Husband for Hire (10 page)

B
reakfast was a noisy affair. Sam, Trent and Jeff recounted stories of their club hopping, declaring Sacramento's nightlife “okay” and the women “above average.” Faint praise, Gavin thought. He wondered how serious they were about moving to Sacramento.

Most of all he wondered about Eric, who ate a couple of pieces of French toast, but skipped the rest, although he said he felt better, but didn't look it.

Becca had put herself in the middle of the familial circle, looking happily beleaguered by her teasing brothers, but catching Gavin's eye now and then, smiling in an all-knowing way.

It'd been a hell of a night.

He hadn't slept, hadn't cared about it, either, taking comfort in holding her, listening to her sleep, finding satisfaction in making love at three o'clock in the morning. He'd forgotten how leisurely middle-of the-night sex could be, those slow, rolling climaxes that weren't always as strong but lasted pleasurably longer.

At some point today, he would probably crash, but not before they talked about what came next, a discussion they'd decided to put off until they were alone.

Considering how much could change between now and then, they'd been wise to delay, he thought. They needed to be flexible, to adapt and adjust in a heartbeat.

And apparently that heartbeat was about to happen. He watched Eric approach him in the kitchen where he was stacking the dishes in the sink. Eric had a look in his eye, one that said he meant business.

“Let's go for a walk,” Eric said.

“Okay.” He stopped at the dining-room table, where Becca and her other brothers were lingering over coffee. “Eric and I are taking a walk,” he said, bending to kiss her, feeling her surprise. “Are we telling the truth?” he whispered.

“Only if you feel backed into a corner,” she whispered back, then kissed him, looking like a happy wife. “Be nice,” she ordered Eric.

He gave her a look that said this was between the
two men and that she should stay out of it. Gavin grabbed his jacket then met Eric at the front door.

“How long do you think you'll be?” Becca asked, having moved to stand next to Eric, not able to hide the worry in her voice.

“As long as it takes,” Eric answered.

“It's fine,” Gavin said to her, rubbing her arm. “Use the time to see how serious those three are about moving here now that they've checked out some of the single women in town.” He opened the door, letting Eric precede him, who then made him wait until they'd left the building and started walking before he opened the discussion. This was the first Sunday morning Gavin had spent in downtown Sacramento. There was traffic, but it was mild, as was the weather.

“I had a background check done on you overnight,” Eric said.

“That doesn't surprise me.” In fact, he'd wondered why Becca hadn't done the same thing, but apparently she hadn't or she would've had questions. Big questions.

“I would've done it sooner,” Eric said, “but I didn't know your last name. She always referred to you as Doc.”

An accusatory tone coated his words. Apparently the blame was Gavin's. “We never talked about it. I didn't know she was keeping you in the dark, Eric. She must've had her reasons.”

“I can't imagine what they would be. You're well
established in a thriving ob-gyn practice with three other doctors. She should be happy to share that information.”

And now Becca's brother knew something that she didn't. How was this going to play out? How many lies did he have to tell? “Maybe she wanted to surprise you. Let us meet first.”

They rounded a corner, their strides getting longer and faster as emotions were added to the mix.

“Surprise me? Yes, I've found out a lot that's surprised me, Gavin.”

Gavin steeled his spine for what was to come. “Like?”

“Like you're not registered with Doctors Without Borders.”

“No.”

“Yet Becca has said for months that you were out of the country most of the time, which was why you weren't available to meet us. And the reason for the elopement. She said you were about to go into a country that was dangerous.”

“She was stalling, I believe.” They walked between two tall buildings, blocking the sunlight. The temperature dropped immediately.

“Why would she do that?”

Gavin looked directly at him, taking in how ill he looked, but Gavin was sure Eric wouldn't want the discussion interrupted with questions about his health.

“She felt pressured by you and your brothers,”
Gavin said. “She's felt pressured for years, apparently. You all tried to set her up on blind dates, even when she asked you not to. You haven't treated her as an adult, but your kid sister. I get that—I have a couple of younger sisters myself—but she reached the end of her rope with your interference. I think she wanted us to have time to ourselves to see where our relationship was going first, so she made up a story so that you and I wouldn't meet.”

Confusion registered in Eric's eyes. “I'm stunned, Gavin. Really. We've only been protecting her. Our parents weren't around to do that.”

“Protecting shouldn't mean smothering, and that's how she's felt. She's thirty years old. She's got an MBA from Wharton. She's a cofounder of a successful, cutting-edge business. She negotiates deals, Eric. Big ones. She supports herself just fine. You all need to take a second look at who she's become and back off.”

“Back off? We've been trying to save her.”

“How? From what? I don't get it.”

Eric shoved his hands through his hair. “She never slows down. Never. She's always in such a hurry—no, a
frenzy
to get things done. We figured the right man could get her to slow down. We thought she was on her way to a big crash. We were doing everything we could to prevent that. If that's interference, so be it.”

“I could see that, too,” Gavin said quietly. He'd thought all along there was something bizarre about
all of them setting her up with dates. She'd misinterpreted. They weren't waiting on her to get settled so that they finally could. They were afraid for her.

Eric surveyed their surroundings, saying nothing. They made another right turn, which meant they were halfway through their walk, therefore halfway through their conversation.

“What about the medical malpractice suit against you?” Eric asked, leaving the subject of Becca's mental health behind.

“It's resolved. I wasn't found liable.”
I did what I had to do to save two lives. And now everyone has to live with the consequences.

“Why are you living with Becca here? You have a home in San Francisco.”

“After the hearings ended a couple of weeks ago, I decided to take some time off. It was a grueling experience, plus I've always put in long hours. I needed to recharge.”

“When you're done recharging? What then? You'll live there, and she'll live here?”

