Semiautomatic Marriage
Semiautomatic Marriage
Leona Karr
ONE DAY THEY WERE STRANGERS AND THE NEXT THEY WERE HUSBAND AND WIFE!After Carolyn Leigh learned that the grandfather she never knew had died and left her a fortune, she discovered that he might actually have been murdered–and only she could help find the killer. But first she'd have to consent to "marry" Adam Lawrence, the sexy agent assigned to the case.There was no denying the attraction between them, but they couldn't let love get in the way of the case. After all, solving this mystery was personal–for both of them. Could they unmask the killer before the killer revealed their covert conjugal bliss?
“I need your help. You can provide me with a legitimate cover for my investigation.”
“How can I do that?” she protested. “I’m totally inexperienced, and it will take time for me to make any changes at the company. You would stick out like a sore thumb if I tried right off to put you in any kind of position at Horizon Pharmaceuticals.”
“I know. That’s why we’d have to arrange something different. I’ll need a cover that will give me intimate access to the workings of the company.”
The steadiness of his gaze told Carolyn that he had already decided what that cover should be. She felt a strange quiver in her stomach.
“When you arrive at Horizon for the first time, Carolyn, I need to be there with you—as your husband.”
She choked on her intake of breath. “My husband?”
“In name only,” he hastened to reassure her. “Don’t you see? It’s the perfect cover.”
Dear Harlequin Intrigue Reader,
This month Harlequin Intrigue has an enthralling array of breathtaking romantic suspense to make the most of those last lingering days of summer.
The wait is finally over! The next crop of undercover agents who belong to the newest branch of the top secret Confidential organization are about to embark on an unbelievable adventure. Award-winning reader favorite Gayle Wilson will rivet you with the launch book of this brand-new ten-story continuity series. COLORADO CONFIDENTIAL will begin in Harlequin Intrigue, break out into a special release anthology and finish in Harlequin Historicals. In Rocky Mountain Maverick, an undeniably sexy undercover agent infiltrates a powerful senator’s ranch and falls under the influence of an intoxicating impostor. Be there from the very beginning!
The adrenaline rush continues in The Butler’s Daughter by Joyce Sullivan, with the first book in her new miniseries, THE COLLINGWOOD HEIRS. A beautiful guardian has been entrusted with the care of a toddler-sized heir, but now they are running for their lives and she must place their safety in an enigmatic protector’s tantalizing hands! Ann Voss Peterson heats things up with Incriminating Passion when a targeted “witness” to a murder manages to inflame the heart of a by-the-book assistant D.A.
Finally rounding out the month is Semiautomatic Marriage by veteran author Leona Karr. Will the race to track down a killer culminate in a real trip down the aisle for an undercover husband and wife?
So pick up all four of these pulse-pounding stories and end the summer with a bang!
Sincerely,
Denise O’Sullivan
Harlequin Intrigue, Senior Editor
Semiautomatic Marriage
Leona Karr
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A native of Colorado, Leona (Lee) Karr is the author of nearly forty books. Her favorite genres are romantic suspense and inspirational romance. After graduating from the University of Colorado with a B.A. and the University of Northern Colorado with an M.A., she taught as a reading specialist until her first book was published in 1980. She has been on the Waldenbooks bestseller list and nominated by Romantic Times for Best Romantic Saga and Best Gothic Author. She has been honored as the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer of the Year, and received Colorado’s Romance Writer of the Year award. Her books have been reprinted in more than a dozen foreign countries. She is a presenter at numerous writing conferences and has taught college courses in creative writing.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Carolyn Leigh—A visit to a lawyer’s office makes her an heiress and a partner in a dangerous charade.
Adam Lawrence—A man on a mission, who will use his status as a “pretend husband” to carry out his plan.
Jasper Stanford—A newly found relative who has little interest in being an uncle or friend.
Della Denison—An executive who seems willing to preserve her position at all costs. Her daughter, Lisa, is a spoiled young woman who lives a pampered life. Her son, Buddy, shows little interest in anything but pursuing his idle hobbies.
Cliff Connors—An assistant laboratory assistant who has an unsavory past that threatens to endanger the present.
Nick Calhoun—A man with a gambling habit.
Susan Kimble—A woman dedicated to her job and searching for happiness.
Nellie Ryan—A woman in love with a man who only brings trouble into her life.
Love and thanks to my sons, Leonard and Clark,
for their valuable help with this book,
and to Cindy Karr for her supportive interest
and encouragement.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter One
Carolyn Leigh’s eyes rounded as she looked at the two men seated across the table from her in the lawyer’s office. “I thought this meeting was about my unknown benefactor, who’s helped me financially through medical school, using your firm as a conduit.”
“Well, in a way it is,” the gray-haired lawyer, Mr. Bancroft, assured her as he pushed his glasses farther up his nose.
“Am I expected to pay it back?” she asked evenly, trying to keep the apprehension out of her voice. What she didn’t need was more indebtedness. After having just graduated a month ago, she was trying to find a full-time medical position as soon as possible to alleviate her other debts.
“No, the grant was yours, free and clear,” the lawyer assured her. “The news we have for you is good.”
Carolyn tensed. Good news? Growing up as a sickly foster child, her life had been filled with people telling her they had good news for her, when the truth was she was just being shifted from one unsatisfactory foster placement to another. Even though she was an adult now, and had managed to get herself through medical school by sheer grit, and working a job for nearly six years, a remembered anxiety suddenly tightened her stomach. She still had nightmares about being helpless as a foster child, thrown into one traumatic experience after another. She’d felt like a pawn in some diabolical game. Here we go again, she thought, trying to steel herself for whatever was about to crash into her well-laid plans.
From the first moment Carolyn walked into the office, she’d sensed a certain hesitancy, as if the two men weren’t exactly sure how to proceed. She’d only met William Bancroft, the elderly lawyer, once before, and had never met the good-looking, younger one, Adam Lawrence—Bancroft introduced him only by name, without identifying who he was and why he was there. She assumed he was a junior associate.
They politely offered her coffee, which she refused.
“Well, then, why don’t you lay the groundwork, Adam?” Bancroft suggested, nodding at him. “We’ll cover the legal details after that.”
The dark-haired man smiled at her, and she was aware of his strong features, slightly tanned complexion and the determined jut of his chin. Somewhere in his thirties, he must have been, and his clear, gray-blue eyes narrowed slightly as if he were searching for the right way to begin. Carolyn’s heartbeat suddenly quickened as she waited for Adam Lawrence to speak. What was this all about?
“You’ve heard of Arthur Stanford,” he began in a conversational tone, and smiled, as if he recognized her tenseness.
“No, I haven’t,” she answered with her usual honesty.
He seemed a little surprised at her directness. “Have you heard of Horizon Pharmaceuticals?”
“Of course. Everyone in the medical field is aware of Horizon. It’s a major supplier of pharmaceutical drugs. One of the oldest companies in the Northwest, I believe.”
He nodded. “That’s right. Arthur Stanford is the owner of Horizon Pharmaceutical. He passed away recently.”
“And there’s some reason I should know this?” This man’s death had probably been in the news, but she’d been too busy studying to read the newspaper. Something about this whole meeting put her on the defensive. There was an undercurrent in the room she didn’t understand. Was she on the hot seat for some unknown reason? Plenty of schoolyard scuffles had conditioned her to get her mitts up before an expected blow came. She mentally geared up to be ready to handle whatever he was about to lay on her.
“The financial aid you’ve been receiving for medical school came from Arthur Stanford. He arranged for the grant to be paid through Mr. Bancroft’s office.”
“Really?” she answered in honest surprise.
“Yes, really.”
She’d often wondered who’d set up the grant that had made it possible for her to attend medical school without interruption. She’d assumed that it was an organization, not an individual. The truth was, she’d applied for every financial aid listed in the college office. No one was more surprised than she was when the university’s director of admissions called and told her that she’d been selected by an anonymous donor for a generous stipend.
“I’ve been very grateful for his financial help,” she readily admitted. “It would have taken me an extra two years to work my way through medical school without it. My grant was a great deal more generous than most awards. Did Mr. Stanford financially help many medical students?”
“No, you’re the only one.”
“The only one?” she repeated in disbelief. “But why? I mean, why was I the fortunate one?”
Adam hesitated, not at all certain how to proceed. Bancroft had insisted that he be the one to tell her the truth, and he’d readily agreed, but Dr. Carolyn Leigh wasn’t at all what he’d expected. By any standard, she was a very attractive woman: petite features, soft, shapely mouth, large, sky blue eyes and blond hair the color of rich honey. Even her simple, inexpensive pink summer blouse and navy skirt couldn’t detract from a slender, shapely body that could easily give any man ideas.
Even though Adam had only been in her presence a few minutes, he’d already recognized that there was more to her than her appealing looks. An undeniable toughness and resilience radiated from her. He’d bet she could put any leering male in his place with a sharp word or a well-aimed kick. It wasn’t hard for him to imagine her in a doctor’s white jacket, a stethoscope around her neck and a bedside manner that could either charm or deftly manage the most unruly patient. No, she wasn’t at all what he’d expected. He wondered if they were handling this all wrong. There was nothing to do now but plunge ahead and be as honest as he could.
“It wasn’t an accident that you received the generous stipend,” he explained. “You see, Carolyn, Arthur Stanford has a personal interest in you.”
“How could that be? I told you I didn’t know Arthur Stanford,” she replied firmly. “I’ve never heard his name, as far as I know. And I have no reason to believe he’d have a special interest in me.”
Clearly she wasn’t about to accept the truth until she had more facts to back it up. Adam suspected this strong fiber in her personality was going to play havoc with his plans. He tried to keep his tone neutral, as if they were discussing something that wasn’t going to change her life forever.
“It’s true, isn’t it, Carolyn, that you’ve grown up without family and without knowing who abandoned you as an infant?”
She nodded. Her unknown roots had been like an albatross around her neck since she was old enough to know what the word orphan meant. She’d always been treated like a changeling, not belonging anywhere, not to anyone. She’d learned very young to make her way in the world alone, and as far as she was concerned that wasn’t going to change.
“I don’t see why my background is of interest here.” She firmed her chin as she locked her gaze on him. “What is this about?”
“I know that what I’m going to tell you, Carolyn, will be a shock. I guess there’s no way to prepare you for the news, so I’ll just come right out and say it.” Adam had the foolish urge to reach out and hold her hand, but realized she’d reject the gesture. “Arthur Stanford had a very personal interest in you, Carolyn, because he was your grandfather.”
Grandfather. The word exploded in Carolyn’s head like a grenade. She tried to say something, but for once in her life, her mouth wouldn’t work. Almost instantly shock turned into disbelief. It wasn’t true. It couldn’t be. With great effort, she found her voice.
“Let me get this straight. You’re telling me that the money I’ve been receiving is from Arthur Stanford and he’s my grandfather?”
He nodded. “That’s exactly what I’m telling you. There’s no doubt about it. You’re Arthur Stanford’s granddaughter.”
Her whole life, Carolyn had dreamed of belonging to someone of her own flesh and blood, longing to know what family genes she carried. She’d fought all her battles from a sense of aloneness, and as she looked into Adam’s reassuring face and gentle eyes, she pleaded silently, Please, let this be true.
He must have read the plea in her expression, because he smiled and took her hand. The warm contact gave her the reassurance she needed to believe the impossible.
“I have a complete report here,” Bancroft said, handing Carolyn a folder.
Both men fell silent as she read the file.
For the first time Carolyn learned the mystery of her birth. Her mother, Alicia Stanford, had been a sixteen-year-old who ran away when she discovered she was pregnant. Her affluent family’s efforts to find her ended unhappily a year later when she returned home with a terminal disease. She refused to say what had happened to the baby and would not identify the father. Apparently nothing was done to try to locate the baby until a few years ago.
Carolyn learned that she was just starting medical school when the investigators her widowed grandfather hired finally tracked her down, and the millionaire began to support her education.
“He knew for four years that I was his granddaughter!” Disbelief gave way to deep disappointment. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes. “Why didn’t he tell me? Why did he keep it from me?”
“We don’t know,” the lawyer admitted. “When your grandfather arranged for your financial grant, he insisted on total secrecy.”
“He received continuous updates about you,” Adam told her. “He knew that you went to work for the financial firm Champion Realty and Investments right out of high school and could have worked your way up in that company. From all the reports, Carolyn, you certainly could have a career in business, as well as medicine.”
Bancroft shoved his glasses up his nose and cleared his throat. “And that brings us to the legal matter at hand. The good news. The matter of his will.”
Both men looked at her in a way that made her breath catch. “He left me…something?”
Adam couldn’t resist a chuckle. “More than just something, I’d say.”
Bancroft beamed. “Arthur Stanford made a new will just a few months before his death. Carolyn, you’re the primary beneficiary.”
The lawyer proceeded to inform her that Stanford had bequeathed her fifty-one percent of Horizon Pharmaceuticals, his elegant mansion and other considerable monetary assets.
She stared at both men incredulously, her blue eyes rounding. What kind of macabre joke was this? She’d never been one to believe in fairy tales, and she certainly didn’t believe in this one. It had to be a hoax! A cruel manipulation of some kind.
Seeing a red flush mounting her neck, Adam said quickly, “It’s true, Carolyn. Your grandfather died several weeks ago, and all the legalities are settled. There were just a few necessary verifications to make before telling you.”
“You’re expecting me to believe that Arthur Stanford bypassed everyone else to leave a fortune to his long-lost granddaughter?”
“Yes, Carolyn, that’s exactly what has happened.”
“What about the other people in his life?” Carolyn demanded as a blessed logical detachment allowed her to get her emotions under control. She wanted facts. She wasn’t about to accept anything at face value. Especially not a Cinderella story like the one they were trying to lay on her. “There were other people in his life, weren’t there?”
“Yes,” Bancroft answered readily. “There is one son, your mother’s older brother, Jasper. He’s mentioned in the will, but in a lesser way.”
“Why would Arthur Stanford do that? I mean, I don’t understand why he didn’t leave his son the company and everything else.”
Adam spoke up. “Maybe because Jasper ran two companies and property of his own into bankruptcy, and his father had to bail him out. Obviously Stanford didn’t want the same thing to happen to Horizon.”
“And there’s no one else?” she asked with a dry mouth.
“No blood relation, other than Jasper. You’re the only one,” Bancroft answered. “Jasper is a laboratory scientist at Horizon, and your grandfather left him some stock, but you hold the controlling interest. Jasper never married, but he has maintained a five-year romantic relationship with Della Denison, a very capable career woman, who also works at Horizon. They live in the Stanford mansion, along with Della’s two children, both in their twenties.” He paused. “Apparently your grandfather found this arrangement amicable.”
“But it may not continue to be so when you take up residency there,” Adam warned her. “Remember, Carolyn, in the end you will be the one to decide if any changes need to be made. Everything has been put on hold since your grandfather’s death.”
“Until all the legalities are finalized,” Bancroft said, “I can arrange for generous funds to be available to you to take care of your immediate financial needs.” As he continued to expand on the details of the will, Carolyn’s doubts began to fade, and a flood of questions took their place.
Adam leaned toward her and waited for her eyes to meet his before he said, “It’s important that I share some disturbing facts with you now, Carolyn, before you move into the role of a wealthy heiress.”
Heiress. The word lacked any meaning for her. She’d never had enough money to cover her monthly expenses. Her secondhand car had more than a hundred thousand miles on it. At the moment she was unemployed since no one had jumped at her résumé or brand-new medical degree.
“Your grandfather’s death was a surprise to everyone,” Adam told her. “Very unfortunate.”
“Was he ill?” she asked, wishing she could have been at his side. Her medical training might have counted for something if she could have cared for him.
The way Carolyn’s expectant gaze was fixed on him made Adam wish he had more than just empirical facts to tell her. He knew she was in for another shock. “No, it wasn’t illness that ended his life. I’m sorry I have to tell you that your grandfather was a victim of a hit-and-run driver.”
She stared at him, a sickening lump lodged in her throat. Maybe her grandfather had planned to reveal himself to her, but met an untimely death before it happened. She felt an even greater loss, knowing how he’d died.
“Stanford was killed in a waterfront location, and there seems to be some question whether his death was accidental.”
At first his words refused to penetrate. Then she said in disbelief, “You mean someone deliberately hit him?”
“We don’t know. That’s why I’m here, Carolyn.” He reached into his pocket and drew out a badge. “I’m a federal investigator, and among other things, I’m assigned to cover your grandfather’s suspicious death.”
“You’re not a lawyer? I mean, I thought—”
“I work for the FDA. Mr. Bancroft asked me to be here because he knows I’ve been investigating Arthur Stanford’s affairs. Since you are his beneficiary, you’ll be able to help me.”
“Help you? With what? I don’t see—”
“You’ll be in a position to look into every aspect of the company and have access to family affairs.”
She gave a shaky laugh as she shook her head. “I have no idea what you have in mind, but I certainly need more time and information before I can handle any of this.” She stood up. “I’m sorry, gentlemen, but my head is reeling. You’ll have to excuse me.”
“I know this is a lot to absorb in such a short time,” Adam readily agreed. “But time is of the utmost importance, Carolyn. I hate to pressure you, but…”
“I never make decisions under pressure. Whatever you have to say, Mr. Lawrence, will have to wait.” She used her professional tone, masking the racing of her heart.
