Unexpected Marriage (6 page)

“Are you alright?”

Jerked out of thought by Jake’s mother Kaycee turned her wide startled eyes to her unaware of how pale she had become.

“What? Yes… no… I…” she said unable to form a coherent thought.

“You look a little pale dear,” his mother said kindly and Kaycee struggled to summon a smile as she took slow breaths.

“I’m suddenly feeling ill, would you mind if I used your bathroom?” Kaycee asked as a sense of nausea filled her.

“Of course, it’s up the stairs second on the left.”

Kaycee turned and followed the directions as she struggled to keep her breakfast down and her mind continued to focus on just one thing.

Pregnant!

She knew of course that it wasn’t likely. She had only known Jake three days and even though she had been a virgin Kaycee knew that it took weeks before you could even tell let alone be feeling any symptoms. And yet just the fact that she knew they hadn’t been using protection was enough to panic her.

Reaching the bathroom after what felt like forever Kaycee closed the door carefully behind her and collapsed back against it. Her heart was hammering in her chest so hard she thought it might burst out and all because his mother had mentioned babies.

“You are not pregnant.” she said firmly as she crossed to stand in front of her reflection noting the paleness of her skin and the way her eyes now looked like giant green pools on her small face.

But you could be,
her reflection mocked and she narrowed her eyes at herself.

“It’s only been three days, you can’t get pregnant that quick!” Kaycee told herself firmly trying hard to believe it.

You could be carrying his baby right now

“That’s ridiculous, I would know!” Kaycee told herself even as one hand crept to her belly as though trying to protect the imaginary life inside her.

Would you?

“Shit!”

Kaycee knew she was being ridiculous thinking like this but she couldn’t help herself. She had always been the one to see the bad outcomes in life. She had a negative outlook on life her father had always said and he was right. It didn’t matter how likely it was that she wouldn’t be pregnant; Kaycee would focus on the one small chance that she was. It had been the same growing up, like when she had been learning to ride a bike and had been convinced that she would fall off and hurt herself. Her stepmother had insisted she was being foolish while her father said she was more likely to slip in the shower than seriously hurt herself on her bike. Yet Kaycee hadn’t been able to think of any other outcome than her getting hurt. She might have been convinced that she was imagining things had she not been knocked off her bike the following week by a car and broken her arm in two places.

“This is not like the bike. You are not pregnant!” she told herself squeezing her eyes tightly shut as though that would block it out.

“Kaycee?”

Crap! Here she was telling herself not to be so damn negative and Jake was standing right outside, probably listening to every word.

“Coming!” she called in a strangled voice that did not sound like her own.

Hurrying over to the door she drew a deep breath then drew back the lock and opened it to find Jake staring down at her with a concerned look on his handsome face that had butterflies floating in her stomach.

“Are you okay? Mom said you’d had a funny turn,” he said tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ears.

“I’m fine, just felt sick all of a sudden. But I’m fine now,” Kaycee explained while she kept a cautious eye on his face wondering if he had heard her conversation with herself but his expression didn’t change and he didn’t seem to be acting any different.

“Are you sure you’re alright now?” he asked and she nodded.

“Absolutely.” Kaycee assured him with a bright smile that she hoped would make him forget the whole thing.

Jake stayed there a moment or two longer as he examined her face as though searching for the lie in her words but when he didn’t find anything he pulled her close against him with a sigh.

“If you don’t feel you can make it through lunch with my parents we can go now,” he said and Kaycee hesitated. On the one hand she really did need time to make sense of everything including her feelings about Jake and the possibility of a baby, but on the other she didn’t want to disappoint his parents who really did seem like nice people.

“I’ll be fine and besides your mother hardly gets to see you as it is,” she told him firmly and Jake gave a short laugh as he bent his dark head and captured her lips in a brief kiss that teased of things to come.

“Then we should get back down there. I wouldn’t want to be accused of neglecting my poor mother,” Jake said as he pulled away and Kaycee smiled back at him.

The rest of the day went quickly and Kaycee found that Jake’s parents really were amazing people. His father, Harry, while obscenely rich hated having to put the hours in to stay that way and was looking forward to the day he could hand the reigns over to his son. He much preferred spending time with his wife and travelling the world helping those less fortunate though the cottage was home and he wouldn’t give it up for anything.

Jake’s mother, Helen, loved gardening and spent as much time as she could in hers although that time was rare since she was involved in so many charities that Kaycee lost count though the way Helen spoke about them it was clear that each one was dear to her heart. She too couldn’t wait for her husband to retire so they could finally spend some time on just them.

