Non-Refundable Groom

“Your Date Will Be Here Any Moment.” Letter to Reader Title Page PATTY SALIER Dedication Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Copyright

“Your Date Will Be Here Any Moment.”

Elena turned around to meet the man the dating service had picked for her. Her eyes widened when she saw Garrett standing there!

“Garrett, I can’t believe—” She was so thrilled that she could barely speak. “This is so incredible!”

He looked incredible. He was starkly handsome in a black tuxedo that stretched across his broad shoulders and solid chest.

She wanted to ask him a zillion questions about his signing up with the dating service, but she was so flustered being with him that she couldn’t remember the name of the service.

Garrett slipped his hand in hers and led her to the dinner table. As he sat across from her, her heartbeat raced when she felt his knees touch hers.

“To us,” he said, tapping her sparkling glass with his.

She nodded, unable to believe that her dream of being with him had come true.

Dear Reader,

This month, Silhouette Desire celebrates sensuality. All six steamy novels perfectly describe those unique pleasures that gratify our senses, like seeing the lean body of a cowboy at work, smelling his earthy scent, tasting his kiss...and hearing him say, “I love you.”

Feast your eyes on June’s MAN OF THE MONTH, the tall, dark and incredibly handsome single father of four in beloved author Barbara Boswell’s That Marriageable Man! In bestselling author Lass Small’s continuing series, THE KEEPERS OF TEXAS, a feisty lady does her best to tame a reckless cowboy and he winds up unleashing her wild side in The Hard-To-Tame Texan. And a dating service guarantees delivery of a husband-to-be in Non-Refundable Groom by ultrasexy writer Patty Salier.

Plus, Modean Moon unfolds the rags-to-riches story of an honorable lawman who fulfills a sudden socialite’s deepest secret desire in Overnight Heiress. In Catherine Lanigan’s Montana Bride, a bachelor hero introduces love and passion to a beautiful virgin. And a rugged cowboy saves a jilted lady in The Cowboy Who Came in From the Cold by Pamela Macaluso.

These six passionate stories are sure to leave you tingling... and anticipating next month’s sensuous selections. Enjoy!

Regards,

Melissa Senate

Senior Editor

Silhouette Books

Please address questions and book requests to:

Silhouette Reader Service

U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325, Buffalo, NY 14269

Canadian: P.O. Box 609, Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

Non-Refundable Groom

Patty Salier

www.millsandboon.co.uk

PATTY SALIER

Born and raised in Gravesend, Brooklyn, in New York, Patty credits her mother for her keen logic and her father for her curious, creative mind. She has been a published writer for many years. To Patty, her wonderful husband and two great children are everything she could want in life. “I’ve got so much to be thankful for.”

To my wonderful children,

Diana and Jeff

One

At Grant Property Management in Santa Monica, Elena Martin took a deep breath of courage as she stood up from her desk behind her office partition.

I’m going to get that promotion, she silently repeated like a mantra. I’ve got to get that job!

As she blindly grabbed the folders of the accounts she handled as a property manager, she anxiously thought of ways to convince her boss, Stanley Grant, that she was the perfect person to fill the now-empty seat of vice president.

Glancing down, Elena noticed that a button of her white silk blouse was open, revealing a peek of lacy white bra. She quickly tried to button her blouse and realized that the button hole had stretched too large to hold the button closed.

Everything’s going wrong! she silently screamed.

Ever since she woke up that morning, her emotions had been in an uproar about getting the promotion. She’d left her wallet at home. She didn’t even have her credit card to put gas in the near-empty tank of her car when she drove to work.

Realizing she was a couple of minutes late for her appointment with Stanley, Elena held the files in front of her chest, trying to hide the blouse button in case of another reopening. Then she headed toward his office, walking past the three junior property managers.

“Elena, wait,” called out Grace, a woman in her early sixties who was the receptionist. “Stanley stepped out of his office for a few minutes.”

Elena was too revved up with nervous energy to return to her desk. “He won’t mind if I wait for him inside.”

“But there’s someone else—” Grace’s voice trailed off.

