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Authors: Jayne Ann Krentz
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He hung the towel on the rack, not noticing the entwined hearts that had been embroidered on the thick terry cloth. His mind was focused on the problem at hand. He needed to buy time. He'd try for six months.
In the other room Katy sat sipping the tea she had just ordered from room service. The minutes ticked slowly past while she tried to think of the best way to make her exit from the hotel. It would probably be best to rent a car, she decided. She wouldn't go straight home. She needed to find a place to be by herself for a while. She needed time to recover from the disaster.
Twenty minutes after he'd disappeared into the bathroom, Garrett reappeared, fastening his jeans with a quick, impatient gesture. He looked up abruptly, eyes narrowed and curiously thoughtful as he spotted Katy seated near the window. Her fingers clenched around the delicate handle of the cup, but she refused to let him see how nervous she was. He hadn't put on a shirt yet, and the morning sunlight gleamed on his broad shoulders.
In spite of herself, Katy succumbed automatically to good manners. Old habits died hard, and her mother had drilled manners into her at an early age. "Would you like a cup of tea? I ordered a pot for two."
Garrett scowled briefly at the gleaming silver pot and then shrugged. "Pour me a cup. I want to talk to you."
"There's not much more to be said." Katy manipulated the pot carefully. Her fingers were still trembling, and the last thing she wanted to do was spill the hot tea all over the beveled-glass surface of the delicate white wrought-iron table.
Garrett reached down to grasp the back of one of the little pink-cushioned chairs. He spun it around and straddled it. Then he reached for the cup Katy had just finished pouring. "There's a lot more to be said, Katy. The sooner we get it said, the better."
"Such as?" Her chin came up aggressively.
"You seem to think you've been cheated by this marriage. For some reason you've decided you aren't going to get out of it what you want. I think you're wrong. I think that when you calm down you'll realize you want the same things I do. But in the meantime we've got a problem."
"That's putting it mildly."
He ignored that, plowing grimly onward. "I had a few expectations, too, you know. As of today I expected to have a wife who would help me develop a comprehensive breeding-consultation department within my company. I expected to be marrying a partner, a woman who was willing to work as hard as I was."
Katy bit her lip as the first twinges of guilt struck her. He was right. He had been cheated, too. He had gone into this marriage with his own set of expectations, and she had given him little or no warning of hers. "I know, Garrett."
He took a long swallow of tea and continued. "If you walk out on me now, you'll be leaving me in a real bind, Katy. I was counting on you. I wanted to get that department up and running during the next six months."
She stirred uneasily. "I know. But, Garrett, don't you see—"
"All I see," he said, interrupting her ruthlessly, "is that I'm left with a serious problem."
Katy was silent. Privately she thought him more than capable of handling any serious problems that came down the road, but there was no denying she was shaking up his plans. There was also no denying that in a way he was totally innocent of any accusations of cheating or manipulation. He had never pretended to be other than he was, and he had never offered more than what he intended to provide. She was the one who had built castles of sand and fallen under the spell of her own imagination.
"I was counting on having you around, Katy." Garrett's voice was rough and bleak now. "I had a lot of plans."
"Yes, but…"
"It would help if you could stay with me for a while," he said gently.
Katy risked a questioning glance. His tone of voice was very disturbing. "For a while?"
"Six months, Katy. That's all I'm asking. Hell, the damage is done. You're already married to me and we've
He hung the towel on the rack, not noticing the entwined hearts that had been embroidered on the thick terry cloth. His mind was focused on the problem at hand. He needed to buy time. He'd try for six months.
In the other room Katy sat sipping the tea she had just ordered from room service. The minutes ticked slowly past while she tried to think of the best way to make her exit from the hotel. It would probably be best to rent a car, she decided. She wouldn't go straight home. She needed to find a place to be by herself for a while. She needed time to recover from the disaster.
Twenty minutes after he'd disappeared into the bathroom, Garrett reappeared, fastening his jeans with a quick, impatient gesture. He looked up abruptly, eyes narrowed and curiously thoughtful as he spotted Katy seated near the window. Her fingers clenched around the delicate handle of the cup, but she refused to let him see how nervous she was. He hadn't put on a shirt yet, and the morning sunlight gleamed on his broad shoulders.
In spite of herself, Katy succumbed automatically to good manners. Old habits died hard, and her mother had drilled manners into her at an early age. "Would you like a cup of tea? I ordered a pot for two."
Garrett scowled briefly at the gleaming silver pot and then shrugged. "Pour me a cup. I want to talk to you."
"There's not much more to be said." Katy manipulated the pot carefully. Her fingers were still trembling, and the last thing she wanted to do was spill the hot tea all over the beveled-glass surface of the delicate white wrought-iron table.
Garrett reached down to grasp the back of one of the little pink-cushioned chairs. He spun it around and straddled it. Then he reached for the cup Katy had just finished pouring. "There's a lot more to be said, Katy. The sooner we get it said, the better."
"Such as?" Her chin came up aggressively.
"You seem to think you've been cheated by this marriage. For some reason you've decided you aren't going to get out of it what you want. I think you're wrong. I think that when you calm down you'll realize you want the same things I do. But in the meantime we've got a problem."
"That's putting it mildly."
He ignored that, plowing grimly onward. "I had a few expectations, too, you know. As of today I expected to have a wife who would help me develop a comprehensive breeding-consultation department within my company. I expected to be marrying a partner, a woman who was willing to work as hard as I was."
Katy bit her lip as the first twinges of guilt struck her. He was right. He had been cheated, too. He had gone into this marriage with his own set of expectations, and she had given him little or no warning of hers. "I know, Garrett."
He took a long swallow of tea and continued. "If you walk out on me now, you'll be leaving me in a real bind, Katy. I was counting on you. I wanted to get that department up and running during the next six months."
She stirred uneasily. "I know. But, Garrett, don't you see—"
"All I see," he said, interrupting her ruthlessly, "is that I'm left with a serious problem."
Katy was silent. Privately she thought him more than capable of handling any serious problems that came down the road, but there was no denying she was shaking up his plans. There was also no denying that in a way he was totally innocent of any accusations of cheating or manipulation. He had never pretended to be other than he was, and he had never offered more than what he intended to provide. She was the one who had built castles of sand and fallen under the spell of her own imagination.
"I was counting on having you around, Katy." Garrett's voice was rough and bleak now. "I had a lot of plans."
"Yes, but…"
"It would help if you could stay with me for a while," he said gently.
Katy risked a questioning glance. His tone of voice was very disturbing. "For a while?"
"Six months, Katy. That's all I'm asking. Hell, the damage is done. You're already married to me and we've
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