Strangely enough even with all the talk of Jake one day taking control of the family business there was no mention of the deal he and his father had made. There was also no mention of their surprise wedding or any talk about her future as Jake’s wife. It was very disconcerting as Kaycee had been expecting to fend off talk of the wedding all night but she decided that Jake’s parents were just too polite to bring it up and so she too kept quiet about it and was actually disappointed when the night drew to a close. Although Jake didn’t seem to feel the same as he rushed her out the door barely giving her time to say goodbye.

Jake breathed a sigh of relief once they were finally in the car. Tonight had been torture for him. He had taken Kaycee there so his parents could meet the woman he was going to be spending his life with and she had charmed them as much as she had him.

When he had sent her out in to the garden with her mother Jake had taken the opportunity to tell his father he could stick his ultimatum, as there was no way that Jake would marry simply to get the company. He didn’t mention that he was already married. Kaycee had been right earlier that if he told her father then they had nothing because he was only using her. He didn’t care about the company any more. He only wanted his wife!

Despite telling his father that he didn’t want the company if it meant being forced in to marriage it didn’t stop his parents from dropping hints all through dinner about retiring and handing the reigns over to him. All accompanied by pointed looks at Kaycee who they had already hinted would be perfect for him. It had taken all his strength not to tell them the truth but he wanted to share the news with them when Kaycee was ready and when they knew where they were and what they felt.

He had never been so glad to get away from his parent’s house and he was determined that the next time he spoke to them he would know exactly what this marriage of his was and how Kaycee felt about it.

It was time they had a good talk and sorted things out, once and for all!

“We’re here.”

Kaycee dragged herself out of sleep and glanced blearily out the window giving a gasp of surprise when she found herself looking out at her own apartment.

“You bought me home?” she asked him startled to find those dark eyes watching her intently.

“We need to talk Kaycee and I figured you would be more comfortable here,” he explained and her heart melted a bit at the consideration he was giving to her. With a nod of consent she let him lead her from the car and up the steps to her small apartment though she had never before realized just how cramped it really was until now.

After letting him in to her apartment Kaycee went straight to the kitchen to make a drink, needing to do something to keep herself busy. Jake seemed to understand that as he followed her in and stood quietly watching her make coffee.

“You wanted to talk?” she prompted a moment later and he frowned as he thought of the best way to say what he had to.

“We need to talk about what exactly we are Kaycee,” he informed her and she frowned.

“What we are?”

“I want to be your husband and I want us to be happy and have a family together and grow old together. But I don’t want all that if you’re going to be miserable. I just want to know if you would be willing to give us a chance,” he explained and Kaycee chewed nervously at her lip as she thought it through.

Now that he wasn’t being so forceful and pushing the issue she realized that she felt something for him and she wanted to find out what it was and where things were going. But she did have her life here to consider and it was true that it would all change dramatically if she stayed with him.

It just couldn’t work between two people so different. Could it?

“I want to see if we can make this work, but I don’t see how it can,” Kaycee admitted as she poured them both a coffee and Jake sighed.

“It might take a bit of compromise but I swear I will make the effort to make our marriage work if you can do the same,” he replied and Kaycee really thought about what it was she wanted.

It may only have been three days since they married but honestly she wasn’t sure she could carry on with her life as though he had never existed, and wasn’t sure that she would want to.

“I could try, but you have to realize that I have a life and a job.” Kaycee said wanting him to realize how important her work was to her.

“You don’t need to work,” he answered sounding so set upon it that for a second she thought he would refuse to even listen to her.

“I may not need to Jake, but I want to. I enjoy my job and I like knowing that I’m helping people,” she told him fiercely while her eyes flashed with emotion as she spoke.

“And what happens if we have children?” he asked making her stomach flutter as her earlier thoughts rushed back.

“We would decide what to do when the time came,” she answered for she barely knew what she was going to be doing tomorrow let alone in months or years.

“Okay,” he said finally accepting that she needed a life too and Kaycee stared at him wondering if he had really agreed to her request or if she was imagining things.

“I think we need to take a step back though Jake!” Kaycee insisted and Jake frowned at her.

“Take a step back?” he repeated and she nodded slowly.

“We rushed in to this Jake, we need to take a step back and get to know each other without feeling pressured in to something we’re not ready for,” Kaycee explained as she thought back to Rob and how she had known him for years and not felt ready to marry him yet she was rushing in to all that without a thought now.

“I wonder if maybe we would be better staying apart for a few days and seeing if we still feel the same,” she suggested and he tensed.

“No.” he refused immediately and Kaycee stared at him incredulously.

“Just no?”

“I think you’re right that we do need to get to know each other better but I am not convinced that staying apart is the answer,” he explained and she sighed for it was clear that they would not be seeing eye to eye on this.

