The Man You'll Marry Read online

  “Why’d you send me the card?” he asked while she was setting out cups and saucers.

  She didn’t feel comfortable using her everyday mugs; she had a couple of lovely china cups her mother had given her and decided on those instead. She paused at his question, frowning slightly. “To congratulate you.”

  “The real reason.”

  “That was the real reason. This shopping mall was important to you and I was happy to read that everything came together. I knew you worked hard to make it happen. That was the only reason I sent you the note.” Her cheeks heated at his implication. He seemed to believe something she hadn’t intended—or had she?

  “Andrew Howard decided to invest in the project at the last minute. It was his support that made the difference.”

  Jill nodded. “I was hoping he would.”

  “I have you to thank for that.”

  Nothing in his expression suggested he was grateful for any assistance she might unwittingly have given him. His features remained cold and hard. The man who’d spent that day on the beach with her wasn’t the harsh, unrelenting businessman who stood before her now.

  “If I played any part in Mr. Howard’s decision, I’m sure it was small.”

  “He seemed quite taken with you.”

  “I was quite taken with him, too.”

  A flicker of emotion passed through Jordan’s eyes, one so fleeting, so transitory, she was sure she’d imagined it.

  “I’d like to thank you, if you’d let me,” he said.

  She was dropping tea bags into her best ceramic teapot. “Thank me? You already have.”

  “I was thinking more along the lines of dinner.”

  Jill’s first thought was that she didn’t have anything appropriate to wear. Not to an elegant restaurant, and of course she couldn’t imagine Jordan dining anywhere else. He wasn’t the kind of man who ate in a burger joint.

  “Unless you already have plans…”

  He was offering her an escape, and his eyes seemed to challenge her to take it.

  “No,” she said, almost gasping. Jill wasn’t sure why she accepted so readily, why she didn’t even consider declining. “I don’t have anything planned for tonight.”

  “Is there a particular place you’d like to go?”

  She shook her head. “You choose.”

  Jill felt suddenly light-headed with happiness and anticipation. Trying to keep her voice steady, she added, “I’ll need to change clothes, but that shouldn’t take long.”

  He looked at her skirt and blouse as if he hadn’t noticed them before. “You look fine just the way you are,” he said, dismissing her concern.

  The kettle whistled and Jill removed it from the burner, pouring the scalding water into the teapot. “This should steep for a few minutes.” She backed out of the kitchen, irrationally fearing that he’d disappear if she let him out of her sight.

  She chose the same outfit she’d worn on the trip home—the Hawaiian print shirt with the hot pink flowers. Narrow black pants set it off nicely, as did the shell lei she’d purchased the first day she’d gone touring. Then she freshened her makeup and brushed her hair.

  Jordan had poured the tea and was adding sugar to his cup when she entered the kitchen. His gaze didn’t waver or change in any way, yet she could tell he liked her choice.

  The phone rang. Jill darted a look at it, willing it to stop. She sighed and went over to check call display.

  Shelly.

  “Hello, Shelly.” She hoped her voice didn’t convey her lack of enthusiasm.

  “How are you? I haven’t heard a word from you since you got home. Are you all right? I’ve been worried. You generally phone once or twice a week, and it’s not like you to—”

  “I’m fine.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Positive.”

  “You seem preoccupied. Am I catching you at a bad time? Is Ralph there? Maybe he’ll take the hint and go home. Honestly, Jill, I don’t know why you continue to see that guy. I mean, he’s nice, but he’s about as romantic as mold.”

  “Uh, I have company.”

  “Company,” Shelly echoed. “Who? No, let me guess. Jordan Wilcox!”

  “You got it.”

  “Talk to you later. Bye.” The drone of the disconnected line sounded in her ear so fast that Jill was left holding the receiver for several seconds before she realized her friend had hung up.

  No sooner had Jill replaced it than the phone rang again. She looked at call display, cast an apologetic glance toward Jordan and snatched up the receiver. “Hello, Shelly.”

  “I want it understood that you’re to give me a full report later.”

  “Shelly!”

