April Fool Bride (11 page)

"Once I'd visited here, I wanted to do more.
I found myself spending more time here and less in clubs. All my
so-called friends disappeared because I discovered I enjoyed
playing with these kids more than drinking in bars. Women and their
children come here for safety. I help them."

Maddie blinked back tears. "And they help me.
That emptiness inside of me that I had tried to fill with booze and
sex was finally filled by helping others. That is the most
wonderful feeling in the world."

"I encourage them and listen to them. I want
them to believe that as long as there's life, they can take control
and create a better world for their children and for themselves. At
the end of my first month here, I'd formed study groups, brought in
stacks of books from used bookstores, washed dishes, babysat, and
even learned to cook oatmeal and make pancakes. I found I was good
at organizing things. I was completely hooked. I talked to Amy and
found out what was needed to set up a shelter and get non-profit
status. What it cost in dollars to put a roof over their heads,
food in their mouths, and funds for job training."

"This is what you want your inheritance for,
isn't it? This explains why you drive an old car and all your other
economies."

"Yes. We're operating on a shoestring. With
my trust, I could do so much more." She laughed. "First, I'd get a
new roof. Then I'd bring in more tutors. Some of these women can't
read or do more than sign their name. Education for the mothers.
Scholarships for their kids. Some kind of ongoing, long-term
support that will give them a shot at breaking the cycle of abuse
and having a better life."

"If you've got non-profit status, who are
your corporate donors? Other than Quinn Energy."

Maddie looked at her hands. "I don't have any
corporate donors. Especially not Quinn Energy. Constance was
furious about my devoting all my time and money here. She called
these women unwed mothers too stupid to use birth control."

Jake winced, but all he said was, "That's
harsh. Did she swing her weight around to keep other companies from
donating?"

"No. You see. I…I haven't tried to solicit
any donations."

"But that doesn't make sense. I don't care if
you want to use your trust for this, but why wait? You've got the
Quinn name. Why not use it?"

Furious color painted her cheeks. "You know
why. Every time I do something openly, all my mistakes from the
past are brought out for public consumption again. Those pictures."
She looked away, unable to meet his eyes. "Some of those pictures
are so awful. I hold my head up and say it doesn't bother me, but
I'm ashamed. I don't want that shame to taint this shelter in any
way."

Jake suddenly pulled her into his arms and
kissed her. Immediately a chorus of teasing remarks came from the
kids.

Maddie's heart beat unsteadily. "Why did you
do that?"

"Because I like you. I thought I knew you,
but I only knew the girl you were and the woman I couldn't help but
read about in tabloid headlines. I've learned you're neither of
those, and I find I like the woman you've become. I like her very
much. You were talking about teaching these women to believe in a
better life. Leaving their pasts behind. You need to do the same
thing. You've accomplished something amazing, and others will
recognize that too. You should be the first to recognize that the
way to negate something bad is to replace it with something good.
Stop hiding from the press and start looking for every photo op to
show the world that you are beautiful, compassionate, smart, and
kind. Pictures of the woman you have become will fill the paparazzi
archives. Those will be the ones published when your name is
mentioned. No one will remember the old ones because that's not who
you are."

Maddie was stunned. Before she could reply,
one of the kids wailed as if he were being killed. She and Jake
both jumped and ran, but the emergency was only the result of a boy
not being allowed to be Spiderman because it wasn't his turn in
their game of pretend.

Maddie spent the rest of the afternoon in a
daze while Jake rode herd on the kids. He must have answered a
million questions. If she hadn't already been in love with him,
she'd have lost her heart all over again as she watched him play
with the kids.

For children who had experienced some awful
things at the hands of the men in their lives, they were amazingly
open and friendly, and Jake seemed to bring out the best in the
kids. Once they'd overcome their initial reticence, they wouldn't
leave the poor man alone. He'd make a wonderful father. That's when
it hit her. She and Jake had made love several times last night,
but he'd never used a condom. She hadn't been able to think of
anything but the feelings he aroused in her. She'd been driven by
the desire, no, the need, to join her body with his. She wasn't on
the pill. If she'd wanted to get pregnant, she couldn't have picked
a better time of the month to try to make it happen.