The moment Elena entered Stanley’s office, she came to a sudden halt.

“Stan, I—” a deep male voice began and then stopped.

He was standing by the window with a brown calf leather briefcase in hand. She instantly took in his curly black hair and six-foot, solid frame dressed in a gray suit, pressed white shirt and pale blue print tie.

“You’re definitely not Stanley,” the man said, his twinkling gaze appreciatively taking her all in.

His visual caress sent a tingle straight down to her toes. “I’m Elena Martin,” she stammered, caught off guard by her sensual reaction to him. “I’m a property manager here at the Santa Monica branch.”

His warm charcoal eyes held hers. “I’ve heard Stanley mention your name, but I can’t believe I’ve never met you before,” he said. “I’m Garrett Sims, a property manager at the Sherman Oaks branch.” He stepped closer and extended his hand to her. She noticed that he wasn’t wearing a wedding band.

His large hand covered hers, and she felt a jolt of electricity that completely overwhelmed her. She hadn’t allowed herself to feel close to a man since what happened with her ex-boyfriend, Ted.

She quickly released her hand from his, trying to focus on her promotion goal. “I have a meeting with Stanley.”

“So do I.”

“Right now?”

“Well, yeah.”

“That can’t be,” she said. “You must have your appointment time mixed up.”

“I don’t think so.”

“I’m sure Stanley will explain your time confusion,” she said.

“My time confusion?” he repeated with a warm twinkle in his eyes.

“That’s right,” she said, trying to ignore her strong attraction to him. She unconsciously set down her files on the coffee table. “You’ll need to reschedule.”

When Garrett didn’t immediately respond, she noticed his gaze drift to her blouse. She looked down and saw that her button had reopened, and her bra was showing slightly.

She quickly grabbed the folders to her chest, feeling heat rise to her cheeks, not only from embarrassment, but from the spark of playfulness in his eyes that instantly turned her on.

Just then, Stanley walked in, rushed and preoccupied as usual. In his early sixties, he was stocky, graying and his face was always in a frown.

“I’ve got a lunch meeting right after this,” Stanley said, sitting behind his desk, motioning them onto the sofa.

Superaware of Garrett beside her, Elena tried to ignore her ignited reaction to him.

“Stanley, could I talk to you alone?” she asked.

“Elena, I purposely scheduled you and Garrett together,” her boss went on. “You want to be promoted to vice president, and so does Garrett. The problem is that I’ve only got one opening.”

Elena’s stomach tensed as she glanced at Garrett. She had to get that job. She desperately needed the salary raise to financially help out her younger sister, Jan, and Jan’s two school-aged sons. Ever since Jan’s husband had died of a sudden heart attack six months ago, her sister’s job as a caregiver of elderly women had barely covered the bills. Jan’s husband’s small insurance policy had only covered the funeral costs and some unpaid bills.

She moved to the edge of the sofa. “Stanley, I’m very qualified for the position.” Straggling to keep one folder against her blouse, she pulled out another folder. “On every expense report for the properties I manage, the budget is balanced. I’ve never exceeded the property owners’ cap on expenses.”

“Fine work, Elena,” Stanley said, glancing at her expense reports, nodding, pleased. “You’re doing an excellent job.” He turned to Garrett. “Can I see your budget figures?”

Garrett glanced at her, and she thought she saw him hesitate before opening his briefcase. “Sure, Stan,” he said, handing him a set of papers.

“Superb, Garrett,” Stanley said, flipping through the sheets. “On every building you manage, the expenses are the lowest I’ve ever seen. You’ve saved our clients substantial sums of money. In fact, just today I received a call from one of our building owners praising your work.”

Elena nervously bit the inside of her mouth. She could see Stanley leaning toward Garrett, and she didn’t know what to do.

Stanley’s telephone rang. “Excuse me.” He took the call, swiveling the chair so his back was to them.

Garrett leaned closer to her. “Elena, if you want to talk separately to Stanley,” he whispered, “I’ll tell him I want that, too.”

She could feel his warm breath against her hair. She could smell his musky aftershave. His sensitivity to her feelings surprised her, but she couldn’t allow herself to focus on him if she wanted that job.

