Sean sat across from his mail-order-bride and wondered what to say.

“Did you have a good flight?” he finally settled on. It was friendly and not too specific. The terminal was empty except for the receptionist, but he’d learned to keep personal things out of the public eye as much as possible.

“Yes, thank you. It was a quick flight.” She smiled. “I didn’t even have time to doze off.”

Her smile made his stomach drop. He’d had a hard time hiding his reaction to her when she’d stepped in the door and instead had pretended to be busy on his phone for a few seconds, just to have a chance to school his expression. Somehow, the agency had managed to find someone who not only agreed to his requirements, but whom he found extremely attractive as well. He didn’t know how they’d done it, but assuming things went as planned, they had been worth every penny of their not-at-all affordable fee.

“That’s good. It is a short trip. I’ve made it myself more than a few times. It’s far faster than driving, with less stress and I can work on the trip.”

“Do you travel a lot?”

“I do. All over Texas and Florida mostly, but to a few other places as well.”

“For work or pleasure?”

“Work.” He gave her a wry smile. “It’s one of the downsides of owning and managing a massive construction company with crews in more than twenty cities.”

“I can’t imagine.” Her eyes widened as if she didn’t know about what he did or the extent of his holdings. Could they possibly have sent him someone who didn’t know? If she wasn’t in this for the money, what made her do it? From what little she’d spoken, and her name, she seemed to be an American.

“Where are you from?” he asked, might as well start with the basics.

“I grew up in a small town in Arizona. Pretty much a speck on the map. What about you?”

“I grew up outside Dallas. Spent a lot of time working for my dad and grandfather in the construction company my grandfather started.”

“That’s sweet. Is that where you got started in construction?”

“When I was twenty-five my grandfather gave the business to my dad. I inherited it three years later when Dad had a heart attack and nearly died. Mom insisted he give up working, so I took it over. It was my first company.”

Sabrina’s eyes were wide. He expected her to ask about the business.

“I’m sorry to hear about your dad, is he still with you?”

“He is. Mom put him on a heart-healthy diet and watches him like a hawk. He complains, but he’s still here and mostly happy.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” Her smile was warm and reached her eyes as if she was truly glad his father was doing well. That warmed Sean’s heart and made him like her just a little more.

A uniformed man came in from outside, pulling a pair of suitcases tethered together.

“Ms. White?”

“Yes?” She stood and turned to face the new comer, giving Sean her back for a moment.

Her round ass was right at eye level and he couldn’t help but notice the slight jiggle as she moved. His mouth watered, and his hand itched to take a hand full and squeeze.

“Your bags, ma’am.” He stood them up, nodded in her direction then turned to leave.

“Thank you,” she said as the man left then went to fetch them. “I’m ready when you are,” she said as she wrapped her hand around the handle on the larger of the two bags.

Sean pushed himself to his feet and closed the distance between them.

“I’ll take those.”

“I can do it.” She looked up at him with wide eyes.

He didn’t say a word, just waited until she released the bag and stepped back. He took her place and wheeled the bags out. “My truck is out this way.”

“I really could have done it. I don’t mind,” she muttered as she walked a little behind him. When they reached his truck, he unlocked it and opened the passenger side door for her before going to her bags and disconnecting the strap that bound them together. Once he’d lifted them both into the back of the truck, he slid in behind the wheel and started the engine, letting the air conditioner start cooling the interior, but he didn’t move it yet.

“I don’t want us to start out on the wrong foot, so I’m going to do something I don’t often do. Explain myself.” He glanced over at her and found himself distracted by the dark fringe of lashes around her chocolate brown eyes. “Where I come from, men carry things, we pay for dinner, we open doors. It’s not because we don’t think women aren’t capable or want to. It’s a sign of respect. I know that women these days are independent and want to do everything for themselves. That’s not what I’m looking for. I need a wife willing to stay home and raise our children, which I’d like to start on immediately. I’m not getting any younger and I don’t want my kids’ teachers to think I’m their grandfather.” He took a deep breath and let it out in a rush. “I’m screwing this up.”

