Loe raamatut: «The Wedding Contract»

CHAPTER ONE

STEVE ROCKWELL didn’t have time for fun. Not unless it suited his purpose and didn’t distract him from more important matters, like making money.

‘Can I help you?’ A hand touched his arm, halting him.

He frowned and stopped mid-stride. The sooner he completed today’s business at the dingy Gold Coast theme park and flew back to Sydney, the better.

‘No, I’m fine.’ His impatience faded as his gaze met an inquisitive pair of hazel eyes, the likes of which he’d never seen before. They weren’t green or brown but an incredible combination of the two, with gold flecks thrown in for good measure.

Not bad, if you liked that sort of thing. Personally, he had a penchant for blue where women were concerned.

He let his gaze slide down the rest of the woman, wondering if the loose, gypsy-like clothes hid any curves. Strange garb, but what did he expect at a carnival?

‘You seem to be lost.’ Her voice was soft, innocent and belied the age-old weariness he glimpsed in her peculiar eyes.

He stared at the hand resting on his sleeve, noting the short nails and callus on the third finger, the antithesis of the women who usually grabbed him with their perfectly manicured talons.

He stepped away, surprised to discover he missed her brief touch. The relentless Queensland heat, which he couldn’t stand, must have melted his brain.

‘I’m here to see Colin Lawrence. Isn’t that his office over there?’ He pointed to a small, ramshackle portable building on the outskirts of the grounds, past the whirling rides, the popcorn stand and the Ferris wheel.

She quirked an eyebrow at him. ‘He’s not in. Can I help instead?’

Despite her sass, he almost laughed aloud at the thought of doing business with this waif dressed in layers of flimsy, floating material.

‘Not unless I need my palm read.’ He noted the sudden defensive posture as she folded her arms. The action outlined her full breasts and he had a sudden desire to discover what other hidden delights lay beneath the layers.

Her eyes narrowed. ‘Oh, I’m sure I’d have no trouble in telling you your fortune.’

So the lady liked to spar? He would have little trouble in accommodating her—after all, it was what he did best. He wasn’t a partner in one of Sydney’s most prestigious law firms for nothing.

‘Go ahead, then, Madam Zelda. Give it your best shot.’ He thrust out his hand, keen to see her reaction.

She ignored his outstretched palm. ‘Not out here. Too public for what I have to say. Why don’t you come into my lair?’

Now, that was the best offer he’d had all day.

He followed her, admiring the gentle swishing of the long skirt around her ankles. She wore sandals, an anklet and a silver toe-ring, and he briefly wondered if they completed her outfit or she favoured that sort of thing all the time. He’d never been a fan of jewellery, especially the bizarre piercings that many women liked these days. In fact, he would hazard a guess that this lady sported a navel-ring to match the one wrapped around her second toe.

‘Do you intend to come in or are you going to stand out there all day, admiring my feet?’ She held open a purple drape and gestured him inside, a cheeky smile tugging at the corners of her lush mouth.

Lord, that mouth. Outlined in a sheer pink gloss, it sent his imagination into overdrive. The midday sun must have addled his brain more than he’d thought. Since when did he ever mix business with pleasure?

He brushed past her and entered the gloom. ‘Who said I was admiring anything?’

‘I see all,’ she said, sitting behind a small table covered in red satin. ‘So, truth time. Show me your palm.’

Feeling utterly ridiculous, and wondering what the hell he was doing in a claustrophobic tent at a run-down theme park, he reached forward and unfurled his fingers.

As soon as she touched him, he knew. This mystery woman had grabbed his attention the first minute he’d laid eyes on her and he would have followed her anywhere to find out more.

‘OK, Miss Know-All. Am I an open book?’

She peered into his palm, turning it from side to side. ‘Mmm…interesting.’

You can say that again.

With her attention focused on his hand, he had free rein to study her just as intently. Her veil had fallen back as she leaned forward, displaying a glorious mass of wild blonde hair which tumbled past her shoulders. She obviously spent a lot of time outdoors, her hair’s sun-streaked highlights shimmered in the candlelight, framing her tanned face. A slight frown marred her forehead as she studied his palm, her mouth pursed in concentration, and he had a sudden urge to smooth away the frown and kiss those pouting lips.

