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  “I’ll try and remember that I can’t kiss you anytime I want to,” Sterling finally answered pleasantly, opening the car door for her. He closed it again after she had slipped inside, then went around to the other side and got in.

  “Yeah, just like you’re supposed to try knocking before entering my room, and try changing my opinion of you,” she said as he turned the ignition and backed the car out of the parking space. “As far as I can see, you aren’t doing a very good job.”

  “I said I would try, Colby. You shouldn’t expect miracles overnight,” he said, smiling. She sat stiffly with her arms folded. He could tell she was teed off. And as usual, whenever she was angry, she was more beautiful than ever. A broad shaft of sunlight shone through the car and seemed to concentrate its golden rays just on her. It highlighted her flawless smooth brown skin and made her hair appear shinier, more silky.

  After they had driven for a while, Colby said, “All right, Sterling, I want an explanation of what happened back there.”

  When the car came to a stop at a traffic light he turned to her. “It’s easy enough to explain. Evidently that photographer works for one of those tabloid magazines. It’s my guess our picture will make the front page in a few days. Who knows? It may be out as quickly as tomorrow.”

  Colby’s eyes widened. “The one of us kissing? In a public place?”

  Sterling shrugged. “It wasn’t all that public. There weren’t many people around.”

  “But it was a park, for heaven’s sake.”

  He lifted a brow. “You’ve never been kissed in a park before?”

  “No.”

  “That’s interesting.” For some reason that bit of information pleased him. “From here on out, we have to lay it on thick for the media.”

  “Lay what on thick?”

  “Our absorption with each other. We have to convince them we’re madly in love.”

  “Why?”

  Sterling met the confused darkness of Colby’s eyes. “My wanting to get married will raise a lot of questions, since I’ve gone on record on numerous occasions and said married life wasn’t for me. And since neither of us want to draw any unnecessary speculation—especially from the media—as to why we’re getting married, starting today we’ll give them performances worthy of the Oscars.”

  Colby couldn’t help but think about the kiss they’d shared at the park. Did he mean there would be more public displays of them that way? She hoped not. She didn’t think her body could handle too much of kissing him. Already it melted each and every time he took her into his arms.

  “Will that be absolutely necessary?” she felt compelled to ask.

  “Yes. If it was just me I’d care less, but since we don’t want my son to grow up with the stigma of being a surrogate child, I don’t want to give—”

  “Why did you just refer to the baby as ‘your son’? Do you have a problem with the possibility of having a daughter?”

  Sterling smiled. “No, but that’s not a possibility. There hasn’t been a female born into the Hamilton family in over a hundred years.”

  “Not a one?”

  “No, not a single one. Right now there aren’t any women in the Hamilton family, period.”

  “Didn’t you get females in your family when the Hamilton men married?”

  “Not for long. There’s a high divorce rate among Hamilton men. It’s known as the Hamilton curse.”

  “That’s awful that there weren’t any females around.”

  His brow furrowed. “Why would you think so?”

  “Because you lacked a female influence in your life. And why is there a high divorce rate among Hamilton men?”

  “For the longest time the Hamiltons, including my own father, were lumberjacks who resided in a small logging town in the wooded mountains of North Carolina. Because of the nature of their work, they were away from home living in logging camps for extended periods of time, so it wasn’t advantageous to have a wife. And those who were married discovered the wives they left behind eventually got bored waiting for them to return home. Most of the women decided a logging town was no place to live for the rest of their lives, so they up and left.”

  “Is that the reason your mother left?”

  Sterling’s mouth tightened and the words he spoke were cold and emotionless. “I’ve told you I don’t have a mother, and I would appreciate it if you’d try not to forget that fact again.”

  The rest of the ride to the hotel was in silence. Colby could not stop wondering why Sterling’s mother had left. Whatever the reason, he had not forgiven her for it and from the way he sounded he never would. She could not imagine ever having her child grow up feeling that way about her. That was why she was determined not to let Sterling send her away. She would always be a part of her child’s life.

  She smiled at the thought of one day having a baby. In her mind, she could picture a bouncy baby with black curls and dark eyes to match. And a part of her just knew it would be a girl.

  She grinned to herself. So there hadn’t been any girls born into the Hamilton family in over a hundred years? Well, she hoped Sterling was ready for “sugar and spice and everything nice” because their child would be a girl.

  She just knew it.

  CHAPTER 9

  Colby looked at herself in the full-length mirror. She ran her hands under the thick hair flowing past her bare shoulders, letting her fingers tangle in the curls there.

  She wasn’t the type to stand in front of a mirror checking herself out, but the impression she would give tonight would be an important one. Sterling was taking her out to dinner and would announce their engagement to the media.

  After they had returned to the hotel from sight-seeing, he’d explained their plans and how important tonight would be. Then indicating he had a number of things to do before they left for dinner, he had departed, leaving her alone.

  She had wasted no time rushing to her closet in search of something to wear. Unfortunately, she had not brought anything fancy with her to California. At least nothing fancy or sophisticated enough to be seen out with Sterling Hamilton.

