Reluctant Bride

by Sam Crescent

  “A prenuptial agreement? For me? And who?”

  “Me,” he said.

  “You want to marry me?” I scooted forward in my chair. “You don’t even know me. Why would you want to marry me? Why would I want to marry you?”

  He smiled the first proper smile I’d seen from him, threw back his head, and laughed.

  “Is this a joke?” I scowled.

  “No joke, I’m serious.”

  “But why? You could have any woman you wanted. I mean, you’re rich, and way too good-looking…” I stopped myself from saying more.

  “You find me attractive then?”

  “Duh.” I rolled my eyes. “What woman wouldn’t? I’m sure you’ve looked in the mirror.”

  He chuckled and reclined in his desk chair.

  “Why, Will? Tell me why or I’m out the door.”

  “And where would you go? You said you had nowhere to stay tonight.”

  Screw him. I stood.

  He sighed. “My family is pressuring me to marry. They tell me thirty-eight is too old to be a bachelor. I have no desire to marry a socialite. So…” He waved his hand at me.

  “You don’t look that old.” I sat back in the chair and studied his face. As far as older men went, he appeared in the prime of his life.

  “Thanks,” he said dryly.

  Did I insult him about his age?

  “It’s just you’re older than me.”

  “And how old are you, Prue?”

  “Shouldn’t you have asked my age before you proposed?”

  His lips twitched. “I should, and I didn’t propose.”

  I lifted the papers. “That’s not what this says.”

  He clenched his jaw and ground out, “How old?”

  “Twenty last month.”

  His face softened. “Happy Birthday for last month.”

  “Yeah, thanks, it was a crappy day, too, almost as bad as today.” I kicked my feet up on his desk again.

  “I’m sorry to hear. You should have a wonderful birthday. What happened?”

  “I caught my boyfriend with his dick in another woman’s mouth.”

  He coughed and stiffened in the chair.

  “I broke up with his cheating ass and got STD tested after seeing him with that skanky ho. That wasn’t fun either, waiting for those results.”

  “Very responsible of you.”

  I wriggled my toes. “Could you imagine if they hadn’t come back negative?”

  “No.” His voice dipped lower, as though the idea appalled him. He stroked the end of his pen down the instep of my foot.

  I curled my toes at the pleasant sensation. He stroked my foot again. Tingles raced up my leg. My breathing quickened.

  “Your feet are as pretty as you,” he said with a softness I almost didn’t hear.

  Heat pooled low in my stomach. Will shifted in his chair and dropped his pen. He wrapped a hand around my ankle, branding me with his fiery touch. I wet my lips, eager to see what he’d do next. As abruptly as he’d grabbed my ankle, he released it.

  “I have work to do. Read over the contract. Have a look around the house and I’ll see you in the dining room at seven to discuss it further.”

  I narrowed my eyes and stood with a huff.

  Jerkwad.

  “What makes you think I’ll still be here at seven?”

  “Prue.” He stood and propped his hands on the desk.

  My gaze dropped to his defined arms pressing against the confines of his shirt. The man was all business. Controlled. But underneath all his business armor, there was a wild beast wanting to play.

  I enjoyed toying with the beast.

  I placed my hands on the desk in the same way as him and pressed my breasts together with my arms to give me more cleavage as the baggy band t-shirt sagged forward.

  “Yes, Will?” I batted my eyelashes.

  “Be here at seven or else.”

  “Or else what?”

  His gaze dropped to my cleavage, and he clenched his jaw. “Or else I’ll be forced to find you so you’re not sleeping on the streets tonight.”

  I’d hoped he’d say more about spanking me. I pictured him doing it with me lying across his desk and messing up his neat piles of papers.

  “Wouldn’t be the first time.” I stood and reached out to straighten the knot of his necktie and let my fingers brush his warm throat.

  His face softened as he swallowed with a bob of his Adam’s apple.

  “Don’t pity me,” I said and tugged the necktie I’d just straightened. “I hate seeing pity on people’s faces.”

