He nodded. “Say the Catholic church is adding on. They have the right to consider only Catholic contractors. This group set up parameters that might seem unusual, but I’ve dealt with far worse constraints, believe me.”
“Is it an issue of the consultant having to live in this conservative town for the duration of the project?
Is the committee afraid a hot single guy will pose a threat to the unattached ladies?”
“Hot single guy?” he repeated, tacking on a bad-boy grin. “Careful, Keely, you might give me the wrong idea that you’re somewhat attracted to me.”
Instead of saying, You are all that hotness and a bag of chips, baby, Keely rolled her eyes.
“After I visited the site and met with the committee last week, I knew they were interested in my ideas. But when it came to my personal life…their enthusiasm waned.”
Her brain warned, Don’t ask him if the committee thinks he’s g*y, but it was no use; her mouth ignored the directive. “Are they afraid you have a male lover hiding in the closet at home?”
With that snarky comment, she’d pushed Jack too far.
He crowded her against the wall. “You looking for a firsthand demonstration of my heterosexual prowess, cowgirl? Because I’m more than up for the challenge.”
Please. Your body is hot and hard and you smell so damn good and it’s been ages since I’ve had a real man this sexy this close to me. “Umm…”
“Jesus.” Jack leapt back and rubbed the squished section of skin between his dark eyebrows. “You can rile me up in no time flat.”
“Which is why this marriage idea would never work. We’ve come to verbal blows more than a few times.”
“True.”
“Plus we don’t even live in the same state.”
“Let me think.” He paced, muttering to himself. He stopped in front of her with a triumphant gleam.
“A wedding is out. How about if we announce we’re engaged?”
“Engaged in what? Battle? Not a newsflash, Jack.”
He scowled. “Smartass. I’m serious.”
“So am I. How is an engagement any better?”
“It’d explain why we’re living apart.”
Keely stared at him. “You are insane. How do you propose we explain the fact we can’t stand each other?”
“We’d have to change that. In public we’ll have to moon around in love or some such sappy shit.
Pretend we rock each other’s world.”
She swallowed her immediate response— never f**king happening— and said, “That’s impossible.”
Those piercing green eyes narrowed. “Why? Are you in a relationship?”
“No. What about you?”
“It’s been three years since I found my girlfriend f**king my business partner and I ended up getting f**ked.”
Whoa. Some woman was stupid enough to cheat on Jack Donohue? Keely wanted the down and dirty details, but Jack stalked off. He jammed his hand through his hair as he stared out the dirt-caked window.
“Jack? What happened?”
“My personal and professional life went up in flames. None of that garbage matters now. But this job in Milford? It’s more than a job. It’s like I have a chance to get back what I lost.”
His embarrassment sparked a feeling scarily close to real sympathy. And empathy. Salvaging pride was something she understood. “Look, before I scream no f**king way and run, spell out exactly what I gain from this devil’s bargain, if I decide to do it.”
“I’ll personally oversee your restoration project. After I examine the renovation plans from your contractor, I’ll call the head of the Wyoming Historic Preservation Committee and officially sign on as your consultant. They’ll expect me to monitor compliance frequently since this will be a rush job.”
Her head buzzed with a mix of excitement and fear. Maybe her life wasn’t in the toilet. But she played it cool. “What would you expect from me?”
“I’ll need a minimum of one month commitment from you. During this engagement you’ll travel to Milford with me and convince the committee we’re madly in love.”
“Didn’t you tell me the committee is aware you’ve been single for a while?”
Jack paced again. “I didn’t share specifics on my personal life. I more or less sidestepped the question. But there has to be a way we can convince them we’ve secretly been together for the last few months…” He snapped his fingers. “Aha! I’ve got it.”
“Got what?”
“The reason we didn’t go public with our relationship—even with families—was because of our rocky past. I saw you as my best friend’s pesky little sister; you were dumped by my little brother. But we crossed paths again when you needed my help with this restoration project. It turned into something more than a working relationship. Each hour we spent together built on our past as a bridge to our future until bam—change of heart.”
Keely began to clap.
Jack gave her that devil-may-care grin and bestowed a deep bow.
“I have no doubt the story is plausible for the Milford crowd, but you’re forgetting one teensy tiny detail. We can’t be selective about who we tell. We have to tell everyone. Which means we have to convince my entire family that we’re a couple.”
A look of horror crossed his face.
“See what I mean? No one who knows us will ever believe we put our differences aside. Not for an hour, not for a day and certainly not forever. Neither one of us can act that well. So thanks for stopping by personally and ruining my life.” Keely ducked under his arm and started walking away.
“That’s it?”
“Yep. Don’t let the door hit your ass on the way out. Literally. It might fall and crush you.”
His deep, sexy laugh unfurled an unwanted reaction low in her belly.
“What’s so funny?”
“I thought you said you weren’t all talk. I never imagined wild child Keely McKay was afraid.”
Keely wheeled around. “Excuse me? What am I afraid of?”
“Me.”
“For Christsake! That’s ridiculous. Why would I be afraid of you?”
“Maybe you’re afraid I can make you fall in love with me for real.”
“Make me fall in love with you? Dude. The only thing you make me want to do is punch you in the face.”
“See? Sarcasm is a defense mechanism to mask your fear.” With each word he’d closed the distance between them. “So it’s easier to slink away.”