“What do you mean she said no? Did you explain to Elle that she would get a million dollars by simply agreeing to marry you?” Jack thundered through the speakerphone as Adam paced.
He needed to talk to his brother, maybe then he could sort out everything in his head. He had just dropped Elle off after a subdued drive home. She had been very polite, only speaking when asked a direct question. Adam didn’t know what to do. He’d been shocked when Elle turned him down, still was, if he was honest with himself.
“Yes. And she told me everything sounded reasonable, but it just wouldn’t work for her.” Adam paused and continued. “I’m not sure where I went wrong. Did she not like the conditions?”
“Maybe Elle’s just scared.” Jack offered.
“Scared of me or what?” Adam didn’t like the idea of Elle being scared of him.
“I don’t know. Maybe she’s afraid of being hurt or something.” Jack’s words held a note of truth to them.
“I’ll talk to her tomorrow. I need to see what’s really going on.” Adam knew what had to be done. He needed to understand why Elle refused to be his fake wife.
* * *
Elle walked into the house, hoping to hurry to her room without being noticed.
“Where have you been? You weren’t here to make supper so I had to do it. I’m way behind now on things I’ve got to do.” Her stepmother’s shrill voice carried across the kitchen as soon as Elle walked in the door.
“Sorry that my going out to supper put you behind.” Elle didn’t think it was fair that she was always the one to make supper. Sometimes others in the house could help out. “What about Carly? She could have made tonight’s meal.”
“Carly make supper?” Lilleth smirked. “She doesn’t even know how to boil water.”
“Maybe it’s time she learned. I could teach her how to make a few simple dishes.” Elle offered. It would take all the patience in the world to teach Carly to cook.
“Instead of finding excuses, why don’t you just show up and do the work you’re expected to do!” Her stepmother’s eyes narrowed as she stepped closer to Elle. “And just who invited you to supper?”
“Adam Stevenson.”
“Adam Stevenson, from the great Walker Stevenson family.” Her mocking tones almost caused Elle to lose her control. But she promised her Dad she’d treat her stepmother with kindness. “Well, I certainly hope you don’t think Adam has any serious interest in the likes of you. You’re just the trashy neighbor girl. You’re the kind of girl that he’ll have some fun with, but won’t take home to meet his mother.”
“I don’t expect anything from him.”
“Well, see that you don’t.” Lilleth’s mouth set in a hard line. “And one more thing.”
“What?”
“When we move, I don’t want you living with us anymore. You’re old enough to take care of yourself, and it’s time you did.” The woman’s face contorted into a smug smirk of satisfaction.
A sudden chill flooded Elle’s face, travelling the length of her body at Lilleth’s words. The echo of her footsteps as she walked away was like the beating of a time clock signalling the end of everything in her life that she loved.
Elle hurried to her small room just off the kitchen, and sat on the edge of her bed hugging her pillow as she digested this new problem. She needed to talk to someone. Pulling out her cell phone, she dialled Bella’s number.
“I have to tell you what happened today.” Elle told her about Adam’s proposal and her stepmother’s decision.
“I’m sorry, Elle. Lilleth is so selfish and mean. I never realized she could be so heartless.”
“Yeah, me either. I should’ve seen this coming.” Elle’s voice cracked. It wasn’t so much being without a home as much as she felt like she was being abandoned once again. “I don’t know what to do now.”
“Listen to me, Elle.” Bella spoke reasonably on the other end. “I think you should really consider saying yes to Adam’s proposal.”
“But, Bella it’s not a real marriage. I wouldn’t be marrying the man I love, like I always hoped.” Elle sighed, her heart crushing beneath the weight of dying dreams.
“You aren’t falling for him, are you?”
“No, I’m not. I would betray my Dad’s memory, if I fell for that man.” Elle wiped away a stray tear from her cheek, frustrated by the constant mixture of emotions whenever she thought of Adam.
“Elle, you don’t know if that’s true. Joanna investigated the accident and told you it wasn’t his fault.” Bella always tried to be the voice of reason in her life. “She did, but I’m still not convinced.”
Elle stood up and started pacing.
“From the way he helped Bree, I think he’s found his compassion. Maybe he’s changed, Elle.” It didn’t help that her friend pointed out Adam’s good qualities.
