A Husband Of Convenience - JACQUELINE BAIRD

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from the village of Beeches, in the heart of the Cotswolds. After the death of Josie’s mother, her father had moved from London and rented Low Beeches farmhouse from the Major. The old men played chess every Tuesday, and Josie had known Charles for ten years and had harboured a schoolgirl crush on him for almost as long. He was not at home very much, but he’d been back for a month in the summer before being posted overseas. He’d asked Josie out three times in all, and she supposed one could say they’d been courting, but only just. Until the fatal night of his going-away party at the Manor House...

      Josie stirred restlessly on the bed and groaned out loud as the memory came back to haunt her. It had been the most humiliating experience of her life.

      She’d been sad at the thought of Charles leaving, but hardly broken-hearted. But all that had changed when he’d danced with her, plied her with drinks, and sworn he loved her, wanted to many her, later leading her to his bedroom and finally into his bed.

      Afterwards he’d patted her bottom, leapt off the bed, saying,

I need a drink,’ and had left the room, muttering, ‘Stay here; I’ll be back in a minute.’

      It had been the first time for Josie, and if she hadn’t drunk so much it would never have happened. Making love was nothing like she had expected; in fact she had been horribly disappointed. But worse had been to follow.

      Suddenly the bedroom door had opened, the light from the hall illuminating a path across the room. She’d hastily sat up and wrapped the sheet firmly around her, wishing she had dressed and left. She’d glanced towards the door and gasped, her mouth falling open in astonishment.

      ‘Very nice—a joke of Charles’s no doubt, but I’m not in the mood tonight. Go peddle your wares downstairs, sweetie,’ a cynically mocking voice drawled lazily.

      It wasn’t Charles but a total stranger, although the voice had sounded vaguely familiar. But Josie was not about to hang around to find out who it was. She swung her feet to the floor, desperate to hide anywhere away from the dark man standing in the doorway. Then the bedroom light clicked on.

      ‘You!’ he’d exclaimed. ‘What the hell are you doing here?’ he demanded furiously. His dark eyes took in the rumpled bedclothes and Josie’s obvious naked state beneath the sheet she had wrapped clumsily around her.

      She looked at him and groaned. It was the man from the church fête. That was all she needed—a sophisticated stranger witnessing her downfall. She did not stop to answer him but, frantically scrambling around on the floor for her clothes, picked them up and made to dash for the bathroom.

      Her wrist was caught and held, and he pulled her to a stop. ‘Not so fast. I think you owe me an explanation. After all, it isn’t every night a man walks into his room and finds a young girl obviously, well...’ His dark eyes narrowed, his firm mouth twisting in a knowing sneer. ‘I’m sure I don’t have to spell it out for you.’ His contemptuous gaze skimmed her from head to foot, lingering on the soft curves of her breasts and then back to her bright red face.

      ‘Your room?’ she cried ‘Don’t be ridiculous; this is Charles Zarcourt’s bedroom! Who on earth do you think you are?’ she demanded, her fear giving way to anger. She felt as if she was in a nightmare, and any minute she would wake up. And this very large, very hunky guy was doing nothing for her peace of mind.

      ‘Charles didn’t tell you. That doesn’t surprise me.’ And, bowing his head slightly, he added, ‘Allow me to introduce myself. Conan Zarcourt, half-brother to Charles, at your service.’ By the cynical gleam in his eye she knew he was relishing her discomfort. ‘And you are?’ One dark brow arched enquiringly, and he waited...

      ‘Josie—Josie Jamieson.’ Why was she even talking to him? she asked herself a second later. Talk about being caught flagrante delicto, she thought with a grim smile. She had never been so humiliated or felt so small in her life. But she was not about to show it.

      ‘Well, Josie Jamieson, I am waiting for your explanation—or perhaps I should ask Charles...?’

      ‘Charles and I are engaged to be married actually; not that it is any concern of yours,’ she said, forcing herself to meet his eyes. ‘It is perfectly normal for engaged couples...’ She trailed off, stunned by the thunderous expression on his darkly handsome face.

      ‘But why here? Why now? Why in my bed? I want some answers and you are going to give me them,’ he demanded arrogantly.

      Was it really his room? She was confused; Charles had said it was his—but she was not going to tell this man that So instead she said, ‘So what if we did use your room! You weren’t using it.’

      ‘But I am now, little lady, and I know my half-brother never misses a trick where I am concerned,’ he said dryly. ‘But what about this engagement? You can’t seriously be intending to marry Charles. How old are you? Eighteen, nineteen?’

      ‘Twenty,’ Josie said indignantly. Her height and youthful looks were the bane of her life.

      ‘My God! Have you any idea how old he is? Almost forty. He could be your father,’ he said scathingly.

      ‘Charles loves me and we are going to be married. Age doesn’t matter when you’re in love.’ Josie mouthed the clichéd words, not really believing them herself. But, dragging her wrist free from Conan’s grip, she made a dash for the bathroom. Something caught the sheet that was covering her, and she froze for a second stark naked, her eyes fixed on the elegantly dressed man in the three-piece suit. The contrast couldn’t have been more startling. Gulping hard, she ran...

      ‘Very nice.’ Conan’s deep voice followed her as she continued her headlong flight across the room, and slammed the bathroom door behind her.

      Calling herself every kind of fool, she pulled her clothes back on, tidied herself up, all the time wondering why Charles had not introduced her to his half-brother at the church fête. It had never entered her head that they might be related—one so fair and the other so dark. She had thought the dark man looked good but had dismissed him from her mind as a stranger passing through the village.

      ‘Conan Zarcourt.’ She said the name softly. It suited him. She hoped it also suited him to have done a vanishing act. She could not hide in the bathroom much longer.

      Eventually she walked back into the bedroom, praying Conan would have left. But no such luck.

      He had changed from the suit he had arrived in, into a white tee shirt that revealed his strong, tanned arms, dusted with soft black hair, and well-worn blue jeans that hung low on his hips. The zip was fastened but the top snap was undone and gaping.

      Josie swallowed hard, and bit down the disloyal thought that he looked a whole lot better than Charles.

      ‘Are you okay?’ he demanded, roughly pushing the shirt into his jeans and snapping the fastener. ‘I’ve seen the bed. Your first time...if that bas—’

      ‘Well, well, this is cosy,’ a voice smoothly interrupted. ‘I see you have met my half-brother Conan, Josie, sorry I took so long.’ He held a bottle in his hand.

      Josie turned at the sound of Charles’s voice and quickly crossed the room to join him at the door. Charles slipped an arm around her waist and pressed a wet kiss on her lips that made her want to wipe her mouth.

      ‘Well, Charles, I gather congratulations are in order. Josie has just told me of your engagement. When is the wedding to be?’ Conan asked silkily.

      ‘What did you tell him that for?’ Charles demanded angrily of Josie.

      ‘Don’t blame the child,’ Conan drawled. ‘I forced it out of her. You know me, Charles, I always find out in the end, and I’m sure you really wanted me to know.’ Fixing Charles with a glacial glance, he added, ‘There’s no need for embarrassment We’re all family, as you are so keen to remind me every quarter, and Father will be delighted. His eldest son finally getting married.’

      Josie

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