Her Necessary Husband

The girl’s own soft smile broke through. “It’s a good place to live, isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“It’s cool,” Katie added.

Caroline straightened a fold of the powder-blue shirtwaist dress she wore with ballerina-style blue slippers and looked at her sister. “Cool means the weather,” she said in a small lecture. “It has nothing to do with a city.”

“Does, too,” Katie quickly countered, lifting her little chin.

Well acquainted with how easily sibling arguments could erupt, although she couldn’t imagine her own lively family ever butting heads over something as formal as a question of grammar, Jenna stepped into the breech. “Whatever the case,” she said, “Harmony happens to be where I was born a loo-ong time ago.”

Ross leaned back in his chair and found his mood lightening as the stretched-out word, issued with an exaggerated flutter of his visitor’s dark lashes, had both girls abruptly giggling. The sound was music to his ears.

Yes, he reflected with assurance, this was exactly what the daughters he loved more than anything in the world needed, and what had been behind his thought to hire a younger housekeeper in the first place. They needed someone who could joke with them on occasion as well as care for them. Someone who could offer a female perspective on things and fill a gap he couldn’t hope to fill. His daughters could only benefit from having a young, vibrant woman in their lives, no question about it.

And so would he, he knew. But in his case, it would have to go beyond having someone around to take care of his household. He wouldn’t satisfy any of the private needs that had begun to build inside him by hiring a housekeeper, any housekeeper. He needed something else. Something more.

Hell, what he really needed was a wife.

Which, in his more candid moments, he’d been telling himself for a while now. Not only would it give his daughters a motherly influence and provide some physical comforts for himself, it could also lead to more children, maybe even the son he would desperately like to have while he was young enough to do a good job of being a father to an active boy. Marrying again, and sooner rather than later, might well be the best solution all around, he’d conceded more than once. Trouble was, no single woman of his acquaintance even stirred his interest…except the one who had recently returned to Harmony. The more time he spent with Jenna Lorenzo, the more he was beginning to recognize that fact.

“Daddy, are you that old?”

Ross brought his attention back to the discussion, realizing he’d missed a turn in the conversation. “What?” was all he could ask in response to Katie’s question.

“Ms. Lorenzo said you were older than she is,” Caroline explained in her usual calm manner.

“Way older is what she said,” Katie tacked on.

He shot Jenna a look and found her eyes lit with amusement, as though she hadn’t been able to resist that little zinger. “If four years is way older,” he said dryly, “then I suppose I am.”

With that issue cleared up, Katie jumped to her feet. “I’m gonna put Pandora to bed for a nap.”

Jenna removed the towel from the doll’s neck. “Better let her sit up awhile longer to make sure the glue’s set.”

“Okay. I’ll sit her in her rocking chair.”

Caroline reached for the scissors and glue. “I’ll put these away, Dad.”

Ross nodded to his eldest child. “Thanks, princess.”

“You have two wonderful daughters,” Jenna told him when the children had left.

“I’m in total agreement on that score.” He sat forward and rested his forearms on the table. “And what can I say but thank you?”

She switched around to fully face him and frankly met his gaze. “You could say whether I’m going to be offered the job.”

Well, this was it, he thought. Despite her qualifications, he knew the chances of that particular relationship working out were slim to none. Added to his earlier reservations about offering her the position, seeing her in his home had led to his viewing her in a different, and far more personal, light. The sheer truth was that he’d become too aware of her as a woman, and a desirable one at that, to regard her as merely an employee.

He released a gusty breath. “No, I’m afraid not.”

“All right,” Jenna said after a silent second. She gave him the briefest of smiles as she scooted back her chair. “You must have things to do. I won’t take up any more of your time.”

Ross knew he could have summoned a courteous smile in return and seen her to the door. With his contacts, he could even have offered to help her find another job. And he would, in fact, have done both without hesitation—if he could have actually stood back and watched Jenna Lorenzo walk out of his daughters’ lives. Out of his life.

But he couldn’t.

Every instinct he had—instincts that had served him well in the business world—had begun to tell him in no uncertain terms that he could only benefit from doing his damnedest to further another sort of relationship with this striking-looking woman. A private relationship.

