He stood when she approached. “Fallon, you’re looking lovely this evening.” She was stunned when he kissed her on the cheek before she slid into the booth.
“Uh, thank you,” she returned, her pulse thumping erratically from the contact of his lips.
“I took the liberty of ordering wine,” Gage said, pinning her with his razor-sharp gaze. “A Montoya Cabernet. I hope that’s all right?”
She nodded, somewhat amazed at how at ease he was in a restaurant of such wealth and sophistication. He poured her a glass. She accepted and tipped her glass to his when he held it up for a toast.
“And what are we toasting?” she asked.
“New beginnings.”
Fallon sipped her wine. “Sounds intriguing.”
He grinned, showing off a pearly white smile, and Fallon’s stomach flip-flopped. “I’ve been away in New York and London the last decade. So, get me up to speed, Fallon. How did you end up as CEO of Stewart Technologies?”
“It’s really quite simple. My father needed an heir apparent,” Fallon said, “and I was the only one willing to step up to claim the throne.”
“You make it sound so medieval,” Gage responded, tasting his wine.
She smiled. “It isn’t that elaborate, I’m afraid. My brother Dane wanted nothing to do with the family business, much preferring his acting career to being an active member of the Stewart family.”
“Was it really so horrible growing up in the lap of luxury?” Gage inquired wryly.
Fallon detected the note of derision in his tone. “You’d have to ask him.”
The waiter interrupted them to rattle off the daily specials. They both ordered the soup to start, followed by the spinach salad and fish for their entrée. It was all very civilized and Fallon couldn’t understand Gage’s agenda. Why was he treating her like an old friend when she knew that was far from the case?
Once the waiter left, Gage prompted Fallon. “Please continue with your story, I’m fascinated.”
“After what happened between us all those years ago, my father was very unhappy with me.”
“Explain.”
She sighed softly but didn’t stop. “You have to understand, I was his baby girl.”
“Dressed like you were ready to take me to bed?”
Fallon didn’t rise to the bait. “Seeing me like that made him realize I was growing up too fast and he didn’t like it. And I was desperate to regain his affection.”
“Had you lost it?”
Gage was perceptive, picking up on what she hadn’t said. She didn’t answer. “He sent me to a finishing school to ensure I was exposed to the ‘right’ crowd.”
“And were you?”
Her lips thinned with irritation. “They were the snobbiest, cattiest girls I ever met. The teachers were like prison wardens. The entire experience was unpleasant.
“When I returned home, I started accompanying my father to the office and soon I wanted to learn more. My father put me in the intern program and, much to his surprise, I soaked up everything like a sponge. I was interested in learning what it took to run a multimillion-dollar company, so I majored in business. During breaks, I worked at Stewart Technologies, learning the business from the ground up while earning my MBA. Until, eventually, I proved to all the naysayers I had the chops to run the company.
“And, as it turned out, my father was ready to take a back seat. He’s now chairman of the board. Of course, I had no idea of the financial straits he was leaving me to tend to. He’d leveraged the business and owed the banks a substantial amount due to projects he’d started but failed to get across the finish line.”
“Very intriguing indeed,” Gage replied. “And here we are.”
Fallon took a generous sip of her wine. She hadn’t planned on revealing so much, but Gage was looking at her so intently, as if hanging on her every word.
“And you? Fill me in on your time abroad.”
Gage leaned back against the cushions. “I don’t think my story is quite as intriguing as yours.”
“But it clearly has a happy ending,” she replied. “I mean, look at where we are. The roles have been reversed.”
“Yes, they have,” Gage said quietly. “But I won’t sugarcoat it. After my mother and I were kicked off the Stewart estate, she had a hard time finding work, especially because your parents refused to give her a reference.”
“Gage...”
“I was young and resilient, with only a year left of college. I worked two or three jobs to keep us afloat. Once I finished school, I struck out on my own. A friend of mine worked on Wall Street and told me I could make a lot of money. The stock market had never really been my cup of tea but, lo and behold, I had a knack for it. From there I went to London, Hong Kong, making money in stocks and foreign trade. Until I settled on mutual funds and started my own business.”
“So why come back here?”
“Simply put, I missed home,” Gage replied. “I haven’t been back since I graduated other than the odd trip. Mostly, I’ve sent Mom tickets to meet me at some exotic destination. She deserved it, after all her years of menial labor.”
Although she’d never experienced the kind of hardship Gage mentioned, Fallon understood his drive to succeed because she shared it.
Over dinner they continued talking about his trading career, lifestyle and trips abroad before returning to the subject of Fallon. It surprised her how easy it was to talk to Gage, considering all that had transpired between them. It felt like a lifetime ago, but she was sure at some point Gage would be getting to the point of the evening.
“Are you having dessert?” Gage asked after they’d polished off nearly two bottles of wine with their meal.
She shook her head. “I couldn’t eat another bite.” She wiped her mouth with a napkin. “It’s been a lovely evening, Gage, but I’m sure that’s not the reason you asked me to dinner.”
“What do you think the reason is?”
“Payback. What else?” Fallon asked with a shrug of her shoulders. “And although I’m not destitute and put out of the family home, we are in a bind. Surely this must delight you?”
“Not everyone is like you and your family.”
Ouch. Fallon took that one on the chin because, after all this time, he deserved to speak his mind. “Why am I here, Gage?”
Gage leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table and arresting her with his eyes. “I have a proposition for you.”
“And what might that be?”
“Marry me.”
Fallon coughed profusely and reached for her water glass. Her hands trembled as she placed the glass to her lips and sipped. With all the wine they’d drunk, she must have taken leave of her faculties because Gage Campbell couldn’t possibly have asked her to marry him. Could he?
“Are you all right?” Gage asked, his voice etched with concern.
“Y-yes.” Fallon sipped her water again and placed the glass back on the table. “Can you repeat what you said?”
Gage’s mouth