“Garrett, is the pressure of competing with me too much for you?” she daringly asked, needing to feel more in control.

His eyes held hers, almost in an embrace. “As a matter of fact, Elena, I’m thoroughly enjoying it.”

So was she, but she didn’t dare tell him!

“Garrett,” she began, “I really need this job, and I’m going to get it!”

A grin spread across his handsome face. “Are you challenging me?”

“Well, yes,” she replied, trying to keep her voice steady. “Yes, I am!”

His gaze remained steady on her. “I completely accept your challenge.”

Her body grew heated at his words as she fantasized that he meant more than just the promotion.

Stanley hung up the phone. “You’ve both put me in a dilemma,” he said, turning back to them. He pulled out a folder from a file cabinet. “I’ve got your résumés in front of me, and they’re top-notch.” He flipped through the paper. “Elena, your credits are very impressive. Three prior years of experience with Drexler Property Management, two years at my company. Now you’re successfully managing ten properties for me.”

She confidently glanced at Garrett with a silent, I told you! But when he smiled and nodded with genuine appreciation, she felt totally thrown off by him again.

“And you, Garrett,” Stanley went on, sifting through the two-page résumé. “You’ve worked as a property manager for ten years, including three at my company. You’re currently managing sixteen properties. And you’ve won the company award for Top Manager of the Year at the Sherman Oaks branch three times in a row.”

Elena suddenly felt ill. Garrett had tons of advantages over her. Experience, more accounts, company awards. And he was a man.

She knew that Stanley had only once hired a woman as vice president, and it was a disaster. She had learned from Grace that the woman fell in love with one of Stanley’s property managers, abandoned the vice presidency to form a small company with her new husband and took most of Stanley’s clients with her.

She was sure that Stanley wasn’t eager to hire another female again. And Grace had told her that Stanley would never again promote or keep anyone who got romantically involved with a co-worker at his branch offices.

To get that promotion, she had to come up with a way to top Garrett’s credits, and fast.

With a jolt of energy, she stood up and blurted, “Stanley, I can prove I’m the perfect person for the job.”

Her boss’s eyebrows lifted with interest. “What do you propose?”

She could feel Garrett’s eyes on her. She pressed the folder to her chest, trying to keep her mind focused on the job and not him.

“Give me one month, Stanley,” she began. “Besides doing my regular job, I’ll rev up new accounts to increase your business.”

Stanley pulled his chair closer to his desk. “Are you saying that you’ll go out and get me new clients?”

“Absolutely!” she blurted.

She panicked. She’d never gotten a new management account at her job. Elena had always been assigned properties to manage by Stanley. He was the one who got new accounts.

“Fascinating idea, Elena,” Stanley said, pondering her concept.

“It sure is,” Garrett added, looking at her, impressed. “How about if you and I compete for new accounts?”

“What do you mean?” she pushed out.

“The one who gets the most new clients for the company wins the vice presidency.”

“Sounds fair to me,” Stanley commented.

“I’m in,” she responded, wanting Garrett to know she was ready to take him on full-force.

“Terrific,” Stanley said. “Now my choice will be an obvious one.”

Just as Stanley’s phone rang again, Grace stuck her head in the office. “Elena, a tenant at the Fourth Street apartment building is having a problem and needs to speak to you.”

“Thanks, Grace, I’ll take it at my desk,” she said, wishing she didn’t have to leave at that moment. “I’ll be right back.”

As Stanley took his call, Garrett couldn’t take his eyes off Elena leaving the office.

Her willful competitive nature turned him on. He was impressed that she wasn’t intimidated by his longer experience at the company. He respected her headstrong desire to get the promotion over him at all costs.

The entire time she’d been in the office, Garrett could barely listen to Stanley talk about the promotion. He was totally mesmerized by her enticing blue eyes.

He yearned to run his fingers through her soft, shoulder-length, streaked blond hair. When he had caught a glimpse of the lace of her bra through her accidentally-opened button, he felt a moment of desire for her.

