She read the cover, and her forehead wrinkled. “Long-term benefits of marriage?”
Nodding, he gave her a paper. “Yes, but before we start, have you reviewed the prenuptial agreement, Dallas?”
She shook her head. “Ethan, I need to tell—”
“That’s okay, I listed three attorneys here who are experienced with them, and they’re expecting your call. Now, Dallas, God forbid something should happen to our marriage, but if it did, you and Piper would be well taken care of. You must read the document. Really, marrying me is a win-win situation for you.” He opened his report. “Let’s look at tab one.”
Dallas, her voice strained, said, “Ethan, I need to talk—”
He clasped her hand. “Please, let me go over this with you. Remember I said tonight was important? This is what I meant. Okay?”
Sucking in her lower lip, she nodded slowly.
“Okay, tab one.” She opened her book.
“As you can see, I calculated the cost of your completed legal degree and bar exam. You’ll have no living expenses because we’ll be married. You’ll note, that’s quite a substantial amount, which I’m thrilled to pay for you. Now, if you’ll turn the page, I did some research and these worthy organizations would love for you to volunteer your services, pro bono, as your time allows. Of course, after we’re married, you’ll be accompanying me to social events and raising our young children, so that time will be somewhat limited.”
Glancing up, he noticed her jaw had dropped. He rushed to say, “Don’t worry, you’ll have a nanny.”
In a firm voice, she said, “Ethan, I will not—”
Holding up his hand, he said, “Dallas, please let me finish. I worked hard on this, and I think you’ll agree it’s a wonderful proposal by the time I’m done.”
She narrowed her eyes, yet kept silent.
“Now, tab two and three go together. They represent junior and senior boarding schools.” Dallas’s face had gone completely still. Quickly flipping tab two open, he said, “These pages introduce four outstanding junior boarding schools that accept students starting at kindergarten. Not all junior schools do. I checked their credentials and references, and they’re above reproach. An approximate cost for a nine-year education is listed here.” He glanced at Dallas. Her hand lay on the unopened tab, and a rosy shade of pink crawled up her exposed chest.
He hurriedly flipped to tab three. She needed to understand the great benefits of having a high-quality education. “The same goes for the boarding schools in the next tab, which start at a student’s freshman year. These schools have between a twenty and thirty percent graduation rate to Ivy League universities.”
Dallas’s face and ears had turned red, and she bit her lip, staring down at the report.
Exhaling sharply, he said, “Dallas, I went to boarding schools. It was good for me. I excelled at university, and I’m a successful businessman. All our children should go.” She wouldn’t look at him, and his heart dropped. Somehow, this had turned out terribly wrong.
He shut the report and set it on the table. Easing the booklet off her lap, he did the same with hers. Clasping her hand, he tilted her face until he could see into her eyes. “I just want to take care of you. The only way I know how.”
With her voice shaking, she said, “I’m really trying to understand that.” She looked down and seemed to be collecting her thoughts. At last, she sighed and met his gaze. “Ethan, you said you love me. But how you can love me, yet know so little about me, is beyond my understanding.”
His heart lurched, pounding against his chest wall. No. No. This can’t be happening. He leaned forward, but before he could speak, she continued.
Shaking her head from side to side, she said, “Do you actually think I’m a woman who would spend years earning a degree to practice law, then not work at the career I’ve always dreamed of?”
“But, I only—”
She talked right over him. “And you’ve seen me with my daughter. You know how much she means to me. How you ever thought I would send Piper away to boarding school is beyond my comprehension.”
She pressed her lips into a grim line. “Ethan, you don’t love me. You love some idea of me you made up in your head. I can’t marry you. We’d never in a million years be happy.” She squeezed his hands. “But thank you for caring for me and trying to make me happy.” Standing, she stepped away from the sofa, away from him. “Would you please call the car? I’d like to go home.”
He stared, transfixed, as she walked to the front door and then outside. Rubbing the heel of his palm against his chest, he squeezed his eyes shut. My God, I’ve lost her.
Chapter Sixteen
Dallas sat cross-legged in the darkness. It was three-thirty in the morning, and she hadn’t slept since returning from dinner with Ethan. Though she tried, her muscles tensed, her pulse racing in company with her mind. Rising from the couch, she headed for the kitchen to refill her wine glass. A type of calm had come over her after finishing the first bottle.
Returning to the living room, she settled into the cushions. How had she been so mistaken about Ethan? She thought she knew him. Had met his mother. He told her all about himself. Of course, there were differences between them, but how had she missed the ... the not wanting to raise his children? It was so fundamentally wrong. At least, according to the way she was raised. Yet he thought he was giving Piper a wonderful opportunity. Dallas had assumed he was more like her, and he thought she was like him.
Her head spun and not just from the wine. The bricks that built her happiness had crumbled into dust. Cash was lost to her. Ethan wasn’t the man she thought he was. Taking a large swallow of wine, she set her glass on the
