Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 97836 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 489(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97836 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 489(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
Silas sat forward. “At the cafe, you told your sister I had to go home. Go do crucial, strategic corporate business, I think you said.” His eyes were bright with teasing, and I fought against the urge to reach out and touch him. He was mesmerizing. Something about his eyes or his handsome face or his… whole… everything made me want to touch him damned near all the time for some reason.
“I panicked, okay? But now I’ve had time to think about it, and I realize how suspicious that would look. We can still file the paperwork in Delaware, but I need you to stay here and help me sell it. Be a… a happy husband and all that. At least until after July Fourth and the exhibition. Two months, give or take. Otherwise, I’m going to be dealing with gossip and fallout while I’m trying to handle summer tourism, roundup, the exhibition, and all the other crap I have on my plate. Please.”
I didn’t usually admit to feeling overwhelmed, but this was pretty close. The entire situation made me feel uncomfortable, but asking a practical stranger for help was damned near untenable.
“Sorry to ask,” I added belatedly.
Silas waved my apology away. “What would being a ‘happy husband’ entail, exactly?”
I felt my face heat. “Just… you know… being with me? At… events? Here in town?” I inhaled deeply and closed my eyes in embarrassment for a beat before opening them. “I don’t know, Silas. I’ve never had a husband before. Do you have a better idea? I’m drowning here.”
Lord only knew what I expected, but it definitely wasn’t his hand moving up to cup the back of my neck and pull me in for a hug.
He held me tightly for a long moment. It was a little awkward since we were sitting in chairs side by side, but I appreciated every minute of it. The fresh, masculine scent of him surrounded me. The strength of his embrace grounded me. And his unexpected kindness made my nostrils sting.
There was nothing sexual about it, even though my brain was silently suggesting there could be, and I’d most likely be very happy for it. Rather, it was a solid gift of comfort and support I so rarely received these days.
I was humbled by the gesture. It took me a moment to relax and accept it, but when I did, I let out a shuddery sigh and returned the hug, hanging on for dear life.
The worn flannel of his shirt was soft and warm under my fingers. I wanted to grip it and hold it—hold him—for as long as he’d let me. For some reason, he felt like a safe place… which made absolutely no sense when I didn’t even know the man.
When Silas pulled back, I took in a shaky breath in hopes he wouldn’t be able to see how much the hug affected me.
“I’ll do it… on one condition,” he said, sounding almost as affected as I was.
“Anything. Anything you want,” I blurted before remembering Foster’s warning about my ranch and the truck.
“You’ll sign a promise to give me an uncontested divorce, no questions asked, and no financial arrangements or detailed disputes that might slow things down. Agreed?”
I wondered if this was too good to be true. “Agreed,” I said quickly before he learned about the size of my family’s spread.
It didn’t occur to me at the time that he might have had just as much reason to want an easy out with no financial disclosure, and honestly, I didn’t care. Either way, there was no need for either of us to consider any kind of financial arrangement when we’d never intended to get married in the first place. It wasn’t a real marriage of any kind.
Even though for the next couple of months, we were going to pretend it was.
Silas nodded and exhaled, his shoulders lowering as if in relief. “Good. That’s settled. I guess I don’t need to worry about finding a hotel or anything, right?”
I stared at him as the reality of the situation sank in. Silas Concannon was going to come home with me, live with me. Share my tiny, one-bedroom cottage… the place I’d hand built just for myself. The only place on earth where I drew up boundaries and didn’t allow anyone else in.
Silas was going to invade my sanctuary.
EIGHT
SILAS
I agreed to follow Way to his house in my rental car. As I suspected, his was the beat-up Dodge Ram that had been parked out front of City Hall. At least if the old thing died on the way to the ranch, we’d still have my rental to get us the rest of the way.
Staying in someone’s old farmhouse wasn’t exactly my idea of comfort. While I tried not to be a complete snob, I had to admit my wealth had allowed me to live well. I had a spacious penthouse apartment in the city that had been upgraded to include every creature comfort possible, and when I traveled, I usually stayed in high-end hotels.