While he’d agreed to go to Dry Gulch, Montana, and make Goldie Shaw’s former boyfriend jealous, he was a little worried about how to get out of his present situation. It wouldn’t be the first time he’d sneaked out of a woman’s bedroom in the middle of the night.
Then again, he’d never known a woman quite like Lolly Mandeville. In retrospect, he should never have gotten involved with the crime boss’s daughter, no matter how beautiful, sexy or rich she was. He’d suspected she’d singled him out at the bar for more than companionship, but he’d been okay with that. She wasn’t the kind of woman who had to go looking for it. Which meant she had an agenda. Realizing that, he should have politely declined her offer.
But then she had sweetened the pot. He’d been running low on funds at the time. Luckily, he’d been born with a face that had paved his way in life. For as long as he could remember, he’d depended on his looks and his way with words. They had served him well all through school by charming his teachers and later cops and courts to get out of trouble. It had also kept him fedworking as an actor, a model, a gigolo and now hiring himself out to make some poor sucker jealous.
Not that he wasn’t aware of the downsides—especially now. He’d often had to bail on a job in the middle of the night. It was the nature of his business, living off rich women. The moment always came when it was time to get out, and he hoped not to get shot in the back as he hoofed it away.
For the past month, he’d been living at the Mandevilles’ sprawling ranch a few miles from Laramie, Wyoming. Lolly had moved him into her magnificent suite on the estate. He’d thought the moment her father, Malcolm Mandeville, took one look at him, he’d run him off. The alternative would be a shallow grave out in the high Wyoming desert.
To his surprise, the elderly crime boss had welcomed him in like a long-lost relative. That alone should have warned him that getting out of this was going to be tricky. Babysitting the crime boss’s wild, beautiful daughter had been one thing, but Donovan had feared he would somehow end up in the family business—something he hoped to avoid at all costs.
He also had a rule about staying too long. Once the women started talking marriage, it was time to go. With Lolly, though, that hadn’t been the case. At least at first. But now he’d discovered her not-so-little secret. It was time to get out while he could.
But under the circumstances, he knew it could be infinitely more dangerous if he got caught leaving in the middle of the night without a word of goodbye like he’d done with other women. The other women hadn’t been a fiery, hot-tempered crime boss’s only daughter. It was no secret that Lolly had taken after her father. Either of them could kill him for no good reason at all.
So, this job for Goldie Shaw that he’d stumbled across on social media was exactly what he’d been looking for. Dry Gulch,Montana, was small, isolated and far enough from Laramie he should be safe. The money was good, and the gig was his favorite kind. Goldie Shaw wasn’t looking for a man. She already had her eye on the one who’d gotten away. This was a job he could handle.
All he had to do was escape from the Mandeville ranch and Lolly. He couldn’t wait until tonight. He was getting out of here before the you-know-what hit the fan.
DESPERATE TIMES REQUIREDdesperate measures. Those were the exact words Goldie used when, over a bottle of wine, she told her best friend what she’d done. The two women were curled up on Josie’s couch at her law office drinking wine—something they had done for years.
“I didn’t just put the café up for sale. I hired a man to come to Dry Gulch and pretend to fall in love with me to make Max jealous,” Goldie blurted out.
“You did what?” Josie coughed, spewing wine all over herself. “Who? What do you know about this man? How did you even find him?”
“You sound like a lawyer,” Goldie said.
“I am a lawyer,” Josie snapped.
She laughed. “It was easier than I thought. I found an app where you can rent a date for events. Who knew? I should have hired someone a long time ago. I want Max to realize that I’m no longer waiting around for him.”
Josie was still shaking her head. “Are you sure about this?”
She poured herself more wine. “I know it sounds a bit desperate.”
“You think?” Her friend was studying her intently. They’d known each other since they were kids. This was so not like Goldie and they both knew it. “Can you really pull this off?”
She drew out her phone, called up Donovan’s photo and handed it over. “What you think? And he’s charming.”
“Wow. But does he really look like this?”
“We video-chatted earlier,” she said. “He’s definitely handsome and did I mention charming?”
“You did mention charming.”
“He really wants the job and thinks helping me will be fun.”
“I bet he does. Tell me, how does this work?” the attorney in Josie asked.
“He’ll show up at the café tomorrow about noon, we’ll hit it off and one thing will lead to another. We’ve already agreed on his price.”
Her friend shot her a shocked look. “How far do you see this going? Did you tell him the limits you’re willing to go? There are parameters, right?”
Goldie shrugged. “Max Lander is the only man I’ve ever…” She gave a shy grin. “So why not see what I’ve missed?”
Josie shook her head but couldn’t seem to help smiling. “No reason you shouldn’t enjoy yourself then, since youaresingle.”
“Except that I’m in love with Max,” Goldie said soberly.
