His Holiday Bride

“Really, everybody, I’m fine.”

“Where are you?” Opal asked.

“I’m with Paul, Luther’s friend, somewhere outside of L.A.”

“Somewhere outside of L.A.? You don’t know where you are?” Ruby asked in alarm.

“Ruby, I’m perfectly safe. Paul’s a really nice guy, and he has this adorable baby boy.”

“Yes, Luther told us all about him. He’s a security consultant, that’s why it was so easy for him to find you.” Pearl was back on the line again.

Amber snickered. “A security consultant, huh? That’s a nice fancy title for it. Anyway, he’s house-sitting for a friend, and we’re staying there.”

Suddenly, the line went silent, and Amber wondered if they had somehow gotten disconnected. “Hello?”

“House-sitting for a friend?” Opal said in confusion.

“Do you have money to come home today?” Pearl interrupted. “I can wire you some again, if you need me to.”

Amber shook her head as if they could see. Once again she had to fight back tears. It seemed as if her sisters were always bailing her out of one mess or another. Dashuan was supposed to be her new beginning, her fresh start, and instead he turned out to be a same old-same old.

“I have money.” The first tear slid down her face and she wiped it away. “Look, guys, I have to go, but I’ll let you know as soon as I’m headed home. Okay?”

Amber knew her sisters all took that to mean she’d be calling later that day. With that, Amber hung up the phone and stretched out across the bed.

In truth, it really shouldn’t have been that hard for her to pack up and return to Detroit with her tail between her legs. Goodness knows, she’d returned to the bosom of her family after worse disasters than this. There was that time last spring break when she and some of her college friends pooled their money for a Caribbean cruise. She’d met a gorgeous Jamaican guy in the ship’s bar. Mason, he’d said his name was.

Even now that night was fuzzy. All Amber remembered was waking up in her stateroom without her purse, which contained all her money and credit cards. That was the again Pearl referred to when she spoke of wiring her money.

She spent the rest of the cruise trying to find Mason, and some kind of redemption, without luck. It was as if he’d disappeared into thin air. It wasn’t until she’d returned home that she found out about the con man that took advantage of tourists on such cruises.

Then there was the incident in Mexico with the local police, but Amber was convinced that that could’ve been taken care of much quicker, and she would not have had to spend a night in their prison if it wasn’t for the language barrier problem.

And the ill-fated affair with her statistics professor two semesters ago. The man wore no wedding band, nor was there a line on his ring finger to indicate he was married. Although, his wife had no doubts whatsoever about his marital status when she came after Amber that night in the hotel.

The list went on and on. Unfortunately, her family was well-versed in the art of bailing her out of trouble. Why should this be any different? But for some reason, she was finding the idea of going home distasteful.

She heard a quick knock on the door.

“Just a minute.” Using her hands, she wiped away the tears and sat up in the bed. “Come in.”

Paul cracked the door and came in with the baby in his arms. “I was about to put him down for his nap, but wanted to check on you first. Everything okay?”

Amber was pretty sure he knew she’d just talked to her sisters, but he said nothing about it.

She smiled. “Yes, I’m fine.” Humiliated beyond belief, but fine.

“Well, okay.” He started to close the door. “Just let me know if you need anything.”

“Paul!”

He opened the door wider, and waited.

“Is that offer to stay for a while still open?”

His dark brown eyes searched hers. “Yes.”

She nodded. “I’d like to take you up on it, if you don’t think your friend will mind.”

Paul smiled with such understanding, Amber wanted to climb into his arms with Joachim. Instead, she sat holding herself still on the bed.

“He won’t mind. You’re welcome to stay as long as you like.”

“Thank you.”

He smiled and winked. “Enough already with the thank-you’s.” With that, he closed the door.

Amber stretched back out on the bed, wondering if she was doing the smart thing by accepting an offer of hospitality from a man who was little more than a stranger to her. She decided, with her track record, she had nothing to lose.

Chapter 5

Paul stood at the window overlooking the majestic mountainous Moreno Valley waiting for Vanessa, his receptionist, to answer the phone at his office.

After three rings a familiar voice answered.

“G-Force Security, the only name you need to know for all your personal protection needs. Vanessa speaking, how may I assist you?”

“Vanessa, it’s me.” Paul braced his long body against the windowsill.

“Hey, boss, where are you? I checked your calendar and didn’t see any appointments. Karen’s been going crazy getting the home system prototypes tested and keeping up with her cold calls, and with Ryan on vacation and you out of the office she’s swamped. And Matt’s crazy girlfriend stole his car again.”

“Vanessa—”

“I swear, boss, Karen may be a wonderful salesperson, but—”

“Vanessa!” Paul regretted the harsh tone when the line went silent.

Vanessa Willis was a sweet teenager who’d come to work for him almost a year ago. She had no previous work experience, but five minutes into the interview Paul knew everything there was to know about the unexpected pregnancy that resulted in the birth of her little baby girl, Anna. And how her mother had given her the ultimatum to find a job or get out.

Although her story had tugged at his heart, Paul had decided to give the girl a chance, not because of her hard luck story, but because of her enthusiasm. He figured anyone who could be bubbly and upbeat while reciting such an account of her life would be described as an optimist.

As it turned out, hiring Vanessa was the right decision. She had energy and enthusiasm to spare, she was also bright and eager to do a good job and, most important, the customers loved her. But she did have one fatal flaw that Paul had not figured out how to handle. Vanessa loved nothing better than a few tidbits of juicy gossip. She was also sensitive to criticism.

“I’m sorry,” he said on a sigh.

“It’s okay,” she muttered. “I know I talk too much. Where are you, anyway?”

“I’m working from home today. Where’s Karen? I tried her cell phone, but she isn’t answering.” Paul knew in her current depressed state, it was too soon to abandon Amber. Which meant he would have to rely on his lead salesperson, Karen Grable, to keep things moving forward in his absence.