A Wife by Accident (12 page)

Gary nodded. “What’s in the old bag of tricks for this year?”

Charlie laughed. “I don’t know how we’re going to top last year’s pink fiasco. Maybe this year I’ll tell them all you like women who really know how to slather on the make-up. Or, you know, I’ll bet we could triple Nevada’s cosmetic surgery market with a single comment.”

•

Hayely
looked at Charlie in shock as she realized the impact of their practical jokes. “You guys are terrible. You’ll have the whole town scraping off eye shadow with chisels by next year’s banquet. And I don’t even want to think about that other inspiration you just had.”

Gary squeezed her hand again. “Just a guess here, but I think the news of our marriage is probably going to be enough entertainment for this year.”

The limo pulled up at the guest entrance to the hotel at which the event was always held. Coming in through the side door gave the appearance of a much lower-key evening than
Hayely
knew awaited them. That illusion was shattered as
Hayely
, Gary and Charlie handed away their coats and walked inside a ballroom artistically converted for the occasion.

At the head of the room, a long table set up for the Chamber of Commerce officers sat empty except for a few well-placed microphones and crystal pitchers of water with condensation rolling down the sides. Flowers cascaded from corners and pillars. Ice sculptures glistened on the hors d’oeuvres tables. The great remainder of the room was speckled with round tables draped in white linen, but there seemed to be no particular assigned seating.

At the back of the room around the dance floor and near the bar, hundreds of people mingled, talked and sipped from champagne flutes. Others sat here and there at some of the empty tables.

“I’ll go on in and grab us a table,” Charlie said.

Hayely
rested her hand on Gary’s arm in her best imitation of a wifely gesture. “You go on ahead, too. I’m going to visit the restroom first. I’ll find you.”

•

Gary nodded and followed Charlie to a table with a mediocre view of the main table. They didn’t want to be too conspicuously up front in case they found a way to slip out early. Charlie ordered a glass of wine from a waiter as his friend sat down beside him.

“So have you told her your feelings for her aren’t so businesslike?” Charlie asked quietly.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“And have you asked her to forget that insane agreement and try being with you just because she wants to?”

“There’s nothing going on, Charlie. You’re pushing your luck again.” Gary paused for a moment in thought. “Actually I did ask her to stay past the six months and she said no.”

“You did? And she what?”

Gary’s voice got even lower. “Apparently she doesn’t want to become an interior designer.”

“You mean you sounded like a boss extending an employee’s contract,” Charlie said flatly.

“What more could I do? It’s a touchy situation. She could sue me if I cross the line. Or go to the media.”

“Aw, come on. I’ve never heard anything more ridiculous come out of your mouth.” Charlie paused as Gary looked at him. “Don’t try that Tarleton glare with me. I’m the only one around you who’ll tell it to you straight and so I’m going to. You’re going to let something precious slip by if you don’t wake up and pursue it.”

“This isn’t the place for this discussion. Someone could overhear you.” But Charlie’s words nagged at him. They mingled with the memory of the brief kiss on their wedding day, the image of
Hayely’s
skin glistening in the bathtub, the sound of his heart thudding in anticipation of her hand touching his arm throughout dinner.

As soon as Charlie and Gary settled into their seats, the crowd at the fringe of the room seemed to shift. Suddenly, all the tables around the two men filled with guests. Had they actually been waiting to see where Gary Tarleton would sit before choosing seats of their own? Gary flinched and ordered a cup of coffee just as he saw a flashbulb go off from somewhere across the room. As he set the cup down, the intrusive flash from an unseen camera went off again.

“Let the festivities begin,” he muttered dimly and looked back to the doorway for some sign of
Hayely
.

•

Hayely
emerged from the ladies room and wove her way through the crowd. The amount of people in the ballroom had increased greatly in only a few moments and the scattered tables that had been empty before she’d left Gary’s side were now filled. A trio of violinists stood at the back of the room playing a soothing tune and the volume of laughter and animated discussions rose considerably.

“Excuse me,” she said more than once as she turned first one way and then the next. Where was he anyway? Maybe Charlie’s thick red hair would be easiest to spot. She stopped and scanned the room before ducking past another cluster of guests.

As
Hayely
took another careful step, the crowd parted slightly in front of her. There, standing right before her eyes, was the one person she hadn’t considered running into—Kathy Mark. From the look on her boss’ face, she’d seen
Hayely
as well. Sternly, critically, the older woman inspected
Hayely’s
expensive gown as if mentally picking it apart seam by seam.

Kathy approached
Hayely
with a frozen smile on her face, but there was no mistaking the absolute rage in her pale blue eyes. “What the hell do you think you’re doing here?” she demanded through a frozen smile.

Hayely
was stunned, temporarily at a loss. “I’m going inside to the banquet.” Where was that speech she’d started rehearsing in her head? She couldn’t remember a word of it. All that bubbled into her mind were words too foul to say aloud in polite society. And where was Gary? If ever a rescue was in order, it was now.

Kathy stepped toward
Hayely
and her anemic yellow satin suit rustled as she moved. “I did not invite you to attend with K. L. Mark Enterprises. We are well represented by professionals who won’t embarrass us. How dare you show up uninvited?”

Hayely
looked up behind Kathy. Darryl stood sheepishly a few steps behind his mother. A gold chain showed underneath his partially opened tuxedo shirt and the heavy scent of aftershave couldn’t hide that he’d already become well acquainted with the bar. He shoved his hands in his pockets and tried desperately not to look at anything other than his shoes.