“If you’ll give me a few more minutes,” he said before she could step away from the table, “I’d like to discuss, not the housekeeper’s position, but something else entirely.”

Her brow furrowed as she looked down at him. “What else is there to discuss?”

He met her question with a blunt one of his own, deciding to just plunge in. “Would you consider going out with me?”

Even as he watched, a blank expression wiped every trace of emotion from her face. Moments passed before she issued yet another question.

“I came here to talk about a job, and you’re asking me out on a date?”

“Yes.” Jeez, how did he put what he was thinking into words when he was still groping his way through it in his own mind? “But it could lead to…something more. And I don’t mean an affair,” he added before she could misunderstand him.

While his body wouldn’t have protested much—not with this particular female—he knew that an affair was the last thing he wanted to start. It wouldn’t provide what his children deserved to have in their lives. Or what he needed beyond the rewards of a purely physical relationship, for that matter. Because, if he chose to look to what the future might bring and view things from a strictly practical standpoint, taking a lover also wouldn’t help in conducting a mayoral campaign.

No, it all boiled down to the fact that what he had to have to meet both his current and potential needs was a—

“Then what do you mean by, ah, something more?” Jenna asked, her tone wary as she broke into his thoughts.

“What I mean is…” He met her gaze, noting that her frown had not only reappeared but deepened. She hardly looked ready to go out with him at the moment, that was for sure.

If he didn’t get on with this, he told himself, she’d be headed for the door. He hadn’t missed the barest hint of temper glinting in her eyes; he had a temper himself, although he seldom displayed it. It also hadn’t escaped his notice that in addition to her growing irritation with his drawn-out explanation, she was fast coming to the conclusion that he was acting strange.

And after he said what he was about to say…Hell, she just might think he was flat-out crazy.

But he was saying it, anyway.

“If we started seeing each other and it goes well,” he told her, measuring out the words, “how would you feel about possibly marrying me?”

Chapter Two

Jenna’s jaw dropped. In the next instant she sank back into her chair and hit the seat with enough force to snap her mouth closed and rattle her teeth. Then she stilled completely and groped to take in what she had just heard.

How would she feel about marrying him? Him? Ross Hayward, once half of the Golden Couple, talking about walking down the aisle again with her. Her? No, he couldn’t have meant it!

“I must,” she said, finding her voice at last, “have misunderstood you. You weren’t—you couldn’t have been—talking about the two of us and…marriage.”

He studied her for moment. “I was.”

Now she had to suck in a breath, a big one. As her lungs filled, a short study of her own told her that he really did mean it. His watchful expression was far too serious to reach any other conclusion. Good Lord. Even in her wildest adolescent dreams, she’d never imagined that this man would ever consider asking her to marry him.

Then again, he wasn’t asking now, she reminded herself as the brain she normally put to good use began to recover from the undeniable jolt to its circuits. He’d mentioned possibly getting married, which was a far cry from an actual proposal.

“Maybe I’d better go into a few more details as to what I had in mind,” he said.

She cleared her throat. “Details,” she couldn’t help but say, “would be good.”

He sat forward and propped his elbows on the table. “First off, I’d like to get something straight. I’m not currently involved with anyone, and I take it, since you just recently returned to Harmony, that the same is true in your case.”

“It is,” Jenna agreed. Not only wasn’t she currently involved with a man, she had, in fact, been extremely careful for some time when it came to personal relationships with the opposite sex. The truth was, she’d been burned once, badly, and she had no wish to repeat the experience. She dated on and off when it suited her, but live-in housekeepers didn’t have much chance for a private life, and she’d accepted the restrictions.

“Then since we’re free in that regard,” Ross continued, “marrying each other could have some definite benefits for both of us.”

She was slowly getting his drift. “You mean that, rather than just a housekeeper, you’d have a wife to take care of things around here.”

“You’re right, of course,” he conceded, “but more than that, I would have a mother for Caroline and Katie.”

“And that’s important to you,” she summed up, all at once sure of her words as she looked him straight in the eye and saw the clear reality of the matter reflected in his gaze.

