Nancy Warren - A Very Fake Fiancée - The Fiancée Charade / My Fake Fiancée / A Very Exclusive Engagement

Gemma gripped the lapels of Gabriel’s jacket, hugging it more closely against the wind, although that was a mistake, because the movement released more of his clean, masculine scent.

She went back to the issue of just how she had gotten her job. “What makes you so sure I wouldn’t have gotten the job purely on merit?”

“Constantine wanted someone who could be trusted with confidentiality. I told him you could.”

If Gemma had felt chilled before, she was warming up fast. Gabriel probably thought he was pouring oil on troubled waters, but as far as she was concerned it was more like pouring gasoline on a smoldering fire. “You mean I got the job because I kept quiet about sleeping with you?”

Her throat had automatically locked against the phrase one-night stand. Maybe it hadn’t been special for him, but she had been caught up in the fairy-tale magic of the night, the indefinable feeling that the gorgeous man who had come to her rescue was special.

He shrugged. “A lot of people are affected by wealth. They have an agenda. That didn’t seem to be the case with you.”

She frowned at his summation of her character, even though it was on the positive side. Maybe it was simply that his view of her was so objective. She couldn’t help thinking that if he had ever been even the tiniest bit in love with her, he wouldn’t have seen her in such a cold, impersonal light.

Like an employee.

It highlighted an aspect of Gabriel’s character that she had suspected had always been there. That in his heart of hearts, Gabriel valued control and slotting people into neat boxes more than he valued spontaneous love and affection.

It explained why his mother had thought he would accept a marriage to a well-connected, suitably rich and beautiful girl.

Suddenly, the idea that Gabriel could judge her for possibly wanting to make a good marriage, when it was obviously standard practice within the Messena family, made her bristle. “So you thought I had an agenda, as in trying to marry the boss.”

His gaze narrowed warily. “It happens.”

“And sometimes the agenda works the other way. There are plenty of employees who get sexually harassed.”

“Point taken.”

The piercing look Gabriel gave her made her feel distinctly uncomfortable and she hastily decided that it was time to drop this subject. He was referring to the relationship he thought she’d had with Zane, but the last thing she wanted him to do was remember back to what had happened six years ago and figure out that he could be the father. “Why should you care, anyway?”

He crossed his arms over his chest, and she had the distinct sense that she had been neatly maneuvered. “Because I have a proposition for you. You need a fiancé to get Sanchia back, and as it happens, I need one to short-circuit a clause in my father’s will.”

In clipped phrases he explained the glitch with the will that his uncle was presently exploiting in order to pressure Gabriel into a marriage he didn’t want.

An absurd sense of relief gripped her at the explanation that Gabriel wasn’t in love with some beautiful, perfect woman, but was trying to avoid an arranged marriage. It also cast a new light on his pursuit of her tonight that made a depressing kind of sense. He wasn’t after her because of passion, but business.

Gabriel shrugged. “To cut a long story short, if you’ll agree to be my fiancée for the period of time it takes me to gain full control of the bank, in exchange I can offer you an apartment, a job and whatever else you need to get your daughter back.”

The offer was riveting, but tempted as she was to grab it, she couldn’t ignore the danger of getting too close to Gabriel. “How long would you need me to pose as your fiancée?”

“A week at most. That should be enough time to convince the legal firm that handles the trust provision of the will.”

Her mind was racing. She could do it. She could be Gabriel’s fake fiancée for a week. After all, she was trained to act. How hard could it be? She drew a swift breath. “What kind of job?”

“The same thing you did for the Atraeus Group. The reason I came to Medinos was to meet with Constantine. He’s starting up a new branch of Ambrosi Pearls in Auckland. I’ll be taking care of the launch phase. We start advertising for staff next week.”

Still feeling skittish and cautious, despite Gabriel offering her everything on her current wish list, Gemma took a deep breath and let the idea settle in. It was a new venture with an old established firm like Ambrosi, and the kind of opening she would have wanted to apply for anyway. The fact that Gabriel was only involved in the start-up phase meant that she could keep the job after their charade ended, which would be perfect.

With a new job and an apartment. It would mean that she could get Sanchia back immediately.

Before she could change her mind, Gemma said, ‘Yes.”

The momentary flash of surprise in Gabriel’s gaze startled her. “You thought I was going to refuse.”

“It crossed my mind, since the job combines a personal relationship with employment.”

“I do believe there’s a line drawn in the sand. It’s called a personal contract.”

A hint of impatience jerked his brows together. “Yes, but in this case we have a verbal agreement that the initial stages of this job involve some personal connection.”

The startled recognition that Gabriel wanted more than just a charade set off alarm bells, although the alarm was almost totally drowned by a tingling heat that was dangerous.

She cleared her throat and tried to keep her tone smooth and professional. After all, Gabriel had just employed her as his PA. “Of course. Definitely. Within certain bounds.”

And the first rule would be that if they were going to proceed, she needed to protect herself emotionally.

“Good.” Gabriel’s hands closed around her arms as he drew her slowly, mesmerisingly closer. “We have an understanding.”

Gemma stiffened at the warmth of his touch, the instant fiery desire that swamped her. Somewhere in the back of her mind languished the concept that sleeping with the boss before they even got to the office was a very bad idea. “I’m not exactly sure what I understand.”

“I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’ve always regretted what happened six years ago.”

The words she had wanted to hear all those years ago shimmered through her, undermining every one of her reservations. “You can’t be serious?”

Reaching out, he linked his fingers with hers and pulled her closer and, like a fool, unable to resist him, she went.

The warmth of his breath drifted against her throat. “Why not?”

Because it was too late for the luxury of the wild, fatal attraction that was zinging through her. Too late for a replay of what had happened six years ago: the starry night, the champagne. The rescue.

She drew a swift breath. And all of those things followed by the off-the-register lovemaking.

The kind of lovemaking she would in all likelihood never again experience, because realistically, the type of man she would end up marrying would be a dependable, average kind of guy who placed a high value on family. He wouldn’t be either dangerously attractive or mega-wealthy. First off, Sanchia would have to like him.

A deep feeling of depression hit her at the thought that marriage with someone else would ultimately be dependent on Sanchia’s needs, not hers. That it would be an uphill struggle to find someone other than Gabriel who she could settle for.

Until that moment she hadn’t understood just how vivid and exceptional her response to Gabriel was.

Resolutely, she reminded herself of the non-negotiable list of things she needed to establish in her life over the next few weeks. She could not allow herself to be sucked back into a dream that had already proved to have no substance.