Katie sent the next few selfies waiting on her phone, and Bianca took the time to evaluate each one. They settled on a white dress with a wraparound top, a pencil skirt, and a black collar.Sophisticated elegancewas what Bianca called it.
“Promise me you’ll be careful,” Bianca said.
Katie laughed. “You make it sound like I’m being thrown to sharks. I’m sure I’ll survive his family.”
“I’m talking about your heart. Protect your heart.”
“Now you’re being silly, luv. My heart has nothing to do with this. Chase is using me to keep his stock, and I am using him for a baby.”
And that’s the way it was going to stay.
Chapter Eight
Katie pumped up her confidence with loud rock music blasting in her ears from wireless buds. She smacked gum to calm her nerves all the way to the top floor of Grayson Towers. Her stomach was a complete mess with a cold fist wrapped around a large rock. The elevator stopped several times to let people on and off. A few familiar faces openly gawked at her, obviously surprised by the change. She wanted to snap at them to stop gawking, but she kept her mouth shut.
She stepped off the elevator, and the youngest secretary of the two she worked with reacted first. Marty gasped in obvious shock. Her wide eyes fixed on Katie, and she couldn’t seem to tear her gaze away.
The older secretary’s head snapped up when her co-worker gasped. Alice’s hand went to her chest and covered her heart. She looked at Katie over the rim of her glasses. “Oh my.”
Katie offered them a polite smile, but didn’t say a word on her way to the boardroom. The door was open, and multiple voices filtered out. She froze, her entire body stiffening at the sound of her name. They were already giving Chase a hard time over their sudden marriage. She took a moment to spit her gum into a nearby wastebasket and steeled herself for what was to come. She wished she’d had longer to prepare.
“This is ridiculous,” a woman inside the boardroom said. “He married his secretary? Puh-lease. It’s a ploy to get his hands on more stock. This marriage isn’t real.”
“Enough, Poppy!” Evelyn Grayson said. “We will welcome Katie into our family in the same way we welcomed you.”
“But it’s a sham. He only married her to get his hands on more stock so he can keep the CEO position, and I won’t stand for it.”
Katie took a deep breath before entering the boardroom with her head held high, and every jaw dropped like Chase wanted. She paused just inside the doorway in the designer outfit Bianca had chosen from pictures. It was the perfect combination of classic beauty and professional elegance. The white jacket had black piping and huge buttons on the side. A black pillbox hat similar to one Princess Diana had worn tilted above one eye, giving her a sophisticated look.
Chase stood and crossed the room with his arms open wide. “Darling, you’re late. I was starting to worry.”
He planted a kiss full on her mouth, catching her off guard. His hand tightened in silent warning on her waist, reminding her without words that she needed to play her part. Her arms went around his neck, and she pressed her body against his. He had to be one of the greatest kissers on the planet. His lips applied exactly the right amount of pressure, and his tongue teased without being intrusive.
For a moment, she forgot they were surrounded by people.
Someone cleared their throat.
She jumped away from Chase as if she were a schoolgirl caught in a clench with her boyfriend. Her gaze swept over the other four people in the room. Billy had his nose buried in a thick history book, something about the Civil War, and Poppy wore a sour look as if she was drinking straight up lemon juice. Evelyn and Reginald both gave Katie a welcoming smile.
Chase beamed at her. “Congratulate us. Katie and I were married in Vegas last week.”
“How can you be married to your secretary?” his brother asked over the top of his book. “No one was aware the two of you were even dating.”
Poppy’s voice went up to a near hysterical volume. “This is a travesty! It’s a scandal.” She pointed an accusing finger at Chase. “You won’t get away with it! You think you’ve won, but you haven’t.”
Chase’s mother glared at her daughter-in-law. “Poppy, we’ve heard enough from you on the subject.”
“But it’s not real,” Poppy insisted. “They’re not in love, and I bet they haven’t even consummated the marriage.”
Katie’s cheeks burned hot with the memory of how many times they’d had sex since exchanging vows. Her new husband was an exceptional lover. Although a huge part of her hoped she was already pregnant, there was a part of her that hoped she wasn’t so they could keep doing it.
“She’s blushing,” Reginald Jacob pointed out with obvious pleasure. “I didn’t think women did that anymore. How refreshing.”
“So much for your theory, Poppy.” Evelyn kissed her eldest son on the cheek before doing the same with Katie. “I wish you both a long and happy life together.”
Poppy huffed. “I have never...” She turned to her husband. “Billy, do something.”
“Congratulations, brother,” Billy said before returning to his book.