“You’re not screwing up. I think I get it.” She folded her hands in her lap and stared down at them a moment, then looked up to meet his gaze. “You’re looking for someone to do the things you can’t. At least that’s the way I understood what the Agency said. You want a wife who will have your children and raise them. You can’t do that and run your business at the same time.”

Relief washed through him. For a moment he’d been afraid he was going to need to put her on the plane and send her back. Maybe not.

“I’m kind of looking for the same thing. I want kids. I want to be able to stay home and raise them. I think having a parent home with kids, someone there when they get out of school, someone to take care of Halloween costumes and sports practice, scouting, 4-H and FFA, is important.” Her gaze dropped to her lap again. “It’s a big part of why I signed on with the agency. Everyone I knew was looking for another income. Someone to get a job, and earn more money, because that’s what it takes for a lot of families these days. It’s not what I wanted.” She turned and looked out the windshield, Sean wondered if maybe she didn’t want to see his face if he was going to turn her down. If he was going to laugh and send her back. That would have been his fear. It had happened to him before. Not with a woman from the Diamond Bridal Agency, but when he’d taken the time to try to find what he was looking for the old-fashioned way. By meeting women and dating.

“It sounds like we’re well matched then.” He reached up and hooked one finger under her chin and gently turned her face until she looked at him. “You want to go through with this then?”

“If you’re not put off by what I want, then yes. I do.”

“Then let’s go.” He put the truck in gear and in moments they were pulling out of the parking lot and onto the road. “As much as I’d like to get married right away, Texas has a three day wait. No blood tests or I’m sure the agency would have taken care of that, but once the license is purchased, it’s not good for three days.” He glanced over at her. “I would say let’s just go to Vegas, but I just got back to town last night and found the letter about your arrival this morning. I had Harriet, you’ll meet her soon, cancel what she could, but I’ve still got meetings this afternoon and for the next week that have been waiting weeks already.”

She tilted her head to one side as if thinking. “All right. Three days isn’t too bad. It will give us a chance to get to know each other a little better.”

“That’s true. The next part I’ll leave up to you.” He glanced across at her then back out the windshield as he made his way through traffic to the office to get the license. No point waiting for that and making them delay getting married even longer. “We could start out as we’ll continue and just shack up for the next three days, get a head start on that family.” He glanced over at her and noticed she’d gone white. “But I think it would be better if we wait, at least until things are legal.”

“I think I agree with that. It would give us a chance to get to know each other a little too.”

“Now for another decision, this one I’ll leave entirely up to you.” He glanced over again and found she’d regained her color and was watching him with interest. “I can get you a hotel room and you can stay there, or my place has plenty of room. I’ve got two bedrooms and you’re welcome to take the other for yourself until the wedding.”

“I think I should probably just stay at your place. I don’t have money for a hotel.”

As they sat at a red light, Sean frowned and looked over at her.

“I told you I would get it. If you would be more comfortable in a hotel, then I’ll get you a room. And I’ll pay for it. The cost is not what I’m worried about.” He kept glancing back at the road, then the light changed and he had to pay closer attention to driving.

“All right. Can I think about it first?” She bit her lip and looked away, as if unsure what she wanted.

“Of course you can. I’d even be happy to show you my place before you decide.”

Sabrina fell silent and he drove. He stole several glances at her as he made his way through traffic. While she wasn’t classically beautiful, with her golden skin and shining dark hair that curled around her face, she was more than a little cute. He still didn’t quite understand why she would choose to become a mail-order-bride. Surely she could have found what she was looking for without going to that extreme. But then again, so could he, if he’d been willing to be patient and wait for the right person to come along. Impatience, he found, could be quite a motivator.

Thirty minutes after he’d pulled out of the lot at the airport he parked in front of the county clerk’s office. Not the main office, but one of several scattered around the county that made it convenient to stay legal. He wondered how things were going to go and how long this would take.