An heiress. A mansion. Horizon.
She gave them both a mechanical smile and hurriedly left the office. Maybe all this was on the up-and-up, but her emotions were in such a tangle at the moment she couldn’t be sure. Could it really be that her grandfather had found her? She wanted to believe the unbelievable, but her intuition was quivering like an antenna trying to catch warning vibes. The handsome Adam Lawrence, obviously, wanted a commitment of some kind from her. What was his real agenda? Why had the lawyer included him in the meeting? There’d been moments she’d instinctively responded to his smile and the touch of his hand, but now she wondered if he’d been deliberately manipulating her emotions.
With her thoughts whirling like an off-center helicopter, she crossed the lot to her car, parked at the back of the small brick building. Her hands trembled as she unlocked the door of her old car. After sliding into the worn front seat, she sat there for a long minute. She needed to go home, go over all the legal papers again, get on the Internet and see what information she could pull up on Horizon Pharmaceuticals. As her analytical approach to problems settled her emotions, she turned the key in the ignition.
The engine refused to turn over. After repeated tries she slapped the steering wheel in exasperation. She’d been having trouble with it for more than a month, but had been trying to put off the expense of car repair as long as possible.
She silently swore and then tried again, but no luck. The irony of the situation hit her when she looked out the window and saw Adam Lawrence walking across the parking lot, heading for her car. It was obvious from his expression that he’d heard the starter grinding.
She had little choice but to roll down the window and nod at his friendly “Won’t start, huh?”
His grin only made her feel more testy. Brilliant deduction. Were all FDA agents so perceptive?
“Would you like me to try?” he offered.
“Thanks, but don’t bother.” She didn’t want to prolong the embarrassment. It didn’t take a mechanic to know that the old car was heading for the junkyard. What to do now? Leave it? Take a bus home and see if her AAA insurance was still in force? “I think I’ll just let it sit for a while.”
“How about I run you home and you can call someone to look at it?”
“No need to put you to that trouble,” she answered quickly.
“It’s no trouble. Just tell me how to get there. I’m still trying to find my way around Seattle.”
As she hesitated, he saw a flicker of indecision in her eyes. He could tell that she was tempted to accept his offer. The stalled car could be a blessing in disguise. Her sudden departure from the meeting had left him wondering how to initiate further contact with her. It was imperative to move quickly to enlist her help. He was relieved when she nodded.
As they walked to his car, he made an idle comment about the gathering rain clouds. “There’s more rain here in a week than we have in a whole season back home.”
“The natives call it liquid sunshine,” she informed him with a faint smile.
“I grew up in New Mexico. Ever been there?” he asked, hoping to make the situation seem casual and friendly.
“No, but I don’t think I’d like it,” she said frankly. “I’d miss the water.”
He could tell from her pensive expression that her thoughts were beyond any casual chitchat. Not that he could blame her. She’d been given a double whammy. Learning the identity of her grandfather would have been shock enough, but the inheritance on top of that would knock anyone for a loop. He knew from her case history that she possessed a dogged will that had obviously shaped her life. The vulnerable innocence about her was utterly deceptive. She wouldn’t be easily persuaded to fall in line with his plans.
As she sat in the seat beside him, he was aware of her appealing femininity, the lines and curves of her body. Her summer blouse molded the fullness of her breasts, and its open collar revealed the smooth lines of her neck. A faint floral scent teased his nostrils, and he realized that he’d been without feminine company far too long.
She told him the address of her apartment and gave him directions. He related a couple of humorous experiences he’d had trying to find his way in foreign countries and was rewarded with a slight smile.
“Have you traveled abroad quite a bit?” she asked.
“Not really. South America, mostly. I lived in Brazil for a couple of years. I served as the judicial attaché at the United States Embassy and coordinated evidence of drug-related activities.”
“I see. And when you came back to the States, you became an FDA agent?”
“Yes.”
As he fell silent, Carolyn was aware of the change in him. A shadow passed over his eyes, and she sensed that for some reason the subject was painful for him. What had happened in his career, she wondered, to put that kind of pain in his expression? She remembered how very intense he’d been in the lawyer’s office. Obviously Bancroft had asked him to be there, and she had cut him off when he tried to explain his interest in her sudden legacy.
“Is this the place?” he asked as he pulled up in front of the large house owned by an elderly widow from whom she rented an upstairs apartment.
“Yes, this is…home.” She hesitated slightly over the word as she reached for the door handle. She was still feeling overwhelmed, but a blessed detachment had begun to ease her bewilderment.
“Carolyn, could we talk a minute? I know your head must be swimming with all this, but I really need to share some things with you. Would you just hear me out? It’s important. There are some decisions that have to be made.”
“I’m not ready to make decisions of any kind,” she answered firmly. “I’ve read about people who suddenly come into money and how they’re hounded by the public, pulled this way and that. Everyone with his hands out and—”
“This isn’t about money,” he said curtly. “It’s about the welfare of a lot of people. Your decision to become a doctor had something to do with your dedication to the public interest, I assume.”
“I don’t think my dedication is the issue here,” she said evenly. “Don’t you understand? I’m too stunned to even comprehend what all this means. I need time, information and the insight to make some decisions. I really don’t know what you expect from me.”
“You will, if you’ll give me a chance to explain. Please, Carolyn. Just hear me out. Then I’ll give you the time you need to come to terms with what I’m asking.”
His gray eyes were like grappling hooks locking her gaze with his. An undefined warning stirred deep within her. She wanted to turn away, but couldn’t. Whether she wanted to or not, she was going to have to deal with this.
She moistened her lips. “All right. But not here in the car. We can talk better inside.”
He nodded, and quickly got out and came around the car to open her door. Without talking, they walked around the house to the outside staircase that led to her apartment. She could feel his warm breath on her neck as she secured her key in the lock and opened the door.
The tiny kitchen was a mess. She’d slept in late and barely made it to her ten o’clock appointment with Bancroft. The tiny living room wasn’t much better, and Carolyn wished she’d shut the bedroom door so he couldn’t see the discarded clothes on her bed. She’d tried on several outfits before deciding on the summer skirt and blouse.
She swallowed back any apologies or explanation. The apartment was sparsely furnished with the land-lady’s cast-off furniture. Most of it would have gone begging at a garage sale. An old, scarred desk was loaded down with medical books, papers and a small computer.
In an effort to add some color and personal touches, Carolyn had hung some framed calendar prints and bought a small plant stand. She rarely had any kind of company, and the place looked exactly what it was—rented space.
She avoided looking at Adam as he sat down on the lumpy couch and she took a nearby faded chair. What was he thinking? Why had he intruded on her privacy like this? She was suddenly aware of his masculine presence and the way it filled up the room. He’d left his summer sports jacket in the car and had loosened the matching tie. His short dark hair set off his black eyebrows and arresting gray eyes. His well-built, six-foot frame revealed strong shoulder and arm muscles, and as he casually settled himself into a comfortable position, she resented that he was sending her thoughts into places where she’d placed permanent Keep Out signs.
Her tone was brisker than she’d intended when she said, “All right, I’m listening. Why don’t you tell me what this is all about?”
A flicker of expressions like shadows played across his face as he studied her without answering. Then, to her surprise, instead of speaking, he rose abruptly to his feet and walked over to the window. The way he stood there, staring out, she realized that he was experiencing some kind of emotional turmoil of his own. She’d seen patients caught in that same kind of mental maze, and she remained silent, waiting for him to respond.
He stood there for what seemed like an eternity before he turned around and repeated, “What is this all about?”
He walked back to the couch and sat down again. “This is about Marietta.”
“Marietta?” Carolyn echoed.
“My late wife. I lost her. She suffered a cruel and painful death.”
During her internship at the hospital, she’d seen grief of many kinds. Some people wore the loss of a loved one on the outside, like a mourning cloak, while others held their grief inside, deep and private. It was clear to her that this man’s filled the very breath and soul of his being. Until that moment she hadn’t really connected with him, but now she saw him from a different perspective, and she felt drawn to him on a level she didn’t understand.
“I’m so very sorry,” she said, and moved over to the couch beside him.
He searched her face as if to judge the sincerity of her words as he began to talk about himself. “After I graduated from law school, I took a position as judicial attaché at the United States Embassy in Brazil. I coordinated evidence and information on illegal-substance traffic between the U.S. and Brazil.” He paused. “Marietta worked as a translator at the embassy. We’d only been married a few months when she suffered an infection and died from liver failure after a doctor unknowingly gave her an unapproved drug that had found its way into the country through the black market.” Carolyn saw the hard set of his jaw and the way his gray eyes glittered like honed steel. “That pharmaceutical drug came from Horizon.”
Her stomach took a sickening plunge. “How can you be sure?”
“Drugs are produced in batches,” he explained. “Each bottle has the batch number on it, along with the name of the company that manufactured it. The bottle of bad pills that killed Marietta came from Horizon Pharmaceuticals, but when the FDA tried to verify it, the company records showed that a batch with that number had never been produced by the company.”
“Then the drug your wife took was a counterfeit,” Carolyn said, frowning.
“That’s what the authorities believed. I came back to the U.S. a few months ago and found the investigation at a standstill. It’s true that illegal organizations that produce counterfeit drugs do their best to duplicate the appearance of the drug by using bottles of the same size, shape and the same kind of labeling.”
“So Horizon is telling the truth?”
“I don’t think so, and this is why. It’s almost impossible to produce an exact match in every detail to an authentic bottle of pills. The size of the lettering may be wrong, the color of the label slightly off, the plastic bottle lighter or heavier, the pills flatter or more rounded. But in this instance, everything in the bottle of pills that killed Marietta is an exact duplicate to one produced by Horizon.”
“How could that be if the company has no record?”
“For the past year products from Horizon have shown up illegally on various foreign black markets, and until now there hasn’t been a way for me to penetrate company operations and conduct an on-the-spot investigation.”
Until now. The way he was looking at her left no doubt in her mind what those words meant. She stiffened. He was here with an agenda of his own, and his next words verified it.
“You can provide me with a legitimate cover for my investigation. If I can get in a position to examine the workings of the company from the inside, I’m confident I can find out how black-market drugs that don’t meet FDA standards are being illegally circulated in other countries.” He reached over and took her hand. “That’s why I need your help. You can provide me with a legitimate cover for my investigation.”
“How can I do that?” she protested. “I’m totally inexperienced, and it will take time for me to make any changes. You would stick out like a sore thumb if I tried right off to put you in any kind of position at Horizon.”
“I know. That’s why we’d have to arrange something different. I’ll need a cover that will give me intimate access to the workings of the company.”
The steadiness of his gaze told Carolyn that he had already decided what that cover should be. She felt a strange quiver in her stomach, like someone about to take a plunge off a cliff with a bungee cord tied around her ankle.
“When you arrive at Horizon for the first time, Carolyn, I need to be there with you—as your husband.”
She choked on her intake of breath. “My husband?”
“In name only,” he hastened to reassure her. “Don’t you see? It’s the perfect cover!”
Chapter Two
“You want to pretend to be my husband?” Her incredulous tone was a mixture of amusement and indignation.
“Well, not pretend, exactly.”
“Then what exactly?” Her eyes narrowed and she stiffened beside him.
Adam sensed her instant withdrawal and silently cursed. Damn! He’d come at this the wrong way. What to do now?
He stood up, took a few aimless steps and then eased down on a corner of the old desk. He hoped he could handle the situation better if he wasn’t close enough to be aware of every breath she drew. Aware of her soft, womanly warmth. Now, he had to lay all his cards out on the table, and fast. Above all, he had to be honest with her. She wasn’t about to jump into anything with her eyes closed.
“It wouldn’t all be pretend,” he explained, not wanting to hold anything back. “I mean, we’d have to perform all the legalities and officially be husband and wife in case anyone decided to check for a marriage license.”
“We would go through a wedding ceremony and be legally married.” She tried to keep her voice even. “Is that what you’re saying?”
“Yes, but between us, Carolyn, it would be strictly a business arrangement that would be dissolved once the investigation was over. I’d be a husband to you in name only.”
“A business arrangement? A husband in name only? And how would that work, exactly?” She raised a questioning eyebrow.
“Well, in public we would have to behave like a congenial couple and—”
“Like newlyweds, perhaps?”
He couldn’t help but chuckle. Leave it to her to put her finger exactly where the charade would demand more than she was willing to give. “We’d be playing a part, acting, pure and simple.”
“A few kisses and hugs between business partners wouldn’t mean anything. Is that the way it would work?”
“Exactly. It would be just for show,” he answered firmly, but as his gaze settled on her pink, kissable lips and the delicate curve of her cheek, he knew he’d have to keep his guard up every moment or he’d blow the whole charade. Everything about her luscious body invited a man’s touch. He felt a quiver of desire just thinking about holding her close and kissing her. He’d have to be damn careful not to let her know that he found her utterly sexy and desirable.
“And living arrangements?” she asked as if reading his thoughts. “I assume they would demand a little more playacting?”
“The Stanford mansion is large enough for us to have extreme privacy. We could have one wing of the house to ourselves. We would only have to interact with the others when we want their company.” He didn’t add that an important part of his investigation would involve getting close to Jasper and Della because of their positions in Horizon.
“You have this all figured out, haven’t you.”
“That’s my job. And I’m good at it,” he added without conceit. He already had an impressive record, working in Brazil and in the U.S.
“And how long do you anticipate this ‘business arrangement’ might last?”
“Hopefully just a matter of weeks. Once I have access to company files, I should be able to get the evidence I need to track the illegal shipments.” He paused. “There is one other thing, though.” He hesitated as if searching for the right words. “There could be complications if all this leads into a murder investigation of your grandfather’s death.”
“Murder investigation?”
“I told you that the hit-and-run was suspicious.” When he saw her lovely face whiten, he cursed himself for being so callous. That was one of the fallouts of being an investigator. You got hardened to things that made a normal person wince.
Her mouth trembled slightly as she asked, “You think the black-market drugs and his hit-and-run might be connected?”
“I don’t know, but I promise you I’ll do my best to find out.” He sat down beside her again. “Look, I feel like a heel pushing you like this, but if we’re going to set up this cover, it has to be now, before you move into your role as Carolyn Leigh Stanford. When you meet your uncle and the others living in the Stanford mansion, I’ll need to be there as your husband—a fait accompli, so to speak.”
“My…my uncle.” She stumbled over the term as if it had never crossed her lips before. “Do you know him?”
From the way her blue eyes widened, he realized that once again he was moving too fast for her. The idea of having a living relative must be as astounding as the rest of this situation.
“I’ve never met him,” Adam admitted, “but I know that Jasper Stanford is a man in his early fifties who’s lived with your grandfather for years. He’s a laboratory scientist at Horizon and has never shown any aptitude for the business side of the company. As I said before, he was a failure in his own ventures. Jasper was your mother’s only sibling. He was twenty-six years old and away at college when she ran away from home at sixteen. Their mother, your grandmother, died a few years after your mother, Alicia, leaving your grandfather a widower for many years.”
Adam paused, trying to decide the best way to explain the situation Carolyn was going to find under her grandfather’s roof and at the company. “Jasper’s girlfriend, Della, has been living in the Stanford mansion with her twenty-three-year-old daughter, Lisa, and her twenty-one-year-old son, Buddy. Apparently it was an arrangement that had your grandfather’s approval.”
What if I don’t like these people? Carolyn asked herself anxiously. And what if they didn’t like her? She felt her stomach tighten. She had plenty of memories where she was less than welcome, her presence tolerated only because of the money her foster parents were paid. The circumstances were different now, but one thing was the same. These people were going to resent her presence big-time.
“Were they mentioned in my grandfather’s will?”
“You and Jasper are the major beneficiaries. I’m sure that the contents of your grandfather’s will was totally unexpected, though, and your inheritance a great surprise to all of them.”
Was there a warning in his tone? She shivered. Too much was coming at her too fast. She needed a break. Quickly she rose to her feet.
“I missed my second cup of coffee at breakfast,” she said. “Would you care for a cup?”
The invitation wasn’t exactly full of warmth and hospitality, but he readily accepted and then followed her into the small kitchen. She motioned to one of the chairs at the chipped Formica table crowded into one corner.
“Cream and sugar?” she asked as she took a couple of mugs down from the cupboard.
“No, black.”
“Good, because I don’t have any cream,” she admitted with a wry smile. “Going grocery shopping is not one of my things.”
“Not mine, either. I knew we had something in common,” he added facetiously, hoping for a smile, but as she handed him the mug, her expression was anything but amused.
Instead of sitting down in the other chair, she leaned against the kitchen counter, sipping her own coffee. Even though they were in close physical proximity, she seemed able to completely disregard him. Everything in her body language told him she was processing what he had told her. He wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d taken her mug and disappeared into the other room, ignoring him completely.
He’d bungled everything. He’d completely misjudged Carolyn Leigh. The instant she’d locked those clear, ocean blue eyes on him, he should have known her outward feminine softness was deceiving. She had a self-reliance that was a match for his or anyone else’s. Arthur Stanford must have been aware of her strength and firm hold on her convictions when he decided to leave his assets to her. He doubted very much that she’d ever be swayed by pure emotion or easily dominated by a husband, pretend or otherwise. If she agreed to his plan, she’d be a tremendous help, but if she refused to consider a contrived marriage, there would be nothing he could do or say to make her change her mind.