She didn’t particularly want to hear about those right now. “Maybe.
But that doesn’t change the fact that my Dad is dead and Adam is very much alive.” Elle reminded her in a tone that was harsher than expected. She knew her friend was only trying to help.
“I know, Elle. And I’m desperately sorry about that. You must miss him so much.” Bella’s gentle tone helped calm her emotions. “Listen, this marriage arrangement is not what you’ve always wanted, but he’s offering you enough money to save your father’s ranch. It’ll save your Tara.” Bella was the voice of reason in the middle of her storm. “And by the looks of things, in a few short weeks you won’t have a place to live anyway.”
“I hate it when you’re right. All right. I’ll talk to Adam tomorrow, but I have conditions of my own.” Elle said a new edge in her tone. She was determined to get what she wanted also in this marriage bargain.
“Okay then. Try to get some sleep and I’ll call you tomorrow.” Bella made kissing noises like they’d done since first grade before she hung up.
Elle put her pajamas on and laid awake for a long time worrying about what to say to Adam before finally falling asleep. The next morning she was up a little later than usual and by the time she got to the barn, Adam had already finished most of the morning chores.
He was filling the bucket with feed when Elle walked into the barn. She stood by the door for a minute simply studying him. The muscles in his arms rippled through his thin t-shirt as he hauled down more feed.
He was definitely handsome, there was no question about that. As she watched him, more doubts surfaced. She’d looked up his name online and seen the scores of photos of him with models and other beautiful women.
She didn’t have their beauty or their expensive clothes, so why would Adam choose her for his wife, even if it was just pretend? He said he trusted her, and she wouldn’t make things messy by falling in love with him. The problem was there were certain things about Adam she liked a little too much.
Some of those details were the fact that he helped Bree and that he loved his mom and grandparents enough to want to please them. She’d need to constantly remind herself this marriage was a business arrangement.
“Like what you see?” Adam glanced over at her.
Her cheeks heated, and she quickly turned away. Grabbing an armload from the large pile of clean straw, she walked to the stalls to lay it down. His low chuckle as she moved from stall to stall sent shivers up and down her spine.
How did he always manage to unsettle her? She had just finished with the last stall for the horses, when the floorboard squeaked behind her.
“You missed a spot.” His warm breath tickled her ear. Elle stepped away from him, reminding herself she needed to talk to him. He took the rest of the straw and spread it out for her. Sometimes, he flustered her so much by what he said or did, it made her completely forget what she was doing.
“Elle, why did you feel you needed to say no to my offer?” He took off his gloves and shook out the stray pieces of straw, then stared at her, his blue eyes compelling and direct.
“Actually, I’ve changed my mind. I will accept your marriage bargain.” Elle bit her lip in a nervous gesture. A half-grin turned the corners of his mouth upwards. “But I have conditions of my own.”
“I wouldn’t have expected anything less.” Adam stood there with his hands in his jean pockets looking relaxed and confident. “Let me have them.”
“Okay. First, I want to continue horse training and therapy that my Dad started. So, I’ll need the freedom to go to the ranch to take care of the animals and for the horse therapy sessions I have with the children.”
He simply nodded, and Elle continued.
“Next, I want to keep my horses along with my dog, Ginger, and Puss and Boots, my cats. Lastly, since this marriage is just a business arrangement, and we don’t want to bring any messy emotions into it, we shouldn’t doing a lot of kissing or other stuff.” The words rushed out of Elle’s mouth before she could stop them.
She had even practiced what to say last night because she needed the courage to get through it. “The first two conditions are fine, but I might have a little trouble with the last one. Because I do find you very kissable.” Adam stepped closer and took both of her hands in his.
Adam went down on one knee, pressing a soft kiss on each of her work-roughened hands. His warm lips on her fingers sent a spiral of tingles up and down her arms. “Elle Jennings, will you marry me?”
Her cheeks heated as his blue eyes searched her own. She felt their warmth like a physical touch. “Yes, Adam. I will marry you.”
She reminded herself, this was only a short-lived marriage of convenience. And what could be a more compelling reason than to save her father’s ranch?
This was what she needed to do. Besides, what could possibly go wrong with a marriage bargain?
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