Table of Contents

Cover Page

Excerpt

About the Author

Title Page

Dedication

Epigraph

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Dear Reader

Copyright

“But you’re not in love with me,” she objected softly.

“Well, neither are you in love with me,” he replied. “Still, over the past few weeks I’ve noticed your relationship with these children. I think you would make a splendid mother.and wife.

Cassie marveled that his voice sounded so strong and steady. She felt like a quivering mass of jelly herself.

“I do have some scruples, you know,” she told him. “If you think that I could treat such a commitment so lightly, then you really don’t know me at all.”

“Think about it, Cassie,” he urged her. “You’d be able to do so much more for the kids here.”

It was all so confusing. And she had no one to confide in.

You always said you’d only marry for love. Her conscience pricked her once more. Yes, but if you marry him, you get to keep the house for the kids. You could continue the work God called you to.

“Help me,” she prayed silently. “You gave me the job. Now show me how to make the right decision.”

LOIS RICHER

credits her love of writing to a childhood spent in a Sunday school where the King James Version of the Bible was taught. The majesty and clarity of the language in the Old Testament stories allowed her to create her own mind pictures while growing up in a tiny Canadian prairie village where everyone strove to make ends meet. During her school years, she continued to find great solace in those words and in the church family that supported her in local speech festivals, Christmas concerts and little theater productions. Later, in college, her ability with language stood her in good stead as she majored in linguistics, studied the work of William Shakespeare and participated in a small drama group.

Today Lois lives in another tiny Canadian town with her husband, Barry, and two very vocal sons. And still, her belief in a strong, vibrant God who cares more than we know predominates her life.

“My writing,” she says, “allows me to express just a few of the words God sends bubbling around in my brain. If I can convey some of the wonder and amazement I feel when I think of God and His love, I’ve used my words to good effect.”

A Will and a Wedding
Lois Richer

www.millsandboon.co.uk

This book is dedicated with much love to my parents,

Dorothea and wilfred Schill, who taught me the value

of faith and tenacity when striving for my goals.

Thanks, Mom and Dad.

“Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;

And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way: but let it rather be healed.”

—Hebrews 12:12-13

Chapter One

Jefferson William Haddon III wanted a son.

Badly.

The problem, as Jefferson defined it, was that at age thirty-five, he had yet to find the type of woman with whom he would consider raising a child. And the very last thing he had expected was that someone would find such a woman for him.

“Would you say that again, please?”

Jefferson turned to stare at the woman across from him once more, unable to believe that his Aunt Judith had considered her suitable for marriage.

Not to him.

She wasn’t the type to be his wife.

If he had wanted one.

Which he did not! Not like this.

“Miss McNaughton will continue her sponsorship of you in your endeavor, Miss Newton, provided that you and her nephew, Jefferson Haddon, marry within the next two months. Until that time, you may both reside in her home, Oak Bluff, all expenses paid.” Judith’s old family lawyer cleared his throat.

“Mr. Haddon, when you marry you will receive Miss McNaughton’s fortune less Miss Newton’s yearly allowance of one hundred thousand dollars. You will both receive the deeds to the house and its entailments, free and clear. Miss Newton will, as your wife, continue to live in the house as long as she wishes.” The snowy haired gentleman paused to glance up at the couple seated before him. His light blue eyes darkened as he continued.

“If you should choose to ignore her wishes, Miss McNaughton has directed that neither of you shall benefit. Miss Newton will be forced to make other arrangements for her work and Mr. Haddon will have no further claim on her estate. The property will be sold and the money will go to an animal shelter she has so named.”

Even as he wondered what the woman’s ‘work’ was, Jefferson’s mouth fell open.

“But surely we can contest the terms of this will, Mr. Jones. You were her friend for years, surely you realize what a terrible position this places us in.” He stopped, conscious of the glowering countenance of the old lawyer.

“Your aunt was of perfectly sound mind when she made out this document.” The wrinkled old hand shook Judith’s will in front of them both. “Should the opportunity arise, and you decide to contest, young man, I will be happy to testify to her sanity. In court. Under oath.” The old man’s tone was frosty with contempt.

Jefferson was furious. He raked a hand through his perfectly groomed dark head in agitation. Yes, he wanted a child, but he had no desire to get married for money. And he certainly would not be forced into it by a busybody old aunt with nothing better to do than play matchmaker.

Blast, what a mess.

That woman, what was her name? Cassie, he remembered suddenly, Cassie.something. Anyway, she sat staring at him in horror. As if she could do worse than marry into one of the oldest families in Toronto!

“I’ll move out immediately.” He heard her words through a fog and turned to stare.

“What?”

“Are you hard of hearing, Mr. Haddon? I said, I will move out of the house immediately.” Her voice was sharp with scorn. “I have no intention of marrying you or anyone else to provide a roof over my head.”

She surged to her feet with all the pomp and ceremony of a miniature warship, sailing off to battle. She stood in front of him, hands on her shapely hips. Grim determination turned down the edges of her mouth. Jefferson laughed at the absurdity of it, and then watched fascinated as her body went rigid with fury.

“Your aunt was a gracious woman who treated everyone with dignity and respect. It’s too bad you didn’t turn out the same.”

He studied the wide green eyes, huge and full of turmoil in a face white with strain. Her black hair curved around her oval face in a riot of curls that bounced merrily with each move she made.

She was not like any woman he had seen before, Jefferson decided. This Cassie person’s appearance fell somewhere between comfortable unconcern and brilliant chic. She wore a bulky red sweater that hung well below her hips. A flaring skirt in a wild pattern of reds and oranges dropped to her ankles. She had on some type of granny boot that should have looked ridiculous and instead suited her crazy outfit. The gypsy look was further embellished by gold hoops that hung from her small earlobes.

Jefferson found those turbulent eyes fixed on himself.

Coldly.

“Look, Mr. Haddon. I’m not a charity case. I lived with your aunt because she asked me to. She was lonely, I think, and gradually she developed a fondness for some of my charges. I think they provided some amusement for her when she couldn’t get out anymore.” Her glittering eyes reminded him of a cat’s when it was hissing with fury, ready to strike. “But I am not, I repeat not, going to live with you in that house, let alone marry you, just so I can get my hands on a hundred grand.”

She stared down her pert little nose at him, which would have been effective if she hadn’t had to tip her head back so far to meet his eyes. He wondered where she had learned the slang terms for money even as he appreciated the fact that she also had no intention of going along with Judith’s machinations.

Grinning, he held up one hand.

“No offense, Miss, er, uh-” Jefferson looked toward the lawyer to fill in the gap.

“Newton, Cassandra Newton,” she repeated, her voice seething with unspoken emotions.

Jefferson watched as she rolled her eyes upward and then closed them. She was whispering. Some kind of a prayer. He recognized the same habit his aunt had employed during his own rebellious youth. He listened unashamedly to her softly spoken words, a half smile on his mouth.

“God, I need some help here. I know you’re leading me and I’m trying to remember that this is Judith’s nephew, so for her sake I’ll try to be polite.” She sighed deeply, her shoulders rising. “But, Lord. You know I don’t tolerate egotistical, arrogant, spoiled brats very well.”

That said, she wheeled away toward the door, ignoring Jefferson as she spoke directly to Mr. Jones.

“Thank you for inviting me to hear the will, Mr. Jones. I appreciated Miss McNaughton’s help when she was alive, but I just can’t marry someone because she wanted me to.” She cast a disparaging look over Jefferson.

Especially not him, her turbulent sea green gaze seemed to say.

Mr. Jones thoughtfully stroked the snowy white beard that made him look like a jovial Santa Claus. He held on to the tiny hand she had offered, while silently contemplating her determined stance. Finally he spoke.

“You have two more months to live in the house before the will dictates that you must move out, Miss Newton. May I suggest that you stay there and use that time to sort out your plans for the future? In the meantime, Miss McNaughton has provided some funds for your living expenses.”

Jefferson watched as the woman accepted an envelope, which he assumed contained a cheque, from Jones. They spoke quietly together for a few moments before she left. Jefferson smiled as she deliberately ignored his presence.

Good! He had no desire to deal with some money grubbing female just now.

The next few hours were fraught with tension as he and the older man went over the legal documents several times. Finally Jefferson was forced to give up in defeat. There was little hope of breaking this will. And he wasn’t sure he wanted to, not really.

Aunt Judith had been the one person to whom he’d been able to run when life got rough during those difficult childhood years. She had always been ready to offer a shoulder, a handkerchief and a cookie when he desperately needed all three. She had been the calm mothering influence he had never found at home. She had also been tough and uncompromising when her mind settled on something. If Judith McNaughton wanted it, she invariably got it. Apparently she wanted to see him married.

“Mr. Jones, I have to tell you that this doesn’t fit in with my plans at all. Not at all.”

He fingered his mustache and considered the older man. There was nothing but courtesy and consideration in that lined face and Jefferson decided to explain his blueprint for the future.

“I have invested a substantial amount of money and a large of amount of time researching the possibilities of obtaining a surrogate mother and defining exactly what her rights in such an arrangement would be.”

“You want a child badly, Mr. Haddon.”

Jefferson nodded.

“I want a son. I’ve interviewed couples who have gone through the process and inspected the children produced from such a union. I’m satisfied that they seem normal healthy children with a parent who truly wants them.”

Mr. Jones coughed discreetly behind his hand, hiding his thoughts behind a large white handkerchief.

“And after this research you feel you have an idea of what you want?”

“I know exactly what I want in the mother of my son, Mr. Jones.” He enumerated the qualities for the lawyer. “Calm, rational, levelheaded, to name a few traits. Unemotional. A woman who won’t expect to be involved in my life other than in matters to do with my child in the first few months of his life.”

There was a gleam in the older man’s eyes that was extremely disconcerting.

“This hypothetical woman, then. You believe she will just calmly hand over her child and disappear? That the two of you would live happily ever after?”

Jefferson nodded.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I want from the contract. A calm, rational agreement between two adults.” He barely heard the mumbled aside.

“Seems to me a woman would have to be very calm to agree to such a thing. Dead, in fact.” Mr. Jones shook his head slowly.

“I would make it worth her while,” Jefferson rushed in and then stopped, appalled at how the words sounded when you said them out loud.

His face flushed a deep red at the intensity of Jones’s scrutiny. Jefferson had always known he came from a family of wealth and prestige; tact and diplomacy were the rule. Never once had he been tempted to misuse his assets. But suddenly he wished he could spend a portion of his father’s overblown bank account to buy back those words, unsay them.