He forced himself to remain silent, sipping his coffee. His wandering gaze settled on a kitchen shelf that held a small vase of artificial flowers, a chipped porcelain tea cup, and a small framed photo of an older woman standing with a frail-looking blond girl who appeared to be about eight. Carolyn? It must be.
“Yes, it’s me.” She startled him by suddenly sitting down in the other chair and following his gaze to the photo.
“And who’s the woman?” he asked.
“An angel.” A soft glow deepened the blue of her eyes. “Hannah Lamm. When I was a sickly, emaciated three-year-old, who had no appeal as a child to be adopted, she arranged to take me into her home. She nurtured me through all the childhood diseases. I stayed with her until I was eight. She saved my life. My physical health improved, and so did my mental abilities. Hannah convinced me that I had a good mind and could learn. Somehow she planted the idea that I could become a doctor. When she died and I was thrown back into the pack of unwanted orphans, when I thought life wasn’t worth living, that goal was the motivation that kept me going.”
“And you’ve supported yourself all the way?”
She nodded. “Hannah also taught me that goals are reached by working for them. I got a full-time job out of high school and was lucky enough to get with a good company and the chance to learn a lot about investments. Even after I started college, I worked part-time. Sometimes I was tempted to stay with Champion Realty and Investments, because I could see myself moving up in the company, but somehow I had to prove to myself—and to Hannah—that I could have an M.D. after my name.”
“And now you do. Congratulations. You have a medical degree and more. Your grandfather had great faith in you, Carolyn, and he must have loved your mother very much to leave almost everything he had to her daughter.”
“All this is too sudden. I still can’t believe it.” Her fingers tightened on her cup. “How could my life change so radically in the span of a few moments?”
“That’s the way it does sometimes, both good and bad. But nothing stays the same, and we really don’t have much choice how to handle change. We can make it work for us or just mark time.”
The challenge in his tone was clear, but she ignored it. She wasn’t ready to make any kind of a commitment. Certainly not the kind he was proposing. She needed time. Time! She glanced at the kitchen clock. Almost one o’clock. She was due at the free clinic at twelve-thirty.
“What’s the matter?” he asked as panic flashed across her face.
“It’s my afternoon at Friends Free Clinic.” She hurriedly got to her feet. “I completely forgot. Oh, no. My car. Taking a bus will eat up another hour.”
“Well, if mine is still working, I think we’re in business.”
She nodded. “Thank you. I’m surprised Dr. McPherson hasn’t called to chew me out. He’s an ornery old codger who should have retired years ago, but he can’t ignore the need. Just a minute while I grab my medical bag.”
“What about lunch?” he asked as if he hadn’t been planning on coaxing her to have it with him.
“I’m used to skipping it.”
“Doctor, doctor,” he teased. “For shame.”
She laughed then, a full, wonderful laugh that wrinkled her nose, brought a shine to her crystalline blue eyes. She was utterly beautiful. Vibrant. And desirable. He was stunned by the sudden realization that Carolyn Leigh was about to touch some guarded depth of emotion that he thought he’d put away forever. He couldn’t afford such feelings. First of all, she was on the threshold of a lifestyle of money and prestige, and getting involved with her would go nowhere. Second, any personal feelings would wreak havoc with the impersonal marriage of convenience that was vital to the success of his mission. It would be pure idiocy to allow himself to be attracted to her on any level.
Carolyn directed him to the clinic, which was housed in an old building that had once been a small neighborhood school. The place was still run-down and in need of remodeling, but the first floor had been refurbished to handle the various demands of a free clinic.
A valiant sun had lost its battle to the overcast sky and a soft rain began to fall as he let her out of the car.
“Thanks a bunch,” Carolyn said quickly as she prepared to make a dash for the front door.
“Carolyn, will you think about what I’ve said?”
“I’ll…I’ll be in touch.”
From the look on his face, Carolyn knew he was expecting more than this vague promise, but at the moment it was all she had to give. If he’d pushed her for an answer to his proposition, it would have been an immediate and definite No!
“I could give you a ride home,” he suggested.
“Thanks, but I’ll catch a ride with someone from the clinic when it closes.”
As she hurried away, she could feel his intense gaze on her back. Why in the world hadn’t she told him straight out that playing house with him was out of the question? She sympathized with his personal loss, admired his dedication to his job, but she wasn’t cut out for a game of deception. Just pretending to be his wife, and opening herself up to all kinds of undefined emotions, was more than she could handle.
“Well, now. Who’s the hunk that made you late?” Rosie DiPaloa teased as Carolyn hurried into the reception area. Obviously the dark-haired young woman had been looking out the window as Adam drove up in front of the building. “Don’t tell me our brand-new doctor is spreading her wings already. What gives?”
“Sorry to disappoint you, Rosie. Nothing gives. I’m late because of a business meeting. And my car won’t start—again. Would you have your brother pull it into his garage?”
“Sure,” Rosie said, and wrote down the address Carolyn gave her. “That car’s spending more time in Tony’s garage than it is on the streets. Why don’t you let Tony look for a nice clean, used car for you? Trade up to something that’ll keep running for a while? You ought to be able to afford it now.”
For a second Carolyn thought Rosie was referring to her inheritance. Then she realized her friend meant that Carolyn would be going into practice somewhere soon. How would Rosie respond if she knew that very soon Carolyn would be able to buy the latest, most expensive car on the road? Or if Carolyn told her she’d be moving out of her small apartment to live in a mansion? A sickening feeling accompanied Carolyn’s sudden realization that she would probably lose Rosie’s friendship and that of her bulging Italian family once her inheritance became known. Her lack of money and indebtedness had been something she had in common with them. They had opened their hearts to her because she was one of them, but her grandfather’s will would change all that.
“What’s the matter?” Rosie asked with her usual bluntness. “Are you sure you don’t have something to tell me?”
“Not now,” Carolyn answered firmly. There would be time later to sort all of it out. At the moment she was a doctor with patients waiting. She grabbed her white coat, slung her stethoscope around her neck and said, “Give me five minutes and then start sending them in.”
WHEN ADAM PULLED INTO Bancroft’s parking lot, he saw that Carolyn’s car was gone.
“A tow truck took it away,” the lawyer’s receptionist told him. “I think the sign said DiPaloa Brothers Garage. Is there a problem?”
“No, I was just curious.”
Mr. Bancroft poked his head out of his office. “I thought I heard your voice, Adam. Come in. I saw you drive away with Dr. Leigh. Bring me up-to-date.”
“There’s not much to update,” he confessed as he dropped into one of the leather office chairs. “I spent a couple of hours with her. She listened, asked a few questions and said she’d be in touch.”
“Do you think she’ll come around once the shock of all this wears off a little?”
“Damn, I don’t know what to think. We both know she could be in danger the minute she steps inside Horizon Pharmaceuticals. Carolyn is as sharp as they come, and it’s a given that she won’t be played for any kind of patsy. One way or another, she’ll educate herself about the business, and without realizing it, she may bring to light something that will force a killer into action.”
“Do you think that’s what happened to her grandfather?” asked the lawyer.
“I’m convinced of it.” Adam ran agitated fingers through his hair. “Someone is determined to use Horizon for the shipment of black-market drugs, and Carolyn could be an innocent victim of their treachery if she gets too close to the truth.”
“Well, you’ll have a better chance to protect her if you’re on the scene as her husband. Didn’t you explain that to her?”
“I didn’t want to scare her into agreeing to my plan, but I gave her enough background for her to realize that this isn’t just a parlor game someone is playing. I’m not sure she’s convinced that Horizon is involved. I wish I had more concrete evidence to support the theory that someone in the company is raking in big bucks by diverting these drugs overseas.” He sighed. “For some reason, I was hoping to appeal to a deeper commitment to see justice done.”
“That’s a lot to expect from a young woman whose been treated as disposable by almost everyone in her life. You have to admire her for her accomplishments.”
“I do. Very much.” He felt admiration and a great deal more, he silently admitted. Carolyn Leigh had touched him on more levels than he thought possible. An unbidden sweet heat curled deep within him when he looked at her, and it had been a long time since he’d wanted to touch a woman, to feel her skin beneath his fingertips and lips. He shifted uncomfortably in the leather chair as if Bancroft might be able to read his lustful thoughts.
“What are you going to do now?”
“I’m trying to make up my mind. It’s a delicate balance, trying to put pressure on her, or backing off and hoping that she’ll come around before it’s too late.” Adam’s jaw tightened. “One thing’s for sure. Come hell or high water, I hope I’m with her when she innocently steps into a situation that has all the earmarks of internal combustion.”
CAROLYN GLANCED AT the clock. Five-fifteen. The clinic closed at six, so she had time for one more patient. She signaled for Rosie to send someone into her examination room.
“Hello,” she said, smiling at the young Mexican couple with a baby who’d entered the examining room. The father spoke halting English.
“You make José well?” he asked anxiously. They were itinerant farm workers and their six-month-old baby had taken ill with a cough and fever. The mother looked no older than seventeen.
Carolyn quickly examined the infant and determined that his illness was due to strep throat, which could be controlled with antibiotics. The medication needed to be taken for two weeks. Since it was expensive, Carolyn checked their supply of sample medications. She plucked three small bottles from the shelf, an amount that would cover the two-week period.
As she held them in her hand, ready to give to the anxious parents, she glanced at the label. Horizon Pharmaceuticals.
Her hand tightened on the bottles. Since the rest of the samples had been safely given out, Carolyn rationalized that they must have contained genuine safe antibiotics.
But what if they weren’t safe? Adam’s compelling voice echoed in her ears. Her mouth went dry, and for a long moment she just stood there staring at the bottles in her hand. In her mind’s eye she saw herself handing over medication that was faulty—and could kill.
“Miss Doctor, something is matter?” asked the young man, worried by Carolyn’s sudden stillness.
“No, nothing,” she quickly assured him. She disposed of the bottles in her hand and handed him three that had come from a different supplier. She spoke slowly and carefully, making sure he understood when to give the medication to the baby.
“Bless you, bless you,” the mother kept saying as Carolyn walked them out to the waiting room with them.
Rosie quickly locked the door after them. “Whew, what a day. Dr. McPherson took off early and left me with a mound of paperwork.” She eyed Carolyn’s preoccupied look with suspicion. “You look miles away. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you had a man on your mind.”
“How did you know?” Carolyn took a deep breath and gave Rosie a tentative smile. “I’m thinking about getting married.”
Chapter Three
Adam stood up as Carolyn and a dark-haired young woman came out of the clinic. He’d been sitting on one of the benches on the small porch outside the front door. According to a posted sign, the clinic closed at six. It was a few minutes past, and he was wondering what to do if she didn’t appear soon.
When she saw him, a startled expression crossed her face. He gave her a warm smile in the hope of defusing some of her expected indignation.
“I wanted to make sure you had a way home,” he said quickly. “Your car was gone from the parking lot, and I didn’t know whether it was running or not.”
He tried to read her reaction as she walked slowly toward him, and steeled himself for a brisk rebuttal or an ice-cold glare. What he never expected in a million years was for her to give him a bright, welcoming smile.
As she moved to his side, she said, “How sweet of you, darling.”
When she slipped a possessive arm through his, Adam had trouble masking his astonishment. Was this the same woman he dropped off only a few hours ago?
“I was just talking about you and our whirlwind courtship,” Carolyn continued, still smiling. “Rosie, meet Adam Lawrence, my fiancé.”
Rosie gave him a frank, measuring look. “I can’t believe this.”
Neither can I, Adam admitted silently, thankful for the experience he’d had in shifting his perspective on a second’s notice. Smiling pleasantly, he said, “Nice to meet you, Rosie.”
“Likewise, but I tell you, this is a doozy of a surprise. Imagine Carolyn keeping something like this a secret! I’ve been telling her she should be looking around for someone to keep her tootsies warm at night, but every time I tried to line up some available guy, she’d give me that ‘Cool it, Rosie,’ look. Now I know why. Are you from around here, Adam?” she asked, and added pointedly, “What do you do?”
Adam sensed Carolyn stiffen. Her muscles tensed as if she was going to try to answer. Before she could, Adam said smoothly, “Well, it’s kind of hard to explain what I do, Rosie. I guess you could say my title is corporation efficiency expert. What that means is various companies hire me to take a look at their operations and see how I can streamline them. That’s why I’m in Seattle, cleaning up the various corporate businesses in this area.”
As he talked, he squeezed Carolyn’s arm reassuringly. Undoubtedly, she was as surprised as Rosie to hear the lies rolling off his tongue. Fortunately the agency had set up this cover before he left Washington. The false identity would provide a reasonable excuse for examining the inner workings of Horizon if Carolyn’s cooperation provided him with the entrance he needed.
“He’s originally from New Mexico,” Carolyn volunteered, beginning to play her part with an ease that totally surprised her.
“Really? A lot of my family are from that part of the country. There are DiPaloas all over the Southwest. Maybe you’ve run into some of them.”
“We’ll have to compare notes sometime,” Adam answered smoothly.
“Carolyn, I thought your life was nothing but study, study, work and more work. You never once hinted there was a handsome Romeo in the picture.”
“I was waiting until after graduation to tell you. That’s why I’m not wearing a ring. But now, we’re ready to tell everyone, aren’t we, darling?”
“Yes, it’s time everyone knew,” he concurred readily. The glint in her eye told him she was enjoying challenging him to carry out the deception exactly as he’d proposed. “I’ve got a nice evening planned for us, sweetheart. Kind of a private celebration. Dinner, maybe dancing, and then…” He let his voice trail off suggestively.
“Sounds lovely,” she murmured, but he could see the color rise in her cheeks, and she squeezed his arm as if she wished it was his neck.
“Wait’ll I get home and tell the family you’re getting married, Carolyn. You’ll have to bring Adam over for closer inspection. I know there’ll be a lot of questions about the wedding and everything. You’ll make a beautiful bride.” She beamed at Carolyn, her eyes suddenly misty.
“Yes, she will,” Adam said quickly, afraid that if Rosie started asking about their wedding plans, Carolyn would blurt out the truth. He didn’t know what had happened to make her agree to the pretense, but he suspected from her sudden rigidity that she was having second thoughts. The talk about a wedding had brought up some issues she was not ready to handle.
“We’re going to be pretty busy, I’m afraid,” Adam said quickly and as smoothly as he could.
“I don’t suppose you’ll be continuing here at the clinic, Carolyn.” Rosie sighed. “Dr. McPherson isn’t going to be happy.”
“I’ll try to find someone to take my place,” Carolyn promised. Responding to Adam’s firm hold on her arm, she said something vague about calling later. As they walked away, she felt Rosie’s measuring glance on them and wondered if her friend had bought the preposterous lie.
The early-evening sky was clearing and the air was brisk and fresh as they climbed into his car. Adam didn’t turn on the ignition immediately. He couldn’t tell from the way Carolyn’s jaw was clenched whether she was angry or just about to cry.
“I can’t do it,” she said in a strained voice. Her lower lip quivered, and he could see that her hands were clasped tightly together on her lap. “I wanted to, but I can’t.”
He couldn’t imagine what had happened to cause her to look so tortured, so filled with anguish. He wanted to put his arm around her, draw her close and ease that anguish, but suppressed the impulse. This was no time to offer anything until he found out where she was coming from. The way he handled the next few moments might well determine her decision to play out the deception or stop it before it had gone any further.
He turned in the seat, gave her all his attention and waited for her to go on. When she remained silent, he asked gently, “What happened, Carolyn?”
She didn’t look at him, but he could see the struggle going on within her. The rapid rise and fall of her chest was proof that she was fighting some deep emotion. He was relieved when she finally turned to him. She kept her hands tightly clasped in her lap as she told him about the young Mexican couple and their sick baby.
“I explained that the baby had strep throat that could be healed with antibiotics. When I was about to offer them a bottle of pills with the Horizon label, the horror of black-market drugs suddenly became real. I felt a stab of fear. What if the bottles I held in my hand had come from some illegal source? What if the pills were contaminated?” She raised pain-stricken eyes to his. “What if the parents gave them to their baby in good faith?”
“The baby might die,” he answered evenly.
“And it would be my fault.”
“Not if you didn’t know they were contaminated. A lot of innocent people are buying and dispensing these drugs. It is the suppliers who are guilty. They deliberately put these unapproved drugs on the market. The only place to stop them is at the source, Carolyn.”
“Like Horizon Pharmaceuticals,” she echoed in a strained voice.
“Yes, which is what my investigation is all about. And that’s why I’ve come to you for help.”
Her lip trembled “I want to turn my back on all of this, but how can I live with myself if I don’t do what you ask?”
“That’s a question I can’t answer.”
She sighed. “When I looked at that baby, saw the trust the young couple had in me, I guess I knew the answer. I didn’t have a choice, not if I wanted to live with my conscience.” Her head came up. “And that’s why I lied to Rosie.”
