She finally faced me. "And you know if Mrs. Curtis hears this crazy idea, or even the lie, she won't support it or believe it. Up until a few weeks ago, I was engaged to somebody else. I'm in Las Vegas because I chose not to get married or go home."
"We can get around that. You need to tell me what I can give you in return to convince you to do this."
She shook her head. "Surely, there’s another woman who would do this."
"I'm sure there is too, but I want you."
“Me?” Her expression and tone were suspicious.
“Like I said, I need somebody smart who can work with me on this. Trust me, I've dated gold diggers, and that's not what I'm looking for."
She turned away again, walking over to the window. For some reason, the action gave me hope. But when she turned, I could see in her eyes that she was going to refuse.
I stood. "Before you say no, take pity on me. You clearly don't need me or my money. But I need you. Look at it that way."
"You do know this is crazy, right?"
"Yes, I do." I let out a sigh. "But what's the saying? Desperate times call for desperate measures? I feel like I'm hanging on by a thread here, which makes no sense because I'm a better CEO than my father was. But I also feel like I'm running out of time. I believe you can help me with this, so the only question is, what will it take to convince you to help me? How can I sweeten the deal so that you'd be willing to do this with me?"
"It's a lie, Mr. Dunsmore."
"Considering what's happening here, you can call me James."
"It's dishonest. Isn't that what you always say about your dad? He was dishonest in business, and now you want to carry out a scheme where we pretend to be married?"
It didn't sit well in my gut that she was right. But for some reason, my deception felt different. And it wasn't like I'd initiated this plan. I was only doing it because the board essentially told me they were going to axe me if I didn't.
"The marriage will be legal. We will be married."
She stared at me like she had no answer.
“The marriage aspect will be real. I know we’re not in love, but all we need to do is give the illusion of stability. At the risk of your filing a sexual harassment case against me, I can tell you that it won't be difficult for me to act like a devoted husband to you." To make sure she didn't think I was expecting anything beyond an act, I added, "But again, behind closed doors, everything will be platonic."
Her mouth dropped open again. "I have to live with you?"
"Married people generally live together. Think of it this way—it saves you from having to find an apartment or put together a deposit. My home is large enough that you will have your own room and bathroom and space to do whatever it is you enjoy doing on your time off. I tend to spend a lot of time here."
"You wouldn't be able to continue to do that with this fake marriage. If you're going to look like a devoted husband, you can't work all day and night. So now what?"
Maybe it was time for me to cut my losses. "My house is big enough. And it's in a nice community so you can take walks or ride a bike. There's a community center with a pool. There’s plenty to do." I wish I knew her better to know what sorts of amenities would appeal to her.
She was quiet for a moment, but then she shook her head. "I'm sorry, Mr. Dunsmore. I just can't do this. I want to help you, I really do, but I don't think I could pull this off."
Once again, her words stung my ego. She couldn't even fake that I was a man she would want to be with.
I nodded. "I understand. I promise you that this doesn't change anything about our work relationship here. If you check your bank account, you'll not only find the Christmas bonus that everyone gets but an additional hiring bonus, as I said before."
Her expression looked relieved even as her eyes narrowed slightly.
"I would appreciate it, though, that you don’t mention to anyone that we had this conversation. I'm sure you recognize that it wouldn't be good for me if this got back to anyone on the board."
She nodded and looked at me with sympathy, or more likely, it was pity. "I won't say anything. And I'm sorry I can't help you. I have no doubt that you’ll be able to find someone else, and I promise that when you do, I won't say anything then, either."
I couldn’t imagine finding somebody else who would make a quality fake wife, but I nodded. "I appreciate it."
She made her way to the door.
"Merry Christmas, Ms. Pearson."