Lawyer Jones evidently felt the same way for he frowned, his wise blue eyes accusing in their scrutiny.

“But what about this woman? How long will you need her? What happens to her once the first few months of the baby’s life have passed and you no longer need her? Do you expect she will have no feelings for the child.that she’ll just disappear with cash in hand?”

When stated in those terms, Jefferson’s plan sounded arrogant; even slightly odious.

The older man snorted in disbelief.

“And.what if the child is a girl?”

Jefferson hadn’t thought about that.

“And what do you tell the child about his mother in ten or fifteen years?” the old man asked in a no-nonsense voice.

It was too much information overload, especially on a day when everything seemed out of sync.

“I don’t know. But I’m confident that I can handle whatever needs to be done.” Even now, Jefferson’s mind whirled with plans.

He had chosen a name for the boy. Breaking with eons of family tradition, Jefferson had decided his son would be named Robert, Bobby for short. It was all planned out, everything was in place. His lawyers had the financial details organized into a formal agreement.

“Mr. Jones, I merely require the right woman for my purpose. It will mean that my business plans for expansion will have to be shelved for the moment, but I feel it’s worth it.” Jefferson hoped the man understood that he would not be swayed by these trivial problems.

Willard T. Jones sat polishing his round spectacles, staring at them for a long solemn moment. When he finally glanced up, Jefferson caught a sparkle of amusement in the old man’s eyes.

“Well, Mr. Haddon. I’m sure you’ve thought about this long and hard. If I may, I’d like to offer a suggestion.”

Jefferson nodded.

“My advice is this. Put everything on hold. The issue of Miss McNaughton’s estate has yet to be settled and if you recall-” he smiled dryly “-your marital status may well change.”

“Oh, I don’t.”

“In six months’ time, the entire picture will look very different. I suggest you take the time necessary to think everything through. You might start with the estate.” Jones tipped back in his chair and gazed at the ceiling while speaking. “Judith Evelyn McNaughton was a cagey, stubborn old woman who went to the grave with a last-ditch effort to manipulate you into marriage. She specially chose Cassie Newton.”

Privately, Jefferson thought Judith’s latest bid for control of his future made all her other matchmaking attempts picayune by comparison.

“She knew how hard you’ve worked to make a success of your company. Just last month she was telling me of your need to expand your business. And of your need for more cash.”

Jefferson was startled by the words.

“I didn’t realize she had kept such close track of me while I’ve been out of the country,” he murmured, staring at his hands.

“She wanted you to have the means to expand.”

Jefferson grinned. “But only if I got it on her terms. Good old Judith.”

“The way I see it,” the older man continued, “she gave you two months’ grace. Think long and hard before you decide, my boy. Make very sure you won’t regret giving up the very things Judith wanted you to have.”

As he walked down the street, Jefferson Haddon shook his head at the ridiculous situation he found himself in. Memories, sharp and clear, tumbled around in his mind. He could still visualize Judith’s thin, severe face with that prim mouth pressed into a firm line as she bawled him out.

“One must always consider the other person, Jefferson. For in one way or another, whatever you do will affect him.”

That had been the time Freddie Hancock has socked Jefferson in the nose for saying Freddie’s mother was fat. Well, Jefferson grinned fondly, it was true. All the Hancocks had been fat. But Mrs. Hancock was enormous and when her arms wrapped around him in a hug, his eightyear-old body had been suffocated against her overflowing abundance.

He’d also been embarrassed. Aunt Judith had remonstrated with him on the social niceties before patting his hand gently.

“That’s the way many people show their affection for you, dear,” she had said. Her golden eyes had been sad. “I wish you would open up more. Most people just want to be friends. If you give them a chance, you will enjoy them.”

Needless to say, that had not been Jefferson’s experience. There were few opportunities for boyhood friends in the austere home his father maintained and very little free time to pursue such interests. There were even fewer people in Jefferson’s young life who had ever hugged him.

Aunt Judith had understood that. She had also been one of the few to whom he had granted that particular privilege. And as she gathered his gangly body against her thin, frail frame, he’d felt warm and cared for inside.

His mouth curved in remembrance.

Of course, Melisande Gustendorf had tried to hug him a number of times in those days. Usually when he was with the guys. Mel would sneak up behind them and wrap her arms around him. She was weird that way. And at twelve, what boy wants to be hugged in public by a girl?

Jefferson smiled fondly as he remembered the lesson about birds and bees that Aunt Judith had related when she heard about Melisande. Aunt Judith had never married; never had children. Explaining the details must have been embarrassing, but she had persevered until Jefferson’s every question had been answered. And then he had made darned good and sure Melisande never got within six feet of him!

His memories of Aunt Judith made him chuckle as he drove back to his penthouse apartment on the waterfront. Most of the time he was satisfied with the place. But today he felt hemmed in, constricted by his aloof tower.

“Dinky little rooms stuck way up in the sky,” Judith had scolded him constantly about his chosen lifestyle. “You live out of reach of people. Why, you can’t even touch God’s wonderful creation, the earth, without driving for twenty minutes.”

In a way, Judith was right. From his panoramic living room windows, he could see the city clothed in her glorious fall colors. By late October the leaves had all turned to vibrant oranges, brilliant reds and sunny yellows. Many had fallen, but there were still enough to create a picturesque view.

But it would take a while to drive to one of the reserves, park his car, and walk among the beauty.

“You should be out in the fresh air, chop a few logs when the weather gets crisp. A fire feels good in that stone fireplace when winter sets in.”

“But Aunt Judith, I have to be near my work.”

She had glared at him then and his eyes had dropped first.

“You know blessed well that your work could be conducted from anywhere. Why, these days some folks use a computer for everything. Don’t have to leave home to talk to people, shop or even go to the library.”

She had tapped her walking stick against the bricks of the patio, almost knocking over one of the pots of rusty orange chrysanthemums she always set out in the fall.

“Don’t hold with it myself. People need people. A body should have a time to work and a time to play. Too many folks taking their work wherever they go. And those danged cell phones.”

Jefferson grinned in remembrance.

“The blamed things always ring at the wrong time.” She had glared at him angrily as his own pealed out. “A body can’t have a decent conversation nowadays.”

At Judith’s estate, Jefferson knew there would be crunchy crisp leaves underfoot when you first stepped out the door. They would float down on the fall breeze, covering the vast expanse of lawns. A few pumpkins and some of the hardier vegetables would sit outside in the garden, and he could almost taste the ripe red crab apples weighing down slender trees in the orchard.

The decision was made without thinking and moments later, Jefferson found himself ensconced in his luxury sedan, hurrying toward Judith’s huge estate, aptly named Oak Bluff. Suddenly, he had a longing to see the old, sturdy brick house with its huge oak and maple trees standing guard around the circular driveway; to walk in the naturally wild terrain at the back of the grounds and feel the fresh air wash over him.

It was exactly as he remembered. Stately majestic and yet welcoming. The house stood firm against the elements, its pottery red brick and spotless white trim gleaming in the bright fall sunshine. Bennet had cleaned the debris off the walkway and the front lawns, but Jefferson knew there would be a thick carpet of crackling, wrinkled red and gold leaves just outside the back door.

He let himself into the house with the key Lawyer Jones had given him and dropped his overcoat on a hall table before glancing around. Richly polished oak paneling led the way into the library, his favorite room in the entire house.

Aunt Judith had a vast number of books, both old and new, crowded onto the shelves, carefully catalogued and indexed by subject, then author. Nestled into a nook on the far side, Jefferson knew there was a computer, printer and fax machine that Judith had frequently used. In one corner, under a window, stood the old desk her father had given as a birthday gift many years before. Its rolltop cover was closed now that the owner was gone. He brushed his hand over it fondly.

“Hello? Anyone home? Bennet?”

There was no answer. He wandered through to the patio.

The deck was littered here and there with golden yellow poplar leaves that whirled and wafted down on the delicate breeze. The redwood patio furniture was still out and since the afternoon was warm, Jefferson decided to sit outside until Mrs. Bennet returned. In his mind he could hear Judith’s voice as she fondly reminisced.

“No one can ever deny the power a home has on a family. It’s like an old friend. It wraps its arms around you and shields you from life’s problems while it draws people closer together.”

This was exactly like coming home, he thought, staring at the beauty around him. And it was nothing like the house he’d grown up in. This house was made for laughing children, a family, love. Suddenly, Jefferson wished he might raise his son here. When he had one, he reminded himself.

Obviously, Aunt Judith had wanted him to have that experience. But at what a price-married to someone he didn’t even know!

Voices from the garden area penetrated his musings and he got up to investigate. Down past the patio, a shortcut through the maze and Jefferson was almost across the lawns when he identified the happy laughing shouts of children.

“Chicken! I let you roll me.”

“No, you didn’t. I made you.”

“Ow! David! He pulled my braid.”

What were they doing here, he wondered? The estate was fenced but there were no nearby neighbours with children. At least none that he could recall. From the sounds quite a few people were present now. And they were having a riot on his aunt’s property.

“Can’t catch me.”

When he finally rounded what Judith had called the summerhouse, Jefferson Haddon III stopped dead in his tracks. There were at least ten of them, he decided. The oldest was no more than fifteen or sixteen. They were carrying the cornstalks from the side of the garden to the center, forming a huge cornstalk teepee while one person stood at the edge, arms outstretched to the sky.

“Autumn leeeves begin to faaall.”

At least the shrill voice had good volume, he decided, wincing at the wobbling pitch.

They all had jeans on, from the toddler holding another child’s hand, to the eldest who seemed intent on adding a few more stalks to the already monstrous heap. All except for one boy, the tallest of the group. He wore tight black pants that looked painted on, and a red checked shirt that hung way down his lean body.

Startled, Jefferson watched as the skinny one lit the teepee. In seconds there was a huge crackling bonfire in the center of his great aunt’s garden, and a pack of kids were dancing round and round, laughing happily.

“Ring around the rosy!”

Disgust and anger coursed through his veins as Jefferson watched the scene unfold They had no right to intrude, he fumed. No right at all. This was private property. For some reason the Bennets were not here, so these children were trespassing. They certainly didn’t have permission to light a fire.

Breaking into a run, Jefferson jogged across the lawn and through the black tilled soil of the garden to grab what he thought was the ringleader by his jacket.