She was a beauty all right. A pity he had to rush back to Sydney, otherwise he might have enjoyed getting to know her a whole lot better.

‘You still haven’t told me anything,’ he said, wishing she would look at him so he could glimpse those startling eyes once again.

As if reading his thoughts, she looked up and fixed him with a piercing stare. ‘You’re impatient, self-assured and used to getting your own way. A real go-getter, who won’t let anyone stop you from reaching your goal, with a liberal dose of arrogance thrown in for good measure.’

His eyebrows shot up. ‘Oh, you’re good. Anything else?’

‘You’re nothing but trouble.’ She pronounced it calmly, though he noted her hand shook before she quickly dropped his.

‘Only when someone stands in my way.’ Despite the fact that she piqued his interest, he glanced at his watch and decided he’d wasted enough time. He stood up, suddenly annoyed that he’d dallied this long. He needed to find Colin Lawrence and get down to business.

‘Tell me something I don’t know. So what do you want with Colin?’ She sat back and folded her arms, as if she had all the time in the world.

He didn’t. ‘I’m here on business. Now, where can I find him?’

She nodded, like the all-seeing sage she pretended to be. ‘I knew it. You’re one of the vultures. Accountant? Lawyer?’ She spat out the last word, as if the profession was poison.

He quirked an eyebrow, admiring her feistiness. ‘You really do have amazing powers. My name’s Steve Rockwell and I’m a lawyer, here on behalf of Water World.’

She clenched her fists, fear flashing in her eyes before she tilted her chin up.

‘Go away. We’ve got nothing to say to you.’

‘We?’ Since when did a pint-sized woman posing as a fortune-teller speak for the business he’d come to close down?

She jumped to her feet. ‘You heard me. My father and I aren’t interested in your business. So go back to where you came from.’

God, she was magnificent when riled, bristling like some fierce tawny cat, her eyes glowing with golden fire. He wouldn’t mind taking a shot at taming her, though she’d just thrown a major spanner in the works. This creature was Colin Lawrence’s daughter and he never mixed business with pleasure.

He shook his head. ‘That’s not possible. Unless the owner of this establishment speaks to me and brokers a deal, this place is finished.’

She walked around the table and stood in front of him. ‘No deal. That monstrosity next door has been trying to buy us out for years and it just won’t happen. Got it?’

‘Water World is one of the largest theme parks around here. Do you really think you stand a chance?’ He towered over her, feeling like a nasty ogre come to wipe out the Lilliputians.

To his amazement, she jabbed her finger into his chest, several times. ‘Now, you listen to me, mister. This place is my father’s life and no one is going to take it away from him, least of all the likes of you. What do I have to do to get it through that thick skull of yours?’

He’d never been impulsive. His whole life had been planned, from the exact minute of his C-section birth, just as his mother wanted it. In fact, every action in his well-ordered life had been planned to the nth degree.

Except what he did next.

Pulling her against him, he claimed her mouth with almost brutal force. She’d stirred him with her spirited retorts and quick wit and he needed to prove a point. Though he forgot what it was the moment his lips touched hers.

She didn’t stand a chance as he kissed her like a man starved, coaxing her lips to open beneath him. She made a soft, whimpering sound before giving in, her mouth allowing his tongue to plunge between her lips, seeking, plundering. He plied her mouth with prolonged skill, nipping her bottom lip, nibbling and suckling till she leaned into him.

His fingers tangled in her hair as he angled her head for better access to the sweetness of her mouth. Like a forbidden delicacy, he tasted and sampled, accepting he would regret it later. Surprisingly, she met him halfway, grasping his shirt and hanging on for dear life as he deepened the kiss to the point of devouring. At her touch, he drew in a breath, knowing he shouldn’t be doing this yet powerless to stop. He’d lost all reason the minute the temptress responded to him.

Suddenly, she pushed away from him, a dawning horror growing in her passion-hazed eyes. ‘What was that all about?’