She was excited and scared about the
prospect, all at the same time. She couldn't be that irresponsible
again. As much as she'd love to have Jake's baby, she wouldn't do
that to him. He wasn't the type to walk away from his
responsibilities, and she'd die if he stayed with her because of an
unplanned pregnancy rather than because he loved her.

Maddie resolved to make sure they used birth
control next time. For now, she relaxed and enjoyed watching Jake
play with the kids. He chased them and let them chase him. This
morning she'd been determined to put their relationship back in "no
sex" land, but somewhere between his silly knock knock jokes and a
game of Simon Says, she gave up the fight to resist him.

Life was so short, and she'd wasted too much
of it in being miserable. Here she was, married to the man she
loved so why resist him? What if this was only a marriage of
convenience, and he walked away at the end of the year? Why not
love him while the marriage lasted rather than wasting their
precious time together?

Chapter 10

Maddie dressed for dinner in a teal sheath
with short sleeves and a square neckline. She didn't even mind
dining with Constance because Jake would be there, but she wanted
the dinner to pass swiftly so she and Jake could return to the
bedroom. Her pulse quickened at the thought.

She loved her work at the shelter because it
gave her a purpose. Loving Jake gave her
life
. He made her
heart soar.

A knock on the bathroom door made her
jump.

"I'd like to get in there before the next ice
age," Jake said.

Maddie opened the door. "No problem. I'm
ready. I was just obsessing about…this dress."

Jake frowned. "What's wrong with the
dress?"

"Oh, it's a bit tight, don't you think?" she
improvised.

"No, actually, I think it's not tight enough.
It doesn't show off your sexy butt enough." His hands curved over
her bottom. "But the color is great with your hair and skin."

With that he gently pushed her away and
closed the bathroom door, leaving her with her mouth agape.

Sexy butt? Maddie walked over to the dresser
mirror and studied her butt. She still had this mental picture of
herself as a skinny kid with crazy red hair and too-long arms and
legs even though she knew she didn't look like that any longer.
Well, intellectually she knew it. Emotionally was another story.
She'd learned to think more about others and less about herself so
she rarely thought about her looks. Until Jake's eyes had traced a
lazy path over her body that day in his kitchen. Last night, he'd
made her feel beautiful. She patted her own behind then laughed at
her silliness.

A short while later, she and Jake left the
bedroom. Maddie gazed up at him. He looked breathtaking in a navy
silk shirt and charcoal slacks.

Constance met them at the foot of the stairs.
"Good evening. I must say you make a striking couple."

Maddie nearly stumbled on the last step. She
couldn't ever remember Constance giving her a compliment.

Graciella joined them for dinner, and Maddie
found the evening positively surreal. The two women chatted as if
they were real friends. Jake looked as perplexed as Maddie felt.
Constance smiled a lot and seemed like a different woman.

Constance said, "Tell me, Jake, what are you
doing now that you've sold your interest in the oil production
company? That was quite a coup by the way."

Maddie's gaze jerked to his face. What did
Constance mean? Jake smiled at her, but he looked
uncomfortable.

"I was pleased I could hand the company off
so that its people would be taken care of." He shrugged. "I'll
always dabble in futures trading, commercial real estate, and
helping out companies in financial trouble if I believe in them and
think I can turn them around."

Maddie felt uneasy. He sounded like a success
story, not like a guy who needed a job.

"How did you get into financial trading?"
Constance asked.

"I started learning when I was still in the
army. The father of one of my friends was a financial trader at the
NYMEX then, and he was kind enough to take me under his wing." He
looked over at Maddie. "That's the New York Mercantile Exchange. It
was once a separate entity, but now it and COMEX, that's the
Commodity Exchange, operate as designated contract markets of the
Chicago Mercantile Exchange. That's DCM of the CME if you're
keeping track of abbreviations."

