Husband By The Hour

What he did was even more devastating. He cupped her cheek with his free hand and murmured, “Sweet Hannah.” As if she really meant something to him. As if this wasn’t a joke.

He leaned forward. She held her breath in anticipation. He covered her mouth with his and this time he moved. Back and forth, slow and sweet. As if they had all the time in the world. As if his legs weren’t cramping, which she knew they had to be. As if she was a delicate and precious person in his life.

Maybe it was the unexpected tenderness, or the hangover, or some weird placement of the moon and the planet Pluto. She didn’t have an explanation for her reaction, or for the fact that she leaned into the kiss and parted her mouth slightly in response.

Instead of deepening the kiss, he placed his hands on her shoulders and squeezed. For the first time in her life, she felt small and fragile. Delicate. Feminine.

Then the heat overwhelmed her, and all she could think about was how she wanted to keep kissing him forever. She could die happy right this moment.

At last he straightened. Hannah stared at him dumbfounded. Questions formed, everything from why had he kissed her to had he liked it as much as she had. But she didn’t ask any of them. Instead, she swallowed hard and tried to summon up some fury. Barring that, she wouldn’t mind going with a little righteous indignation. If Nick started teasing her, she would need something for protection. Right now, she felt very exposed.

He started to close the passenger door, then paused and leaned toward her again.

“Ten bucks,” he said.

“Huh?”

He winked. “The kiss. It was worth ten bucks.”

“I don’t understand.” He wanted money for kissing her?

“We agreed on four hundred dollars for the weekend. The kiss was worth ten bucks to me, so now you only owe me three hundred and ninety.” He started to close the door, then paused again. “In cash…or trade.”

Before she could say anything, he slammed the door shut and came around to the driver’s side. Hannah couldn’t bring herself to look at him. She stared straight ahead and wondered what on earth she’d gotten herself into.

Nick didn’t say anything as he started the engine. He selected a classical station on the radio, then pulled out and headed for the freeway.

She leaned back in the seat. Her lips still tingled. Ten bucks. The kiss was worth that and more. Originally, Nick had wanted a night of hot sex in exchange for helping her out. She’d been the one to insist on cash. Maybe, just maybe, she’d been a bit hasty in her decision.

* * *

By nine, they’d reached the northern outskirts of Los Angeles County. Nick pulled off Interstate 5 in the bedroom community of Valencia and they got coffee at a drive-through fast-food place. When they returned to the freeway, Hannah sipped the steaming hot liquid and wondered for the four thousandth time what on earth she’d been thinking. Was she crazy?

To make matters worse, Nick could read her mind. Just as she was starting up another litany berating herself, he asked, “Why are you doing this? What’s so important that you have to pretend to be married?”

She took another sip and pondered the question. Easy enough—except she didn’t really want to have to tell him the truth.

He glanced at her and quirked up one eyebrow. “You probably think I’m just being nosy, but the truth is I need some background information so I can get into my role. I’m more of a method actor. You know, feel the part and all that.”

Despite her apprehension, she smiled. “That makes sense. Okay, I’ll fill you in, but I have to warn you. It’s a long, boring story.”

“No problem. This is a long, boring drive.”

He’d always had a good sense of humor. That’s one of the things she liked about him. Not that she really liked him or anything. Oh, yeah, she thought, wondering if lightning would strike the sleek car. She didn’t like him and she wasn’t attracted to him. That’s why she’d invited him to be a part of her life for the next three days and why she’d kissed him back.

At the station, he’d been a lot easier to ignore, but now no one else was around to see. She could lighten up a little. It wasn’t as if she was getting involved with Nick. She knew exactly who and what he was. No matter how charming and funny, he still lived on the wrong side of the law.

“My birth mother gave me up for adoption,” she said and glanced out at the low mountains around them. They were climbing out of the Santa Clarita Valley, heading north toward Glenwood. “A few months ago, I received a letter from her.”

“Your real mom?”

“Yeah.”

He glanced at her. “Without warning? That must have kicked up your heart rate.”

“I’ll admit I walked around in a fog for days. I couldn’t believe it She’d hired a private detective to find me.”

“Are you angry about it?”

Hannah was surprised at his perception. She shrugged. “I don’t know. Sometimes. I seem to go through stages of curiosity, longing and rage. Right now I’m curious. I want answers. I guess most children who are given up for adoption have a lot of questions. What were the circumstances in my biological mother’s life? Did she give me up right away, or did she keep me around for a while? Did she…” Did she love me?

Hannah didn’t voice that, although it was always deep in her mind. That was the one question that plagued her the most. Had her birth mother cared about her at all? Had this been a callous gesture, the quick and easy way to get rid of a problem? Or had there been overriding forces at work, ripping an innocent child from her caring mother?

“Did she have second thoughts?” she said, completing the statement so Nick wouldn’t get any ideas. She already regretted confiding in him.

“Had you tried to get in touch with her yourself?” he asked.

“No. I thought about it from time to time, but I never knew what I was going to say if I found her. I figured if she’d wanted me in the first place, she would have kept me around.”

“What do your adoptive folks say about this?”

“They died a long time ago.” Hannah clutched the foam coffee cup in her hands. Twenty-three years ago. She’d been so young, she barely remembered them. She did remember being happy, though. Not just the occasional glad moment, but happy all the time.

“Any other family?” he asked.

“That’s really none of your business.”

“Right. I’m just the husband. Sorry, I forgot.”

“It’s not necessary for you to know every detail about my private life. I’m not trying to be difficult. I would simply prefer that you didn’t pry.”

“I’m sort of surprised you can walk as well as you do,” he said.

She stared at him. “What do you mean?”

“It must be difficult, what with that giant chip on your shoulder. Most people would have to drag a leg behind them or something, just to keep balanced.”

She didn’t know whether to burst out laughing or slap him. “I do not have a chip on my shoulder.”

“Yeah, right. You also don’t keep the rest of the world away by pretending not to need anyone, either. Go on. You got this letter from your real mother. Then what happened?”

She was openmouthed at his assessment of her character. She wanted to protest that she didn’t keep the world at bay. At least, not on purpose. It just sort of happened. She hadn’t grown up the way everyone else had. After her adoptive parents had died, she’d never been a part of a family for any length of time. She’d been bounced around foster homes. She didn’t know how to have several close friends, share pieces of her life, or even tell jokes. Socially, she was definitely at the dull-normal end of the range.

“Hannah? The letter?”

“Oh. Well, she found me by using a private detective. Apparently, all the records got messed up at the adoption agency. Plus, because I wasn’t searching for her, they wouldn’t give out any information they still had. Not that it would have helped, what with my parents dying.”

“What does this have to do with me?” he asked. “Why do you need a husband?”