“Exactly what do you think you’re doing?” he demanded through clenched teeth and then sucked in a lungful of air as shimmering green eyes glittered out from a tousled mop of black hair.

“Having a wiener roast, Mr. Haddon. Want to join us?”

Cassie Newton stood grinning up at him as the children ran circles around them happily. She looked like a child herself in the bulky old coat and decrepit jeans. Her face was smudged with dirt and her blunt fingernails were filthy.

“Who are all these children?” he asked, ignoring the grin. “And what are they doing here?”

“They’re mine,” Cassie told him proudly. “And I already told you. We are going to roast wieners.” Her voice dropped to a whisper as she hissed a warning up at him, green eyes flashing. “For the short time they have left here, this is their home and their party. And you will not spoil it, do you hear me?”

Sensing the tension surrounding them, most of the children had stopped their wild play and stood staring at the two adults facing each other.

Jefferson watched as the tall, skinny boy sporting the tight pants moved forward to stand protectively next to Cas sie. He topped her by a good ten inches and it was clear from his stance that he would take on anyone who challenged her.

Jefferson was flabbergasted.

“All of these children are yours?” His voice squeaked with surprise and he heard one of the kids snicker. He strove for control. His eyes moved over her assessingly. “How old are you, anyway?”

But she ignored him.

“David,” she addressed the young soldier at her side. “Would you please tell Mrs. Bennet that we’re ready. Then you could help her carry out the hot dogs and the hot chocolate.”

A sweet smile accompanied her words and Jefferson was surprised to see the sour-faced lad grin back good-naturedly before loping off to do her bidding.

She directed the rest of the children to arranging a picnic table that stood off under the trees, and finding wiener sticks. Satisfied that everyone was occupied, Cassie turned back to face him.

“I’m a foster mother,” she told him matter-of-factly. “The kids stay with me until the agency is able to find them families.” Her green eyes glimmered with mirth as she spied his Gucci shoes filling rapidly with rich black garden soil.

“You’re not really dressed for this,” she observed, eyeing his pure wool slacks, black vest and once pristine white shirt. “Perhaps you should wait inside until I am finished if you wish to speak to me.”

Jefferson seethed at the dismissing tone of this-this interloper. So she thought she could reject him so easily? He grabbed her arm as she turned away. His eyes opened wide as she turned on him like a fiery virago, ramrod stiff in the filthy garments.

“Mr. Haddon, you will let go of me. You will not create a scene to spoil our day. You will return to the house and wait there.”

Her voice was as crisp as a fresh fall apple and he found himself turning to obey her militarylike orders before he realized what he was doing and turned back.

“Just a minute here,” he protested, angry that she had him dancing to her tune. He pointed to the fire.

“You cannot let that thing rage away. What if it got out of control? The city has bylaws, you know.”

The urchin before him drew herself to her full height, which Jefferson figured was maybe a hair over five feet, before deigning to speak. When she did, her resentment was clear.

“I am in charge here, Mr. Haddon. If I need help I can call on Bennet. But I won’t.” Her hands clasped her hips and he couldn’t help but notice the way her hair tossed itself into silky disarray around her face. “And for your information, I have a permit to burn.”

Jefferson shook his head. He refused to be deterred. Someone had to protect Judith’s wonderful old estate.

“Bennet’s nowhere to be seen. Fat lot of help he’d be.”

She refused to answer him, her full lips pursed tightly. Instead, one grubby fist pointed toward the shed in the corner of the garden. Jefferson saw a man leaning against the side, watching them.

“We’ll manage, Mr. Haddon. You’d better go before you ruin those designer duds completely.”

Jefferson almost choked. The stately old butler Aunt Judith had insisted wear a black pinstripe suit coat and spotless white shirt stood clad in a red flannel shirt and tattered overalls with a filthy felt hat on his silver hair.

Jefferson whirled around to speak to Cassie but she ignored him as she dealt with one of the children’s requests. When the little girl had toddled away, he tried a more conciliatory approach.

“My name is Jefferson,” he told her softly, intrigued by a woman who would don such unsightly clothes to stand in the center of a dirty garden with a pack of homeless kids for a wiener roast in late autumn.

She whirled to face him, having obviously forgotten his presence.

“What?” Her voice was far away, lost in some never land.

“My name is Jefferson.” He told her again, more clearly this time.

That sent her big green eyes searching his for something. He didn’t know exactly what, but evidently she was satisfied. Moments later she moved forward to help Mrs. Bennet set out the food. He thought he heard her clear tones whisper softly through the crisp air.

“Goodbye, Jeff.”

As he watched her walk away with that energetic bounce to her step he was coming to recognize, Jefferson tossed the sound through his mind several times.

Jeff. Jeff, he said to himself. He’d never had a nickname before, not with his father’s strict adherence to family traditions. At boarding school he’d always been Jefferson or Jefferson William.

Jeff.

He liked it. A smile flickered across his sober face. He had never been to a wiener roast, either. Perhaps it was time he broadened his horizons. So that he could teach Bobby, he told himself.

He strode back to Judith’s house with anticipation as his companion. The boy, David, was just coming out and looked suspiciously at him before moving aside at the door. He avoided Jeffs eyes, striding quickly past, obviously eager to join the group in the garden.

“David,” Jefferson called after him. The boy stopped, unsure. Finally he turned around, angling a questioning black eyebrow up at the older man.

“What?” His voice was sullen.

“I need to change clothes. Do you know where there are some old things I can borrow?” Jeff ignored his petulant expression.

They stood facing each other for long moments, searching brown eyes scrutinizing him steadily, before David nodded. Moving into the house, he stopped to let Jeff remove his dirty shoes.

“Mrs. Bennet will skin you ‘live if you track that dirt through the house,” he ordered, his tone smugly superior.

As they marched the length of the upstairs hallway, Jeff noticed that every room seemed to be occupied. It was odd. He’d been here hundreds of times before and no one had ever occupied the second floor.

Other than Judith.

They finally stopped at the linen closet at the far end of the hall. The boy tugged out a cardboard box and began pulling things out.

“Here, you can wear these,” the kid offered, measuring Jefferson’s body mentally before choosing his attire.

Jefferson winced at the ragged denim shirt and much patched jeans that were proffered from a box that had undoubtedly come from the Goodwill center. There was very little to commend the shabby articles except that they would save his own clothes from stains the black garden soil would inflict.

“You can change in my room if you want,” David suggested hesitantly.

“Thank you very much.” Jefferson kept his tone properly appreciative, considering this was half his house. David stood staring out the window while he slipped out of his pants and into the rags.

“Why do you have your own room?” Jefferson asked curiously, having already noticed two beds in each of the other bedrooms.

The boy’s head swung round, his grin wide.

“Cassie says a guy who’s sixteen should have some privacy. So I get to have my own room. I never had that before.” His serious brown eyes stared at Jefferson. “In most of the foster places we don’t have half the fun we have here.” His solemn face brightened.

“Cassie says this is a fun stop on the highway of life. While we’re here we get to do lots of neat things. Like the bonfire.” His eager eyes inspected Jefferson from head to stockinged feet. “There’s some old boots in the back porch,” he said softly. His dark head tipped to one side, anxiously waiting.

“Are you just about ready? They’re gonna be cooking the hot dogs soon an’ I’m starved.”

Jefferson nodded and they went down the stairs together. Well, sort of together. The boy bounded down happily in front, eager to rejoin the fray.

Jefferson slipped on the boots slowly, mulling over the child’s explanation. If he understood correctly, this boy was in limbo. Waiting. And while he was here, that woman, Cassie Newton, made the time seem like a holiday. It was a curious occupation; one he didn’t understand. What did she get out of it?

They walked toward the others, David half running until he stopped suddenly. Wheeling around, he asked, “Are you going to live here, too?”

Jefferson paused, head tilted, wondering how to answer.

“I’m not sure yet,” he hedged finally. “Why?”

“Just wondering what we’re s’posed to call you,” David mumbled, turning away.

Jefferson reached out impulsively, pulling at the boy’s sleeve.

“My name is Jeff.” The rest died away as the teenager bounded toward the others, yelling as he went.

“This is my friend Jeff,” he bellowed to the assembled throng. That settled, he got to the matters at hand. “I’m having four hot dogs.”

They crowded around Cassie eagerly as she handed out wieners and sticks to the younger ones first, then the older children. To his credit, David waited until the last for his portion, Jeff noticed. He took his own place behind the patient boy and only belatedly wondered if there would be enough of everything for the adults to share in the feast.

He would have backed away then, but Cassie thrust a stick and a wiener at him.

“Slumming, Jeff?” she asked, one eyebrow quirked upward expressively. There it was again, he mused, that shortened form of his name. To his amazement, he found that he enjoyed hearing it on her lips. He was even starting to think of himself as Jeff, he decided.

He ignored the hint of sarcasm and threaded the wiener on the stick crossways. It didn’t look very secure and he wondered how long it would stay on.

Evidently, Cassie Newton was mentally posing the same question for she reluctantly took the items from his clumsy hands and patiently demonstrated the fine art of roasting hot dogs.

“You have to do it like this,” she instructed, pushing the meat on lengthwise. “Otherwise it will fall off when it begins to cook.”

Her eyes took in his curious outfit then, widening in surprise as she focused on the sizable tear above his left knee. She forwent the obvious comment and, with a grin, turned to skewer a hotdog for herself before moving toward the fire.

Jeff followed her, wishing he’d had this experience before. Feeling totally inept and out of place, he watched carefully, noticing the way she turned and twisted the stick to get each part of the meat cooked. He tried to follow suit but after several minutes, Cassie’s wiener looked golden brown and plumply delicious while his was shriveled and covered with black spots. Even the youngest child in the group had done better than he.

“Good for you, Missy. That looks great!” She praised the littlest imp with a glowing smile.

Jeff decided he liked the way her face lit up when one of the children teased her. A softening washed over her clear skin as she spoke to each. She didn’t talk down to them, he noted, and she didn’t boss. Cassie Newton treated each child as an adult person, entitled to her full attention. And as she listened to their little stories and jokes, Jefferson sensed her pleasure in them.

“We’re very happy to have you here, sir.” It was Bennet, grinning like a Cheshire cat as he bit into his own food. “Miss Judith used to say that sweet dill relish was what made the difference between a really good hot dog and a great one.”

Jeff smiled while his brain screeched to a halt. Aunt Judith had done this? Joined in a wiener roast in the garden? Stiff and stern Aunt Judith who wouldn’t tolerate a speck of dirt under seven-year-old fingernails?

