Truly Madly Deeply Boxed Set (30 page)

“Okay, then. Let’s eat and help you plan. After all, you’ve only got three weeks left until the big day.”

“Later. Right now I just want to relax.” She busied herself loading up two plates with food, setting one down in front of Mike and refilling the champagne glasses.

For the next hour, he amused her with tales about his less than glamorous assignments, some of the more squalid places he’d slept and the interesting people he’d met along the way. Though he hoped the stories would bring back a wave of nostalgia for the life he’d left behind, all he felt was an aching emptiness for all he lacked—and that, more than anything else, made him nervous.

He helped Carly clean up her living room and put the half-full bottle of champagne into the fridge. Since she’d had one glass and he’d shared a fair amount himself, he realized Carly’s earlier fit hadn’t been made while drunk. It had been made while hurt and angry at his insensitive brother. Mike’s hands clenched into fists at his sides.

While she replaced what appeared to be volumes of magazines on top of her cocktail table, Mike indulged his curiosity. He examined the wall of bookshelves, astounded at the number of self-help books crammed into the narrow space. Then he appraised the apartment with a photographer’s eye. Moonlight filtered in through a bay window, catching vibrant colors in its wayward beams. The oversized recliner matched the comfortable sofa and picked up the pale pink shade on the walls.

Organization offset by plush comfort. Everything said
touch me
. Nothing had the stark, hands-off feeling of Pete’s apartment, a place where Mike slept but had yet to feel at home. That he did here didn’t surprise him. Shook him up some, but what was one more punch in the gut when everything around him seemed to be falling apart?

His career—hell, his life for that matter—was in shambles. This engagement between two polar opposites shouldn’t have any effect on him, yet he cared for both people involved... one of whom he’d known for one week. In three weeks he’d be her brother-in-law.

“Mike?”

Her light touch on his arm startled him. “Yeah?”

“Are you okay? You seem a little... I don’t know. Out there.”

He smiled. “I’m fine. And you ought to get some sleep.”

She nodded, watching him with those deep brown eyes as he headed for the door. He turned back to find her close behind him. Her scented perfume drifted around him, causing his body to stir in an unbrotherly way. Captured in a sensual haze, he remembered the moment she’d fixed his cummerbund, when her body had jerked against him. His hands had itched to cup her breasts, to pull her close and bury himself deep inside her. If not for the fact that they’d been in a public place, he would have.

No such restraints bound him now... but too many others did. They’d come too damn close. “Hell,” he muttered. He didn’t need this aggravation. Whatever happened to brotherly devotion? To loyalty?

He thought of Pete, who counted on this woman for all the wrong reasons. The only right one was love, something his sibling had instantly discounted. This entire situation was a mess Mike could do without. If he was smart, he’d forget he’d ever met Carly Wexler.

He looked into those bottomless eyes. He could no more forget her than he could fail to respond to the innocence in her gaze. Without conscious thought, he fingered her bangs. The strands felt like fine silk. He bent down and brushed his mouth across hers.

She tasted unique, sweet with a hint of champagne. His lips lingered for a second, pulling back before he lost control. “Take care, Carly.”

Forcing his feet to move, he turned and walked out without looking back.

* * *

With Mike gone, the apartment felt more like a lonely prison. She left the living room and headed for the safety of her bedroom. The one place in the small apartment Mike hadn’t marked with his presence.

She paused at the foot of her bed and glanced at the newspaper article she’d been reading earlier.
Looking for Mr. Right. Is Your Man the Man for You?
She shouldn’t have to wonder, and until the arrival of Peter’s wandering brother, she never had.

With Peter she’d looked forward to an uncomplicated, comfortable relationship.
Comfortable
being the important word. They shared the same ideals. Marriage, family and career, if not necessarily in that order. They shared the same circle of friends, courtesy of his working for her father. And though he was an attorney like Roger Wexler, she’d trusted that when he said he had to work late, she’d find him at the office, not in another woman’s bed.

