The Ransomes: Matt, Nick and Katherine. Sara Orwig

direction when they reached the hall. Halfway down the hall, she glanced over her shoulder to find him still standing where she had left him. His hand was on his hip as he watched her. When she looked at him, he turned and disappeared into his office.

      Matt went to his desk to get a briefcase that held papers and notes he had made for the prenuptial agreement. Half his thoughts were on the coming appointment. The other half were on Olivia and his father. He was astounded his dad offered her so much money, but by now, he wasn’t surprised that Olivia had turned him down. She wanted marriage and all the commitment that went with it, even if it was going to be a business arrangement. A lot of people would have wilted with his dad and given in to him, but also, by now, Matt knew Olivia better. She was a strong woman who would not be intimidated by his dad or outsmarted by him. If the situation hadn’t involved such high stakes, it would have been amusing because few people refused his dad.

      Matt knew he would hear from his father soon to try to persuade him to back out of the approaching marriage.

      Matt had no intention of backing out. Each day it looked like a better proposition. They would have an acceptable arrangement for living together; the baby would be his to share—he would become the adoptive father; and he would have sex on a regular basis with Olivia. If the marriage arrangement worked, he could imagine they might drift into loving each other, but in the meantime, he never wanted to go through heartbreak again.

      Later, in the car as he drove into town, Olivia shifted on the seat to face Matt. “I guess your father is never going to accept me,” she remarked.

      “Once you present Dad with his first grandchild, he’ll accept you so quickly that you’ll be astounded. Believe me, I know my dad. He’s wanted a grandchild, dreamed about one, harassed my sister to get married, harassed me when I was married to give him an heir. No, he’s going to love your baby and you won’t be able to believe that he offered you a fortune to get out of our lives. You’ll see a transformation that will astound you and Dad will act as if nothing disagreeable ever happened.”

      “I’ll believe it when it happens,” she said unable to imagine Duke Ransome changing so drastically.

      “My dad probably expected you to jump at the chance for a fortune because you didn’t grow up in comfort.”

      “Comfort!” She laughed. “There were nights I slept on buses because it was safer and more peaceful than going home. My parents drank and—” she stopped abruptly. “You know all about my background. When I was in high school, I’d just ride the bus at night so I could study. I always felt education was my passport out of that life and it has been.”

      “That’s what I mean. Dad and I misjudged you badly.”

      “Now I only have to face your brother and your sister.”

      “I still haven’t been able to get in touch with Nick or with Katherine, but I’ll keep leaving messages for them.”

      “They’ll probably try to talk you out of this wedding, too. They know we’re not in love.” She looked at her ring and wriggled her hand. “I think the rest of the world will be fooled about it.”

      “Don’t be surprised if you get some other kind of offer from my dad. He doesn’t give up easily.”

      “I’m not worried.”

      “No, I suppose you’re not,” Matt said. “You continually surprise me.”

      “For one reason or another, most men I’ve met have misjudged me,” she admitted. “That first night you certainly did, and I’ll bet your P.I.’s report about me was not at all what you expected.”

      “You’re right. But then, maybe I’ve surprised you. Because of my brother you prejudged me.” Matt smiled at her. “I haven’t had a chance to tell you, but you look like you’re worth a million today. You look gorgeous,” he said. She could see the warmth in his gaze and his compliment pleased her, taking away some of the tension of the past hour.

      “You sweet-talkin’ devil. You’ll turn my head,” she teased, momentarily forgetting the raw differences between them, giving him a mocking, coy look that made him grin.

      “The more I know you the less I dread this wedding.”

      “Just watch out, Matthew Ransome,” she said, leaning across the front seat. “First thing you know, you’ll be in love with your wife,” she said and laughed, straightening up and scooting back into her place.

      “You would do that when I’m driving,” he remarked, shooting her a quick glance before his attention returned to the road. “Remind me later what you said. And I’ll tell you again. I’m not falling in love with anyone, Olivia. All women are romantics and sometimes they pay a high price for it.”

      “Is that right?” she asked with such sweetness in her voice that he scowled.

      “Time will tell, but you’re in for more heartache if you’re going into this contract thinking I’m going to fall in love soon.”

      “I think you’ve made it quite clear that you’re a man with no heart. But no matter how much you declare that, Matt, you have a heart and you’ve loved before, so there’s a chance you’ll love again. You won’t if you shut yourself off from everyone, and I hope you don’t do that with this baby because if you want to be a real dad, then you’ll have to open your heart.”

      “That’s different and I will.”

      “Then just take care that if you get your heart functioning again, it doesn’t do things you hoped to avoid.”

      “I’ll take care,” he answered with a cynical tone. “You better worry about protecting yourself.”

      “You sound defensive. You’re getting angry and you’re a tad beyond the speed limit. I think I see a flashing light behind us,” she said, looking in an outside mirror.

      “Oh, hell!” Matt snapped, and she had to bite back laughter because she knew she had goaded Matt into losing some of that iron control he had. She remained silent while he pulled off the road. When the patrolman approached the car, Matt greeted him.

      “Hey, Ebby,” Matt said easily, extending his hand and shaking the patrolman’s hand when he leaned down to look into the open window. “Ebby, meet Olivia Brennan, my fiancée.”

      “You’re getting married?” the man asked without hiding the surprise in his voice.

      “Sure am. You’ll get an invitation to the party soon,” Matt said.

      “Howdy, Olivia,” the trooper said in a friendly voice, and she smiled at him.

      “Look, my attention was on my fiancée and I just forgot what I was doing,” Matt explained easily. “You know how it is. You and Tamara just got married what—five months ago?”

      “That’s right. Five months and one week. Look, just slow down a little and try to think about your driving. I’ll give you a warning this time, Matt.”

      “Thanks. I sure will go slower.”

      “Nice to meet you,” Ebby said to Olivia and she smiled in return and twisted in the seat to watch him walk to his car and soon pull around them.

      “You got yourself out of that one,” she said as Matt drove onto the highway.

      “Remind me to put his name on our invitation list.”

      “You’re driving quite sedately now,” she observed. “All we both have to do is to hang on to our cool through the prenup agreement.”

      She received a crooked grin. “You think I can’t do that, don’t you?”

      “I don’t have any idea. I don’t even know what you want in the agreement.”

      “You know most of what I want because I’ve discussed it with you before.”

      In a downtown building in Fort