Maddie's unease was turning to dread. Jake
hadn't needed her money. She forced a laugh. "Should I be taking
notes?"

"Only if you want to learn how to be a
business success like Jake," Graciella said, preening like the
proud mother she was.

Jake looked at Maddie. "Uh, by the time I
left the army, I had built up an investment fund and my friend's
dad sponsored me as a floor broker. That was the beginning, and I
followed that with hard work and sacrifice."

When Strack appeared, Constance asked for
coffee, dessert, and brandy to be served in the solarium.

Maddie found herself walking next to Jake.
Why had Jake married her? Not for love. Obviously not for
money.

"Are you feeling all right," Jake asked.

Maddie plastered a bright smile on her face.
"Yes. I'm fine. Just enjoying learning more about you."

"About that. I've been wanting to tell you,
but I didn't know how."

They stood in the doorway of the solarium.
Maddie could see Constance pouring the coffee. Maddie wanted to
read that report Amy had sent her, and she thought she knew where
it was. Most of all, she needed to think.

Graciella patted the space next to her on the
sofa. Jake sat, but Maddie pulled away and went to one of the
chairs. She ignored his probing look and said little, but she
watched everything, analyzing what she heard and what she felt.
When she couldn't take it any longer, she rose and excused
herself.

Constance stood and followed. At the foyer,
she touched Maddie's shoulder.

Maddie turned. "Yes?"

"I wondered if I could talk to you for a few
minutes. Alone?" Constance asked.

"About what?" Maddie knew she sounded terse,
but she didn't care.

"Oh, uh, I don't know." Constance rubbed one
hand with the other. "Uh, about your day? How was it?"

"It was fine. Like always. I'm sorry, but I'm
really tired. Goodnight."

"Oh, certainly. Goodnight then."

Maddie glanced at her stepmother. Was that
uncertainty she heard in the woman's voice? Did Constance look sad?
No. Constance was never less than assured and unemotional. She
hurried up the stairs and to her room, changed into pajamas, and
started searching the handbags in her closet. In an old Coach bag
she occasionally carried, she found the report from Amy.

An hour later, she was in shock. Jake was a
multi-millionaire. How he must have laughed when she'd "hired" him
to marry her. Why had he done it? He didn't love her. She felt
chilled by the idea that took form in her consciousness. Feeling
cold and empty, she decided to go to the kitchen and make a cup of
tea. She grabbed her robe, but didn't bother tying it. The sash
pulled free of one of the belt loops and trailed on the floor. She
used the back stairs. Her hand was on the swinging door when she
heard Jake and Graciella.

"Mom, I don't get it. Why are you and
Constance suddenly acting like you're friends?"

"We are friends. Or, we're trying to be."

"How can you be friends with the woman who
ruined my life?"

The question set off alarms in Maddie.

"Jake, honey. She didn't ruin your life. She
just set you on a different path."

"She threatened me. Blackmailed me into
giving up my scholarship at Rice. Told me to leave Houston, or
she'd have me arrested for rape. I worked my ass off in high school
for that scholarship." His voice rose. "If Maddie hadn't come to my
room that night, my whole life would have been different." His
voice trailed off. Then, in a quieter voice he said, "I lost
everything that night. Constance kicked me out of the only home I'd
ever known. Told me if I did what she said that she'd let you keep
your job. How do you think that made me feel? I hated her for
years."

He didn't say it, but Maddie realized that he
must have hated her too. She felt as if her heart had been ripped
from her chest. She couldn't breathe. She'd never known. She'd
thought she had embarrassed Jake so much that he'd left of his own
free will after that night. That had made her feel terrible, but to
know he'd been forced away made her heart break. How could
Constance have done that to him?

Oh, God. It wasn't just Constance. If she
hadn't been so desperate to have Jake love her…if she hadn't been
so selfish maybe she'd have stopped and thought about the
repercussions for him. Now she knew the price Jake had paid for her
foolishness, her arrogance. She was as much to blame for ruining
his life as Constance.