The Marriage Of Inconvenience. Nina Singh

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СКАЧАТЬ about becoming. He looked like the man he had left her to become.

      She checked the impulse to step back as he approached, afraid of her reaction. His wavy black hair reflected almost navy where the light hit it. The strong set of his jaw lent a hardened austerity to his face.

      Her dreams had not done him justice.

      She cleared her throat. “So, I hear your business is doing well. You’re trying to expand Davet Corporate Security into Europe, aren’t you?”

      “That’s the intent, yes.” His voice rang clear with impatience.

      “I can’t believe all you’ve accomplished in the short time since college.”

      He gave a slight nod in her direction. “Likewise.”

      Angeline felt herself shiver. R.J. wasn’t interested in small talk. “It must have been a surprise to hear from me after all this time,” she said in a lower voice.

      “Getting your message was a few notches higher than surprise. Closer to shock, actually.”

      She tried not to bristle at the hostility in his voice.

      R.J. shoved his hands into his pants pockets. “Let’s cut to the chase here, shall we? We’re both busy people. You didn’t call me to play catch-up. What can I do for the reigning tea queen of the Western Hemisphere? I imagine you have some type of corporate security concern. Were your systems hacked or something? Is that it?”

      Regret washed through her. He was obviously not thrilled about being here. While he couldn’t wait to leave, she was aching inside at seeing him again. Yep, she was a fool one hundred times over. “Not exactly. Please, have a seat.” She motioned him to the red brocade chair across from her desk and waited for him to sit down.

      Swallowing past the lump of apprehension in her throat, she began, “I’d like to discuss a business proposition with you. An alliance, so to speak.”

      She saw the curiosity flash in his eyes before he managed to suppress it. “What type of an alliance would the head of a thriving tea retail and distribution business form with the CEO of a corporate security firm?”

      “I need your help. But not in the way you think.”

      He lifted a brow in question. “I’m listening.”

      Angeline walked over to the large window overlooking metro Boston. Past the traffic, the Charles River gleamed like liquid gemstone as the sun reflected off the water. Her back to him, she could feel the intensity of his gaze and imagined his eyes roaming over her. The way his hands had not so long ago. She squeezed her eyes shut.

      Somehow she managed to find her voice again. “I’m in some trouble and it could affect other people. A lot of other people.”

      He was up and behind her in an instant. She recognized the poignantly familiar scent. That same distinctive cologne coupled with the aroma that was purely male and purely his. She tried to still the shaking in her hands and clasped them together in front of her. Heavens, this meeting was playing havoc on her senses. Pure attraction. Attraction that in the end hadn’t been enough to keep them together. But the flames of desire apparently still burned strong.

      For her anyway.

      “Angeline,” she heard him say. “Are you in some kind of danger?”

      She took a moment to answer. Technically she wasn’t. But in every other sense she was. Without warning, a firm set of hands gripped her by the shoulders and turned her around.

      “Answer me.”

      “N-no, I’m not in any danger,” she managed to stutter while fighting the urge to lean into the strong, masculine chest that was so close.

      He dropped his hands. Disappointment pummeled her. He clearly wasn’t as interested in touching her as he had been once.

      Better to get this over with. “It’s the business, R.J. The TeaLC chain. I’m worried that if I don’t expand soon, we may not survive.”

      He quirked an eyebrow. “But I thought your business was flaring.”

      “It’s also very costly. The distribution end brings in a good amount, but the retail chains aren’t terribly profitable. Plus, I have some very expensive overhead. I need a sales spurt, soon.” She took a deep breath. “And I think I just may have come up with a way to achieve some growth.”

      “But?”

      “But it won’t be easy.”

      He narrowed his eyes. “Go on.”

      Here it was, the tough part. She braced herself for the certain embarrassment and decided to just blurt it out. “We never signed the papers to finalize our divorce.”

      A dark shadow flashed in his eyes. “Is that what all this is about? You want to take care of the divorce finally?”

      “No! No, that’s not it at all.” This was even harder than she would have imagined. “Actually, it’s kind of the exact opposite.”

      Silence. He searched her face for clarification.

      “I need to act like I’m happily married. Just for one night. I need you to pretend we’re still a fully married couple who never separated.” Oh, man, she was making a complete and utter mess of this whole proposal. But there was no way to back out now.

      She lifted her palms in appeal. “It wouldn’t be for long. I realize what I’m asking and—”

      He cut her off with a quick raise of his hand. “Let me get this straight. You have to act like you’re still happily married to grow your business.”

      Before she could answer, he turned around and walked toward the center of the large room.

      She stepped toward him, afraid he was going to leave without hearing her out. She’d gone too far to back out now. As difficult as this was, she had to see it through.

      “R.J., wait. Can I just explain?”

      He didn’t answer. Angeline rubbed her arms to calm herself. He was so angry he couldn’t even speak!

      And then he turned around, looked into her eyes and broke into laughter.

      * * *

      She really was too much.

      R.J. didn’t know if he was laughing more from amusement or the unsettling experience of seeing her again. This had to be some kind of joke.

      He didn’t feel much like laughing, though, when she lifted those deep brown eyes up to his. She looked like a wounded doe.

      His breath caught in his throat. “Wait a minute. You’re serious.”

      “I wouldn’t have asked you to come all the way out here if I wasn’t serious.”

      “I think I’m missing something here.”

      “This isn’t some attempt at a reconciliation. СКАЧАТЬ