And then he leapt off of her as though she’d burst into flames in his arms. Ryan was all movement, a blur of action as he paced the hotel room, grabbing a set of keys from the desk and ruffling through his duffel bag beside the bed.
“Up and at ‘em, princess.” His overly jovial tone was a splash of freezing cold water against her flushed and sensitive skin.
Princess. A shudder rippled through her, it was a jab in the gut on top of a slap across the face. He didn’t want her. No, that wasn’t true. She could still feel the hard length of him pressed against her. He did want her. He just didn’t want to want her. Somehow that was even worse.
Before her addled brain could even begin to sort that one out, he was heading to the door. “I’ll wait for you in the lobby,” he called over his shoulder.
“Wait, where are we going?”
He was halfway through the door when he stopped and poked his head in through the open door. “You need to take your mind off of everything. Best way to make a decision is to think about something else, everybody knows that.”
When she continued to stare at him, he added. “We’re going out.”
He slammed the door shut behind him, leaving her alone. On the bed. And horny as hell.
What. Was. That?
Lucia scrambled off the bed. So Mr. Cool wanted to act like he wasn’t interested? He wanted to make her feel like she was the only one burning up over here? She opened her suitcase with far more force than necessary, sending several garments toppling over the edge. That was fine by her.
She rummaged through the clothes until she found what she was looking for and pulled it out with a triumphant grin. Two could play at this game.
* * * *
Ryan paced the lobby of their sleazy motel, trying to avoid eye contact with the night manager who was eyeing him like he was about to whip out a gun and rob the place. No robberies tonight, friend, just a man trying desperately to avoid his hot-as-hell fiancée.
He’d almost lost it back there. Almost. What had he been thinking, climbing on top of her like that when just lying beside her, not touching at all, had been a torturous exercise.
He hadn’t been thinking—that was the answer. He’d been so distracted by the sadness and confusion in those beautiful eyes of her, he had stopped thinking completely. All he’d wanted to do was make her smile. Make her laugh, maybe. And instead he’d found himself hovering over her like some crazed sex fiend.
Thank God he’d stopped himself when he had. Lucia was a sweet girl. A good kid. She deserved more than a one-night stand with her fake fiancé. She deserved a real relationship, which was something he knew nothing about. And really, who could blame him, considering the role models he had growing up. His parents’ relationship had been unhealthy, to say the least. Was it any wonder he’d never been able to keep a girlfriend longer than a week? The moment things got real, he got out. It was the best way to avoid the toxic atmosphere he’d been surrounded by when he was growing up.
A fiancée was not something he ever expected to have. But this was short-term. A wife for a few months? That he could handle. He would just have to develop some self-control. One thing was for sure, he would be taking a lot of cold showers before this marriage was over.
He could do this. He could keep his hands to himself and keep her out of his family’s drama. She may come from money and she obviously had some connection to Daniel but she wasn’t Daniel and there was no way he was going to make her pay for his mistakes.
How are you going to keep her out of it? She’s already in it.
He could practically hear his brother’s snide, cynical voice in his ear, mocking him for his naiveté. And maybe his brother’s voice was right. Maybe he’d gone too far to pull back now. Maybe he would drag Lucia into this mess after all…
No. He could keep her out of this. If he just kept to his plan, he would have it all.
And what was his plan? Well…he was still working on it. But one thing was clear, if he could get Lucia to go through with this sham of a wedding, he could get his family back the money they’d lost. Or at least enough that his mother and brother could get a fresh start. Ryan wouldn’t keep any of it—he’d already decided that. His payment would come from being free from them. He could make his own way in the world once they let him go.
Maybe the money would be enough for them. He could just imagine Billy’s mocking laughter.
If it wasn’t enough, he would use his connection to Lucia to blackmail Daniel into an apology, at the very least. Watching the high and mighty Daniel admit that he’d been in the wrong when he stole their father’s company out from under him was all he’d ever wanted from the man, personally. He’d never liked the idea of taking Daniel’s blood money, he just wanted to hear him apologize.
An apology plus the money should be enough to appease his family. Doubts still niggled at his conscience but he shoved them aside.
The tightness in his chest began to dissipate as he paced the lobby. He could do this. He could end a decade’s worth of hate and anger….and he could protect Lucia from any real harm while he did it.
His inner pep talk was interrupted by the sound of the elevator doors opening. Ryan turned and then stopped. The air rushed from his lungs as his blood raced to his groin.
Oh, holy hell.
Lucia was a vision—a Victoria’s Secret model straight off the runway. Clad in an itty-bitty black gauzy sheath dress that stopped high up her thigh, exposing her lean, tan legs, which ended in heels that looked impossibly high and insanely sexy. The dress brushed against her curves as she walked toward him, not so tight as to reveal everything but revealing enough that his mouth was watering with her every move.
When she drew close she stopped and paused in a model pose. “What do you think?”
“Uhhhh.” Was that a word that came out of his mouth? He didn’t think so. It sounded more like a groan and Lucia’s answering smile was mocking.
