Cody's Fiancee Read online

  Table of Contents

  Cover Page

  Excerpt

  Dear Reader

  Title Page

  Books by Gina Ferris Wilkins

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Epilogue

  Dear Reader

  Copyright

  THE FAMILY WAY

  “So, are we getting married?”

  She smiled, though it was a shaky attempt “If you’re absolutely sure this is the right thing to do.”

  “I think it’s the only thing to do, Dana.”

  “All right, then. We’ll do it.” She moistened her lips again. Cody wished she would stop doing that. Before he gave in to the urge to do it for her.

  Oh, God, he was a quivering, nervous wreck, terrified that he was doing the wrong thing. But he was also feeling a strange, inexplicable excitement-ever since Dana had said yes.

  “So…” Dana said slowly.

  “So…” he repeated, smiling a little.

  Their eyes met. Cody held out his hand. “We should probably shake or something,” he suggested.

  Hesitantly, she placed her hand in his. “Or something,” she agreed.

  THE FAMILY WAY: When their beloved Granny Fran begins to play matchmaker, four cousins find love!

  Dear Reader,

  Silhouette Special Edition welcomes you to a new year filled with romance! Our Celebration 1000! continues in 1996, and where better to begin the new year than with Debbie Macomber’s Just Married. Marriage and a baby await a mercenary in the latest tale from this bestselling author.

  Next we have our HOLIDAY ELOPEMENTS title for the month, Lisa Jackson’s New Year’s Daddy, where a widowed single mom and a single dad benefit from a little matchmaking. Concluding this month is MORGAN’S MERCENARIES: LOVE AND DANGER. Lindsay McKenna brings her newest series to a close with Morgan’s Marriage.

  But wait, there’s more-other favorites making an appearance in January include Cody’s Fiancie, the latest in THE FAMILY WAY series from Gina Ferris Wilkins. And Sherryl Woods’s book, Natural Born Daddy, is part of her brand-new series called AND BABY MAKES THREE, about the Adams men of Texas. Finally this month, don’t miss a wonderful opposites-attract story from Susan Mallery, The Bodyguard & Ms. Jones.

  Hope this New Year shapes up to be the best year ever! Enjoy this book and all the books to come!

  Sincerely,

  Tara Gavin

  Senior Editor

  Please address questions and book requests to:

  Silhouette Reader Service

  U.S.: 3010 Walden Ave., P.O. Box 1325. Buffalo, NY 14269

  Canadian: P.O. Box 609. Fort Erie, Ont. L2A 5X3

  Cody’s Fiancée

  Gina Ferris Wilkins

  Books by Gina Ferris Wilkins

  Silhouette Special Edition

  *A Man for Mom #955

  *A Match for Celia #967

  *A Home for Adam #980

  *Cody’s Fiancée #1006

  *The Family Way

  Previously published by Gina Ferris

  Silhouette Special Edition

  Healing Sympathy #496

  Lady Beware #549

  In from the Rain #677

  Prodigal Father #711

  †Full of Grace #793

  †Hardworking Man #806

  †Fair and Wise #819

  †Far To Go #862

  †Loving and Giving #879

  Babies on Board #913

  †Family Found

  GINA FERRIS WILKINS

  This award-winning author published her first Silhouette Special Edition in 1988, using the pseudonym Gina Ferris. Since then she’s won many awards, including the Reviewer’s Choice Award for Best AllAround Series Author from Romantic limes magazine. Her books have been translated into twenty languages and are sold in more than one hundred countries.

  Chapter One

  Standing behind the massive antique bar of his restaurant, Cody Carson hung up the phone with a hefty sigh. Family, he thought ruefully. God love ‘em, they ‘ll be the death of me yet.

  The man and woman who’d been chatting quietly on the other side of the bar looked up curiously in response to Cody’s gusty exhale. Country Straight wouldn’t open for another hour, so they had the place to themselves except for the crew they could hear working behind the swinging doors that led into the kitchen.

  “Problem, Cody?” Jake Dennehy, Cody’s business partner, asked in concern.

  Cody made a face. “Not really. That was my grandmother. She closed the call by reminding me of the family gathering for her birthday at the end of next month. It’s six weeks away, but she talked as though it were tomorrow.”

  Jake chuckled. “She didn’t really think you’d forget it?”

  “Of course not. She just had to point out that the family hasn’t seen much of me lately. I think she’s convinced I’m up to something because I haven’t been around much.”

  “You make her sound like my wife,” Jake said, grinning. “Every time the kids disappear into another room and get quiet, Nancy just knows they’re into mischief.”

  Cody winced. “Yeah, I guess that pretty much sums up the way the family feels about me. If I’m too quiet, there must be a reason.”

  Petite, red-haired Dana Preston, who worked for Cody and Jake as a waitress five evenings a week, looked puzzled. “I thought you were close to your family,” she said to Cody.

  He nodded. “I am.”

  “Then what’s the problem with the family reunion? Why do you sound as though you’re dreading it?”

  Jake spoke up before Cody had a chance to say anything. “I can answer that. He’s the only single adult left in the Carson family, and he’s just had his thirtieth birthday. He knows good and well what’s in store for him when the family gathers next month.”

