Rick was slumped over the kitchen table, a cup of strong coffee in one hand and his notes in the other. He hadn’t slept at all last night. He didn’t have the heart to wake Kate the night before when she’d fallen asleep curled up against his side. She had looked so adorable and relaxed. She deserved a good night’s sleep, he thought. He had sat there for hours watching the fire burn down, listening to the even rhythm of her breathing. She felt so right against him, like the perfect piece in a jigsaw puzzle. He leaned over now and then to press his lips against her hair. She smelled so feminine and yet so earthy. She looked so innocent in her sleep, which made his thoughts all the more ungentlemanly. It was impossible to have her be so close and not be aware of her scent, her skin, her curves. But he had been a perfect gentleman and resisted the urge to wake her with a kiss on her soft, parted lips.
When he hadn’t been able to take the torment any longer, he’d carefully removed himself from the couch and laid her down on the cushions. He had covered her with the throw that lay over the back of the couch and headed back to his own bed. It had been no use, however. He had lain awake staring at the ceiling until it was a reasonable time to get up and start his day. He hadn’t been able to shake her from his mind. His situation was almost laughable. He was a few short steps from his ex-fiancé, one of the most sought after, seductive, beautiful women in the world and the woman who had ripped out his heart and sold it to the tabloids. But despite all that, what had kept him up all night was a spunky little B&B owner who also happened to be his sister’s best friend.
“Good morning,” a soft voice said. Kate had clearly woken and showered. She looked fresh and alert and offered him a shy smile.
“Hi,” he said. “How’d you sleep?”
She blushed prettily. “Fine thanks. And you?”
He grimaced. “Not so well.”
She looked worried and he instantly regretted having told her the truth. “Oh, I’m sorry,” she said. “I hope I didn’t keep you up. I’m sorry I… you know…” she gestured helplessly with her hands.
Rick had to laugh. By the embarrassed look on her face you’d think she’d done something a lot more sinful than fall asleep on him. If she had, he thought, maybe he wouldn’t be the wreck that he was this morning.
“Don’t worry about it. You were tired. You deserved a good night’s sleep. Besides, you didn’t keep me up,” he lied. “I just couldn’t sleep. I had a lot on my mind.”
Kate looked away. “I can imagine,” she said.
“You didn’t come to bed last night,” a voice behind them said. Kate and Rick turned to see Evangeline standing in the doorway; she was in full makeup and wearing a designer outfit. She looked like she had stepped out of the pages of Vogue. “You didn’t come to bed last night,” she repeated. It wasn’t a question, it was an accusation.
Rick bristled. He thought he had made it clear the night before that there was no longer a personal relationship between them. This weekend, and the long months to come, was strictly business.
“But Rick,” she’d said in that voice that used to drive him crazy. “Didn’t you miss me?” She had pressed herself against him so he would be reminded of just what he had been missing. “All of that ugliness is behind us now. The past is the past; you said so yourself.”
“I meant our personal past is in the past, Evangeline,” he’d said. “And I mean it. This is a strictly professional situation.”
He should have known that she wouldn’t take no for an answer. He knew better than anyone that when Evangeline Marchessa set her sights on something, she did whatever it took to get it. From the way she’d been acting, it was clear that he was her prize for the moment. It didn’t surprise him much. He’d seen her last two movies. They had flopped. He’d read about her scandalous romance with a married man. She was losing popularity with the public and what better way to gain good PR than to reunite with the love of her life, the man who had made her his muse and turned her into a star. How had he been so blind? He had asked himself that question countless times since she walked in the door the night before.
At the first sight of her, he had felt as though he had the wind knocked out of him. Seeing her had brought back so many memories, mostly painful. But then he watched her and listened to her and he’d felt nothing. The realization had been like a weight lifted from his shoulders. He didn’t have feelings for her anymore. Once the initial shock had worn off, he’d realized that she had no effect on him whatsoever. He could finally see her for who she really was and he didn’t like what he saw. The only thing that bothered him now was how had he never truly seen her before?
Her imperious tone brought him back to the present. “I said, where were you last night?” she asked.
“I was with Kate,” he said. Kate’s jaw fell open in shock but that was nothing to the look on Evangeline’s face. Her face grew red and her eyes narrowed to slits. “You,” she hissed as she turned to confront Kate.
“Careful, Evangeline,” he said. His voice was low and ominous. She knew he was serious. She instantly relaxed her stance and feigned nonchalance. She really was an incredible actress, Rick thought.
