Of course, he and Haley weren’t married yet. Maybe she took exception to him paying for things like that before they’d made their union official.
But the way he saw it, it was already a done deal. They had a verbal agreement, would soon have a signed prenup and within a few days a marriage certificate. End of story.
Staring at his computer screen, Luke still couldn’t quite believe that in two days, he’d be a married man. Hell, he’d spent the better part of his adult life avoiding anything more than a casual relationship with any woman. And he’d never so much as entertained the idea of getting married. So why was he jumping into the deep end of the marital pool with both feet now?
Haley had every trait he wanted for his heir—intelligence, a good head for business and excellent health. And for another, he couldn’t get her to have his son without the benefit of marriage. Yet, when he’d first heard her requirements to agree to his plan, he’d rejected the idea outright and given serious consideration to looking for a different woman. But the more he’d thought about it over the course of their dinner together, then later on the drive to his place after dropping her off at her apartment, the more sense it made and the more appeal it held.
She was extremely passionate about mothering a child and that would definitely work to his benefit. He had several satellite offices throughout the south, requiring a certain amount of travel, and juggling a small child with all the paraphernalia required for his care would be counterproductive. Besides, he would have had to hire a nanny to care for his son until the boy was out of infancy and old enough to go with him to the actual job sites anyway. But with Haley sharing custody of the child, Luke wouldn’t have to worry about finding someone suitable to give his son the quality of care he expected.
And then there was the more pleasurable aspect of marriage. Until he’d stopped by to ask her to be his surrogate, Luke had never seen Haley outside of the office and certainly not wearing anything other than the conservative suits she seemed to prefer for her job.
But when she’d opened her door and he caught sight of her long, slender legs in those extremely short little cutoffs and the size and shape of her pert breasts in that snug tank top, it had damn-near knocked his socks off. It had been like he was seeing her for the very first time and every one of his male instincts had come to full attention—reminding him in the most basic of ways that he hadn’t had the pleasure of a woman’s company in his bed for a very long time.
His lower body tightened even more. In two short days, Haley would be his and he would be making love to her quite frequently. Just the thought of having those shapely legs wrapped around him and her soft body cradling his caused the heat deep in the pit of his belly to flicker into a flame.
“Here’s your signed prenup,” Haley said, choosing that moment to walk into his office. When she tossed the folder onto his desk, then turned to leave, she added, “And unless you wish to issue another edict about what I need to do before we make the trip to Pigeon Forge, I’ll be leaving the office now.”
So that was why she’d become so upset. She obviously viewed his suggestions about her apartment and buying something new to wear as high-handedness. He’d have to remember that calling all the shots at the office was one thing, but he’d have to exercise a little more diplomacy when they were discussing what he thought she should do in her personal life.
“Before you leave there’s just one more thing. Are you using anything for birth control?” He knew she wasn’t presently seeing anyone, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t prepared.
Her cheeks colored the pretty shade of rose they always did when he mentioned anything to do with sex. “No. That’s not an issue.”
“Good.”
“Is there anything else?” she asked, her gaze not quite meeting his.
“I’m pretty sure what I told you earlier covers everything,” he said, unable to stand up without her seeing the evidence of his arousal. “I’ll give you a call this evening to let you know what time I’ll pick you up for the charity event tomorrow evening.”
She shrugged one slender shoulder as she continued toward the door. “Whatever.”
“Haley?” When she stopped and turned to face him, he grinned. “There is one more thing I really think you should consider doing.”
“What?”
Her withering glare might have stopped a lesser man, but it didn’t phase Luke one damned bit. Nor did it stop him from a little teasing.
“Be sure to get plenty of rest between now and Saturday.” He gave her a suggestive wink. “I plan on getting our little project started this weekend.”
When her cheeks turned bright pink and she fled his office like something chased her, he laughed out loud. Getting married just might prove to be more fun than he’d first thought. At least temporarily.
As Luke held her hand to help her out of his limousine, Haley glanced at the other couples arriving for the museum’s annual charity event. She recognized several prominent businessmen, a couple of them Luke’s rivals, and she knew they were attending for the same reason Luke was—meeting potential clients. Making a contact at a social function could mean the difference between signing a lucrative contract to build the next high-rise to grace the Nashville skyline or watching the competition walk away with the job.
“It’s good to see you again, Luke,” a distinguished-looking elderly gentleman greeted them as they walked through the museum’s entrance. He pumped Luke’s hand, then turned to give her a friendly smile. “And who is this lovely young lady?”
“My executive assistant, Haley Rollins,” Luke answered, already scanning the crowd in the atrium. “Haley, I’d like for you to meet Max Parmelli, the curator of the museum and the head of this year’s charity drive for the city’s homeless shelters.”
Holding her hand, the older man leaned forward to kiss the back of it. “It’s a real pleasure to meet you, Ms. Rollins.”
She smiled at the pleasant older man, but Luke prevented any other greeting when he placed his hand to her back and guided her through the crowd toward a group of men standing by the fountain in the middle of the room. One of them she recognized as a former client of Garnier Construction who she knew in the very near future was going to be expanding his current building, if not contracting for a new one.
“Why don’t you look at some of the exhibits or get something for yourself at the buffet tables?” Luke advised, his attention clearly focused on the men by the fountain. “I’ll find you in a few minutes.”
Effectively dismissed, she watched him join the group before heading toward a display of artifacts believed to belong to the ill-fated Romanov family of Russia. She really wasn’t all that interested in any of the exhibits, but she couldn’t—wouldn’t—just stand there like a little lost puppy, waiting for Luke to once again grace her with his attention.
Sighing, she wandered around the museum, wondering what on earth she’d gotten herself into. It hadn’t been lost on her that Luke had introduced her to the curator as his executive assistant, instead of his fiancée or future wife. Nor did he have any compunction about dumping her in favor of soliciting a possible repeat client.
But she really didn’t have any reason to complain. He’d made it quite clear that he was only marrying her because he couldn’t get her to have his heir any other way. And she was going through with their arrangement because she wanted a baby more than she’d ever wanted anything in her entire life.
Haley smiled as she absently gazed at a delicate, elaborately decorated egg. She was finally going to have her own baby—a child she would love and nurture and who would love her unconditionally in return. And the fact that Luke was going to be the baby’s daddy made her decision to go through with their agreement much easier. The only fly in the ointment was the fact that Luke didn’t love her, nor did he make any pretense that he expected their marriage to last.
“It looks