The Contract (19 page)

I yanked at the silk again. Why wouldn’t this fucking tie lay flat?

“Keep pulling it like that and there won’t be any material left, Richard. What did that tie ever do to you?”

I glanced up, startled. Katharine stood in the doorway, looking equally as nervous, however, much prettier. “Whoa!”

She was wearing a simple off-white dress that hugged her narrow waist and exploded in a froth of material at her knees. The top was lacy and showed off her slender neck and arms. Her hair was pinned back, hanging to one side in a cascade of curls. The champagne hue of her dress accented her coloring. I looked down, grinning at her shoes—small with a tiny heel, they were perfect. I had gotten used to the way she fit under my arm, and now, I didn’t want her any taller.

I approached her, lifting her hand, kissing it. “You look lovely.”

She lowered her eyes, then straightened her shoulders. “Thank you.”

“No. Thank you.”

“For?”

“Where would you like me to start? For agreeing to this arrangement in the first place. For sticking to your word, even though you had every right to tell me to go to hell.” Reaching over, I twisted a long curl around my finger, rubbing the soft strands of her hair, releasing it, letting it curl back into place. “For being a better person than I am,” I added with complete honesty.

Her eyes were bright. “That’s the nicest thing you have ever said to me.”

“I know. I haven’t tried very hard not to be such an asshole, have I?” I met her gaze, refusing to look away. “I’ll try harder.”

She worked away at the inside of her cheek furiously.

“Hey. Enough.” I chuckled, drawing my finger down her cheek. “No blood on our wedding day.”

The corners of her lips curled into a smile. I bent over and picked up the small gift I had gotten for her, holding out the bouquet of flowers.

“For you.”

“Richard!”

“I thought you would like them,” I said, feeling self-conscious.

She buried her nose in the small bouquet. “I love them.” She frowned. “What about you?”

“I’m not carrying a bouquet.” I smirked, wanting to lighten the serious tone we had taken.

She shook her head with a grin, and went over to the drawer, rummaging around. She picked through her bouquet and snipped one of the roses, then carefully pinned it to my lapel. Her small fingers twisted, and smoothed my tie into place. She patted the material, looking pleased. “There. Now you’re ready.”

“Are
you
ready?” I asked, almost fearful of her answer.

“Yes.”

I crooked my arm. “Let’s get married.”

It was a simple ceremony. Solely the two of us, with witnesses neither of us knew. Words were spoken, short vows exchanged, and we were pronounced husband and wife. I slipped a slim band on with her diamond, and as she requested, I allowed her to put an unassuming platinum band onto my finger. I stared down at my hand, flexing my fingers, and tightening my fist, the cold metal touch alien on my skin. Katharine watched me, and I grinned at her. “Marked as taken now, so I guess it’s official.”

The Justice of the Peace chuckled. “It is once you kiss your bride.”

I lowered my head, our gazes locking. I brushed my mouth over hers, wrapping my hand around her neck, drawing her tight to me and kissing her deeply. It was my right, after all—she was my wife. When I drew back, she opened her eyes, and I was startled at the honest gentleness of her gaze. Her smile was a genuine one and I returned it fully, dropping another swift kiss on her full lips.

“We’re married, Richard.”

I wasn’t sure why those words pleased me, yet they did.

“We are. Now, we have to go have dinner with the Gavin family. What are the chances they’re keeping it low-key?”

“Slim to none—but you were the one who agreed to it.”

“I know. Don’t remind me. Let’s sign the papers and go face the music.”

“Okay.”

We pulled up in front of the house. I shifted into park and glanced around with a sigh of relief. “No extra cars.”

“Thank goodness.”

I looked over at Miss Elliott.

Katharine.

Mrs. VanRyan.

My wife.

Holy shit. I was married.

“Richard? What is it? You’ve gone pale.”

I shook my head. “Thank you. I mean it, Katharine. I really do.”

“I know.”

“I don’t suppose I could—”

“No.”

“You don’t know what I was going to say.”

“You were trying to get me to forget about hearing the story of your childhood.”

“It’s the usual parental BS, Katharine. Why dredge it up?”

“I feel it’s important.”

I dropped my head in my hands with a groan at the way she used my own words back at me.

“Please, Richard.”

“Fine.” I huffed. “Later.”

“I’ll wait.”

“All right. Let’s get this shit over with.”

She rolled her eyes with a huff of impatience. “Well, that effort lasted all of three minutes.”

I gripped the back of my neck. “This is not an easy subject for me.”

