For Nick (16 page)

“I love every minute with you,” he said, suddenly.

The moment was over quickly. It was the closest he’d ever come to speaking about love. She knew she had fallen in love with him somewhere along the line. She wasn’t quite sure when it was that she knew, only that she had known for some time now. He never said those three little words that would change their lives, so she continued to hold back also.

But if this wasn’t love, then she had no idea what was.

No, that wasn’t true, she corrected herself. She knew love beyond imagination with Nick.

“Andie, are you okay? You look a little tired this evening.”

“I’m okay.” Actually, she wasn’t feeling her best. “I didn’t sleep well last night, that’s all.”

On Friday night Andie slowly walked down the stairs to greet Zach, who looked up at her with adoring eyes. He looked gorgeous in his black and white tux. They matched perfectly. Her dress was black with a white-beaded bodice. She wore her hair in a simple chignon with a few strays curled around her face.

“You look exquisite, Andie,” he said, his brown eyes glittering as he looked her up and down.

The social was held at a swanky hotel in downtown Portland. Andie had never seen anything so fancy, so extravagant. Zach introduced her to so many people, she could hardly remember any of their names. He socialized with ease, displaying his amiable personality. They danced for a while, sneaking kisses here and there. If an audience bothered Zach, he showed no sign of it.

They were just ready to sit and enjoy dinner when a female voice interrupted their conversation.

“Zachary Drake, please don’t tell me it’s true.”

Zach closed his eyes for a moment before turning around to greet the owner of the sultry voice. Andie could have sworn he was dreading the next greeting. It was the second time that evening he seemed uncomfortable, the first being when he’d introduced her to a ‘lawyer friend’ of the family, some man named Chambers. She’d had the distinct feeling he didn’t like the man.

“Hello, Cami. I heard you were back in town.”

‘Cami’ held Zach’s shoulders with familiarity and kissed both of his cheeks. Andie tightened her grip on Zach’s arm and even pulled a little closer to him. There was something about the way the woman looked at Zach, as if she wanted to eat him alive.

“Zachary, the confirmed bachelor, married? What did she do, knock you unconscious and drag you to the altar?” Cami laughed good-naturedly.

Zach softly caressed Andie’s hand reassuringly. “Yep. Woke up and it was over. Guess I’m trapped,” he joked. “Cami, this is Andrea. She goes by Andie. Andie, I’d like you to meet Camille Stephens. She goes by Cami.”

Camille was almost as tall as Zach. She looked statuesque in her emerald sequined evening gown, standing with one hand on her hip. She was quite beautiful with her blond hair neatly tucked into a perfect upsweep, not a hair out of place. Andie knew her smile was strained as she said hello.

“She’s cute, Zach. I guess Em
might
approve,” Camille remarked.

Andie felt Zach stiffen at the thoughtless comment.

As if unaware of the impact of her observation, she said, “I’m gone in Greece for a holiday and look what I come back to, my favorite man taken out from under me.”

“Aw, Cami, you’ll survive. You always do,” Zach said, joining in her light banter and chuckling softly.

Andie suddenly felt like the other woman. Only she hadn’t stolen Zach from anyone and she was his wife. To her dismay, Camille joined them as they sat for dinner. Although Andie sat next to Zach, Camille sat on his other side, speaking non-stop, mostly about her trip to Greece. She completely monopolized his attention.

Andie sat in Zach’s shadow, a bystander to the conversation. Zach, in an effort to include her, turned in his chair, pulled her close, and wrapped an arm around her. He smiled at her warmly, if not a little apologetically, and she smiled back. He hadn’t forgotten about her, he was just being polite. Andie couldn’t resist. She reached up and ran her hand through his hair gently, her fingertips massaging his scalp. “Mmmmm…” he murmured. “That feels good.”

Maybe it was done as a sign of ownership. She’d admit to it readily. But she couldn’t seem to help herself. The woman acted as though Zach was hers and Andie was an intruder. Camille watched through narrowed eyes and Andie knew she didn’t like the show of affection between them.

