8. Amelia
Chapter 8
Amelia
A nd here we go again. Another transaction.
It’s all men want from me. Give them something and they’ll give me something in return.
But this one is new, and I can’t believe what I’m hearing. “One million dollars to be your fake fiancée? Me?” I swallow hard, trying to process the information. It’s a lot to take in.
“You.”
“Why me?” I ask. Not sure why I’m not jumping at the chance, considering one million dollars will let me control my life. At least, afterwards I will.
One million dollars…enough to get rid of my problem.
He looks at me, his eyes searching mine. “Because you’re smart, beautiful, and you won’t cause any trouble.”
Goosebumps pop on my arms because West Davenport called me beautiful. Then reality hits because he also thinks I won’t be a problem.
I raise an eyebrow. “And how do you know that?”
“Because I trust you, and—” He shrugs nonchalantly. “I’ve been watching you, Amelia.”
My heart skips a beat at his admission. Watching me? In what context? But before I can ask, he continues.
“This will be a temporary arrangement,” he says quickly, as if sensing my unease. “One year and when it’s over, you’ll have one million dollars. If there is a reason I have to extend, I’ll pay you another one million dollars for each month you stay.”
My mind is racing as I try to make sense of this proposal. One million dollars could change my life completely. But at what cost?
Giving up my life for one year to be West’s fake fiancée? Pretending to be in love with him?
It feels wrong on so many levels.
And what if I fell in love with him?
And then there’s sex.
My face heats.
I swallow hard, my mouth dry. “How will it work, exactly?”
West leans back in his chair, the leather creaking. “We’ll make a big announcement of our engagement. My father will ask questions, but I’ll tell him he pushed my hand.”
“Pushed your hand?” I echo, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah,” he says with a slight smirk. “I’ll say we’ve been secretly seeing each other for a little under a year. It’s believable, given how much time we spend together. My brother will back me up.”
I nod slowly, trying to process the information. “And the finer details?”
“We’ll work on those if you agree,” he says, his gaze locking onto mine. “Where we met is easy. It was at Henry’s house. He is a mutual friend.”
“I was there with Felix,” I add. This will never work.
“And I stole you from him,” West tells me.
I chuckle. “You’ve got it all worked out. Our first date...all of it.”
“It’s all coming together, like it was meant to be.”
I smile.
A million dollars is a lot of money, more than I’ve ever imagined having. But pretending to be engaged to West Davenport is risky. If anyone finds out who I am, my already precarious life could implode.
Yet, one million dollars does make the deal very tempting.
“I need some time to think about it,” I say. The money is appealing, but it’s also a double-edged knife. One side gets rid of my problem, but I haven’t had a problem for three years. And being in West’s life might mean I become public knowledge. I’m not so crazy about my life changing, but I do want to stop running.
“Of course,” he replies smoothly. “Take all the time you need.”
But the way his eyes glint tells me he doesn’t want me to take too long. I stand up, only then noticing my legs are shaking beneath me.
“Thank you for considering it,” West adds as I leave the room and head for the corridor. Back to the bedroom I’m staying in.
I pause at the door and glance back at him. His pale blue eyes are staring into mine, but still his expression is unreadable. There’s something in his eyes that makes me think this is more important to him than he’s letting on.
My mind races with what that is as I reach my room.
Perhaps he thinks a fake engagement won’t stifle his true self. Maybe he has a specific sexual preference, and that’s why he goes to Club Elysium.
Oh. My. God.
Will he want me to provide whatever that may be?
My feet move back to him before I can stop them. Now he’s in the living room, staring out at the city, drinking amber liquid from a crystal glass.
“West,” I say, my voice trembling.
He turns and looks at me, his pale blue eyes locking onto mine. “Yes?”
My gaze roams over his body, noticing how defined his muscles are as the fabric stretches over his torso. I imagine that body on top of me.
Stop it!
I take a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves. “About this arrangement. There’s something I need to know.”
He raises an eyebrow but stays silent, waiting for me to continue.
“The sex club,” I blurt out. “If we’re engaged, I don’t want you going there anymore.”
West’s expression remains unreadable, but he doesn’t respond immediately. The silence stretches between us, thick and heavy.
