Somebody Like You (22 page)

He’d been a little rough since they’d landed and he’d spotted the limo and driver. The deferential treatment when they’d arrived. Rufus and Silas. All this didn’t sit well with him. He was used to being in charge and calling the shots. She’d given him a good hard yank out of his comfort zone, and guilt pricked her conscience. He hadn’t signed on for any of this when he’d agreed to hire her.

But then, she’d become more than an employee, he far more than her boss. How would this trip with all the fuss and the press affect their relationship? She seriously doubted anything could be the same and regretted that.

Responsibility weighed heavy on her shoulders.

She considered sending the masseuse to his room. Considered snitching a bottle of her oil and paying him a visit herself. Then, she got real and decided against both. He needed to work off the snit by himself. He was a big boy and would deal with it.

In the meantime, Annelise remembered she had a speech to give tonight. While she prepared her remarks, Dottie took a nap—sitting up in a comfy upholstered chair so she didn’t mess her hair or makeup.

Right at seven, Silas and Cash came to collect her and Dottie. Cash walked in behind them. Her cowboy was gone. In his place stood as urbane a man as she’d ever seen. The man, so at home in jeans and boots, looked positively yummy in his black tux and crisp white shirt. He filled the tux out oh, so, well. He about knocked her off her stilettos.

He was busy doing his own perusal. “Darlin’, you looking like that, I could just sop you up with a biscuit.”

She grinned. “Cash, that might be the best, and most honest, compliment I’ve ever received. Thank you.”

He took her hand, spun her in a slow turn. “Let me get a good look at you.”

She obliged. The gown Maggie had created was stunning and fit her impeccably. The pale, sheer fabric set off her dark hair. The jewelry Neiman Marcus sent over for her was perfection. Nancy, her mother’s personal shopper, had chosen dangly diamond and onyx earrings and a diamond-studded cuff bracelet. She’d decided against a necklace, and she’d been right. The dress didn’t need it.

“Dottie? Are you ready?” she called.

“Am I ever.” Her bedroom door opened, and Dottie stepped out. She spread her arms wide. “What do you think?”

“Oh, Dottie. You’re beautiful,” Annelise said.

“Darlin’,” Cash said, taking Dottie’s hands in his, “if I wasn’t so hung up on this filly beside me, I’d get down on one knee right here and now and beg you to run off with me.”

Rising to her tiptoes, Dottie kissed his cheek, then wiped off the lipstick smudge. “And if I was a few years younger, I might consider giving Annie a run for her money, Cash Hardeman. Who knew you’d clean up so well? Mmm, mmm.”

Then she turned her attention to Annelise. “You look like a storybook princess in that dress.” She reached out to touch the earrings. “Real?”

“Yes.”

“Did you see mine?” Dottie turned her head, pushed her hair back. Emerald-cut tourmalines in a soft pink winked at her ears. A matching pendant hung at her neck. Silver bracelets circled her wrists.

“They suit you.”

“I feel like a princess myself. And you’re my fairy godmother.” Tears welled in Dottie’s eyes. “Today has been magical.”

“Don’t cry,” Annelise admonished. “You’ll ruin your makeup.”

Dottie blew out a big breath. “I know.” She waved a hand in front of her face. “I had a massage, Cash. I’ve never had one before. It was totally decadent, and I loved it. And someone did my hair—and my nails.”

She held out her hands, then stuck one foot in the air to show off the pink toenails peeping out of her new shoes. “I’ve been royally pampered this afternoon.”

Annelise caught the look Cash sent her way, thanking her with his eyes. She smiled back at him, turning her attention his way. “And you. I can’t believe the change. From rancher to debonair escort. I have to say, you look unbelievably handsome.”

She told herself to shut up, but her mouth refused to obey. “You are model-perfect. The ultimate man in a tuxedo.”

His dimples deepened. “Oh, yeah?”