He could hardly imagine such a thing. His curious eyes moved over the assembled throng.

It was like watching a huge family, he mused. Something like Norman Rockwell would have painted and totally unreal. He munched on the liberally ketchuped, but still charred, hot dog and thought about the curiously vibrant woman laughing down at seven wildly active children.

That Cassie managed all this with children who weren’t her own was wonder enough. But when you considered that they were children who were here for a short duration only, the bond she managed to create was amazing.

He wondered how she had achieved such a rapport with them even as a tinge of jealousy wove through his mind. He wanted, no, he dreamed, of having such a relationship with his own children.

Just then the real-life Norman Rockwell portrait happened right before his eyes. A little boy, no more than five, tucked his hand into Cassie’s and proceeded to tug her behind him to the lush green grass beyond the garden. On one end, it was covered with a pile of red and gold leaves in various stages of drying. As Jeff watched, they took turns tossing handfuls of the vibrantly colored foliage over each other, giggling merrily as the leaves stuck to their hair and their clothes. The picture stayed in his mind, clear and bright long after the game ended.

A whole new plan began to form in his mind.

One that involved the son he had longed for.

One that involved the petite dark-haired woman, industriously swiping at the mustard stain on the mouth of one of her charges.

One that involved Judith’s extensive estate and the money she’d wanted him to have.

Jefferson William Haddon III sipped his hot chocolate and thought about that idea.

A lot.

Yes, he decided at last. It might just be workable. As long as he kept his mind focused on the long term plan: A business that stretched around the globe and a son to leave it to.

Chapter Two

“Oh, Lord,” she prayed, “why me and why now?” Cassie wasn’t nearly as nonchalant about the sudden appearance of Jeff Haddon as she would have liked him to believe. In fact, the sight of those broad muscular shoulders and lean, tapered legs had quickened her heart rate substantially in the lawyer’s office. And again when he appeared in the garden. But he need not know that.

Neither did he need to know the way her heart sped up when she looked into those rich chocolate eyes. Maybe it was because he sometimes looked like a lost little boy himself.

She laughed at the thought. Boy, indeed.

Don’t be a fool, she scolded herself. Jefferson Haddon certainly doesn’t require your mothering skills.

So she continued her ministrations with the children, hoping they would enjoy the wonderful fall weather while it lasted. And if ever there was a place for them to run and yell, free of the constant strictures of their everyday life, it was on the grounds of Judith McNaughton’s estate. The place was like a bit of heaven God had sent specially for their use. It seemed that now He was changing the rules.

When the afternoon sun lost its warmth, she scooted them all inside.

“Come on, guys, let’s go in and watch that new video Mrs. Bennet rented.” They trooped into the TV room with barely a complaint and settled down while she took the opportunity to relax for a moment in the sunroom.

Cassie glanced out the window longingly, thinking wistfully of what she would lose when she moved out in two months. Not that she wanted to; the place was made for hoards of children and Judith had been the best surrogate grandmother Cassie could have ever asked for.

She remembered the day she had filled out the first forms to become a foster mother. It seemed like yesterday and yet there had been a variety of children since then. And nothing had ever been as wonderful as Judith’s invitation to stay at Oak Bluff. That will had come as a surprise. Fondly, Cassie recalled the old lady’s words about the children.

“They need stability and order, my dear,” she had said. “And I think you are the one to give it to them.”

Cassie’s lips tightened as she remembered Judith’s comments on her nephew.

“He’s a stubborn one, is Jefferson, but underneath he’s a good lad. Honest and kind. Maybe a bit reserved.”

Judith had been fond of rambling on about her family and Cassie hadn’t paid as much attention as she should have.

Obviously.

She was still amazed that the ‘boy’ Judith had talked about was over thirty years old, tall, dark and handsome and from one of the city’s oldest families.

That he was here now seemed unbelievable. After all, he had not made an effort to see the old woman during the last few months of her life.

“It’s a wonderful old house, isn’t it?”

Cassie whirled around to find the object of her thoughts standing languidly behind her. His deep voice sounded friendly, without the arrogant tones she had heard at the lawyer’s. She decided to give him the benefit of her many doubts and listened as he continued speaking.

“I used to come here quite a lot as a child. Aunt Judith had a way of making me feel better at Oak Bluff when things at home weren’t going very well.”

She cocked her dark curly head to one side, appraising him with quizzical jade eyes.

“You haven’t been around for quite a while,” she accused. “I’ve been living here for six months and in all that time Judith never saw you once.”

Jeff shook his dark head. “No, she didn’t.”

He refused to justify himself to her, Cassie noted. He might as well have told her to mind her own business. Still, she had needed to ask.

“Where will you live when they sell the house?” she asked curiously. The way he kept watching her made Cassie nervous.

“The same place I’ve been living for years,” he commented sarcastically. Jeff’s dark eyes stared down at her unperturbed.

Cassie bristled at the condescending note that filled his low voice. Her temper was one of the things she constantly tried to rein in, but inevitably she forgot all about control and let loose when she should have kept cool. This was one of those times.

“Look, Mr. Haddon,” the emphasis was unmistakable. “Perhaps I don’t have the obvious resources you have and your aunt had, but I am not some subhuman hussy trying to swindle you. I am interested in what happens to this house because it involves my family and my employment. When I move, I will lose these children because I don’t have the housing resources to meet government standards. Pardon me if I seem concerned!”

She would have angrily spun out of the room, but Jefferson Haddon grasped her arm and forcibly tugged her back When she looked up, his rugged face was stretched in a self-mocking grin. His long fingers plucked the ragged denim away from his lean form.

“I’m sorry,” he proffered humbly. “I’m dressed like a bum and now I’m acting like one. Can we at least try to be friends?” When she didn’t answer, he pressed her hand. “For Aunt Judith’s sake? I’m sure she thought a lot of you to ask you to live here.”

Cassie eyed him suspiciously through her narrowed eyes. Regardless of what attire Jefferson Haddon III donned, she doubted if anyone would ever question his status as the lord of the manor. And that mildly beseeching tone didn’t suit him at all.

Expertly cut black hair lay close against his well-shaped head, the back just grazing the collar of his shirt. Broad forehead, long aristocratic nose and a wide mouth seemed chiseled into classically perfect proportions which screamed blueblood.

Jeff Haddon had the lanky, whipcord-strong type of body Cassie had always assumed belonged to cowboys, not playboys. His shoulders looked muscular and wide beneath the torn flannel, his hips narrow with long, long legs. He looked what he was, a rich business tycoon dressed in let’spretend-we’re-slumming clothes.

Right now his dark eyes beseeched her to understand. Grudgingly she accepted his apology even as she tugged her smaller hand from his. She hated having to tip her head so far back just to look at him and vowed to buy some four-inch heels to wear when he was around.

“I don’t think friendship is exactly what your aunt had in mind when she made up that will,” Cassie quipped, curious about the red stain that covered his pronounced cheekbones.

“Then I guess we’ll just have to pretend,” he retorted.

“Fine. Truce.” Cassie turned to leave.

“Where are you going?” His voice was an exact replica of two-year-old Mark’s and Cassie smiled at the sound of petulance.

“I thought perhaps you would prefer to be alone. This house is big enough to get lost in and failing that, I can go help in the kitchen,” she replied, moving toward the door.

His rumbly voice stopped her.

“Why don’t you have coffee with me instead?” he asked, holding out a slim hand toward the huge armchair that had always been Cassie’s favorite. “Mrs. Bennet just brought a fresh pot in,” he cajoled.

Cassie studied him for a few minutes, assessing his intent with all her senses on alert. Finally, she allowed herself to be guided to her seat. Her fingers closed around the mug of steaming coffee with pleasure. She sipped the rich dark brew slowly, closing her eyes in satisfaction.

“Don’t you just love coffee?” she murmured, inhaling the aroma that steamed off her cup. “I can never get enough.”

“I limit myself to three cups a day,” Jeff told her. “Too much caffeine is unhealthy.”

Cassie ignored him, rolling the hot liquid around on her tongue. “Nothing that tastes this good could be that unhealthy,” she countered, curling herself comfortably into the chair.

She watched him sit stiffly erect in the straight-backed chair. His silent appraisal unnerved her.

She could feel the tension building as electric currents snapped in the air between them. She had felt it before, that nervous awareness whenever he watched her.

Suddenly, she felt extremely conscious of that same, powerful attraction she had felt earlier today. It made her jittery. Cassie had plenty of contact with men in the course of her work, but they were colleagues, older than her, often balding with paunches.

And none had sent her pulse soaring or her heart thudding the way this man did. It was disconcerting. She tried to bury feelings she didn’t understand under a bluster of bravado.

“Coffee’s not a risk. It’s a necessity.” Her gaze fixed on his. The silence in the room yawned between them. Cassie searched her mind for trivial conversation that would break the current of magnetism drawing her into the dark depths of his eyes.

“Are you married?” she blurted out and then chided herself for her stupidity. When would she learn to control her tongue?

Jeff stared at her through narrow-slitted eyes, his mouth tight. “Obviously not, if my aunt is trying to marry the two of us off.” His answer was short and did not welcome further comments.

Cassie ignored that. “I just wondered what you would do with all this room if you did live here,” she pondered, glancing around the beautiful space. “It’s a home meant for a family.”

“What would you do?” His tone was razor sharp but Cassie ignored that, preferring to lose herself in a world of dreams. “Cassie?” His voice had softened and she dragged open her eyes to find his dark gaze resting on her in an assessing manner.

“I’d fill it with children,” she told him simply.

“Ah, you’re planning on getting married, then?” he asked shortly, dark eyes glittering.

Cassie sat up straight at that, untangling her feet from under her.

“Good grief, no.” She laughed. “I meant with foster kids.”

She was pretty sure her face gave away her thoughts. She’d never been much good at pretence and there was no point in trying to hide her plans for this house.

Not that it mattered now.

“There are so many kids who could really benefit from a few months here. Away from the pain and confusion that have left them wondering about their future. This is a place where they could feel safe and carefree.” She grinned up at him. “Sorry. When I get on my soapbox, I tend to start preaching.”

Jeff’s eyes raked over her curiously.

“But don’t you want your own children? I can’t imagine that you would waste all your efforts on someone else’s offspring. Don’t most women want to get married and have children?”

He was watching her again. His eyes were bright with what she privately termed his banker’s look, as if he were assessing her net occupational worth.