“I’m tired Jake and I’ve had enough for one day. How about we sleep apart tonight and decide what to do tomorrow?” she asked and he hesitated clearly torn before he finally nodded and turned to go.

Following him to the door Kaycee expected him to storm out in a temper but instead he stopped and turned to her with a light smile on his lips.

“I won’t be driven away,” he murmured an instant before he captured her lips in an evocative kiss that drove her senses wild and made her long to take the words back and ask him to stay.

Then as suddenly as the kiss had begun it was over and he was gone leaving her to close the door and lean wearily against it more confused than ever about what it was she wanted.

Kaycee awoke suddenly with her heart beating fast as she glanced around wondering what was making her feel so lost. Her gaze settled on the emptiness of the other side of her bed and she relaxed back with a glance at the clock.

It was only 5am, which meant that she’d had all of two hours sleep. How was it that after three days with Jake she could barely function alone? Normally she had no trouble sleeping but tonight she’d laid there for hours trying to sleep, shifting position to get comfortable and finding that sleep was never further away and now here she was wide awake and wishing he was there beside her.

“Dammit!” she swore as she shifted position once again but to no avail and with a growl of frustration Kaycee threw back the covers and jumped out of bed. Maybe a bit of exercise would help her relax, she decided and after dressing hurriedly she left the apartment to go for a run.

Jake had not had a good night!

He had decided that it would be a show of good faith for him to give his wife what she wanted but had regretted it almost immediately after leaving her. It had led to an almost sleepless night and he had awoken wishing she was beside him.

Now here he was at her father’s house to sign over some money to save his failing hotels and all he could think of was how much he was missing her. He didn’t think he had it in him to go another night without her and he really hoped that it wouldn’t come to that.

Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to see how she was this morning, maybe she had rethought this whole staying apart thing.

Making the decision Jake grabbed his phone before he could change his mind and called her just wanting to hear her soft voice.

The phone rang as Kaycee got out the shower and she raced in to the hallway almost slipping on her hardwood floor before she grabbed it up.

“Hello?” she said sounding breathier than usual.

“Kaycee?” came the deep drawl from the other side and Kaycee felt a smile cross her face at the sound of his voice.

“Jake, what a surprise,” she said wishing more than ever that she hadn’t sent him away last night.

“I just wanted to see how you were. Did you sleep well?” he asked and she hesitated. Should she tell the truth and admit that she’d had the worst night’s sleep ever because she missed him too much or should she stick to her guns and stay it out hoping that tonight would be better.

“I slept fine. You?” she asked deciding that she didn’t want to admit defeat just yet.

“I missed you,” he murmured and Kaycee blushed as she thought about what they could have been doing right now instead of being miles apart and miserable.

“I missed you too. But I have to get to work so I’m going to have to see you later,” Kaycee replied as she glanced at the clock to discover that she was nearly late already.

“I’ll see you soon!” Jake promised and then all he heard was the dial tone as she left, presumably to get ready for work.

Well that hadn’t gone entirely to plan, he thought with a curse. She was supposed to be begging him to come back right now not moving on as though nothing had happened. How could she be acting so normal when he felt like his whole life had been turned upside down in the last few days?

Hell, here he was now giving money to a man that only days ago he had refused to even meet with let alone give help to. If it wasn’t for Kaycee he would never have been here helping a man that he knew would never have helped him. And the worst part of all was that he wasn’t even doing it because he something from her, he was just doing it because he didn’t want her to feel beholden to him in any way.

“Ah, Jakey, my boy!”

Jake winced at the excitement in the older man’s voice as he was greeted at the door of the mansion by the owner himself. A man that until a few days ago Jake had thought was a pompous ass with no care for anyone but himself. But as his father-in-law Jake guessed that he was supposed to see him in a new light.

“It’s good to see you again, sir!” Jake said trying to be respectful.

“I’m glad you changed your mind about investing. Like I said it’s a wonderful opportunity for you and I know that once my daughter’s future husband gets his hands on it he will make sure it becomes a great success,” Kaycee’s father said with a laugh causing Jake to frown.

“Kaycee’s future husband?” he asked and the old man gave a laugh.

“No, no. Sarah’s husband. You met the young man the other day I believe,” he said again with that booming laugh though Jake couldn’t have been further from laughter.

“That Rob guy?” Jake asked wondering how on earth this man expected someone like Rob to handle a hotel business when as far as Jake could see he had never before worked anywhere near one.