“I’m gathering that, but we’re not talking about it at the moment. Right now, your new boss and his family are having a celebration dinner for us. Get your head out of your ass, smile, and act like you fucking adore me,” she insisted, once again throwing back my words at me.

With those words, she got out of the car and bent down.

“Are you coming?”

Stunned, I could only nod.

It was probably as toned-down as the Gavins could handle. The back deck was set up with an extravagant table, with tulle and small lights wrapped around the area, flowers and candles flickering in the light breeze. In the corner, there was another small table with a wedding cake. Katharine’s eyes were huge when she looked at me. “How did they do this in a day?”

“The benefit of money and connections,” I muttered. I had to admit, I was impressed.

Our hosts beamed at us when we arrived, Laura wrapping Katharine up in a tight hug. Graham clapped me on the shoulder, congratulating me, and I suffered through the hugs and handshakes from the rest of the family. They were certainly a touchy bunch. I stepped back, grabbing Katharine’s hand like a talisman. Maybe if I touched her, they’d all stop hugging me.

Dinner was extravagant, the champagne was plentiful, but this time, I kept my head. I only sipped at the wine, and consumed water most of the evening. There might not have been any pictures at the ceremony, but Jenna and Laura made up for it with their phones, constantly snapping pictures and calling out for kisses. Luckily, Katharine had drunk enough this time, she didn’t seem to mind. In fact, she tilted up her face eagerly, smiling and accepting my caresses. Copying the other couples at the table, I kept my arm around her most of the time, running my fingers over her exposed skin. On occasion, I would turn and drop a kiss to the softness of her shoulder or neck and whisper some inane comment into her ear, making her smile or laugh. We were the picture of a happy couple in love.

Jenna turned to her at one point. “Oh, Katy! I almost forgot. I teach yoga classes and a new one starts next week! Please come! You’ll love it.”

Julia nodded. “Adam looks after the kids. I go to all the classes—even the beginners—I love it so much. Jenna is an amazing teacher.”

Katharine’s eyes flared with interest. “Oh, I’d like that! I’ve always wanted to try it. When?”

“Tuesday nights—it’s an eight week course for beginners. There’s a break, then we move onto the next level.”

The light in her eyes dimmed. “I can’t—Tuesday is music night at the home. Local groups come in and entertain the residents. I take Penny to all of them; she loves going. I would hate not to be with her; she might not go without me.”

I had noticed the list on Penny’s bulletin board while I was there. This week was jazz night. I loved jazz music. The fact going to yoga was something Katharine wanted, made me want to give it to her, so I spoke up. “I’ll go with her.”

“What?”

“You go to the class. You’ve been saying you wanted to try yoga. I’ll go have dinner with Penny and take her to the lounge.” I nudged her carefully. “You know I love jazz music.” I winked, teasing her. “Maybe it will help you with your balance.”

“It’s great for that!” Jenna enthused.

“It’s
every
Tuesday,” Katharine pointed out.

“That’s fine.” I liked all types of music, except heavy metal, and I doubted that genre would be included in the lineups. “I guess Penny and I have a date every Tuesday for a while.”

She leaned closer, and whispered, “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” I murmured back. “I’d like to spend some more time with Penny.” I met her eyes. “Honestly.”

She kissed my cheek. “Thank you,” she breathed in my ear.

Turning, I caught her mouth. “You’re welcome.”

I sat back with a sigh. I was pleased I could do something for her. I saw Graham looking at me, nodding his approval. I looked down, almost flustered over his silent support.

What an odd, emotional day.

After dinner, Laura had us move the table off to one side, freeing up the space, insisting we needed to dance. Grateful we had practiced, I held out my hand, grinning at Katharine.

“Ready to dance with your husband?”

Her smile was shy, but real, as she slipped her hand into mine. “I am, my darling. Just don’t use all your energy on the dance floor.”

I winked. “Don’t worry about that, sweetheart.”

I twirled her onto the dance floor amid the laughter. She nestled into me as we moved to the music. Once again, it struck me how well she fit to me—the way her head was the perfect height to tuck under my chin. I could smell her soft scent, and enjoyed the silk of her hair on my skin. I beamed as we spun around, our steps in sync.

I had chosen the perfect fake wife.

There were more hugs, well wishes, and catcalls when we left. We were both quiet in the car. I kept glancing over at Katharine.

“Are you all right?”

“Hmmm.”

“Is your head okay?”

Leaning against the headrest, she nodded. “I’m fine. It was a nice day.”

“Okay for a shotgun wedding to an asshole?”

“Ranks right up in my top ten.”

I chuckled. Her humorous side came out more every day. I liked it.

“How much older is Adam than Jenna?”