She’d gone all out with the makeup. Gone was the fresh-faced girl next door. She’d done something to her eyes to make them look smoky and her lips were a vibrant, siren red. Her dark wavy hair was loose around her shoulders in a tousled, morning-after kind of way that had his brain flashing on all sorts of ways he could woo her back to their hotel room.
He swallowed thickly and tried again. “You look amazing.”
Lucia took a step closer and wrapped her hand around his arm. “Thank you. Shall we?”
He let her lead him out into the crisp desert night air, which did nothing to clear his lust-filled brain or ease the tension in his body. If anything, the night air brought with it whiffs of her tantalizingly delicate, floral perfume and every once in a while her arm would brush against his and every nerve ending would stand on edge, waiting for another touch.
All the while, she led him closer to the noise and action of The Strip. She strode purposefully in those damned high heels….as though she knew exactly where they were going.
“Where are you taking us?” he asked.
She gave him a sideways glance and a coy smile. “Out.” When he continued to stare at her, she added, “You’re the one who said I needed a distraction.”
He eyed her openly now. “So we’re….what? Going dancing?”
She gave a little huff of a laugh. “We’re in Vegas, baby,” she drawled in a ridiculously cute and over-the-top American accent. “We’re going gambling.”
He paused and then had to hurry to keep pace wither her. How a petite woman with sky-high stilettos could move so quickly was a mystery for another day.
“With what money?” A knot of tension had formed in his gut at the word “gambling.”
She ignored him, apparently too busy gazing up at the billboards and fluorescent signs that were starting to come into view now that they were getting close to the action.
“With what?” he asked again, the anxiety making his tone harsher than he’d intended. “You and I spent every last penny
we had getting out here.”
She tossed her hair and laughed—she laughed. “I’ve got some ones in my wallet. That should be enough to get us started.”
Two hours later, Ryan stared in awe as Lucia raked in another batch of quarters into her giant plastic cup.
“How did you do that?”
Lucia ignored him as she sifted through the change, her brows furrowed in concentration as she tried to add up her winnings. “Do what?” she asked absently.
She’d barely paid any attention to him since they’d arrived. From the moment they’d walked in the door she’d been in the zone—weirdly all business while still laughing and chatting with the gamblers around her at the penny slots, and then the nickel slots and now the quarter slots.
She’d been on fire from the very start. And he….well, he’d been a ball of nerves. He normally prided himself on being cool and laid back but God almighty, he hated everything about the casinos—from the stench of cigarettes to the noisy dings and bells of the slot machines. But more than anything, he hated the nauseous sensation he got every time she went back for more.
She looked up at him then with a satisfied smile. Holding up her bucket of winnings, she said, “That should do it.”
Relief rushed through him. That was it. They were done. They could go home…or back to their seedy motel. At this point, he’d take it. “Perfect,” he said, a little louder than intended. “Let’s go cash that in and go grab some dinner with those winnings of yours.”
Lucia stood too but she was shaking her head. “We can’t leave yet, I’m just getting started.”
“What do you mean, you’re just getting—”
But she was already halfway to the exit.
* * * *
His lucky charm—that was what her grandfather used to call her. She couldn’t help it and she sure as hell couldn’t explain it. Maybe it was a self-fulfilling prophecy or maybe it was fate. All she knew was—she’d always been lucky.
She could hear Ryan behind her, jostling his way through the crowd to keep up with her but she didn’t slow down. Racking up some change at the slots had been nice and all but Lucia had a wedding to pay for. Which meant….
“Where are we going?” Ryan had reached her side and was scowling at her, something he’d been doing quite a lot of since they’d stepped foot in their first casino.
“I am going to the poker tables.” She watched his face fall. “But you don’t have to come with me.”
Ryan’s jaw set but he still kept pace beside her as they moved past a group of drunken bachelorette partygoers. One girl was wearing a telltale tiara and Lucia couldn’t help but stare at the bride-to-be. Sadness washed over her again like a wave and she inhaled deeply. Now was not the time to get sappy about childhood dreams. There would be plenty of time for fairytale weddings and falling in love once her career was built and she and Ryan got their divorce.
But still, a nagging voice was making it hard to concentrate on anything other than her grandfather’s disappointment once he found out. For a world-class romantic who believed in fairytale endings, an elopement for money was hardly something to be proud of. What would her mother have thought? Would she have applauded the fact that she was finally doing something on her own, far away from grandfather’s smothering and Marco’s lecturing? Was she rooting her on from beyond the grave, hoping her daughter would be a success where she had failed? Or would she be horrified that her daughter was falling for a gold digger, just like she had done? That thought made her stomach turn.
But this was different. Ryan was nothing like her father. He may be a gold digger but in a sense so was she. And at least he was open and honest about it. She may have been untrusting and secretive, but her soon-to-be husband wasn’t.
Ryan tugged her arm, pulling her out of the walkway and into an alcove filled with slot machines and gamblers who looked hypnotized by the bright lights. “You don’t have to do this,” Ryan said. “You’ve already made more than enough. Why test your luck?”
Lucia held up the cup and gave it a little shake. “This is luck.” She pointed toward the card tables. “That is talent.”
