his ranch—a fine, working ranch. But, Lara, I intend for this deal to benefit the woman I marry, also.”
She gazed into eyes so dark they were almost black and knew that, whatever the outcome, she would remember this moment and what he had just said to her for the rest of her life. She had a feeling that her life might be about to change in a manner she had never envisioned. If she married him. She couldn’t imagine that happening.
“You and I are compatible,” he said. “We’re able to be together and we know we can work together. I want to help you in your endeavors and help you take care of your baby. I want to give you and your baby a great start in your new life. I want to give your baby security and legitimacy—my name. If you’ll marry me in this marriage of convenience, I’ll draw up the papers and give you two hundred thousand dollars when we marry and two hundred thousand when we divorce. After my grandfather is gone, I want us both free.”
“That’s staggering, Marc,” she whispered, so stunned by his offer that she could only stare at him. “That’s almost half a million dollars,” she whispered. “I can go to school and I won’t have to work in the office.”
“That’s right. As much as I hate to lose you as a secretary, I need you more in this.”
“But you go out and have women friends. Why are you asking me? We haven’t even dated.”
“This isn’t a marriage made from a romance. It’s a marriage of convenience and my grandfather just required that I live on the ranch for one year. When my grandfather is gone, I want to return to my single status—and I will,” Marc said, giving her a direct look that spoke volumes about his determination to do just that. “The women I take to parties and concerts and shows—I don’t think any of them would go into a marriage with the agreement that it would be over, maybe in several months.”
“I can see that,” she said without thinking, and his lips curved in a faint smile.
“You, on the other hand, have an agenda. You plan on medical school and you’ll have a baby. I think you’ll be willing to walk away from this when we divorce.”
“Will we...will we live as man and wife?” she asked. “Including sex?”
“If that’s your preference, yes, we can. If it’s not—and since this marriage is definitely temporary—I think we can manage. We did well working together for the past year. This should be even easier because we won’t see each other on a daily basis the way we have at the office. I still love and miss my wife. I’m not interested in a relationship.”
“I just broke an engagement and I’m not interested in one, either,” she said, her cheeks turning pink.
“Then that settles that question. We’ll continue in a friendly manner the way we did at the office. This way, we won’t have emotional complications,” he said, smiling at her, and she smiled in return. “It’s not something that can’t be changed if we decide we want to change it,” he added, and she nodded.
“Marc, I have to admit I’m stunned. I can’t believe what you’re offering.”
“Think about it, Lara. You’re alone now, but you won’t be if you take this offer. I can help you so you can take care of yourself and your baby, get that education you want so you can save some lives or help others in some way. You’ll be helping my mother and me get this inheritance. It’s mutually beneficial and I hope changes your life for the better.”
“Of course it will,” she answered. She stared at him and he gazed back in silence. Could she live under the same roof with him without falling into bed with him? Could she live with him and not get emotionally involved? He was a sexy, desirable man. And she knew he could do far more damage to her heart than she’d experienced this past year, and that had been terrible.
“Lara, I’m sure people at the office have talked to you about my wife. You’ve seen her picture on my desk. She was pregnant with our baby when she was killed in a plane crash after we had been married three months. We had been married three months, four days, fourteen hours to be exact.” He looked away, and when he talked, his voice was flat.
“I’m sorry, Marc, for your loss.”
“I loved her,” he said quietly, and Lara wondered if he had forgotten her presence and was caught in memories. She sat quietly as he drew a deep breath.
“Enough of that, except to say, I will not make this marriage permanent, nor will it become personal. I still love Kathy and miss her with all my being. I know I need to get over my loss, but that hasn’t happened and I want to be up front and honest with you.”
“I understand. My broken engagement hurt me and left me not trusting my judgment in men. I get it. But I also know you well, since we’ve worked closely together for the past year.”
“I want to help you, especially since you don’t have any family,” he said. “In addition to what I’ve offered, there are some other things.”
“There’s more?” she asked in surprise.
“Oh, yes. In addition to giving your child my name, I’ll set up a two-hundred-thousand-dollar trust fund for your baby.”
“Whoever agrees to this marriage will become wealthy. You’re willing to give me a fortune and my child your name?” she repeated, knowing she had to accept his offer.
“Yes, I am, because of what I’ll inherit from my grandfather. It’ll make his last days happier ones, and it will change my mother’s life for the better. And I hope it will change yours, as well.”
“That’s incredibly generous.”
“I’ll be on the ranch, but when the year is up, I’ll have someone else run the ranch and have a companion and help for my grandmother, and I’ll return to Dallas and the corporate world. I’ll retire later to the ranch.”
Still in shock, she sat quietly, her head spinning. “Marc, I can’t even absorb this. My life will change totally.”
“Yes, it will.” His hand tightened around hers. “Lara, I want the ranch and my grandfather’s inheritance, and I need this marriage. And I don’t want him to be unhappy in his last days. I love him,” Marc said gruffly, and impulsively, she squeezed his hand.
“I’m sorry. It hurts to lose someone you love. I know,” she said quietly.
She started to pull her hand away, but he held it. “You have soft hands,” he said quietly.
She realized they had been circumspect at the office, never even touching. But now his hand on hers was electrifying. For a moment she forgot his proposition, her dinner, everything else except his hand holding hers.
His gaze met hers. “We’ve worked together well. We can do this. Your engagement is broken. You have your plans for your future. We can help each other.”
Her insides trembled again. She was intensely aware of him, yet still trying to grasp the amount of money that could be hers if she accepted his offer. The temptation was great to accept instantly, yet years of caution and self-control caused her to remain silent.
“I’m surprised I didn’t faint. I have to think about this.”
“How many times in your life have