‘I’m sorry,’ he murmured, drawing back farther. He took in her flushed cheeks, her slightly swollen lips, her ragged breathing, not sorry in the least.

In fact, he wished he could kiss her again, repeatedly, till she lay writhing beneath him, begging for more.

She turned away from him and ran a hand through her tousled hair. ‘I think you should leave.’

He could have sworn her voice shook, and remorse flooded him. What was he doing, going around manhandling the daughter of the man he needed to do business with? He’d never given in to primal urges before. He usually planned his seductions—not that he had any intention of following through with this particular scenario. Ladies sporting toe-rings weren’t his style at all.

He reached towards her, then let his hand drop. Touching her wouldn’t be a good idea at this point of the proceedings. ‘What’s your name?’

She whirled around and he glimpsed the fire return to her eyes. ‘It’s a bit late to exchange pleasantries, don’t you think?’

He deserved that for acting like a first-class jerk. Though he wasn’t big on apologies, he’d better make amends before she ran crying to Daddy and Colin Lawrence came after him with a shotgun. Or, even worse, a lawsuit.

He lowered his head just a fraction, aiming for humble in the hope she would buy it. He’d never acted subservient in his life and it didn’t sit well with him now. ‘I don’t know what came over me. Please accept my apology. You just got me so wound up, I—’

‘Do you kiss everyone who talks back to you?’ she interrupted, crossing her arms.

Once again, his mind drifted into the gutter as he wondered if her breasts would feel as heavy and full as they looked through the gauzy material.

He shrugged, bringing his attention back to her face with difficulty. ‘I’m not used to it. I don’t get disagreed with all that often.’

Sensing the direction of his gaze, she folded her arms tighter and glared. ‘Well, there’s a first time for everything. It’s about time someone took you down a peg or two and I’m just the person to do it.’

He took in her defensive stance, a flicker of appreciation shooting through him. This woman would fight to the death for what she believed in, to protect what was rightfully hers. He admired loyalty, a rare attribute in most of the women he’d had the misfortune to date.

‘Be careful. I just might take you up on that challenge.’ He paused, looking her up and down. ‘And we both know where that might lead.’

She blushed, a faint pink staining her cheeks, highlighting the bewitching colour of her eyes. ‘My father won’t be back till later. I’ll tell him you calle in. And now, if you don’t mind, I have work to do.’ She held her head high and strode past him, holding open the tent flap for him to exit with her.

‘You win this time. But I’ll be back.’ He stepped out of the tent, the sunshine momentarily blinding him and he wondered if she’d cast some weird spell on him while he’d been cocooned with her.

She looked up and he could have sworn she winked. ‘I’m sure you will. See you round, hotshot.’

She sashayed away and his body responded before he realised she still hadn’t answered his question. ‘What’s your name?’ he called out.

She stopped for a moment. ‘Amber,’ she flung over her shoulder and continued on her way.

The name suited her. Her hair and skin were a golden bronze that more than lived up to the semi-precious stone she’d probably been named after.

What a woman.

Perhaps this deal would be more complicated than he’d thought? And, just perhaps, he’d need to spend more time on the Gold Coast than first anticipated?

Yeah, it was do-able. Though how he would justify the last half-hour as billable time was beyond him.

Amber stalked across the grounds towards her father’s office, wondering what on earth had possessed her to match wits with the likes of that fancy lawyer.

She’d picked him as soon as he’d entered the carnival, striding through the crowd with his nose stuck ten feet in the air. The designer suit had been a dead give-away too, not to mention the fact that her father had warned her about some big-time lawyer from Sydney coming to pay them a visit.

OK, so he hadn’t been what she’d expected. Old, wrinkly and conservative didn’t come close to describing the high-and-mighty Steve Rockwell. Not by a long shot. Try thirty-ish, lean and drop-dead gorgeous.

Not that she wanted to remember him. Anything he’d had to say and that damn kiss should be pushed to the far recesses of her mind, where they belonged.

So what if he’d made her toes curl? She’d been kissed before. But never like that.