He reached over and took her hand. “You made the right decision. I promise you you’ll never regret it.” He silently prayed that he could keep her on the edge of his investigation and out of danger.
She swallowed hard. “But I don’t know if I can do it. Lies. Lies. Rosie’s my only friend. She’s excited about my having found someone to marry. It’s all such a sham! I hate being deceitful.”
“I don’t like it, either, and I’ve tried to figure out other ways to conduct the investigation but came up empty. Unless I can get on the inside of Horizon, this horrible traffic will continue.” His eyes hardened. “And God only knows how many more will die.” Like Marietta.
A weighted silence stretched between them until she mentally shook herself and asked, “All right. What happens next?”
He searched her face for a long minute, then smiled and said, “Dinner.”
They drove to a small restaurant that overlooked Lake Washington. Carolyn had never been there before, and she was relieved to see that it was a low-key, family-owned establishment that offered a modest menu.
“I found it when I was looking for a home-cooked meal,” Adam volunteered when they were seated by a window with brightly colored café curtains.
Even though Carolyn had missed lunch, she had little appetite. She ordered a seafood salad, while Adam opted for roast beef, mashed potatoes and peas. As she sipped a glass of white wine, she was grateful that his easy conversation didn’t demand any forced participation. He seemed to know that small talk was all she could handle while she collected her thoughts. It wasn’t until she was nearly finished with her salad that she felt like asking some nagging questions.
“Is it really true that you’re from New Mexico?”
“Of course it’s true. Would I lie?” he asked in mock indignation.
“Only with every other breath,” she said, returning his teasing smile. “All that stuff about you being an efficiency expert. You expect people to believe that?”
“It’s the best cover we could come up with. I needed an identity that would allow me to examine everything inherent in Horizon’s production and sale of pharmaceutical drugs. I think the cover will work. With your cooperation, of course.”
“You’re sure about this?”
“I’d be lying if I promised you a hundred-percent guarantee of success. There are myriad ways that the whole thing could fall apart. That’s why both of us will have to watch our steps carefully.”
She tensed. “I’ve never been very good at make-believe. What if I foul up?”
“We have to make certain that doesn’t happen. You did very well tonight with Rosie.” He smiled reassuringly. “If you can fool your closest friend, you shouldn’t have any trouble with a bunch of strangers.”
“I’m going to be dumped into the lives of people who have every reason to hate my guts. You can bet that there won’t be any welcome mat put out for me. I have no idea how I should behave in such a high-class environment. I’ve never known any people with money, never even visited anyone who lives in a mansion.”
“That’s all right,” he replied quickly. “Maybe you’ll do something that doesn’t quite fit, but people will expect you to make mistakes. And that’s good, because it will disarm them.”
“So the dumber I look and act, the better?” Her tone was slightly caustic.
“I didn’t mean that at all,” he said with a chuckle. “I just meant that you will be faced with some unexpected challenges, and I want you to be careful, that’s all.”
“Careful not to make a fool of myself? I can’t promise anything in that regard.” Carolyn had had some unpleasant experiences at the hospital with people who tried to throw their weight and wealth around when the rules and procedures didn’t suit them. “I have no idea how to relate to rich people,” she admitted.
“You’ll learn. Their focus in life is fashioned by tradition and the affluent world in which they live. They have hidden agendas and structure their behavior according to what’s deemed acceptable in their social stratum.”
“You know all this because…?” As the lines on his forehead deepened, she had her answer. “You come from money, don’t you.”
“Not anymore. My father was a New York stockbroker,” Adam told her. “I was an only child and had every advantage when I was growing up—prep school, college, the whole works. My senior year, the market dropped out from under my father’s investments, and he lost almost everything. His heart couldn’t take the strain, and when he died, my mother was left with a small income. She moved to New Mexico to live. When I came back from Brazil, I spent some time with her.” He gave Carolyn a rueful smile. “So you see, I was almost telling the truth when I said I was from there.”
She should have known. Everything about him suggested a privileged upbringing. His polished manner and easy confidence. His suit had obviously been tailored to fit. His fingernails appeared nicely cared for, and the cut of his dark hair accented his strong, masculine features. He could enter any elite social gathering and blend in without effort. How could she even make a pretense of being his wife?
She lowered her eyes as she imagined him in a tuxedo, perfectly groomed at a country club party, or lounging beside a fashionable swimming pool, a martini in his hand. The vision of him in only swimming trunks stirred an unbidden warmth—one that caused an instant denial to shoot through her. She couldn’t be attracted to him on that level. There absolutely couldn’t be anything sexual between them. He’d made it clear that he was only interested in her as a means to conduct his investigation. She’d be a fool if she allowed herself to make anything more of it than that.
“I’m not sure I’m up to playing out this charade,” she said defensively. Not only were her own emotions getting in the way, but the likelihood of her causing him embarrassment seemed too great. She had an unpleasant childhood memory of the time some rich woman had invited a bunch of orphans to her house for a party. Carolyn had been so nervous she’d turned the whole plate of ice cream and cake over in her lap. Even now, she shuddered at the recollection. Just making the lifestyle transition she faced would be difficult enough, but having him privy to every word and mishap made it even worse.
“I want to make this as easy on you as possible, Carolyn. I’ll do my best to arrange things so you don’t feel threatened in any way. I promise to make no demands that aren’t vital to the success of my investigation.” He paused. “Do you understand what I’m saying?”
She knew then that he was aware of the attraction that had flared between them. She nodded. “All of this is just part of a business arrangement. Nothing more.” She realized she was addressing herself as much as him.
“Right. As for getting married, there’s no need for anything but a civil service, one we’ll have as quickly and quietly as possible. We can dispense with everything else.”
Everything else? All the dreams? All expectations of someday being a bride in white lace and satin? To love and to cherish? She had always thought that someday she’d hear those poignant words, and she’d never feel lonely again. Getting married would be a beginning of a new life and the ending of an old one.
“All we need are the official credentials of Mr. and Mrs. Adam Lawrence,” he assured her. “And you’ll need to go by Carolyn Lawrence until this is over. For your protection, Mr. Bancroft will go over any legal matters that might come up while the investigation is going on.”
Investigation, he had said, not marriage. Just a business arrangement. Of course, that was all it was. No reason for her to get sentimental about taking vows that meant nothing. In a way that was what her life had been up till now. Pragmatic. Realistic. No reason for her to view a wedding ring on her finger as anything but a cold circle of metal.
“How soon should we do this?” she asked, putting her hands in her lap and clasping them tightly.
“Bancroft will make arrangements for you to move into the house and will finalize all the business arrangements. Just a matter of a few days, I think.”
“So soon?” She forced a light laugh. “You really know how to rush a girl off her feet.”
“The sooner we get into position, the better.”
Get into position. That’s the way he was viewing this whole marriage arrangement. Professional. Unemotional. Nonpersonal. The moment had come when she was either going to believe him or walk away.
“I’ll check my wardrobe and see if I have something decent to wear to a pretend wedding.”
They went back to making idle conversation, and as soon as they’d finished their coffee and apple cobbler, they left the restaurant.
The silence between them on the ride back to her apartment was like a thick curtain as Carolyn’s sensible nature began to question everything Adam Lawrence had said. Was this so-called investigation of Horizon just an elaborate scheme to swindle a naive heiress? Bancroft was the only one vouching for Adam Lawrence, and what did she really know about the lawyer? Had she bought into some sophisticated hoax?
“How would I go about verifying everything you’ve told me?” she asked as Adam walked her up the stairs to her back door. In the dim light of the back-door bulb, she could see his eyes widen in surprise. It was obvious he was taken aback by her question.
“You could decide to initiate a background check on Adam Lawrence.”
With sudden insight she said, “That’s not even your real name, is it.”
“For the moment it’s the only legal name I have.”
She wanted to laugh, but the mirth caught in her chest. She turned away and went in the house without even responding to his, “Good night. I’ll call you in the morning.”
BACK IN HIS HOTEL ROOM, Adam called his supervisor, Angelica Rivers, a woman whose crisp, businesslike voice matched her appearance. Adam guessed that at this early hour, she was probably still wearing her tailored white blouse and the straight linen skirt with its matching long jacket. Angelica had been with the agency since she was twenty, and now in her forties, she brooked no nonsense from agents, male or female.
“It’s a go,” Adam told her.
“Carolyn Leigh agreed?”
“Yes,” he answered, and mentally crossed his fingers that the arrangement with Carolyn was still a go.
“What kind of woman is she?”
Adam knew he had to be careful. Angelica would weigh everything he said and probably read between the lines. “We can trust her. She’s ready to cooperate fully.”
“I repeat, what kind of woman is she? Are you afraid to offer a personal evaluation, Adam?”
“No, not really,” he lied. His personal evaluation of Carolyn Leigh demanded honesty about how attractive he found her—in more aspects than he was willing to admit to his boss.
“You don’t like this woman who is going to pretend to be your wife?” Before he could answer, she added with knowing perception, “Or is it, as I suspect, just the opposite?”
“That’s what I like about you, Angel,” he said, using her nickname. “Nobody can accuse you of holding back. Why don’t you just ask me if she turns me on?”
“Well, does she? You know darn well you can’t get emotionally involved when you’re on a case—especially this one. Maybe I should send someone else in right now. You could get yourself killed if you let things get out of hand.”
“I’m not going to let anything get out of hand. That’s a promise. And you don’t need to worry about Carolyn not sticking to the cover.” He told Angelica about the Mexican couple and their baby. “She’s a dedicated humanitarian, and she convinced herself that she wanted to cooperate.” Unless she’s changed her mind.
“What’s the plan?”
“We’ll arrange a civil marriage ceremony as soon as the lawyer has all the legal ends tied up in a few days. Then we’ll move into the Stanford mansion and meet some of the players.”
“So the curtain goes up.”
“Yes.” Adam drew in a deep breath, and as confidently as he could, said, “And the drama begins!”
Chapter Four
Carolyn spent the next three days verifying every fact she could about her inheritance, and she satisfied herself that she could trust Mr. Bancroft. The lawyer’s personal reputation and that of his firm was without blemish. As promised, he had arranged for a substantial amount of money to be deposited in her bank account and had given her the assurance that it was only a fraction of the assets that would follow. She requested that he draw up a prenuptial agreement to protect her inheritance, and when she expressed her concerns about Adam’s plan to use her to expedite his investigation, the lawyer was quick to assure her that it was important for her to know the truth about possible criminal activities at Horizon as soon as possible.
“The suspicions about Horizon need to be proved or laid to rest.”
Carolyn decided that his advice was valid, and only five days after her life had been turned upside down, she sat stiffly beside Adam as he drove through the upscale neighborhood where the Stanford mansion was located. As she looked at the million-dollar homes they were passing, Carolyn thought that Alice must have felt like this when she fell down the rabbit hole. Nervously she moistened her lips and smoothed the folds of her pink linen dress.
The marriage ceremony that morning had gone very much as Adam had predicted. Mr. Bancroft had arranged for a friend of his, a justice of the peace, to read the service in the lawyer’s office. It only took ten minutes, and they could have been applying for a driver’s license for all the emotion that was displayed.
Carolyn viewed the ring that Adam slipped on her finger with a feeling of detachment, and he seemed to receive his with the same indifference. The only time she’d been jerked back to reality was when Bancroft addressed her after the ceremony as Mrs. Lawrence.
“I’ve alerted Jasper Stanford that all legalities have been taken care of, Mrs. Lawrence,” the lawyer explained. “And I’ve answered all of his questions about the inheritance and your marriage plans. He knows you will be arriving with your husband sometime today. I wish you both well.” Then he added with obvious double meaning, “And success.”
Adam thanked him as he shook the man’s hand. “I appreciate your help.”
The ceremony had gone better than Adam had anticipated. He’d been ready to deal with Carolyn’s last-minute trepidations, but she had maintained her composure throughout and handled herself beautifully.
He couldn’t have found a better woman to play out the dangerous undercover investigation ahead of them. Nor a more attractive one, he thought as she stood beside him, wearing a simple summer dress that hugged her slender lines and curves. He was aware of every breath she drew. Her honey-tinted hair drifted softly on her shoulders, and a simple strand of imitation pearls was her only accessory. She had flatly rejected any flowers, making it clear that they would be out of place in this husband-and-wife impersonation.
Her eyes had widened in surprise when he lightly brushed her lips in the traditional wedding kiss, and he was startled by his own desire to deepen the contact and taste the tantalizing sweetness of her mouth. He felt her stiffen and wondered if his desire had been reflected in his eyes. Great, just great, he thought. It had been a long time since he’d wanted to take a woman in his arms. Such feelings in this situation spelled disaster, and he didn’t doubt for a minute that she’d withdraw her cooperation if he moved out of line.
WHEN THEY LEFT THE lawyer’s office in Adam’s car, an uncomfortable silence fell between them. He gave his attention to his driving, and as Carolyn cast him a sidelong glance, she saw a handsome stranger in a tailored dark suit, white shirt and silk tie. And he was her legal husband. That fact alone was beyond comprehension. As she stared at the beautiful diamond ring on her finger, she kept reminding herself that none of this was for real.
The past few days had been a whirlwind, and her emotions had taken a beating. As her life swiftly moved into a completely foreign dimension, she wasn’t certain she could cope with all the demands and changes.
She’d finally gotten up the courage to tell Rosie that she was leaving the clinic and why. They’d been sitting on a park bench, eating hot dogs for lunch, and Rosie just laughed with a dismissive wave of her hand when Carolyn tried to tell her what had happened.
“Sure, somebody died and left you a bundle, sure. And I’m related to the Queen of England. Who are you kidding? You don’t have to spin a tale for me if you’re about to run off with that handsome hunk. More power to you, I say.”
Carolyn took a deep breath. “It’s true. I don’t even know how much money I’ve inherited.”
Rosie’s dark eyes grew wider as Carolyn explained about her grandfather’s will and the fact that he’d been financing her college education. When she’d finished, Rosie put down her hot dog and stared at Carolyn as if she expected her to laugh and say, “Gotcha.”
Carolyn couldn’t blame her friend for expecting a joke. The two of them had spun tales of marrying a rich man someday or winning the lottery, but none of their fantasies had come close to the story Carolyn was telling.
“It’s really true, Rosie,” Carolyn quietly insisted. “I’ve arranged for someone to take my place at the clinic.” She didn’t add that she’d obligated herself to pay the replacement doctor for his services. Adam had warned her not to say anything about their getting married until they’d moved into the mansion. He didn’t want anyone involved in the ceremony.
“As soon as I get settled,” she’d gone on to her friend, “you can come and let me show you around.”
Carolyn could tell by the way Rosie reacted that their friendship was already threatened. A gulf was starting to widen between them, and Carolyn knew that until Adam’s investigation was over, it would be better to try to pretend that everything was romantically “wine and roses” in her marriage. Rosie would be aghast at the truth.
Carolyn returned to the present. There was no doubt in her mind that the Stanford mansion would be as large and intimidating as any of the homes they were passing. What were the people like who lived in them? She took a deep breath and asked Adam point-blank what to expect when they got to the Stanford mansion.
“It’s bound to be a little tense and uncomfortable at first,” he told her. “We’ll just have to take it as it comes.” His own thoughts had been following the same kind of speculation, and to be perfectly honest, he didn’t know what the situation might be. People were unpredictable at best. He had no idea how Carolyn’s uncle was going to receive her, or how the Jasper’s live-in significant other would, either. From all accounts, Della Denison had grandfather’s approval as an executive at Horizon, and the woman wasn’t likely to accept Carolyn’s presence in the company with open arms.
Adam was also concerned about the way Lisa and Buddy Denison were going to treat Carolyn. He considered them self-centered and spoiled. They could make life hell for her in a thousand different ways.
“I wish I’d had more time to get ready for this,” Carolyn said honestly. But would she ever be ready? She glanced at the man sitting beside her. What did she really know about him? She couldn’t believe that she had put herself in his hands—in more ways than one.
“Just stick to the script we worked out. Don’t try to embellish any of the details. Remember, don’t supply extra information when you’re pushed into a corner. Everyone’s going to be curious about you, about us, but you don’t have to satisfy their curiosity. You’re in the driver’s seat in this situation. You have the power and the money.”
“Power and money.” She wanted to laugh at the irony of it. When on earth had she ever possessed either one of them? A few pieces of paper couldn’t change her basic perception of herself.
“The first thing you’ll want to do is buy yourself a car, a good one.”
“I suppose so. Before I told Rosie about my inheritance, her brother called me and told me to junk my old one. He wanted me to look at a couple of used models he had for sale that were in better shape. I told him I’d think about it.”
“That’s all?” He raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t tell him you were in a position to buy the latest, most expensive model on the road?”
She shook her head. “I wanted Rosie to know first.”
He nodded. “I can understand that, but you need to feel free to spend the money that is rightfully yours, Carolyn. I imagine that you’ll be needing a whole new wardrobe, won’t you?”
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Leona Karr
ONE DAY THEY WERE STRANGERS AND THE NEXT THEY WERE HUSBAND AND WIFE!After Carolyn Leigh learned that the grandfather she never knew had died and left her a fortune, she discovered that he might actually have been murdered–and only she could help find the killer. But first she'd have to consent to "marry" Adam Lawrence, the sexy agent assigned to the case.There was no denying the attraction between them, but they couldn't let love get in the way of the case. After all, solving this mystery was personal–for both of them. Could they unmask the killer before the killer revealed their covert conjugal bliss?
