“It’s Dani.”
“Yeah, right.”
“No, it is. Really. I’m Dani with an I. It’s short for Danielle.”
He looked at her through narrowed eyes. “And are you really a school teacher?”
She nodded. “Everything I’ve said to you is true. Except for the being a guy part, which I never said. You were the one who assumed I was a guy so I never lied to you.”
“No, but you let me go on believing a false assumption.”
“Listen, I’ve already apologized to you and I’m not going to do it again. If you can’t understand the reason for my disguise then I can't help you.” She set her mouth in a rebellious pout and refused to back down. Billionaire or not, she was not about to let any man intimidate her.
That seemed to take him by surprise. He was probably not used to a woman standing up to him. He stared at her for several seconds then slowly, almost imperceptibly, he nodded. “Alright, I take your point. But from here on don’t even think of deceiving me again.”
And with that he turned on his heel and stalked off, leaving Dani staring after him.
CHAPTER FOUR
An hour had passed since the grand revelation and Storm still could not believe it. He'd been duped. Danny, or Dani as he would now have to think of her, had made a sucker out of him. Jeez, was he so easily fooled?
The signs had all been there but he’d been too stupid to see them. Now, in hindsight, he didn’t know how he could have missed the clues - the fullness of her lips, the softness of her cheeks, the silky smooth skin of her face. And each time he’d gone near her there’d been that faint fragrance of rose petals.
More than anything, though, he should have known something was wrong when the hair on his arms stood up each time she got close to him. He’d noticed it and thought it strange but then he dismissed it. But now he knew why.
Dani. She was different from any woman he knew. She was bold and confident and she’d actually stood up to him when he tried to intimidate her. He couldn’t recall that ever happening to him except for his run-ins with his mother and mothers didn’t count.
He began to smile as he thought about Dani and then his smile turned into a chuckle. He was actually beginning to admire her spunk. She’d certainly taken him for a ride and she refused to apologize for it.
Then a thought came to him and he frowned. She was practical, down-to-earth and she did what she had to do to survive. She might actually be the answer to a whole lot of his problems, the primary one being how to get his father off his back.
What would Dani the chauffeur think about ditching that job to come work for him - as his fake fiancée? His smile widened into a grin. He was sure he could convince her to come on board with his plan. She looked like she needed the money. Why else would she have taken on the chauffeur job on top of her teaching career? This could be the solution to both their problems. She needed money and he had lots of it. He needed a female buffer for his annoying family and she looked like the kind of woman who, once the job was over, would cut loose - no strings attached. She didn’t strike him as the clinging vine type and that suited him perfectly.
Satisfied, Storm leaned back to enjoy the rest of the plane ride. When he returned Dani would be hearing from him.
What he’d hand her on a silver platter was an offer she would not be able to refuse.
“You want me to do what?” Dani stared across the table at Storm, not believing what she’d just heard.
“I want you to be my fiancée for hire." A mischievous grin tickled his lips.
“Are you serious?” she asked, and for some reason her heartbeat accelerated as she awaited his response. “You’re joking, right?”
“I’m very serious,” he said with a smile. “I find myself in a bit of a dilemma. My father insists that I find a wife and settle down. He’s decided that he’ll be dead in the very near future and is determined that he should see the face of his grandchild before he departs. My child.”
Dani sucked in her breath and glared at him. “You want to pay me to have your child?”
“Hold on, not so fast,” he said with a laugh. “I’m not going there. No way. All I want is to give my family the impression that I’m moving in the right direction. You see, he’s got them all on his side. I just need a break from all the pressure.”
“And you think having a fake fiancée is the answer?”
"It’s the perfect solution,” he said with a smug grin. “I get them off my back and you - if you agree - get enough money so you won’t need to be on the road at all hours of the night.” He leaned back in the chair and gave her a look of total confidence, as if she’d be crazy to turn him down.
Dani lifted her glass and took a long sip of her ginger ale. He was certainly full of it, thinking she couldn’t refuse him. She had a good mind to give him a flat out no just to wipe that satisfied smile off his face.
To her surprise, on his return to Chicago he’d invited her to lunch, telling her he had a proposal for her, one that would be mutually beneficial. She’d been more than curious and had eagerly accepted his invitation, thinking he was going to offer her a permanent job as his chauffeur. She’d anticipated that he would offer her a salary that would exceed what she was earning with Tony. After all, if he expected her to give up her current employment he’d have to be offering her an increase. A position like that would suit her well, not only for the potential increase in pay, but also for the fact that she wouldn’t have to worry about lecherous passengers. She’d looked forward to meeting with him to discuss the new arrangement.
And then he’d gone and sprung this mad hatter plan on her. He wanted to pay her to engage in yet another deception, this one far more dangerous than the first.
But she was nothing if not practical. She’d been racking her brains, trying to find ways to make more money, and here Storm had dumped a solution right in her lap. She would love to turn him down just to have the satisfaction of teaching him not to take her acceptance for granted but she didn’t have that luxury. She needed the money.
She gave him a challenging stare. “I want at least double what I’m making with Tony.”
He’d been tapping his fingers against his glass but when she spoke he stopped and gave her a nod. “So you’re accepting. Wise decision. One you won’t regret, I’m sure.”