So maybe he had turned up enough heat to melt her on the spot. She could cope. She’d handled worse and come away unscathed. And if he thought for one minute he could undermine her stance on the carnival with a single kiss, he better think again.

She knocked once before barging into her father’s makeshift office. ‘Hi, Dad. Got a minute?’

Colin Lawrence looked up, pleasure etched into his weary face. He pushed his glasses on top of his balding head and leaned back in his chair. ‘I’ve always got time for my favourite girl. What’s up?’

‘I just ran into that lawyer you talked about. And he’s spouting a whole lot of trouble.’

Her father’s worried expression made her heart clench. ‘We’ve talked about this, love. There’s no avoiding it. Where is he?’

‘I fobbed him off for now, though he said he’d be back. Isn’t there anything we can do? Get another loan? Re-finance?’ She wanted to stamp her feet and yell at the injustice of it all.

He shook his head, sending her brief, irrational flare of hope plummeting. ‘There’s nothing left. I’ve got no choice. It’s sell out to the big boys or close up.’ He rubbed the bridge of his nose where his glasses had rested moments before. ‘I’m sorry, darling. There just isn’t any other way.’

Amber walked over to her father, bent down and hugged him. ‘Don’t worry, things will be OK. You’ll see.’ She blinked back the tears that rose at her empty promise.

Things had never been the same since her mother had died when Amber was twelve years old, after a long, expensive battle with cancer. Her father had done everything in his power to keep the carnival afloat, a lasting legacy of happier times, of a business her parents had built from scratch.

Later he’d insisted on paying her university bills, leaving their floundering finances in dire straits. So she had a business degree? Big deal. It couldn’t save the carnival and it only served to increase her guilt at attributing to their monetary woes.

And now her dad would lose the one thing that meant the world to him. She’d be damned if she just stood by and let it happen.

‘Why don’t you meet with this lawyer and see what he has to say?’ The words stuck in her craw but she knew there was no other way.

She’d sensed a softer side beneath the arrogant lawyer’s polished exterior and she hoped that he might have an ounce of decency in his supercilious bones. Anything was worth a shot at this late stage.

Her father nodded. ‘I had every intention of meeting with him. Why did you shoo him away?’

She shrugged, remembering the toe-curling kiss and the feel of his rock-hard chest beneath her hands. She’d needed to get rid of him before she did something even more stupid like take him back to her caravan. ‘Guess he rubbed me up the wrong way.’

Lord, if her dad only knew how she’d really reacted to the sexy lawyer and the exact way he’d rubbed her!

Her dad tweaked her nose, making her feel ten years old. ‘You’re too fiery for your own good, missy.’

She thrust her chin up. ‘No man gets the better of me, Dad. You know that.’

He chuckled. ‘Some day, some man with enough guts is going to come along and give you a mighty big shake-up. Just mark my words.’

‘You’re the only man in my life worth worrying about.’ She squeezed his hand, trying to ignore the image of a cocky lawyer with slate-grey eyes. He did not rate a mention, let alone a passing thought.

Now all she had to do was believe it.

Before leaving the carnival, Steve decided to take a look around. He prided himself on being prepared for every deal he handled, and in this instance he didn’t think that reading a bunch of reports would cut it.

He’d taken on this deal for his boss, Jeff Byrne. Jeff knew the owner of the large theme park next door, Water World, who had called in a favour and requested that Byrne and Associates represent his company in the takeover of an ‘insignificant’ competitor.

So here he was on the Gold Coast, keen to finalise matters and return to his harbour-side apartment, his yacht and his latest conquest, all waiting for him in civilised Sydney. He’d never liked the glitz of the Gold Coast, preferring the class of a large city.

As if on cue, he caught sight of Amber’s gypsy-clad figure in the crowd, reminding him of some of the coast’s hidden attractions. As she stopped to recapture a stray balloon for some children, he watched the way the sun glinted off the blonde mane that hung halfway down her back.

OK, so the Gold Coast wasn’t all bad.

She looked up as he approached her, her expression far from welcoming. ‘What are you still doing here?’

