Best Laid Plans. Brenda Jackson
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wasn’t sure about something, how she would lick her bottom lip with the tip of her tongue when she became nervous. Then there were the times she would push her eyeglasses back on her face whenever they slipped down that cute little nose of hers. The gesture usually preceded a strong rebuttal. He didn’t mind. Women who thought it would be in their best interests to agree with anything he said irritated him. It was as if they couldn’t speak or think for themselves. Obviously Ivy had no such hang-ups.
“Mama Laverne will expect it. Trust me. I know how her mind works. We mustn’t forget that our goal is to make her assume her plan is working, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then sharing this place for a week is what we’ll need to do. The sooner we can convince her we fell in love, the sooner we can convince her we’ve fallen out of love.”
He saw the uncertain look on her face and on cue she pushed a few wayward curls back from her face. He’d been tempted to do it. “I promise not to bite, Ivy. This plan that we pretend to be lovers was your idea. I agreed with the stipulations you put in place. But I’ve stated more times than I cared to that in order to make it work we have to make our fake relationship appear believable.”
He scrubbed the back of his neck, trying to keep his frustration with her at bay. She couldn’t have things both ways. “In case you haven’t noticed, this place has two bedrooms, split concept with each suite having its own bath. You will have your space and I’ll have mine.”
“I know that, Nolan, but what will we do together for a week?”
“Whatever you had planned to do without me being here and I will do likewise. But at some point we need to set aside time to get to know each other.”
“Why?”
He was surprised she would ask that. “Because after a week everyone would expect us to know something about each other and, trust me, Mama Laverne will grill me and there’s no doubt in my mind your grandmother will do the same.”
She nodded. “I guess you’re right.”
“You know I’m right.” He stood and stretched his limbs, suddenly feeling exhausted. He wasn’t sure whether the cause was from taking time out to play tennis with his cousins earlier today or from verbally sparring with her. “I need a good night’s sleep, so I’m going to bed.”
“To bed? But it’s only seven and it’s still daylight outside.”
“Not for long. Besides, I think my body is still on Paris time. I had just got back the day before you came to my office.”
“What about dinner? Aren’t you hungry?”
“No. I’m still stuffed from when my great-aunt fed me earlier today. I assume you will be here in the morning when I wake up.”
“Yes, I’ll be here.”
He nodded. Before heading out of the kitchen, he glanced over at her and said, “Good night, Ivy. See you in the morning.”
“Good night.”
As Nolan strolled out of the kitchen toward the bedroom he would be using, he hoped like hell that their plan worked. He was tempted to look back at her before opening the door to his bedroom, but he fought the temptation. His only involvement with Ivy would be of the pretend kind and it was best that he remembered that.
THE SOUND OF someone humming brought Ivy awake. She glanced at her clock and saw the time was just a little past seven. It took her a minute to remember where she was and why. Tiki Island. Pretend lover of Nolan Madaris.
The week vacation she thought she’d won had been nothing more than a setup thanks to her grandmother. Frowning, she pulled herself up in bed and grabbed for her phone to call her grandmother. It was time to put her and Nolan’s plan into action, and Helen Chapman was about to get an earful from her.
After Nolan went to bed it was as if she was alone in the cottage and she appreciated that. She had needed that time to reflect on all that had been said since she’d returned from her walk on the bay to find Nolan in her kitchen. It was really his kitchen, she reminded herself.
As soon as the bedroom door had closed behind him last night, she had grabbed a bag of chips and an apple from the welcome basket. She had heard his shower going while making a ham sandwich and a glass of iced tea.
The breeze off the Galveston Bay had relaxed her while she sat outside on the patio to eat. The quiet peacefulness gave her an opportunity to mentally rehash her conversations with Nolan. He had been right. Pretending to be lovers had been her idea and she needed to own it. It had taken another walk on the bay after her meal to finally accept that the plan she’d come up with would work if, like Nolan said, it was believable. More than anything she was determined that it would be.
“Hello?”
Her grandmother’s voice sounded soft, almost like a whisper in her ear. “Nana, this is Ivy.”
“I know, dear. I recognize your voice.”
“Then you know why I’m calling.” Ivy paused for a minute and then asked, “Nana, how could you? Why on earth would you and Ms. Laverne set me and Nolan up again?”
“You’re calling him by his first name. That’s good.”
“Excuse me?”
“The last time we talked about him, he was Mr. Madaris. Now he’s Nolan and I think that’s a good sign.”
Ivy shook her head. “There is no sign. Nana, we need to talk about this.”
“We talked already, dear. Remember?”
“Yes, I remember but you didn’t listen.”
“You’re right. I didn’t listen because I know what’s best. Where are you, by the way?”
“I’m still on Tiki Island. Nolan was kind enough to allow me to stay a couple of days. I appreciate him for not blaming me for what happened.”
“Of course he wouldn’t blame you. And where is he?”
“Not sure. He’s around here somewhere. I’m just waking up. Luckily, this place is plenty big enough for the both of us with the two bedrooms and private baths. Split concept. I doubt if we’ll run into each other much while I’m here.” She figured her grandmother was frowning about now. That’s probably not what she wanted to hear.
“Who’s doing the cooking? Not you I hope.”
Her grandmother knew of her dislike of kitchen duties that required more than putting cold cuts between two slices of bread. “We’re on our own.”
“What a pity. Nolan is a great cook. He’s also a nice man.”
“Whatever. We will talk again when I get back, Nana. If you keep this up, I’m going to think you’re not in your right mind.”
“I’m in my right mind,” her grandmother assured her. “In the end you are going to thank me.”
Ivy doubted that. “We’ll talk, Nana.” She heard the sound of humming again and realized the noise was from the television mounted on the wall in the living room.
“We’ll see. Enjoy your time on the bay.”
And then her grandmother hung up on her. “Oh, you are so wrong for that, Nana. You are wrong for all of this,” Ivy muttered, easing out of the bed. She thought about what Nolan said regarding them getting to know each other. That meant spending time with him and she’d rather not do that. She didn’t like admitting it but heat would curl in her stomach whenever she was around him. She smiled when an idea came into her head. Instead of spending time with him, she would text information to him. All he needed to know was stuff like her favorite foods, music, movie,