Chapter 7 #2
“I thought my lawyers explained the expectations of this marriage.” There was an undeniable heat in his tone.
I scoffed, glowering at him. “Don’t worry. You’ll get what you paid for. Should I bend over the desk, or would you prefer me up against the window?”
Kai seemed taken aback by my apathetic remark.
It occurred to me then. This man knew everything about me since he had us investigated.
My fierce nature wouldn’t surprise him, but the lack of it would.
Stupefying him might make tonight tolerable.
Hurting his ego by treating this like a transaction and a chore would be the cherry on top.
I decided to adopt an indifferent approach.
With a contented hum, I moved to the floor-to-ceiling window of the panoramic bedroom. His eyes tracked me as I looked out the window. “Of course, there’s always the bed if we want to go the classic route. I vote for no eye contact. Too intimate.”
He crossed the room in two quick strides, turning me to face him. “Enough, Amelie. This isn’t going to work.”
“What won’t work?” I asked innocently.
“Treating tonight like a transaction to push my buttons. It won’t stop me from making our marriage real in the biblical sense.” I sensed the fake amusement in his voice.
Despite my best attempt to be callous, Kai wouldn’t let me flip the script on him.
He let go of my arm, and I returned to watching the white sandy beach.
I heard the shuffle of his footsteps. A few moments later, he stood next to me with two glasses in his hand.
He had made a visit to the minibar, and by the looks of the generous pours, he figured we could both use a large drink.
He handed me a glass of wine—a peace offering.
There was a cinnamon-colored liquid in his cup.
The sun was setting, but the beautiful sunset over the water didn’t ease the tension in the room. Kai was so quiet beside me that I reluctantly glanced at him. I nearly gasped when I found his face right next to mine.
For a moment, I forgot our heated debate and stared at my new husband.
I didn’t know what to make of him; I barely knew him.
The impression I had of him was surface level.
One thing was for certain. It was impossible to deny that he was attractive, especially when the weak rays through the window made his dark eyes glitter.
My God. He had to be the most beautiful man on the planet.
At least in the top ten. Why did a man like him need to pay for a woman?
Oh, right. Because he was a sadistic asshole who got off on humiliating desperate people. This man planned on making me sleep with him, even though I didn’t want to.
I turned away from him.
“I prefer your anger to you icing me out,” he said mildly.
We nursed our drinks. While Kai mimicked my detached approach, his dark eyes revealed he was masking his restlessness.
His face carried the impatience of a man waiting to be paid what he was owed.
He had invested time and money into making this marriage happen.
Tonight was his reward, a prize he wanted to savor.
My attitude was making his hard-earned win seem like a loss.
“Would you like me to dial up the anger, Master?” I said, voice perfectly poised.
Kai pressed an index finger to his temple. “Hell, Amelie.” His voice tried to sound controlled, but it came out distorted. “I’m giving your family the opportunity of a lifetime. Do you plan on only giving me grief in return?”
“Not at all.” I finished the wine and left the empty glass on the windowsill. “I plan on giving you exactly what you want—my submission.”
I emotionlessly shed my robe while looking out the window. If I had to fuck him to seal the deal, all he would get was my body. My soul was mine to keep.
I tilted my head, exposing my neck. “Do whatever you need to do, just make it quick.”
I watched Kai sip on his drink out of the corner of my eye. For once, he was speechless. His scorching eyes bore into my naked body, though he was yet to admit the truth. He would accept my body but never acknowledge the indifferent way I had offered it.
We had more in common than I realized. Stubborn, but not enough to forgo what we wanted.
Good.
Because I didn’t plan on participating in this sham marriage. That was how I would reclaim my dignity tonight—by watching the Prince of Darster squirm while he fucked a dead fish.
I shut my eyes because the time for talking was over. I only opened them upon realizing my new husband hadn’t pounced on me. Instead, he was doing a slow perusal.
I thought he’d throw me on the bed and get his money’s worth. But he was drinking me in as if he had waited eons for this moment. He was in no rush, memorizing every inch of my body and taking mental photos for later.
Kai had the power to make people crave his approval under the oddest of circumstances. I couldn’t stand the man yet found myself wondering whether he approved of what he saw.
I squared my shoulders when I saw movement in my peripheral vision. But all my bravado disappeared the moment he reached for me. Despite my best effort to be nonchalant, I burst into tears.