“Every woman in that room tonight, from nine to ninety, is going to wonder where I found you and what they have to do to steal you away from me.”

“She’s right,” Dottie said. “Told you, I’d be mighty tempted if I could figure out how to shave a few years off my age.”

“Maybe I like older women,” he teased.

“And maybe they like you.” Her eyes twinkled. “I’ve got to believe, though, that right now, a younger woman’s got your eye.”

“And you’d be right.” He ran a hand down Annelise’s arm.

“Before we go downstairs and get caught up in the mad rush, I have to ask, Cash,” Annelise said. “Where did you manage to find a tux so fast? And one that fits so well.”

“That’s an easy one to answer. I found it in my closet. Right where I hung it after the last time I wore it.”

“You—Oh! It’s yours, not a rental. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have assumed—”

He
tsked
at her. “Those assumptions, Annie. They’ll bite you in the butt every time.”

“Oh, and there’s the pot calling the kettle black!”

Ignoring her comment, he reached out and looped his arms through both women’s. “A stunner on both arms. What more could any man want? We ready to do this?”

“You bet.”

At the elevator, Silas reached into his inside pocket. “Your mother sent this.”

The ring her grandfather had given her on her sixteenth birthday.

“She thought you might want it.”

“She was right.” Emotion thickened her voice. “Thank you.”

“You’re more than welcome.” Silas rode the elevator down with them, then followed at a discreet distance.

“Is he going to do this all night?” Cash asked out of the corner of his mouth.

“Yes. He is. Every time I turn around, either Silas or Rufus will be watching me. I warned you. I tried to explain the cons of my life. Everyone tends to see only the benefits. All in all, though, I guess it’s a small price to pay for the opportunities I’ve been given.”

“But you have no privacy, no freedom,” Cash said.

“There is that.”

C
ash couldn’t believe this woman was the same one who’d ridden into Maverick Junction on a Harley. Who’d cleaned his stalls, spoiled his horses, and gone skinny-dipping with him at the old pond.

He’d stood in the doorway amazed and more than a little shaken. She’d knocked his socks off.

But he warned himself to be careful. Annelise had the ability to break his heart if he let her. When he’d seen her standing there, he’d fully accepted for the first time that she truly was the Montjoy heiress.

Not his. She’d never be his. Their lives were poles apart. They could never mesh them—not long-term.

Silas at their heels, they walked into the hotel’s ballroom. While Cash had thought the lobby over the top, this room put it to shame. The press milled around the door, waiting like vultures for their money shot. The instant they spotted Annelise, an entire bank of photographers started snapping pictures, the flashes nearly blinding.

Cash liked to think of himself as pretty self-assured. He knew who he was and liked that man. Still, he found himself slightly overwhelmed by the crush and all the attention. Annie dealt with this on a daily basis. And even though she had a serious reason for setting out cross-country, he understood why she’d enjoyed the interlude in Maverick Junction. It must have been a breath of fresh air.

No wonder she’d fought so hard to keep her true identity a secret. From everyone. It gave her freedom for the first time ever. That she’d lied by omission to him suddenly became understandable. Didn’t mean he had to like it, but he could sure see where she was coming from.

She smiled and turned slowly, giving each photographer in the sea of cameras a chance to capture her on film. And yet Cash realized the smile didn’t reach her eyes. This was her polite smile. But even this semblance of the real thing lit up the room.

On his other arm, Dottie was like a teenager, grinning and waving at the press. He smiled. The paparazzi had no clue who she was. Not ready to take any chances, they snapped shot after shot of her. She’d wished her kids could see her. No doubt they would.

The way she looked tonight, no one would ever figure her for a grandma who was at her happiest baking cookies in her kitchen. She looked amazing in her new outfit and preened and posed like an Oscar-winning star walking the red carpet.

Annie had given Dottie an incredible gift, one she’d never forget. For that alone, he loved her.