  Seeing she had no other choice, she had left the hotel, caught a cab, and gone shopping. Upon entering a number of the stores she had been taken aback by their high prices, but she then remembered the stores’ usual clientele were the rich and famous. A number of the shops indicated you could only shop by an appointment, and at others you were assigned your own personal salesclerk—or clothing representative assistant—who assisted you on a one-on-one basis while you made your selections.

  Colby’s afternoon spent on Rodeo Drive had been fun. Some of the names of the shops she had recognized as ones that supplied clothing for major network television shows. Their names often appeared among the credits at the end. And others, such as Gucci, had a worldwide reputation. She herself owned one of their purses.

  She considered herself a person who liked nice things and dressed accordingly. However, she thought paying two hundred dollars for a pair of stockings a bit too much. Her eyes widened at the underwear prices that began at four hundred dollars. But she was soon forced to bite the bullet, and pulling her paid-up charge card from her wallet she proceeded to go shopping wild.

  Three hours later she had walked out of the expensive shop with an outfit she felt would be perfect for tonight, along with all the accessories she would need. She had even purchased a couple of casual outfits and a bathing suit that had cost more than she had paid for the sofa in her living room at home. She cringed when she thought of the amount of money she had spent. The balance on her charge card would probably take her the next fifty years to pay off.

  But now as she stood in front of the mirror admiring the raw silk dress she had purchased, she knew it was well worth it. Everyone always told her she looked good in red, and as she gazed at herself, she had to agree with them. She liked what she saw and hoped Sterling would, too.

  She would find out soon enough, she thought, when she heard his knock on the co
nnecting door to the suites. When she opened the door she took a step back as Sterling’s imposing height and stature filled the doorway.

  The man looked absolutely gorgeous.

  He was dressed in a black dinner suit that was immaculately tailored to fit his broad frame. His crisp, designer white shirt and the black bow tie he wore made him look so devastatingly handsome that a lump suddenly lodged in Colby’s throat. The man who stood before her, the son of a lumberjack, whose strikingly handsome features often graced the pages of numerous magazines as well as the big screen, exuded a physical magnetism that was awesome.

  Awesome.

  Colby released a sigh. That was the one word that could describe him. Sterling Hamilton was awesome. He would do justice endorsing her brother’s new cologne. Awesome would perfectly describe the man promoting it.

  “Hello, Colby. You look nice. Very nice.”

  Sterling’s words, spoken soft and husky in a deep voice, brought Colby back to full awareness. She knew he’d been observing her close scrutiny of him. Evidently he felt now it was his turn to do likewise with her. He gave her a penetrating stare with clear and observant eyes. Awareness flowed through her body as she watched his open and unbidden gaze begin at the top of her head and slowly work its way down.

  His gaze met hers and she saw something in the dark depths of his eyes that made her slightly wary. She felt like a canary caught by a cat, and somehow felt he knew it. She tried to relax but discovered she couldn’t. The only thing she was capable of doing was standing there and returning his stare as he gave her a heated appraising look.

  Then after holding her gaze, much too long to Colby’s way of thinking, his eyes slowly moved down and settled dead-center on her mouth. And they stayed there.

  * * *

  He had a problem.

  That thought occurred to Sterling for the second time in two days, as he stood before Colby with his gaze fastened on her mouth. It was a mouth whose lips had been pampered with glossy red color. He inhaled sharply when she nervously swept her tongue across those red lips to moisten them. Desire, hot as volcanic lava, suddenly rushed through his body.

  He forced his gaze down. The dress she was wearing could have been made just for her. It showed off her figure to a degree he found enthralling. His eyes consumed every sensuous detail, including the way the t-straps left her shoulders partially bare, and how its simple bodice emphasized her generously rounded breasts and small waist. But it was the front slit in the dress that captured his full attention. It provided him a tantalizing glimpse of a dark, silk-clad thigh.

  He was quite taken with her appearance. Most people wouldn’t consider her drop-dead gorgeous, but her attractiveness definitely made a statement. And he knew without a doubt that to him, tonight, she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever laid eyes on. And that was a strong conclusion to make considering that his profession placed him in the company of many glamorous and beautiful women.

  But Colby Wingate’s beauty stood out. It was different, it was unique and, like the perfume she wore, the only way he could think to describe it was to simply define it as Colby. Even with her feistiness, there was a rare innocent quality that seemed to radiate from her. He had felt that way ever since their first kiss yesterday. Initially, he had dismissed such a notion as ludicrous. After all, she was twenty-six years old. But then after their kiss today in the park, he wasn’t too sure anymore. Although she had returned his kiss with a hunger so intense it had fueled his own, it had been a curious hunger, an uncertain hunger. It was as if she’d been unsure just what kind of hunger had overtaken her. And it had made him want her more than he had ever wanted a woman before.

  * * *

  “You look nice, too, Sterling.”

  Colby’s words penetrated the silence in the room. She watched as Sterling’s gaze returned to her mouth. And there it lingered once again. The suite suddenly appeared smaller and Sterling’s height and breadth became larger than life. Thinking more of her own survival than anything else, Colby forced a quick smile and took a step back into the room.

