heâd grown up that way, always getting himself in and out of one scrape after another. Whereas she rarely, if ever, did anything to upset her parents in the slightest, even if it meant forgetting all about what she wanted and concentrating only on what they wanted for her.
âUntil then, we keep to our plan and prove together in many subtle and not-so-subtle ways that we are about as mismatched a couple as they come. After a while our
families will stop wanting us to be a cute couple. Theyâll be relieved when we split. And not at all inclined to match either of us with anyone again, which will in turn leave us free to pursue our own lives exactly as we pleaseâwithout comment from our folksâexactly as we shouldâve been doing for years now,â he finished stubbornly.
Was his convoluted logic beginning to make sense? Greta wondered uneasily. Or had she simply gone loco, too? With a great deal of effort Greta forced her mind back to even more important matters they had yet to touch on. âNormally, Shane, that would be fine,â she told him. âUnfortunately I have a reputation to maintain.â
Shane slanted her a bad-boy smile that was enough to make her stomach drop. âThatâs what I thought we were workinâ on, Greta, darlin,â he teased in a soft, sexy voice that had her tingling all over.
And it was then Greta knew she couldnât even think about ever kissing him again. Because if she did, there was no telling what would happen.
âA professional reputation,â Greta said. âYou may not have heard, but Iâve just bought a business. My dinner and dance hallââ
âThe Lone Star Dance Hall, right?â
âRight.â Greta nodded, then continued. âItâs opening on Saturday night.â
Shane shrugged his broad shoulders, unconcerned. âAnd I close on my new horse ranch later this afternoonif all the paperwork is in order by then and I suspect it will be.â
Her new âhusbandâ wasnât the first person not to take her seriously but by golly he was sure going to be the
last. Gretaâs lips set stubbornly. âI donât want to lose any bookings because of this.â
âYou need publicity to open a place like that, donât you?â
âOf course.â She twisted the wedding band on her left hand, hating the cheap insubstantial feel of it even as she relished the memory of their wildly exciting escapade the night before.
âAnd publicity is expensive?â Shane persisted in that excessively smooth, practical tone that always preceded one of his misadventures.
Greta regarded Shane cautiously, aware it would be all too easy to get hopelessly caught up in whatever Shane was planning next. To her own detriment, of course. Determined not to let him get her into any scrape she couldnât handle, Greta calmly answered his question about publicity. âSome types are...like radio and newspaper advertising.â Sheâd done a limited amount already, but unfortunately her budget had fallen far short of what she would have liked to do.
âThink of all the free publicity our elopement will get you,â Shane continued enthusiastically as he reached over and gave her bare knee a warm, companionable squeeze. âEveryoneâs going to be talking about it. And everyoneâs gonna want to get a gander at the two of us.â
Greta plucked his warm, callused handâwhich was causing far too many tingles just sitting thereâfrom her skin and set it on his own. âYou think theyâd show up at Gretaâs just to see us?â
âOh, yeah.â Shane braked as they approached the turn-off from the main highway to a less-traveled ranch road. âCome opening night,â Shane predicted boldly,
âI think itâs gonna take a fire marshal to keep the crowds away.â
Greta wasnât so sure about that. She did know if they were in for a penny,