Ryan rolled his eyes.
“Okay, fine, there’s some luck involved. But I know what I’m doing, I swear. I grew up playing poker with my grandfather and uncles.”
His brows rose. She shrugged. It wasn’t a typical childhood pastime, but then, little about her childhood had been normal. She’d been too young to fit in with her aunts and uncles and too old for the rest of her cousins so she’d always alternated between being treated like one of the adults or as the go-to babysitter.
Ryan looked miserable. She reached out a hand and laid it on his arm. “You don’t have to stay. I’ll be fine.”
One side of his lips turned up in a wry smile. “And leave you here…alone…looking like this?”
Heat flushed her cheeks at the openly admiring gaze he swept over her. His initial reaction had been extremely satisfying but hearing him admit she was tempting gave her a heady, dizzy feeling.
Meeting his eyes in that smoke-filled, noisy room, it dawned on her. She had a crush on her fiancé. A little giggle escaped her at the thought and Ryan gave her a questioning look.
She shook her head. It was nothing. It would pass. They would get married, as planned, wait as long as it took to sort out the trust fund and divvy up the money and then they would get divorced.
But who was to say she couldn’t have fun in the meantime?
She took a step closer. “You think I’m that irresistible, huh?”
His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he swallowed. She took a step closer so they were touching, her legs brushing against his, and she lightly wrapped her arms around his neck.
“Lucia.” Her name sounded like a warning and a thrill shot through her. She’d never been a temptress before. She liked it.
But he looked miserable. He had from the moment they’d stepped foot in the first casino. Despite the fact that she was having a blast, she couldn’t in all good conscience, keep torturing this man.
Her fiancé.
She sucked in air as excitement and terror washed over her. Was she really doing this?
Ryan’s eyes were studying her and for one blissful moment she got swept away in the endless kindness she saw there.
“Are you okay?” His voice was low but despite the noise around them, she could hear him as though he’d whispered in her ear. His arms wrapped around her, safe and strong. To the outside world they must look like a couple. Like a real, legitimate couple taking a moment to cuddle during a night out on the town.
What if this was real?
The fantasy was tempting. There was concern and tenderness in his gaze. He cared about her. It would be all too easy to let herself forget reality— to imagine that he was her boyfriend. For real.
A sigh escaped her. But he wasn’t. Not yet at least. At the moment he was just her co-worker and maybe-friend and he was with her for her money.
What else was new?
No, she couldn’t judge Ryan. Not when she’d talked him into it and not when she was using him for the very same reason. She had a chip on her shoulder and it was time she got over it.
Starting now, with this man. He was trusting her to hold up her end of this bargain and she would trust him as well.
With that thought, she unwrapped her arms and took a step back. Tilting her chin up so she could look him in the eyes, she said, “You’re miserable here, Ryan. Why don’t you go back to the hotel and finish our application and take it to the Clark County Marriage Bureau.”
“This late?”
She lifted his wrist to check out the time. “It’s open till midnight. You have plenty of time.”
A small smile gave her a glimpse of those amazing dimples. “We’re really doing this, huh?”
Lucia nodded, the butterflies in her stomach making it difficult to speak. Was he as terrified as she was? “We’re reall
y doing this.”
She turned to head to the poker tables but he stopped her. “Will you be okay here alone?”
Rolling her eyes, she put one hand on her hip and cocked her head to the side. “When am I not okay?”
He laughed but stopped her one more time. “Aren’t you forgetting something? I still need to know your name if I’m going to complete that application.”
Lucia froze, her temporary sense of confidence wavering for a bit. This was it. Her secret would be out there.
Trust, she reminded herself. This was it. “Brunelli. I’m Lucia Brunelli.”
Chapter 8
Brunelli. Where had he heard that name before?
It had been nagging at him as he walked back to the motel and the entire time he’d completed the form and now, as he waited in line for the county clerk’s office to file the license, he gave in to temptation and searched the name on his smartphone.
Whoa. Article after article came up and he scrolled through them, skimming the opening sentences and catch phrases. “One of the wealthiest families in Europe,” “manufacturing tycoon,” “Italian royalty.” He sucked in air as the reality of her background became clear. She hadn’t been exaggerating when she’d described herself as an heiress. If anything, she’d been being humble. The Brunellis were a living, breathing dynasty.
He couldn’t help himself. Curiosity got the best of him so next he searched “Daniel Gladwell” and “Brunelli” and there it was. They were business partners. They’d come together to form EverTech. Even Ryan knew about that company and he knew nothing about the tech world. Only someone living under a rock didn’t know about Jack Everett’s new company but Ryan hadn’t realized that it had been backed by Gladwell. And, apparently, Lucia’s family. He took a closer look at the picture of Gianni Brunelli. Too old to be her father. Grandfather maybe?
His fingers hovered over the keyboard on his phone. He was tempted to type in Lucia’s full name to see what came up but something stopped him. Somehow that seemed like an invasion of privacy.
High morals coming from someone who’s using her as an in to get revenge on her family friend.
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