"Marriage," he interrupted flatly, his tone unemotional.
For a minute, she thought she had heard him wrong, and then the word registered, bringing her half out of her chair.
"I'm sorry. What?"
"Marriage. As in we stand before a judge and say the words that will bind us together as a couple. You take my name if you choose, and I give you a ring. That sort of thing." There was a faint smile on his lips that did not reach his intense tawny-colored eyes.
"I'm in a fix. The board members think I'm a fluke, an irresponsible man of thirty-two years and not fit to run my own company. They're old-fashioned enough to believe that marriage will fix my problem. I'm desperate enough to agree with them.
"Marriage to me would ensure your brother getting the best possible care and allow you to keep this place. It would also ensure you have a place to live. I have a place. It's too big for one person. Five suites in all, complete with their own bathrooms.
"We would share the place, and you get your own rooms. We'd more or less be roommates when I'm there. I intend to do a lot of traveling. So I wouldn't be in your hair. What do you say?"
This time she was the one mimicking Willow's expression of dazed incredulity.
"I-I don't understand."
"I'm offering you a way out of your troubles, Indigo."
"By offering to marry me."
"Yes."
"You could have any woman you want."
"More or less. I've been a bit of a slut in the past, and now I find that lifestyle is distasteful to me. It's a lifestyle that has been frowned upon by the board. I need to change their opinion of me. Say yes."
"Brant-"
"The lawyers will expect you to sign a prenup, of course, which I'm sure you won't mind doing under the circumstances. But it would be foolish to say no. Put aside your pride and consider it a boon. I've never been inside your shop before, but from what I just saw, I think it's charming and rustic. Am I right in believing you don't want to lose it?"
She shook her head, still unable to speak.
"You could buy it outright. That's what I'm offering you, Indigo. I have money of my own, independent of that of the family. A trustfund set up by my maternal grandparents that matured when I reached thirty. Marry me." He rose, and so did she.
"I expect you'd want time to think about it." He glanced at his watch. "I have a meeting." Taking a card from his pocket, he handed it to her. "Call me when you do."
Chapter 2
"Of course you're going to say yes. Are you crazy? The man is offering you a lifeline. A solution to the problems facing you. He's Brant O'Keefe, multi-billionaire, not to mention a hottie. The fact that you're sitting at my bar and nursing a Chardonnay instead of buying a dress for your wedding makes me wonder if you've hit your head on the way here." With an impatient flick of her wrist, Juliet poured the drink and handed it to the client before gesturing to the bartender to take over.
"He's Brant O'Keefe."
"Precisely." Coming around the oak counter, Juliet dragged a bowl of mixed nuts over and set it before them. "A man with an amazing amount of money that's been offered to you. Take it."
Indigo flipped the card between her fingers and stared at the name.
"He feels sorry for me."
"So?"
"I don't like people feeling sorry for me."
"Oh, for Christ's sake!" Juliet hissed. "The man has a need as well. He wants something. He was the one who said it would be mutually beneficial, and even if that was not the case, he's offering you a way out. You get to keep that beautiful store of yours and help that worthless human being who happens to be your brother. You get a fabulous place to live. It's a win-win."
"He's Brant O'Keefe," she repeated. "And men who look like him, who have his kind of money, get to choose their own wife. I'm hardly his choice."
"You're a beautiful woman. Any man would be proud to have you as his wife," her friend said firmly.