“It is,” he confirmed. And with that quiet acknowledgment, he went on to explain how he felt his daughters needed a younger woman’s influence in their lives. “I think it’s going to be even more important as they get closer to being teenagers,” he added, “and Caroline’s already on the brink.”

Jenna could hardly disagree, remembering how her own mother had dealt so well with her four girls. “I can’t deny that the mother-daughter relationship is important. Having a large family meant that both my parents had to work to make ends meet while I was growing up, and I remember how I sometimes couldn’t wait for my mother to get home—for more reasons than one, I’ll admit, as I got older. As the eldest child, I was often in charge of the younger girls once I was big enough to take on some responsibility, and it wasn’t always easy.”

He nodded. “That’s why I would prefer a stay-at-home mom for my kids, and in this case, living on my salary alone wouldn’t pose a problem.”

“No, I expect not,” Jenna replied. Which, she realized, was an understatement. Haywards had been among the more successful of Harmony’s residents for many years. None had ever been truly wealthy, but comfortably well-off would certainly apply, especially when compared with such families as the Lorenzos. The city didn’t have a bad side of town, so Jenna couldn’t honestly say she’d been born on the “wrong side of the tracks” from Ross Hayward. Nevertheless, a social gap remained between them. At least it would in some people’s eyes.

And now he was suggesting they date with the possible goal of marriage? Her eyes narrowed of their own accord. “Are you sure you don’t want to hire me as housekeeper?”

For the first time in many minutes, his lips curved in a smile. “I’m sure.” His gaze never wavered from hers.

“And the position we’re currently discussing would be far more permanent, when you think about it. You would have a secure future, financially and otherwise.”

And what about love?

Jenna didn’t voice the silent question. She didn’t have to. She knew this man loved his daughters; that was more than apparent. But his emotions weren’t involved in the bargain he’d just put forward. How could they be when he’d only really known her for a matter of days?

She was certain he didn’t remember her or her family from their earlier years in Harmony. He had no clue as to how she had once mooned over him, right along with most of the girls her age. To him, she was a known quantity in the fact that she had a history here, but he didn’t actually know her.

Of course, despite that, he obviously believed she had certain qualities that went hand in hand with being a good parent. And when it came to a wife…

“So what you’re suggesting is a potential marriage of convenience?” she asked very carefully.

“Not exactly.” He exhaled a short breath. “It might be based somewhat on convenience, I’ll admit, but I’d want it to be a real marriage in every sense of the word.”

There was no mistaking the candid look in his eyes. “You mean, a…physical relationship.”

“Yes.”

The single word had her pulse fluttering. “I see.”

“But I wouldn’t push you on that,” he added. “Even if we became husband and wife, I’d give you however much time you needed to feel more comfortable with the situation.”

“I see,” she repeated after another brief pause.

“I’ll also be up-front about the fact that I’d like to have more children. Would you like some of your own?”

“Yes,” she replied, this time without hesitation. She couldn’t deny that she had hoped to have children someday.

“Good,” he told her. “If we do decide to make that a, uh, joint project, it would be up to you to set the timetable, although I’d personally prefer not to wait too long to have another child.” He paused for a beat. “For now, all I’m asking is that you give this whole matter some thought.”

“Maybe you’d better give it some more thought first,” she found herself saying with blunt directness.

His sudden grin was wry. “I promise you I haven’t gone off the deep end. I’m one of the most sound and sensible of the Haywards. You can ask just about anyone in this town.”

She didn’t have to. Successful businessmen hardly made a habit of acting on a whim, and Jenna had to concede that the reasons he’d given for getting married again were logical enough.

“Have you considered how your daughters would feel about your remarrying?” she asked.

His expression sobered. “I’m not saying that the change wouldn’t have its rocky moments. There are bound to be some. But everything I’ve done since the day they were born has been with their happiness in mind, believe me.”

She believed him. In fact, his solemn tone made her wonder if he had already given up some of his own happiness in exchange for theirs. No, that was ridiculous, she told herself in the next breath. This man had been part of the ideal family. Whatever happiness he’d lost had been stripped from him by fate when he’d lost the perfect woman to share his life.

