The Bride's Choice

“Miss Aldrich,” she stated frostily.

“Juliana,” he drawled with emphasis. Her name rolled off his tongue, said in his bass voice, sending a tingle through her. Why did it sound far more personal when he said it?

“Do you have any idea how much is in Elnora’s estate?”

“Not exactly,” Juliana admitted, watching as he set down his briefcase and reached beneath his jacket to withdraw a small leather date book. “I know she was well-fixed. It’s all in the will, but since it’s a moot point, I didn’t study it. I won’t inherit it.”

While Juliana watched, he flipped open the date book and handed it to her. His fingers were long, well shaped and blunt. With curiosity she accepted the date book, and looked at neat printing that read, Siever Assets. Below the words was a list of assets and figures. Shock at the size of the estate made her weak in the knees. “Elnora was worth this much?”

“You’re on the first page,” he answered dryly. “Keep reading.”

Stunned, Juliana turned the page and gazed at figures that leaped at her. There must be a million dollars in assets, she thought. If she were to marry Caleb Duncan—she looked up to find him steadily watching her and thoughts of marriage made her heart thud. Feeling her cheeks heat, she looked down again at the figures. Marriage to a stranger would be absurd. To a hostile stranger, it would be disaster.

Numbers danced in her mind, along with knowledge of her small bank balance, and how she scrimped to make ends meet and keep her preschool running and take care of the boys. She ran her hand across her forehead. This fortune would go for one home for the stray cats of Colby.

Cal watched her, seeing her face pale when she first glanced down the page. A slight frown creased her wide forehead. His gaze raked over her. She was a good-looking woman. There must not be any man in her life or Elnora wouldn’t have been so persistent in wanting him to take Ju- liana Aldrich out. And Willard Mason was a thorough enough lawyer that he would have checked out Juliana’s el- igibility before he let Elnora draw up a will with a clause about marriage.

Cal rubbed his jaw, his thoughts swirling and visions of bank accounts and money dancing in his mind. He had had forty-eight hours to think about Elnora’s will.

Idly, he wondered how Juliana Aldrich would look if her hair weren’t pinned up behind her head. There was a smat- tering of freckles across the tip of her straight nose that made her seem less the cool, unruffled blonde. With the patience of a lawyer, he waited in silence until she finished reading. She lowered the date book and stared at him.

“Elnora was worth all this?” Juliana repeated softly, her gaze going beyond him as if she was lost in thought.

“Willard Mason went over her assets, that day in his of- fice, so you heard the figures.”

“I was in shock.”

“I think we should give some serious discussion to El- nora’s will,” Cal said quietly. “How about dinner tomor- row night?”

Juliana brought her gaze back to him. Shock took her breath at his suggestion. Caleb Duncan wanted to discuss Elnora’s will. That had to mean he wanted to discuss mar- riage. She stared at him in disbelief. The bequest had nagged at her constantly since Willard Mason had read the will two days ago, but never, not for one tiny second, had she given any thought to the possibility of inheriting. And never, not once, had she thought Caleb Duncan would give a second’s consideration to Elnora’s stipulation.

Cal watched her, seeing her surprise, feeling mildly amazed by her reaction. He had expected her to contact him, yet surprisingly, she was staring at him as if he had just sprouted fangs. Finally, she nodded, and he felt a mixture of relief and apprehension. How easy it would have been if she had just refused on the spot.

“Good,” he said. “About seven. We should make some decisions about this will. I know you have to think about your nephews.”

“Elnora told you about the boys?”

“No, she didn’t. I ran some checks on you.”

“And how did I check out, Mr. Duncan?” she snapped.

He bit back a smile. As angry as he was with her and with Elnora, he had to admit that Juliana Aldrich had spunk. He was beginning to feel he had misjudged Juliana. “You passed. No criminal record. No bad debts. You took your sister’s boys when she died, which is very commendable.”

“So I can’t be all bad,” she retorted dryly.

“Look, since we have to give this bequest some thought, we better declare a truce.”

“I’m not the one with the problem.”

He shrugged. “I suppose you’re not. I don’t like El- nora’s will, but it was her money to do with as she saw fit. When you attacked the bank robber, did you give any thought to leaving three little boys without anyone to take care of them?”

