“Yes, please,” she replied. Wine was definitely needed for this conversation.
“My business is struggling,” he told her, uncorking the wine with practiced ease. “I have to update my image.”
“Your image?”
“I’m a playboy. A womanizer,” he said. He smiled at her. “You even remarked upon it.”
“True,” Emma agreed, thinking of the bedpost website. “But what does that have to do with your business?”
“Customers don’t trust a womanizer to sell them diapers,” he replied. “I need to become a trustworthy source. If I have a wife and child, suddenly my diapers are legit again. It’s all about appearances.”
“And what are you asking of me, exactly?” Emma asked.
“To be the face of that wife,” he replied. “I’m asking you to enter into a business transaction. I need someone who can
play the part of loving wife and I’m asking you to do it.”
“But not for real?” She wasn’t sure how to take this.
Emma had always planned on getting married and having children. It was one of her life dreams to be a mother and wife, but this wasn’t the path she’d thought she take to get there. She’d always assumed it would be after a year or so of dating, and that there would be love involved.
“No. Not for real, although I do like you,” Jackson replied. He handed her a wine glass.
“You said something about a child,” she said, holding the glass but not sipping yet.
“Yes.” He sat down in the kitchen chair next to her. “Having a wife isn’t enough. I have to have a reason to use my own products.”
Emma set her wine glass down. “Let me get this straight. You invited me out on this date to make sure we got along, and since we do, you’re now asking me to marry you and have your child. To save your business.”
“Yes,” he agreed. “Though it sounds worse when you say it like that.”
How else could it sound? she thought to herself. “You said this was a business deal, so what do I get out of doing this?”
“Money. You would be marrying a billionaire and having his child,” Jackson explained. “You will never have bills again. You will live in the lap of luxury for the rest of your life. You and our child.”
Emma didn’t know how to respond. What was the appropriate response for that?
“Look at it this way,” Jackson continued. “You want to be a marine biologist, right? There is no way that being a barista will get you there faster than I can.”
She knew that it was the truth.
“I completely understand if you need some time to think about it,” Jackson told her. “I know it’s a big decision.”
“Would we live together?” Emma asked, looking up from her untouched wine glass. “What does a future with you look like?”
“We would become a couple in public and I would propose,” Jackson explained. “We would marry and have the wedding of your dreams. You would get pregnant as quickly as possible. You would live here, if you want. Or anywhere in the city you desire.”
“And what about us?” Emma’s throat tightened. She looked up at him, searching his handsome face for emotion.
“I like you,” Jackson told her. His calm green eyes met hers. “I’m asking you to do this because, believe it or not, I trust you. We get along well and we have chemistry. I couldn’t ask this of just anyone. You’re special.”
Emma swallowed hard. She sat there, unsure of what to do next.
“What are you thinking, Emma?” Jackson asked. His voice was soft.
“I’m... I’m not sure,” Emma replied. Her brain was spinning. She hadn’t expected this in a million years.
“If you need some time to think about it, you can have a couple of days,” Jackson said. He placed his hand on top of hers. It was so warm and strong.