Millionaire's Woman

She stared at him. “You told me not to sign it?”

“In the note I left with your landlord this morning.” His forehead creased. “Didn’t you read it?”

“I haven’t been home.” She looked up at him, touched beyond words that he’d trusted her enough to tell her not to sign the agreement. “But it really doesn’t matter now. Let’s give it to the lawyers.”

He frowned. “That’s not going to work. We need a new prenuptial agreement.”

Her smile faltered. “But why?”

“To protect your inheritance.”

“I trust you.”

“I know you do.” He looked down into her troubled eyes. “It’s only practical,” he said gently.

“It just seems so sordid,” she sighed.

He stared at her thoughtfully. “Why don’t we let the lawyers hash out the money issues and we come up with our own agreement.”

“Our own agreement?” Frowning, she watched him pull a pen and paper out of a drawer and motion her to sit down at the desk. She sat down uncertainly. “What do you mean?”

“I mean—write this down—you must never take me to a lecture by Professor Jameson again.”

A smile began to curve her lips. Obediently, she wrote down, Eleanor G. Hibbert Hernandez promises never to take Garek Wisnewski to a Jameson lecture. She then went on to write:

Eleanor G. Hibbert Hernandez gets to choose all the art for the house.

“Hmm.” He pretended to consider that one. “Very well—as long as you don’t buy anything from Caspar.”

She glanced up at him, smiling. “Not even for the bathroom?”

“Especially not for the bathroom. I want that in writing.”

Laughing, she complied. “Very well…but we have to spend Christmas Eve at my family’s.”

“No argument from me there.” He paused a moment, then added slowly, “I’d like to invite my sister and niece, though.”

She smiled at him. “That’s a good idea.”

He grimaced a little. “I’m not so sure. I may live to regret it.”

“No, you won’t,” she said firmly.

He looked at her, a smile quirking the corners of his mouth. “I believe you. Speaking of holidays, that reminds me…You must never buy me a tie again.”

“I thought you liked the tie I gave you.”

“I do,” he said firmly. “I like it so much I want it to forever be unique in my closet.”

“But I could find something different—”

“No.”

She pouted a little. “All right. But you can’t buy me any jewelry then.”

He crouched beside her and looked into her eyes. “I’m afraid I already broke that one.” He pulled a small box out of his pocket and handed it to her. “Open it, Ellie.”

With trembling fingers, she lifted the lid. Her breath caught. A simple platinum ring with a small, exquisitely cut sapphire. “Oh, Garek, it’s beautiful.” She looked up at him, tears in her eyes. “Maybe I’ll make an exception—just this once.”