  “Matchmaking,” Cody agreed ruefully. “Granny Fran’s already started. She told me a couple of her friends have granddaughters with ‘very nice personalities.’ She wants me to meet them. All of them.”

  Jake groaned in sympathy. “‘Nice personalities,’ huh? You, my friend, are in deep trouble.”

  “Don’t I know it. Granny’s married off the rest of her grandkids and now she’s gunning for me. Somewhere out there is a gold band with my name on it—and I’ve got a big red X painted right on my forehead.”

  Jake laughed.

  Dana turned to him in exasperation. “What’s so funny?” she demanded. “Why are you both acting like marriage is such a horrible prospect? Especially you, Jake. You’re happily married and have two adorable children. How would Nancy feel if she heard you talking like this, hmm?”

  “Hey, I’ve got nothing against marriage,” Jake protested. “Personally, I think it’s great. But Cody—well, he doesn’t exactly share my view of the institution.”

  Dana gave Cody a once-over that had him bristling. “I guess I can understand that,” she murmured. “Marriage probably involves too much hard work and commitment to appeal to someone like Cody.”

  Stung, Cody almost argued with her. Instead, he resorted to his usual defense-lazy concurrence.

  Leaning against the bar, he shrugged. “You got that right, darlin’,” he drawled. “Just the thought of all that effort makes me tired.”

  Satisfied that he’d confirmed her accusation, Dana nodded smugly. “That’s what I
thought.”

  Jake, who knew Cody better than Dana—or almost anyone else, for that matter—frowned, but didn’t bother to protest. Jake knew it would be a waste of time to defend his friend’s honor when Cody wouldn’t make an effort to back him up. Instead, Jake returned to his teasing, obviously trying to keep the conversation light.

  “So what are you going to do about it?” he asked Cody in challenge. “Fake the flu or something and miss the reunion altogether?”

  “And get cut out of Granny’s will?” Cody asked in exaggerated dismay. “I wouldn’t want to risk that.”

  Dana eyed him as though she wasn’t quite sure whether he was serious or not. Cody didn’t bother to enlighten her.

  “You could always get engaged before the reunion,” Jake suggested, tongue in cheek.

  Cody shuddered dramatically. “No, thanks. I thought I’d made myself clear. I’m not ready to get married!”

  “Did I say anything about getting married?” Jake pulled thoughtfully at his lower lip, his dark eyes glearning with an expression Cody recognized.

  Cody straightened slowly, watching his partner closely. “What?” he asked, intrigued.

  “I was just thinking that it’s sure been a long time since you’ve pulled one of your great practical jokes. You’ve gotten downright boring lately, Cody. Staid, even.”

  Cody scowled. “Staid? Staid? Me? Them’s fightin’ words, partner.”

  “I’ve got an idea for one of your scams-if you’re interested. If you still remember how to pull one off, of course,” Jake taunted.

  Challenged, Cody lifted his chin and tossed his heavy golden hair off his forehead. “What’s your idea?”

  “Take a fiancée to your family reunion.”

  “A fiancée? Are you nuts? Didn’t I just say that I—oh.” Cody suddenly understood. He frowned, then slowly began to smile. “Oh, man,” he murmured. “This could be great.”

  Jake was grinning broadly now. “I thought you’d catch on.”

  Dana was shaking her head. “You two are impossible. What a terrible idea!”

  Cody ignored her. “It would be especially funny if she managed to convince everyone she’s all wrong for me. Someone totally unsuitable. Granny Fran would be appalled, thinking she’d pushed me into an entanglement that was going to end in disaster.”

  Jake sobered at the sound of that. “I don’t know, Cody, maybe this isn’t right, after all. You’ve got a nice family. They don’t—”

  “No,” Cody cut in, shaking his head, caught up now in his scheming. “Every one of them has made some comment lately about how I need to settle down and get married now that I’m thirty. Even my old buddy, Seth, has gotten carried away with the subject since he’s married my sister. They all deserve this. I’ll lead them on, make them sweat and then I’ll come clean and make them admit they’ve been meddling. And then I’ll have every one of them swear they won’t say another word about the subject in the future.”

  “It’ll never work,” Dana muttered. “You’ll be sorry.”

  “She’s probably right—”

  “C’mon, Jake, it was your idea,” Cody protested. “And it’s a great one. Back me up here.”

  “Okay,” Jake conceded with a rueful shake of his head. “So who are you going to get to help you out? How about Mitzi?” he asked, naming a woman who’d been hanging around the club quite a lot lately, doing everything but throwing herself at Cody’s feet to get his attention.

  “No way,” Cody said fervently. “Pretending to be engaged to Mitzi is likely to get me in more trouble than I’m looking for.”

  “So who?”

  Cody rubbed his chin, eyes unfocused as he ran through a mental list of women acquaintances, none of whom seemed quite right for this particular assignment. Jake leaned against the other side of the bar, tugging at his lower lip again, obviously trying to help.

  “You are both certifiably insane,” Dana pronounced, throwing up her hands, which loosened her yellow Country Straight T-shirt from the waistband of her slim-fitting jeans. “Who in the world would agree to go along with something this crazy?”