“Garrett, I like Elena’s competitive-account idea,” Stanley said, hanging up the phone.

“She’s incredible,” he said, and then quickly added, “I mean, she’s a clever thinker.”

“Garrett, I want to be very clear about one thing,” his employer went on. “What I said to you a few weeks ago still holds true.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Garrett said.

Stanley’s proposal was etched permanently into his brain. He’d told Garrett that he planned to retire m the near future, but since he was a widower with no children to pass down the business to, he needed a good man to run his company.

Garrett’s goal was to become that man. But first, he needed to earn the vice presidency and prove his abilities to govern the company.

“To be fair to Elena, I’m giving her idea an equitable chance,” Stanley continued. “But I’ll be honest. My eye is on you. I’m sure with your numerous contacts, you’ll acquire plenty of new accounts to make my final decision an easy one.”

“I won’t disappoint you, Stan,” he said firmly.

Yet, to his surprise, Garrett felt hesitant about powerhousing for new accounts. And he knew why. He wished that Elena Martin wasn’t his competition.

Stanley’s phone rang again. Garrett saw Elena walking toward him. His body heat rose at the sight of her. He noticed that she’d safety-pinned her blouse, and the fabric strained across her full breasts. He’d never felt such a powerful reaction to a woman before—not even his ex-wife.

“Did I miss anything?” Elena asked him, her eyes taking in Stanley on the phone with his back to them.

“Stan’s very impressed with your new account proposal,” he said, feeling uneasy about his boss confiding that he favored him over her.

“I’m going to be vice president, Garrett,” she boldly stated.

The fire in her eyes and the sensual way she was standing with her hand on her hip made him want to draw her into his arms and make wild love to her right then and there.

“Elena, have lunch with me,” he said instead in a low voice so Stanley wouldn’t hear.

“Lunch?” she asked, glancing worriedly at Stanley.

“I want to get a better sense of who my competition is.”

He didn’t know what was happening to him. He knew that Stanley was uncomfortable with employees romancing in the office. Yet when he was near her, he momentarily forgot his desire to become vice president. Being in her presence made him want to ignore every rule in the book.

“I can’t have lunch with you,” she told him.

Stanley hung up. “I’m off,” he said, heading toward the door. “Good luck to the both of you.”

The moment Stanley left, Elena nervously clasped her hands behind her back, superconscious of being alone with Garrett. Everything inside of her wanted to tell him yes for lunch. But how could she? She had just met him and already she was aching to spend more time with him.

Hadn’t she learned from her last boyfriend, Ted, how rushing into a relationship spelled disaster for her? Besides, she knew that Stanley would never promote her if she got involved with one of his property managers.

Grace peeked into the office. “Elena, before you leave for lunch, your sister’s on the phone.”

“My sister?” Just being near him made her brain turn into mush. “Oh, sure, thanks.”

“I could wait to go down in the elevator with you,” Garrett suggested.

“You go ahead,” she said. “I might be a while.” She went to her cubicle.

Yet as she picked up the phone, she wanted to hurry so she could get to the elevator, hoping Garrett would still be there. She couldn’t stop thinking about him!

Her sister sounded worried over the phone. “Mrs. Fowler’s ill,” Jan began, explaining that the elderly lady she cared for had to be taken to the doctor. “Tod and Bennie have a half day off from school,” her sister went on. “Can you pick them up? I’ll try to get home in a little while.”

“Sure, don’t worry,” she told her. “I’ll get the kids and meet you at your house.”

She quickly hung up the phone, checking her bag to make sure that she hadn’t forgotten Jan’s house key like she’d forgotten her wallet at home. Relieved, she found the key and rushed out of the office into the hallway.

Her heart pounded when she spotted Garrett waiting for her. When he saw her, his eyes warmed, and a slow heat filtered through her body. The lunch crowd was pushing into the elevator.

He held open the door for her, even though the elevator was packed. Feeling trembly, she fit into the small space he made for her. She was facing him, and her body lightly pressed against his.

As the elevator vibrated going down, his hand gently brushed her waist to steady her. She felt the electricity of his touch through the fabric of her clothing.

