The Boss's Marriage Plan (Proposals & Promises 2)

“It was very nice.” It still bothered him a bit to remember the way Stevie had frowned at him, as if she had some valid reason to worry that he would hurt her friend, but he shook off the concern. Maybe it was only that Stevie was having relationship troubles of her own, as Tess had implied, and was subsequently pessimistic about any new relationship. Maybe if they’d been in a place where they could have had a private conversation, he would have assured Stevie more forcefully that he had no intention of hurting Tess. Considering his belief that broken hearts were the result of unrealistic expectations, his plan was much healthier and saner than Stevie’s idealistic and deliberately naive approach to the search for a life partner. Would Tess’s friend see his point if he explained, or would she still disapprove of his prosaic tactics?

Not that it mattered. The only concern to him was that Tess approved.

Feeling a bit more cheerful now that their first official outing had been generally successful, he said, “I’m starving. I’ve hardly had time to eat anything today and those little nibbles at the party didn’t fill me up. Want to stop for something to eat?”

“I ate before the party. But if you’d like to come in to my place, I’ll make you an omelet or something.”

His fingers tightened a bit on the wheel, but he made sure to keep any hint of surprise from his voice. “Sounds good, thanks.”

Oh, yeah, he thought. This was all working out just fine.

* * *

“And this,” Scott said, his head close to hers as they peered down at the phone in his hand, “is Miranda holding Henry after Thanksgiving dinner. She and Madison love being the older cousins and taking care of the baby.”

“Do you just remember who this is, or can you really tell those girls apart?” Tess asked with a laugh and a shake of her head. It always amazed her that Scott’s family seemed to so easily identify each twin, though they looked exactly alike to her.

“I can usually tell. Their personalities are different enough that their expressions sort of give them away, even when they’re dressed alike, which isn’t very often. Eli and Libby think it’s important that the girls develop their own identities, so that they aren’t just known as ‘the twins.’ Still, every so often I mix them up, and they call me on my mistake pretty quickly.”

They sat side by side on the deep-cushioned sage-green couch in her living room, flipping through family photos stored in Scott’s phone. He’d already eaten and effusively complimented the generous omelet she’d made for him, and he’d quickly accepted her offer of herbal tea afterward. He seemed to be in no hurry to leave, and Tess was enjoying this relaxed, private time with him.

“Your nieces are really cute. And Henry’s a little doll. Thanks for showing me the pictures. It looks as though you had a great Thanksgiving.”

“We did.” Setting his phone to one side, Scott touched her hand. “I’m sorry you didn’t have a good Thanksgiving with your family.”

Her first instinct was to deflect the sympathy with a shrug and an assurance that her gathering with her sister’s family had been fine and she’d had a lovely time. It was a bit embarrassing to compare her strained situation with his close clan. But if Scott was going to become a part of her life, he might as well know everything he was getting into. “I guess you know that Nina and I aren’t close. I can never seem to live up to her standards, and I think it annoys her that I’m not jealous of her. Does that make sense?”

“It does, actually. You being jealous of her would be a validation that she’s important. Impressive. If you don’t want to be her, she probably wonders what you find lacking. Needing to be envied is a common weakness for people whose sense of self-worth comes only from the amount of admiration they receive from others.”

He sounded like an amateur psychologist, but he was right. “That does sound like Nina,” she agreed slowly. “It sometimes seems as though everything she does is slanted toward impressing others. She pores over fashion magazines and trend blogs trying desperately to stay current. She’s raising her kids the same way. Nina would pretty much pawn her soul to buy them the ‘right’ label. She and Ken aren’t wealthy, but they try so hard to keep up with the Joneses that it exhausts me just watching them.”

“I’ve had friends fall into that trap before they realize it’s a game they just can’t win. There’s always someone with more money, more toys, more admirers. I like nice things as much as anyone, but I buy what I like, not because someone else would be impressed by it.”

She knew that about him, of course. She couldn’t have worked side by side with him for six years without learning something about his core values. It was another point in their favor as a budding couple that they shared so many of those principles. Smiling, she waved a hand around her living room. “Same here, obviously.”

“I’ve always admired your sense of style.”

The compliment pleased her. She smiled. “Thanks. But I have to give credit to my friends—Stevie with her flair for design and Jenny for keeping my wardrobe reasonably up-to-date.”

Draping an arm casually across the couch behind her, he ran a fingertip along the bateau neckline of her red dress. “If this dress is an example of Jenny’s contribution, then I applaud her advice. You look spectacular tonight. I could hardly take my eyes off you at the party.”

The brush of his hand against her throat made her pulse flutter there. She wasn’t sure he’d even noticed her appearance this evening other than the perfunctory compliment when he’d greeted her. “Thank you. And yes, I bought the dress at Jenny’s boutique for the party.”

“Then, I can see why her business is doing well.”

“She deserves every bit of her success. And her happiness.” Tess thought of her best friend. “You know, Jenny got caught up in that game we were just discussing when she dated a man before she met Gavin. Thad Simonson runs in an exclusive crowd, and with his political aspirations, everything he says, does, wears or eats is shrewdly calculated. Jenny said she felt as if she was losing herself in that life. She spent so much time trying to please Thad and his followers—not to mention her overbearing grandmother—that she wasn’t even sure what she wanted anymore. Since she married Gavin, she’s happier than I’ve ever seen her. She says she feels as if she’s just getting to know the real her, pursuing her own dreams. She and Gavin are planning a camping trip in the Smoky Mountains next summer. It’s something she always secretly wanted to do, but Thad wasn’t interested in sleeping in a tent and her grandmother would have called it a waste of valuable time.”

“Sounds like fun to me. My brothers and I have been on several camping hikes.”

“I know,” she reminded him with a smile. “I was the one keeping the offices running while you were gone, remember?”

&n

bsp; He tapped the shallow cleft in her chin in a teasing gesture. “You’ve taken a few vacations, yourself. We struggled to stay in business while you were gone, but somehow we managed.”

She laughed, though she was increasingly aware of his proximity on the couch, the way his thigh brushed hers when he shifted his weight, the air of intimacy surrounding them in the quiet room.

“How about you?” he asked. “Do you like camping?”