  Jake suddenly straightened, staring at Dana with a new gleam in his eyes. “I know someone,” he said.

  Cody narrowed his own eyes, looking from his partner to their employee. Surely Jake wasn’t suggesting. “You’re kidding.”

  Dana Preston had worked for them for almost a year now, but he had to admit that he still knew very little about her. She was extremely private about her personal life. An excellent waitress, hardworking, punctual, dependable-but almost obsessively reserved. Which didn’t mean that she had ever been shy about expressing her opinions-particularly where Cody was concerned.

  Cody had made a few attempts at getting the pretty redhead’s personal attention at the beginning, but she’d made it clear early on that she wasn’t interested. In fact, he’d realized soon enough that she had a rather sizable chip on her shoulder when it came to him. Someone had burned her, he’d figured. Burned her badly. He’d quickly backed off. He’d never been interested in picking up the pieces of some other guy’s mistakes. He’d made enough mistakes of his own to last a lifetime.

  He and Dana had maintained a careful, co-worker relationship ever since, chatting easily, sometimes teasing and bantering, occasionally squabbling, but definitely platonic.

  He wasn’t at all sure that Dana was the right person to help him with his practical joke on his family. He opened his mouth to tell Jake so, but his partner was already speaking again.

  Leaning toward Dana with a companionable smile, Jake asked, “How would you feel about getting engaged to Cody?”

  Eyes wide with disbelief, Dana hastily backed a few steps away. “Now wait a minute—”

  “Think about it before you say no,” Jake said quickly. “You’d be perfect, Dana. Most of the family have met you, so Cody wouldn’t be showing up with a suspicious stranger.

  You and Cody usually end up bristling like a cat and a dog when you spend too much time together, so it would be easy enough to convince them that you’d be making a mistake getting married—”

  “You’ve got that right,” Dana muttered.

  Cody held both hands up to halt Jake’s enthusiastic arguments. “It wouldn’t work,” he said flatly.

  “Why not?” Jake demanded. “If you really want to teach your family a lesson, Dana’s just the one to help you do it.”

  “Look, I’ve known Dana for a year and, as you pointed out yourself, most of the family knows she works here. They’re aware that there’s never been anything personal between us—not even a date. Why would they believe I’d suddenly gotten engaged to her?”

  Jake didn’t seem concerned. “You can come up with a story they’d believe,” he insisted. “Say the two of you were—oh, I don’t know—trapped here overnight by a bad storm or something. Only then did you realize you’d been harboring a secret passion for each other all these months.”

  Dana groaned loudly and rolled her eyes. “Didn’t I warn you that watching all those soap operas would warp your brain? Of all the crazy, harebrained, totally unbelievable stories I’ve ever heard, this one has to take the cake.”

  Cody sighed regretfully. “Face it, Jake, the joke was a great idea, but this just isn’t going to work. My family’s never going to believe I’ve fallen head over heels for Dana, of all people.”

  Dana stiffened. She planted her fists on her slender hips. “Excuse me?”

  “Nothing personal,” he assured her hastily, hiding a grin at the genuine affront on her pretty face. “It’s just that you aren’t my type.”

  A spark kindled in her emerald eyes. “That’s true,” she admitted silkily. “I’m not your usual type. I, after all, have a brain. And I’m not afraid to use it.”

  Cody scowled. “That was a particularly catty remark,” he muttered.

  She flushed a bit, but met his eyes steadily. “Maybe,” she admitted. “But you’re not exactly Prince Charming yourself, Cody Carson.”<
br />
  “I never claimed to be.”

  She tossed her head, her chin-length cinnamon hair swirling around her face. “Right.”

  Jake sighed wistfully. “It really could be a great gag,” he mused. “If only the two of you had the talent to carry it off.”

  “Hey!” Cody protested, his pride piqued. “I can pull off any gag. Even this one, if I wanted to. Of course, Dana.”

  Dana’s chin rose another inch. “Are you implying that I couldn’t pull it off?”

  He shrugged. “Well, as Jake said, it takes talent to really work a practical joke. It’s a highly refined skill. Not many people can handle it.”

  “I could,” Dana said confidently. “If I wanted to, of course. Which,” she added bluntly, “I don’t.”

  “Not even for a week off—with pay?” Jake asked enticingly.

  She shook her head. “Thanks, but no. And speaking of work, we’ll be opening soon. I’d better get ready for my shift.” She started to move away, toward the employee lounge.

  “Cody will pay you,” Jake said quickly, apparently reluctant to give up his clever idea. “Five hundred dollars.”

  Cody choked. No one had said anything about this costing him—especially not that much!

  “Er, Jake—”

  Dana looked over her shoulder, one eyebrow lifted. “What was that?”

  “A thousand,” Jake said promptly.

  Cody pressed a hand to his heart.

  Dana stumbled. She turned very slowly. “A thousand?” she repeated, gaping at Jake. “Dollars?”

  “Of course.” Jake glanced laughingly at Cody. “It would be worth it, wouldn’t it? To have your family off your back forever?”