“Oh, but these are my children,” she exclaimed. “Every child that comes under my care has a special place in my heart.”

“You can’t possibly love them all,” he snorted derisively. “There’s no way anyone could have enough love for all the needy children of the world. Obviously even their parents can’t provide them with what they need.”

Cassie smiled sadly, her eyes glistening.

“I didn’t say all of them, just the ones I come into contact with.” Her small hands stretched out toward him in explanation. “And if I never have my own children, at least I will have the experience of loving these. But you know-” her green eyes twinkled across the room “-love isn’t something that you run out of. The more you give, the more it grows.”

It was a strange statement, he decided. And it proved that Cassandra Newton had no real grasp on reality. He sat quietly in the flickering firelight, lost in his own thoughts.

“It’s been my experience that there is never enough to go around,” he murmured finally, staring down at his toes. He let the silence stretch starkly between them uncomfortably before speaking again.

“What will you do now?” he asked, curious about her plans now that her access to the house would be denied. “How will you be able to look after all your children when you have to move?”

Jeff watched Cassie closely, noting the white lines of strain that etched themselves around her eyes and the thin line of her mouth as she considered his question.

“I don’t know. The younger ones won’t have as much difficulty finding a place. It’s David and Marie I’m really worried about. And all the other kids like them.”

“Why will it be so hard for them?” Jeff asked curiously. “Are they in trouble with the law or something?”

“That’s usually what everyone thinks.” Cassie smiled sadly. “They’ll take the younger ones because they’re cute and cuddly. But the teenagers always have a more difficult time.” She grinned at him, tongue in cheek.

“After all, how many adolescents do you know that are easy to get along with?” she queried. “Usually they’re already struggling to find out who they are. Fitting in to a strange home is just another problem added to an already staggering load.”

Jefferson thought about his own teenage years. They had been difficult, all right. And he’d had the advantage of knowing that there would be food and the same place for him to sleep every night.

As he sat watching her slender form, slim legs tucked beneath her, Jeff could see the enthusiasm and concern Cassie brought to her job. He considered his own idea once more. Somehow he doubted that the small spitfire in front of him would welcome his idea just yet. He decided to hold off for a while. Perhaps once they got to know each other, Cassie Newton would be more amenable to the plan that was floating half-formed in Jefferson’s busy mind.

Jeff made it his business to go out to Aunt Judith’s a number of times during the next weeks. He made more than two dozen trips over the next three weeks to the stately old home, and not all of them were to do with settling Judith’s estate.

He was drawn to the family atmosphere that prevailed but his curiosity was piqued by the small, green-eyed sprite who played board games sprawled on the floor, drank coffee incessantly and squealed in delight when the children tickled her. Oak Bluff was as comfortable for him now as it had been when Judith was alive. More so. Now he felt an insatiable interest in the inhabitants that he had never experienced with his aunt.

With a little ingenuity and a few well-framed questions, Jeff managed to inveigle himself into the household routine without much fuss. Before long Bennet was relaying bits and pieces of information that were very enlightening when one was trying to understand Cassie Newton. He also learned more about her charges.

Friday afternoon he found Cassie alone in the library. He wandered over to the armchair and stood peering down at her, noticing the tearstains on her pale cheeks. She glared back at him impolitely.

“Do you ever work?” she demanded rudely.

“You forget,” he teased. “I have my own company. I’m the boss.” Jeff smiled. He had her rattled. That should help.

She raised her eyebrows as if to say, so what? Jeff grinned.

“It so happens that I just finished the graphics for a new computer system and I’m taking a break. How’s it going with you?”

She sat cross-legged on the floor. Some tight black material clung to her shapely legs and stretched all the way to her hips where a big bulky sweater covered the rest of her obvious assets. Her hair was mussed and tousled in disarray around her tearstained face.

“It’s not going, not at all,” she muttered, staring at her hands.

“I thought some of the kids had moved.” Jeff flopped into a big leather chair and propped his elbows on his knees.

“They have. Only David, Marie and Tara are left now. Tara has a place to go on the first of the month, but the other two.” Her voice died away as huge tears plopped onto her cheeks. “I just can’t seem to find anywhere for them to live. If nothing comes up, they’ll have to go into temporary care, or worse, the juvenile home. They’ll hate that.”

She slapped her hand against the newspapers spread out on the floor around her. Jeff felt the energy she projected buzzing in the air around him as she jumped to her feet.

“Why did Judith have to make those stupid rules?” she demanded, standing in front of him. “I could have tried to purchase the place outright if she had put it up for sale, but this way, even when I move out, there’s no opportunity to get it.” Her tone was disparaging. “A cat home, for Pete’s sake!”

Jeff grinned. He’d seen this side of her quick temper before and he knew there was at least one way to calm her down. He grasped her slim arm and tugged.

“Come on,” he urged. “Let’s go for a walk.”

Seconds later they were striding through the dense, musky woods. Cassie might be short, but she set a fast pace and Jeff was forced to move quickly to keep up.

She strode along the path muttering to herself, clad in a brilliant red wool anorak that left her long, slim legs exposed in their black tights. Cassie’s raven curls glistened like a seal’s coat in the autumn sunshine as they swirled around her taut face.

“Absolutely ridiculous,” he heard her mutter as she stomped on a rotted tree, splintering it in the crisp air. “People shouldn’t be allowed to waste valuable resources just because she wants her nephew married.”

Jeff picked up the pace, anxious to hear this.

“Can’t he find himself a wife?” she mumbled angrily.

“I haven’t really looked,” he told her and watched, satisfied, as her skin flushed a deep rose. “Are you volunteering?”

“I don’t want to get married,” she told him as she looked down her pointed little nose. “I just want the kids and the house.”

Jeff pursed his lips to stop the chuckle from escaping. “Isn’t that putting the horse before the carriage, so to speak?” he queried, teasing her. “You should probably marry me first before we start discussing children.”

Cassie stopped in her tracks at his heckling tone, which sent him colliding into her from behind. Jeff struggled to regain his balance, but they both went crashing to the ground anyway with Cassie’s firm little body landing squarely in his lap. He sat there winded while she scrambled off him, and wondered at the reaction her tiny presence always created.

Her giggles of sporadic laughter sent his head tipping back to scrutinize her laughing face.

“You look like you’ve landed in something particularly nasty,” she told him, chortling at his discomfort.

“It sure felt like it,” he muttered, dusting the pine needles from the seat of his pants. Her laughing green eyes stared down at him curiously.

“What did you mean?” Her soft voice was hesitant, as if afraid to hear the answer.

Jeff thought for a moment, rehashing their conversation.

“Aren’t you at all interested in volunteering for the position of my wife?” he asked, his voice teasingly serious.

But Cassie didn’t laugh as he had expected. Her haunting green eyes stared at him, assessing his meaning.

“Why would you need to hunt for a wife?” she inquired, walking slowly beside him, her earlier ill humor dissipated like a morning mist now that curiosity had taken over. “I’m sure there are droves of women who would eagerly offer themselves on the marriage block to the infamous Jefferson Haddon the fourth.” Her tone was softly disparaging but her companion seemed not to hear it.

“It’s the third. And there are hardly droves,” he drawled.

“Anyway, that’s not the kind of woman I want for the mother of my son,” he mused, his thoughts turned inward.

Cassie stopped dead in her tracks as she stared at him in shock.

“What did you say?” Cassie squeaked, sure she had misunderstood. “What son?” She wrinkled her brow in thought. Surely there must be something she had missed.

When he didn’t answer, Cassie shook the muscled arm hanging loosely at his side. “Do you have a child, Jeff?”

“Not yet,” he told her, black eyes snapping fiercely. “But I plan to.”

His pronouncement left her speechless, mouth gaping in wonder. Jefferson William Haddon the third was going to get himself a child? How, she asked herself dryly. By mail order and stork delivery? She stared unblinkingly at the grim determination turning up his wide mouth. When she heard his next question, Cassie’s jaw dropped a little further.

“Want to help?” As a come-on it lacked finesse. As a proposal, it left something to be desired. It also left her gasping, as if someone had ploughed their fist into her midsection. She moved weakly down the dusky trail, totally ignoring the illustrious Mr. Haddon, flummoxed by his ridiculous statement.

In fact, the whole conversation was preposterous, she told herself. Totally ridiculous. The inane concept of marrying him and helping him provide an heir to the family fortune was.

The answer to her prayer, a small voice whispered. She tried to brush it away, but the flow of words refused to stop. For years, it reminded Cassie, she had dreamed of raising her own children. Now, at twenty-eight, she had almost lost hope that the right man would ever come along.

Maybe he had finally shown up.

What are you holding out for? Prince Charming? her subconscious chided her. There are all kinds of love. Some of them are learned, like your love for the children. Forget the fairy tale-take reality.

Cassie replayed the lawyer’s voice as it read Judith’s will. Marry him, it said, and she could live in this house, have her foster family, continue with her work and have a large amount of money as well.

Flickering images of her own family’s needs slipped through her mind. Samantha desperately needed cash with the second baby on the way and her husband’s death just last month. Ken was struggling, too, with two stepchildren who needed some professional help.

And Mom and Dad. Cassie pictured the couple’s dilapidated old farmstead. Neither of her parents were in good health and the place had become worn and rundown. One hundred thousand dollars would make an immense difference all around.

But one thought kept surfacing. She would be a kept woman, Cassie reminded herself. She would be marrying Jeff for the money.

And for a child.

Strangely, that thought didn’t bother her as much as Cassie expected it would. Instead, darling little cherub babies floated across her mind, kicking their chubby legs and gurgling in happy voices. The agency never brought her the babies. Her arms ached with the need to hold and cuddle one of those baby-lotion scented bodies.

And there was David. If anyone needed a father, he did. Could Jefferson Haddon possibly be the man God had sent to ease David’s path into adulthood? It seemed impossible; it didn’t jibe with the dream she’d held for so long.

A godly man, proud to be a follower of God, happy to share her work in the church and take his place as the head of their family-Jeff Haddon? A man who would share the same pain she felt when broken, unhappy children were brought to their home; a loving husband who would stand next to her and help in the healing process? Would marriage and children with Jeff give her that Christian family she’d planned for so long?

God, is this really from you?

Cassie heard a voice and turned to find Jeff’s long lean body directly behind her. He was speaking in a low tone that riveted her attention.

“We could both benefit, Cassie. Obviously that’s what Aunt Judith intended.”

