Muffy sputtered as if she did not know what to do with herself.
And, to my surprise, Skylar threaded her arm through mine. “Phantom is right. We’ll present a united front—just like we promised Dad.”
So that’s what we did.
Instead of letting Muffy introduce me around, we stuck with each other. Eating from the sumptuous buffet and drinking expensive bottles of wine that Skylar grabbed from Dad’s cellar collection at the bottom of the house. We also gave Hak-kan a tour of the castle, showing him our childhood rooms which Dad, either out of sentiment or guilt, had left untouched.
“So you liked N’Sync, and your sister preferred The Backstreet Boys,” he said after seeing the framed posters in our room. “How many arguments did that get you into?”
“So many,” Skylar admitted with a laugh. “Oh my gosh, Livvy, do you remember that karaoke machine Dad brought us back from Japan? How I harangued you into singing all those Backstreet Boys songs with me, even though you didn’t know most of the words.”
“Oh, I remember,” I answered with a rueful tone. “I liked Justin Timberlake, but you were sure you were going to marry Nick Carter and grow old with him here in the castle.”
Skylar laughed at the memory, then noted, “Clement does look a lot like him.”
“Yes, he does,” Hak-kan agreed. “I got your whole marriage as soon as I saw your room.”
That observation sent Skylar and me into gales of laughter. But she sobered as we made our way back down to the party.
“I always thought it would be one of us that inherited this place,” she said, her voice wistful. “Not our evil stepsister.”
I squeezed Skylar’s hand, and my heart panged with guilt. I hadn’t found out about the Easton acquisition until a few weeks ago, but it somehow felt like I was letting her down.
Other than that bittersweet note, I felt way more relaxed when we returned to the great hall and discovered people dancing to an upbeat live band Glendaver had hired for the party.
It must have shown on my face.
“You look happy,” Hak-kan observed. “Wanna dance and show all these fuckers we ain’t thinking about them?”
I laughed and gamely joined him on the dance floor. For such a big guy, Hak-kan was a shockingly elegant dancer. He easily led and even spun me under his arm a few times when “I Like it Like That” started playing.
“We set up a couple of branches in South America a few years back,” he explained. “They don’t let you leave the continent without learning how to dance.”
I laughed, but then I sobered enough to say, “Thank you. I can’t thank you enough for doing this for me.”
“It wasn’t all for you. It was a lot for me, too,” he answered with a wolfish grin.
His words lit up my body with a new awareness. Made me feel bold. Bold enough to ask, “What do you mean by that exactly?”
“Exactly?” he repeated. The grin fell away, leaving only hunger in his eyes.
Three flames erupted inside of me at the same time. One in each of my cheeks and one in my lower belly, stirring the pot of desire that had been percolating at a low simmer ever since our one-night stand.
“There you are, Livvy.”
We both looked up to see my father.
“I’ve been trying to get away to talk to you for the entire party.” He looked Hak-kan up and down. “You still haven’t introduced me to your date.”
I grimaced, realizing how rude it must have appeared to walk right into the party without saying a word to him. Although, in my defense, usually it’s me having to cut through swathes of businessmen just to tell him I’d arrived, only to get a polite welcome and an immediate dismissal.
I wouldn’t have guessed in a million years that Dad would notice the absence of my greeting at a hunt afterparty. But I suppose this situation was new for all of us. I mean, his second wife would be announcing my ex now being engaged to her daughter at any moment.
“Sorry, Dad. This is…”
“Oh, I know who you are,” Dad said as if he hadn’t just asked me for the introduction. He held his hand out for a shake. “Hak-kan Zhang. Nice to meet one of the VIP Bai3 partners. From what I understand, all three of you are hard to get into a room. So imagine my surprise when you showed up here with my daughter. How long have you two been…?”
My dad trailed off, expecting an answer, but I could only stare at Hak-kan. VIP Bai3—that was the baijiu taking all the hip cities by storm. I only knew it because the New York Times wrote a hot feature on baijiu being the latest drinking trend thanks to luxury brands like VIP Bai3. Also, the few times Eric had dragged me out dancing, he ordered that brand specifically to start the night.
But I had no idea that Hak-kan was one of the names behind it.
“Call me Phantom,” Hak-kan answered my dad, stringing an arm around my shoulders. “And as for me and O, we’re dating pretty seriously.”
Dad scanned the both of us in the same manner he analyzed the thoroughbred horses he sought out in hopes of one day winning a Kentucky Derby.
And eventually, his considering look gave way to one of approval. “Yes, I like this, Livvy. It’s the same thing I’ve been trying to say to the marketing guys for years, out with the old—time to think outside the box.”
I looked from side to side. Was he comparing our made-up relationship to one of his marketing campaigns?
I didn’t get the chance to ask. Dad continued on with his rounds around the party like a cruise ship refusing to bank at one port for too long—the Boomer version of ADHD that so many businessmen in his generation had.
“What was that all about?” I asked when Hak-kan pulled me back into his arms to start dancing again.
