Jane Sullivan: Risky Business

Jack folded his arms over his chest. “Sheer accident. I’m in town on business, and who do I see getting into a cab? The woman who walked out on me six months ago without so much as a goodbye. And now, for some reason, everyone thinks I’m your…husband?”

Rachel squeezed her eyes shut. “Please, Jack. Will you just go?”

“Oh, no. If you’re going to pass me off as your husband, I’ve got a right to know why.”

“It was a harmless little…ruse. That’s all.”

He eyed her carefully. “Why me?”

She turned away. “The picture was handy.”

“Is that the only reason?”

“What other reason would there be?”

Jack gave her a cocky grin. “I’m unforgettable?”

Rachel shot him a look of disgust. Oh, he was so arrogant. And so conceited. And so right.

Dear Reader,

I’ve always loved those crazy stories where somebody tells a tiny fib, only to have that little falsehood escalate into a problem of major proportions!

In Risky Business, architect Rachel Westover is desperate to land her dream job, but the big boss refuses to consider unmarried job candidates. She decides that Jack Kellerman, a fun, sexy, captivating man with whom she once had a scorching one-night affair, can become her imaginary husband, since he lives a thousand miles away and will never know. She gets the job. Her plans works perfectly.

Then, out of the blue, Jack shows up at her office, quite amused that he appears to be married but can’t seem to remember his wedding.

When everybody takes Jack to be her real husband, Rachel is forced to spend four days with him on an employee/spouse retreat at a romantic ski resort. Soon her one little fib has spiraled completely out of control. How can she, a serious, career-driven woman, be falling for a wildly spontaneous man who never takes anything seriously?

I hope you enjoy Risky Business. Visit me on the Web at www.janesullivan.com, or write to me at jane@janesullivan.com. I’d love to hear from you!

Best wishes,

Jane Sullivan

HARLEQUIN TEMPTATION

854—ONE HOT TEXAN

HARLEQUIN DUETS

48—THE MATCHMAKER’S MISTAKE

33—STRAY HEARTS

Risky Business

Jane Sullivan

www.millsandboon.co.uk

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To my sister Mary Ann, my most enthusiastic fan.

Thanks for loving my books, and for telling everyone else on the planet that they will, too.

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

JACK KELLERMAN WAS A BORN optimist.

He couldn’t remember a time in his life when he hadn’t believed that the glass was half-full. That when a door closed, a window opened. That things always worked out for the best, that tomorrow was another day, and that life really was a bowl of cherries. And above all, that laughter was indeed the best medicine.

But even at his most positive, no way could he have predicted a day like today.

He’d caught an early morning flight from San Antonio to Denver. Nonstop. Arrived ten minutes early. Actual breakfast on the plane rather than a package of stale dry-roasted peanuts. Sat down next to a woman with a baby, and the child fell asleep when they took off and didn’t even wake when they landed. Gorgeous redhead from San Antonio in the seat to his left, literate, well-spoken and maybe even telling the truth when she said she was unmarried. She’d slipped her card into the pocket of his leather jacket as they got off the plane, giving him a smile that said, Anywhere, anytime, any way.

As he exited the terminal, he got a picture-postcard view of the snowcapped Rocky Mountains in the distance. He picked up a cab with a functioning heater. The driver, who actually spoke English, drove him into downtown Denver, where a light sprinkling of snow blanketed the sidewalks with a soft white powder.

And now, as Jack stood inside the lobby of the Fairfax Hotel, turning a slow circle and taking in every nuance of the late-nineteenth-century architecture and decor, he couldn’t help smiling. He’d wondered whether this trip would be worth it. He wasn’t wondering now.

Man, oh man, what a beautiful sight.

He checked his watch and saw that he was thirty minutes early for his appointment with the hotel manager. He stepped into the lounge, slid onto a stool at the bar and watched as a blonde sitting at the other end of the bar uncrossed her legs, then crossed them again, giving him an inviting smile.

Nice. Very nice.

The only thing that rivaled Jack’s passion for historic places was his passion for beautiful women. And right now, he was experiencing the best of both worlds.

He returned her smile, knowing it never hurt to plant seeds. If she was still here by the time the manager finished giving him a tour of the place, he might just have himself a lunch partner. Maybe more. If this day got any better he wasn’t going to be able to stand it.

But business first. Then pleasure.

The bartender came by, and Jack asked for a cup of coffee. Then he pulled out his cell phone, tapped number one on the speed dial, and after a few rings, Tom came on the line. His cousin and business partner, Tom was holding down the fort in San Antonio while he made the trip to Denver.

“You at the hotel already?” Tom asked.

“Just got here.”

“Well? Is it everything we thought it would be?”

“More. It’s a gold mine. Crystal chandeliers, oak and mahogany floors, brass fixtures all over the place, and enough stained glass to fill the Vatican.”

“Wow. Sounds good.”

“It’s better than good. I can’t believe some idiot wants to demolish it.”

“Yeah, but their loss is our gain.”

Jack had to admit that was true. Their business was historic renovation, not demolition, but if they couldn’t stop the destruction of buildings like this one, at least they could salvage the interiors for use somewhere else. Still, the lack of foresight of some people really grated on Jack’s nerves. A fifty-story office complex might be the highest and best use of this property if a person was looking at it from strictly a financial viewpoint, but once those explosives were planted and detonated, a piece of history would be lost forever. How could anyone put a price tag on that?

Jack glanced back at the blonde, who was toying with a cocktail straw and not even trying to hide the fact that her attention was focused squarely on him. He didn’t have to be back at the airport until seven o’clock tonight. A lot could happen in seven hours.

“How long do you think it would take to pull everything out of there?” Tom asked.

“Hard to say. I’ll know more after I go through it. Trouble is, they want the building on the ground before the end of February.”

Tom let out a breath of frustration. “That could be cutting it close.”