“They would have my grandmother,” Juliana replied, feeling a flush creep up her face, because he had struck a nerve. She hadn’t stopped to think about anything except protecting her money.

She closed the date book and handed it back to him. His fingers brushed hers and small shocks ran through her sys- tem from the slight touch. Why was everything so volatile between them?

“With three boys to raise, you need to give some consid- eration to Elnora’s will.”

“I have my own business and my own savings. But I sup- pose you know all that already, down to the penny.” As if slightly embarrassed, he lowered his gaze, and she realized he did. “I don’t know how Elnora could have set this up,” Juliana declared. “She knew us both well, she knew we wouldn’t want this. Why did she go on with it?”

He raised his head, his dark eyes intent, and Juliana drew a deep breath. When he looked at her that way, her heart- beat became a drumroll drowning out other noises. And she didn’t want to have an intense physical reaction to Caleb Duncan. She didn’t understand how she could react that way to a man she actively disliked.

“Do you faint often?”

The question added more kindling to her fiery anger. “Maybe you should run a check on that, too. It wasn’t a performance for your benefit, I can promise you that. I don’t care what you think!”

“You better start caring,” he remarked quietly, “be- cause there’s a fortune at stake.”

“Elnora’s will is absurd!”

“Calm down.” Caleb touched her collar and shifted one inch closer. She felt as if the sun had dropped closer to earth, her temperature rising. It was hot, difficult to breathe, damnable to gaze into dark brown eyes with black pupils that seemed to pull on her senses. “How come there’s no boyfriend in the picture?”

His fingers touched her collarbone and he stood far too close and he asked personal questions. She felt her pulse race. She wasn’t accustomed to this kind of reaction around men. But then, she wasn’t accustomed to men like Caleb Duncan.

“There isn’t anyone because I have three boys, and that scares men away. And I lead a busy life. I own Child’s World Preschool. I work with little children all day and the only men I see are mostly married fathers. The ones who aren’t married don’t want to go out with a woman who already has three boys that aren’t her own. They get a funny look when I tell them.” Why was she rattling on and on as if he had dropped a nickel in a slot in her brain?

“That wouldn’t scare me away.”

“I’m sure it wouldn’t. I can’t imagine anything that would scare you, Mr. Duncan. Will you step back!”

He arched his eyebrows and looked amused. “I’m dis- turbing you? Here I was all set to dislike you, Juliana Al- drich,” he remarked, rolling her name across his tongue, again sending little warm currents dancing through her, “and now I’m curious. We’re going to get to know each other well.”

“But not that well,” she stated, taking his hand and re- moving it from her collar, feeling another mild jolt the mo- ment she made contact with him. His skin was warm, his hand large in hers, and tingles continued in an alarming manner. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.” She turned and walked away from him, rushing to climb into her battered ten-year-old van.

It felt three hundred degrees inside the vehicle, but part of it was her temper. If Caleb Duncan was considering marriage, he wanted money desperately. She knew he was already well-fixed. He had accused her of thinking only of money, yet he had to be incredibly greedy to give Elnora’s bequest a second’s thought.

Caleb Duncan was no harpy. He couldn’t be—he was the wrong gender. A sexy hunk with no heart was more accu- rate. Hard-hearted bastard would fit better. And she had a dinner date with him tomorrow night. He couldn’t seri- ously be thinking about marriage. But why else would he want to discuss Elnora’s will?

Two

On Thursday evening at one minute before seven, Cal parked in front of the Aldrich home. He knew Juliana rented the small, three-bedroom frame house in a modest area of town and lived there with her grandmother and nephews. What a change to go from this to Green Oaks. He glanced over the neat flower beds that held no weeds. Seven boys played ball in the front yard, while another little boy stood and watched.

Cal climbed the front steps and punched the doorbell, feeling nervous. When the door swung open, Juliana ap- peared and he caught his breath.

She was wearing a short, simple black dress that revealed what the suit had hidden, full breasts and a tiny waist. The dark material clung to her figure and was striking with her golden hair. Looking at her, Cal felt better about the eve- ning, and the tension that gripped him eased slightly.

“Want to come in?”