“I need your help. You can provide me with a legitimate cover for my investigation.”
“How can I do that?” she protested. “I’m totally inexperienced, and it will take time for me to make any changes at the company. You would stick out like a sore thumb if I tried right off to put you in any kind of position at Horizon Pharmaceuticals.”
“I know. That’s why we’d have to arrange something different. I’ll need a cover that will give me intimate access to the workings of the company.”
The steadiness of his gaze told Carolyn that he had already decided what that cover should be. She felt a strange quiver in her stomach.
“When you arrive at Horizon for the first time, Carolyn, I need to be there with you—as your husband.”
She choked on her intake of breath. “My husband?”
“In name only,” he hastened to reassure her. “Don’t you see? It’s the perfect cover.”
Dear Harlequin Intrigue Reader,
This month Harlequin Intrigue has an enthralling array of breathtaking romantic suspense to make the most of those last lingering days of summer.
The wait is finally over! The next crop of undercover agents who belong to the newest branch of the top secret Confidential organization are about to embark on an unbelievable adventure. Award-winning reader favorite Gayle Wilson will rivet you with the launch book of this brand-new ten-story continuity series. COLORADO CONFIDENTIAL will begin in Harlequin Intrigue, break out into a special release anthology and finish in Harlequin Historicals. In Rocky Mountain Maverick, an undeniably sexy undercover agent infiltrates a powerful senator’s ranch and falls under the influence of an intoxicating impostor. Be there from the very beginning!
The adrenaline rush continues in The Butler’s Daughter by Joyce Sullivan, with the first book in her new miniseries, THE COLLINGWOOD HEIRS. A beautiful guardian has been entrusted with the care of a toddler-sized heir, but now they are running for their lives and she must place their safety in an enigmatic protector’s tantalizing hands! Ann Voss Peterson heats things up with Incriminating Passion when a targeted “witness” to a murder manages to inflame the heart of a by-the-book assistant D.A.
Finally rounding out the month is Semiautomatic Marriage by veteran author Leona Karr. Will the race to track down a killer culminate in a real trip down the aisle for an undercover husband and wife?
So pick up all four of these pulse-pounding stories and end the summer with a bang!
Sincerely,
Denise O’Sullivan
Harlequin Intrigue, Senior Editor
Semiautomatic Marriage
Leona Karr
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A native of Colorado, Leona (Lee) Karr is the author of nearly forty books. Her favorite genres are romantic suspense and inspirational romance. After graduating from the University of Colorado with a B.A. and the University of Northern Colorado with an M.A., she taught as a reading specialist until her first book was published in 1980. She has been on the Waldenbooks bestseller list and nominated by Romantic Times for Best Romantic Saga and Best Gothic Author. She has been honored as the Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer of the Year, and received Colorado’s Romance Writer of the Year award. Her books have been reprinted in more than a dozen foreign countries. She is a presenter at numerous writing conferences and has taught college courses in creative writing.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Carolyn Leigh—A visit to a lawyer’s office makes her an heiress and a partner in a dangerous charade.
Adam Lawrence—A man on a mission, who will use his status as a “pretend husband” to carry out his plan.
Jasper Stanford—A newly found relative who has little interest in being an uncle or friend.
Della Denison—An executive who seems willing to preserve her position at all costs. Her daughter, Lisa, is a spoiled young woman who lives a pampered life. Her son, Buddy, shows little interest in anything but pursuing his idle hobbies.
Cliff Connors—An assistant laboratory assistant who has an unsavory past that threatens to endanger the present.
Nick Calhoun—A man with a gambling habit.
Susan Kimble—A woman dedicated to her job and searching for happiness.
Nellie Ryan—A woman in love with a man who only brings trouble into her life.
Love and thanks to my sons, Leonard and Clark,
for their valuable help with this book,
and to Cindy Karr for her supportive interest
and encouragement.
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter One
Carolyn Leigh’s eyes rounded as she looked at the two men seated across the table from her in the lawyer’s office. “I thought this meeting was about my unknown benefactor, who’s helped me financially through medical school, using your firm as a conduit.”
“Well, in a way it is,” the gray-haired lawyer, Mr. Bancroft, assured her as he pushed his glasses farther up his nose.
“Am I expected to pay it back?” she asked evenly, trying to keep the apprehension out of her voice. What she didn’t need was more indebtedness. After having just graduated a month ago, she was trying to find a full-time medical position as soon as possible to alleviate her other debts.
“No, the grant was yours, free and clear,” the lawyer assured her. “The news we have for you is good.”
Carolyn tensed. Good news? Growing up as a sickly foster child, her life had been filled with people telling her they had good news for her, when the truth was she was just being shifted from one unsatisfactory foster placement to another. Even though she was an adult now, and had managed to get herself through medical school by sheer grit, and working a job for nearly six years, a remembered anxiety suddenly tightened her stomach. She still had nightmares about being helpless as a foster child, thrown into one traumatic experience after another. She’d felt like a pawn in some diabolical game. Here we go again, she thought, trying to steel herself for whatever was about to crash into her well-laid plans.
From the first moment Carolyn walked into the office, she’d sensed a certain hesitancy, as if the two men weren’t exactly sure how to proceed. She’d only met William Bancroft, the elderly lawyer, once before, and had never met the good-looking, younger one, Adam Lawrence—Bancroft introduced him only by name, without identifying who he was and why he was there. She assumed he was a junior associate.
They politely offered her coffee, which she refused.
“Well, then, why don’t you lay the groundwork, Adam?” Bancroft suggested, nodding at him. “We’ll cover the legal details after that.”
The dark-haired man smiled at her, and she was aware of his strong features, slightly tanned complexion and the determined jut of his chin. Somewhere in his thirties, he must have been, and his clear, gray-blue eyes narrowed slightly as if he were searching for the right way to begin. Carolyn’s heartbeat suddenly quickened as she waited for Adam Lawrence to speak. What was this all about?
“You’ve heard of Arthur Stanford,” he began in a conversational tone, and smiled, as if he recognized her tenseness.
“No, I haven’t,” she answered with her usual honesty.
He seemed a little surprised at her directness. “Have you heard of Horizon Pharmaceuticals?”
“Of course. Everyone in the medical field is aware of Horizon. It’s a major supplier of pharmaceutical drugs. One of the oldest companies in the Northwest, I believe.”
He nodded. “That’s right. Arthur Stanford is the owner of Horizon Pharmaceutical. He passed away recently.”
“And there’s some reason I should know this?” This man’s death had probably been in the news, but she’d been too busy studying to read the newspaper. Something about this whole meeting put her on the defensive. There was an undercurrent in the room she didn’t understand. Was she on the hot seat for some unknown reason? Plenty of schoolyard scuffles had conditioned her to get her mitts up before an expected blow came. She mentally geared up to be ready to handle whatever he was about to lay on her.
“The financial aid you’ve been receiving for medical school came from Arthur Stanford. He arranged for the grant to be paid through Mr. Bancroft’s office.”
“Really?” she answered in honest surprise.
“Yes, really.”
She’d often wondered who’d set up the grant that had made it possible for her to attend medical school without interruption. She’d assumed that it was an organization, not an individual. The truth was, she’d applied for every financial aid listed in the college office. No one was more surprised than she was when the university’s director of admissions called and told her that she’d been selected by an anonymous donor for a generous stipend.
“I’ve been very grateful for his financial help,” she readily admitted. “It would have taken me an extra two years to work my way through medical school without it. My grant was a great deal more generous than most awards. Did Mr. Stanford financially help many medical students?”
“No, you’re the only one.”
“The only one?” she repeated in disbelief. “But why? I mean, why was I the fortunate one?”
Adam hesitated, not at all certain how to proceed. Bancroft had insisted that he be the one to tell her the truth, and he’d readily agreed, but Dr. Carolyn Leigh wasn’t at all what he’d expected. By any standard, she was a very attractive woman: petite features, soft, shapely mouth, large, sky blue eyes and blond hair the color of rich honey. Even her simple, inexpensive pink summer blouse and navy skirt couldn’t detract from a slender, shapely body that could easily give any man ideas.
Even though Adam had only been in her presence a few minutes, he’d already recognized that there was more to her than her appealing looks. An undeniable toughness and resilience radiated from her. He’d bet she could put any leering male in his place with a sharp word or a well-aimed kick. It wasn’t hard for him to imagine her in a doctor’s white jacket, a stethoscope around her neck and a bedside manner that could either charm or deftly manage the most unruly patient. No, she wasn’t at all what he’d expected. He wondered if they were handling this all wrong. There was nothing to do now but plunge ahead and be as honest as he could.
“It wasn’t an accident that you received the generous stipend,” he explained. “You see, Carolyn, Arthur Stanford has a personal interest in you.”
“How could that be? I told you I didn’t know Arthur Stanford,” she replied firmly. “I’ve never heard his name, as far as I know. And I have no reason to believe he’d have a special interest in me.”
Clearly she wasn’t about to accept the truth until she had more facts to back it up. Adam suspected this strong fiber in her personality was going to play havoc with his plans. He tried to keep his tone neutral, as if they were discussing something that wasn’t going to change her life forever.
“It’s true, isn’t it, Carolyn, that you’ve grown up without family and without knowing who abandoned you as an infant?”
She nodded. Her unknown roots had been like an albatross around her neck since she was old enough to know what the word orphan meant. She’d always been treated like a changeling, not belonging anywhere, not to anyone. She’d learned very young to make her way in the world alone, and as far as she was concerned that wasn’t going to change.
“I don’t see why my background is of interest here.” She firmed her chin as she locked her gaze on him. “What is this about?”
“I know that what I’m going to tell you, Carolyn, will be a shock. I guess there’s no way to prepare you for the news, so I’ll just come right out and say it.” Adam had the foolish urge to reach out and hold her hand, but realized she’d reject the gesture. “Arthur Stanford had a very personal interest in you, Carolyn, because he was your grandfather.”
Grandfather. The word exploded in Carolyn’s head like a grenade. She tried to say something, but for once in her life, her mouth wouldn’t work. Almost instantly shock turned into disbelief. It wasn’t true. It couldn’t be. With great effort, she found her voice.
“Let me get this straight. You’re telling me that the money I’ve been receiving is from Arthur Stanford and he’s my grandfather?”
He nodded. “That’s exactly what I’m telling you. There’s no doubt about it. You’re Arthur Stanford’s granddaughter.”
Her whole life, Carolyn had dreamed of belonging to someone of her own flesh and blood, longing to know what family genes she carried. She’d fought all her battles from a sense of aloneness, and as she looked into Adam’s reassuring face and gentle eyes, she pleaded silently, Please, let this be true.
He must have read the plea in her expression, because he smiled and took her hand. The warm contact gave her the reassurance she needed to believe the impossible.
“I have a complete report here,” Bancroft said, handing Carolyn a folder.
Both men fell silent as she read the file.
For the first time Carolyn learned the mystery of her birth. Her mother, Alicia Stanford, had been a sixteen-year-old who ran away when she discovered she was pregnant. Her affluent family’s efforts to find her ended unhappily a year later when she returned home with a terminal disease. She refused to say what had happened to the baby and would not identify the father. Apparently nothing was done to try to locate the baby until a few years ago.
Carolyn learned that she was just starting medical school when the investigators her widowed grandfather hired finally tracked her down, and the millionaire began to support her education.
“He knew for four years that I was his granddaughter!” Disbelief gave way to deep disappointment. Tears threatened to spill from her eyes. “Why didn’t he tell me? Why did he keep it from me?”
“We don’t know,” the lawyer admitted. “When your grandfather arranged for your financial grant, he insisted on total secrecy.”
“He received continuous updates about you,” Adam told her. “He knew that you went to work for the financial firm Champion Realty and Investments right out of high school and could have worked your way up in that company. From all the reports, Carolyn, you certainly could have a career in business, as well as medicine.”
Bancroft shoved his glasses up his nose and cleared his throat. “And that brings us to the legal matter at hand. The good news. The matter of his will.”
Both men looked at her in a way that made her breath catch. “He left me…something?”
Adam couldn’t resist a chuckle. “More than just something, I’d say.”
Bancroft beamed. “Arthur Stanford made a new will just a few months before his death. Carolyn, you’re the primary beneficiary.”
The lawyer proceeded to inform her that Stanford had bequeathed her fifty-one percent of Horizon Pharmaceuticals, his elegant mansion and other considerable monetary assets.
She stared at both men incredulously, her blue eyes rounding. What kind of macabre joke was this? She’d never been one to believe in fairy tales, and she certainly didn’t believe in this one. It had to be a hoax! A cruel manipulation of some kind.
Seeing a red flush mounting her neck, Adam said quickly, “It’s true, Carolyn. Your grandfather died several weeks ago, and all the legalities are settled. There were just a few necessary verifications to make before telling you.”
“You’re expecting me to believe that Arthur Stanford bypassed everyone else to leave a fortune to his long-lost granddaughter?”
“Yes, Carolyn, that’s exactly what has happened.”
“What about the other people in his life?” Carolyn demanded as a blessed logical detachment allowed her to get her emotions under control. She wanted facts. She wasn’t about to accept anything at face value. Especially not a Cinderella story like the one they were trying to lay on her. “There were other people in his life, weren’t there?”
“Yes,” Bancroft answered readily. “There is one son, your mother’s older brother, Jasper. He’s mentioned in the will, but in a lesser way.”
“Why would Arthur Stanford do that? I mean, I don’t understand why he didn’t leave his son the company and everything else.”
Adam spoke up. “Maybe because Jasper ran two companies and property of his own into bankruptcy, and his father had to bail him out. Obviously Stanford didn’t want the same thing to happen to Horizon.”
“And there’s no one else?” she asked with a dry mouth.
“No blood relation, other than Jasper. You’re the only one,” Bancroft answered. “Jasper is a laboratory scientist at Horizon, and your grandfather left him some stock, but you hold the controlling interest. Jasper never married, but he has maintained a five-year romantic relationship with Della Denison, a very capable career woman, who also works at Horizon. They live in the Stanford mansion, along with Della’s two children, both in their twenties.” He paused. “Apparently your grandfather found this arrangement amicable.”
“But it may not continue to be so when you take up residency there,” Adam warned her. “Remember, Carolyn, in the end you will be the one to decide if any changes need to be made. Everything has been put on hold since your grandfather’s death.”
“Until all the legalities are finalized,” Bancroft said, “I can arrange for generous funds to be available to you to take care of your immediate financial needs.” As he continued to expand on the details of the will, Carolyn’s doubts began to fade, and a flood of questions took their place.
Adam leaned toward her and waited for her eyes to meet his before he said, “It’s important that I share some disturbing facts with you now, Carolyn, before you move into the role of a wealthy heiress.”
Heiress. The word lacked any meaning for her. She’d never had enough money to cover her monthly expenses. Her secondhand car had more than a hundred thousand miles on it. At the moment she was unemployed since no one had jumped at her résumé or brand-new medical degree.
“Your grandfather’s death was a surprise to everyone,” Adam told her. “Very unfortunate.”
“Was he ill?” she asked, wishing she could have been at his side. Her medical training might have counted for something if she could have cared for him.
The way Carolyn’s expectant gaze was fixed on him made Adam wish he had more than just empirical facts to tell her. He knew she was in for another shock. “No, it wasn’t illness that ended his life. I’m sorry I have to tell you that your grandfather was a victim of a hit-and-run driver.”
She stared at him, a sickening lump lodged in her throat. Maybe her grandfather had planned to reveal himself to her, but met an untimely death before it happened. She felt an even greater loss, knowing how he’d died.
“Stanford was killed in a waterfront location, and there seems to be some question whether his death was accidental.”
At first his words refused to penetrate. Then she said in disbelief, “You mean someone deliberately hit him?”
“We don’t know. That’s why I’m here, Carolyn.” He reached into his pocket and drew out a badge. “I’m a federal investigator, and among other things, I’m assigned to cover your grandfather’s suspicious death.”
“You’re not a lawyer? I mean, I thought—”
“I work for the FDA. Mr. Bancroft asked me to be here because he knows I’ve been investigating Arthur Stanford’s affairs. Since you are his beneficiary, you’ll be able to help me.”
“Help you? With what? I don’t see—”
“You’ll be in a position to look into every aspect of the company and have access to family affairs.”
She gave a shaky laugh as she shook her head. “I have no idea what you have in mind, but I certainly need more time and information before I can handle any of this.” She stood up. “I’m sorry, gentlemen, but my head is reeling. You’ll have to excuse me.”
“I know this is a lot to absorb in such a short time,” Adam readily agreed. “But time is of the utmost importance, Carolyn. I hate to pressure you, but…”
“I never make decisions under pressure. Whatever you have to say, Mr. Lawrence, will have to wait.” She used her professional tone, masking the racing of her heart.
An heiress. A mansion. Horizon.
