"It's no big deal," Alec told them, even though they all knew that it was. His phone buzzed again with the ring tone he'd given to his father, as if to reinforce the point.
Cordelia stood and gathered up plates to take to the sink. "Since you're all here now, why don't I give you a tour of the gardens and the barn? That way you can start thinking about how you want to set things up for the party."
Alec stopped her with his hands on the stack of plates she was holding. He knew she was dying to get out to her garden and that it would do her a world of good to lose herself in blooms for a while. But they couldn't ignore the bomb that had dropped onto Page Six this morning, courtesy of Mona.
"I can help out with your customers while you show everyone around," he offered. "But before you leave to do that, we need to figure out a plan. Roman is doing a great job of holding back the press this morning, but you need a strategy mapped out beyond that."
"I'm just going to tell everyone the truth." Cordelia took the plates from his hands and put them in the sink. "That I didn't know Gordon was my birth father until last week and that I intend to donate the money he willed me to a number of charities."
All Alec wanted was to see her smile. Funny how quickly that had become his top goal, before he'd even realized it had happened. But he couldn't sugarcoat things. "It's not that easy, Cordelia."
"Why not?"
"Because you're now rich enough to be a target for every fortune hunter on the planet. And for a gossip mill that will make sure to dig up every little thing in your past in the hopes that there's a juicy story there."
"I promise you, there's nothing juicy in my past. Nothing at all."
Obviously, she didn't know about the extra bit of juice Mona had sprinkled over her life while she was sleeping. He hadn't had a chance to tell her before everyone showed up. "They think we're together."
"Together?" She looked confused for a moment before her eyes went wide. "You and me? Why would anyone think--" She broke off with a groan. "Because that's what I told Mona."
He saw her flush at the memory of how she'd kissed him to prove her point. A kiss that had rocked him to his core, just the way taking her over the edge in the bedroom of the plane had only made him want her more. He'd stayed up half the night fighting the urge to go to her.
"Who's Mona?" her father asked.
"One of Alec's customers," Cordelia told him.
"Former customers," Alec clarified.
"I met Mona yesterday on one of Alec's planes," Cordelia explained. "She was behaving horribly toward him, so..." She flushed an even deeper rose, so beautiful that Alec nearly lost his breath from nothing more than looking at her. "I made it seem like he and I were dating."
Alec's siblings eyed each other at her admission. He knew what they were thinking, what they were hoping--that he was falling for Cordelia. But they knew better than anyone that it wouldn't matter if he was. She deserved a hell of a lot more than he could give her.
"Mona is a nasty piece of work," Suzanne said. "I'm sorry you're going through all this today, Cordelia, but I'm glad someone finally put her in her place."
"I didn't think my little white lie would have these ramifications," Cordelia said. "We've got to let people know we're not together, Alec."
"I disagree." He ignored the satisfied nods his siblings were giving each other, as if they were all but picturing him at the altar with Cordelia saying I do. He shoved away the part of him that took surprising pleasure in a vivid picture of Cordelia in a long white dress, her eyes locked to his as she told him she'd love him forever. "If people think you and I are dating," he explained, "they're far less likely to hassle you for your money and what they think you can do for them."
"But you didn't ask for any of this," Cordelia protested. "You shouldn't have to cancel dates or explain things to someone you're actually dating, just to protect me. Plus, you've already done so much for me."
"Alec is right." Harry's voice had always been one of reason, and Alec was glad he was jumping in with his opinion. "And so are you, Cordelia. Tell the truth about Gordon in one short press conference--and also let Alec have your back if the vultures try to swoop. I believe he's right in saying that they will."
She frowned, clearly torn. "I hate the thought of making you lie for me, Alec." She looked at his siblings. "And all of you will have to lie too."
"Don't worry, you won't be stuck with me forever." Everyone knew Alec Sullivan didn't do forever--in a real relationship or a fake one.
He couldn't quite read her expression as she said, "I would never ask you for forever, Alec." Nor did he want to read the ache that spread through his chest at her words. Along with a sense of loss that made no sense whatsoever.
"Cordelia." Her mother looked nervous. "I wish we knew what advice to give you, but we don't know anything about the press and photographers and people coming after you for your money."
"We do." Drake lent his voice to the discussion. "We've had to deal with situations like this our whole lives, especially Alec as the oldest."
"I have too," Rosa said, finally chiming in. "I agree that telling the truth is usually the best option. But sometimes..." A hint of pain flashed across her face. "If one little lie will help, Cordelia, then you shouldn't feel bad about telling it. Especially when you have the Sullivans behind you." She beamed at Drake and his siblings. "When they say they have your back, they mean it."
"Fine," Cordelia said, putting her hands up, "you all win."
Though Alec was always ready, always willing, to come to his siblings' aid, he'd never thought to ask them to come to his. Without their doing just that today, however, he would never have been able to convince Cordelia to pretend to be his girlfriend.
Cordelia pinned him with a very serious look. "But only if you swear you're okay with playing my boyfriend."