“Fine.” She tossed Kate a withering glance. “If this is what you want, I understand. We all have our little flings. But when you’re ready for the real thing, you know where to find me.” She swooped out of the room without looking back.
Rick had to laugh the moment she was out of sight. “She always did know how to make an exit.”
Kate was staring at him, in shock or horror, he couldn’t tell. Maybe it was both.
“What was that?” she asked.
Rick sat back down with his coffee. He swirled his coffee with a stirrer and feigned innocence. He hadn’t thought any of this through. He had acted on impulse. But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. He could kill two birds with one stone. He needed to keep Evangeline at bay and get it across to her that he’d moved on. But more than that, he needed an excuse to get close to Kate. Like it or not, he wanted to be with her, be near her. He watched Kate struggling to form words, her face crinkled in confusion and he grinned to himself. He knew he had made the right choice.
“What was that?” she asked again, her hands motioning toward the place where Evangeline had been. “Now she’ll think… now she’ll think…” her voice trailed off.
“She’ll think that we’re lovers,” Rick said. He sounded far more laid back than he felt. The word evoked images that he had to forcefully shove from his mind. He just wanted to get to know her better, he told himself. He was not going to rush into anything. This way he could spend some time with Kate, see why she did such crazy things to his head, and still be free to leave when the film finished production with a clear conscience. The last thing he needed or wanted was another relationship. But he wouldn’t be opposed to some female companionship in the form of the very sexy, very angry young woman who stood before him.
“Why would you let her think that?” she asked. Her hands were on her hips as she squared off with him.
“Because,” he said. “I need someone to run interference. Evangeline seems to think that this project will be a chance for us to rekindle our romance and I don’t want that to happen.”
“Then why don’t you just tell her that?”
“I tried,” he shrugged. “She’s not an easy woman to persuade.”
“But why does it have to be me?” she asked. “Why didn’t you tell her there was someone else...anyone else?”
“What, like a neighbor?” Rick asked. His remark had the desired effect. Kate turned bright red in embarrassment. “I figured I already know that you are good at lying about fake relationships so why not make it work for me? Besides, just think about all the free publicity you’ll get once word gets around.” For a moment, Rick worried he had crossed the line. She was staring at him with an inscrutable expression on her normally expressive face.
“Okay,” she said. Her voice was quiet. “I’ll do it. I’ll pretend to be your… lover.”
Rick tried to swallow his disappointment. He hadn’t thought she would give in so easily, and he knew he had gotten her with his taunt about free publicity. He couldn’t blame her, he told himself. She had put everything she owned into this place. Of course she would do what she had to ensure its success. He just hadn’t thought she would be so quick to resort to this kind of publicity stunt.
****
What was she doing? Kate asked herself. Her mind was racing and she had come close to burning breakfast several times already and scalded her hand in the process. Focus, Kate. It was too late to back out now so she had better get used to it. She was going to be Rick’s pretend girlfriend — no, she corrected herself, lover. For how long? They couldn’t keep this up indefinitely. His shoot could last for months; there was no way they could fool everyone into thinking they were intimate for that long. This was a small town. It was impossible to get anything past her well-intentioned friends and neighbors. She yelped in pain as she burnt her hand on the side of the hot pan. She instinctively brought her hand to her mouth. Why, oh why, had she agreed to this?
But she knew why. She had seen the look on Rick’s face when he first laid eyes on Evangeline. There was no denying he had been hurt by her. As much as it pained her to admit it, Rick clearly still had feelings for Evangeline. Oh, he might talk a big game about being over her but it was clear that he wasn’t. And he proved it when he lied about Kate being his lover. Why else would he do that if it wasn’t to make Evangeline jealous?
His story about needing someone to help keep her at bay just didn’t make sense. Rick was a strong, determined man. If he really didn’t want Evangeline, he would have no problem letting her know it. No, she thought. There was more to it than that. She didn’t doubt that he didn’t want to get back together with Evangeline, but there was no denying that he still had feelings for her if he wanted to admit it to himself or not. So, she thought, if he needed her help to get even with Evangeline and keep her from hurting him again, then she would do it.
With new resolve Kate stuck her hand under cold running water. She winced as the water hit the sensitive skin that had been burnt.
“Need some help with that?” Rick asked from behind her.
Kate shook her head. “I’m all right,” she said.
“Let me see it.”
She grudgingly gave him her hand but avoided looking him in the eye.
“Do you have some cream and a band aid?” he asked. She nodded toward a first aid kit under the sink. He sat her in a kitchen chair and went about bandaging her hand. His touch was so gentle, so tender, that it brought tears to her eyes.
