I’m sure of, Claire, is that this is right.’
Something deep down told him that. He convinced himself it was the same instinct that had made him a success and kept him that way in business.
Claire slid into the seat across the desk from him, crossed her long legs, and reached for the documents. Her hands were shaking, he noted. ‘Don’t we need a marriage celebrant or a justice of the peace present for something like this?’
‘We do.’ He pressed a button on his phone system. ‘Would you send the Reverend up, please?’
‘You already had him here? How long…’ She cleared her throat as she flicked through the prepared sheets. ‘How long does it take to give notice that you plan to marry?’
‘A month and a day.’ He had investigated this marriage idea from all angles before he approached her. Could tell her anything she wanted to know about it. He couldn’t explain his sense of eager expectation, though, other than to put it down to the kind of feeling he got when he was approaching the closure of a particularly important deal. ‘If I had to I could get it back to a week, or even a day.’
Claire looked first shocked, then nervous. ‘Oh.’
Nicholas spotted movement beyond the door, and rose swiftly to usher the middle-aged cleric into the room. ‘Thank you for waiting, Reverend. We’re set to go ahead now.’
He introduced the man, then indicated the top form in front of Claire. ‘Can you type your details straight in, Claire? We’ll take care of the rest in a moment.’
‘Yes, of course.’
It was a short time only before she returned to them.
Once the details were covered, and a time agreed for the ceremony, the Reverend stood to take his leave. Nicholas wasn’t interested in bandying pleasantries now that their business was over, and the man seemed to sense that.
‘If you have any questions, or would like to discuss anything further,’ the Reverend said, ‘I’m more than willing to make myself available. Otherwise, please contact me when you’re ready to talk about the style of marriage service, and so on.’
After the Reverend had left, Claire turned to Nicholas. Her smile seemed forced. ‘What church is he from? I would have thought most places would be booked up at least a year in advance.’
He named the denomination, and shrugged. ‘I give financial support to the charitable arm of that particular organisation. I didn’t ask about their booking schedule, but obviously our request wasn’t a problem for him. I’ve booked the church, however, if you don’t want to marry there, we can move it to a court house.’
The thought of marrying her in that clinical environment bothered him. He shook the feeling off. Of course it made no difference.
‘Oh, no. The church is fine. I have…no objection to traditional weddings.’ She glanced at her desk. ‘Was there anything else before I get back to work?’
‘Lunch with the Forresters at one p.m. And buzz through to John Greaves and tell him I want his progress report on the Campbell job right away.’ A sense of relief crept through him. ‘Choose a nice place for lunch with the Forresters,’ he added. ‘Then phone the wife to line it up. They’ll be en route somewhere up the coast at this moment, in their yacht, but you have her cellphone number on file. If they’re running late, we’ll do dinner tonight instead.’
‘I’ll get right on it.’ She turned to leave, giving him a glorious view of the stretch of her skirt across the trim expanse of her buttocks as she moved.
‘Oh, and Claire?’
‘Yes?’
‘I’ll want you with me. So organise a temp from downstairs to cover in your absence, and to help with any catching up later.’
He smiled—pleased with her, pleased with his plans. Pleased that from now on Claire would be spending a great deal more of her time in his company. It would be…fun. He frowned a little, then gave himself a mental shake.
‘In fact, put someone on standby to help out whenever we want for the rest of the week. I may decide to take you out with me at other times as well.’
She inclined her head. ‘As you wish.’
He paced towards her. For a moment, awareness and anticipation were revealed clearly on her face. She expected him to kiss her, and her gaze softened, igniting a responding something in him.
Nicholas pushed the reaction down. Did she want him to seal their marriage agreement in the traditional way? In the way romantics dreamed of? He wouldn’t do that. He would kiss Claire when he chose, for his own reasons. But he knew it would be soon. Very soon. He stopped abruptly, several steps away.
‘Don’t you want to ask me about the future of your position with the firm? You seemed very interested in it earlier.’
Her gaze flew to his and locked there. ‘I don’t want to give up this job.’ For a moment she looked panicked, but then she stuck her chin out in clear challenge. ‘Despite my eminent replaceability, which you’ve made more than clear, I happen to like my role as your assistant. I even believe I do it rather well.’
She was good at her job. She’d been very efficient, these past months, while Janice recovered from her car accident that had almost killed her. Had he threatened Claire with a return to the clerical pool simply to make her agree to marry him? He didn’t want to think he could be that calculating, but was there a tiny possibility?
No. Only desperate people behaved that way, and Nicholas Monroe didn’t get desperate. He hadn’t done so when his middle-aged assistant had almost up and died on him, and he certainly wasn’t desperate about Claire, either. She suited his purposes, that was all. He thrust the thoughts from him.
‘Then you stay on.’ At least until they married. For one thing, he wanted her where he could see her, touch her, whenever and however he pleased. She would have to get used to that, to accepting his acts of possession. ‘I think that will work very well.’
‘I…uh…’ She cleared her throat. ‘Okay.’
He let his gaze wander blatantly over her, his desire a blaze that heated his skin, that made him prickle and itch beneath the conservative constraints of the suit. Sex and companionship. That was what they would share.
It would be a good marriage. A smart one. Between two well-suited people. ‘We’ve discussed this enough for now. Let me know if there are any problems arranging our lunch with the Forresters.’
‘I will.’ She gave a cool nod and tucked a stray wisp of hair behind her left ear, but a pulse beat sharp and strong at the base of her throat.
She wanted him as much as he wanted her, and the thought pleased him. Immensely. This was what it was all about. ‘Thank you, Claire. That’s all for now.’
‘Okay.’ A cautious smile touched her full lips. Her mouth was unconventionally wide, her nose slightly too strong to meet the stereotype of typical femininity. He rather liked both aspects. He also liked it when she smiled for him.
Smile, pant, gasp. He wanted it all—and why not? She would soon be his wife.
Nicholas