He didn't have to think it over, didn't have to fight with himself over his reply. The only thing he had to fight was his grin. "It will be my pleasure, Cordelia." There was no other woman he would have done this for. But he couldn't imagine not doing it for her.
Nothing had gone back to normal on Monday morning the way they'd thought it would. But he couldn't deny that a part of him wasn't sorry about it, if only for the excuse it now gave him to stick by Cordelia's side. Not for forever. For long enough, he hoped, to settle her world back to rights, as much as it could.
So he'd pretend to be her boyfriend, while simultaneously not allowing himself to cross any more lines than they already had on the airplane. He'd already made a silent promise to Gordon to respect Cordelia to the highest degree. And now that he'd met her parents, and knew for sure just what good people they were, now that he'd seen for himself that she was the most important person in their world, Alec knew without a shadow of a doubt that Cordelia deserved the happiest ending possible.
She wouldn't find that ending with him. But once he'd helped her clean up the complications Gordon had dropped in her lap, she would be ready to find it with someone else.
The thought of Cordelia in another man's arms was brutal. Beyond brutal.
But it would be far worse to lead her down the path to a broken heart.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Alec wasn't surprised by all the customers clamoring to get into Cordelia's store as soon as the doors opened. Who in town could resist coming by the Langley Garden Center to see if they could get any dirt on the big news that had broken that morning?
After Cordelia had promised her parents that she was okay, she'd insisted that they head off to work. She was currently in the barn with Suzanne, Drake, and Rosa, showing them the space for their father's party, while Alec and Harry worked to keep her retail operation running smoothly.
Harry was brilliant at politely holding off nosy people at the register. If he hadn't decided on academia, he would have been a top-notch mediator with his soft-spoken and sincere manner.
Alec would rather do the dirty work of hauling heavy bags of soil and digging through inventory to
find the blooms Cordelia's customers were interested in. His suit shirt and pants were streaked with dirt, and his hand-stitched Italian shoes were done for after all the mud he'd walked through this morning, but he couldn't care less. There hadn't been time to change into jeans, a T-shirt, and work boots before coming over. He'd needed to get to Cordelia as soon as possible.
Forty-five minutes into the rush, both the store and the parking lot suddenly emptied out, leaving Alec and Harry alone for a few minutes.
"Cordelia seems to be handling everything well."
Harry's tone was mild, but Alec wasn't fooled. He knew when his brother was fishing. "She's tougher than she looks."
"She's a beautiful woman."
When Harry paused before saying anything more, Alec knew he was waiting for a reaction. And the truth was, it was taking a heck of a lot of control not to snap at his brother that Cordelia was off-limits.
"She is," was Alec's concise reply.
"Apart from that," Harry continued, "she's not at all like your usual women."
"She's not one of my women." At Harry's sound of obvious disbelief, Alec all but growled, "If you have something to say, say it."
"You don't want me poking my nose into your business," Harry reminded him.
"That's never stopped you before."
His brother laughed at the truth of it. "Okay then, since you're clearly attracted to her--and it's mutual, from what I can see--and you obviously like and respect her, why not give her a chance? Not to become one of your women, but to be the one that sticks."
"One week into this mess and against all odds, we've become friends." He needed his brother to understand. And to remind himself while he was at it. "I'm not going to risk screwing that up."
"What makes you so sure you will?"
Alec raised an eyebrow. "You know my track record. You've seen more than one drink thrown in my face. And you know how I feel about love and marriage." He gestured toward the barn, from which Cordelia, Suzanne, Drake, and Rosa had just emerged into the bright sunlight. "Look at her. She's made for the perfect happy ending."
Cordelia looked over and caught him staring at her. When she smiled, Alec couldn't help but smile back.
Until he realized Harry was smiling too. At him. As though his brother thought he knew Alec's mind, regardless of what he'd just been told.
Alec's phone buzzed again with the same ring tone he'd been hearing all week. "I've got to take this. Keep manning the register, would you?" He headed off in a direction opposite that of Cordelia and his siblings, to a spot between a bed of roses and a bed of lavender. "What's up, Dad?"
"I've been trying to get ahold of you all morning. I saw the news and figured they must be harassing you and Cordelia."
To head things off at the pass, Alec said, "They were bothering Cordelia, so I came to the garden center to boot them out. That's where I am now."
"I'm glad you're able to be there to support her through this," William said, "but she's not the only one I'm worried about. I know how hard it is to deal with journalists and photographers intruding on your privacy."
"I already know the drill," Alec said. This would be the perfect time for a customer to need his help. Figured that there wasn't a single one to be seen at the moment.
"I'm sorry for everything I put you through when you were a kid," his father said. "And after."
For more than two decades, there had been no apologies. Not until Drake had fallen in love with Rosa and suddenly their father had decided he was ready to earn the name--and for them to be one big, happy family, as well. But Alec didn't buy it. And this was the last thing he needed to deal with right now. "I've got to go."
"The offer still stands," his father said, desperation seeping into his tone. "I can be there if you need me. Wherever you need me. Whenever you need me."
The center of Alec's chest felt tight. Sore. He rubbed his fist over it, telling himself it was from lifting so many bags of soil this morning. He must be getting soft from too much time inside an office.
