elevator upstairs. “We should arrive together. You can drive back to Scarsdale with me in the afternoon.”

She shook her head. “My mother arranged an appointment for me at a wedding dress boutique at three. I don’t know exactly when we will be done, but I know I won’t have time to travel to Scarsdale. You can just pick me up at my apartment.”

He rocked back slightly on his heels, but otherwise did not react. “For your sake, I suggest you do not put down a deposit.”

Her temper flared. “Thanks for the tip. Because, you know, I was considering it.”

“I’m only trying to be fair. You were getting awfully cozy with Nan this morning and I didn’t want you to get any ideas. Just because you found a way into my house doesn’t mean you’ll find a way to stay there permanently, you know.”

The elevator doors opened and he gestured for her to enter. She stomped inside, fists clenched. “If by that you mean that you think I’m using your grandmother in some kind of Machiavellian quest for your hand in marriage, think again.”

“Yesterday, I left your place alone,” he pointed out. “This morning, I woke to find you in my garden. Forgive me for jumping to conclusions.”

“And of course, it never occurred to you that the mighty Garth Solen might have wanted me around while he drank himself into a stupor.”

They both froze. Melissa was horrified by her own words. Garth had clearly not expected her to say anything of the kind.

“What are you trying to suggest?” he asked, his words taut with composure. “That I called you?”

“No,” she said. “You didn’t call me. Forget it.”

He shook his head. “How did you know I’d been drinking? Who called you? Was it Nan?” He paused, and Melissa could almost see the puzzle pieces coming together in his head. “Jess called you, didn’t she?”

“It doesn’t matter. I was worried about you after you left.”

Garth swore. “That’s a load of crap. What happened last night? I don’t remember anything.”

The doors opened with a soft ping. Melissa ignored the urgency in Garth’s tone and walked into the office lobby. The front desk receptionist, a friendly young woman with white-blonde hair and thick German accent, waved. “Good morning, Mr. Solen. Ms. Bencher.”