  “I’m ready. I just need to grab my purse,” she said almost breathlessly. She tried to sound calm and composed but knew she’d failed miserably under the intense perusal of his eyes.

  “This is for you,” he said in a deep masculine voice as he handed her a small box.

  Colby raised a brow as she took the gift-wrapped package from him. She had been so engrossed in her appraisal of him that she hadn’t noticed him holding anything in his hand. “What is it?”

  He shrugged with indifference. “Why don’t you open it and see.”

  Colby didn’t miss the silky timbre that suddenly appeared in his voice. She met his gaze. “All right.” She slowly opened the box.

  She gasped. There inside the box on emerald-green velvet was a five-carat diamond solitaire ring. “Sterling!”

  He took the box from her still-shocked fingers. “It’s your engagement ring,” he said, placing the huge ring on the third finger of her left hand. “This officially makes us engaged.”

  “B-but you didn’t have to get anything so…so extravagant. I didn’t expect it.”

  He released her hand. “Maybe you didn’t, but the media will. I’ve never been engaged before, so they’ll expect the woman I’ve chosen to become my wife to have some huge glittering representation of my esteemed affection,” he said. “If you’re ready, we can leave now. I’ve made reservations.”

  Colby wasn’t given the chance to ask where they were going as she found herself quickly ushered from the hotel to a beautiful sleek red Jaguar. Sterling opened the car door for her.

  “This is a beautiful car, and it’s my favorite color,” she said, lowering herself inside the polished leather of the expensive vehicle.

  “I’m glad you like it,” Sterling replied as he got under the steering wheel. “For some reason I knew you would look good in red,” he said.

  Colby assumed the comment had been made in reference to her outfit until Sterling added, “It will be shipped to you in a few days.”

  “What will?”

  “This car.”

  She thought she must have heard him wrong. She sat upright. “Excuse me?”

  Sterling had expertly eased the car out into traffic before he responded. “This car. It’s an engagement present from me to you, and I’ll send it to you in Virginia.”

  Colby was aghast. “You can’t give me this car!”

  Sterling raised a brow. “I can’t?”

  “Of course, you can’t.”

  “Why not?”

  “It’s not proper and you can’t do it.”

  Sterling shook his head. She was the only woman he knew who seemed to care about what was or was not proper. Most of the women he dated didn’t give a flip. In fact, they thrived on doing improper things.

  “Colby, I can do anything I want to do, and you’re getting the car.”

  “Well, I don’t want it!”

  He frowned. “Of course, you want it. You’re a woman. All women like expensive presents. Why should I believe you’re any different?”

  Sterling regretted saying the words the moment they had left his mouth. Deep down, a part of him knew in actuality, she was different. Although he wasn’t sure to what degree, he believed Colby Wingate was different from any other woman he had ever come in contact with. He had reached that conclusion after watching the video that showed her interacting with her class, and then meeting her. But still, a part of him would never fully trust her or any woman. And although he had all intentions of marrying her, their marriage would not be forever. It was a business deal and nothing more. He had spent too many years with his emotions locked up deep inside of him. And he wasn’t about to unleash them now. More than ever, he would have to keep his guard up around Colby. She had a way of getting next to him and if he wasn’t careful, he would find her suddenly embedded right under his skin.

  Colby sat in brooding silence. Sterling’s words had hurt her in a way he
would never know. Evidently most of the women he knew walked around with dollar signs in their eyes and placed money above everything. If that was the case, then she was different.

  Her parents had been two hard-working, God-fearing, middle-class black Americans who had provided her and James with a good and loving home, and had instilled in them good moral values and a firm belief in doing what was right. Even after their deaths when James had become her legal guardian, he had continued to provide that strong foundation for her. No matter how much studying he had to do on the weekends, he had carved out precious time for her and spent a part of his Saturdays doing fun things with her; and then on Sundays he had taken her to Sunday school and church.

  She knew, like Reverend Johnson often said, money was not the root of all evil but the love of it was. Even when James had worked hard putting all his time and energy into his business, she and Cynthia had known it hadn’t been about money. It had been about accomplishing a goal in life and making the best out of a talent God had given you no matter what the odds.

  “We’re here.”

  Sterling’s words invaded Colby’s thoughts. She looked out the window and was not surprised he had taken her to a restaurant she could immediately tell was frequented by the elite and wealthy.

  Most of the cars lining the parking lot were very expensive. A valet dressed in a short-waisted white jacket and dark trousers greeted them. No sooner had they alighted from the car than they were thrust upon by a swarm of reporters surrounding the establishment. They suddenly found themselves caught in the firing line of flash bulbs.

  “Who’s your new lady this month, Mr. Hamilton?” a lanky reporter asked as he held his miniature tape recorder in his hand.

  “Where’s Diamond Swain? Does she know she’s been replaced? Or has she really? When was the last time you saw her?” another reporter asked.

  Then there came a question from a third. “How long will your fling with this one last, Hamilton? Considering your track record, I’d say a week or two.”