One Bride: Baby Included. Doreen Roberts

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      Chapter Two

      George’s feeling of impending disaster intensified when he discovered that the apartment his mother had rented for Amy was directly opposite his own. The suspicion that had been hovering in the back of his mind leapt to the forefront. His mother was obviously trying to match him up with the brat. She had to be out of her mind. Well, this was one game she wasn’t going to win.

      Scowling, he waited while Amy excitedly unlocked the door to her new home. Trust his mother to put her nose in where it wasn’t wanted. All those warnings about being a gentleman. Hah! If she was using some kind of reverse psychology to provoke him into trying something just to rebel, she’d underestimated his intelligence.

      If Bettina thought, for one minute, he could ever be interested in a naive, tactless chatterbox like Amelia Richard, then she had bigger problems than he’d realized. It was bad enough he’d agreed to act as watchdog for a while. He’d be damned if he’d show the tiniest little bit of personal interest in Ben Richard’s daughter. There was a limit to the lengths he’d go to repay a debt.

      Not that he disliked Amy, of course. In fact, there had been an occasion or two in the car when he’d been momentarily charmed by her candid comments. She was so appreciative of everything, so refreshingly excited about seeing Portland for the first time.

      Most women he met weren’t that open. It was hard to tell when they were being sincere. He had never enjoyed playing those kinds of mind games, which was probably why he wasn’t in a relationship right now. Not that he wanted to be, of course.

      The door swung open and Amy beamed at him. “Aren’t you going to carry me over the threshold?”

      Taken aback, he stared at her, while his mind groped for a suitable answer.

      Her laughter pealed out, echoing down the hallway. “Don’t look so horrified, Georgie, I was only teasing.”

      He finally found his tongue. “I asked you not to call me by that name,” he said forcefully, but she’d already darted into the apartment. Gritting his teeth, he picked up the cases and followed her inside.

      The living room matched his own, except it was back to front, though the furnishings made it look different. The tweed couch and armchair looked comfortable enough, and a small dinette set sat in the tiny dining area. A washed-out seascape hung on the wall, and beige drapes hung at the window. Color, George thought absently. That’s what the place needed. And a television. He couldn’t imagine being without a television. He wondered if Amy was having one delivered with the rest of her belongings.

      She seemed thrilled with the drab-looking room, however. She flung out her arms and whirled around in a full circle. “Just look at this! Isn’t it super? I just love it. And it’s all mine.”

      “As long as you pay the rent, anyway.” George dropped the bags in the middle of the beige carpet. “Where do you want these?”

      “In the bedroom.” Amy danced across the room to the hallway. “Come on, it’s probably down here.”

      The last place on earth George wanted to be right then was in a bedroom with Amy. Nevertheless, he hauled the cases down the hallway, pausing outside the open bedroom door to dump the cases just inside.

      “Thank you, Georgie. You’re a sweetie.” Amy bounced up and down on a bare mattress. “Come and try this out. It feels so comfy. I’ll sleep as sound as a rock tonight.”

      George cleared his throat. “Amy, I have to insist. My name is not Georgie. I hate Georgie. You have to call me George.”

      She pursed her lips, and something stirred way down in his gut. “Well, I don’t like George, either. It sounds so pompous and stuffy.”

      She studied him while he stood there feeling a little like a giraffe on display in the zoo. Then she flicked her fingers at him. “I know! You’re a junior, aren’t you? I’ll call you J.R. It gives you a sort of sinister air, like the J.R. in Dallas. Real exciting.”

      She had an irritating way of tying his tongue up in knots. He untangled his thoughts. “You can’t be old enough to have watched Dallas.”

      “Of course I am! It was my favorite show.” She sent him that dazzling smile of hers.

      He caught a glimpse of small, very white, even teeth and the stirring in his belly struck again. “I imagine you’re tired after your long trip,” he said hopefully. “You must be ready to put your feet up.”

      Amy shook her head. He watched, fascinated, as her shiny auburn hair swung against her cheek. “Nope, I’m not tired. I’m too excited to be tired. I can’t wait to explore Portland!”

      Remembering his promise to Bettina, George almost groaned out loud. There went his relaxing weekends. Mountains, desert, gorge, beach, wineries—maybe if he crammed them all into one weekend and got it over with, that would be enough to satisfy his mother. Right now, though, he needed some time to prepare himself for the ordeal.

      “Well, I have some errands to run.” He deliberately stared at his watch. “I’ll leave you to unpack and get acquainted with your new home.”

      “No, wait!” She leapt to her feet. “Can I come with you? I have to buy groceries and bedding and kitchen stuff, and I don’t have a car.”

      George kept his gaze on his watch. The book on financial security was waiting invitingly on his coffee table. He was hot and he was tired. What’s more, he was afraid that if he hung around her for too much longer, he’d forget why it was so imperative to stay immune to all that bounce and fervor. “I’m really short on time,” he said, not really expecting her to take no for an answer.

      He was right. When he looked up again she was standing directly in front of him, her toes almost touching СКАЧАТЬ