LITMIR.BIZ

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She kept her words and her gaze cool, daring him to come on to her again.

      “I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.” He ran a large hand through his dark hair. “Look, I can explain.”

      “Not necessary. Enjoy your meal.” Again she turned away and reached the safety of the counter. “You’ll have to serve that guy next time,” she told Brenda, the waitress. “He wants to marry me.”

      “I should have such luck!” the middle-aged waitress exclaimed. “’Course, Jerry might object if I threw him over for some cowboy, even if he is handsome.”

      Susan smiled and went through the swinging door, past the kitchen to the small office behind it. She helped Brenda when there was a rush at the diner, or when Susan wanted a cup of coffee herself, but her real job was public relations.

      She settled into her office chair with a sigh. She’d just started this job a week ago. It certainly beat her old job. She’d received propositions there, too, but they hadn’t involved marriage. She gave a rueful smile and picked up the brochure she was designing.

      Maybe she should ask that cowboy to pose for the front cover. They’d get a lot of female customers for the catering business if he did. With a sigh, she tried to dismiss his broad shoulders and hazel eyes. A man wasn’t part of her plans, business or otherwise.

      “Susan?” Brenda called as she pushed open the door. “That cowboy’s insisting he talk to you. And I’ve got my hands full with customers. Want me to call the police?”

      Susan needed to avoid such a scene if she could. It wouldn’t do the diner’s reputation any good to be associated with a police incident. “I’ll see if I can talk him into leaving.”

      When she reached the counter where the cowboy, his Stetson on his head, was waiting, she noted his stern features, his square jaw. He wasn’t going to be easy to dismiss.

      “Yes?”

      “Susan, I need to talk to you.”

      “We serve good food, but conversation isn’t on the menu.” She tried to keep her expression pleasant, but the steeliness of his stare made her uneasy.

      “I’m not looking for conversation. I have a proposition for you.”

      “Yes, I’ve already heard it, and my answer is no.” She turned around to return to her office, but he reached out and caught her arm before she could get away.

      His hard, calloused hand held her firmly but not tightly. “All I’m asking yon to do is listen to what I have to say. Give me ten minutes, in that booth,” he said gesturing to the last booth in the back, the one he’d earlier occupied. “If the answer is still no, I’ll leave and not bother you anymore.”

      Susan debated her options. She could refuse and call the police. But she’d rather not. Maybe she could listen, then say no, and hope he kept his word. If not, then they’d definitely have a disturbance on their hands.

      “Okay. Would you like more coffee while we talk?”

      He stared at her. “You’re not going to run away?”

      “No She was glad she was used to hiding her feelings. She didn’t want this cowboy to know she was trembling inside.

      He released her arm, drawing his hand back slowly, and nodded. She picked up the coffeepot and two clean cups and saucers. Then she walked the length of the counter, slipped through the opening and continued on to the back booth.

      He was right behind her. When he slid into the booth, their knees knocked together and she jumped in surprise.

      “Sorry. I’ve got long legs,” he said.

      She’d realized that. The man was easily over six foot. She filled the cups of coffee, saying nothing. But she did check the time on her watch.

      “I’ve got ten minutes,” he reminded her, his jaw clenched.

      She nodded.

      

      Zach couldn’t figure out how to start. Finally, he blurted out, “My grandfather is dying.”

      He’d shocked her, but he didn’t know how else to explain his sudden proposal. “He’s been wanting me to marry, have babies.” He stopped and stared out the windows, ashamed of what he had to confess. “I lied to him. I told him I had a woman...a fiancée. He seemed pleased.”

      He stopped to take a sip of coffee, but he avoided looking at the beautiful woman across from him. “Then today he had a massive heart attack.” He paused again, this time to swallow the emotion that filled him.

      “I’m sorry,,” she said softly, in that husky voice.

      His gaze hardened. He’d been misled before by a beautiful face and a sweet voice. Women used their softness to trap a man.

      “He wants to meet my fiancée.”

      He watched her carefully as comprehension filled her gaze. “I see. And you want me to—”

      “Pretend to be my fiancée.”

      “I appreciate your predicament, but—”

      “I’ll pay you!” He was desperate. She was a beautiful woman, the kind Gramp would expect him to choose. And he didn’t have much time.

      “No, I—”

      “Ten thousand dollars.”

      He watched cynically as the amount he’d offered penetrated her brain. Then he leaned back against the cushioned bench. “Not bad for one night’s work, is it?”

      She stared at him. “Define ‘night.’”

      He gave her a look of disgust. “Lady, I don’t have to pay for that kind of evening. I’m talking about a visit to the intensive care unit at the hospital. It won’t take long. He—he doesn’t have a lot of strength.”

      “You’re serious?”

      Suddenly, weariness hit him. What had he been hoping? That this woman, in spite of her incredible beauty, would put someone else’s needs before her own? Yeah, right.

      “Can you afford to—”

      He whipped out his checkbook. “Ever heard of the Lowery Ranch?”

      She nodded, frowning.

      “Well, I’m the heir to the Lowery Ranch. I can afford it.” He scrawled his name on the check and ripped it out of his checkbook. “Here’s five thousand now. You’ve got time to put it in the bank before it closes. I’ll give you the other five thousand when it’s over.”

      She stared at the check as if she couldn’t believe it. Then she slowly reached out and picked it up from the table.

      “What’s your last name and address?”

      She answered him as if in a daze, and he jotted down the information. She didn’t live in the best part of town, he realized.

      “I’ll pick you up at six-thirty. Be ready.”

      Then he walked out of the diner.

      

      Susan continued to stare at the check for long minutes after the stranger’s departure. Five thousand dollars. She couldn’t believe it.

      Her half sister’s room and board at college was due in two weeks. Megan would be a freshman and had gotten a scholarship for her tuition. All she needed was living expenses to go as long as Susan could come up with the money. And suddenly, here it was.

      She knew she should tear the check up. In fact, she’d been considering offering to help the man, but there was her eight-year-old brother, Paul, to consider. Before she could decide, the cowboy had thrown his money in her face.

      If he truly was the Lowery heir, he had plenty to spare. And she was going to do him a service, pretending

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