  “And don’t you dare try to return that wedding dress. He’s the one, Jill. Quit fighting it. I’ll let you go now, but just remember, I want details, so be prepared.” She hung up as quickly as she had the first time.

  “That was my best friend.”

  “Shelly?”

  “She’s married to Mark Brady.” Jill waited, wondering if Jordan would recognize the name.

  “Mark Brady.” He spoke slowly, as though saying it aloud would jar his memory. “Is Mark a tax consultant? I seem to recall hearing something about him not long ago. Isn’t he the head of his own firm?”

  “That’s Mark.” Jill nearly told him how Shelly and Mark had met, but stopped herself just in time. Jordan knew about the wedding dress—though not, of course, its significance—because Jill had inadvertently let it slip that first night.

  “And Mark’s married to your best friend?”

  “That’s right.” She took a sip of her tea. “When I said I’d met you, Mark knew who you were right away.”

  “So you mentioned me.” He seemed pleasantly surprised.

  He could have no idea how much he’d been in her thoughts during the past two weeks. She’d tried, heaven knew she’d tried, to push every memory of him from her mind. But it hadn’t worked. She couldn’t explain it, but somehow nothing was the same anymore.

  “You ready?” he asked after a moment.

  Jill nodded and carried their empty cups to the sink. Then Jordan led her to his car, opening the door and ushering her inside. When he joined her, he pulled out his ever-present cell phone…and turned it off.

  “You don’t need to do that on my account,” she told him.

  “I’m not,” he said, his smile tight, almost a grimace. “I’m doing it for me.” With that he started the engine.

  Jill had no idea where they were going. He took the freeway and headed north, exiting into the downtown area of Seattle. There were any number of four-star restaurants within a five-block area. Jill was curious, but she didn’t ask. She’d know soon enough.

  When Jordan drove into the underground garage of a luxury skyscraper, Jill was momentarily surprised. But then, several of the office complexes housed world-class restaurants.

  “I didn’t know there was a restaurant here,” she said conversationally.

  “There isn’t.”

  “Oh.”

  “I live in the penthouse.”

  “Oh.”

  “Unless you object?”

  “No…no, that’s fine.”

  “I phoned earlier and asked my cook to prepare dinner for two.”

  “You have a cook?” Oddly, that fact astounded her, although she supposed it shouldn’t have, considering his wealth.

  He smiled, his first genuine smile since he’d shown up at her door. “You’re easily impressed.”

  He talked as though everyone employed a cook, and Jill couldn’t help laughing.

  They rode a private elevator thirty floors up to the penthouse suite. The view of Puget Sound that greeted Jill as the doors glided open was breathtaking.

  “This is beautiful,” she whispered, stepping out. She followed him through his living room, past a white leather sectional sofa and a glass-and-chrome coffee table that held a small abstract sculpture. She wasn’t too knowledgeable when it cam
e to works of art, but this looked valuable.

  “That’s a Davis Stanford piece,” Jordan said matter-of-factly.

  Jill nodded, hoping he wouldn’t guess how ignorant she was.

  “White wine?”

  “Please.” Jill couldn’t take her eyes off the view. The waterways of Puget Sound were dotted with white-and-green ferries. The islands—Bainbridge, Whidbey and Vashon—were jewellike against the backdrop of the Olympic Mountains.

  “Nothing like Hawaii, is it?” Jordan asked as he handed her a long-stemmed wineglass.

  “No, but just as beautiful in its own way.”

  “I’m going back to Oahu next week.”

  “So soon?” Jill was envious.

  “It’s another short trip. Two or three days at most.”

  “Perhaps you’ll get a chance to go snorkeling again.”

  Jordan shook his head. “I won’t have time for any underwater adventures this trip,” he told her.

  Jill perched on the edge of the sofa, staring down at her wine. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to separate you from my time in Oahu,” she said softly. “The rest of my week seemed so…empty.”

  “I know what you mean.”

