“Don’t worry. I’m not planning anything illegal.”
“Look, Annie, I regret I had to be the one to tell you, but believe me it’s best you found out now how irresponsible Griffin is. He’s been like that his whole life. You don’t want him.”
“You’re right. I don’t.” Her gaze narrowed on him. Then she smiled as her new plan emerged. “I want you.”
“What?”
“You’re going to marry me…Grant, isn’t it?”
He nodded slowly, then shook his head. “Oh, no. I can’t help you. I’m not the marrying kind.”
“What is this? A family trait? A dominant gene? A birth defect?” She propped her hands on her hips and glared at Grant Stevens. “You’re going to marry me. And that’s final.”
“YOU’RE CRAZY.” Stunned, Grant stared at her as if she’d grown an extra head. Had she completely lost touch with reality?
“Possibly.” She walked around him, studying him, analyzing him, sizing him up as if he were a prize steer—or maybe not so prized. Not if she saw him being the same as Griffin, the jerk who’d left her at the altar. For some crazy reason, he wanted her to see the differences between him and his irresponsible brother.
“You and Griff really are identical twins. I mean, he told me he had a brother and that y’all were twins, but I assumed you’d only have a familial resemblance. This is truly amazing.”
From the fire in her electric-blue eyes, he could tell whatever resemblance he shared with Griffin was not desirable to her at the moment. He’d always hated being compared to his brother. Now he hated it more than ever. “We do not look alike,” he ground out between clenched teeth. “Griffin’s got a mole on his back, just under his shoulder blade. And I’ve got—”
Suddenly she grinned, disarming him with that wink of a dimple in her cheek. “This is perfect! Nobody has to know a thing.”
“Know what?”
“That you’re Grant instead of Griffin.” Her forehead creased with concern. “You didn’t tell anyone that Griff wasn’t coming, did you?”
Relief poured through him. “The groomsmen. So it’s too late for whatever it is you’re cooking up.”
“Drat.” Frowning, she paced another minute then stopped, the skirt of her robe giving him a glimpse of a sexy calf. “You can tell them you were wrong. Or better yet, that you were playing a practical joke. Griff loved to play practical jokes.”
She spoke of his brother as if he were dead. Maybe in her heart he already was. Grant well remembered his brother’s infamous practical jokes. He didn’t wait for an excuse like April Fool’s. He’d always been the class clown. Grant had been the serious, responsible one.
And that worked well for him now. This woman needed his common sense at the moment. “Annie, there’s no way—”
“If there’s a will,” she said, “then we can make it work. You’ll simply pretend you’re Griff. We’ll get married and be off in our decorated car. Nobody has to know a thing.”
Panic seized him. She had lost her grip on reality. “I am not getting married, now or ever.”
“You are like Griff, aren’t you?”
“No, I’m not.” His nerves tightened with anger.
He would never promise marriage then walk away from the bride without even a word of explanation. Not that he’d ever asked a woman to marry him. He liked being single. No responsibilities. No honey-do lists. No anniversary or birthday to keep track of. Why would he want to give that up?
The crazy determined light in her eyes looked more dangerous than the curves beneath her silk robe.
“Listen to me, Annie. It’s not you.”
“Don’t tell me it’s not personal. This is very personal to me. I’m the one who’s been dumped.”
“I meant…ah, hell. This is the most ridiculous conversation I’ve ever had.” He hated to be blunt but the circumstances called for it. “You aren’t getting married today. I’m sorry. I wish I could make it different. I wish my brother hadn’t treated you this way. But you’ve got to face facts.”
“Relax. This isn’t for real, forever, or until death do us part. It’s just for the afternoon. We’ll leave like we’re going on our honeymoon and that will be the end of it. You can drop me at the airport and then you never have to see me again.”
“But—”
She grabbed his arm, her fingers crumpling the sleeve of his tuxedo with desperation. “Please.”
The plea in her voice and gaze knocked him for a loop. How could he say no?
But he had to. It was the right thing to do. “You don’t know what you’re saying. Maybe I should call a doctor. You’ve had quite a shock.”
“I’m perfectly rational. This makes sense. It will work.”
“It’s not right. What about all those people out there? You’re going to lie to your family and friends?”
She worried her bottom lip. “It’s not exactly lying. Think of it as a practical joke. They’ll just never know the punch line.”
“I don’t do practical jokes.”
She pursed her lips. “You’ve got to help me.” Tears made her eyes sparkle like sapphires. “If it wasn’t for your brother I wouldn’t be in this predicament.”
Oh, God! Not tears. Anything but tears.
Then an alarming question popped into his mind. “Are you pregnant?” Maybe she’d slept with his brother after all.
Her eyes widened. “No. It’s nothing like that. I—I can’t…” her voice wavered “…face them.”
“You won’t have to. I’ll handle everything. I’ll make the announcement. It’s the least I can do.”
She blinked and those tears disappeared. Her jaw hardened. “I live here. I can’t listen to remarks about poor, pitiful Annie. I refuse to be a jilted bride again.”
Her words punched him like a jab in the solar plexus. His jaw went slack before he recovered. “Again?” His hands clenched into fists. “Griffin’s done this to you before?”
She frowned and pulled away from him. As she paced the length of the room, her silk robe rustling, he remembered distinctly what she was wearing—or wasn’t wearing—beneath. Don’t lose focus. Concentrate. You can’t give in to her crazy idea. Or your libido.
“This isn’t the first time this has happened,” she told him. “Okay, it’s the first wedding-day disaster. But Griff’s not the first man to dump me. The other two left days before the big date. I never got this close to walking down the aisle.” To herself, she spoke softly. “Maybe everybody was right. Maybe I am jinxed.”
Then she swung around and faced him. He caught another brain-fogging glimpse of long, silky legs. But it was the pure intensity and determination in her bright blue eyes that melted his reservations. He didn’t pity her. In fact, he knew she’d bounce back from this disaster. He admired her buoyancy.
“I can’t face them as a deserted bride again. Please.” She took a step forward and touched his chest, reminding him of the barely suppressed intimacy they’d shared in that sizzling kiss. “Please, Grant, help me. This once.”
Damn. What else could he do? Damn Griffin. Damn himself for wanting to help.
“Okay,” he finally said. “I’ll play along. Just for today. Then the charade will be over and we’ll go our separate ways.”