‘Thought I’d take a look around.’

‘Why? Moving in for the kill?’ She thrust her chin up as if daring him to argue.

Though he’d enjoyed their war of words earlier, he decided to cut her some slack. After all, he’d probably feel the same way if someone threatened to take away his livelihood. ‘I’m here to broker a deal. That’s it.’

‘Do you have any idea what this place means to us?’ Her eyes narrowed and she blinked several times, quickly.

He caught the sheen in her eyes. Surely he hadn’t made the firebrand cry?

‘Why don’t you show me?’ Great, he’d gone soft for the second time in his life.

The only other time he’d relented was when one of his exes, Kara Roberts, had come crying on his shoulder about her boyfriend, Matt Byrne, his onetime rival and current associate. Women’s tears left him helpless and uncomfortable, two feelings that didn’t sit well with him. It had been an experience he didn’t care to repeat.

So what was he doing, playing knight-in-shining-armour all over again to a woman he barely knew?

The glimmer of her smile was answer enough.

‘Sure you want the grand tour?’ she asked, her voice still a tad unsteady.

He inclined his head. ‘Lead the way.’

He traipsed after her, listening to the pride in her running commentary as she outlined the carnival’s features. Surprisingly, the operation ran more smoothly than he’d anticipated and the happiness on the employees’ faces seemed genuine enough. So why wasn’t it turning a profit? Did Colin Lawrence have a gambling habit, or some other way of losing money in what appeared like a sound business?

‘Why are you in trouble?’ He’d brokered deals for worse places than this. Maybe something could be salvaged from the operation? And, in the process, stop his enchanting tour guide from staring at him as if he was a bogeyman.

She sighed as her shoulders tensed. ‘We ran up a debt a few years ago and haven’t been able to recover since. Things have gone from bad to worse since the big boys joined the party.’

‘You mean the other theme parks around here?’ He knew of at least three major parks in the area that drew the crowds in droves with their huge marketing campaigns.

She nodded. ‘Though we pride ourselves on old-fashioned quality, it just isn’t enough any more. We can’t afford to give away cars or free trips to our customers. All we can do is provide kids with a carnival experience, like days gone by.’

He glanced around, noting the merry-go-round, with its restored hand-painted horses, the apple bobbing, the food vendors selling candy floss and hot dogs. She was right; he’d never seen a place like this except in the movies. And he’d come to tear it all down.

‘Is there any way of saving it?’

‘We’ve tried everything.’ She turned away from him and he glimpsed a gleam of tears again. ‘What do you care anyway? You’re on their side.’ She gestured to her right, where he could just see a monstrous water slide over the treetops.

He’d been accused of many things in his lifetime, mostly by his opposition on deals they had lost. None of the barbs or insults he’d had to put up with in the past came close to affecting him as much as this woman’s inference that he was here to rip her world apart.

‘I’m not taking sides. I’m just doing my job.’ He spoke the truth, so why did it sound so lame?

She started to walk away and waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. ‘Whatever lets you sleep at night.’

He strode after her, grabbed her arm and swung her around to face him. ‘Look, if there’s anything I can do to help, just let me know.’

What was he doing, co-operating with the little league when he’d come here to play hard ball?

She leaned into him, and for one irrational minute he thought she might kiss him. ‘There is something you can do for me.’

He inhaled, savouring the sandalwood fragrance that drifted up from her nearness. He’d smelled something similar earlier, thinking it was the incense burning in a corner of the tent. Now, her scent wrapped around him like an ancient spell, one he couldn’t resist.

‘What is it?’ He refrained from saying he would do anything for her. In fact, he would walk over hot coals for another taste of her delicious mouth.

She stared directly at him, that already too-familiar fire flashing in her eyes. ‘Get lost.’

In an instant she’d wrenched her arm free of his grip and stalked away, head held high.

He willed her to look back but she didn’t. Too bad. He wanted her to see his smug grin.

If there was one thing he loved more than making money it was a challenge, and the feisty Amber Lawrence had just waved a red cape, leaving him pawing the ground in frustration and ready to charge.