She gave them both a mechanical smile and hurriedly left the office. Maybe all this was on the up-and-up, but her emotions were in such a tangle at the moment she couldn’t be sure. Could it really be that her grandfather had found her? She wanted to believe the unbelievable, but her intuition was quivering like an antenna trying to catch warning vibes. The handsome Adam Lawrence, obviously, wanted a commitment of some kind from her. What was his real agenda? Why had the lawyer included him in the meeting? There’d been moments she’d instinctively responded to his smile and the touch of his hand, but now she wondered if he’d been deliberately manipulating her emotions.
With her thoughts whirling like an off-center helicopter, she crossed the lot to her car, parked at the back of the small brick building. Her hands trembled as she unlocked the door of her old car. After sliding into the worn front seat, she sat there for a long minute. She needed to go home, go over all the legal papers again, get on the Internet and see what information she could pull up on Horizon Pharmaceuticals. As her analytical approach to problems settled her emotions, she turned the key in the ignition.
The engine refused to turn over. After repeated tries she slapped the steering wheel in exasperation. She’d been having trouble with it for more than a month, but had been trying to put off the expense of car repair as long as possible.
She silently swore and then tried again, but no luck. The irony of the situation hit her when she looked out the window and saw Adam Lawrence walking across the parking lot, heading for her car. It was obvious from his expression that he’d heard the starter grinding.
She had little choice but to roll down the window and nod at his friendly “Won’t start, huh?”
His grin only made her feel more testy. Brilliant deduction. Were all FDA agents so perceptive?
“Would you like me to try?” he offered.
“Thanks, but don’t bother.” She didn’t want to prolong the embarrassment. It didn’t take a mechanic to know that the old car was heading for the junkyard. What to do now? Leave it? Take a bus home and see if her AAA insurance was still in force? “I think I’ll just let it sit for a while.”
“How about I run you home and you can call someone to look at it?”
“No need to put you to that trouble,” she answered quickly.
“It’s no trouble. Just tell me how to get there. I’m still trying to find my way around Seattle.”
As she hesitated, he saw a flicker of indecision in her eyes. He could tell that she was tempted to accept his offer. The stalled car could be a blessing in disguise. Her sudden departure from the meeting had left him wondering how to initiate further contact with her. It was imperative to move quickly to enlist her help. He was relieved when she nodded.
As they walked to his car, he made an idle comment about the gathering rain clouds. “There’s more rain here in a week than we have in a whole season back home.”
“The natives call it liquid sunshine,” she informed him with a faint smile.
“I grew up in New Mexico. Ever been there?” he asked, hoping to make the situation seem casual and friendly.
“No, but I don’t think I’d like it,” she said frankly. “I’d miss the water.”
He could tell from her pensive expression that her thoughts were beyond any casual chitchat. Not that he could blame her. She’d been given a double whammy. Learning the identity of her grandfather would have been shock enough, but the inheritance on top of that would knock anyone for a loop. He knew from her case history that she possessed a dogged will that had obviously shaped her life. The vulnerable innocence about her was utterly deceptive. She wouldn’t be easily persuaded to fall in line with his plans.
As she sat in the seat beside him, he was aware of her appealing femininity, the lines and curves of her body. Her summer blouse molded the fullness of her breasts, and its open collar revealed the smooth lines of her neck. A faint floral scent teased his nostrils, and he realized that he’d been without feminine company far too long.
She told him the address of her apartment and gave him directions. He related a couple of humorous experiences he’d had trying to find his way in foreign countries and was rewarded with a slight smile.
“Have you traveled abroad quite a bit?” she asked.
“Not really. South America, mostly. I lived in Brazil for a couple of years. I served as the judicial attaché at the United States Embassy and coordinated evidence of drug-related activities.”
“I see. And when you came back to the States, you became an FDA agent?”
“Yes.”
As he fell silent, Carolyn was aware of the change in him. A shadow passed over his eyes, and she sensed that for some reason the subject was painful for him. What had happened in his career, she wondered, to put that kind of pain in his expression? She remembered how very intense he’d been in the lawyer’s office. Obviously Bancroft had asked him to be there, and she had cut him off when he tried to explain his interest in her sudden legacy.
“Is this the place?” he asked as he pulled up in front of the large house owned by an elderly widow from whom she rented an upstairs apartment.
“Yes, this is…home.” She hesitated slightly over the word as she reached for the door handle. She was still feeling overwhelmed, but a blessed detachment had begun to ease her bewilderment.
“Carolyn, could we talk a minute? I know your head must be swimming with all this, but I really need to share some things with you. Would you just hear me out? It’s important. There are some decisions that have to be made.”
“I’m not ready to make decisions of any kind,” she answered firmly. “I’ve read about people who suddenly come into money and how they’re hounded by the public, pulled this way and that. Everyone with his hands out and—”
“This isn’t about money,” he said curtly. “It’s about the welfare of a lot of people. Your decision to become a doctor had something to do with your dedication to the public interest, I assume.”
“I don’t think my dedication is the issue here,” she said evenly. “Don’t you understand? I’m too stunned to even comprehend what all this means. I need time, information and the insight to make some decisions. I really don’t know what you expect from me.”
“You will, if you’ll give me a chance to explain. Please, Carolyn. Just hear me out. Then I’ll give you the time you need to come to terms with what I’m asking.”
His gray eyes were like grappling hooks locking her gaze with his. An undefined warning stirred deep within her. She wanted to turn away, but couldn’t. Whether she wanted to or not, she was going to have to deal with this.
She moistened her lips. “All right. But not here in the car. We can talk better inside.”
He nodded, and quickly got out and came around the car to open her door. Without talking, they walked around the house to the outside staircase that led to her apartment. She could feel his warm breath on her neck as she secured her key in the lock and opened the door.
The tiny kitchen was a mess. She’d slept in late and barely made it to her ten o’clock appointment with Bancroft. The tiny living room wasn’t much better, and Carolyn wished she’d shut the bedroom door so he couldn’t see the discarded clothes on her bed. She’d tried on several outfits before deciding on the summer skirt and blouse.
She swallowed back any apologies or explanation. The apartment was sparsely furnished with the land-lady’s cast-off furniture. Most of it would have gone begging at a garage sale. An old, scarred desk was loaded down with medical books, papers and a small computer.
In an effort to add some color and personal touches, Carolyn had hung some framed calendar prints and bought a small plant stand. She rarely had any kind of company, and the place looked exactly what it was—rented space.
She avoided looking at Adam as he sat down on the lumpy couch and she took a nearby faded chair. What was he thinking? Why had he intruded on her privacy like this? She was suddenly aware of his masculine presence and the way it filled up the room. He’d left his summer sports jacket in the car and had loosened the matching tie. His short dark hair set off his black eyebrows and arresting gray eyes. His well-built, six-foot frame revealed strong shoulder and arm muscles, and as he casually settled himself into a comfortable position, she resented that he was sending her thoughts into places where she’d placed permanent Keep Out signs.
Her tone was brisker than she’d intended when she said, “All right, I’m listening. Why don’t you tell me what this is all about?”
A flicker of expressions like shadows played across his face as he studied her without answering. Then, to her surprise, instead of speaking, he rose abruptly to his feet and walked over to the window. The way he stood there, staring out, she realized that he was experiencing some kind of emotional turmoil of his own. She’d seen patients caught in that same kind of mental maze, and she remained silent, waiting for him to respond.
He stood there for what seemed like an eternity before he turned around and repeated, “What is this all about?”
He walked back to the couch and sat down again. “This is about Marietta.”
“Marietta?” Carolyn echoed.
“My late wife. I lost her. She suffered a cruel and painful death.”
During her internship at the hospital, she’d seen grief of many kinds. Some people wore the loss of a loved one on the outside, like a mourning cloak, while others held their grief inside, deep and private. It was clear to her that this man’s filled the very breath and soul of his being. Until that moment she hadn’t really connected with him, but now she saw him from a different perspective, and she felt drawn to him on a level she didn’t understand.
“I’m so very sorry,” she said, and moved over to the couch beside him.
He searched her face as if to judge the sincerity of her words as he began to talk about himself. “After I graduated from law school, I took a position as judicial attaché at the United States Embassy in Brazil. I coordinated evidence and information on illegal-substance traffic between the U.S. and Brazil.” He paused. “Marietta worked as a translator at the embassy. We’d only been married a few months when she suffered an infection and died from liver failure after a doctor unknowingly gave her an unapproved drug that had found its way into the country through the black market.” Carolyn saw the hard set of his jaw and the way his gray eyes glittered like honed steel. “That pharmaceutical drug came from Horizon.”
Her stomach took a sickening plunge. “How can you be sure?”
“Drugs are produced in batches,” he explained. “Each bottle has the batch number on it, along with the name of the company that manufactured it. The bottle of bad pills that killed Marietta came from Horizon Pharmaceuticals, but when the FDA tried to verify it, the company records showed that a batch with that number had never been produced by the company.”
“Then the drug your wife took was a counterfeit,” Carolyn said, frowning.
“That’s what the authorities believed. I came back to the U.S. a few months ago and found the investigation at a standstill. It’s true that illegal organizations that produce counterfeit drugs do their best to duplicate the appearance of the drug by using bottles of the same size, shape and the same kind of labeling.”
“So Horizon is telling the truth?”
“I don’t think so, and this is why. It’s almost impossible to produce an exact match in every detail to an authentic bottle of pills. The size of the lettering may be wrong, the color of the label slightly off, the plastic bottle lighter or heavier, the pills flatter or more rounded. But in this instance, everything in the bottle of pills that killed Marietta is an exact duplicate to one produced by Horizon.”
“How could that be if the company has no record?”
“For the past year products from Horizon have shown up illegally on various foreign black markets, and until now there hasn’t been a way for me to penetrate company operations and conduct an on-the-spot investigation.”
Until now. The way he was looking at her left no doubt in her mind what those words meant. She stiffened. He was here with an agenda of his own, and his next words verified it.
“You can provide me with a legitimate cover for my investigation. If I can get in a position to examine the workings of the company from the inside, I’m confident I can find out how black-market drugs that don’t meet FDA standards are being illegally circulated in other countries.” He reached over and took her hand. “That’s why I need your help. You can provide me with a legitimate cover for my investigation.”
“How can I do that?” she protested. “I’m totally inexperienced, and it will take time for me to make any changes. You would stick out like a sore thumb if I tried right off to put you in any kind of position at Horizon.”
“I know. That’s why we’d have to arrange something different. I’ll need a cover that will give me intimate access to the workings of the company.”
The steadiness of his gaze told Carolyn that he had already decided what that cover should be. She felt a strange quiver in her stomach, like someone about to take a plunge off a cliff with a bungee cord tied around her ankle.
“When you arrive at Horizon for the first time, Carolyn, I need to be there with you—as your husband.”
She choked on her intake of breath. “My husband?”
“In name only,” he hastened to reassure her. “Don’t you see? It’s the perfect cover!”
Chapter Two
“You want to pretend to be my husband?” Her incredulous tone was a mixture of amusement and indignation.
“Well, not pretend, exactly.”
“Then what exactly?” Her eyes narrowed and she stiffened beside him.
Adam sensed her instant withdrawal and silently cursed. Damn! He’d come at this the wrong way. What to do now?
He stood up, took a few aimless steps and then eased down on a corner of the old desk. He hoped he could handle the situation better if he wasn’t close enough to be aware of every breath she drew. Aware of her soft, womanly warmth. Now, he had to lay all his cards out on the table, and fast. Above all, he had to be honest with her. She wasn’t about to jump into anything with her eyes closed.
“It wouldn’t all be pretend,” he explained, not wanting to hold anything back. “I mean, we’d have to perform all the legalities and officially be husband and wife in case anyone decided to check for a marriage license.”
“We would go through a wedding ceremony and be legally married.” She tried to keep her voice even. “Is that what you’re saying?”
“Yes, but between us, Carolyn, it would be strictly a business arrangement that would be dissolved once the investigation was over. I’d be a husband to you in name only.”
“A business arrangement? A husband in name only? And how would that work, exactly?” She raised a questioning eyebrow.
“Well, in public we would have to behave like a congenial couple and—”
“Like newlyweds, perhaps?”
He couldn’t help but chuckle. Leave it to her to put her finger exactly where the charade would demand more than she was willing to give. “We’d be playing a part, acting, pure and simple.”
“A few kisses and hugs between business partners wouldn’t mean anything. Is that the way it would work?”
“Exactly. It would be just for show,” he answered firmly, but as his gaze settled on her pink, kissable lips and the delicate curve of her cheek, he knew he’d have to keep his guard up every moment or he’d blow the whole charade. Everything about her luscious body invited a man’s touch. He felt a quiver of desire just thinking about holding her close and kissing her. He’d have to be damn careful not to let her know that he found her utterly sexy and desirable.
“And living arrangements?” she asked as if reading his thoughts. “I assume they would demand a little more playacting?”
“The Stanford mansion is large enough for us to have extreme privacy. We could have one wing of the house to ourselves. We would only have to interact with the others when we want their company.” He didn’t add that an important part of his investigation would involve getting close to Jasper and Della because of their positions in Horizon.
“You have this all figured out, haven’t you.”
“That’s my job. And I’m good at it,” he added without conceit. He already had an impressive record, working in Brazil and in the U.S.
“And how long do you anticipate this ‘business arrangement’ might last?”
“Hopefully just a matter of weeks. Once I have access to company files, I should be able to get the evidence I need to track the illegal shipments.” He paused. “There is one other thing, though.” He hesitated as if searching for the right words. “There could be complications if all this leads into a murder investigation of your grandfather’s death.”
“Murder investigation?”
“I told you that the hit-and-run was suspicious.” When he saw her lovely face whiten, he cursed himself for being so callous. That was one of the fallouts of being an investigator. You got hardened to things that made a normal person wince.
Her mouth trembled slightly as she asked, “You think the black-market drugs and his hit-and-run might be connected?”
“I don’t know, but I promise you I’ll do my best to find out.” He sat down beside her again. “Look, I feel like a heel pushing you like this, but if we’re going to set up this cover, it has to be now, before you move into your role as Carolyn Leigh Stanford. When you meet your uncle and the others living in the Stanford mansion, I’ll need to be there as your husband—a fait accompli, so to speak.”
“My…my uncle.” She stumbled over the term as if it had never crossed her lips before. “Do you know him?”
From the way her blue eyes widened, he realized that once again he was moving too fast for her. The idea of having a living relative must be as astounding as the rest of this situation.
“I’ve never met him,” Adam admitted, “but I know that Jasper Stanford is a man in his early fifties who’s lived with your grandfather for years. He’s a laboratory scientist at Horizon and has never shown any aptitude for the business side of the company. As I said before, he was a failure in his own ventures. Jasper was your mother’s only sibling. He was twenty-six years old and away at college when she ran away from home at sixteen. Their mother, your grandmother, died a few years after your mother, Alicia, leaving your grandfather a widower for many years.”
Adam paused, trying to decide the best way to explain the situation Carolyn was going to find under her grandfather’s roof and at the company. “Jasper’s girlfriend, Della, has been living in the Stanford mansion with her twenty-three-year-old daughter, Lisa, and her twenty-one-year-old son, Buddy. Apparently it was an arrangement that had your grandfather’s approval.”
What if I don’t like these people? Carolyn asked herself anxiously. And what if they didn’t like her? She felt her stomach tighten. She had plenty of memories where she was less than welcome, her presence tolerated only because of the money her foster parents were paid. The circumstances were different now, but one thing was the same. These people were going to resent her presence big-time.
“Were they mentioned in my grandfather’s will?”
“You and Jasper are the major beneficiaries. I’m sure that the contents of your grandfather’s will was totally unexpected, though, and your inheritance a great surprise to all of them.”
Was there a warning in his tone? She shivered. Too much was coming at her too fast. She needed a break. Quickly she rose to her feet.
“I missed my second cup of coffee at breakfast,” she said. “Would you care for a cup?”
The invitation wasn’t exactly full of warmth and hospitality, but he readily accepted and then followed her into the small kitchen. She motioned to one of the chairs at the chipped Formica table crowded into one corner.
“Cream and sugar?” she asked as she took a couple of mugs down from the cupboard.
“No, black.”
“Good, because I don’t have any cream,” she admitted with a wry smile. “Going grocery shopping is not one of my things.”
“Not mine, either. I knew we had something in common,” he added facetiously, hoping for a smile, but as she handed him the mug, her expression was anything but amused.
Instead of sitting down in the other chair, she leaned against the kitchen counter, sipping her own coffee. Even though they were in close physical proximity, she seemed able to completely disregard him. Everything in her body language told him she was processing what he had told her. He wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d taken her mug and disappeared into the other room, ignoring him completely.
He’d bungled everything. He’d completely misjudged Carolyn Leigh. The instant she’d locked those clear, ocean blue eyes on him, he should have known her outward feminine softness was deceiving. She had a self-reliance that was a match for his or anyone else’s. Arthur Stanford must have been aware of her strength and firm hold on her convictions when he decided to leave his assets to her. He doubted very much that she’d ever be swayed by pure emotion or easily dominated by a husband, pretend or otherwise. If she agreed to his plan, she’d be a tremendous help, but if she refused to consider a contrived marriage, there would be nothing he could do or say to make her change her mind.
