Joe felt sucker punched. “You know?”
“Everybody knows.”
13
Excitement made it difficult to concentrate on the designs. She wanted to dance around the room and scream her delight. Brenna had called earlier to say she was thrilled to finally have new label designs. Which meant Darcy had her first ever paying job.
Okay-she wasn’t going to be able to make a career out of this one client, but at least she finally felt legitimate in her chosen profession.
As she worked, or tried to work, she hummed. She felt good all over. She loved this place, and she loved the Marcellis. Would they be willing to adopt her?
She grinned at the thought. Probably not a good idea, what with her and Joe having had sex. Not that they knew, but if she was adopted it would create, as Mia had said, a pretty serious ick factor.
Someone knocked on her closed bedroom door. Grandma Tessa to do a little more reconnaissance? “Come in.”
The door opened, and Joe stepped into her room and closed the door behind him. Darcy instantly straightened. Her stomach tightened, her thighs heated, and she desperately wanted to pat the bed in invitation.
He was so gorgeous, she thought as she took in his tall, muscular build and the faint smile. Good enough to be both main course and dessert.
“Stop it,” he said conversationally.
She blinked at him. “Stop what?”
“Whatever it is you’re thinking. I can’t help wanting you, and you’re not making it any easier to say no.”
He wanted her! Her emotions did a little soft-shoe. “Maybe you don’t have to say no.”
He groaned. “Yeah, I do.”
“But it was so good.” Perfect even.
He narrowed his gaze. “Darcy, I’m not kidding. There’s a problem.”
She refused to let go of her good mood. “You’re not going to get weird on me, are you?”
“Not in the way you think. They know.”
The last two words didn’t quite make it to her brain. “They know.” Huh. Who knew what? Who could possibly know…
She collapsed onto her pillows. “Oh God. Your family?”
“That would be them.”
Panic filled her. “No. They can’t. I didn’t say anything. I didn’t even hint.” She stared at him. “I know you didn’t say anything. You wouldn’t even under threat of torture.”
“I wouldn’t even with
“I actually know that. Did someone see us?”
“No, they heard. There’s an intercom system.”
She felt herself blush. “Who was it?” she asked, not sure who would be worse.
“Brenna, Grandma Tessa, and my mother.”
She opened her mouth, then closed it. What exactly was she supposed to say?
Brenna she could handle, but… “Your mother and Grandma Tessa?” The blush turned fiery.
“They spread the news to the rest of the family. Marco pulled me aside about an hour ago and tried to have the sex talk with me. It was humiliating.”
“I’ll bet.” She covered her face with her hands. “They know. I can’t believe it. I always thought the ongoing humiliation of my life was because I’m in the public eye, but I guess not. Maybe it’s just me.”
Joe reached for her hands and pulled them away. “Don’t worry. No one’s going to say anything.”
“Not to my face, but they’ll be talking about it. They know.” She wanted to crawl under the bed and never come out. Then she thought of something. “Did they tell Paige or Alex? Alex really wouldn’t like us doing that, and he might try to get you in trouble. You have your career to think about.”
“I know. But the Marcellis are good at closing ranks. No one on the Secret Service team knows.”
“Are you sure?”
He nodded. “If Alex had a clue, he’d rip me a new one. Trust me.” He leaned close and gently kissed her. “Want to take it back?”
She didn’t have to think about that. “Not even for a second.”
“Me, either.”
They stared at each other before Joe straightened and said he should get out of her room before there were even more rumors. Darcy nodded but couldn’t speak. She couldn’t do anything but stare at him. Because in that short period of time, somewhere between the light kiss and his walking out of her room, she felt a definite sort of tugging in the vicinity of her heart.
She wasn’t sure what it meant, but she knew it couldn’t be good. Not when her stay here was temporary, her track record with men was worse than dismal, and Joe was the kind of guy who didn’t do relationships.
Paige hung up the phone and finished writing her notes. When Alex walked into the kitchen, she pushed the paper toward him.
“They’ve arrested two of the kidnappers,” she said. “They have leads on the rest of them. I’m going to tell Darcy when I see her. She’ll be thrilled.”
Alex looked over the paper. “At least if the rest of them are on the run, they won’t have time to plan another kidnapping.”
“That should make our job easier,” she said.
“I don’t need my job easier.”
Of course not, she thought. But he did need a sense of humor.
He walked to the refrigerator, opened it, and stared inside. Then he closed it and turned to her. “Would you have married me?”
Paige stared at him. “Excuse me?”
“If I’d asked. Before. Would you have married me?”
She had no idea what he was thinking or why he’d brought this up now. It didn’t make sense.
“Alex, I don’t understand why-”
“Yes or no,” he said sharply. “It’s a simple question.”
“Not for me.” Nothing about this was simple.
Would she have married him? She stared at his eyes. There’d been a time when she’d wanted to get lost in those eyes. When being with him had been so important.
“I don’t know,” she said after a while. “I don’t believe you would have asked. And if you had and I’d said yes, then one of us would have had to leave the Secret Service. You would have expected me to be the one to leave.”
He frowned. “Right.”
She smiled. How typical of him. “Then no,” she said gently. “I wouldn’t have married you.”
He folded his arms over his chest. “Why? Because I wasn’t willing to give up my career for you? This is what I’ve always wanted.”
“What about what I wanted? You’d have asked me to give up the one thing you wouldn’t. It doesn’t seem fair or a very healthy way to start a marriage. One criterion of a successful relationship is love makes each party stronger, giving them more of what they want. Love isn’t supposed to take your dreams away.”
“There was no way for us to win.”
