The Millionaire's Intriguing Offer

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Unbelievable. Jack glanced at his watch again. They were now on the dessert course, and it would soon be his job to say a few words about his grandfather and introduce the video.

And Bailey still hadn't shown up.

He'd had no choice but to tell everyone at his table that she was resting in their room and if she felt better later she'd join them. Part of him was furious at his mother for the smug expression on her face when she glanced his way. But another part of him grudgingly admitted it looked like she'd been right all along. There was not a single innocent reason he could imagine why Bailey would have concealed her real identity from him.

And her showing up with Mitsy at the bachelor auction and winning the date with him? It was too much of a coincidence for it to be anything but planned. In lawsuits - and in life - Jonathon didn't believe in coincidences.

What perplexed him was Mitsy's role in all this. He really couldn't see Mitsy and Tripp being part of some sort of elaborate plan to give Bailey access to him. The only reasonable conclusion was that Bailey had concealed her real intentions - and her past relationship with him - from Mitsy and Tripp. They were just pawns in whatever scheme she'd concocted.

If this view of Bailey was contrary to every thought and feeling he'd had about her previously, well, maybe he just wasn't as good a judge of character as he'd always believed. Apparently, where she was concerned, he had a blind spot.

As soon as the video and all the congratulations and well wishes were over, Jonathon went back up to his room. Still no sign of her. He came back downstairs and headed outside.

He tried calling her cell phone, but went directly to voicemail and left a terse message demanding that she all him immediately. Then he texted her:

I don't know what you thought you accomplished by blowing off the dinner for JB. We need to talk - NOW.

Jonathon paced back and forth as there was no response, no little dots appearing on the screen to indicate that Bailey was replying.

Where the hell was she?

Jonathon had checked around outside and even walked down to the dock. That had been her favorite place to escape to when they were kids.

No Bailey.

He headed back up to the house, checking his phone again, and entered through the kitchen.

Bridget was there, supervising the clean up while the temporary help they'd hired for the event stored the rest of the desserts, and loaded the two industrial-sized dishwashers.

She looked up. "Jonathon," she said, sounding surprised to see him there. "Do you need anything?"

He gave a frustrated laugh. "Not anything you have here in the kitchen, unfortunately." He let out a deep breath. "I'm looking for Bailey."

Bridget always had been able to read his face. She pulled him aside into the butler's pantry, away from the temporary help.

"Is something wrong, Jonathon?"

"Only everything. You haven't seen her then?"

"Not since this afternoon." She studied his face. "She told you."

Jonathon looked at her in surprise.

"Told me what?"

She shook her head. "I promised I wouldn't say."

"Bridget, if you know something, please tell me. I just found out earlier that Bailey isn't who I thought she was. In fact, you'd never believe who she really is."