He forced himself to remain silent, sipping his coffee. His wandering gaze settled on a kitchen shelf that held a small vase of artificial flowers, a chipped porcelain tea cup, and a small framed photo of an older woman standing with a frail-looking blond girl who appeared to be about eight. Carolyn? It must be.
“Yes, it’s me.” She startled him by suddenly sitting down in the other chair and following his gaze to the photo.
“And who’s the woman?” he asked.
“An angel.” A soft glow deepened the blue of her eyes. “Hannah Lamm. When I was a sickly, emaciated three-year-old, who had no appeal as a child to be adopted, she arranged to take me into her home. She nurtured me through all the childhood diseases. I stayed with her until I was eight. She saved my life. My physical health improved, and so did my mental abilities. Hannah convinced me that I had a good mind and could learn. Somehow she planted the idea that I could become a doctor. When she died and I was thrown back into the pack of unwanted orphans, when I thought life wasn’t worth living, that goal was the motivation that kept me going.”
“And you’ve supported yourself all the way?”
She nodded. “Hannah also taught me that goals are reached by working for them. I got a full-time job out of high school and was lucky enough to get with a good company and the chance to learn a lot about investments. Even after I started college, I worked part-time. Sometimes I was tempted to stay with Champion Realty and Investments, because I could see myself moving up in the company, but somehow I had to prove to myself—and to Hannah—that I could have an M.D. after my name.”
“And now you do. Congratulations. You have a medical degree and more. Your grandfather had great faith in you, Carolyn, and he must have loved your mother very much to leave almost everything he had to her daughter.”
“All this is too sudden. I still can’t believe it.” Her fingers tightened on her cup. “How could my life change so radically in the span of a few moments?”
“That’s the way it does sometimes, both good and bad. But nothing stays the same, and we really don’t have much choice how to handle change. We can make it work for us or just mark time.”
The challenge in his tone was clear, but she ignored it. She wasn’t ready to make any kind of a commitment. Certainly not the kind he was proposing. She needed time. Time! She glanced at the kitchen clock. Almost one o’clock. She was due at the free clinic at twelve-thirty.
“What’s the matter?” he asked as panic flashed across her face.
“It’s my afternoon at Friends Free Clinic.” She hurriedly got to her feet. “I completely forgot. Oh, no. My car. Taking a bus will eat up another hour.”
“Well, if mine is still working, I think we’re in business.”
She nodded. “Thank you. I’m surprised Dr. McPherson hasn’t called to chew me out. He’s an ornery old codger who should have retired years ago, but he can’t ignore the need. Just a minute while I grab my medical bag.”
“What about lunch?” he asked as if he hadn’t been planning on coaxing her to have it with him.
“I’m used to skipping it.”
“Doctor, doctor,” he teased. “For shame.”
She laughed then, a full, wonderful laugh that wrinkled her nose, brought a shine to her crystalline blue eyes. She was utterly beautiful. Vibrant. And desirable. He was stunned by the sudden realization that Carolyn Leigh was about to touch some guarded depth of emotion that he thought he’d put away forever. He couldn’t afford such feelings. First of all, she was on the threshold of a lifestyle of money and prestige, and getting involved with her would go nowhere. Second, any personal feelings would wreak havoc with the impersonal marriage of convenience that was vital to the success of his mission. It would be pure idiocy to allow himself to be attracted to her on any level.
Carolyn directed him to the clinic, which was housed in an old building that had once been a small neighborhood school. The place was still run-down and in need of remodeling, but the first floor had been refurbished to handle the various demands of a free clinic.
A valiant sun had lost its battle to the overcast sky and a soft rain began to fall as he let her out of the car.
“Thanks a bunch,” Carolyn said quickly as she prepared to make a dash for the front door.
“Carolyn, will you think about what I’ve said?”
“I’ll…I’ll be in touch.”
From the look on his face, Carolyn knew he was expecting more than this vague promise, but at the moment it was all she had to give. If he’d pushed her for an answer to his proposition, it would have been an immediate and definite No!
“I could give you a ride home,” he suggested.
“Thanks, but I’ll catch a ride with someone from the clinic when it closes.”
As she hurried away, she could feel his intense gaze on her back. Why in the world hadn’t she told him straight out that playing house with him was out of the question? She sympathized with his personal loss, admired his dedication to his job, but she wasn’t cut out for a game of deception. Just pretending to be his wife, and opening herself up to all kinds of undefined emotions, was more than she could handle.
“Well, now. Who’s the hunk that made you late?” Rosie DiPaloa teased as Carolyn hurried into the reception area. Obviously the dark-haired young woman had been looking out the window as Adam drove up in front of the building. “Don’t tell me our brand-new doctor is spreading her wings already. What gives?”
“Sorry to disappoint you, Rosie. Nothing gives. I’m late because of a business meeting. And my car won’t start—again. Would you have your brother pull it into his garage?”
“Sure,” Rosie said, and wrote down the address Carolyn gave her. “That car’s spending more time in Tony’s garage than it is on the streets. Why don’t you let Tony look for a nice clean, used car for you? Trade up to something that’ll keep running for a while? You ought to be able to afford it now.”
For a second Carolyn thought Rosie was referring to her inheritance. Then she realized her friend meant that Carolyn would be going into practice somewhere soon. How would Rosie respond if she knew that very soon Carolyn would be able to buy the latest, most expensive car on the road? Or if Carolyn told her she’d be moving out of her small apartment to live in a mansion? A sickening feeling accompanied Carolyn’s sudden realization that she would probably lose Rosie’s friendship and that of her bulging Italian family once her inheritance became known. Her lack of money and indebtedness had been something she had in common with them. They had opened their hearts to her because she was one of them, but her grandfather’s will would change all that.
“What’s the matter?” Rosie asked with her usual bluntness. “Are you sure you don’t have something to tell me?”
“Not now,” Carolyn answered firmly. There would be time later to sort all of it out. At the moment she was a doctor with patients waiting. She grabbed her white coat, slung her stethoscope around her neck and said, “Give me five minutes and then start sending them in.”
WHEN ADAM PULLED INTO Bancroft’s parking lot, he saw that Carolyn’s car was gone.
“A tow truck took it away,” the lawyer’s receptionist told him. “I think the sign said DiPaloa Brothers Garage. Is there a problem?”
“No, I was just curious.”
Mr. Bancroft poked his head out of his office. “I thought I heard your voice, Adam. Come in. I saw you drive away with Dr. Leigh. Bring me up-to-date.”
“There’s not much to update,” he confessed as he dropped into one of the leather office chairs. “I spent a couple of hours with her. She listened, asked a few questions and said she’d be in touch.”
“Do you think she’ll come around once the shock of all this wears off a little?”
“Damn, I don’t know what to think. We both know she could be in danger the minute she steps inside Horizon Pharmaceuticals. Carolyn is as sharp as they come, and it’s a given that she won’t be played for any kind of patsy. One way or another, she’ll educate herself about the business, and without realizing it, she may bring to light something that will force a killer into action.”
“Do you think that’s what happened to her grandfather?” asked the lawyer.
“I’m convinced of it.” Adam ran agitated fingers through his hair. “Someone is determined to use Horizon for the shipment of black-market drugs, and Carolyn could be an innocent victim of their treachery if she gets too close to the truth.”
“Well, you’ll have a better chance to protect her if you’re on the scene as her husband. Didn’t you explain that to her?”
“I didn’t want to scare her into agreeing to my plan, but I gave her enough background for her to realize that this isn’t just a parlor game someone is playing. I’m not sure she’s convinced that Horizon is involved. I wish I had more concrete evidence to support the theory that someone in the company is raking in big bucks by diverting these drugs overseas.” He sighed. “For some reason, I was hoping to appeal to a deeper commitment to see justice done.”
“That’s a lot to expect from a young woman whose been treated as disposable by almost everyone in her life. You have to admire her for her accomplishments.”
“I do. Very much.” He felt admiration and a great deal more, he silently admitted. Carolyn Leigh had touched him on more levels than he thought possible. An unbidden sweet heat curled deep within him when he looked at her, and it had been a long time since he’d wanted to touch a woman, to feel her skin beneath his fingertips and lips. He shifted uncomfortably in the leather chair as if Bancroft might be able to read his lustful thoughts.
“What are you going to do now?”
“I’m trying to make up my mind. It’s a delicate balance, trying to put pressure on her, or backing off and hoping that she’ll come around before it’s too late.” Adam’s jaw tightened. “One thing’s for sure. Come hell or high water, I hope I’m with her when she innocently steps into a situation that has all the earmarks of internal combustion.”
CAROLYN GLANCED AT the clock. Five-fifteen. The clinic closed at six, so she had time for one more patient. She signaled for Rosie to send someone into her examination room.
“Hello,” she said, smiling at the young Mexican couple with a baby who’d entered the examining room. The father spoke halting English.
“You make José well?” he asked anxiously. They were itinerant farm workers and their six-month-old baby had taken ill with a cough and fever. The mother looked no older than seventeen.
Carolyn quickly examined the infant and determined that his illness was due to strep throat, which could be controlled with antibiotics. The medication needed to be taken for two weeks. Since it was expensive, Carolyn checked their supply of sample medications. She plucked three small bottles from the shelf, an amount that would cover the two-week period.
As she held them in her hand, ready to give to the anxious parents, she glanced at the label. Horizon Pharmaceuticals.
Her hand tightened on the bottles. Since the rest of the samples had been safely given out, Carolyn rationalized that they must have contained genuine safe antibiotics.
But what if they weren’t safe? Adam’s compelling voice echoed in her ears. Her mouth went dry, and for a long moment she just stood there staring at the bottles in her hand. In her mind’s eye she saw herself handing over medication that was faulty—and could kill.
“Miss Doctor, something is matter?” asked the young man, worried by Carolyn’s sudden stillness.
“No, nothing,” she quickly assured him. She disposed of the bottles in her hand and handed him three that had come from a different supplier. She spoke slowly and carefully, making sure he understood when to give the medication to the baby.
“Bless you, bless you,” the mother kept saying as Carolyn walked them out to the waiting room with them.
Rosie quickly locked the door after them. “Whew, what a day. Dr. McPherson took off early and left me with a mound of paperwork.” She eyed Carolyn’s preoccupied look with suspicion. “You look miles away. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you had a man on your mind.”
“How did you know?” Carolyn took a deep breath and gave Rosie a tentative smile. “I’m thinking about getting married.”
Chapter Three
Adam stood up as Carolyn and a dark-haired young woman came out of the clinic. He’d been sitting on one of the benches on the small porch outside the front door. According to a posted sign, the clinic closed at six. It was a few minutes past, and he was wondering what to do if she didn’t appear soon.
When she saw him, a startled expression crossed her face. He gave her a warm smile in the hope of defusing some of her expected indignation.
“I wanted to make sure you had a way home,” he said quickly. “Your car was gone from the parking lot, and I didn’t know whether it was running or not.”
He tried to read her reaction as she walked slowly toward him, and steeled himself for a brisk rebuttal or an ice-cold glare. What he never expected in a million years was for her to give him a bright, welcoming smile.
As she moved to his side, she said, “How sweet of you, darling.”
When she slipped a possessive arm through his, Adam had trouble masking his astonishment. Was this the same woman he dropped off only a few hours ago?
“I was just talking about you and our whirlwind courtship,” Carolyn continued, still smiling. “Rosie, meet Adam Lawrence, my fiancé.”
Rosie gave him a frank, measuring look. “I can’t believe this.”
Neither can I, Adam admitted silently, thankful for the experience he’d had in shifting his perspective on a second’s notice. Smiling pleasantly, he said, “Nice to meet you, Rosie.”
“Likewise, but I tell you, this is a doozy of a surprise. Imagine Carolyn keeping something like this a secret! I’ve been telling her she should be looking around for someone to keep her tootsies warm at night, but every time I tried to line up some available guy, she’d give me that ‘Cool it, Rosie,’ look. Now I know why. Are you from around here, Adam?” she asked, and added pointedly, “What do you do?”
Adam sensed Carolyn stiffen. Her muscles tensed as if she was going to try to answer. Before she could, Adam said smoothly, “Well, it’s kind of hard to explain what I do, Rosie. I guess you could say my title is corporation efficiency expert. What that means is various companies hire me to take a look at their operations and see how I can streamline them. That’s why I’m in Seattle, cleaning up the various corporate businesses in this area.”
As he talked, he squeezed Carolyn’s arm reassuringly. Undoubtedly, she was as surprised as Rosie to hear the lies rolling off his tongue. Fortunately the agency had set up this cover before he left Washington. The false identity would provide a reasonable excuse for examining the inner workings of Horizon if Carolyn’s cooperation provided him with the entrance he needed.
“He’s originally from New Mexico,” Carolyn volunteered, beginning to play her part with an ease that totally surprised her.
“Really? A lot of my family are from that part of the country. There are DiPaloas all over the Southwest. Maybe you’ve run into some of them.”
“We’ll have to compare notes sometime,” Adam answered smoothly.
“Carolyn, I thought your life was nothing but study, study, work and more work. You never once hinted there was a handsome Romeo in the picture.”
“I was waiting until after graduation to tell you. That’s why I’m not wearing a ring. But now, we’re ready to tell everyone, aren’t we, darling?”
“Yes, it’s time everyone knew,” he concurred readily. The glint in her eye told him she was enjoying challenging him to carry out the deception exactly as he’d proposed. “I’ve got a nice evening planned for us, sweetheart. Kind of a private celebration. Dinner, maybe dancing, and then…” He let his voice trail off suggestively.
“Sounds lovely,” she murmured, but he could see the color rise in her cheeks, and she squeezed his arm as if she wished it was his neck.
“Wait’ll I get home and tell the family you’re getting married, Carolyn. You’ll have to bring Adam over for closer inspection. I know there’ll be a lot of questions about the wedding and everything. You’ll make a beautiful bride.” She beamed at Carolyn, her eyes suddenly misty.
“Yes, she will,” Adam said quickly, afraid that if Rosie started asking about their wedding plans, Carolyn would blurt out the truth. He didn’t know what had happened to make her agree to the pretense, but he suspected from her sudden rigidity that she was having second thoughts. The talk about a wedding had brought up some issues she was not ready to handle.
“We’re going to be pretty busy, I’m afraid,” Adam said quickly and as smoothly as he could.
“I don’t suppose you’ll be continuing here at the clinic, Carolyn.” Rosie sighed. “Dr. McPherson isn’t going to be happy.”
“I’ll try to find someone to take my place,” Carolyn promised. Responding to Adam’s firm hold on her arm, she said something vague about calling later. As they walked away, she felt Rosie’s measuring glance on them and wondered if her friend had bought the preposterous lie.
The early-evening sky was clearing and the air was brisk and fresh as they climbed into his car. Adam didn’t turn on the ignition immediately. He couldn’t tell from the way Carolyn’s jaw was clenched whether she was angry or just about to cry.
“I can’t do it,” she said in a strained voice. Her lower lip quivered, and he could see that her hands were clasped tightly together on her lap. “I wanted to, but I can’t.”
He couldn’t imagine what had happened to cause her to look so tortured, so filled with anguish. He wanted to put his arm around her, draw her close and ease that anguish, but suppressed the impulse. This was no time to offer anything until he found out where she was coming from. The way he handled the next few moments might well determine her decision to play out the deception or stop it before it had gone any further.
He turned in the seat, gave her all his attention and waited for her to go on. When she remained silent, he asked gently, “What happened, Carolyn?”
She didn’t look at him, but he could see the struggle going on within her. The rapid rise and fall of her chest was proof that she was fighting some deep emotion. He was relieved when she finally turned to him. She kept her hands tightly clasped in her lap as she told him about the young Mexican couple and their sick baby.
“I explained that the baby had strep throat that could be healed with antibiotics. When I was about to offer them a bottle of pills with the Horizon label, the horror of black-market drugs suddenly became real. I felt a stab of fear. What if the bottles I held in my hand had come from some illegal source? What if the pills were contaminated?” She raised pain-stricken eyes to his. “What if the parents gave them to their baby in good faith?”
“The baby might die,” he answered evenly.
“And it would be my fault.”
“Not if you didn’t know they were contaminated. A lot of innocent people are buying and dispensing these drugs. It is the suppliers who are guilty. They deliberately put these unapproved drugs on the market. The only place to stop them is at the source, Carolyn.”
“Like Horizon Pharmaceuticals,” she echoed in a strained voice.
“Yes, which is what my investigation is all about. And that’s why I’ve come to you for help.”
Her lip trembled “I want to turn my back on all of this, but how can I live with myself if I don’t do what you ask?”
“That’s a question I can’t answer.”
She sighed. “When I looked at that baby, saw the trust the young couple had in me, I guess I knew the answer. I didn’t have a choice, not if I wanted to live with my conscience.” Her head came up. “And that’s why I lied to Rosie.”
He reached over and took her hand. “You made the right decision. I promise you you’ll never regret it.” He silently prayed that he could keep her on the edge of his investigation and out of danger.
She swallowed hard. “But I don’t know if I can do it. Lies. Lies. Rosie’s my only friend. She’s excited about my having found someone to marry. It’s all such a sham! I hate being deceitful.”