Jenna sighed to herself. How would that woman’s successor, no matter who she was, ever be able to compete with perfection?

“SO YOU DIDN’T get the housekeeper’s spot, but he wants to possibly offer you the job of wife.” Peggy O’Brien’s aquamarine eyes were wide, the flush of excitement on her cheeks nearly as red as the shiny curls brushing her shoulders. “What in the world did you tell him?”

“I finally agreed to think about it.” Jenna lounged back in a well-worn recliner set in one corner of a cozy family room, thinking that the O’Brien home, a ranch-style house located on a cheerfully rowdy street in a middle-class neighborhood filled with children, was usually a place that promoted relaxation. Unfortunately it wasn’t having that effect on her tonight.

She’d waited until Peggy’s five-year-old son, Tyler, had been put to bed and her loving husband, Jack, was puttering in his workshop off the garage before sharing that day’s startling events with her longtime friend from grammar school. When Peggy and Jack had invited her to stay with them during her job search, she had readily accepted.

“You have to think about the chance to marry Ross Hayward?” From her seat on a plump chintz sofa, Peggy crossed her arms over the front of the white T-shirt she wore with jeans and shook her head in wonder. “He’s got everything going for him, Jen. Looks, smarts, an excellent reputation in the community and a good income coming in from his business. He is definite husband material and—” Peggy wiggled a reddish brown eyebrow “—the man is probably one heck of a lover, as well.”

“He’s also a man who isn’t madly in love with me,” Jenna reminded her. “As I’ve explained, this wouldn’t be a traditional marriage. More one of convenience, in fact, than anything.”

“Hmm.” Peggy’s gaze narrowed thoughtfully. “Does that mean separate beds?”

Jenna cleared her throat. “Maybe in the beginning,” she replied, “but he frankly expects that to end at some point.”

“So the relationship wouldn’t be minus the normal physical aspects,” Peggy summed up. “Probably not for too long, at any rate. Which means you’d have the opportunity to find out exactly how good a lover he is.”

At the moment Jenna couldn’t imagine sharing a bed with the man who’d rendered her speechless that day. “I won’t be finding out anything if he never actually proposes. Or if he does, for that matter, and I decide to decline.”

“So, let me get this straight,” Peggy said. “You actually think you can turn this guy down?”

Because she was a long way from sure of the answer, Jenna countered with a question of her own. “Why not? Most people, even the least romantic of them, would probably think twice about entering into this kind of marriage, you know. Plus there’s the fact that I’m me. And he’s…him.”

“If you’re implying that you weren’t born high enough on the social ladder for him, Jen, my temper is going to get the better of me.”

Peggy’s staunch defense of her—their—less-than-upscale roots had Jenna smiling a truly genuine smile for the first time in hours. “No, I’m not implying that,” she said. “But you can’t argue the fact that Ross Hayward and I were born into very different kinds of families.”

Peggy raised one delicately boned shoulder in a shrug. “So what? Diversity isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Could be the Haywards would even profit from some new blood being added to the mix.”

“They seem to be doing just fine with the mix they have.” Jenna had to say it. “As far back as I can recall, they’ve been a good-looking bunch, and the two young girls I met today are certainly no exception.”

“Yes, ‘angelically fair’ would describe both whenever I’ve seen them around town, I agree. But then, how could they miss with the combination of genes from their father and…” Peggy’s voice trailed off as she steepled her fingers and tapped them together. “I think we’re getting to the heart of the matter here,” she continued after a second. “Unless I’m badly mistaken, your reluctance to consider the many merits of strolling down the aisle with the biggest catch in town has a lot to do with who he married first.”

Busted, Jenna reflected with a rueful twist of her mouth. “Okay, so maybe it does. But, my Lord, Peg, he had Cynthia Morgan to come home to every evening.” And to go to bed with every night. “You have to remember how she always looked—and acted.”

“Uh-huh. The stunning blonde with the polished poise most of our particular group would have given our eyeteeth to have at the time we were going through our awkward stage,” Peggy said. “Then again, she was older than we were.”