  Her heartbeat quickened as his gaze strayed to her mouth. He sat beside her and removed the wine goblet from her unresisting hand. Next his fingers curved around her neck, ever so lightly, brushing aside her hair. His eyes held hers as if he expected resistance. Then slowly, giving her ample opportunity to pull away if she wished, he lowered his mouth to hers.

  Jill moaned in anticipation, instinctively moving closer. Common sense shouted in alarm, but she refused to listen. Just once she wanted to know what it was like to be kissed with real passion—to be cherished by a man. Just once she wanted to know what it meant to be adored. Her heart filled with delirious joy. Her hands slid up his chest to his shoulders as she clung to him. He kissed her again, small, nibbling kisses, as though he was afraid of frightening her with the strength of his need. But he must have sensed her receptiveness, because he deepened the kiss.

  Suddenly it came to her. The same thing that had happened to Shelly was now happening to her. The phenomenon Aunt Milly had experienced sixty-five years earlier was coming to pass a third time.

  The wedding dress.

  Abruptly, she broke off the kiss. Panting, she sprang to her feet. Her eyes were wide and incredulous as she gazed down at a surprised Jordan.

  “It’s you!” she cried. “It really is you.”

  Six

  “What do you mean, it’s me?” Jordan demanded. When she didn’t answer, he asked, “What’s wrong, Jill?”

  “Everything,” she cried, shaking her head.

  “I hurt you?”

  “No,” she whispered, “no.” She sobbed quietly as she wrung her hands. “I don’t know what to do.”

  “Why do you have to do anything?”

  “Because…oh, you wouldn’t understand.” Worse, she couldn’t tell him. Every time he looked at her, she became more and more convinced that Shelly had been right. Jordan Wilcox was her future.

  But she couldn’t fall in love with him, because she knew what would happen to her if she did—she’d become like her mother, lonely, bitter and unhappy. If she was going to marry, she wanted a man who was safe and sensible. A man like…Ralph. Yet the thought of spending the rest of her life with Ralph produced an even deeper sense of discontent.

  “I’m not an unreasonable man,” Jordan said. Then he added, “Well, generally I’m not. If there’s a problem you can tell me.”

  “It’s not supposed to be a problem. According to Shelly and her aunt Milly, it’s a blessing. I know I’m talking in riddles, but…there’s no way you’d understand!”

  “Try me.”

  “I can’t. I’m sorry, I just can’t.”

  “But it has something to do with my kissing you?”

  She stared at him blankly. “No. Yes.”

  “You seem rather uncertain about this. Perhaps we should try it again….”

  “That isn’t necessary.” But even as she spoke, Jordan was reaching for her, pulling her onto his lap. Jill willingly surrendered to his embrace, greeting his kiss with a muffled groan of welcome, a sigh of defeat. His arms held her close, and not for the first time, Jill was stunned by the effect he had on her. It left her feeling both unnerved and overwhelmed.

  “Better?” he asked in a remarkably steady voice.

  Unable to answer, Jill closed her eyes, then nodded. Better, yes. And worse. Every time he touched her, it confirmed what she feared most.

  “I thought so.” He seemed reassured, but that did nothing to comfort Jill. For weeks she’d played a silly game of denial. They’d met, and from that moment on, nothing had been the same.

  She didn’t, couldn’t, believe in the power of the wedding dress; she scoffed at the implausibility of its legend. Yet even Mr. Howard, who’d never heard of Aunt Milly or her dress, had felt compelled to explain Jordan’s past to her, had seen Jill as his future.

  She’d spent only three days with Jordan, but she knew more about him than she knew about Ralph, whom she’d been dating for months. Their day on the beach and the dinner with Andrew Howard had given her insights into Jordan’s personality. Since then Jill had found it more difficult to accept what she saw on the surface—the detached, cynical male. The man who wore his I-don’t-give-a-damn attitude like an elaborate mask.

  Perhaps she understood him because he was so much like her father. Adam Morrison had lived for the excitement, the risks, of the big deal. He poured his life’s blood into each business transaction because he’d never really acknowledged the importance of family, emotion, human values.

  Jordan wouldn’t, either.