Good.

As the evening died down and they were saying their goodbyes, Andie excused herself to the ladies’ room, wondering at Zach’s relationship with ‘Cami.’

When she stepped out of the stall, by some sort of obvious premeditated coincidence, Camille was at the mirror, refreshing her already perfect make-up. Andie avoided conversation, washed her hands, dried them, and turned to leave.

“How did you do it?” Camille asked without looking at her, applying lipstick and smacking her lips.

“What?”

“How did you get Zachary to marry you? Did you seduce him? Did you trap him with a pregnancy?” she questioned.

“He asked and I said yes. It’s as simple as that.”

“He’s only ever loved Emily. No one else compares in his eyes. You’ll never have his love.”

It was at that moment that Andie knew Camille was in love with Zach and instead of feeling angry, she felt a little sorry for her.

“He asked me first, you know, or did he forget to mention that? I’m not sure why he’s suddenly feeling desperate to get married, but he’s clearly made a mistake.”

Zach had asked Camille to marry him? What was going on here? She was suddenly in the middle of a triangle, only she was clueless. One thing was for sure, Zach and ‘Cami’ had a history.

The door to the ladies’ room opened and Andie could see Zach standing in the foyer, waiting for her. She saw the way shock registered on his face at the sight of Camille and Andie in conversation. The door closed and Andie’s attention returned to Camille.

“I guess he turned to you in consolation,” Camille said unkindly.

Feeling more than a little miffed, Andie replied, “Yeah, well, I’ve consoled him…every night…and enjoyed it too.” With that, Andie turned and left the room. Camille clearly had no idea their marriage was a business arrangement, which meant only one thing…Camille’s offer of marriage had been real. Andie approached Zach, not meeting his eyes, feeling somehow betrayed. Camille was hot on her heels.

“Zachary, may I speak with you privately please?”

Zach touched her shoulder lightly, “I’ll just be a minute, Andie.”

Zach and Camille walked outside the glass doors of the hotel lobby and Andie settled into an overstuffed chair. She tried not to watch, but occasionally she glanced to see what was going on. Zach stood rigidly, his hands in his pockets, while Camille was obviously on a tirade. Her mouth was moving a mile a minute and her hands flew in the air dramatically. When she took a breather, Zach would say a few words quietly and then off she’d go again. At times her voice was so loud that Andie could hear her through the glass, but was unable to make out exactly what she was saying. After about five minutes, Camille stormed off.

Andie felt humiliated to have to wait for her husband as he spoke with his…what? Former girlfriend? There was nothing to do but sit and watch Zach, wondering what he was thinking. Was he filled with regret? Evidently Camille has changed her mind and now wants to marry him. She was extremely angry that Zach had married someone else. Andie had no idea what to expect next. Maybe this was why Zach needed a pretend wife, to make Camille jealous. Maybe Zach would take her home and announce that their marriage was over, his dilemma was solved…
but hey, keep the million and it was nice knowing you.

Even after all they’d shared, she feared the worst. They drove home in a tension-filled silence.

“Would you like a snack?” Zach asked as they entered the house. “Those dinners never satisfy me.”

“Okay”

They entered the kitchen and Zach prepared two sandwiches. He cut hers into triangles and removed the crust, she noted with an ache in her heart. He set them on the table and observed her thoughtfully. “Am I getting the silent treatment?”

Andie sat down and tossed her heels across the room and let them land wherever they may. Maybe they would disappear and she’d never see them again. She hoped so. She massaged her feet, then broached the elephant in the room. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Tell you what?”

“About Camille.”

“There’s nothing to tell.”

Andie stood and faced him, the table between them. “Really? Her version of events differs.”

“I wondered what you were talking about in the ladies’ room.”

This wasn’t going well. She could tell Zach was getting irritated. One woman had already yelled at him tonight. “Is it true?”