“I don’t like it, either, and I’ve tried to figure out other ways to conduct the investigation but came up empty. Unless I can get on the inside of Horizon, this horrible traffic will continue.” His eyes hardened. “And God only knows how many more will die.” Like Marietta.
A weighted silence stretched between them until she mentally shook herself and asked, “All right. What happens next?”
He searched her face for a long minute, then smiled and said, “Dinner.”
They drove to a small restaurant that overlooked Lake Washington. Carolyn had never been there before, and she was relieved to see that it was a low-key, family-owned establishment that offered a modest menu.
“I found it when I was looking for a home-cooked meal,” Adam volunteered when they were seated by a window with brightly colored café curtains.
Even though Carolyn had missed lunch, she had little appetite. She ordered a seafood salad, while Adam opted for roast beef, mashed potatoes and peas. As she sipped a glass of white wine, she was grateful that his easy conversation didn’t demand any forced participation. He seemed to know that small talk was all she could handle while she collected her thoughts. It wasn’t until she was nearly finished with her salad that she felt like asking some nagging questions.
“Is it really true that you’re from New Mexico?”
“Of course it’s true. Would I lie?” he asked in mock indignation.
“Only with every other breath,” she said, returning his teasing smile. “All that stuff about you being an efficiency expert. You expect people to believe that?”
“It’s the best cover we could come up with. I needed an identity that would allow me to examine everything inherent in Horizon’s production and sale of pharmaceutical drugs. I think the cover will work. With your cooperation, of course.”
“You’re sure about this?”
“I’d be lying if I promised you a hundred-percent guarantee of success. There are myriad ways that the whole thing could fall apart. That’s why both of us will have to watch our steps carefully.”
She tensed. “I’ve never been very good at make-believe. What if I foul up?”
“We have to make certain that doesn’t happen. You did very well tonight with Rosie.” He smiled reassuringly. “If you can fool your closest friend, you shouldn’t have any trouble with a bunch of strangers.”
“I’m going to be dumped into the lives of people who have every reason to hate my guts. You can bet that there won’t be any welcome mat put out for me. I have no idea how I should behave in such a high-class environment. I’ve never known any people with money, never even visited anyone who lives in a mansion.”
“That’s all right,” he replied quickly. “Maybe you’ll do something that doesn’t quite fit, but people will expect you to make mistakes. And that’s good, because it will disarm them.”
“So the dumber I look and act, the better?” Her tone was slightly caustic.
“I didn’t mean that at all,” he said with a chuckle. “I just meant that you will be faced with some unexpected challenges, and I want you to be careful, that’s all.”
“Careful not to make a fool of myself? I can’t promise anything in that regard.” Carolyn had had some unpleasant experiences at the hospital with people who tried to throw their weight and wealth around when the rules and procedures didn’t suit them. “I have no idea how to relate to rich people,” she admitted.
“You’ll learn. Their focus in life is fashioned by tradition and the affluent world in which they live. They have hidden agendas and structure their behavior according to what’s deemed acceptable in their social stratum.”
“You know all this because…?” As the lines on his forehead deepened, she had her answer. “You come from money, don’t you.”
“Not anymore. My father was a New York stockbroker,” Adam told her. “I was an only child and had every advantage when I was growing up—prep school, college, the whole works. My senior year, the market dropped out from under my father’s investments, and he lost almost everything. His heart couldn’t take the strain, and when he died, my mother was left with a small income. She moved to New Mexico to live. When I came back from Brazil, I spent some time with her.” He gave Carolyn a rueful smile. “So you see, I was almost telling the truth when I said I was from there.”
She should have known. Everything about him suggested a privileged upbringing. His polished manner and easy confidence. His suit had obviously been tailored to fit. His fingernails appeared nicely cared for, and the cut of his dark hair accented his strong, masculine features. He could enter any elite social gathering and blend in without effort. How could she even make a pretense of being his wife?
She lowered her eyes as she imagined him in a tuxedo, perfectly groomed at a country club party, or lounging beside a fashionable swimming pool, a martini in his hand. The vision of him in only swimming trunks stirred an unbidden warmth—one that caused an instant denial to shoot through her. She couldn’t be attracted to him on that level. There absolutely couldn’t be anything sexual between them. He’d made it clear that he was only interested in her as a means to conduct his investigation. She’d be a fool if she allowed herself to make anything more of it than that.
“I’m not sure I’m up to playing out this charade,” she said defensively. Not only were her own emotions getting in the way, but the likelihood of her causing him embarrassment seemed too great. She had an unpleasant childhood memory of the time some rich woman had invited a bunch of orphans to her house for a party. Carolyn had been so nervous she’d turned the whole plate of ice cream and cake over in her lap. Even now, she shuddered at the recollection. Just making the lifestyle transition she faced would be difficult enough, but having him privy to every word and mishap made it even worse.
“I want to make this as easy on you as possible, Carolyn. I’ll do my best to arrange things so you don’t feel threatened in any way. I promise to make no demands that aren’t vital to the success of my investigation.” He paused. “Do you understand what I’m saying?”
She knew then that he was aware of the attraction that had flared between them. She nodded. “All of this is just part of a business arrangement. Nothing more.” She realized she was addressing herself as much as him.
“Right. As for getting married, there’s no need for anything but a civil service, one we’ll have as quickly and quietly as possible. We can dispense with everything else.”
Everything else? All the dreams? All expectations of someday being a bride in white lace and satin? To love and to cherish? She had always thought that someday she’d hear those poignant words, and she’d never feel lonely again. Getting married would be a beginning of a new life and the ending of an old one.
“All we need are the official credentials of Mr. and Mrs. Adam Lawrence,” he assured her. “And you’ll need to go by Carolyn Lawrence until this is over. For your protection, Mr. Bancroft will go over any legal matters that might come up while the investigation is going on.”
Investigation, he had said, not marriage. Just a business arrangement. Of course, that was all it was. No reason for her to get sentimental about taking vows that meant nothing. In a way that was what her life had been up till now. Pragmatic. Realistic. No reason for her to view a wedding ring on her finger as anything but a cold circle of metal.
“How soon should we do this?” she asked, putting her hands in her lap and clasping them tightly.
“Bancroft will make arrangements for you to move into the house and will finalize all the business arrangements. Just a matter of a few days, I think.”
“So soon?” She forced a light laugh. “You really know how to rush a girl off her feet.”
“The sooner we get into position, the better.”
Get into position. That’s the way he was viewing this whole marriage arrangement. Professional. Unemotional. Nonpersonal. The moment had come when she was either going to believe him or walk away.
“I’ll check my wardrobe and see if I have something decent to wear to a pretend wedding.”
They went back to making idle conversation, and as soon as they’d finished their coffee and apple cobbler, they left the restaurant.
The silence between them on the ride back to her apartment was like a thick curtain as Carolyn’s sensible nature began to question everything Adam Lawrence had said. Was this so-called investigation of Horizon just an elaborate scheme to swindle a naive heiress? Bancroft was the only one vouching for Adam Lawrence, and what did she really know about the lawyer? Had she bought into some sophisticated hoax?
“How would I go about verifying everything you’ve told me?” she asked as Adam walked her up the stairs to her back door. In the dim light of the back-door bulb, she could see his eyes widen in surprise. It was obvious he was taken aback by her question.
“You could decide to initiate a background check on Adam Lawrence.”
With sudden insight she said, “That’s not even your real name, is it.”
“For the moment it’s the only legal name I have.”
She wanted to laugh, but the mirth caught in her chest. She turned away and went in the house without even responding to his, “Good night. I’ll call you in the morning.”
BACK IN HIS HOTEL ROOM, Adam called his supervisor, Angelica Rivers, a woman whose crisp, businesslike voice matched her appearance. Adam guessed that at this early hour, she was probably still wearing her tailored white blouse and the straight linen skirt with its matching long jacket. Angelica had been with the agency since she was twenty, and now in her forties, she brooked no nonsense from agents, male or female.
“It’s a go,” Adam told her.
“Carolyn Leigh agreed?”
“Yes,” he answered, and mentally crossed his fingers that the arrangement with Carolyn was still a go.
“What kind of woman is she?”
Adam knew he had to be careful. Angelica would weigh everything he said and probably read between the lines. “We can trust her. She’s ready to cooperate fully.”
“I repeat, what kind of woman is she? Are you afraid to offer a personal evaluation, Adam?”
“No, not really,” he lied. His personal evaluation of Carolyn Leigh demanded honesty about how attractive he found her—in more aspects than he was willing to admit to his boss.
“You don’t like this woman who is going to pretend to be your wife?” Before he could answer, she added with knowing perception, “Or is it, as I suspect, just the opposite?”
“That’s what I like about you, Angel,” he said, using her nickname. “Nobody can accuse you of holding back. Why don’t you just ask me if she turns me on?”
“Well, does she? You know darn well you can’t get emotionally involved when you’re on a case—especially this one. Maybe I should send someone else in right now. You could get yourself killed if you let things get out of hand.”
“I’m not going to let anything get out of hand. That’s a promise. And you don’t need to worry about Carolyn not sticking to the cover.” He told Angelica about the Mexican couple and their baby. “She’s a dedicated humanitarian, and she convinced herself that she wanted to cooperate.” Unless she’s changed her mind.
“What’s the plan?”
“We’ll arrange a civil marriage ceremony as soon as the lawyer has all the legal ends tied up in a few days. Then we’ll move into the Stanford mansion and meet some of the players.”
“So the curtain goes up.”
“Yes.” Adam drew in a deep breath, and as confidently as he could, said, “And the drama begins!”
Chapter Four
Carolyn spent the next three days verifying every fact she could about her inheritance, and she satisfied herself that she could trust Mr. Bancroft. The lawyer’s personal reputation and that of his firm was without blemish. As promised, he had arranged for a substantial amount of money to be deposited in her bank account and had given her the assurance that it was only a fraction of the assets that would follow. She requested that he draw up a prenuptial agreement to protect her inheritance, and when she expressed her concerns about Adam’s plan to use her to expedite his investigation, the lawyer was quick to assure her that it was important for her to know the truth about possible criminal activities at Horizon as soon as possible.
“The suspicions about Horizon need to be proved or laid to rest.”
Carolyn decided that his advice was valid, and only five days after her life had been turned upside down, she sat stiffly beside Adam as he drove through the upscale neighborhood where the Stanford mansion was located. As she looked at the million-dollar homes they were passing, Carolyn thought that Alice must have felt like this when she fell down the rabbit hole. Nervously she moistened her lips and smoothed the folds of her pink linen dress.
The marriage ceremony that morning had gone very much as Adam had predicted. Mr. Bancroft had arranged for a friend of his, a justice of the peace, to read the service in the lawyer’s office. It only took ten minutes, and they could have been applying for a driver’s license for all the emotion that was displayed.
Carolyn viewed the ring that Adam slipped on her finger with a feeling of detachment, and he seemed to receive his with the same indifference. The only time she’d been jerked back to reality was when Bancroft addressed her after the ceremony as Mrs. Lawrence.
“I’ve alerted Jasper Stanford that all legalities have been taken care of, Mrs. Lawrence,” the lawyer explained. “And I’ve answered all of his questions about the inheritance and your marriage plans. He knows you will be arriving with your husband sometime today. I wish you both well.” Then he added with obvious double meaning, “And success.”
Adam thanked him as he shook the man’s hand. “I appreciate your help.”
The ceremony had gone better than Adam had anticipated. He’d been ready to deal with Carolyn’s last-minute trepidations, but she had maintained her composure throughout and handled herself beautifully.
He couldn’t have found a better woman to play out the dangerous undercover investigation ahead of them. Nor a more attractive one, he thought as she stood beside him, wearing a simple summer dress that hugged her slender lines and curves. He was aware of every breath she drew. Her honey-tinted hair drifted softly on her shoulders, and a simple strand of imitation pearls was her only accessory. She had flatly rejected any flowers, making it clear that they would be out of place in this husband-and-wife impersonation.
Her eyes had widened in surprise when he lightly brushed her lips in the traditional wedding kiss, and he was startled by his own desire to deepen the contact and taste the tantalizing sweetness of her mouth. He felt her stiffen and wondered if his desire had been reflected in his eyes. Great, just great, he thought. It had been a long time since he’d wanted to take a woman in his arms. Such feelings in this situation spelled disaster, and he didn’t doubt for a minute that she’d withdraw her cooperation if he moved out of line.
WHEN THEY LEFT THE lawyer’s office in Adam’s car, an uncomfortable silence fell between them. He gave his attention to his driving, and as Carolyn cast him a sidelong glance, she saw a handsome stranger in a tailored dark suit, white shirt and silk tie. And he was her legal husband. That fact alone was beyond comprehension. As she stared at the beautiful diamond ring on her finger, she kept reminding herself that none of this was for real.
The past few days had been a whirlwind, and her emotions had taken a beating. As her life swiftly moved into a completely foreign dimension, she wasn’t certain she could cope with all the demands and changes.
She’d finally gotten up the courage to tell Rosie that she was leaving the clinic and why. They’d been sitting on a park bench, eating hot dogs for lunch, and Rosie just laughed with a dismissive wave of her hand when Carolyn tried to tell her what had happened.
“Sure, somebody died and left you a bundle, sure. And I’m related to the Queen of England. Who are you kidding? You don’t have to spin a tale for me if you’re about to run off with that handsome hunk. More power to you, I say.”
Carolyn took a deep breath. “It’s true. I don’t even know how much money I’ve inherited.”
Rosie’s dark eyes grew wider as Carolyn explained about her grandfather’s will and the fact that he’d been financing her college education. When she’d finished, Rosie put down her hot dog and stared at Carolyn as if she expected her to laugh and say, “Gotcha.”
Carolyn couldn’t blame her friend for expecting a joke. The two of them had spun tales of marrying a rich man someday or winning the lottery, but none of their fantasies had come close to the story Carolyn was telling.
“It’s really true, Rosie,” Carolyn quietly insisted. “I’ve arranged for someone to take my place at the clinic.” She didn’t add that she’d obligated herself to pay the replacement doctor for his services. Adam had warned her not to say anything about their getting married until they’d moved into the mansion. He didn’t want anyone involved in the ceremony.
“As soon as I get settled,” she’d gone on to her friend, “you can come and let me show you around.”
Carolyn could tell by the way Rosie reacted that their friendship was already threatened. A gulf was starting to widen between them, and Carolyn knew that until Adam’s investigation was over, it would be better to try to pretend that everything was romantically “wine and roses” in her marriage. Rosie would be aghast at the truth.
Carolyn returned to the present. There was no doubt in her mind that the Stanford mansion would be as large and intimidating as any of the homes they were passing. What were the people like who lived in them? She took a deep breath and asked Adam point-blank what to expect when they got to the Stanford mansion.
“It’s bound to be a little tense and uncomfortable at first,” he told her. “We’ll just have to take it as it comes.” His own thoughts had been following the same kind of speculation, and to be perfectly honest, he didn’t know what the situation might be. People were unpredictable at best. He had no idea how Carolyn’s uncle was going to receive her, or how the Jasper’s live-in significant other would, either. From all accounts, Della Denison had grandfather’s approval as an executive at Horizon, and the woman wasn’t likely to accept Carolyn’s presence in the company with open arms.
Adam was also concerned about the way Lisa and Buddy Denison were going to treat Carolyn. He considered them self-centered and spoiled. They could make life hell for her in a thousand different ways.
“I wish I’d had more time to get ready for this,” Carolyn said honestly. But would she ever be ready? She glanced at the man sitting beside her. What did she really know about him? She couldn’t believe that she had put herself in his hands—in more ways than one.
“Just stick to the script we worked out. Don’t try to embellish any of the details. Remember, don’t supply extra information when you’re pushed into a corner. Everyone’s going to be curious about you, about us, but you don’t have to satisfy their curiosity. You’re in the driver’s seat in this situation. You have the power and the money.”
“Power and money.” She wanted to laugh at the irony of it. When on earth had she ever possessed either one of them? A few pieces of paper couldn’t change her basic perception of herself.
“The first thing you’ll want to do is buy yourself a car, a good one.”
“I suppose so. Before I told Rosie about my inheritance, her brother called me and told me to junk my old one. He wanted me to look at a couple of used models he had for sale that were in better shape. I told him I’d think about it.”
“That’s all?” He raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t tell him you were in a position to buy the latest, most expensive model on the road?”
She shook her head. “I wanted Rosie to know first.”
He nodded. “I can understand that, but you need to feel free to spend the money that is rightfully yours, Carolyn. I imagine that you’ll be needing a whole new wardrobe, won’t you?”
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Leona Karr
Тип: электронная книга
Жанр: Зарубежные любовные романы
Язык: на английском языке
Издательство: HarperCollins
Дата публикации: 16.04.2024
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О книге: ONE DAY THEY WERE STRANGERS AND THE NEXT THEY WERE HUSBAND AND WIFE!After Carolyn Leigh learned that the grandfather she never knew had died and left her a fortune, she discovered that he might actually have been murdered–and only she could help find the killer. But first she′d have to consent to «marry» Adam Lawrence, the sexy agent assigned to the case.There was no denying the attraction between them, but they couldn′t let love get in the way of the case. After all, solving this mystery was personal–for both of them. Could they unmask the killer before the killer revealed their covert conjugal bliss?