Loved her? He almost stumbled over his own feet. Whoa. No sense getting carried away. He liked Annie, sure. He lusted after her and couldn’t wait to get her back in his bed. But love? He wasn’t going there, Whispering Pines and Grandpa be damned.

Annie threw him a quick are-you-okay glance, and he sent her a shaky smile.

“I’m good.”

They moved past the photographers. Annie shook hands and made introductions and small talk with the flair of a well-seasoned pro. So did Dottie. To Cash’s amazement, now that they’d arrived, the older woman’s nerves had fled. She handled the fanfare with all the aplomb of someone long used to being the center of attention. He loved it.

Waiters circulated with trays of fancy hors d’oeuvres. Dottie nibbled her way through the crowd, tasting everything and drinking champagne delivered on silver trays by black-tuxed waiters.

“I feel like Cinderella.” She giggled. “My new tenant. Who’d have believed all this?” She beamed at Annie.

Her new tenant indeed, Cash thought. Annie, at home in evening gown and diamonds, drinking champagne from crystal flutes, while he’d give anything to have a beer in his hand right about now and be wearing his faded blue jeans and an old tee.

But, this wasn’t about him. Tonight belonged to Annie. She’d sacrificed a lot to show up at this shindig, much more than he’d originally realized. The least he could do was smile and pretend to enjoy himself.

In the morning, he’d fly her home. After that—well, who knew? They’d cross that stream when they came to it, wouldn’t they?

Not every man wore a tux, he noted. The ones who didn’t, though, were outfitted in perfectly cut black suits with tailored shirts and big, silver belt buckles. Turquoise and silver bolos took the place of the bow tie currently strangling him. Raising his chin, he tugged at it.

He glanced at Annie again. That dress was sexy as hell, yet somehow demure at the same time. He wasn’t quite sure how Maggie had pulled it off. He’d have to give her a call, though, and thank her. She’d outdone herself and had made Annie…and him…very happy.

“I’m gonna sidle over to the bar. Think I’d prefer a Scotch to this bubbly. Unless they’ve got a cold Lone Star in a long-necked bottle, and I don’t guess the chance of getting that lucky is very good.”

“All right. You know where our table is?”

“Yeah. I spotted it when I came in.”

Annie slid her hand in Dottie’s, and the two melted into the throng of benefactors.

He made his way to the bar and grabbed an empty stool. “I’ll have a Scotch neat,” he said when the bartender approached him.

“Cash?”

The man beside him turned.

“Brawley? Brawley Odell? What the heck are you doing here?” He wrapped an arm around his best friend and clapped him on the back.

“I might ask the same. You’re lost, bro. Last time I checked, Maverick Junction was due south of the Big D.”

Cash chuckled. “To be really honest, I’m not sure what I’m doing here. This is so not my thing.” The bartender placed his drink in front of him. Cash tipped him, took a sip, then set the glass on the counter. “You here alone?”

“No, my date’s the brunette over there in the red dress.” He pointed at a well-endowed woman a few tables away. Brawley nudged Cash in the side. “Rachel’s a Dallas cheerleader. Flexible. Very, very flexible, if you know what I mean.”

“Yeah, I think I get the picture.” Cash laughed. “Well, having you here, the night just got a whole lot better.”

“Who’d you come with?”

“I came with Annie. Actually, I flew her and Dottie Willis up from Maverick Junction today. We’ll stay overnight, then fly back to the ranch tomorrow.”

“Dottie’s here?”

“Yep.”

“Did she bring any cookies?”

“It wouldn’t surprise me to find a stash of them hidden in her suitcase.”

“So who’s Annie?”

“Annelise Montjoy. She’s—”

He started to point, but Brawley stopped him.

“I know who Annelise Montjoy is. The entire world knows Annelise. She’s tonight’s star attraction. Stepping up in the world, huh?”