“Sure,” he answered casually. She stepped back as he entered, and the faint scent of roses made him more aware of her. He followed her from the tiny entryway into a small living area and took his gaze from her hips a moment be- fore she turned around to catch him studying her.

His feelings seesawed as he surveyed the living room’s clutter and disarray, with books and baseball mitts and model airplanes on the tables. Nondescript chairs and ta- bles lined the walls and filled the corners. His tension level rose again at the disorder, yet at the same time the clutter reassured him that this was not the room of a woman who put money above all else. The ancient shag carpet was threadbare. The stuffed chairs had worn spots on the arms and there was a crack in the glass-topped coffee table. A petite woman with white hair smiled at him from a rocker.

“Grandmother, this is Elnora’s attorney, Caleb Duncan. Mr. Duncan, this is my grandmother, Mimi Gibson.”

“Evening, Mrs. Gibson.”

“Juliana told me about Miz Siever’s will,” Mrs. Gibson said slyly, smiling at him with a gleam that made him feel like a chocolate morsel about to be consumed.

“It’s unusual,” he said uneasily.

“We won’t be late, Grandmother,” Juliana said.

“Do you like crossword puzzles?” the old woman asked, pushing her glasses higher on her nose and shifting the pa- per spread on her lap.

“Yes, I like to figure things out,” he replied, looking into Juliana’s cool blue eyes.

“Maybe you can tell me,” Mrs. Gibson said, poising her pencil over the puzzle, “airplane-wing parts that have eight letters.”

“Could be ailerons or spoilers,” he answered, mentally counting the letters.

“The aileron word fits perfectly.” She smiled at him again. “I told Juliana that Miz Siever would never pick a bum to inherit her money.”

“Thanks,” he answered, rubbing the back of his neck and feeling uncomfortable. It was obvious that Juliana Al- drich’s grandmother felt just the same as Elnora about Ju- liana’s future.

“Mimi, we better be going. The boys are still outside playing ball,” Juliana said, conscious of Cal Duncan’s scrutiny and Mimi’s blatant approval.

“Have a nice evening,” Mimi said, smiling at Cal.

“It was nice to meet you, Mrs. Gibson.”

“Oh, please, call me Mimi, like the rest of the family does.”

“Sure, Mimi,” Cal complied, feeling as if a noose were closing around his neck—the rest of the family… The woman already had them married.

As they stepped outside, one of the kids yelled. The baseball flew toward Juliana. Stretching out a long arm, Cal caught it and tossed it back to the boys.

“Way to go!” the tall boy yelled, throwing it to a friend.

“I’m terribly impressed,” she said, too aware of Caleb Duncan’s fitness, of his dark, handsome looks. The char- coal suit and white shirt gave him the same successful, ap- pealing appearance that he’d had in the lawyer’s office three days ago. And a close look still made her feel as if she was gazing at someone who was strong, determined and accus- tomed to getting his way. “Very good catch.”

“I’ve played ball, and those boys aren’t college-age or pros. That was easy enough.”

“I’ll have to admit, I don’t catch very well,” she said. “They’d just as soon I didn’t try. The tallest boy is my nephew Chris. I can call them over to introduce you.”

“I don’t think you’ll have to call Chris over. Here he comes,” Cal said.

The gangly boy loped toward them, blond curls a tangle over his forehead. “Hi,” he said, studying Cal with open curiosity. “You must be Mr. Duncan.”

“That’s right,” Cal said, offering his hand. “And you’re Chris.”

“Glad to meet you. Did you used to play ball?”

Cal nodded. “In college. Never pro. I had a baseball scholarship to Texas University.”

“Awesome!” Chris’s blue eyes sparkled and he rubbed a dusty finger along his jaw.

“It was a long time ago.”

“Yeah, I’ll bet. Gol, you’re still good for an old guy—”

“Chris!”

Cal laughed. “Thanks, Chris.”

“I gotta run—” Then the boy was gone, racing away to join the others, while Juliana looked up at Cal and shrugged.

“Sorry. He thinks anyone over eighteen is decrepit.”

“I’m sure.”

“They’re a handful. Sometimes I feel inadequate,” she said, staring across the yard. He followed her gaze and no- ticed a small boy curled in the fork of the tree.

“Which one is that?”

“Quin. And I am inadequate for him. I just can’t get through to him.”