“Yes, brilliant mind has our Robert. Sarah will be well taken care of by him and I know that he will make an excellent provider for her,”

Jake couldn’t help his frown at this statement. It sounded to him like the man was willing to give away his hotels to keep Sarah in the lifestyle that she had become accustomed to yet he didn’t seem to share the same worries for Kaycee who was his only real child.

“What about Kaycee? Won’t she get any part of the hotels?” Jake asked wanting to know exactly where his wife stood in all this. But if he expected her father to care then he was in for a big disappointment.

“Kaycee? She’ll be fine. The girl always lands on her feet and to be honest she’s never really showed an interest in the hotel business or in men for that matter. She’ll be fine. Now about this contract….”

Jake had frozen from his first disregarding word out of the man’s mouth and now he realized just how little Kaycee’s family thought of her. How could he invest in their hotels when they couldn’t even be concerned about his wife’s future?

“I don’t think I will be signing those documents after all,” Jake said suddenly as he decided that his wife deserved better than these people who would take advantage of her good nature.

“But Jakey, we agreed.”

“That was before I realized who I would be going in to business with,” Jake told him firmly before he turned and stormed from the house leaving her father staring after him in shock.

It was as he was leaving that he got another shock when he found Sarah leaning against his car, it looked like she had been waiting for him but Jake decided to give her the benefit of the doubt.

“Hi Jake, fancy seeing you here.” She purred as he approached and Jake bit back a sigh of frustration.

“Hey, I was just leaving. So, if you wouldn’t mind…” he said indicating that she should move only she stayed right where she was.

“You know my mom was right, you really are more handsome up close,” Sarah said as she reached forward to stroke a hand down the front of his suit jacket.

“Hey, you know your sister. What was she called again Kayleigh?” he asked wanting information but not wanting to give away his association and he was glad he hadn’t when Sarah’s eyes narrowed.

“Kaycee and what about her?” she asked folding her arms over her chest while Jake shrugged.

“I remember her saying something about working somewhere charitable and was thinking I might donate some money. Where was it she worked?” he asked trying his best to sound innocent but clearly not innocent enough.

“Rosmand’s home for the elderly. But I hope you don’t have a little crush on our CeeCee. She’s got a boyfriend you know.” Sarah said and Jake froze in his tracks.

“Pardon?”

“Oh yeah, Dave. They’ve worked together for five years now and been together that long too. That’s why Rob dumped her. He found out she was planning on sleeping with Dave. Of course she tells it a different way but we all know the truth,” Sarah said slyly and Jake’s eyes narrowed.

Kaycee wouldn’t lie to him would she?

Certainly she had been eager to get back to work but she had never mentioned any other man and she had been thinking about having a real marriage with him. So why would she have lied to him for another man?

“So if you fancy getting coffee sometime…” Sarah said with a flick of her hair and a huge smile that he completely ignored.

“I have to go!” he said in a rush as he moved her out the way and drove off determined to get to the bottom of this.

Kaycee was exhausted!

It was hard enough working here when she’d had a full night’s sleep and was feeling on top of her game but today with only two hours sleep and feeling a wreck it was torture. And to top it all off she’d come on her break only to get a call from her dad who was devastated. Apparently Jake had been all set to invest in the hotels then for no reason had just walked out.

It made her blood boil to think about it for it was clear that he was only doing this as a warning to her. Do things his way or her family would be the ones to suffer. Honestly it was a wonder she was surviving the day.

“Hey Kaycee, I’ve got amazing news!” Dave said as he appeared in their staff room and she turned to observe him with a ready smile.

Dave had been her best friend at the home since he had started five years ago and he always had a flair for the dramatics. She put that down to him being gay but since she was one of the few he had told she doubted many others did.

“And that would be what? That you finally found someone who could actually cut your hair without destroying it?” Kaycee asked referring to Dave’s habit of firing each hairdresser because they couldn’t get his locks the way he wanted them.

“Funny, but no. I’m getting married,” he said and Kaycee sighed.

“I didn’t realize this was old news,” she informed him for Dave had been engaged as long as she had known him but had still not set the date and hardly anyone at the home knew that Charlie was actually a guy.

“Kaycee, I told my parents and I’m getting married.” He told her and she stared at him in shock. The one thing that had been preventing him from getting married was that he wanted his parents there for the wedding but was afraid to tell them that he was really gay.

“Oh my god. How did it go?” she asked cautiously but she needn’t have worried as a big grin crossed his face.

“Mom said she had known all along and dad was okay with it. I can’t believe it Kaycee. I’m really getting married,” he said and Kaycee grinned back at him as she jumped in to his arms for a hug.

“Well, this is a cozy sight,”

Kaycee jumped and spun round to find Jake glaring at them with his eyes flashing furiously.