“Hardly.” A dark cloud flitted over Cash’s head. Everybody except him. How had he not known her? But then neither had the people of Maverick Junction. Guess it was a case of what you expected. No one expected to see the Montjoy heiress dressed in jeans and tees, working on a ranch, so they didn’t. She’d been out of her bubble.

The town had seen only a hardworking, down-to-earth woman. She’d been hiding in plain sight.

“You’re really here with Annelise Montjoy?”

“Yeah, she’s actually working for me. On the ranch.”

“Come on, you’re pulling my leg.”

“No, I’m not.”

“No shit.” Brawley slapped him on the back. “Her Now and Then Foundation does good work.”

“Have you met her?”

“Nope.”

Cash dragged Brawley across the room to meet Annie, who finessed a place for him and his date at their table.

It was like homecoming. Cash, Brawley, and Dottie chatted about friends and neighbors. They talked all through dinner, catching up with one another’s lives.

Cash noticed that Annie, though she’d carried champagne while schmoozing, stuck to soft drinks. He probably would, too, if he had to speak in front of this group. On second thought, if it was him taking center stage, he’d need more than a few stiff drinks to make it through the ordeal.

Dinner cleared away, Annie took her place on stage and waited for an introduction. At some point, Rufus had joined Silas. He noticed both men now flanked the stage. They took their job seriously, and he was glad.

Cash welcomed the chance to sit back and watch Annie. To enjoy her cool, elegant beauty. He marveled at how calm she looked in front of this group of movers and shakers. As she stepped to the podium, no one would have guessed she hadn’t spent hours preparing. She looked totally confident and self-assured.

She made light of the introducer’s remarks about her having dropped out of sight. Smiling, she said, “I didn’t really. I knew right where I was.”

The audience laughed, and Annie continued. “I’ve been incredibly busy, keeping my head low and getting work done. There’s a lot that happens behind the scenes to keep a business going, as I’m sure everyone here is all too well aware of.”

Cash studied the audience, the nodding heads, and knew she’d be okay.

Then she placed both hands on the lectern, leaned into it, and became one with the audience. Her voice, clear and impassioned, rang out over the room.

“Tonight, you and I shared a wonderful meal. We ate more than we should have and will, no doubt, hit the gym a little harder tomorrow as a result. Yet right now, children are going to bed without dinner. Their bellies hurt, not from overindulging, but from lack of sufficient food, day after day after day.”

Those spectacular blue eyes moved through the crowd, connecting and making it personal. “No child deserves that. In this land where we’re so blessed and have so much, there’s no excuse for hunger.”

She paused for effect. “Equally important is seeing to it that when that child reaches adulthood, he can feed himself, can then pass it on and help another hungry child. That’s why our foundation focuses not only on today, but tomorrow. Now and then.”

His chest swelled as he listened to her.

“Children will be fed because you attended tonight. Children will be educated and become productive members of our society, and I thank you for that. My thanks, too, to the hotel and the wait staff for all their hard work. Without them, tonight wouldn’t have been possible.”

As she received a standing ovation, Cash realized all over again that although she’d been brought up with everything, she never forgot the ones behind the scenes, the ones who did the grunt work. And didn’t that make her all that much more attractive? His Annie was beautiful through and through.

Make that Annie. Just Annie. Not
his
.

But oh, how he wished she could be. She’d become important to him. Very important. He didn’t want her to leave.

He realized she had to. This was a train stop for her. Him, his ranch—they weren’t her life. Annie belonged here amidst this glitter. Here, tonight, this was her world.

It wasn’t his.

She wove through the tables, shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries. When she reached their table, Cash stood and pulled out her chair, then dropped a light kiss on her cheek.

“You did well, Annie. Really well. You’ve raised a lot of money tonight for one heck of a worthy cause. I’m proud of you.”

Surprised, her eyes widened. “Thank you.” Turning her head, she brushed her lips over his. “If that picture makes the morning news”—she shrugged—“I can live with it.”