“You must love all three to give your life over to them. That’ll get through to him sometime.”

Juliana heard a strange note in Cal’s voice and wondered about his childhood, but she walked beside him without asking questions.

When they reached the car, Cal held the door. Looking at the flash of her long, shapely legs, he felt his smoldering anger at Elnora dissipate, yet he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was about to give himself a prison sentence.

As if trying to postpone an ordeal, Cal drove far more slowly than usual, his thoughts still churning. He turned on Main to take the highway to the outskirts of Garland on the east side of Dallas. He intended to get away from people they knew in Colby, to avoid constant interruptions through dinner. Details of the will would be in the public domain all too soon and they would have to live with everyone’s gos- sip about Elnora’s stipulations.

A short while later, he parked in a graveled lot filled with cars, and in minutes, they were seated in the secluded cor- ner of a rustic room. After ordering glasses of wine, Cal leaned back in his chair to study her. “Tell me about your nephews.”

“Chris is eleven, Quin is eight and Josh is five.”

“I understand you took them in two years ago when your sister died after a long illness and their father was killed in a plane crash. Tough luck.”

“I have a feeling you know everything about us,” Ju- liana said, wondering exactly how much he did know. “It was tough for the boys. Quin goes for counseling. Chris and Josh seem to have adjusted to the changes in their lives.”

“It was good of you to take them. I would have thought your mother would raise them.”

Juliana shook her head, thinking of her tall, thin mother. “Mom’s frail, and the boys make her nervous. It never would have worked. My dad would have been good with them, but he died years ago, when I was seventeen. Now Mom’s remarried and living in California, busy with her husband, Jerry, and her own life. I know Trish, my sister, would want them with me.”

“That’s generous.” Cal paused as the waitress returned for their order. After ordering two steaks, they were alone again. Juliana watched him sip dark red wine. His lashes were lowered as he looked down and she realized his thick, black lashes added to his sexy appeal. He glanced at her and she looked away quickly, embarrassed to be caught study- ing him.

“The conditions of Elnora’s will are going to come out in the Colby paper sometime soon,” he began. “In a town as small as Colby, there will be no secrets about Elnora’s will— or the marriage provision.”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” she said with a slight frown. “I suppose you’re right. Will the public know about the size of the estate?”

“I’m sure they will. It has to be filed at the courthouse and reporters will print it. Do you know Wynn Barkley?”

“Only by name,” she answered. “I know he’s a Colby Sun reporter.” She had also heard Barkley loved gossip as much as he liked ferreting out stories. “I suppose I should tell the boys about the marriage stipulation.”

“You’ll have to answer their questions.”

“They may have a difficult time understanding,” she said, more to herself than to him, momentarily forgetting his presence as she worried about the boys’ reaction to learn- ing that she could have inherited a fortune. A shared for- tune. Would they understand why she couldn’t possibly marry a stranger?

She looked at him. “I can tell them you didn’t want to marry me,” she said lightly.

“They might try to talk me into it.”

She smiled, and Cal felt his pulse jump. It was a faint smile, friendly and warm, destroying the cool, aloof aura that seemed to surround her most of the time.

“I suppose it’s a good thing we got together tonight,” she remarked, “before the will is public knowledge. If we’re together afterward, rumors will fly. Do you date some- one?” Instantly, she shook her head. “Sorry, that’s none of my business—”

“I think it is your business. I date occasionally, but there’s no one special in my life. And there’s no one in yours.” He arched an eyebrow. “Why did you and Barry Fowler break up?”

Juliana felt a prickle of annoyance that Cal Duncan had checked so thoroughly into her life. She was tempted to tell him it was none of his business why she’d stopped dating Barry, but she realized it was reasonable for him to ask.

“We were about to be engaged. The trouble started when it looked like I would take my sister’s boys. Barry didn’t like that, and it became an obstacle between us. Barry got a promotion and a transfer to Cleveland. He wanted me to leave the boys with my mother or grandmother and go with him. And then I found out he was dating someone else and hadn’t told me. If you have a serious relationship with someone, you should be open and honest with the person and be able to trust him.”

“I’d say that was incredibly poor judgment on his part.”

