Under Her Skin. Susan Mallery

me.”

      She gripped the cool iron railing to keep herself from falling over in a faint.

      Married? He wanted to get married?

      “For a year,” he added. “That should be enough time for me to gain access to your world. You can introduce me to your rich and powerful friends, including the senator. They’ll accept me because of you. At the end of the year, we part. For that, I’ll give you two million dollars.”

      “You’re buying a bride?”

      “A temporary one.”

      Right. Because after a year he would leave her to marry someone he actually cared about. She might not approve of his plan, but she appreciated his honesty.

      “Your idea is totally impossible,” she said.

      “It’s a business deal. Nothing more.”

      “It’s marriage. It’s an institution. It’s meaningful and significant and I won’t get married for money.”

      He looked at her as if she were both foolish and naive. Maybe she was.

      “It is a means to an end,” he said. “Nothing more.”

      At least not for him, she thought, realizing that despite having spent a night in his bed, she knew nothing about Cruz. The man was a mystery to her.

      No. That wasn’t totally true. She’d just learned he would do nearly anything to get what he wanted.

      “My father would be impressed,” she told him. “He would appreciate the bold plan, the total disregard for convention or feelings.”

      Cruz shrugged.

      She didn’t bother pointing out that being like her father wasn’t admirable. She’d had a lifetime of trying to prove herself to Jed Titan. She wasn’t looking for his worldview in a husband.

      And she wasn’t going to marry Cruz for two million dollars. She still believed in love and being with someone forever. She wanted the magic, the promise, the future. She wanted a man who thought she was the best thing that had ever happened to him. She wasn’t interested in being part of a deal.

      Which meant she was back where she’d started—desperate, with nowhere to turn.

      She thought about all she’d worked for over the years. The mind-numbing hours she’d put in at her father’s company, desperate to be good enough. The risk of starting something of her own. Of how she’d built the business up herself. The hours were just as long as they’d been at Titan World, but this time she’d been doing it for herself. She’d survived and then she’d thrived. Until she’d put everything at risk for the chance to be bigger and more impressive.

      She’d acted to win and she’d lost it all.

      Or had she?

      Cruz had proposed a business deal she couldn’t accept. But was there an alternative? Could she make a counter offer? Something that got them both what they wanted? That’s how business was done. She’d learned that and more while working for her father. Some days she’d even been damn good at her job.

      “I won’t marry you,” she said, straightening and squaring her shoulders. “Besides, being divorced will make you less appealing.”

      He raised an eyebrow, as if asking how that was possible.

      “Trust me. Those DAR mommas are very protective of their daughters. A divorced man is a risk—he might leave their precious angel. But a man with a broken engagement is simply a man who wasn’t caught by the right woman. I won’t marry you, but we can be engaged. That will give you what you want. Entrance into the best houses and an introduction to every impressive bloodline in Texas.”

      “An engagement?”

      She nodded.

      “For a year?” he asked.

      “Six months. It’s more than enough time.” It seemed too long as it was.

      He leaned against the railing. “You’ll agree to an engagement for six months on the condition that I give you two million dollars.”

      He wasn’t asking a question, but she said “Yes” anyway. Maybe to prove to herself that she meant it.

      “Interesting,” he said slowly. “I have conditions.”

      Good for him. She was going to have a heart attack. What was she thinking? An engagement for money? Her mother would be horrified. Not that she would consider an engagement without love a problem at all, but that she would get engaged to a man like Cruz. Which was probably his point.

      “You will come live with me for the time we’re engaged,” he told her. “In my house. In my room and in my bed. I have a housekeeper and various caretakers for my property. I’m sure they gossip. Everyone must believe our engagement is genuine.”

      Oh. My. God. “You mean sex?” she asked, barely able to form the words. “You want us to have sex?”

      One corner of his mouth turned up. “Yes.”

      Why on earth would he want to do that with her again? Last time, he’d left so fast, there’d been skid marks on the floor. Did he think she’d gotten better? Had he forgotten what it was like between them? Did he want to humiliate her again?

      “Us living together is not negotiable,” he added.

      “Then there’s no deal. I won’t agree to that.”

      He shrugged. “As you wish.”

      He turned and walked away.

      Lexi watched him go. But instead of Cruz’s broad shoulders, she saw the front entryway to her day spa. The gleaming hardwood floors with the stain she’d chosen herself. The collection of cosmetics and skin care. She could smell the fresh flowers, see the guests in the relaxation room, feel the breeze from the lazy ceiling fans.

      If she got a conventional loan, her father would find out. He would ask questions and learn she’d made a mistake. She would lose her chance at Titan World Enterprises. She would lose everything.

      Or she could get the money from Cruz and win it all. Was that worth six months of her life?

      Indecision made her stomach hurt. It wasn’t the engagement, it was the idea of sharing a bed with him. Again. Even worse, she understood his point. Staff would talk. If word got out they weren’t really engaged, there was no point in the deal.

      Could she do it? Was it worth it?

      “Then I have conditions, as well,” she called, doing her best to keep her voice from shaking.

      He came to a stop, then turned back to her. One eyebrow raised.

      “Fidelity,” she said. “If you expect me to sleep with you, you won’t sleep with anyone else.”

      For the second time his gaze dropped to her feet before slowly moving up her body. “Do you think you have it in you to satisfy me?”

      Not even on her best day, but that wasn’t the point. “I don’t actually care. That’s the deal. Take it or leave it.”

      “You’re not in a position of power, Lexi. You need the money.”

      “I need a loan,” she bluffed, aware that going to a bank wasn’t an option. “Anyone can give me a check, but there aren’t that many women who can give you what you want. I am in a position of power, Cruz. Fidelity is not negotiable.”

      He nodded. “As you wish.”

      Just like that? He was an attractive man, with an explosive sex drive, from what she remembered. “If you cheat, I walk and I tell everyone what you did. That will slam shut all the doors I opened.”

      “Agreed. And you’ll do the same. Give up your men.”

      “Sure.” There wasn’t