He cranked his head from side to side. “Actually, I wanted to talk with you about that. I’m good at business, and I’m sensing an opportunity here. One that gets you some high-key revenge on Garrett and me an in with your father. Word on the street is that he’s looking to sell Glendaver, but only to someone he’s got a personal connection with. Old-school.”
Oh…
I stopped swaying with him, and my heart sank. “So that’s why you came down here. You knew that I could be your opportunity to buy Glendaver.”
He regarded me, his expression somehow hard and conflicted at the same time. “I could lie—I’m good at that. But I’m liking all this truth between us, so I’ll tell it to you straight. Yeah, I want to buy Glendaver. That’s been a thought in my head for a while now. But I knew Drew Glendaver wouldn’t sell to a guy he didn’t know from Adam.”
All the stares when we came in—the heads turning to gossip. It hadn’t been shock at all—at least not the kind I’d assumed. It had been because I walked in with competition on my arm.
The pages of the story I’d told myself when we arrived rewrote itself inside my mind.
Leaving me to feel as silly as a fox pardon when I got to the twist everyone else saw coming.
I stiffened but decided to say, “Well, thank you. Your presence, no matter what inspired it, made this night so much more bearable. It would seem I owe you another favor.”
“No, you don’t,” he answered, dipping his head and catching my eyes. “You don’t owe me anything at all. I want to be here with you, fighting your battles. That’s been the best part of this deal.”
His words pressed into my heart, softening it in places. And my voice came out a little more sincere when I said, “I appreciate that you didn’t lie to me about your intentions like Garrett did. And again, I’m glad you’re here. No matter the reason.”
He gave me a strange look but answered, “I’m glad I’m here too.”
We danced some more, all the laughter gone.
Then I asked, “How can I help you?”
He blinked and shook his head with a confused look.
“How can I help you reach your goal to buy Glendaver?” I repeated. “Would you like me to put in a good word with my dad?”
He stilled. “Are you seriou
s right now? I just told you all that, and you’re trying to help me out anyway?”
“You helped me,” I explained, “You helped me not to be embarrassed today—that night after I found out about Garrett too. I want to help you like you helped me.”
He angled his head to look down at me from a new direction. “Beautiful, smart, and you got a heart like nobody else I’ve ever met. You’re something special. You know that?”
No, I didn’t know that. I’d gotten a medical degree and moved to a city where more people looked like me, but the self-esteem struggle remained real—as was the survivor's guilt.
I couldn’t tell you why I’d been chosen for a life filled with privilege. And it never felt like I could do enough to pay back the world for everything that I had been given.
But somehow, the words coming from his mouth made me see myself the way he did. As someone beautiful and intelligent and worthy of the admiration in his eyes.
“If you’re serious, then yeah, you can help me out,” he said. “All you got to do is say yes.”
“Say yes to what?” I asked.
He answered by dropping to one knee and pulling out a ring box.
12
PHANTOM
Alright, so maybe this wasn’t the best idea he’d ever had. Phantom had figured it would sell the story more if the question came as a surprise.
But Olivia didn’t just look surprised. She looked like she was about to pass out from shock. Real Southern Belle.
She blinked down at him, and all around them, people stopped dancing and turned to stare at the huge Chinese guy proposing on bended knee.
Somebody yelled out for the DJ to turn off the music, and some guy with a thick Kentucky accent asked, “Hells Bells, is he proposing?”
He could hear her evil stepmom’s voice in the distance saying, “What is happening? No! No! He can’t be….”
But yeah, he was. He was proposing. But it didn’t look like he’d be getting the answer he wanted from Olivia.
“Are you serious?” she asked, already shaking her head.
“Yeah, I’m serious,” he answered. “I know….”
He struggled. He struggled to find the right words—the ones that would convince her and everyone else watching them right now. “I know we haven’t been dating that long. But Olivia, you’re great. You’re the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. And I knew….I knew from the first moment I saw you that I’d be lucky to have you in my life. So this is me, down on one knee. Asking you to make me the luckiest man on Earth.”
His speech elicited several awes from the crowd that had gathered around them. Olivia, however, just continued to stare at him, still shaking her head.
Aw, hell, who was he kidding? He should have guessed that this plan would never work.
It didn’t matter how much he’d cleaned up. He was still a gorilla in a suit—a criminal born and raised. And no matter how grateful she’d acted this morning, there was no way a woman like her would say—
“Yes.” The one word floated down to him like a flower petal on the wind.
He’d been so braced for humiliation; it took his brain a moment to process what she was saying.
Yes.
She’d said yes!
And she was holding out her hand.
For his ring.
It wasn’t real. None of it was real.
But fireworks exploded in Phantom’s chest as he pushed the steel and black onyx ring that all Silent Triad members gave to their wives onto one of her long, elegant fingers.
Then came the part where he got to stand up and kiss her.
She was his. Legit his—only for pretend, but that was okay. This was the first step.
He’d gotten her to agree to be with him. Now all he had to do was figure out how to keep her.
Olivia and Phantom tumbled onto The Silent Triad’s private plane a few hours later, full of bubbly and good cheer.
