Wrapped Up: A Triple Threat Sports Romance Read Online Free Page B

off. It was a shame she had to live in a large house like hers all by herself.
     

Chapter Three
 
    Brooke

 
     
    As disappointed as I was that Jake didn’t agree with me right away, I was also impressed that he hadn’t just jumped at the opportunity. He told me he wanted to think about it because it was a big deal. It was a big deal, and I appreciated his consideration of that fact.
     
    It did worry me when a few days passed before he called me. But when his call came in, I was quick to answer.
     
    “Brooke, meet me at The Beanery Café. I’ll be there in an hour.” His tone was short and firm, which troubled me. I fully expected to be disappointed when I showed up.
     
    I drove over to the café and found Jake sitting at a table in the back. The Beanery had a very open layout that featured a lot of outside light pouring in the windows. It felt like walking into an open-air café in a vineyard, which was the point of the whole shop. On one hand, I felt like we should have been meeting in secret somewhere, but on the other, meeting in public places helped us to establish our supposed relationship.
     
    I sat down at the high table with my old flame—and hopefully husband-to-be.
     
    “You always know the best places,” I told him. I knew we were just meeting to go over business, but I ordered a cappuccino anyway. If nothing else, I was at least going to enjoy our meeting.
     
    Following my lead, Jake ordered a coffee as well.
     
    “I take it you’ve given my offer some thought,” I said, starting him off.
     
    “I have. Have you thought about it any?” he asked in response.
     
    “What do you mean?”
     
    “Is marriage the only way for you to get the company?”
     
    “It is. My father won’t relent,” I told him.
     
    “Damn.” He shook his head, and I felt myself deflating right there at the table.
     
    “I guess that’s a deal breaker, huh?” I thought about cancelling my cappuccino and leaving him there. I was starting to feel embarrassed that I’d even asked him like I had. He’d been out of my life for over a decade, and as soon as he walked back in, I had asked him to marry me as a business proposition. Not exactly hello.
     
    “No, it’s not a deal breaker. I came down here to tell you that I accept your offer,” he told me, blowing my pessimism right out of the water.
     
    “Really?” My smile was returning. “You’re really agreeing to it,” I said again, looking for confirmation. I wanted to make sure I had heard what I thought I’d heard.
     
    “Really. I gave it some thought, and I have to agree that marriage is the best option for both of us right now. You’re pretty much being forced to by your father, and it will look that much better to the new owner if I show up with a fiancée. I think that’s a much better deal than just some random girlfriend. It shows that we are really serious about it,” he explained.
     
    “Oh, I’m so happy right now I could kiss you,” I blurted out.
     
    “Go ahead. Something tells me we’re going to have to get used to that sort of thing once we get started.” He winked.
     
    I just turned my head and cocked an eyebrow at him. I wasn’t sure about going too far with him just yet. We still had to work everything out before we really put on the act.
     
    “So, what’s the next step?” he asked.
     
    “I guess we break it to my father and start planning the wedding,” I told him. I wasn’t really sure of what to do next. I hadn’t thought that far ahead yet. I honestly hadn’t expected him to say yes.
     
    “Well, I’m thinking we should just go down to the courthouse and not do anything special since this is just business,” Jake suggested.
     
    “I guess that will be okay,” I said slowly, preparing to argue my case. “I know my father will probably want a big ceremony, but I was thinking about trying to talk him down to something small. I know it’s not a real wedding, so I don’t want to go all out, but it’s