would benefit us both. I also knew it didn’t mean I’d get her answer with no resistance.
Startled, we both looked at my assistant, Cynthia, when she knocked on the glass door and stepped inside. “Your next appointment is here, Mr. Hawthorne, and you wanted me to inform you when the other meeting had started.”
“Thank you, Cynthia. I’m going to need a few more minutes here.”
As Cynthia nodded and closed the door, Rose Coleson headed back to her chair and picked up her bag. “I’m going to leave…and I’ll think about—”
“I’m afraid you’ll have to give me your answer now.” I didn’t move from my spot.
She stopped messing with her bag and met my gaze. “What? Why?”
“Because as Cynthia just let us know, your cousins are in the meeting room at the moment, discussing how to handle the properties. If you accept my offer, we’ll go join them and announce our situation. If you don’t, you’ll lose your last chance.”
“You can’t really expect me to decide right now. Do you think they’re just going to believe we fell in love at first sight? And then decided to get married in a week?”
“And how would they know that? How would they know when or how we met?” I took my hands out of my pockets and shrugged, moving back toward my desk. “It’s not our problem if they assume we met weeks or months ago.”
“My fiancé just left me a few weeks ago, Mr. Hawthorne. Out of the blue. For no reason whatsoever. They know me enough to know I wouldn’t marry someone else that quickly.”
“Your point being?”
“My point being?” Frustrated, she shook her head. “I can’t believe this is happening right now.”
Overwhelmed and looking confused, she dropped down on the chair. I felt like a bastard for forcing an answer from her, but I had a million things to do and not enough time to do them. If we were going to go forward with this, I needed to know immediately because I wouldn’t put myself in this situation again. “I’m going to need that answer from you, Miss Coleson.”
“And I need to know more details, Mr. Hawthorne. Also, could you please stop calling me Miss Coleson?”
“The details aren’t important at the moment. It’s either a yes or a no.”
“You’re pressuring me. I don’t like it. I don’t like this.”
“I’m doing nothing of the sort. You can walk out of my office at any time—after you give me a definitive answer, that is. You don’t have to say yes, but when you do answer, don’t forget that this is completely your own decision. I have nothing to lose in this. If I don’t end up with that property, I’ll find something else on Madison Avenue. Can you say the same?”
Her hands resting on her lap, palms down on her jeans, she lifted her head and looked up at me. “This is insane. If I do this, I’m insane. You’re insane.”
“I think I’m quite clear on what you think of me.” Half sitting on my desk, I crossed my arms. “This will benefit us both, Miss Coleson. If we sign that simple piece of paper that states we’re married, you’ll get to open up your coffee shop, and nothing else will change for two years. If we don’t, you’ll lose all your money on furniture and equipment you’ve bought that you can’t use at the moment. From where I’m standing, there is no decision to make. I’m offering you a lifeline. If you’re okay with losing all that, we have nothing more to discuss.”
“We’re not a good fit, Mr. Hawthorne. Surely you can see that.”
“No, I guess we’re not. I completely agree with you, but then again, I believe it’s good enough for what we have in mind. If your answer is no, please let me know so I can get on with my next meeting.”
Seconds ticked by as I waited for her answer, and I could see the exact moment her dream of opening her own coffee shop swayed her decision, just as I’d suspected it would. “I can’t believe I’m saying this. I can’t even believe this is happening right now, but if we’re going to make them believe we’re getting married, I think you should start calling me Rose.”
“Good. We’ll discuss the details at another date. In the meantime, I’ll draw up a marriage contract that covers everything.” Straightening from the desk, I crossed to the door and opened it for her.