  “I—”

  “Save it,” I snapped. “Never do it again or you’ll never see me again.”

  He held up his hands. “I won’t. I promise.”

  “Good.” I nodded and let go of his necktie.

  “Make yourself at home, Prue. There’s no one here except you and me. Heather, the cook, will be in at six to make dinner.”

  “You’re crazy. I could rob you.”

  “You won’t.”

  “How do you know?”

  William moved around the desk, sending a waft of his decadent aftershave my way. He bent and lifted my case, brushing my leg with his arm on his way up and making my legs tremble.

  “Because you’re as attracted to me as I am to you. You want to know what it’s like when I run my hands over your body, inside your body. You want me to spank you until you’re begging me to bury my cock in you.”

  My nipples peaked into hard buds, and moisture pooled between my legs. Everything he said was true. I was attracted to him. I’d fantasized about everything he said. I moved closer, but he lifted the case between us.

  “Jerkwad,” I said, but the word came out breathy.

  His lips twitched. “I have work to do. Put your case back in the guest bedroom, and I’ll see you at seven.”

  I took my case from him, snatched up the prenuptial agreement, and left his office. Returning to the guest bedroom, I tossed my case inside and threw the papers on the bed. I’d read them later. First, I wanted to explore this freaking mansion. Why does a bachelor need a place this size?

  Downstairs, I found a massive dining room, bigger than the house I’d grown up in, with chairs for two dozen people. An elegant reception room sat in the room alongside. Another room revealed a home theater with supple leather recliners for a dozen people and a popcorn machine. Next was a powder room in a herringbone beige and white tile from floor to ceiling. The gym housed enough exercise equipment for six people, and a steam room.

  Who needs all these rooms?

  Upstairs, he’d decorated each bedroom in crisp white linens, beige carpeting, and priceless pieces of artwork the only splash of color in each room, but the view from the windows of the surrounding Hollywood Hills was a sight to see. Below, the sparkling blue water of a pool called to me.

  I put off exploring the third floor. What else could the house have? Instead, I jogged down the many stairs. If I lived here, I’d soon have buns of steel from going up and down these stairs all day. Am I considering Will’s offer? I stopped at the bottom of the stairs, clutching the handrail.

  Marriage to someone I didn’t know.

  It wouldn’t be the worst thing to happen in my life.

  My gaze snagged on the French doors leading to the pool area. I padded across the hardwood and stone combination surrounding the pool. The spacious outdoor dining and lounge area with dark wicker furniture was almost as big as the living room inside the house. There was even a poolside bar under a gazebo housing a stainless-steel grill and an outdoor kitchen.

  Will must have awesome pool parties here.

  I stripped to my panties and dove into the pool. What a life! I flipped onto my back and gazed at the azure-blue sky. All I needed now was a cocktail with a fancy little umbrella like the ones Burberry’s Bistro served.

  Could I go from a poor waitress to a rich wife?

  And what would Will expect from our marriage?

  Why would
he want someone like me?

  It made zero sense. The man could have anyone.

  The sun lowered in the sky. What’s the time? I scrambled from the pool and found a towel waiting for me on a lounge chair. I glanced around, expecting to find someone watching me but found no one. Who put the towel there? After scrubbing myself dry, I yanked on my leggings and the baggy band t-shirt. I hurried back to the guest bedroom, spotting a clock on my way. Shit, six-thirty. Half an hour to read the contract. I picked the papers up from my bed. There was too much small print, but I forced myself to read every single word.

  At two minutes to seven, I finished reading the contract, then ran down the hallway to the dining room. I didn’t like this cavernous, intimidating room. Will sat at the head of the table, reading his cell phone.

  “Do we have to eat in here?” I asked, coming to a stop beside Will. “Can’t we eat outside?”

  He glanced up from his phone and frowned. “Why are you still in those clothes? Surely your panties are damp.”

