He was not weak. This house was a symbol of his success, and it made good business sense to keep it. It also happened to be a place where he'd never really belonged.
He turned the knob just as it began to rain.
* * *
Rain pelted the windows of the formal dining room. Merina sat next to Reese, feeling tension radiate from him. He wore his usual dark suit and neutral expression, but his lips were slightly pursed and the skin around his eyes looked tight. She'd noticed it when he set foot in the foyer where she and Penelope stood chatting. At first she'd thought he must be upset about work, but when Penelope asked for a tour, he'd denied her with a curt "later," then led them into the dining room.
Suspicious.
Then again, he didn't live here. Was it that surprising he didn't like his own house?
So many unanswered questions. All of which she stowed when Penelope announced, "Okay," after tapping her phone in silence for a few minutes.
They'd started the meeting with glasses of wine, Reese's half drunk, Pen's untouched, Merina's gone. Reese had requested the housekeeper, Magda, give them privacy, which was a shame. Merina could use a refill.
She'd expected his mansion to reflect Crane Hotels: white and black and glass. For the most part, she wasn't wrong. Though instead of white, the interior consisted mostly of shining cream-colored floors and thick gold drapes, black furniture and modern-styled lighting. The dining room was considerably warmer with low-hanging shaded lights overhead and a centerpiece with live plants running the length of the black granite table.
Merina hadn't hidden her surprise at the sheer size and beauty of Reese's mansion. She'd lingered out front earlier, admiring her soon-to-be home. She couldn't believe she was actually going to get to live here.
"I think we're all set." Penelope rubbed her hands together, a bright smile on her face. The excited gleam in her eyes was even more worrisome than when she'd railed on them back at Reese's office the other day. "You two are on the accelerated plan, which I admit was an aggressive suggestion," she said. "But in just a few dates you've pulled it off. I think after last week's display at Posh, you're going to have a lot of media interest in your wedding on Saturday."
"That came really fast," Merina murmured.
"Whirlwind romance, remember?" Reese said. He was awfully calm. Or something. Normally, he was buttoned up, but today his shoulders were practically under his ears. Whatever issues he'd walked in with hadn't gone anywhere.
"It's fast enough that tongues will be wagging, which is what you want. This needs to be big, a sensation on the gossip outlets. The more attention you get, the more speculation you'll have, so be sure you're always 'on,' no matter what.
Like our own reality television show," Merina said.
"Exactly." Pen looked pleased. Reese looked…weird. "We are not doing an announcement of engagement," Pen continued, "but, Merina, you should begin wearing your engagement ring as soon as Reese presents it." She looked to Reese. "Where are we with that?"
"Tomorrow." He lifted his glass of white wine and took a hearty drink. It was possible he was as stressed as she was, and who could blame him? Suddenly everything felt really big.
Marriage.
Yikes.
"Perfect," Pen said. "Merina, you'll need to begin moving your things soon. After the wedding, there'll be no more going home for any reason. Happily married couples spend all their time together. You two are infatuated. Remember that." She pointed at Merina with the end of her pen.
"I'll have Bobbie send movers to collect Merina's things." Reese's nostrils flared and his eyes went past the dining room to the foyer, then around, before finally landing on her. "Just let her know what day."
He radiated stress. It was palpable. Twice, her eyes had gone to his fist on the table, curled into a tight ball. She was tempted to put her hand over his. If they were by themselves, she may have, but in front of Penelope, she felt odd about the display. Odd about the entire thing.
"Merina needs to see the house. Is it later yet? I'd still love a tour," Pen said.
"I'll arrange it." Reese stood abruptly and left the room, back rigid, phone to his ear. He mumbled a few things into it as he wandered into the foyer.
Before Merina could comment on his behavior—and how strange it was for the man of the house not to show his fiancée around—he poked his head back into the dining room.
"I have to get back to the office, but Tilly will show you the house." He pulled back but leaned in again. "She's the house manager. Penelope, good to see you. Merina." With a dip of his chin, he left.
What? He was just…going?
"Don't worry," Penelope said. "I've been coordinating with the wedding planner. You have a fitting appointment for your dress tomorrow afternoon, and I'll forward the other details via e-mail." Penelope pushed a gold embossed business card Merina's her direction announcing that Sash & Satin was expecting her at three o'clock. "Everything is being taken care of. All you have to do is show up."
"I…have to work," Merina said numbly. Reese was behaving more disconnected than before and she was expected to plan everything with Penelope and Bobbie. And what was she going to tell her parents? Suddenly everything was so real. Too real.
"Well, honey, this is your big day, so you're going to have to allow time to be a bride."
Those words still echoed in Merina's mind when she went to Sash & Satin the next afternoon. In the dressing room, she slipped into the wedding gown, a backless satin sheath with lace overlays. The straps were made up of fabric flowers skimming over her shoulders. She pulled her hair back, holding it at the nape of her neck and watched a shock of blond fall over one eye.
Then she lost strength in her legs and plunked into the puffy pink chair provided for brides-to-be as devastation washed over her like a rogue wave. Her first wedding. Her first wedding dress. But no one was here, not Lorelei, not her mother. Pen had made the instructions clear last night: until Reese gave Merina a ring (he promised it'd be today), Merina was under a gag order. Even with Lorelei, who Merina had to reveal knew the truth.