Next to her brother, Dee looked torn between making a bawdy joke and taking a step forward to stand beside Kathy. She shifted uncomfortably in a knee-length black and white sequined swing dress that fit too snugly through her broad shoulders. Her sandy blonde hair now had short bangs that were striped with whitish highlights. Guess she found her way to the hairdresser,
Hayely
noted grimly.

“I’m not here for K. L. Mark,”
Hayely
said with a great deal of calm in her voice. From the outside, she appeared unruffled and confident with her head held high when she spoke. Her uncomplicated beauty had already caught the attention of several people in the room, and they all turned to watch with interest at what was obviously a confrontation in the making.

“No, you most certainly are not,” Kathy interrupted with a tone reminiscent of a hiss. “I can’t believe I ever hired someone of your incompetence.”

Hayely
folded her hands neatly in front of her, the blue gloves lending a manner of poise to her stance. “As I was saying, I’m here with my husband.”

“Your husband?”
Kathy nearly snorted as she opened up her mouth to say something cruel.
Hayely
fully expected to hear the words “you’re fired.” She could almost see them hanging in the air attached to a cartoon balloon over Kathy’s head when the woman’s expression suddenly changed and her mouth snapped shut. In place of the villainess
Hayely
knew so well, appeared a simpering woman who all at once batted her lashes and gestured with great lightness.

As Gary took his place near
Hayely’s
side, a hush ripped through the crowd.
“Something wrong?”
His glittering hazel eyes bored into Kathy’s washed-out grey-blue ones.

Kathy smiled sweetly and
flitted
her hand in the air toward him. “No. It’s just that decent people are so hard to find these days. You know how it is, don’t you, Gary?”

Hayely
virtually held her breath. Should she say something? No, she didn’t need to. Gary would tell Kathy what he thought of her, what they both thought of her. Maybe he’d turn and declare to the whole party all the shady things he knew about Kathy’s business practices. Then the realization stuck
Hayely
—no one at the office had any idea that Gary Tarleton was her Gary. Even Kathy hadn’t put two and two together yet.

With a smug smirk, Gary slid his powerful arm around
Hayely
and pulled her close to his side. The lustrous metal of his wedding band shone with an unabashed gleam on his hand as he ran his fingers smoothly down her bare upper arm and back to her shoulder.
Hayely
leaned securely against her husband, her curves fitting into his masculine angles so perfectly that the connection was obvious. The hush that had previously taken the room now shifted to a high-pitched dissonance of understanding.

Kathy’s smile fell sickeningly from her face and her eyes widened, then narrowed just as quickly. She took a single step backward as the horror of the situation drifted over her.
Hayely
felt as if she were watching her boss’ reaction in slow motion. Then with amazing calculation and control, Kathy replaced her mask of amiability.

“I was speaking of someone else of course. We love our
Hayely
, don’t we?” She turned toward Darryl and Dee who nodded enthusiastically in support.

Without a sound, Gary turned
Hayely
toward him. She saw outright amusement in his eyes before he kissed her softly on the lips for all to witness and guided her away toward their table.

“See. Who needs words?” he asked with a roguish grin.

Hayely
released her breath. “That was priceless. Thank you.” She couldn’t express the warmth and appreciation she felt under the protection of Gary’s public support. But then, she wouldn’t have expected anything less from him.
Honorable to the core.

Gary and
Hayely
joined Charlie at the table just as dinner arrived. Waiters suddenly covered the room, working in efficiently orchestrated rows to place a meal on a white china plate in front of each guest.

“But why didn’t you yell at her? Or tell her off?”
Hayely
asked quietly. If her father had been in Gary’s place, she was sure his not-so-dulcet tones would have been heard for blocks.

“Why didn’t you?” he countered with curiosity in his voice.

“I just couldn’t. I wanted to hurt her, to get revenge somehow, but I just couldn’t. Not even to her, especially in public.”

“So you took the high road. She wouldn’t have,” Gary assured. “The path she’s on leads nowhere. Let her walk straight into her demise all by herself. You’ve done all you could to get along with her in that office. Let it go.”

Hayely
bit into her bland chicken and swallowed thoughtfully. “What am I going to do now? I don’t have a job.”

Charlie took a swig of wine. “Easy. Cook,
decorate
, swim—whatever you want until you figure out what sort of career to start.”

“You make it sound so simple,” she said.

“It should be. I don’t think Gary minds a bit if his wife works.”

Gary glared at him and whispered, “Of course, you could also stay on with me past the six months.”

Hayely
smiled wistfully and sawed off another bite of chicken. To listen to Charlie talk, a person might think she and Gary had a chance at something. Their act had fooled even him on some level. After looking around the room, who there would guess that she and Gary would live together, laugh together from time to time—all for just a matter of a few more weeks.

“Hey, congratulations, buddy.” A man
Hayely
had never seen before patted Gary vigorously on the back. “I had no idea you’d tied the proverbial knot. Way to go.” He walked away after winking at
Hayely
.

“Who was that?” she asked.

“No idea. Might be a salesman I met last year. Don’t worry, you get used to that sort of thing after a while.”

As the meal wound down and people felt free to move around again, the line finding its way toward Gary and
Hayely
grew.
Hayely
didn’t recognize anyone. She was in a room full of strangers who all seemed to know her.

“Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Tarleton.”

“What wonderful news.”

“I’m so happy for you.”

Hayely
found herself receiving handshakes and hugs as if she were in the reception line at a wedding. The screech of a microphone being dragged along the front table brought the socializing to a slow halt.