She stared at him, transfixed by the dark conviction glinting from his stern face.

“But you’re not in love with me,” she objected, softly. “And I consider that a prerequisite to marriage.”

His gleaming dark head came up at that, his eyes boring into hers.

“No, I’m not,” he agreed dryly. “But then, neither, I think, are you in love with me.” He peered at her as if assessing her ability to understand what he was about to say. Cassie felt an anxious quiver spring up inside. “I’m thirty-five years old. I am fully capable of deciding what it is I want out of life. I want a son.”

Cassie marveled that his voice was so strong and steady. She felt like a quivering mass of jelly herself.

“I’ve been noticing your relationship with these children over the past few weeks,” he told her, his long stride adapting to match her shorter one. “You have the kind of rapport a child needs during its formative years. I think you would make a splendid mother.” His voice added reflectively, “and wife.”

He was serious, Cassie realized. Prince Jefferson actually expected her to agree to marry him and provide the heir to his kingdom.

“Is it so important, this successor for the Haddon family,” she demanded disparagingly, “that you would marry someone you don’t love, someone you barely know, just to continue the family line?”

“No,” he smiled at her sadly, tiny lines radiating around his sardonic mouth. “It’s not important at all, for that reason. But it is important for me to have my own child.” He straightened his shoulders then and grasped her elbow briskly as if getting down to business. “Think about it, Cassie. You would be able to do those things you’re always talking about for kids who need your help.” His voice lowered provocatively. “And you would be able to continue your writing without the kind of interruptions that any other place would afford.”

Cassie whirled to face him, amazed that he knew of her secret life as a children’s author. Then she realized that a man like Jefferson Haddon would have had her thoroughly investigated before considering the possibility of proposing.

The air went out of her suddenly.

“So it would be a business proposition,” she intoned softly, glaring up at him in the silence of the woods. “I get money and the run of the house to continue my work and you get your child. I do have some scruples, you know,” she told him, furious at his extended silence.

“I can’t just coldly and callously go to bed with you because you want a child. Lovemaking is a part of marriage and that’s a serious step that two people take because they want to commit themselves to the future together. If you think that I could treat such a commitment so lightly, then you really don’t know me at all.”

She wasn’t prepared for his strong arms as they wrapped around her. Jeff tugged her against his muscular frame, a tiny smile turning up the edges of his lips. His head tipped down, his mouth meeting hers in a kiss that rocked her to her boot-clad feet.

Cassie felt a longing stretch deep inside. It surprised her with its strength. As she felt his lips touch hers, Cassie curled her arms round Jeff’s strong neck and twined her fingers through his dark, immaculate hair.

She knew that time passed, that one kiss had become many. But each gentle touch of his lips created a need for more.

When he finally drew away from her, Cassie felt bereft. He pressed her head against his chest while they each drew deep calming breaths of crisp fall air.

His voice, when it rumbled against her cheek, was softly mocking as his hand stroked over her windblown hair.

“I don’t think anything that happened between us could be cold or calculated,” he told her, a smile of satisfaction curving his tight mouth.

Jeff tipped her chin up, forcing her turbulent gaze to meet his melting dark chocolate one.

“We both know there’s something smoldering between us,” he rasped. “And I think it’s only a matter of time until it bursts into flame.” He held her gaze steadily. “But I’ll guarantee you this. I’m not going to force or coerce you into anything. Whatever we do, it will be after a mutual decision.”

Cassie felt as if the ground were falling away and she wrapped her fingers around his arm.

How could this be happening to plain, ordinary Cassie Newton? She seldom dated. Goodness, she didn’t even know many men who weren’t involved with the children’s agency or her church.

“If you’d prefer, we can go the route of artificial insemination.” His mouth tipped up wryly. “Although, personally, I don’t think it would be nearly as, er, interesting.”

Cassie felt her cheeks burn with the implication behind his words. How could he say these things? It wasn’t, well, decent somehow.

“The direction of our relationship will depend on you, Cassie.”

She knew her mouth was open; that she was gaping at him like some starstruck teenager. She couldn’t help it. The world had tilted in a crazy angle and she couldn’t get her bearings.

“Come on. If we don’t walk, we’ll freeze.”

He tugged her along beside him then, continuing their walk as if nothing unusual had occurred. Except that he kept her hand enfolded in his.

Cassie let the whirl of emotions pirouette through her mind in fast forward. Marry him? She hardly knew him, although he had somehow become an intricate part of their lives over the past weeks.

And always, Jeff watched her with David. Dark head cocked to one side, he would listen intently as she spoke with the boy. Subject matter wasn’t important. Jeff seemed to focus more on the child’s acceptance of Cassie as the authority on the matter. At least marriage to Jefferson Haddon would ensure a home for David and Marie, she thought ruefully.

Nasty suspicions crowded into her confused brain and Cassie stopped dead in the pathway to cast a curious glance at the tall man beside her.

“What’s really behind this proposal?” she demanded, hands on her hips. “Why do you suddenly need me for your plan?”

He looked sheepish. And not a little embarrassed.

“The truth this time,” she ordered. “All of it”

“I do want a son,” he said firmly.

“And?”

“Well, the fact is that most of my funds are tied up in the family trust. Oh, I make a good living,” he offered quickly as she frowned. “My company is doing very well. But I want to expand and that takes a lot of capital. It’s a private company and I’d like to keep it that way.”

He studied her face as if deciding whether she understood what he was saying.

“You mean you don’t want to offer stock or something to raise money?” Cassie asked him doubtfully.

“Yes, and I don’t want to take on private investors unless I have to. Computers are a risky business right now. The markets are changing so rapidly and new advances occur daily. I’d rather not risk anyone else’s hard-earned money.”

Cassie sank onto the iron bench nearby, thinking about what he’d said.

“Judith once told me that your father has money. Maybe he could.”

“No!”

It was a vehement denial that brought two red circles to his cheeks. He flopped down beside her, hands shoved into his pockets. Cassie couldn’t see his face, he was turned away from her. But she could hear the cold hard tones and the anger under them.

“My father would never agree,” he told her. “He wants me in the family business and would be just as happy to see Bytes Incorporated go down the tubes.” He watched her speculatively for a moment. “If he knew about the son idea, he would have a fit. He’s had my wife picked out for twenty years now. He won’t take it lightly when he finds out I’ve married someone else.”

“Oh, but I don’t want to create more problems. Family is very important.” Cassie stared out in front of her, barely registering the beauty of the fall landscape.

“Mine isn’t,” she heard him mutter sotto voce.

“This marriage, if it happens, will already be starting out with a lot of obstacles,” she protested. “If only Judith hadn’t tied everything up.” She swung her head around to stare at him. “Does your father know about the will?”

He shook his head, then bent to pull an oak leaf from her hair.

“He knows she died, of course. And that she left a will. But beyond that, nothing. I specifically asked Jones to keep things quiet until it was all settled.”

Cassie pulled herself to her feet and wandered farther into the woods. It was all so confusing. And she had no one to confide in. On the one hand, it would be ridiculous to turn down such a wonderful opportunity. On the other…well, it certainly wouldn’t be a love match.

You always said you’d only marry for love. This is business. Her conscience pricked her once more.

Yes, but if you marry him, you get to keep the house for the kids. Lots of kids. You could continue the work God called you to. It could become a sort of sanctuary.

It was an internal argument that went on for the duration of their walk. Jeff spoke no more about the issue, leaving Cassie time to sort through in her own mind all the ifs and buts that flew like quicksilver through her muddled thoughts.

How could she deny David and Marie the opportunity that Oak Bluff with all its wonderful prospects presented to the two homeless teenagers? They could have a stable life without worrying about the future. They could blossom and develop into capable, responsible adults without worrying whether or not they would be able to continue their activities tomorrow or next week, or whenever they moved on.

And what about the other children who came into her hands? Cassie asked herself. Could she deny them all the things Judith’s money would buy just because she was holding out for love? Was this windfall really from heaven, or did she just think so because she’d benefit?

It wasn’t an easy question. And it was one Cassie decided to think on long and hard. But after all, she reminded herself, it wasn’t as if she had ten other offers sitting on the table.

And there were definite sparks when Jeff had kissed her back there. More than sparks!

“Help me,” she prayed silently. “You gave me the job. Now show me how to make the right decision. Direct me away from the biggest mistake of my life.”

Chapter Three

“Chocolate cake! Thanks, Mrs. Bennet. It’s my favorite.” David’s pubescent voice was squeaky but full of happiness.

Jeff and Cassie ate dinner with the children, feasting on a succulent stew and featherlight homemade biscuits that Mrs. Bennet had prepared.

The older woman stroked her hand over the boy’s perpetually tousled head and winked at Cassie.

“I know it’s your favorite, dearie. Yours and someone else’s.” Her gleaming eyes settled on Jeffs loaded plate. “That’s why I baked it.”

Cassie watched David inhale the generous slice and marveled at his appetite. Of course, teenage boys did grow by leaps and bounds, and devoured everything edible along the way. David was shooting up by inches and Cassie had taken him shopping several times to accommodate feet that expanded in direct proportion to the seemingly endless stretch of his legs.

“Are you finished your homework, Marie?” Cassie watched the girl shift restlessly in her seat.

“Almost. I’ll be done before Nate phones later.”

“Well, don’t stay up all night talking to him. You will see him at school tomorrow, you know.” She smiled at the happy little grin that appeared on Marie’s face.

“I’ll try not to be too long, Cassie.”

The flush of pink in the girl’s cheeks gave her a glow of beauty. It was too bad people couldn’t see how kind and loving these two were, Cassie fumed. David and Marie had been subdued during the meal, barely speaking unless they were addressed first. It bothered Cassie.

They were afraid of a future over which they had no control, she realized. Worried that they would be separated after having spent so much time depending on each other. A permanent home, one they could rely on, would make such a difference in their young lives. And with so few people interested in raising teenagers, Cassie doubted anyone would create much fuss if she asked to keep the two on a permanent basis.

She studied Jeff as she ate, watching him speak to the teens. He was especially good with David, drawing the quiet boy out with each comment. He had a knack of treating David as if he were an equal. He listened to what he had to say with interest most people would only offer an adult. It was a manner Cassie had found sadly lacking in many of the homes that housed foster children.

“How about a Monopoly tournament after dinner?” she asked brightly.

David grinned at her, eyes shiny with mischief.

“You must be feeling lucky,” he teased. “Watch out, Jeff. She owned everybody last time. I’m lucky I’m not still paying back what I borrowed.”