Regina’s face came to mind and Carly pushed it aside. People who worked together often bonded. How could they not, with the amount of hours they spent together? But she and Peter shared something more important. The comfort factor she found so important had always been there, and
that
was something she could count on, and so could he.

She closed her eyes, but instead of her fiancé, Mike’s deep laugh, handsome face and well-honed body filled her mind. She touched her lips with her fingers. They tingled at the thought of Mike’s mouth on hers. Disgust filled her.

She’d come so close...

Close to following in her father’s footsteps.

How could she be so careless as to forget that passion destroys? She picked up the page and gazed at the article in her hand. No, Carly thought. She didn’t need to find Mr. Right. She already had.

For a brief second the sparkling diamond ring caught her eye. She was engaged to the right man. She had to be. With a sigh, she crumpled the article into a ball and arced it toward the center of the room.

Life was filled with compromise. So Peter wasn’t perfect. Neither was she. In an imperfect world, one made the best choices possible and honored one’s commitments. Unlike her father, Carly intended to live by those rules. Intense passion burned itself out fast. It meant little when compared to a lifetime.

Putting Mike out of her mind wouldn’t be easy, but it was necessary. Yet how could she do that with him helping her out at every turn, being so damn nice when Peter all but ignored her, and just being... Mike.

* * *

Mike stretched his arms over his head. He’d hit the sack early, but the hours he’d spent tossing and turning in bed didn’t count. He hadn’t slept much or well and all because of Carly. And that told him that he had too much free time on his hands. So he decided to make some inquiries.

By late afternoon, he’d not only called in a few favors and arranged a Saturday afternoon meeting with the editor of the local paper, but he’d also secured the job. The guy was impressed with Mike’s credentials and portfolio of shots. He was as pleased to have Mike on board as Mike was to have a temporary job to occupy his free time.

Mike had never been one to sit idle while the rest of the world passed him by. On the plane ride home, he’d told himself that a temporary position would keep him from thinking too much, yet allow him time to sort out his future. His ultimate return had never been in question... he just wasn’t ready. Now, with the unexpected Peter and Carly saga, Mike felt more compelled than ever to stick around. The thought of Carly and his brother together turned his usually strong stomach.

So he was staying at least for a while. He’d make his own hours, giving him time to learn more about his brother’s soon-to-be wife. That thought alone should have sent him running for the first flight out of New York. Anywhere USA would work just fine. Unfortunately even the next town over would lack the presence of the bright lights and fast pace of New York. Lack the presence of one dark-eyed beauty who’d been haunting his dreams with more frequency than back-biting bullets and screaming children.

* * *

Carly approached the wedding band issue with bright-eyed optimism. After all, two people sharing a life together wanted to make each other happy. Standing in front of the jewelry store, it was hard not to remember her first meeting with Mike. But she pushed the memory aside. No point in looking to the past when she had a future to build.

She peeked into the window and the cramping in her stomach eased when she saw her favorite rings were still there. She placed a hand on Peter’s elbow. “Look,” she whispered, pointing to the simple wedding bands she’d chosen with Mike.

“They are nice,” he said. It sounded like a reluctant concession drawn from deep inside him. “But how would a ring like that look?” he asked, and she knew she was right.

“Beautiful?”

“Anything would look lovely on you. But people would think I couldn’t afford to get you something special.”

“Those are special.” She grit her teeth while she spoke. She knew she was being obtuse. For the first time she didn’t care.

He sighed. “Perhaps I didn’t explain that correctly.” He paused. “I’d like something with more... presence.” Silence followed while he perused the window display. He tapped the glass thoughtfully. “Something understated but designed to impress.”

“Like those?” Her voice lost any enthusiasm at all, but her fiancé, too caught up in his own needs, failed to notice.

“No... like... those!”

Carly cringed at Peter’s preference, a ring that glittered with diamonds and would overpower her small hand.

For someone loaded down with wedding books and bridal pictures, you’re giving up control of some major issues
. Had Mike been right? Was she too compliant? She shook her head. No! Peter’s reasons for wanting the more obvious rings had to do with his status and need to impress his colleagues. She understood. Mike didn’t.