  Dinner was a strained affair, although Jordan made several efforts to lighten the mood. As he drove her home, Jill sensed that he wanted to say something more. Whatever it was, he left unsaid.

  “Have a safe trip,” she told him when he escorted her to her door. Her heart was pounding, not with excitement, but with trepidation, wondering if he planned to kiss her again.

  “I’ll call you when I get back,” he told her. And that was all.

  “I have a special fondness for this place,” Shelly said as she slipped into a chair opposite Jill. They were meeting for lunch at Patrick’s, a restaurant in the mall where Jill’s branch of Pay Rite was located. Typically, she was ten minutes late. Marriage to Mark, who was habitually prompt, hadn’t improved Shelly’s tardiness. Jill often wondered how they managed to keep their love so strong when they were so different.

  Patrick’s had played a minor role in Shelly’s romance with Mark. Jill recalled the Saturday she’d met her there for lunch, and how amused she’d been at Shelly’s crazy story of receiving the infamous wedding dress.

  The way Jill felt now—frantic, frightened, confused—was exactly the way Shelly had felt then.

  “So tell me everything,” Shelly said breathlessly.

  “Jordan stopped by. We had dinner. He left this morning on a business trip,” she explained dispassionately. “There isn’t much to tell.”

  Shelly’s hand closed around her water glass, her eyes connecting with Jill’s. “Do you remember when I first met Mark?”

  “I’m not likely to forget,” Jill said, smiling despite her present mood.

  “Anytime you or my mother or anyone else asked me about Mark, I always said there wasn’t anything to tell. Remember?”

  “Yes.” Jill thought of how Shelly’s face would become expressionless, her tone abrupt, whenever anyone mentioned Mark’s name.

  “Well, when I told you nothing was happening, I was stretching the truth,” Shelly continued. “There was plenty going on, but nothing I felt I could share. Even with you.” She raised her eyebrows. “You, my friend, have the same look I did then. A lot has taken place between you and Jordan. So much that you’re frightened out of your wits. Trust me, I know.”

  “He kissed me again,” Jill admitt
ed.

  “It was better than before?”

  “Worse!”

  Shelly apparently found Jill’s answer humorous. She tried to hide her smile behind the menu, then lowered it to say, “Don’t count on your feelings becoming any less complicated. They won’t.”

  “He’s going to be away for a few days. Thank goodness, because it gives me time to think.”

  “Oh, Jill,” Shelly said with a sympathetic sigh, “I wish there was something I could say to help you. Why are you fighting this so hard?” She grinned sheepishly. “I fought it, too. Be smart, just accept it. Love isn’t really all that terrifying once you let go of your doubts.”

  “Instead of talking about Jordan, why don’t we order lunch?” Jill suggested a little curtly. “I’m starved.”

  “Me, too.”

  The waitress arrived at their table a moment later, and Jill ordered the split-pea soup and a turkey sandwich.

  “Wait a minute,” Shelly interrupted, motioning toward the waitress. She turned to Jill. “You don’t even like split-pea soup. You never order it.” She gave Jill an odd look, then turned back to the waitress. “She’ll have the clam chowder.”

  “Shelly!”

  The waitress wrote down the order quickly, as though she feared an argument was about to erupt.

  “You’re more upset than I realized,” Shelly said when they were alone. “Ordering split-pea soup—I can’t believe it.”

  “It’s soup, Shelly, not nuclear waste.” Her friend definitely had a tendency to overreact. It drove Jill crazy, but it was the very thing that made Shelly so endearing.

  “I’m going to call Jordan Wilcox myself,” Shelly announced suddenly.

  “You’re going to what?” It was all Jill could do to remain in her seat.

  “You heard me.”

  “Shelly, no! I absolutely forbid you to discuss me with Jordan. How would you have felt if I’d called Mark?”

  Shelly frowned. “I’d have been furious.”

  “I will be, too, if you say so much as one word to Jordan about me.”

  Shelly paused, her eyes wide with concern. “But I’m afraid you’re going to mess this up.”