Meg Lacey - Million Dollar Stud

Grinning, Nicholas took a sip of his drink. “Well, you can’t quite blame them. There’s a lot at stake from a family point of view.”

“Fortune, reputation, heritage, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera…” Darcy shuddered.

“Afraid so.”

“Ah hell, Nick, I’m bored to death. It’s all so damn predictable.”

Nicholas rolled his eyes. “How could your life be predictable, Darcy? You’ve got the means to pick up at any time and go anywhere, do anything you want.”

Knowing how fortunate he was, Darcy had the grace to blush. “I know, but sometimes I want something different.” He felt like the spoiled little kid who wished for a pony, then when he got it, wished for a horse instead.

“Like what?”

“I don’t know.” Darcy fiddled with his empty glass. “Don’t you get bored with it all? The same people, the same places. Doing the same type of things. No real challenge, no real enjoyment. You run from place to place, but it doesn’t change.” He thumped his fist on the table. “Lord-in-a-box, I’m bored to death, Nick. I need an adventure. Something to take me out of here.”

Nicholas shook his head, then focused on his cousin for a long, intense moment. “Darcy, maybe the problem’s not on the outside. Maybe the problem is…” He took a breath, then plunged on. “Maybe the problem’s with you.”

Darcy tossed his head like a restless horse. “Of course it’s with me—that’s what I’m telling you. It’s with who I am.”

“That’s not really what I meant.”

“Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to be nobody. Know what I mean?”

Nicholas picked up the cards, inserting them neatly into their wooden holder. “No, I don’t.”

Leaning back in his chair, Darcy spread his hands wide. “Nobody. Man, wouldn’t that be a lark? To just be an ordinary guy? No living under the microscope, no gossip. No women trying to trap me into marriage, no idiots trying to borrow money or start a fight to prove I’m not any better than they are—nothing like that. Just normal.”

Nicholas hooted with laughter. “Come on, as if you could ever be a normal guy.”

Darcy’s eyes kindled as he sent his cousin the famous Kristof stare, the one his grandfather had used to stare down the enemy during World War II, or so family legend said. “Sure I could. Why couldn’t I?”

“Because you’ve got money and a lifestyle that most people envy and will never achieve—and you’re on the most-eligible-bachelor list for every woman from Virginia to New York to Palm Beach, and have been since you turned eighteen.” Nicholas shook his head. “You couldn’t be normal.”

“Want to bet?”

“Bet what?”

“I’ll bet that I can live the life of a perfectly ordinary citizen for one month.”

Nicholas rubbed his chin for a moment, finally saying, “What are you betting?”

“I’ll bet my car on it.”

“You’ll bet your car?” Nicholas lost his sophisticated air as his jaw dropped to his shoes. “You love that hunk of metal more than you’ve ever loved a woman.”

“That’s because it’s a hell of a lot more fun and much less trouble. But I’m not worried. I won’t lose.”

“We’ll see,” Nicholas commented. “So you plan to waltz out of here and become an ordinary guy, is that it? And where are you, the gossip rags’ poster boy, going to pull off this little miracle?”

Darcy was puzzled for a moment but then brightened, snapping his fingers. “Let’s find a map.”

“A map? Why do you need—”

“I need a place to go. It has to be somewhere where no one knows me.” He walked over to the bookshelves and started pulling out travel literature the club kept handy for members. “Here we go, a map of the U.S.” Darcy walked back to the table and spread it open. Putting one hand over his eyes, he stretched the other over the map, took a deep breath and stabbed with his finger. “All right,” he said, studying the spot. “Cecil, Kentucky—good a place as any.”

“Cecil? It sounds as if it’s in the middle of nowhere. ”

“No, look, it’s in…I’ll be damned. It’s in Bluegrass country, a little southwest of Lexington.”

“Lexington is the home of horse racing, Darcy. What makes you think people aren’t going to recognize you there? Your family owns a horse farm, for God’s sake.”

“Since I don’t really work the farm, I’m better known in Virginia horse circles—by sight, anyway. No one will connect me with Darcy Kristof of WindRaven Farms, because no one will be expecting to see me as Darcy Kristof. They’re going to see a man, period.”

Nicholas frowned. “This has disaster written all over it.”

“You worry too much.”

“You pay me to worry.”

Darcy grinned. “Then you’re really going to earn your money, aren’t you? Now here’s the deal. I escape and have an adventure for one month, without anyone but you knowing where I am.” He stared into the distance. Maybe this was just what he needed to shake things up. Either that or a new woman. Of the two ideas, the adventure was probably safer. He only hoped it would be as much fun.

“This is the stupidest thing I’ve heard you say in a long time. If you want to change something, why the hell don’t you take over some of your business and family responsibilities? That would be a challenge.”

“And put everyone out of work who’s there to do it for me?”

“Darcy…” Nicholas sighed. “It’s time you got involved with your life.”

“That’s what I’m trying to do.”

“By running away and having an adventure?”

Darcy shrugged. “Why not? Who’s it going to hurt?”

“I still think—”

Darcy leaned forward, interrupting him. “Nick, promise you’ll tell no one where I am. Not even my parents.”

“They won’t ask. They’re in Europe at our uncle’s villa.”

“That’s right. I’m supposed to be there next week, aren’t I?”

“Yes, for Aunt Rosalind’s birthday.”

“You’ll have to make up some story for me, Nick. Come on, be a sport. Do we have a bet?” Darcy extended his arm and stared at his cousin. “I pass as an ordinary guy for one month or I hand over the keys to the Jag. And if I win, your new, very expensive boat is mine to use for the next six months.”

Nicholas was silent for a moment, then grasped Darcy’s hand. “Ah what the hell, you’re going to do it anyway. You’ve got a bet.” He poured them each another tot of bourbon from the crystal decanter. “What in hell are you going to do in Cecil, Kentucky?”

“I’ll get by. Don’t worry.” Darcy downed his drink.

“I still think this one of the most crack-brained—”

“Cool it, Nick. You’re my lawyer, not a mother hen.” Darcy headed for the door, turning to give his cousin an affectionate smile. “Don’t worry. Nothing’s going to happen. I’m just going to have some fun, that’s all.”

“All right, but whatever you do, don’t seduce all the local farm girls. Your family won’t take kindly to that, especially if I have to clean up the mess.”

“I don’t spend my entire time thinking about women.”

“You don’t have to—they think about you.”

“I can’t help that,” Darcy exclaimed. “Besides, when did you have to clean up a mess beyond Christina Petrou? Which wasn’t entirely my fault. It was just fun, till her parents got involved.”

“All I’m saying is be a bit circumspect, all right?”

“I won’t do anything anyone could misunderstand.” Darcy exhaled, getting his quick flare of temper under control. “Unless they ask for it, of course.”

Nicholas gave him a sardonic look. “Oh, now that’ll be a comfort to me while you’re gallivanting around Cecil.”