A Wife by Accident (9 page)

Hayely
smiled at Kathy’s stout, square-faced daughter. It was common knowledge that Dee Mark’s brief stints as a bartender and used car saleswoman had hardly prepared her for an executive position. It grated on
Hayely’s
nerves whenever she was asked to prepare documents that Dee should have been doing herself. With her meager month of experience,
Hayely
thought it was like the blind leading the blind—except one of the blind was making about six figures a year more than the other for the same expertise. No wonder the company scrambled for work.

Dee gave a hearty laugh and thumped
Hayely
on the back. “Good to finally see you in person.”

“Nice to meet you, too,”
Hayely
replied. Was that beer she smelled in the air?

The human resources manager spoke up. “Kathy,
Hayely
was just telling me she’s gotten married.”

Kathy’s eyebrows rose. “Oh?”

The manager asked, “What’s your new last name?”

“I haven’t decided to change it yet. I might keep my maiden name for a while.”

Dee hooted again. “That’s what I did, too. Mercy, we Mark women don’t stay married long enough for it to be worth a name change anyway!” Her ruddy face turned even redder as she laughed at her own joke. “What’s his name?”

“Gary,”
Hayely
answered softly. She had definitely picked up the scent of alcohol again. She’d seen Dee’s brother, Darryl, in the office from time to time and thought she’d caught of whiff of booze on his breath, too. It was sad really, and in spite of herself,
Hayely
felt her dislike turn to pity.

Kathy looked coolly down her nose at
Hayely
. “Speaking of men named
Gary,
I hear Gary Tarleton is going to the Chamber Banquet this Wednesday evening. I’d like you to see if you can find a good hairdresser for Dee.”

Dee pointed to her short sandy blonde hair.
“Can’t go looking this way in front of Gary.”

“You know Gary—Mr. Tarleton well?”
Hayely
asked.

Kathy interrupted the start of her daughter’s answer. “Of course we do. We’ve been friends for ages. From the impression I got, he’d like to spend some time with Dee this year.”

“I see.”
Hayely
fought to keep a laugh from building inside her. If she knew anything, it was what Gary would think of the entire Mark family. With his sense of family values and business protocol, he wouldn’t
so
much as look in their direction.

Kathy squinted at
Hayely’s
clothing again and gave a tight little smile. “To tell you the truth, I wouldn’t have thought you’d have heard of Gary Tarleton or the Chamber Banquet for that matter. I’m surprised.”

“I only recently heard of both.”
Hayely
smoothed her dark grey skirt and checked very, very subtly to see if her yellow silk shirt was still tucked in correctly.

“Well then I’m sure you’ve heard how prestigious it is for a firm to be invited to attend the event.”

Hayely
bit into her lower lip and looked demurely down at the floor to keep from laughing. Gary had already told her that every business in the state was allowed to attend virtually at will. All they had to do was pay a membership fee.

She breathed and said, “Does Dee have a dress? I know of a very nice, exclusive boutique downtown. I can write down the directions if you’d like.”

Dee pounded
Hayely
on the back again. “That would be great. I’d love to find something that would really stand out—maybe a little strapless number with red sequins.
Or how about pink?
I know Gary’s mad for that color on the ladies.”

Hayely
went back to her desk, cheerfully scribbled out an address, and drew a quick map for Dee. If nothing else, her helpfulness would keep Kathy and her truck-
driveresque
daughter out of the office and away from her. She wouldn’t hear any threats about being fired that day. She smiled broadly as she watched the loathsome pair walk out the door.

The day flew by joyfully and before she knew it, she was virtually sailing down the freeway in her new sports car. Too bad she’d have to give it up in just a few more months. It felt as if the machine were designed for her and her alone.

Hayely
sprinted into the house, kicked off her shoes in the marble foyer, and ran upstairs to change clothes. The deliverymen had been at it again. During the day, the formerly empty weight room had been filled with top-notch training equipment and heavy sets of free weights. She’d taken the liberty of ordering a treadmill and exercise bike, too. Thank goodness the delivery company had set up and installed everything. Most of it looked too heavy for her to even budge.

And the living room furniture had arrived!
Hayely
was almost giddy. The electricians had obviously been by to wire in the new overhead lighting, which glowed with an understated cordiality. With the intricate carvings Gary had designed into the door frames and windowsills, it was easy to add depth and elegance to the room.

She had chosen comfortable, richly upholstered chairs and a cream-colored sofa with a sophisticated brocade pattern that stood out just a shade darker against its background. The ornate fireplace screen, coffee table, and end tables hadn’t arrived yet. And more leafy green houseplants were desperately needed.
But day-by-day, the empty house was transforming from an unloved address to a comfortable home.

Dressed in baggy sweatpants with her hair up in a messy ponytail,
Hayely
surveyed the rooms around her. She was far ahead of schedule, so far that she just might take a break from decorating. She’d picked up another new cookbook at the library on the way home and couldn’t wait to try out the key lime cheesecake recipe in it.

She hummed along to the tune of the mixer as she whipped up first one cheesecake and then the next. Maybe she was going overboard, but there were three variations she just had to try while she had the time. Besides, she’d taken the easy route with dinner and just made a pot roast with potatoes and carrots for Charlie and Gary. She’d sampled them all until she was stuffed.

With a smile, she brushed some flour from her hands onto her baggy pants and stood back to admire her work. Key lime, raspberry swirl, and chocolate chip cheesecakes lined the counter. Right on cue, she heard Charlie walk into the kitchen first, followed closely behind by Gary. Were they coming home earlier in the evenings now? It seemed so.

