Page 9 of Keeping My Wife
“To find a suit. Write up the paperwork and give me a call, wife.”
The word wife was like a bomb in my chest.
“Wait.” I clomped after him, my heels loud on the black and white tile of the kitchen. “I don’t have your number.” I caught up with him in the foyer.
“Sure, you do.” He nodded to the notebook still in my hands.
I looked down at it and sure enough there was a business card taped to the inside cover. When I looked up, he was already gone.
I shut the door after him and wasn’t sure what the hell to do. Why had he said yes so easily? Was he just as certifiable as I was?
On auto pilot, I put sold tags on the seven things he’d earmarked in the little black notebook. Impulsively, I added a few more pieces that matched the vibe of his choices.
It took another hour to get the rest of the people out of there. Cam was right about people wanting to get a look at the house and less interested in the sale. I’d been slowly growing more anxious as the day passed.
Which was partially why I’d impulsively asked him to marry me.
I was feeling desperate.
What the hell had I been thinking?
He was little more than a stranger to me. The fact that my grandmother still had that old-fashioned clause in her will pissed me off even more. She’d been so damn progressive about politics and women in the workplace, but she hadn’t been happy until she had mom and I linked up with people.
As if I needed a male to add to my hectic career. Then again, my career hadn’t been going anywhere in Georgia. I’d beenpassed over for another promotion for a man who did a quarter of the work. Getting the call about my grandmother and needing to take care of all the arrangements had actually come at a good time.
I had enough vacation and personal time to take off. And I’d been pissed off enough at Shaw Media to actually take the time. I never took time off, foolishly thinking if I worked hard enough, they’d actually see what a key member of the team I was.
Joke was on me.
I sagged against the front door before locking it.
I hadn’t even had time to breathe since I landed in Albany a week ago. It was like my emotions were locked in the ostentatious mausoleum where my grandmother had been interred. It had been one step in front of the other until I dropped each night and started over again the next morning.
My mother had been less than useless with any of this. She was so pissed off with her inheritance she’d demanded I sell as much as possible to add money to her already rapidly dwindling bank account. Which was why I was in this mess to begin with.
The only good thing was that my mother would need time to hunt for a husband. In this case, it was a net positive. I just might have a chance to save the house.
As much as I loved my grandfather, those well-funded men at the Bridger school wouldn’t be getting the Delacroix money.
I would need every penny of it to fix this place from crumbling around my ears.
Now, the only chance I had to save it was tomarry Cameron Murdock and convince him to live with me.
It was a big house and only for a year.
It couldn’t be so bad.
Chapter 3
Cam
“What the hell are you thinking?”
I winced as my brother Angus wobbled the large sheet of particle board. “Would you rather I did it without saying something?”
“Married?!” His voice was a touch too loud.
“Would you keep it down?” I craned my neck to make sure Lexi, our project manager, hadn’t heard Gus.