She could feel her breathing quicken when his broad, hard chest lightly pressed against her breasts with the movement of the elevator.

The moment the parking garage level appeared, Elena quickly exited the elevator, slightly out of breath from her physical reaction to Garrett.

“See you,” she said, hurrying to her car.

“There’s still time to change your mind about lunch,” he said.

She noticed him heading toward a blue Mustang parked next to her car. Her hand trembled as she put the key into the ignition, thinking about how much she wanted to have lunch with him.

She turned the key and the engine rolled over but wouldn’t start. She tried again, but her car was dead. She stared at the empty gas gauge.

“Oh, no!” she said, panicking.

In the next moment Garrett was at her driver’s window. “Car trouble?” he asked.

“I’m out of gas,” she told him. “I promised my sister I’d pick up my two nephews from school.”

“Come on,” he said. “I’ll give you a lift.”

“I don’t want to put you out.”

He helped her out and then opened the passenger door of his car for her. “I’ll consider it our lunch date,” he said with teasing eyes.

As she slid into the front seat, she saw him take off his jacket and hurl it into the back. Her gaze lingered on the way his white shirt contoured his massive chest and muscular arms.

“Where to?” he asked, climbing into the driver’s seat.

“Take a right on Florence Street,” she replied, knowing she had to stop fantasizing about him.

“I’ll get my mechanic to bring a couple of gallons of gas to the parking structure and fill your tank,” he offered.

“You don’t have to,” she said, surprised.

“I want to.”

She didn’t know what to say. She was so used to handling her own problems and helping out her sister and nephews that she forgot what it was like to be taken care of.

“Do you live near your sister?” Garrett asked as he drove.

“My apartment’s about ten to fifteen minutes away at One Hundred Rochester Drive.” She abruptly stopped, realizing he hadn’t asked for her address.

He glanced at her and smiled, as though he knew she’d given her address so he could ask her out.

“Are you at your sister’s place a lot?” he pursued. “Or are you at home in the evenings and on weekends?”

“Most Saturdays and Sundays, I’m over at my sister’s. I’ve been helping out ever since her husband passed away,” she replied. “During the week, I usually work late hours.”

“Every night?” His sexy eyes held hers. “Don’t you set aside time for pleasure?”

“My life’s too busy,” she quickly replied, glancing away.

How could she tell him that she hadn’t dated since her ex-boyfriend because she didn’t know if she could ever trust a man’s word again?

She spotted Van Dyke Elementary School up ahead. “There’s my nephews’ school.”

Garrett parked his Mustang at the curb and watched Elena hurry out of the car toward the throng of laughing and chattering children.

He knew he’d upset her. Why had he asked such personal questions? He hadn’t meant to. Yet, he couldn’t help wanting to know everything about her.

“Bennie! Tod!” he heard her call out to two little boys, one taller than the other.

“Aunt Elena, where’s Mom?” asked the little boy with the dirt-smudged face, who was running toward her with a backpack and a boxed juice in his hand.

As Garrett watched her give her nephew a warm hug, a feeling of sadness washed over him. A wife and children of his own were a dream he’d had a time ago. But not now, not after the trauma of his divorce. He knew that marriage didn’t work for him.

“Aunt Elena, will Mom be home when we get there?” asked the older, taller boy, who seemed more mature and serious.

He heard her explain the situation as she took their hands and led them to his car.

“Garrett, I’d like you to meet Bennie,” she began as they reached the car. “He’s six years old and—”

“Smart!” Bennie spoke up for himself.

Garrett laughed. “How are you, Bennie?”

“And this is Tod,” she went on. “He’s nine and a fine baseball player.”

“I’m a catcher!” Tod said proudly.

“Great position.” Garrett shook his hand. “I’m a pitcher on a baseball team with my friends during my spare time.”

“You are?” The older boy’s eyes lit up. “Curve balls or windups?”

“Both,” he replied. “Hop into the back, guys.”

As he opened the door for Elena, she whispered, “You’re great with kids.”

“So are you,” he told her, feeling an inner connection to her that he’d never felt with a woman before.