Besides, what did the world traveler, a man incapable of sticking around longer than the next assignment know about commitment anyway?

But she and Peter did have conflicting desires. That much was true. She wanted the chance to convince Peter that commitment meant more to her than flashy rings and making a statement. That sentiment counted more than points scored with his colleagues.

As he grabbed her hand and pulled her into the store, Carly was determined to do just that.

* * *

“So did you two compromise on wedding bands today?” Mike took a sip of his Scotch and soda, ignoring Carly’s furious glare. He wondered from which parent she’d inherited those expressive eyes, then realized he’d find out soon enough.

“We chose the perfect rings,” his brother said, then turned toward the bar. “I’ll have the same and a glass of white wine for the lady.”

“Let me guess,” Mike said. “Two-toned platinum and gold by chance?”

“Actually...” Peter began.

“I didn’t like them as much once I saw them a second time. Peter picked out a pair that suited us much better,” Carly said, a forced smile on her lips.

Sure he did, sweetheart
. More likely her good nature had gotten lost in his brother’s well-meaning but overwhelming need to impress others. “Well, good. Because I’d hate to see a bride getting married with a wedding band she didn’t love. One she’d have to wear the rest of her life. That she’d compromised on...

“We get the picture,” she said through clenched teeth. “If you’ll both excuse me, I see some friends I’d like to say hello to.” She gave Peter a brief kiss on the cheek. A chaste kiss more suited to a friend of the family than her fiancé. What was it with these two? Mike wondered, and not for the first time.

“We’ll be here,” Peter said.

Mike merely shook his head, watching as Carly wound her way through the crowded club. Her black dress was simple yet clung to every curve. He gulped a mouthful of Scotch.

Peter rested one elbow on the bar. “Thanks for making it tonight. Wexler and Greene is a large firm, but they make it a policy to get to know their associates well.”

Mike suppressed a groan. “Marriage isn’t the same as a merger, Pete. Work probably has nothing to do with this dinner. You’re marrying the man’s daughter, for heaven’s sake.”

“What? You think by meeting you he’s checking me out?”

Mike shrugged. “Could be. Maybe he’s checking out the family, making sure Carly’s not getting stuck with the wrong sort of people.” He slapped his brother on the back. “At least you’re safe there. Two orphans with no family to speak of. I’d say the man doesn’t have much to concern himself with. How ‘bout you?”

A wry smile touched Peter’s lips. “True. So long as you’re on your best behavior, I’ll have no problem. And maybe the partnership will follow.”

“That’s what I love about you, Pete.”

“What’s that?”

“Nothing gets in the way of work.”

“Of course not.”

The insult obviously went over his brother’s head, but what could be expected from a man who took most things literally and only work seriously?

“Anyhow, I doubt Roger would check me out for Carly’s sake. Those two aren’t particularly close.”

Mike grabbed a handful of peanuts from a dish on the bar. “Why not?”

“Who knows? They do the father-daughter thing, but it’s mostly for show.” Peter rubbed his forehead with one hand. Finally he lifted his shoulders. “If Roger has any interest in me at all, it must be professional.”

Mike remained silent. The dynamics at work in these relationships went way beyond anything he’d seen before. He doubted things were as simple as Peter made them out to be. But he knew for sure Pete was oblivious to anything that concerned Carly and her family unless it affected his career.

If Mike was smart he’d take his cue from his self-centered brother. He downed the rest of his drink, knowing where Carly was concerned he was anything but smart.

* * *

A small band played in the corner of the darkened dining room. Mirrors lined the walls and reflected light gave the impression of a larger room than the otherwise intimate atmosphere implied. With Carly beside him, Mike found relaxing all but impossible. The sweet scent of her perfume had him on edge, shifting uncomfortably in his seat. More than once he’d jolted himself out of a sensual daydream that had her writhing with passion beneath him.

With her father on his left side and his brother seated to her right, fantasies involving Carly Wexler were not only disrespectful but downright wrong. Peter, oblivious to everything, had involved Anne Wexler in a discussion about attorneys and their wives.