They played for an hour before Marie’s soft voice broke into the silent concentration.

“You’d better get started on that science project,” she reminded David in a sisterly tone. “The proposal is due in a week and you haven’t done any research.”

“And you’d better go phone Nate before he dies from not hearing your voice.”

It was typical sibling banter and Cassie smiled as she heard it. David and Marie were not related at all but from their teasing demeanor no one would have guessed.

Marie left the room quietly, her long blond hair flowing behind like a cape, but not before she tapped David on the shoulder.

“Jealous?” she asked pertly.

Groaning, David stretched to his full five-foot-ten-inch height.

“You wish!” He carefully replaced the game pieces in the box and snapped it shut. “I hate science,” he muttered, before glancing shamefaced at Cassie. “Sorry, Cassie, but it’s so boring.”

“What kind of a project are you supposed to do?” It was Jeffs deep voice. Cassie stared at him in surprise.

“We can choose,” David replied, kicking his toe in the carpet. “That’s worse,” he confessed, “because I haven’t got a clue what he expects us to do.”

“I know a little about science,” Jeff murmured softly. “Could I look at your text? Maybe together we could come up with an idea that would get you started.”

“Cool” was all David could manage to answer.

Cassie smiled as they left the room, talking and gesticulating. She hadn’t expected Jeff to take such an interest in the boy. In fact, she recalled, he had spent several evenings doing things with both children this past week.

Well, since he had taken over the science problem, it left her free to start a project that had made her fingers itch for weeks. Cassie buried herself in the library for the next three hours, refusing to allow her mind to dwell on the marriage proposal she had just received. She’d always found her work the best panacea for solving personal problems.

Cassie was knee-deep in sketches of Bored Boris, the magical dragon, when she startled at the soft touch on her shoulder.

“Don’t do that,” she squeaked, holding a hand over her heart. “People my age have been known to keel over from a shock-induced heart attack.”

“That’s okay.” Jeff grinned. “I know both CPR and mouth-to-mouth. Want a demonstration?”

Cassie frowned at him reprovingly. “No! Thanks, anyway.”

She studied him closely. The immaculate shirt was unbuttoned allowing her glimpses of dark curling hairs that covered Jeff’s broad chest. His tie hung haphazardly out of one of his jacket pockets and his made-to-order jacket was slung carelessly over one shoulder.

The perfectly creased black trousers he’d sported earlier in the day were dusty and wrinkled. And that impeccably trimmed hair was tousled and disorderly, one black lock hanging over his left eye.

He looked smug, Cassie thought. As if he had swallowed a whole bowl of canaries. She stood in an attempt to bolster her bravado which was a little shaky after this afternoon.

“Well, did you come up with something?” she demanded, her low voice sharper than she had intended.

But Jeff merely stared at her curiously before answering.

“Depends,” he replied cryptically, head tipped to one side as he studied Boris. His dark eyes met hers. “Can we use that big empty room downstairs for a lab?”

“A lab,” she repeated, wondering what on earth they had concocted between them. “Why do you need a lab? It’s just a simple science project.”

Jeff stepped backward and pushed the door closed with his foot before speaking.

“That kid is very bright,” he told her seriously. “And mighty ambitious. But he hasn’t had much encouragement and he doesn’t know where or how to begin.” The muscled shoulders shrugged.

“I would have thought the teacher could have done a bit more explaining, but at any rate, I want to get him interested in some preliminary physics so that later on he won’t be overwhelmed by everything. He’s got a natural curiosity about things that hasn’t been stifled.”

Jeff studied her quizzically through those melting chocolate eyes. Cassie rushed into speech before he could say anything more.

“But what about when the house is sold and he can’t have his lab anymore?” She stood straight and tall in front of him, prepared to do battle for her child. “What about when you get tired of teaching him and want to go back to the playboy scene? What does David do then?”

Cassie could see the brown sheen change to black in Jeff’s darkening gaze. His eyes were like a sheet of the notorious black ice that covered Toronto highways in winter. You could sail along with no problems until you needed to put on the brakes. Then you were in big trouble.

When his hands tightened around her upper arms, Cassie was pretty sure this qualified as big trouble.

“Will you please get it through your head that I am not, nor have I ever been, a playboy.”

The words snarled out between lips so tightly pursed, Cassie wondered if they had ever been as softly caressing as she remembered.

“And this house only has to be vacated if you refuse to marry me.” His mouth was a straight line of disapproval. “I like the kid and I want to help him with this.” He stared down at her furiously.

“Or maybe you’re jealous because you wanted to do it?” he demanded suddenly.

Cassie tipped her head back and laughed. She fixed him with her own gaze.

“I’ll have you know that I hate anything to do with grade ten science projects.” She laughed again. “It’s a great relief not to have to help him with his homework.” She pushed his hands away before stepping backward. “I am concerned only for David and his welfare. I have to be sure that this will be a positive experience for him and not one where he’ll feel abandoned when it’s no longer convenient for you to help him out.”

The air crackled with tension as they stared each other down. Jeff was the first to move by thrusting out his hand toward her.

“Okay, truce,” he mumbled. “I know your primary duty is always to protect the kids’ interests. I promise I won’t leave him in the lurch regardless of what happens between us.” His black eyes sparkled down at her.

“Although, if you hate science that much and you’re going to opt for the artificial route to children of your own, I suppose someone will have to do some remedial work with you, too.” He grinned at her, obviously delighted with the flush of color that stained her cheeks.

“Close your mouth, Cassie,” he teased. One finger brushed down her tip-tilted nose. “It’s a part of life…grade eight health, in fact. Certainly nothing to be embarrassed about. And it’s something we do have to think about. I still want that son.”

Cassie was embarrassed. It was nice to know that he had given some thought to their future situation, she supposed. It was good that he was considering all the pros and cons. But how could he say such things out loud with absolutely no warning? And how could one touch of those long fingers make her all quivery and shaky inside. Could this be from God?

“You are a very lovely woman, Cassandra.”

And then she forgot everything. His arms surrounded her and hugged her against his muscular form. She could feel the silky brush of his mustache against her cheek, the smell of wood smoke on his clothes.

But most of all, she could feel his heart thudding just as quickly as hers. And she knew that Jefferson Haddon was no more immune to her than she was to him. Which should have been reassuring.

Shouldn’t it?

Moments later, when all Cassie wanted was more of his touch, Jeff pressed her gently away from himself, easing her arms down from his neck. She couldn’t even remember how they’d gotten there.

“Think about what I said,” he whispered in her ear.

Then, leaving her bemused and befuddled, he walked out of the room. Moments later Cassie heard the powerful roar of his car. But it was virtually impossible to think coherently as she carefully put Boris and his friends away. And if she listened, Cassie was sure she could hear Judith’s hearty laughter resounding through the room.

“Go for it,” she seemed to say and Cassie smiled as she fingered the portrait on the old desk of her benefactor.

“Perhaps I will, Judith,” she murmured. “Perhaps I will. But not before I get a second opinion.”

She picked up the phone and dialed, a faint smile tipping the corners of her lips.

“It said what?” Robyn’s voice squeaked with surprise. “You mean to say that if you marry the guy, you get to keep the house and a pile of dough besides, and you can’t decide what to do?” She snapped her fingers in Cassie’s face. “Earth to Cassie. Hello?”

“I know it sounds simple,” Cassie admitted. “Take the house and the money and go with it. It would solve a lot of problems.” She thrust away the thought of her own family. “But this is serious. I have to marry Jeff, as in forever. And that’s serious business. I can’t just go into it with a way out already prepared. I don’t believe in divorce any more than you do.”

“Yeah, that’s heavy stuff all right,” Robyn agreed. “But I wonder if you’re looking at this right.” She frowned, her blond head tipped to one side as she considered her friend.

“What do you mean?” Cassie frowned. “I’ve thought about nothing else for ages. I just can’t see a way through.”

“Think, Cass. Think about the book of Genesis. In those days there were arranged marriages all the time. In fact, that’s how they got started. Isaac needed a wife and Rebekah was the one that was chosen by God. They didn’t even know each other until after she’d already promised to marry the guy!”

“That was thousands of years ago,” Cassie protested. “We do things differently nowadays.”

Robyn laughed sourly.

“Yeah, we do,” she agreed. “And does the world seem any better for it? There are kids all across this country growing up in homes where the adults have separated because they’ve lost that love that seemed so wonderful when it first grabbed hold of them.”

Cassie nodded.

“I know, Rob. I know. But this is my future I’m deciding here. It’s not at all what I had planned.” Her voice died away as she let her mind roam.

“Cassie,” Robyn said, drawing her attention back to the present. “Wasn’t it you who told our entire grade nine class that you wanted to look after kids who needed help?”

“Yes, but.”

“And wasn’t it you, just last week,” Robyn continued unfazed, “who said that even though Judith had died, you still believed God would provide a way for you to do this work?” She waited for Cassie’s dark head to nod agreement. “Well, then. Maybe this is God’s way of providing for you.”

Cassie studied her friend as she thought about her work. She had always felt a connection with children; but she was especially drawn to the needy ones. They lacked so much that mere human kindness and a stable home could provide.

“I know you said Jeff’s not religious. I know he’s got a problem with his family. And I know you said he loved Judith.” Robyn’s face screwed up in thought. “Maybe that’s the key,” she muttered.

“What key? What are you talking about?”

“Yes, it makes sense. Don’t you see, Cass? Jeff likes what he sees in you.”

“Which is?” Cassie frowned.

“You’re resemblance to Judith, your faith in God and His power in your life. Maybe it’s what he craves for himself. You can be His light, Cass. Maybe your job is to show him the way to the source of that light, to help him understand that God loves him.”

“It sounds like an awfully convenient excuse for me.” Cassie shook her head dubiously.

“I think this is the only way there is for you to keep the kids. At least right now. And while you’re doing that, you can help influence Jeff’s life in the right way.” Robyn studied her. “Have you got enough courage to take a leap of faith and trust God to work it all out for the good?”

Cassie stared at the ceiling, her mind whirling with problems. It was a lifelong commitment, she knew. Marriage was a solemn promise to another person. It was not to be entered into on whim, or discarded when things got tough.

“I’m praying for you, pal.” Robyn patted her on the shoulder. “Whatever decision you make, I’ll still be here.”

“Thanks,” Cassie muttered, picking up her handbag and moving to the door. “I think.”

