“Are you two serious? Why haven’t you mentioned her? Is there something I should know about her? No, wait.” His mother paused, and he could picture her waving her hands. “I don’t care who she is or what she’s like. If you love her, I’m going to love her too.”
Love? The word kicked him in the gut and suddenly he had trouble breathing. He resisted the urge to claw at the knot of his tie.
Laughter drifted in from his assistant’s desk.
Some of his discomfort must have shown because Caroline’s teeth flashed before she hid the lower third of her face behind her hand.
She hadn’t smiled at him before this. The effect caught him off guard. Desire wrapped an arm around his shoulder and whispered wicked suggestions in his ear.
His mother’s next comment interrupted his musing. “You’ve never brought anyone home before. This must be pretty serious. I told you one of these days the right woman would turn your world upside down. Now do you believe me? I have to run. I have to call your father. We’ll see you in a few days.”
His mother disconnected before Simon had a chance to say goodbye. He stared at the phone as what he’d done began to sink in. Maybe he should just call Dane and tell him his fiancée had cold feet, and then go spend Christmas on a beach in Mexico.
No, that wasn’t the answer. He didn’t want to spend Christmas alone. He contemplated just how spectacular Caroline would look in a bikini. The tricky part would be persuading her to come with him. He suspected the only reason she’d agreed to accompany him to Savannah was that he’d convinced her his mother would be upset by the drama Francine would incite.
“I probably should have warned you that my mother w
ould be excited about meeting you.”
“Is it true what she said about you never bringing home a girl before?”
He was beginning to recognize the nuances in Caroline’s solemn expressions. A minute twitch of her lips and the barest narrowing of her eyes told him she liked his answer.
“Yes.”
“Not even Francine?”
“No.”
“I see.”
The amusement that had briefly lit up Caroline’s expression was long gone. She pleated her skirt between her fingers.
He would have given a lot to know what bustled about in that head of hers. “What do you see?”
“I see that you haven’t thought this thing through at all. This is a big deal, Simon. You’ve never brought a girl home before and now you’re telling your family that you’re engaged. What happens later?” She offered up a huge sigh. “How hurt are they going to be when they learn that it was all a lie? I wish I’d never agreed to be a part of this. And it’s too late for me to back out now that you’ve told your mother you’re bringing me home.”
Had she intended to back out? Simon’s chest tightened. What could he say to convince her it would be all right?
“With our engagement happening so fast, they won’t be surprised when it ends.”
She regarded him for a long, silent stretch. “If you say so.”
He wasn’t accustomed to people disagreeing with him. For a second it threw him off his game. Then he shook off the doubts her concerns had raised and got to work convincing her she had nothing to worry about. “Look, I know you don’t agree with my methods, but it’s for the best. You’ll see.” Simon stood and checked his watch. “How’s about we grab some lunch and go shopping.”
“Shopping? What for?”
“Clothes.”
Color flooded her cheeks, but the emotion snapping in her eyes was annoyance, not embarrassment. “I’m not going to let you buy me any clothes.”
Simon scooped up his mother’s itinerary. “Let’s have lunch and talk about that.”
Chapter Three
Let’s talk about that.
Caroline was learning to dread that phrase. Simon didn’t talk, he persuaded. Before she could snap her fingers, she’d be on the path to doing something against her better judgment again.