Million Dollar Christmas Bride - Holly Rayner Page 0,15

to taste the sweetness of.

“I’d like to hear it,” Bianca went on briskly. Her tone was chilly now.

“It’s not a big deal,” Jackson said, feeling slightly guilty. “I’ve just been thinking.”

“About what?” she asked.

He hesitated, not sure how to come out with his plan. Finally, he realized that he just had to cut to the chase.

He turned slightly and put down his plate of dessert, so that it was next to Bianca’s on the bench seat. While sipping his espresso, he composed his opening sentence in his mind. Then he said, “I have a problem, Bianca, and I think you could help me solve it.”

People loved to be helpful, he knew, and Bianca seemed to have that tendency more than most. Maybe it was because of her profession, or maybe it was the other way around—she was a career caregiver because of natural tendencies. He wasn’t sure, but he intended to play to that side of her. “If you’re willing to help, that is.”

“Why don’t you explain what you need,” she said warily.

“It has to do with my mom, and my childhood home,” Jackson said. “See, my mom owns the home that I grew up in. It’s an old house, not of much value—unless you consider sentimental value. It has a lot of that, for me at least.”

“I’m not sure where you’re going with this,” Bianca said.

Jackson felt the uneasiness coming off of her in waves. He decided he’d better get to the point before her anxiety mounted even further.

“My mom plans to sell the house and donate the money to a cause that doesn’t need the help. I’d rather she left the house to me. That’s where you come in.” He looked her in the eye. “I believe that if my mom thinks I’m engaged to be married, she’ll see me in a new light and would leave the house to me, if I asked.”

Bianca shifted in her seat again.

Jackson sensed that he was losing her. “It’s not as bad as it sounds,” he said.

“You—lying to your own mother?” Bianca said, raising an arched, auburn brow. She gave him a judgmental stare, and Jackson realized how his statement must have sounded to her.

“Look, you have to understand a few things about my mom, okay? She’s… difficult.”

“But she’s your mother!” Bianca said. “The woman who gave birth to you and raised you! How could you consider lying to her about something as important as marriage?”

“My mom didn’t raise me,” Jackson said coolly. He felt his shoulders stiffen. He rarely talked to others about his childhood. “My parents divorced when I was ten. Up until then, my mom was pretty distant. She had an affair with a man named Lachlan, and then… left. She jetted off to Scotland to live with him.”

Bianca’s penetrating gaze softened slightly. “But you visited her there, right?”

Jackson shook his head. “Nope. Dad had full custody of my sister and me. Mom was out of the picture. Last night was the first time I’ve seen her in thirty-one years. I had dinner with her, and that’s when the topic of my relationships came up.”

“I see,” Bianca said slowly. “You mean… she wanted to know about your romantic life.”

Jackson nodded, remembering the way his mother’s face had lit up at the subject. “She thought I said I was married, and she acted like it was the best thing I’d said all night. I could see it in her face… like it was written there. She approves of marriage, Bianca. It’s something she can relate to. It’s something she values. It’s grounds that the two of us can meet on. Without that, she’s going to write me off as being just like my dad.”

“Which means?” Bianca prodded.

Jackson looked out at the shoreline, which was drawing nearer. The storefronts and restaurants that lined the street adjacent to the river glowed in warm gold, yellow, and peach tones. Some had Christmas-themed decorations glittering around door frames and window panes, which made the scene even brighter. The cruise boat chugged steadily toward the dock from which they’d departed, and Jackson knew he didn’t have much longer alone with Bianca.

“My dad was a businessman,” he said. “Though I wasn’t aware of it when I was a child, looking back I can see pretty clearly—he chose work over my mother. He prioritized his company, not her.

“When she left, it was like a slap in the face for him. It woke him up. I remember he spent more time with Danielle and me after that,