Cinderella Story Part 3
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Elizabeth August
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HarlequinChapter Thirteen Continued
“I don’t understand why you won’t marry me.”
“Because I’ve fallen in love with you. I tried not to. But this morning when I woke up, I realized I had.”
The tiny spark of hope Nina Lindstrom had been harboring that Alex would confess that he felt the same about her died. “Because I would wake every morning hoping I’d broken down the barriers you’ve built around your heart. And I’d spend each day fearing that it would be our last together. That you’d get tired of having me around or that someone else would touch your heart and succeed where I’d failed.”
“That won’t happen. My word is as strong as any emotional bond.”
“I know you’re a man of your word. I trust you implicitly. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t. But a marriage bound by duty isn’t enough for me. Maybe I’m being too naive and old-fashioned, but I want a husband who loves me.”
Alex Bennett didn’t want to lose her, but he would not risk suffering the fate of his father or his grandfather. Both had been used and betrayed by the women they loved. He would not fall into that emotional trap. His gaze hardened. “You’re asking too much.”
Hot tears of regret burned in her eyes. “I know. Would you take me home now?”
He nodded and rose.
Neither spoke as they dressed and he drove her home. It was not an angry silence, but one of two people caught in an awkward moment and uncertain what to say to each other.
As he pulled up to the curb in front of her apartment building, she studied the hard line of his jaw. “I want to thank you for everything you’ve done for me and my family.”
“You’re welcome. It was our deal. You pretend to be my fiancée for my grandfather and I pay for Tommy’s brain surgery,” he replied, reaching for the latch of his door.
“No.” The word blurted out in a rush of panic. Her tears were too near the surface. She needed to get away from him as quickly as possible. “There is no need for you to see me to my door,” she continued in a more controlled voice.
He considered insisting on seeing her safely inside, then decided against it. A clean break would be best. “Whatever you want.”
She quickly slid out of the car and walked away without looking back.
Inside her apartment, Nina leaned against the door and allowed the streams of salty water to flow freely down her cheeks. “That was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” she said, looking toward the chair that had been Tom’s favorite and speaking to it as if her dead husband was sitting there.
She tried to conjure up his image to give herself strength. It refused to appear. The apartment was cold and empty.
* * *
Driving home, Alex glowered at himself. Maybe he should have lied and told her that he loved her. But those words carried too much weight. Saying them could possibly crack the shield he was determined to maintain.
“And then one day, I’d discover that all along she was still in love with her former husband and I’d been nothing more than a surrogate mate,” he growled acidly.
No. Only fools fell in love and he was no fool.
* * *
A couple of hours later, Alex sat in the office in his home on the mountain. When he’d returned from dropping off Nina, he’d taken a shower and then thrown himself into his work. But in the middle of an E-mail message to his administrative assistant in Denver, Nina and her children had come back to haunt him.
Staring out at the panoramic mountain landscape in front of him, he scowled darkly. He’d created employment problems for her that would not go away simply because he was no longer seeing her. And even if Gladys did start hiring her again to be a waitress at events, there would be awkward moments around his rich friends that he wanted to spare her.
“Besides, she needs full-time employment with a schedule that gives her time to spend with her children,” he muttered. A solution occurred to him. Quickly finishing the E-mail message to his administrative assistant, he then turned his mind to solving Nina’s employment problem. He already had the hospital sending him all of Tommy’s bills. Once he had the boy’s mother set up with a good job, then he could get on with his life.
Suddenly he was recalling how good she’d felt in his arms. Regret pierced deeply and his scowl darkened even more. “She would have made the perfect wife if she’d been willing to be more practical,” he grumbled.
* * *
Nina sat slumped in her chair. After returning from Alex’s house, she’d showered, then gone to see Tommy for a while. After that, she stopped by her in-laws’ place for dinner. Helen, she could tell, was disappointed to learn that she’d broken up with Alex.
“Don’t worry. I’ll find a job soon,” she’d assured her.
After returning to her apartment with Elizabeth and Pete, she’d played with them until it was their bedtime. Then, she’d spent a long time going through the Help Wanted section of the newspaper. There were plenty of part-time jobs she qualified for.
“I’ll just work at two or three of those until something better comes along,” she said, setting the paper aside. Closing her eyes, she leaned back in her chair. Immediately Alex’s image filled her mind. All day, she’d been fighting thinking about him. Now she gave up the struggle and admitted that she missed him.
Both Elizabeth and Pete had missed him, too. They’d asked about him several times. She’d been unable to bring herself to tell them that he would no longer be coming around to see them. Instead, she’d chosen to ease them into his absence by telling them that he had to spend more time working.
She wanted to think of him as coldhearted. But she knew that wasn’t fair. He just wasn’t in love with her. She told herself not to take it personally. The man refused to fall in love with any woman. Still, the hurt lingered.
A knock on the door gave her a start. It sounded like Alex’s knock. A knock is a knock, she told herself. Hoping it was Alex was nothing more than wishful thinking. He wouldn’t be crossing her threshold again.