“Am I hurting you?” He sounded worried.
She shook her head.
He had just showered and smelled of soap and shampoo. His head was close to hers as he leaned over her. “Thanks,” she said when he’d finished. She made a move to pull her hand away but he didn’t let go.
“Kate,” he said. His voice was low and gruff. For the first time since he’d entered the room, Kate met his eyes. She gasped at the intense heat she saw there. Before she could catch her breath he had leaned over and caught her lips with his own. He was gentle at first. The kiss was painfully tender and slow and it left Kate aching for more. His tongue flicked across her lower lip and she lost all control. She leaned in towards him, deepening the kiss.
When he pulled back, she nearly moaned in disappointment. She couldn’t think, couldn’t reason. Her body seemed to have a mind of its own.
Reality began to set in as she watched him move away from her, wrenching a hand through his hair as he tried to regain control. What had she done? She asked herself. What had she been thinking? She hadn’t been thinking. That much was obvious. If she had she would have reminded herself that she couldn’t afford to lose her head over this man. He would be out of her home and out of her life in less than a month, and she refused to leave herself open to the kind of heartache that a man like Rick would bring into her life. Hadn’t she learned her lesson with her ex who disappeared at the first sign of trouble? But at least then she had the excuse of youth and inexperience.
She was older now; she’d experienced heartache and pain. She should know better. If there was one thing that her ex taught her it was that she wasn’t cut out for the carefree, casual relationships that men like him and Rick enjoyed. She didn’t know how to keep her distance, to keep her guard. She had fallen head over heels for Chad, even though she’d been warned about his past. He’s different with me, she’d told her worried friends. And he had been — for a while. But when the responsibilities became too great and she was torn between spending time with him and her ailing mother, he had reverted to his old ways. She would never forget the horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach when she’d discovered that he had cheated on her. She promised herself she would never again fall for a playboy and risk losing her heart again, and that was exactly what she’d done.
As she watched Rick walk out of the kitchen, she had to admit it to herself. It was too late. She had fallen for him. Now all that could be done was try to enjoy her time with him while it lasted and try to keep herself from getting too attached.
She cleaned up the charred remains from her first attempt at breakfast and started from scratch. She was grateful to have something to keep herself occupied. Her thoughts kept straying back to that kiss.
Ellen caught her in one of these moments. “What are you grinning about?” she asked. Kate jumped; she hadn’t heard her come in through the back door.
“What? Oh nothing,” she said. “Just thinking about last night.”
Ellen grinned and grabbed an apron so she could help Kate make a fruit salad. “You must be so happy. It went off without a hitch.”
“Yeah, I guess it did go pretty well, didn’t it?” Kate teased.
Ellen nodded and popped a grape in her mouth. “The hard part is over. Your official opening night dinner is over. It’s all downhill from here.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“Are you okay?” Ellen asked. “You seem a little funny this morning.”
“I’m fine.” For a second, she toyed with the idea of telling Ellen everything that had happened from falling asleep in front of fire last night to their passionate kiss earlier that morning. But, much as she would have loved to hear her friend’s take on her situation, she knew she had to come to terms with this new development on her own first. There was one turn of event, however, that she had to tell her friend before the other guests came down.
“I saw Evangeline again this morning,” she said.
Ellen stopped chopping and turned to her. “And? Did you give her a piece of your mind?”
“Not exactly,” Kate grimaced. She told her friend about their confrontation that morning and Rick’s startling announcement.
Ellen’s mouth hung open in shock. “What did you say?”
Kate shrugged. “What could I do? I went along with it.”
“So now Evangeline Marchessa thinks that you and Rick…” her voice trailed off.
“She thinks that we’re intimate,” Kate supplied.
“But isn’t she going to find out that you’re not? I mean, you’re not, are you?” Her friend’s voice had risen in surprise and she hurriedly shushed her.
“No,” she said, her voice just above a whisper. “But I did agree to go along with it.”
“You what? Why? That’s not like you,” she added. She was watching Kate intently, and Kate was feeling ashamed that she’d outright lied to her friend. She would tell her about their attraction eventually, once she had figured out what to make of it herself.
“I felt bad for him,” she explained. “She really did a number on him. I just wanted to help him out.”
“So how long is this going to go on for?”
Kate shrugged. That’s what she wanted to know. “I don’t know. We haven’t really discussed it,” she said.
Ellen watched Kate in thoughtful silence. “Just as long as you don’t get hurt in all this,” she said. “People like Rick and Evangeline will eat you for breakfast. People like that…” she shook her head. “All they care about is themselves and they don’t care who gets hurt. I just don’t want to see you hurt again.”
