She quickly yanked the door open... but then stood frozen in shock. Standing right in front of her was the man she couldn’t stop thinking about. The last time she’d seen him, he’d worn a three-piece business suit, but tonight, he wore a casual white buttoned shirt and blue jeans with black athletic shoes.
“Calvin? What are you doing here?”
He held out a single yellow rose with a pink ribbon on the stem. “I’d like to call a truce.”
Hesitantly, she took the rose from him and lifted it to her nose to sniff. She knew her flowers and what they meant since her mother had owned a chain of florist shops when Rayne was a teenager. A yellow rose meant friendship.
Her heartbeat quickened and she smiled. “Thank you, Calvin. I think a truce is exactly what I need.” She motioned toward her couch. “Do you want to come in?”
His grin widened, and she could have sworn she saw a twinkle in his green eyes. Nah, she must have imagined it. Or it was the lighting in her living room.
She closed the door and joined him on the couch. “Thanks for the flower.” She smelled it again. “I’m not sure if you know this or not, but the yellow flower means—”
“Friendship,” he said quickly. “Yes, I know it’s meaning, which is why I bought that color. I want us to be friends. I know the situation we’re in is rough on both of us, but we have to make this work, and becoming friends is a good start.”
She held her breath. What was he talking aboutmaking this work? Did he actually want them to have a real marriage?
“Calvin, tell me your thoughts on this contract and the marriage.”
He leaned back in the couch and folded his arms. “I’m very upset that my father used me as a pawn in his competitive games.”
She nodded. “Yes, I am as well.”
“And I’ve tried to convince myself several times already that I don’t need the money, but then I realized it’s not that Ineedit, it’s more like I deserve it.”
She exhaled slowly, relaxing. “I’ve been going through those emotions, too.”
“And,” he said, leaning closer to her as he rested his weight on his hand, “I’m not a quitter.”
She met his challenging gaze. “Neither am I.” As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized how wrong she was for trying to make Eddie marry her now. She was also very wrong for letting her depressed feelings govern her life.
Strange, but gazing into Calvin’s eyes gave her more strength than she imagined. Perhaps she had a touch of the same competitiveness in her as her father had had.
He leaned back against the couch again. “Anyway,” he said as a gush of air blew out of his mouth, “I thought we needed to talk this out. I think if we get to know each other a little better, it would make things easier once we’re married.”
The idea of marrying someone other than Eddie didn’t sit well with her, but she pushed the emotion aside. Calvin was right. This had to be done. Now the question was... could she become friends with him and not think about their passionate kiss? And, hadhethought about it, too?
“Yes, I agree.” She leaned her shoulder against the couch cushions as she tentatively met his earnest stare. “So, what do you want to talk about?”
His expression softened, and the color of his eyes darkened. His gaze dropped to her mouth before he quickly brought it back to her eyes.
“How is your boyfriend taking this?”
She laughed lightly. “Believe it or not, he’s encouraging me to get this marriage over and done with.”
Calvin’s eyebrows lifted. “He is?” He shook his head. “If I were in his shoes, I don’t know if I could let my gorgeous girlfriend marry a guy for a year.”
His compliment caused heat to rush to her cheeks. Did he just inadvertently call her gorgeous? “Well, he doesn’t think I should give up on my inheritance. And really, he’s right. That money will help us out when we finally get married.” She shrugged. “Yeah, it’s going to be hard not to want to see each other every day. He even suggested we sneak around and have an affair.” Calvin’s jaw hardened, so she quickly added, “But I told Eddie that I couldn’t do that to you, or to me. I don’t want to ruin either of our reputations, because it could eventually harm our careers.”
His face relaxed again. “Thanks. You’re right, too.”
“So,” she sat up straight, “let’s plan our wedding.”
He chuckled. “Really? You want an actual wedding like in a church?”
“Well, not really. I don’t want to stand in God’s house and marry a man unless I love him completely and want to stay with him forever.”
Calvin nodded. “I couldn’t agree more. So then let’s just run off to Vegas and get hitched.”