Opening the door, she stood frozen. She’d been wrong.
“May I come in?” Without giving her the opportunity to reply, he brushed past her.
Closing the door, she turned to face him. Had he decided to risk his heart? The seed of hope that had again formed died as she read the cool, businesslike expression on his face. He’d come with a purpose, but it wasn’t to relinquish his heart. Silently she ridiculed herself and vowed never to let herself hope again.
“I realize I’ve placed you in a difficult position for finding a job,” he said crisply. “I will not leave you and your children in a worse situation than the one I found you in.”
Her shoulders straightened with pride. She would take nothing more from him. “We’re not your private charity. I took care of my family before you came along and I can take care of them when you’re gone.”
He ignored this declaration. “I’m in the process of buying the Grand Springs Diner. I’ll need a manager and I’m hiring you. You’ll have a salary fitting your position and full benefits.”
Certain he was buying off his conscience for having slept with her, a bitter taste entered her mouth. “You don’t owe me or my children anything. And I think that the less we have to do with each other, the better.”
“You’re letting pride rule good judgment,” he growled. “You have to consider your children. You want to provide a good life for them, don’t you?”
“Of course,” she snapped. “But I’m not a charity case.”
“I don’t think of you as one. The diner is a good business investment for me. However, I don’t know the ins and outs of the restaurant business and you do. I’ll expect you to make a profit.”
Again the words to order him out were on the tip of her tongue, but she bit them back. He was offering her an opportunity she would never have again. With hard work, she was certain she could make the diner as profitable as it had been. Maybe even more so. Then she could repay him and give her children a decent life. “All right.”
Relief spread through Alex. “I’ll set up an account that will allow you to renovate the place as extensively as you wish. And I don’t want you cutting corners. I’ve had a tour. There’s a lot of water damage. In addition to redoing the floors, you will probably have to replace all of the drywall to get rid of that musty odor. Also, I want all the kitchen appliances replaced, as well. Some of them were too damaged by the lightning to make it worthwhile to repair them. What’s left of the rest is too old and outdated. We’ll end up spending more on repairmen over the next couple of years than it will take to replace them. When the place is ready to open, we’ll arrange a major publicity campaign to get it off to a good start.”
She didn’t relish the idea of working with him, but she refused to let him know how greatly he affected her. “Fine.”
“Alex?”
Alex turned to see Pete standing at the end of the hall rubbing sleep out of his eyes. A couple of times today, he’d found himself missing the children. He told himself it was a sign that it was time to have a few of his own. Tomorrow, he’d begin seriously looking for a practical mate. Grudgingly, he admitted that finding someone as perfectly suited to his needs as Nina would be difficult. And he’d grown fond of her children…very fond. He would have enjoyed being a father to them. But he wouldn’t pay Nina’s price.
“You should be in bed,” Nina said, the words coming more sharply than she’d intended.
Pete blinked and looked at her worriedly.
“I just don’t want you getting overly tired,” she added in more soothing tones.
Pete stretched his hand out toward Alex. “Will you tuck me in?”
No matter what happened, he’d make sure Nina’s children got an education and a good start in life, Alex vowed. “Sure,” he said, striding to the boy. Tucking Pete in would be good practice for when he had children of his own.
Nina followed a little behind as Alex accompanied Pete back to his room. From the doorway, she saw him lift her son into bed, cover him, then give his hair a playful tousle.
“Good night, little guy,” Alex said.
“Good night, Alex,” Pete replied, and with a smile, closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
“I told the children that you were going to have to spend less time with them and more time at work,” she informed him when they were both alone again in the living room. “They’ve become attached to you, and I didn’t want to just tell them that you wouldn’t be coming around anymore. But the less you come around, the better it will be. I don’t want them to become attached to someone who sees them as objects to be purchased and then discarded.”
Alex scowled. “I don’t think of them that way.”
Mentally she kicked herself for having made such a bitter accusation. She was convinced that he really did like her children. He just didn’t love her and that was still a raw nerve. “I’m sorry. That was unfair. But it would be best if you stayed away. I don’t want them to begin to think they can rely on you to always be here. Once you have children of your own, you won’t have time for them.”
“I don’t turn my back on friends, and I consider both you and your children friends. I’ll always have time for them, and I’ll always be available if you or they need me.”
Nina breathed a frustrated sigh. “It’s me,” she confessed tersely. “I need time to get over the way I feel about you, time to learn to think of you as only a friend. For my sake, I’d appreciate it if you’d stay away for a while.”
“You could reconsider and marry me,” he suggested.
“No,” she said firmly.
Driving away a few minutes later, Alex told himself her refusal was for the best. An emotional involvement, even one-sided and to his advantage, had never been in his plans. He’d always feel guilty about not being able to give her what she wanted. He did have to admit to a hollow feeling inside. That, he assured himself, would be cured when he had a family of his own.