“Did you see the look on Muffy’s face?” Olivia asked as they plopped into two supple leather seats facing each other. “I don’t think she’s ever going to forgive me for ruining Leighton’s big moment. That was so….”
She let out a breath and looked up at him with soft, grateful eyes. “That was so brilliant. I’ve never gotten a win like this before. Not with my family. Thank you.”
“No problem,” he answered with an unbothered shrug. Like proposing to heiresses was something he did every day.
Then he signaled the flight attendant for a bottle of champagne.
And she sobered to ask, “So, how exactly does this work? We stay fake engaged until the sale of the company goes through?”
“Yep.”
“You’re aware that might take months.”
“Yep.”
“And you don’t mind pretending to be happily engaged for that long?”
“Nope,” he replied.
He’d kept his answers purposefully short. He wanted to make this as uncomplicated for Olivia as possible.
But she went quiet in a way he didn’t like.
“O?”
“Hmm?”
“You want to tell me what’s on your mind?”
She quickly looked away. “It’s nothing….”
And by nothing, she meant something. “Okay, then tell me what you’re thinking, and let me decide for myself if it’s not worth talking about.”
“It’s just…I know this is fake. And a man like you has real-life needs. But…” She fretted her hands. “I don’t want to get cheated on again. Even if the relationship isn’t real.”
He stilled. “I’m not him. I’m not going to cheat. I wouldn’t do that to you.”
Olivia fretted her lip. “Even if it takes months for that deal to go through?”
“Even if that shit takes years,” he vowed.
Olivia let out an audible breath of relief. “Thank you. I know I’m being silly and ultra-moral—but thank you.”
“Alright,” he answered. “But O…?”
“Yes?” she answered, visibly bracing for whatever he was going to say next.
“That goes both ways. No other guys.”
She widened her eyes. “Oh, I wouldn’t…I wouldn’t do that to you either.”
Right answer. But Phantom shook his head because he needed her to understand: “We’re going to announce this engagement. Act like this is serious. And I’m going to use this deal to make my triad legit. But my version of New York is real fucking small, so you got to play your part. No other guys. No friendly dinners with exes, even if they’re married. None of that. Because anybody who knows me knows I wouldn’t put up with that shit. I’m possessive as fuck.”
She blinked, and Phantom wondered if he was pushing her too hard.
He knew that she occasionally met up with her ex-boyfriend from undergrad whenever he was in town. And even played doubles tennis with one of the guys she dated during her break from Garrett. She was modern as hell when it came to that let’s be friends shit.
But he was old school.
Possessive as fuck didn’t even cover it.
He wouldn’t blame her for having second thoughts about attaching herself to a guy like him. He wouldn’t let her out of their agreement. But he wouldn’t blame her.
“My best friend is a guy. His name is Eric—”
“He gay?” Phantom asked, acting like he didn’t already know.
She nodded. “And even if he wasn’t, I’m so not his type. He only dates biracial people, and even then, he prefers bad boys.”
Phantom laughed. “Eric’s cool then.”
“Okay, we have a deal. No cheating.” She smiled—probably because she still didn’t understand how bad the guy she’d just agreed to marry was.
Wayne, one of the old Red Diamond guys he’d recruited to join The Silent Triad years ago, picked them up from the airport.
Usually, Phantom would take it from there and do the driving back to his place. He wasn’t one to get chauffeured.
But instead of grabbing the
keys from Wayne, Phantom jogged to the back seat door and opened it for Olivia. Then slid in to sit beside her.
That made it easier to open the door for her again when they got to her place.
“Thank you,” she said, following him to the trunk, where he grabbed her luggage. “I can get my suitcase up the stairs myself.”
He pretended he didn’t hear her and carried it up the steps to her door.
And when she joined him at the door, she said, “Thank you” again, and held out a hand. A goddamn hand.
He took it anyway, enveloping her long elegant fingers in his giant mitt.
But when she tried to take it back, he held on. Pulled her to him and asked, “You really think I’m going to let you get away with not giving me a goodbye kiss?”
She lowered her eyes to the side in that way that let him know she was blushing, even if he couldn’t see it on her ebony skin.
Then she leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek. His goddamn cheek.
And how was this for crazy? Even that little bit of contact made his dick roar inside his pants. Made him hungry to do things to her she probably wasn’t ready for.
He let go of her hand. Not because he wanted to but because he didn’t trust himself not to slam her into the door and take her right there.
This was crazy.
A few weeks ago, he’d given up on his new plan. He’d told himself to just fucking forget about it because the way she’d bounced back to that douchebag? Well, she obviously didn’t want him like he wanted her.
But then she called him out of the blue. Let him know it wasn’t what he thought. And that was that.
Now they were here at her door, with him silently begging her. Let me in. You fucking belong to me. Let me in.
He almost said the words out loud. But he swallowed them down before they made it all the way to his mouth.
Instead of saying what he wanted, Phantom took a step back and muttered, “Alright….bye.”
Her answering “Bye, and thank you again” hit his back as he walked away.
Phantom: Her Ruthless Fiancé: 50 Loving States, Kentucky (Ruthless Triad) Page 9