The Bachelor's Bed

“Then please, add my downtown building to your client list. Daily.”

Just like that, he’d upped her income. Not only upped it, probably tripled it. He could have no idea what that meant to her, and though she knew it was a pity that he felt he had to offer a bribe, she shamelessly took it, thinking of the extra hours she’d be able to offer her employees. “That’s…very generous. Thank you.”

“Will you do it?”

Despite her little fantasies, Lani was commitment shy, always had been. She was intelligent enough to realize that most of what made her life so good was the fact that she concentrated on others rather than on herself. The town of Sierra Summit was fairly small, only about seven thousand people in all, and she mothered, sistered and babied a good many of them. Her business was struggling constantly to break even, but only because she didn’t charge enough and hired people who needed her more than she needed them. Her business handled mostly industrial work because there weren’t too many residents who needed or could afford a housecleaner—Colin being the exception, of course. It wasn’t much of an effort to keep everyone happy and satisfied, and Lani genuinely cared about them all, but even so, she still managed to hold everyone at a distance.

This came from a deeply ingrained fear of getting involved, of getting hurt. Whether it went back to losing her family so young or to something much more simple—her own basic shyness, for example—she didn’t know and didn’t often try to analyze. Colin had said this would be just for show, but she didn’t fool herself, it would be complicated, and as a rule she didn’t do complicated well.

Stalling, she offered a crooked smile as he once again pulled his wet shirt away from his body. “I don’t really know you,” she said finally.

The phone rang again and Colin cursed under his breath. His shoulders sagged and his eyes went even more wild.

Carmen knocked.

Colin growled and yanked the door open. In contrast to the tension pouring from him, he spoke slowly, distinctly, and appeared surprisingly calm, considering how white his knuckles were on the knob. “I need another moment with your boss,” he said through his teeth, which were bared in a mockery of a smile. He waited until Carmen read his lips and nodded reluctantly. “Alone,” he added firmly when Carmen would have entered.

The older woman’s eyebrows disappeared into her hairline, but she backed off the threshold. As she turned away, she stuck her tongue out at him.

Lani held her breath, but he didn’t seem to notice.

Colin shut the door. His gaze whipped back to Lani, and there was no mistaking his recklessness now. “It’s not all that difficult an issue,” he assured her. “I’m an open book. Truly.”

Lani let out a little laugh, for he was the most closed-mouthed person she’d ever known. And also, something else bothered her—why her? Surely he could have asked anyone and got a resounding oh boy, pretty please, yes!

Her silence must have scared him. “All right.” He plowed his fingers through his hair as he turned in a slow circle. “You want to know me.” He faced her and shrugged. “It’s simple, really. I’m…technically inclined. I don’t drink or do drugs…I like fast, sleek, sexy cars…and I’m fairly certain I don’t snore.”

When the phone rang yet again, his words came faster. “I like classical music, smart dogs and spicy Mexican food. And I always put the seat down. Now,” he added tightly over the annoying phone, “will you agree?”

Lani would never know what came over her, whether it was the unexpected flash of loneliness she’d experienced that morning, or just the deep, inexplicable yearning she felt for this man.

Risk, she reminded herself.

Help him with his great project. Help him help you out of the rut your life has become. “Okay,” she whispered. Because that sounded weak, she licked her lips and simply, confidently said, “Yes.”

Surprise flitted across his features and he held himself very still, clearly unsure if he’d heard correctly. “Did you just say yes?”

“Yes.” Oh, God, she couldn’t believe she was going to do this. “I mean, what the heck. I love spicy Mexican food, too. Let’s do it.”

2

THE TENSION DRAINED from Colin’s shoulders and while he didn’t quite smile, some of the strain left the lines around his mouth. “Well,” he said, obviously relieved.

“Yes. Well.” Lani grabbed her broom and laughed again, a little giddily. “I feel swept off my feet.”

“For pretend,” he clarified, eyes sharp on hers. “You feel swept off your feet for pretend.”

Darn, she had a pesky habit of forgetting that. “Right.”

He opened his mouth to say something, but Carmen stuck her face against the glass again, looking like a troll doll as she scrunched up her features to see better. Colin held up his finger for another minute.

Carmen rolled her eyes and disappeared.

“Um…Mr. West?”

He smiled at Lani for the first time, and wow, it was a stunner. “I think under the circumstances,” he said, “you can call me Colin.”

“Okay.” Lani smiled back, feeling a little dazed. What had she done? Had she really agreed to marry this wild, untamed creature just because her life needed a boost? “I should clean now.”

“Okay.” He frowned, plucking again at his wet shirt. “Ouch.”

“Yeah, the cleaner is starting to burn a bit,” Lani admitted regretfully, shifting uncomfortably herself. “I’m sorry.”

Without another word, Colin pulled the shirt over his head and tossed it aside.

Oh, man. Oh, man. He was perfect. Wide sinewy shoulders, hard chest, flat belly, lean hips, and the most amazing eyes that drew her right in… She was getting light-headed, and it most definitely wasn’t from the cleaner fumes.

Colin ran a hand over his bare chest with obvious relief. “Better.”

Better, Lani agreed silently. There was a solid thunk behind her. Carmen had banged her forehead on the glass attempting to get a better look.

The phone rang again and Colin sighed resolutely. “I have to get that.” He looked as though he’d rather face a firing squad. “But I’ll be back. We have to go over some things.”

Lani nodded, wondering if some of those things involved her wifely duties.

Now why did just the thought of that give her a heady rush of anticipation? She wasn’t promiscuous, not by a long shot, but somehow, with a man like Colin, she thought she might learn something about being a woman.

Yep, the chemicals in the cleaning stuff she used were most definitely going to her head—and really starting to burn her skin. Too bad she couldn’t rip her shirt off, too. At the thought, she let out another laugh.

“Lani?” Colin dipped his head down a little so he could see into her eyes. “Don’t leave yet.”

Did he honestly think she’d disappear now? He didn’t know much about her if—

What was she thinking?

He knew nothing about her. Still speechless, a truly unusual state for her, she shook her head.

She wouldn’t leave.

He looked at her for a long moment, and she wondered what was going through his mind, what he saw in her.

Again, the enormity of what she’d agreed to do staggered her. What was she going to tell Great-Aunt Jennie, who was likely to be so excited to have wed off her old-maid niece, finally? She’d have a heart attack!

It was just pretend, she reminded herself. No real heart involved. Walk away when the project’s done.

Lani watched her half-naked boss—and, good Lord, her future husband—as he walked out of the room.

Another unstoppable giggle escaped and she slapped her hand over her mouth. Giggling wouldn’t do, it didn’t become the future Mrs. West. “Oh, my God.”