  I shifted under his scrutinizing stare. “They are. Wait, did you bring me the towel?”

  “Yes, I left you the towel when you jumped into the pool with no thought.”

  I shrugged. “What can I say, the water was too tempting.”

  His gaze roamed my body from my chest to my feet. “Yes, too tempting.”

  Heat trailed from my nipples to my stomach from his scorching gaze over my body.

  I shoved the contract between us. “You want this?”

  He tugged the contract from my hand. “I want you.”

  “Why me?” I whispered.

  Chapter Three

  “Why you, indeed?” He questioned himself as well as me. “You’re different.”

  “Different to what?”

  “Different to everything I’ve ever known. You say what you think when you think it. You don’t care if it’s right or wrong. You don’t seem to give a shit about all this.” He waved his hand around the opulent dining room. “I find you desirable in so many ways.”

  “Oh.” The only word I could say after his declaration.

  “Go change into dry clothes and I’ll have dinner moved outside.”

  “Yeah?” I grinned.

  “Yes.” He smiled back at me and stood.

  My breathing quickened with his sudden nearness. His declaration that he wanted me, desired me. His gaze landed on my heaving chest. What would it be like to have his hands on my breasts? His warm mouth on my hard nipples? Would he be gentle or rough? I imagined he’d be rough like the beast within him.

  He lifted a hand and cupped my throat in a claiming hold.

  “Your pulse beats so fast whenever I’m near.”

  I wet my lips. “I find you desirable, too, even though you’re a jerkwad.”

  His eyes glittered with a combination of anger and lust. He crushed his lips to mine in a brutal kiss of teeth and tongue. There was no gentleness in the kiss. His lips were demanding. Controlling. His grip slid to the back of my neck and he held me still for his marking kiss. No man had ever kissed me like this. Full of raw, carnal need.

  He ended the kiss and urged me toward the door. “Go change.”

  I stumbled from the room on shaky legs. What the hell did I get myself into with this man? The moisture between my legs told me I enjoyed his kiss. Way too much for one kiss. It must be all those secret fantasies I’d imagined over the last six months serving him in the bistro, making me so turned on I was about to orgasm from his kiss alone. Not quite. But imagining his brutal kiss on my other lips almost made me reach for my vibrator in the case.

  At least I’d grabbed Mr. V, as I’d dubbed my favorite toy, when the landlord evicted us from the apartment.

  But I held myself back from using Mr. V. An orgasm from the man himself would be so much better if his kiss was anything to go by.

  In the guest bedroom, I stripped out of my damp clothes and threw them in the restroom with the other pile of wet clothes I’d left earlier in the day. I didn’t have many clothes in my case, and I’d have to wash the others if I left.

  If I left?

  I slid a thong up my legs and tugged on a strapless dress in dark red. My favorite dress to party in, it made me feel free and sexy with all the glances men shot me when I wore it. I hoped Will liked the dress as much as other men, but he wasn’t like other men. I bit my lip. Maybe I should put on another dress?

  A knock pounded on the door.

  “Move it, Prue. Heather wants to go home to her family.”

  “Coming,” I yelled.

  If only I was…

  I flung open the door. Will stepped back, running a hooded gaze over the dress. He liked it as much as other men. I trotted down the hallway in front of him in my bare feet. Shoes annoyed me, plus I didn’t pack many in the case.

  Stupid, lying, cheating roommate.

  I ground to a stop outside. By the side of the pool was an intimate table for two with candles flickering alongside the pool lights, changing colors in the background from red, to blue, to green, to purple, to yellow, and orange. So romantic. I didn’t picture Will as a romantic man.

  “This is nice,” I said.

  “Nice?” He scoffed.

  I tried another word. “Pretty.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Why are you censoring yourself now?”

  “Fine, it’s romantic as fuck. How’s that?”

  Will grinned. “Much better.” He pulled the chair out for me.