“Don’t kid yourself,” Jenna advised. “Cynthia never had an awkward stage. She probably entered the world holding her tiny head high and greeting the doctor who delivered her with a gracious smile.”

“And you’re thinking that she’d be a hard act to follow,” Peggy surmised with a shrewd glance.

Jenna could hardly deny it. “Sure, I am. What woman who knew her could resist thinking along those lines?”

“Maybe none—but you’re the woman he’s at least considering making wife number two,” Peggy reminded her. “And not because he’d have any trouble finding someone else to wear his ring if he wanted to put the least bit effort into it, as we both know. Instead, though, he’s apparently setting his sights on you. Whatever his reasons, that has to count for something.”

“Yes, it does,” Jenna acknowledged. Truth be told, she couldn’t help feeling flattered. Not that it would be wise to get too caught up in that feeling, her more practical side told her. Still, no matter what it said, her pulse picked up a beat every time her mind drifted back to that afternoon.

To him. “You can handle whatever you have to if you take that walk down the aisle,” Peggy declared, regaining Jenna’s attention. “Ross Hayward isn’t the only one who has a lot going for him.”

“Oh, if the whole thing ever came to pass, I can deal with the cooking and housekeeping part,” Jenna said with confidence, although honesty forced her to admit, privately anyway, that Myra Hastings might not be an easy act to follow, either. Not when it came to maintaining a spotless house decorated mainly in white—or as much of it as Jenna had seen, anyway.

“You can handle the mothering part, too,” Peggy assured her. “You not only helped raise your sisters, but from what you tell me, you’ve had recent experience riding herd on kids, as well. Heaven knows, you already have Tyler wrapped around your finger. You didn’t scream when he pulled out the fake spider that looks real enough, goodness knows. It’s made you tops on his list.”

“He’s a great kid,” Jenna pronounced without hesitation, and fully meant it.

Peggy grinned a plainly proud grin at that compliment to her offspring. “Thanks. Watching you with him, it’s easy to see that you like children, and I’ll bet they generally like you, which goes a long way toward what’s needed to make a good mother, at least as far as I’m concerned.”

Jenna mulled that over for a second. “I guess you have a point there. To me, caring about kids—not just caring for their needs—has to be a prime ingredient in what makes a good mother. And stepmother, too,” she added firmly.

“I don’t see you as a wicked one, that’s for sure,” Peggy murmured with a twinkle in her eye.

But would the two girls she’d met hours earlier come to view her in that light? Jenna knew that was the real question. There might well be rocky times ahead in that area, as their father had frankly conceded. Nevertheless, as he’d also contended, they would ultimately benefit from having a younger woman in their lives. It by no means had to be her, Jenna readily admitted, but having someone around to fill that role would be a plus.

Peggy sat forward. “And now we come to the wife part.”

“Yes, well.” Jenna ran her tongue around her teeth. “That particular subject is far from clear at the moment.”

“You don’t have to be Cynthia,” Peggy assured her, reading her like a book. “You just have to be you.”

“I can only be me,” Jenna replied, realizing the truth of that. When all was said and done, she was who she was, and she’d been comfortable with that for some time. Nonetheless, she also recognized that who she was might suffer in comparison to what many would consider a sterling example of perfect womanhood.

Jenna Lorenzo was by no stretch of the imagination perfect.

“So are you at least going to give this whole thing some real thought?” Peggy asked.

“I suppose I’ll have to,” Jenna said with a wry curve of her lips, “because the man in question has already talked me into going out with him for dinner on Friday night.”

Peggy’s grin came back full force, lighting up her elfin face. “Well, if nothing else, you’ll be going out on a date with Ross Hayward. At one point in my life, I would have stood on my head and sung every rowdy rock tune I knew—backward—to be able to do the same.”

Jenna had to laugh. “Me, too, as well you know.”

But that was long ago, and the upcoming event wasn’t precisely the normal kind of first date. It wouldn’t be a casual get-to-know-you occasion. Or only on the surface, perhaps. Underneath, far more serious matters were in the balance, ones that would demand answers before too long.