“I mean fake engaged, and...” My voice shakes slightly. “What I mean is, if you expect sex from me as part of this deal, I don’t want you going there. If you don’t want sex, then that’s fine.”
His eyes narrow as he considers what I’m saying, but he still says nothing.
Why the hell did I mention sex?
The silence feels like it’s crushing me, and I can’t stand it any longer.
“Sex is negotiable.” His voice is gruffer than I have ever heard from him.
Yet, it sounds so transactional.
“You’re not paying me for sex.” My voice lifts up an octave.
West laughs. “I meant we’ll talk about it when you’re ready. When I’m ready. And after we give each other a clean bill of health.”
“Oh.” I glance away before turning back and looking him in the eye. “My ex-boyfriend…Felix,” I say so quickly that the words tumble out before I can stop them. “He said I was a prude in bed. So maybe you should reconsider this whole arrangement.”
A flicker of something crosses West’s face—interest? Amusement? I’m not sure.
He sets his glass down and walks forward, his eyes never leaving mine. “Maybe your ex-boyfriend was rubbish in bed, Amelia,” he says with a small smile. “Maybe you need a man who guides you.”
His words catch me off guard, just like the unexpected sensation between my legs. I press them together.
For a moment, I’m not sure how to respond. So, I bring up the club again. “Will you still go there?”
“Tell me why you don’t want me to,” he says. There’s a glint in his eye as he does.
I bite my lip as he smiles at me.
The tension in the room shifts. It becomes something different. Something almost playful, but definitely sexy.
“I..I think—“ I hesitate, trying to regain my composure. “If we’re going to do this, it has to be believable. And I can’t handle the idea of people feeling sorry for me if you’re going there while we’re pretending to be engaged.”
West nods slowly, considering my words. “That’s fair enough,” he says finally. “If you agree. No more Club Elysium.”
I’m happy that he agrees, but it doesn’t dispel the lingering anxiety about what I’m so close to committing to.
“I’ll need a little more time,” I whisper.
“Of course, take a few days,” he replies. He walks to me, and when he reaches me, he places his large palms on my arms and looks me in the eye. “And Amelia.”
God, I love it when he says my name like he listens to every syllable as he says it.
“We’ll take things one step at a time. I won’t rush you.”
I nod, taking a deep breath because I know he is talking about sex. “Is there anything else I should know before I decide?” I ask, glancing away from his too handsome face.
“Like what?”
“Will we share a bed?” I ask.
“We’ll be engaged, Amelia. We’ll share everything .” The way he says everything makes me shiver from the top of my head to the tips of my toes.
“And the engagement. Will it be a small affair? An announcement?”
He chuckles. “So many questions. But my mother wouldn’t forgive me if any of her children eloped or opted out of having a party to celebrate. She’ll want a full list of your family. Parents, siblings, she’ll even want your cousins, cousins.”
“I have nobody to invite.”
“Nobody?” he pushes, surprise flickers across his face. I can’t tell if his shock stems from pity or genuine interest.
I keep my gaze steady on West, but the weight of the word still lingers in the air.
“You mean none at all?”
“There’s only me.” My voice drops to a whisper. “An only child. My parents are dead.”
“Dead.”
The word lingers between us like an unwelcome spirit.
My chest aches as a strange feeling uncovers, something I haven’t allowed myself to confront in a long time.
His hands drop from my arms as his expression softens. “Why didn’t I know this about you?”
“Not many people do,” I say nonchalantly, trying to brush it off with a casual shrug. “It’s not exactly a fun topic for small talk. But you should know, just in case it makes a difference to what you’re asking.”
His gaze remains fixed on me, and I sense a shift that goes beyond our business arrangement. “How did they—?”
“An accident.” The words spill out before I can stop them. “A few years ago.”
West nods slowly, processing my confession. I can see him piecing together fragments of my life story, but he’ll never find all the pieces.
Nobody can.
“What about extended family?” he probes.
“None.” My chest tightens again. “My mom was estranged from her side after her father disowned her for marrying my dad. My dad’s family? They emigrated, and we never saw them again.”