Kate knew she was referring to her breakup with Chad and she knew that her friend was right. “I won’t get hurt,” Kate said with more confidence than she felt. She wasn’t sure who she was trying to convince, Ellen or herself.
In an effort to change the conversation she said with forced brightness, “Enough about me. How was the rest of your night last night?”
To her surprise, Ellen looked away as though suddenly uncomfortable. “It was… fine.”
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
Ellen gave her a wry smile. “Oh, nothing,” she said. “Tony and I just had a bit of a… disagreement last night, that’s all.”
Now it was Kate’s turn to stop what she was doing and stare at her friend. Ellen and Tony had always gotten along well and they were two of the nicest, friendliest people Kate knew. She couldn’t imagine them disagreeing. “About what?” she asked. “What happened?”
“Really,” Ellen insisted. “It was nothing. I don’t even want to talk about it. It’s over now.”
“Well, I’ll talk to Shelley. I’m sure she won’t mind if you stay with her for the night if it’s too uncomfortable to stay at Tony’s.”
Ellen shifted uncomfortably. “No. Don’t go to any trouble. Really. It’s just one more night and everything is fine now anyway. Really. Forget I said anything.”
The screen door opened behind them. “What can I do to help?” Tony asked.
Kate glanced at Ellen and saw that she was studiously avoiding looking at Tony. She was staring at the peach in her hands as though it was in danger of running away.
“Here,” Kate said, tossing him a dishrag. “You can start on the dishes. I’m going to start setting up the dining room.”
Ellen shot her a look of disbelief but Kate ignored her. Tony and Ellen were her closest friends, and she knew that whatever little tiff they had gotten into last night would work itself out. It wasn’t like either of them to hold a grudge. She did feel a pang of guilt, however, at forcing them to be alone together but she had needed a minute to herself anyway. She knew that Ellen had meant well and she also knew that she was right about Rick. Whatever was going on between them wouldn’t mean a thing to him; she was sure that things like this happened all the time for him. But they didn’t for her and she needed to sort through it all before she talked to him or anyone else about it.
She sighed in frustration and slammed a plate down with more force than was necessary.
“Trouble in paradise?” a familiar voice purred behind her.
Kate froze at the sound of Evangeline’s voice but chided herself for overreacting. She’s your guest, she reminded herself. With that thought in mind she turned around with a smile pasted on her face. “Good morning, Miss Marchessa,” she said. “Breakfast is almost ready. There’s coffee, tea and the morning paper in the living room if you’re interested.”
Evangeline didn’t seem to hear her. She leaned against the table as Kate resumed setting out napkins and utensils.
“You know that this is only temporary, don’t you?” she asked. Evangeline smiled sweetly at Kate and she felt a chill run through her. She avoided looking directly at the other woman but was aware of her standing there watching her. Evangeline tapped a perfectly manicured finger against the table and Kate found herself wishing she had thought to get a manicure. Not that a manicure would even begin to even the playing field. All the cosmetics and hair products in the world would never give her Evangeline’s perfect body, hair, clothes… perfect everything.
“He’s never gotten over me you know,” Evangeline continued. Her voice was pleasant, as though they were talking about the weather. Kate bit her lip to keep from responding. This was her guest, she reminded herself. She could manage to be pleasant for two days.
“I admit I was a little miffed this morning to find that Rick has taken up with the help,” she said with a humorless laugh. “But I’ve had some time to think about it and, really… I just feel bad for you.” Her face and voice were indeed sympathetic and Kate could feel her cheeks growing red in anger. “After all,” she continued. “You’re the one who’s going to be hurt in all of this. Everyone knows it is just a matter of time before Rick and I work out our differences and get back together and when we do…” She faded off with a sad sigh as though she couldn’t bring herself to think about the pain that Kate would suffer.
She placed one hand on Kate’s arm. “I just want you to be prepared. I believe in being straightforward about what I want and I want Rick. I won’t let anything — or anyone — get in my way. I’m telling you this for your sake. I’d hate to see you get hurt because you are too naïve to see that you have no future with Rick. He’s out of your league, darling.”
She walked away leaving Kate shaking with rage. Her mind reeled with all of the things she wished she had said. She was furious with Evangeline for her patronizing tone and catty words but most of all she was angry because she knew that she was right. About all of it. Rick had made it clear that this little dalliance between them was just an act to make Evangeline jealous and to make her angry. Well, she thought, it looked like it was working.