“What?”

“I wasn’t the first woman you proposed marriage to.” It was a statement, not a question.

“Yes.” Zach put his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“It has nothing to do with you. I didn’t know you then.” Their eyes bored into each other’s.

“I think you owe me an explanation.”

“I owe you nothing,” he snapped.

Hurt, Andie took a step back, surprised at his words. Unsure of where they stood as a couple, she retreated, “I…I’m sorry. You’re right.” She turned to leave.

“Wait, I didn’t mean that.” Zach let out his breath heavily and ran his hand through his hair. “Look, Andie…I’ve known Camille for years. She was my wife’s best friend. We’ve always shared a flirtatious relationship, but it’s all done in jest. She’s not serious. Over the years, I’ve had no desire to date. She seemed safe to take as a companion whenever I needed one for a social function. It was never anything more than that. We’re friends, that’s all. When I realized I needed a wife, she was the first person to come to mind. If you remember, you asked me in Tahoe why I didn’t just ask a woman friend to fill the space for a year. Well, my answer still holds: too messy and too emotional. As you witnessed tonight.”

“But you did ask her to marry you?”

“It’s not what you think. I told her I knew we weren’t in love with each other, but that we got along nicely, and perhaps we should have a go at marriage. I figured two friends ought to be able to make a success of it. I never mentioned my reasons for needing a wife or a business arrangement of any kind. She got all flustered, told me no, and said she was leaving for Greece on vacation. I haven’t heard from her since…until tonight. She refused
me
, I don’t understand why she’s so mad. Like I said, too messy and too emotional.”

Andie let his story reverberate through her mind. There was still so much she didn’t know about this man. Zach slowly approached and hugged her to him. “I’m sorry, Andie. Let’s not fight. Please don’t be angry with me.” He pressed his lips to hers softly.

He was forgiven.

Later, as they lay in his bed entwined, he explained further, “Honestly, I didn’t think of telling you about Cami because it wasn’t important to me. I didn’t think it mattered. Forgive me for snapping at you?”

“Of course. But, Zach…don’t you realize she’s in love with you?”

“Camille?” he scoffed. “No, she’s not. She certainly didn’t want to marry me.”

“Think about the way you proposed. I mean really, Zach, even if I was madly in love with you I would’ve turned you down flat too. Take it from me, we women want the fairy tale. We don’t want to be told, ‘hey, I know we’re not in love or anything, but let’s give marriage a try just for the heck of it.’ She wanted you to follow her to Greece and beg her to marry you. I’d say she was counting on it. That’s why she was so upset tonight.”

Zach looked at her incredulously. “Nooooo, you’ve got it all wrong. Camille doesn’t feel that way about me. We’ve just been convenient for each other.”

Andie scoffed and then covered his chest with kisses. “Why are men so blind sometimes?” she mumbled.

Zach held her head in his hands and looked her directly in the eyes. “I’m serious. Camille doesn’t feel that way about me. We’re just friends. We always have been.”

“She’s in love with you,” Andie stated again bluntly. “Trust me.” She resumed kissing his chest.

“What did she say to you?”

“That you turned to me in consolation. Want to know what I told our…
cunningly clash-causing Camille
?”

Zach smiled with anticipation. “I am…
woefully wandering
within
wooded
woods wondering what
?”

Andie raised her eyebrows at him, “That was good.”

“Thank you.”

“I informed Miss Camille that I’ve consoled you…every night…and enjoyed it too.”

Incredulous, he said, “You didn’t.”

“I did.”

Zach was quiet for several moments and then burst out laughing. “My sweet, innocent Andie, I can’t believe you said that. No wonder she was so mad. I thought she was going to explode.”

Zach rolled her over until he was on top of her, kissing her tenderly. “Here’s the thing. Camille was with me when I found Emily. She helped me through the ordeal. That’s the extent of the connection between us.”