FOUR
“If you love me, you’llmarry me right away.” Rayne squeezed Eddie’s hands as she sat next to him on the sofa in her apartment. “I’ve decided my inheritance isn’t that important.”
Eddie’s eyes widened and he shook his head. “I do love you, Pookey-bear, and I’ll show you by being a supportive boyfriend and wait the year for you until you’re all mine.”
Rayne was blessed with such an understanding boyfriend, but sometimes she’d like to shake some sense into him. “No, Eddie. I don’t want to wait. I don’t want to take the chance that you’ll get tired of waiting and find someone else.” She smiled. “We’ll be able to make it on our incomes. Right now, I’m not making a lot of money with my business, but soon it will flourish, and I’ll be one of the best-known designers in California. And, when you graduate with your degree, you’ll find a great job right away.” She shook her head. “We don’t need my father’s money.”
He lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles. “But you deserve this. Besides, several years down the road, you’ll blame me for not being supportive. That won’t happen if I let you marry that other guy for a year.” Eddie leaned in and kissed her forehead. “And it’s not like we won’t see each other every day. We will. And, if we have to sneak around and kiss, then we’ll do that, too.”
“Oh, Eddie. I know I’m not marrying Calvin because I’m in love, but I don’t want to cheat on him. I don’t want to take the chance of ruining my reputation. I want to be a top designer, just as Calvin wants to be a top-notch lawyer. We can’t have our names dragged through the mud just because I couldn’t wait the twelve months to be with you.” She sighed. “Both Calvin and I have powerful families, and we are in the public eye from time to time. I don’t want to ruin that.” She laid her head on his shoulders. “That’s another reason why I want to marry you and not him. I don’t want to wait a whole year without kissing you.”
She closed her eyes and tried to remember the excitement she’d felt whenever Eddie kissed her, but she couldn’t seem to forget the sensations that had rushed through her when she’d kissed Calvin. He’d held her so close, and he’d known just how to make her feel like she was the most important person in the room... or in their case, the elevator.
Eddie grumbled. “I’d hoped you would want to have an affair with yourformerboyfriend.” His chest shook with a silent laugh.
She playfully pushed against him. “Stop teasing. I mean it, Eddie. I really don’t want to go through with this stupid contract. I told you the real reason for it, didn’t I?”
“Yes. I was the first one you called after Calvin Gates had called you.” Eddie scowled. “But you can’t let that get you upset. I want you to keep focused on the goal.”
“Which is?” She arched an eyebrow.
“Winning! You will show your father – God rest his soul – and especially the cocky elder Mr. Gates, even though he’s lost his mind already, that you are not a quitter. You will complete the year required for you to get your inheritance, and it’ll make you a better person. And, it’ll start outournew lives together, much better, too.”
Sighing, she relaxed against him again. “I guess you’re right. I need to do this for us. For our new lives.”
“That’s my girl.” He hugged her tighter. “As much as I want to stay and hold you, I have a job that I need to get to.”
He kissed her lips briefly before moving off the couch. She followed him to the door and watched him leave. Closing the door, she realized she didn’t have the energy for any of this. The idea of marriage to the wrong man had drained her. It was difficult enough to go to work every morning, and when she came home in the evenings, all she wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep.
If she was like this now, how was she going to get through the twelve months of marriage to Calvin Gates?
Her feet dragged to the bathroom and she peered in the mirror. Her face was colorless, and it had been that way for several days. Getting dressed for work in the morning was hard too, but mostly because she didn’t know what to do with her hair. Lately, she’d just pulled it back into a ponytail and slapped a little makeup on her face.
Obviously, she didn’t deal with depression very well.
She pulled out the tie that held her hair back and threaded her fingers through her waves. It was too early for bed, but she didn’t care, changing into pink flannel pajama bottoms and a pink T-shirt.
She slid her bare feet into fuzzy slippers before heading back into the living room to lock the doors and switched off all the lights. As she reached for the deadbolt on the door, the doorbell rang, making her jump.
Usually, the only visitors she got at home were Eddie and a couple of people from the shop. Worry clenched at her gut. If Eddie was at work, that meant that there was a problem with a delivery at the shop.