  I sat with an unladylike thump in the wicker chair and he pushed me in with a swipe of his thumbs over my bare shoulders. A shiver trembled over my skin. I crossed my legs under the table, hoping to stem the flood of moisture his small caress produced.

  “You look beautiful,” he said, tickling my ear with his warm breath.

  A tremor raced down my spine.

  He moved to his chair. The loss of his warm presence at my back was an instantaneous cool chill across my bare shoulders.

  An older, gray-haired woman dressed in a white pinafore wheeled a cart over to us and placed the entrée dishes on the table.

  “Thank you, Heather, you can go home. I’ll serve the rest of the meal,” William said.

  “Yes, sir.” Heather bobbed her head and left us alone.

  I picked up my fork and stabbed the green salad with a splash of yellow and black lentils.

  “Heather’s your cook?”

  “Yes.”

  “What other servants do you have?”

  “You met Gabe, my driver, and there’s Heather’s sister, Amanda, the housekeeper.”

  “That’s it?”

  “It’s all I need.”

  “Sounds like you’ve got it all covered.” I chomped on the salad. “What do you need a wife for?”

  He chuckled. “I can think of a few things.”

  We finished our salads, and he cleared the entrée plates and placed the main courses on the table.

  “What’s this?”

  “Duck breast with beets and watercress.”

  “I could go for a big greasy cheeseburger right about now.”

  He shook his head. “You’ll ruin your body with that crap.”

  “This body?” I ran my hand across the top of my strapless dress. “I figure I’ve got a few more years of eating junk food before I have to worry about what I eat.”

  Will’s gaze tracked the motion of my fingers. I wanted his fingers to stroke my chest. The man had too much control. As pleasant as this was, I preferred getting a rise out of him. “What things do you need a wife for?”

  “I know you’re not naïve.”

  I rolled my shoulders, aware of the temptation of bare skin under the flickering candlelight. Will’s gaze followed every small motion I made tonight.

  “Sex,” I said. “You could get that from any woman.”

  “The women my age expect certain things with sex. Then there are the other women in the elite circles who just lay there like their perfect plastic surgery bodies are too precious for any
thing more than the missionary position.”

  “Poor Will.” I pouted. “No one’s fulfilling your sexual desires.”

  He leaned forward and slid his hands onto my knees under the table. My breathing quickened and my pulse raced.

  “The things I want to do to you and that mouth of yours.”

  “You think I’ll satisfy your naughty desires?”

  “I think you have naughty desires of your own with me. Am I wrong?”

  “No, but it doesn’t mean I want to marry you.”

  He stroked his thumbs across my thighs then removed his hands. “It’s the only way you’ll get them.”

  We ate our meals in silence. Do I want to satisfy my fantasies of Will so bad I’d marry him for it?

  “The contract…” I said.

  “Yes?”

  “It states I’ll get ten thousand dollars each year we’re married.”

  “Yes, I’ll transfer the money into your personal bank account.”

  “As your wife, besides sex, do you expect me to go out with you?”

  “Yes, I’ll require you to attend functions and the like.”

  “Ten thousand doesn’t seem like enough. I mean, I’d need fancy clothes, and shoes.”

  “Jewelry, too,” he said. “You can purchase those with a credit card linked to my account.”

  I placed my fork on the table. “So, what’s the ten thousand for?”

  “Whatever you like.”

  “Huh?” I rubbed a hand across my throat. “And the baby clause?”

  “What about it?”

  “You’ll pay me two hundred and fifty thousand for each baby too? I don’t know how I feel about that.”

  He shrugged. “My parents are pressuring me to produce the next heir. Kids will need to happen, and I figured the money would be an incentive.”

  “You want to knock me up?”

  Will laughed. “Knock you up. You’re so crass. I like it.”

  “And if I leave, you’ll get full custody of the baby, or babies, if we have more.”

  “If you left me,” he said with a hard glare. “Then yes, I’d get full custody.”

  “Would I get visitation?”

  “Depends on why you’d leave me.” He folded his arms.