She dropped her dishrag onto the counter and looked up. “Dinner’s on the table, guys. Enjoy. I’ve been admiring the pool for the last six weeks and I think I’m finally going to try it out.”

She grinned and walked past them as casually as possible. Could Gary tell how rattled she got when he walked into the room after a day at some construction site or another? Was it obvious that the dust in his hair and his sun-bronzed skin made it hard not to simply stand and stare at him? He was easy on the eyes, she’d give him that.

•

“Who was that woman?” Charlie asked with a laugh.

Gary shook his head and grabbed a plate. “My guess is a woman whose boss was out of the office all day. I saw the witch driving downtown today.”

“That bad, huh?”

Gary nodded between bites. “She can cook. You know, I’d tell her to quit her job and just let me take care of her expenses if I didn’t think she’d be offended.”

Charlie bit into a juicy, butter-soaked carrot and moaned as if in heaven. “I’ve been looking over the accounting records for all this decorating she’s been doing.”

“How much has this set me back so far?”

“She hasn’t come close to spending even half of what we thought it’d take. And you know what? She hasn’t bought a thing for herself.
Make-up, shampoo, books—her cell phone bill.
Chewing gum, for Pete’s sake.
She’s been paying for all those things with her own cash. I saw some of the store receipts sitting in the garbage can the other day.”

Gary paused with a chunk of onion on his fork. “You’re kidding?”

Charlie shook his head.
“Nope.”

“I understand independence, but she’s contributing way more than her share to the plan. She’s earned a little fair treatment.”

“Given all that zest for independence, I wonder what she thought of the expensive car,” Charlie mused and shot a meaningful look at Gary.

Gary tossed down his napkin. He hadn’t considered that she might have a lukewarm or even negative reaction to his generosity. That she hadn’t mentioned the car at all couldn’t be good.

Gary walked in his sock feet all the way across the house, through a newly magnificent exercise room, and directly to the indoor pool. When had she found the time to pick out weight lifting equipment? He smiled. After lifting lumber all day, he couldn’t imagine what use he’d ever have for a bench press. Maybe for all those other days when he wound up stuck behind a desk.

The telltale scent of chlorine wafted toward him as he opened and closed the door to the pool.
Hayely
turned around to face him as she treaded in water up to her neck. The cobalt tiles under her feet emphasized the water’s blue reflection along the walls.

“I haven’t been swimming in ages,” she said. “I’d forgotten how good it could feel. This is like having access to a private company spa or something.”

Gary looked down through the water. The pool was too sparsely lighted and the water rippled just enough to obscure his view of what looked to be a simple black swimsuit.

“I wanted to talk to you about the car.”

Hayely
swam to the edge of the pool and lifted herself out onto the cement edge to sit on her towel. “I wanted to talk to you about that, too.” She squeezed some water out of her moisture-darkened hair and wrapped herself in another large towel.

He forced himself to meet her eyes and think of the reason he’d sought her out. “Did you drive it today?”

“I did. And I understand you probably got it so that I’d look more the part, but I have to admit I’m a little angry that you junked my car. I worked hard for it.” She sputtered as she dabbed the water off her face.
“Personal property.”

Her words caught him by surprise. “Appearances were a definitely benefit. But mainly, I was afraid the heap you were driving would break down on the road somewhere. It wasn’t reliable and I thought you’d like the style of the new one.”

“But you should have at least talked to me first, Gary. My car might not have been much, but it was still my car. You know, I could press grand theft auto charges I think. And what do you suggest I do at the end of our contract when I don’t have any transportation?”

He hated that she bristled every time he offered her something harmless. No one should have grown accustomed to fighting at every turn just to be heard. Now she was looking at him with such an expression of hurt stubbornness that his heart turned over in his chest.

“
Hayely
,” he whispered. “Your car is sitting in the garage. I asked Charlie to put it there for you. I’m not accustomed to stealing my employees’ property. I just wanted you to be safe on the way to work.”

Hayely
dropped her defiant gaze. “Thank you, I guess.”

“Sometimes I think you mistake acts of kindness for disrespect.”

“I mistake them for charity.” She smiled weakly. “I’m still getting used to this being independent thing.
And this contract of ours.
But I’m trying not to get too comfortable in this house of yours.”

Comfortable?
That was the last word Gary would use to describe how he felt sitting next to his scantily clad “wife.” “Do you at least like the car a little?”

His gruff voice sounded so eager to please that
Hayely
reached out and took his hand in hers. “I do like it,” she said as she looked into his hazel eyes. “It’s perfect for me.”

“So you’ll try to get used to it?”

She nodded.

“You know what I’m trying to get used to?” he asked in a murmur. “The way you cook dinner for me and Charlie when you definitely don’t have to. Each and every piece of furniture picked out with me in mind.
Coming home to a real home.
I appreciate your work more than you know. I’d never expected so much.”

Hayely’s
eyes swam like mercury as she looked up at his handsome face. “For a man of few words, you seem to know all the right ones.”

“Yeah,” he growled. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“Must be the chlorine fumes.”

With a breath of resignation and a smile he pulled farther away from her.
“Back to business.
Have you heard anything yet?”

“No. But the rumor mill should be grinding out gossip in grand style by tomorrow, I have a feeling.”

“Did they say anything at work when you told them you’d gotten hitched?”

Hayely
shook her head. “Not really. They seemed to have other things on their minds.”

“Why don’t you just resign from that place?”