"Don't worry about me," he said to his father. And then to forestall more phone calls, he added, "You can always assume I've got things under control." The very control he'd had since he was five. When Alec hung up and turned around, he was surprised to see Cordelia standing behind him.
"I was just coming to let you know that we're done touring the property."
"Great." He shoved back thoughts of his father, along with a feeling of guilt over their conversation. "Does everyone agree the barn will work?"
"They think your father is going to love it."
"I'm sure he will."
"Were you just on the phone with him?"
He should have been irritated with her prying. Would have been if it were anyone else. But she wasn't out to hurt him. She simply had a soft heart. "He saw the news and has been calling all morning."
"He must be desperate to help in some way, just the same as my parents."
"I told him he doesn't need to worry about me."
"He's your father," she said. "He can't help but worry about his son."
"He sure as hell didn't worry about me when I was a kid." Damn it, hadn't he promised himself he wouldn't keep talking to her about this? That he'd just do whatever he needed to for the birthday party and keep his mouth shut about his feelings?
She took one of his hands in hers and gave him a heartfelt look. "I'm sorry he didn't, Alec."
Never in his life had he wanted to kiss someone more. Because if he kissed her, nothing else would matter. He could lose himself in her taste, in her soft curves, in the sweet sounds of pleasure she made when his mouth, his hands, were on her.
Only the fierce will to do the right thing--for once--could get him to slip his hand from hers and take a step back. "I don't know if we can trust Harry with the register for too much longer. We should head back."
But instead of moving toward the garden center's main building, she said, "I can't believe how generous your family is, coming to help the way they did this morning. Especially when I know all of them lead such busy lives. Lives I've insisted they all go back to." The floral scent that was uniquely hers made it hard for him to think straight as she said, "You know I love having you here too, and I don't know how I could possibly have dealt with the press and the store this morning without you, but you should also head in to your office now. After changing your clothes and shoes, that is." She looked more than a little stunned by the mess he was. "You've got to let me pay for the dry cleaning."
Ignoring that, he said, "I can't leave you alone."
"Two of Roman's bodyguard colleagues will be here in five minutes. They'll stay until closing and then make sure I get back to the cottage without any problems. Plus, Brian just arrived to put in his regular half day. So you won't have to worry about me."
But he would.
"Come stay with me tonight," he said before he could think better of having her that close. All night long.
"I can't kick you out of your bed again. And honestly, if I leave now, it will feel like I folded." She lifted her chin, beautiful and brave. "I have no intention of folding."
"Then I'll stay with you." Again, he didn't think his offer through before making it. All he knew was that he didn't feel right about leaving her alone tonight. Somehow he'd find a way to keep his mouth, and his hands, off her. "I'll sleep on the couch."
"You don't have to do that, Alec. You've already slept on the couch one too many times on my behalf. Besides, I know you have a life that doesn't revolve around me."
She was right, he did. But nothing else in that life seemed to matter nearly as much as she did. "We've got to make plans for tomorrow's press conference," he reminded her. "And between the two of us, you've got the better vegetable garden for me to cook from."
"I've got the only vegetable garden between the two of us."
He almost gave in to the urge to kiss her then. Came so close that he couldn't keep from leaning in and only barely managed to aim his lips at her f
orehead instead of her mouth.
"That won't convince anyone," she said.
His brain was scrambled enough from wanting her that he couldn't follow. "Convince anyone of what?"
"That we're together." And then, before he knew it, she was reaching up to thread her fingers through his hair, going up on her tippy-toes, and pressing her mouth to his.
Sweet Lord, she tasted like heaven.
Like sin.
Like everything he could ever desire.
He couldn't keep his hands from moving to her waist, then sliding even lower to her hips so that he could drag her closer as he greedily took what he had no business being offered.
"Now that kiss," she whispered when she finally lifted her mouth from his, "the world would believe."
Her eyes were full of sensual promise, her lips were glistening from where he'd run his tongue over them, and Alec knew if he didn't get out of there in the next thirty seconds, he'd be dragging her behind the hedge, ripping off her clothes, and taking her on the brick path.
"I'll be back before dark," he said as he forced himself to back away. "Call me if you need anything, Cordelia. Anything at all."
*
Cordelia floated on the memory of that kiss all afternoon. Despite the fact that she had a million things to worry about, those worries would hold. She wasn't a virgin, and her parents had taught her to respect and appreciate herself as a woman. But only Alec's kisses had ever made her feel this way.
He'd told her again and again that he didn't want a relationship--even their fake relationship, he'd made sure to point out, wouldn't last forever. And she believed him. She'd be crazy not to.
But at the same time, she was starting to think that pleasure didn't necessarily have to be the sole province of a romantic relationship. Maybe two friends who mutually respected each other, two friends who simply enjoyed being with each other, could have pleasure too. Could have kisses--and so much more--without ruining their friendship.
At five forty-five, she locked up the store, then headed for her cottage, her two guards keeping careful watch the whole way. It had been a bang-up sales day, with customers she hadn't seen in ages coming out of the woodwork.