“Are you telling me that you will or that you won’t marry me?” Jeff queried, his eyes darkening to a deep sherry brown.

Cassie focused her own gaze on his left shoulder and said the words that needed saying.

“I’m saying that if we can come to some agreement on the conditions of this marriage, I will agree to it. The first thing is the children. I want us to adopt David and Marie. Legally,” she added when he continued staring at her.

“And?”

“And I want to continue to accept foster children whenever I’m asked, for whatever time. If the arrangements become too unwieldly, we can discuss it then.” She said it in a puff of energy, as if she were afraid to stop.

He stood there, tall and silent, staring at her. Cassie could feel his eyes pressing into her, but she stood firm.

“Fine. I agree.”

It was as if someone had punched her in the tummy. Just like that he was agreeing?

“So, what date shall we set?”

Cassie sucked in a lungful of air. “There is one other thing.”

He frowned.

“I think we should wait out the two months’ grace period that Judith gave us. We’ll be engaged but free to break off the arrangement if either one of us changes our minds.” Her heart lost its regular beat for a moment and then resumed a breakneck speed as she met his dark eyes.

“Why?”

“We have to be sure, Jeff. Both of us. I don’t believe in divorce and I’m not going into this marriage with a way out already prepared. If I’m going to be married, it will be wholeheartedly. For life.”

“But waiting means another five weeks,” he complained. “That puts us right before Christmas.”

“I know. It’s enough time to really think things through, don’t you think?” Why did her voice sound so uncertain, Cassie wondered. She’d gone over this a thousand times and this was the way it had to be.

Those liquid chocolate eyes were fixed on her, staring deep into the doubts and fears that filled her tortured mind.

“I don’t need to think about it,” he murmured, never breaking the stare. “I feel quite sure we can both achieve satisfaction from this arrangement, but if you need the extra time, I’ll go along with it.” He tugged a small leatherbound booklet out of his jacket pocket and consulted it for several moments.

Cassie wanted to say something-anything. They weren’t having an arrangement, for heaven’s sake. They were getting married!

“Saturday, December 10th,” he muttered. “That would give us time to prepare for the Christmas celebrations afterward.” One long lean finger tapped the book thoughtfully as Jeff glanced up, eyes gleaming. “How is December 10th for a wedding day, Miss Newton?”

Cassie blinked. That was it? He agreed to everything and then checked his calendar? Somehow she had expected a fuss or an argument. Anything but this calm acceptance.

“Cassie? The tenth?”

She stared up at him, bewildered and confused.

“Uh, yes, okay. I think so.”

“Good.” He brushed his lips across her cheek before rechecking his book. “Now. About the ring. I think if we were to go now it would be best. I know a jeweler who will meet with us privately and design exactly what you want. Maybe he can do everything right now, while we wait. Then we can announce it to the children and the staff. I assume you’ll want the Bennets to stay on?”

He was holding her red wool coat out, ready for her to shrug into. Cassie didn’t move. She couldn’t. She could only stand there staring at him. He was moving way too fast.

“Ring? What ring?”

“Your engagement ring, of course.” His tone was soft and gentle. Teasing even. “We are talking about a marriage, you know. A real marriage. And like you, I’m fully prepared to make it work.”

“Yes, but.”

He had her bundled into the coat and moving out the door before Cassie could even think. She stopped on the step, stubbornly refusing to be moved.

“Wait a minute!”

Jeff stopped politely, tugging his collar up around his ears as the cold north wind whipped down from the roof and tugged at their clothes. His eyes were mildly inquiring and he didn’t move his hand from under her elbow.

“Is there a problem?”

“Yes! I don’t need a ring.” She said it fast so she couldn’t retract it.”And there won’t.be any big wedding. This is an agreement between us two. That’s all.”

“I don’t think so.” He grinned boyishly.

Cassie felt the strong warm arm around her shoulders as he hugged her against his side. If he had ordered or hollered she wouldn’t have listened. But this soft cajoling was something entirely different.

“I asked you to marry me. You agreed. That means we’re going to be man and wife. And I’m going to give you a pledge of my commitment.”

“Yes, but.”

He cut her off, blithely ignoring her objections.

“We will now move to the next stage of this courtship which entails finding an appropriate ring for this finger.” He rubbed her ring finger with his hand.

“Yes, but.” Cassie stopped as his lips brushed across hers softly.

“I am not finished, Cassandra.” His deep voice whispered in the still silent evening, effectively stifling her protests. “Maybe we’re not the traditional love match, but we can still go into this as friends. And totally committed to making this marriage work. I don’t want anyone thinking anything else. The ring will solidify our position.”

He sounded so loverlike one moment and businesslike and coldly calculating the next that a shiver of apprehension rippled down her spine to dissipate like the morning dew at his next softly spoken words.

“Besides, I don’t think any bride should miss out on the old traditions. Especially not one as lovely as you.”

Cassie swallowed her nostalgia. A diamond ring didn’t have to mean love, she told herself. It was just a stone. It could signify friendship as well as love; or commitment to making something work. Why not relax and enjoy it?

She curtsied.

“Thank you, kind sir. I would be pleased to accept your ring.”

It began as a fun evening which came as a surprise to Cassie. She hadn’t expected that someone like Jefferson Haddon would be able to unbend so easily. They laughed and joked about the strange customs of marriage as they visited Jeff’s favorite jeweler but neither could agree on just what type of ring Cassie should wear.

“I work with kids, Jeff. I don’t want some big, gaudy showpiece. Something small and practical will be just fine.”

“This isn’t overly large.” He held up an opal close to the size of a golf ball with glittering diamonds surrounding it.

“It’s both ostentatious and pretentious. Besides that, it’s ugly.”

He frowned at her. “All right. You pick one.”

“This is lovely.” Cassie chose a small diamond perched on a thin band of gold.

“Hah! I can’t even see where the diamond is-if there is one. How about this?” He held up a dinner ring that nearly blinded her.

“I don’t like clusters,” she told him, grimacing. The thing would take arm supports just to carry it around.

“And this?” It was a rock the size of a cherry.

She shook her head in dismay. “Jeff, that thing would cost a fortune to buy let alone insure.” She glanced at the display cases once more. “I do like this.” She fingered the tiny sparkling stones imbedded in the thin gold band.

He snorted with disapproval.

“So do I, for two kids in high school maybe.”

She watched as Jeff buttoned up his coat. Then, thanking the jeweler for his assistance, he ushered her out the door without a word. Cassie found herself being led toward a dark and rather intimate-looking restaurant moments later.

“I thought we were supposed to go shopping,” she protested, casting worried glances at his annoyed face. “Are you giving up on our marriage already?” It was supposed to be teasing, but Cassie held her breath until he answered.

“We’ll discuss this over dinner” was all he replied in an exasperated tone.

She watched speechless as the mattre d’ greeted him by name.

“Mr. Haddon! Good evening, sir. I didn’t realize we had a reservation for you tonight,” he added nervously.

Jeff smiled that broad grin that made him look like a mischievous boy and laughed.

“Your memory’s not slipping, George. You don’t. Is there anything available?” Cassie watched him slip the man a twenty dollar bill.

“We’re very busy, sir. I’ll just check.” It took George less than three minutes to return smiling. “We have a small table in the corner, Mr. Haddon. Right by the fireplace. Will that suit?”

Apparently it did as Cassie found herself being seated mere seconds later.

“Cassie,” Jeff said, “George here is a good friend of mine.” He slipped his hand on top of hers and squeezed gently. “George, this is Miss Newton, my flancée.”

The older man beamed down at them both.

“My congratulations, Mr. Haddon. That’s wonderful news!” His voice dropped. “Miss McNaughton would have been so pleased.”

Cassie watched the smile tug at Jefferson’s wide mobile mouth.

“Yes,” he drawled. “Aunt Judith would be very happy.”

When they were alone, Cassie leaned forward.

“I’m really not dressed for such an expensive restaurant, Jeff. And I’m not very hungry, either.” She heard the whine in her own voice and endeavored to get rid of it. “ Why are we here?”

Brisk and to the point, that was better.

He leaned back in his chair, smiling benevolently at her across the candlelight. A waiter arrived with champagne in a silver bucket, forestalling any further conversation.

Jeff picked up the glass and held it aloft.

“A toast to us, Cassandra.”

She frowned at him and he laughed.

“Don’t worry,” he told her. “It’s nonalcoholic. I guess that’s another detail you should know. I don’t drink. Ever.”

His voice was cool, almost hard and Cassie wondered if she should ask why. The dark look on his face was not encouraging, however, and she decided discretion was the better part of valor. Slowly she picked up the slim, fluted crystal and tinkled it against his.

“What are we toasting to?” she murmured.

“To us and the solutions we’re going to find to our disagreements. All of them.”

As she sipped the bubbly concoction, Cassie looked around curiously. The restaurant glowed warmly in the flickering light cast off smoothly polished oak walls. It was a gracefully elegant room with brass fixtures, potted flowers and tall willowy plants strategically placed here and there to provide privacy for its diners. The sound of softly soothing classical guitar played in the background as the tinkle of good china, silver and crystal rang out occasionally.

“I’m having a steak,” Jeff declared, laying down the huge menu. “What would you like?”

“I’ve heard about this place,” Cassie mused, staring at the preponderance of items listed. “A friend of mine said the veal is excellent. I’ll try that.”

Somehow, Cassie felt Jefferson Haddon wouldn’t understand that her friend Moira had only been able to enjoy the veal on her twenty-fifth anniversary because her children had surprised their parents. He probably had no idea that not everyone frequented Vicenzo’s on the spur of the moment.

The waiter bustled away to return seconds later with their soup, a delicious mushroom blend that teased and tantalized her tongue.

“I don’t recognize all of these greens,” Cassie admitted when her salad arrived. “But the dressing is fantastic.” She licked her lips at the flavor of it only realizing how childish her action was when Jeff’s laugh rang out.

“It’s nice to see someone enjoy their food,” he assured her. “And you don’t have to worry about dieting, thank goodness.”

Cassie grinned.

“Are you kidding? With kids around all the time, I’m lucky if I get to eat.” She peered up at him through her lashes. “Why are we here, Jeff?”

She watched as a tiny flush of pink colored his cheeks.

“I, um, well, you see I was hoping that, well,” he stopped, obviously at a loss.

Cassie smiled. For once it was nice to see the elegant, assured Jefferson Haddon stumble for the correct phrasing.

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