“That's one option.” Gavin was grateful Eric hadn't pushed about the lawsuit. If he opened up to anyone about it, he wanted it to be Becca. In fact, no matter how things worked out today, he would do that, tell her the truth. He owed her that.

“Ah. The weekend marriage. How modern of you.” Eric didn't hide his sarcasm. “Hard to make babies that way. But then, you would know all about that, wouldn't you?”

“Everything you've said and asked has sounded like an accusation. Why?”

“Because this is my sister we're talking about. There's no one in the world I love more. I don't want her hurt.”

And your sister doesn't want children.
“No one can promise that.”

“I know.” His voice was raspy, full of emotion.

They made another turn.

Almost there, Gavin thought. The conversation had to come to an end soon.

“Something else bothers me,” Eric said.

Gavin waited.

“I understand you own a nice house in San Francisco, but…roommates, Gavin? Really? At your age and with your professional status?”

Gavin was tired of the intrusion into his life. He wasn't married to the man's sister. He was a temporary husband for hire, bought and paid for. At least this time he could tell the truth.

“That house was the best investment I've made. I bought it with the intention of using it as income property while I was doing my residency, and, yes, I've had roommates all along, fellow residents, now full-time practicing physicians. I worked pretty much all the time. So did they. We rarely saw each other. But two of them have moved on, and the last one is getting married next month, so the house will be all mine. I don't have a moment's regret for doing that.”

After Gavin wrapped up his speech he clamped his mouth shut. He was done with this conversation. He couldn't stand up to Eric without harming Becca's relationship with him.

“My apologies,” Eric said. “I jumped to conclusions. It's a bad habit of mine.”

Gavin shifted his shoulders, but said nothing.

“Look,” Eric said, his voice softening. “I've kept a close eye on you, both of you, since I got here yesterday. I like what I see. You've been good for her, there's no doubt about that. Her house is in order, but more important, she's happy. It's obvious how much she loves you, and you her.”

It stopped Gavin cold, hearing that. If Eric thought Becca had fallen in love, they'd pulled it off. They'd given a masterful performance.

Why, then, did it feel so wrong? And deceitful?

Low.

They made the final turn onto her street, came to her lobby door. Eric stopped there and put out his hand.

“Thank you for what you've done for her. And welcome to the family.”

Now Gavin felt lower than low as he returned Eric's handshake. “Thank you,” he said simply.

“One last thing,” Eric said. “I'll be giving her your wedding gift as soon as we go back upstairs. I'm counting on you to make sure it gets used.”

With that enigmatic statement, they went inside and upstairs. When they entered the loft, Becca
turned in her chair. Her smile looked a little sick.

He didn't rush across the room. There wasn't much he could say or do that wouldn't be seen by the three men still seated at the dining table with her. Couldn't give her a thumbs-up. Couldn't wipe his brow as if relieved. In fact, he didn't know if Eric would say something that would come as a shock to Becca, either, and how she would handle it.

“I challenged him to a duel,” Eric said behind him, saving the day. “It was a tie.” Then, there was a moment of silence before he spoke again. “I couldn't have chosen a better husband for you if I'd picked him myself, Bec.”

Her smile lit up the room. “Thank you.” She hurried to him, giving him a hug. “I'm glad.”

“It'll make life easier, I know,” Eric said drily, then he angled back and looked at her. “Now it's your turn.”

Eric didn't take her outdoors but to her bedroom. She sat on the bed as he wandered around the room, examining the photographs on her dresser, peeking into her closet, which she hadn't shut. Gavin's clothes were visible.

“It's good to see your loft is finally a home,” he said, taking a seat on the chaise, still looking pale and wobbly.

“I know. I can't believe I let it sit like that for five months. Gavin took care of everything,” she said, giving credit where credit was due.

“He also says you're still debating about your living arrangements in the future.”

“That's right.” She wished she knew exactly what they talked about so that she could match Gavin's stories. All she could do was trust that their separate stories held up.

“It must be hard, with your job being here and his practice being in San Francisco.”

So far, so good, she thought. “We'll figure it out.”

“Well, if you end up wanting to sell this place, let me know. I might be interested.”

That caught her off guard. “So, you were serious about moving here?”

“I need to get out of New York. And now that you're settled, I can start looking for the same thing you have. I've found myself missing my family.” He shifted in his seat. “Or would you rather I didn't move here?”

He looked sad. Maybe heartbroken? He'd always loved the hustle and bustle of New York, so to leave it was huge. What happened to change his mind?

“I would love to have you close by, Eric. All four of you. No question.” Which was the truth. She just didn't see how she could maintain her pretend marriage for any length of time. The lie seemed worth it now that Eric appeared to be moving forward with his life. She'd met her goal.

“Gavin tells me we've smothered you,” Eric said. “Me, especially.”

She didn't know what to say to that. She didn't know in what context Gavin had made that point.

“I missed walking you down the aisle, and that hurts, Bec. I wish you'd been honest with me. I wish you hadn't felt like you needed to elope.”

The last thing she wanted was for them to end the visit with an argument, but she also needed to take advantage of the opening to make her point. She wouldn't be “married” for long. “How many times did I ask you to back off, Eric? Lots and lots. You never took me seriously.”

He nodded, then he turned his head and swallowed. “I'm sorry I screwed up with you. Does it help to know that my heart was in the right place?”

She rushed over to him and hugged him hard. “Yes. But I never doubted that. I owe you a lot, Eric. A whole lot. But not control of my life.”

He squeezed her tight, then let her go. She sat beside him, bumping shoulders. “I love you.”

He kissed her head. “I love you, too. It's hard to give up worrying about you. But I like your Gavin. He'll do you well.” He pulled an envelope from his back pocket and handed it to her.