Sara Orwig - The Wedding Wager

Jared’s expression changed instantly. He came around the table and placed his hands on her waist. “Megan, absolutely fantastic! Now that’s more like it. I can get to know him and Ethan can get to know me and you can see us together. That’s a terrific suggestion!”

“I thought you’d like it,” she said, wondering if he thought he would win her over to doing things his way completely.

“Thank you, Megan. That’s grand. It will give us time to bond. I’ll call to get the plane ready and we can be on our way in about two hours. How’s that?”

“It’s fine with me, Jared.”

He smiled at her and her pulse raced. He looked so damned appealing and sexy, and in spite of all her anger with him, she wanted his arms around her and she longed to kiss him.

But she had the wisdom to not do anything personal. Yearning and anger conflicted; she wanted him to back off. She knew she was in love with him a second time.

“We’ll work this out to everyone’s satisfaction. You’ll see.”

“It would be miraculous if it happened. I just don’t see how.”

He moved away and got his cell phone out of his pocket to make calls. She left him to get ready for the trip home, carrying her bag to the front door and sitting on the veranda to wait.

“Tell me about Ethan, and remember, I want a picture. I’d like to see your scrapbooks about him,” Jared said as they flew home.

“Of course,” she said, “although most of the scrapbooks and that sort of thing are in Santa Fe, not South Dakota.”

“When I come to Santa Fe, I’ll see what you keep there.”

“Jared, you may find you don’t want the responsibility of a child,” she said, receiving a stormy glance and feeling their clash of wills that had returned full force.

“If you’re counting on that, you might as well forget it. I’m going to try my damnedest to get along with my son and be a father to him.”

“That’s different than being a chum.”

“I know that much. How soon will you get him home from your uncle’s house?”

“I’ll drive to Sioux Falls when we get back. I called while I was waiting for you,” she said. “I told them I would pick him up today and take him to the ranch. You can come tomorrow.”

“Did he mind the change in plans?”

“No. You said it yourself—kids adapt. He’s looking forward to seeing me, and I’ll be glad to see him. This has made me miss him twice as much.”

Jared nodded and reached over to take her hand. “Thanks for what you’re doing. I know you don’t want to, but it’s inevitable and much better this way, when you smooth the introduction. Anything we can do to make this transition easier will be better for Ethan, and I appreciate it.”

“I might as well try to do things the best way for him,” she responded, aware of her hand in Jared’s, his dark eyes resting on her.

“I still want you,” he said, sliding his hand behind her head and leaning forward to kiss her long and slowly.

She kept reminding herself to resist him, but she kissed him back instead. And each kiss forged a tighter bond, would be a bigger heartbreak and more of a struggle for her.

He raised his head. “Stop fighting me, Meg. You want this, too.”

“No, I don’t. I will contend with you as long as you kiss and flirt.” She withdrew her hand from his. He stretched out his long legs and crossed them at the ankles.

“Tell me about Ethan,” he said.

They talked about Ethan over a light lunch, and then Jared tried to charm and entertain her the rest of the way home with stories from his life.

Finally, she told him good-bye and headed to the ranch, anxious to see Ethan. And she wished with all her heart she didn’t have to face her son and tell him that his real father wasn’t who he’d thought all these years, but another man—one he had met only recently and briefly.

That evening, she pulled her son onto her lap. He was big enough that his legs dangled almost to the floor, but not quite. “Ethan, I want to talk to you about something important.”

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