“That’s...rough,” he says softly.
“It is what it is,” I reply quickly, unwilling to dwell too long on the past that haunts me like a shadow. “So when it comes to family occasions, it’s just me.”
His eyes search mine for understanding. “And the reason you have nowhere to live?”
I nod my head. “I’m not close with anyone but Carly, a girl I met when I first landed in New York.” I wrap my arms around myself as the loneliness creeps in once again like an unwelcome chill. “Jodie once too.”
West walks away and I think I’ve blown any chance of the deal he just offered.
He takes a seat, leans forward, elbows resting on the table as if trying to bridge the gap between us. “Then say yes and you can share my family. Though they aren’t too great. As you know.”
I burst out laughing.
He rolls his eyes.
But the thought of belonging somewhere again warms my heart.
We’re staring at each other for too long before I glance away.
“Go to bed, Amelia, before I take you in my arms and hold you to take that look off your face.”
“What look?”
“The lost little girl.”
Please do. Hold me. Want me.
But before I respond, he continues with a teasing grin, “The little girl who needs someone to look after her.”
I’m not annoyed by his words. In fact, I can’t help but smile. Because, despite our earlier conversation, he seems determined to lighten the mood. And it feels nice that he’s not pressuring me. Now we’re just two people plotting a fake life together.
“I need a lifetime of that, not a year.” I smile and turn back towards my room again.
“One step at a time,” he calls.
One step at a time seems doable.
Can I pull it off?
Can I live a lie for an entire year?
Or will I find it so easy being with him that I’ll struggle to give him up at the end?
The alternative is bleak. Scraping by in New York City, hiding from my past, and sleeping on a couch because I can’t afford anything else.
What other choice do I have? My finances are in shambles, and I’m out of options. Maybe this is the break I need to get back on my feet. The one thing I need to start over again.
I stop and turn to see West stroking his bottom lip with his thumb as he watches me. There’s something sexy about the act, but I shake it off and say, “I’ll do it.”
His eyes widen in surprise as he strides toward me. “Are you sure about this?” he asks, his voice low and husky as he takes my hand. “It won’t be easy.”
His hand is warm around mine.
My heart is racing when I look up at West. His tall frame towers over me as I say, “I have worked for you for over a year now. I know when I can push you and when I need to walk away.”
“I know you can handle me,” he says with a smirk. “But can you handle pretending to be in love with me?”
I swallow hard, trying to ignore the flutter in my stomach. “I think I can manage.”
West’s eyes soften, and he gently pulls me closer. “Then let’s seal the deal,” he murmurs.
Before I can react, his lips are on mine.
The kiss is softer than I expected, tender, and completely unexpected. It’s nothing like I imagined kissing West would be.
It’s so much better.
His hand cups my cheek, his thumb strokes my skin.
I want to melt into his embrace. I want to forget this is all pretend. To forget about the money, the lies we are about to tell, and the complications. And pretend we are real.
His hand slides to the back of my head, and he pulls me closer, sliding his tongue between my lips.
Right now, it’s just me and him, and as he tilts his head and deepens the kiss, and it feels like it’s meant to be.
When we finally break apart, I’m breathless.
West’s pale eyes are now dark and intense, and there is a flicker of something more than just business in his gaze.
“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” His voice is husky and hits me in places it shouldn’t.
I lick my lips and shake my head, unable to form words.
It wasn’t bad at all.
In fact, it was perfect. Too perfect. This fake engagement is the lifeline I’ve been waiting for, but after that kiss, I’m sure heartache will follow.
As the reality of what we’re about to do crashes back over me, doubts start to creep in.
Can I really do this?
Can I pretend to be in love with West when a part of me knows I will fall madly in love with him?
Since the day I met him, I knew he was more.
But I could never think about anything but who we were—the boss and his assistant.
Now what?
West must sense my hesitation because he squeezes my hand gently. “We’ve got this, Amelia. Together.”
I nod, forcing a smile.
“Get some sleep. We’ll talk more tomorrow.”
And as I turn to head to my room once again, I can’t shake the feeling that I’m stepping into something far more complicated than I ever imagined.
What scares me is what happens when it’s all over.