Surprised, she stared at him. “Look, Mr. Duncan, why did you want to talk to me about Elnora’s will?”

Cal felt his palms grow damp. “You’re forthright,” he remarked, still mulling over her statement about honesty and trust and feeling twinges of guilt. He had no intention of telling her why he needed the money and killing all his chances of getting it. But his conscience nagged him for an- other reason. He had silently accused Juliana of being a gold digger, yet he was the mercenary one after money and she had three boys to support.

“I’m also curious,” she replied.

He sipped his wine and wished he had ordered a stronger drink. The idea of tying his life to three children made him break out in a sweat. He thought of his orderly life, his hours of riding and fishing and reading law books at night in his quiet house. His blessed solitude. And he thought of all the money involved. Elnora’s will had stipulated the marriage had to last a year and after that the money was theirs. One year was not forever. How disturbing could three boys be? He studied Juliana Aldrich. No difficulty there- she was good-looking, intelligent, and evidently he had misjudged her. Yet, she had fought off that bank robber, so money was important to some extent. But who was he to judge? He wouldn’t be considering Elnora’s will except for his own desperate need for the money.

He felt as if he were standing on the edge of a yawning abyss. “Juliana, the Siever estate is an enormous fortune that you and I could both use. You have three boys to raise. I need money for my practice,” he stated, his conscience screaming at him for lying to her, when she’d said trust was important. “I think we should marry.”

Stunned, Juliana involuntarily jerked as she was lifting the glass of water to her mouth. It sloshed out and ice wa- ter spilled across the front of her dress. “Ahh!” She dabbed at her dress, her heart thudding. Even though she had an- ticipated this proposal ever since he’d asked her to dinner to discuss the will, she was still shocked to hear the words. Even after thinking all night about what a marriage to Caleb Duncan would mean, she still wasn’t sure of her answer.

“Your suggestion startled me. I don’t know that mar- riage would be feasible for us. We’re total strangers,” she said, her words tumbling together. He pushed aside his sil- verware and carefully moved the glass of wine. Then he leaned forward, his dark eyes leveling on hers. As she looked into their black depths, she shivered and knew he meant every word he’d said.

“You need money for the boys, don’t you?”

“Not that badly,” she answered, barely able to get out her reply. She felt imprisoned by his gaze, held by the invisible bonds of his will. Thoughts tumbled wildly in her head. He must be as greedy as sin.

“Elnora’s will specifies that the marriage has to last one year,” Cal said in a quiet voice that held a note of steel. “That’s only twelve months. I’ve known men to take a prison sentence for a longer time to get the kind of money we’re considering.”

“Marriage is just too impossible to contemplate,” she said, barely able to breathe, still unable to look away from him. Her heart drummed wildly.

“No, it’s not impossible,” he said in the same firm tone that brooked no argument. “There’s no man in your life.”

“I don’t need you to fill the void!” Something flickered in the depths of his eyes; if the moment had not been so tense, she would have suspected she saw amusement there. “You don’t lose cases, do you?”

“Not often,” he replied.

She shook her head, and with an effort of will, closed her eyes. There, she had broken free of his damnable, compel- ling gaze. Marriage. All that money for the boys. She gave a little shake and opened her eyes, carefully avoiding look- ing at him.

“It would be a marriage of convenience,” he stated qui- etly, as if he were reading the terms of a contract, and she realized that was probably how he thought about this.

“I can’t believe I’m hearing you correctly. I don’t even know you. How old are you?”

Again, she thought she saw a flash of amusement, but it was gone as swiftly as it had come. “Thirty-four. I went to Texas University on a baseball scholarship. I went on to law school. My parents live in Dallas and I’ll take you to meet them. I have a brother who is a car salesman and lives in Fort Worth, and we seldom see him. I’ve never been mar- ried-”

“Why not?”

He shrugged. “I was engaged once, but we broke it off. It didn’t work out. I lead an ordinary life. I’m not abusive. I don’t smoke, drink excessively or chew tobacco.” He leaned forward again, the earnest look returning to his face. “We marry for one year and you can take care of your boys for the rest of their lives.”

The waitress appeared, and Cal leaned back against his chair. He became quiet while their steaks were served with fluffy baked potatoes and crisp strips of broccoli and car- rots.