Chapter 3
Chapter Three
A s silence filled the room, Ignacio continued to smoke, holding the cigarette between his forefinger and middle finger. He turned his attention to Delta, who shifted uncomfortably in the center of the room.
“It’s so interesting that years have passed since we’ve talked, and you bring me this type of… request.” He directed the words to her.
“I—”
Edward interrupted his daughter’s response. “A request that benefits you both.”
Though the older man might be correct, Ignacio had his doubts. He also derived a certain amount of pleasure from making them wait and wonder—would he agree? Would he not?
The publicity could certainly work in his favor, and though he had been staunchly against the ruse when Yvonne initially mentioned the idea, seeing Delta again created a certain…
He didn’t know how to define what he was feeling. An ache. A craving. Something deeper and more urgent than when he had bumped into her at the party and spent the rest of the night tortured by the scent of her perfume on his sleeve.
He smiled slowly, feeling very much like a cat that had swallowed a particularly tasty treat. “I’m in.”
He saw the shock in Delta’s face by the way her eyebrows lifted toward the ceiling.
“Yes!” Edward clenched his fingers into fists in front of him and shot a look at Delta.
“Under one condition,” Ignacio added.
The smile died on Edward’s face, and the room became unnaturally silent.
“No contract. This is a handshake deal only.”
“No!” Delta removed her sunglasses and turned to her father, silently beseeching him not to go along with the idea.
“Wait a minute, let’s hear him out,” her father said.
Ignacio pushed to his feet. “A handshake is all I need.”
“That’s not all I need. It’s not binding,” Delta said.
The fire in her eyes excited Ignacio and reminded him of their romps between the sheets. The way she would moan and whisper his name, shortening it to Nacio . The way she would claw his back, her body soft and trembling against him as he licked every inch of her beautiful dark skin. He shoved away the thoughts before he embarrassed himself by getting an erection in front of the two of them.
“It will be binding to me,” he said.
“She’s right,” Edward said. “We need a written contract with terms so there’s no confusion about who does what, when, and how. We need details. Without the details, we’ll never know when the contract has been violated.”
“Signing an agreement leaves a paper trail, potentially exposing our plans. If I don’t do my part in helping with the publicity, do you plan to take me to court and let the world know we’ve been lying? I don’t plan to do that if you fall short.”
He practically saw the wheels turning in Edward’s head. He knew Ignacio was right but needed reassurances. Ignacio didn’t plan to give him any.
“If we don’t have a contract?—”
“We don’t need a contract,” Ignacio said firmly. He stubbed out his cigarette on the glass tabletop and blew smoke out the corner of his mouth. “If this is to be believable, all we have to do is behave like a loving couple. I’m an actor. It won’t be a problem for me.”
And the performance would be his greatest to date.
“We should be available for red carpet appearances and other major events. We should post each other on our social media accounts. The usual things that couples do,” he added.
“How do we know you’ll hold up your end of the bargain?” Edward asked.
“You don’t.” Ignacio shifted his gaze to Delta and said the next words directly to her. “You’ll have to trust me.”
By the grimace of discomfort on her face, she knew exactly what he was referring to.
“We need to talk for a moment.” Edward placed a hand on his daughter’s arm and guided her out of earshot to the front door.
Ignacio waited while they had an animated conversation. She was clearly against the idea, but daddy dearest would convince her to go along with the plan. He always did.
Edward controlled her life, and she fell in line. No matter how questionable the terms of the “agreement,” Ignacio understood the most important thing to that man—to them—was the potential windfall. Her career would be back on top, and it was worth the risk of joining with him—without a contract—to get her there.
The conversation ended, and they returned to face Ignacio.
“We’ve come to a decision,” Edward began. “We agree to your terms. This arrangement will last as long as it takes for you to secure funding for your film and for her to release her first single.”
“How long before she releases her first single?” Ignacio asked.
“She’s been in the recording studio. Her first single should be out in a few months. Does that work for you?”
“Fine by me. As long as she performs her girlfriend duties to the best of her ability,” Ignacio drawled.
“Of course she will,” Edward said, sounding offended. “And so will you?”
“Yes, but Delta hasn’t said much since the two of you arrived. I want to hear her say she’s in agreement and will perform her girlfriend duties to the best of her ability.”
Edward nudged her, and she glared at Ignacio. If she could rip his head off with those pretty pink nails, he was certain she would.
“I agree to perform my girlfriend duties in this ridiculous arrangement to the best of my ability,” she said, barely getting the words past stiff lips.
Ignacio stepped closer, completely ignoring her father. “Can I trust you, Delta?”
“Yes.”
“I hope so. That hasn’t always been the case.”
She angled her head higher. “There’s a lot at stake for both of us. I don’t think it would be in anyone’s best interest to reveal the truth about our arrangement or to renege.” She smiled tightly, with no teeth, which wasn’t a smile at all.
“Are the two of you done?” Edward’s deep voice interrupted. “You should probably brush aside your hangups for the overall good.”
His response suggested that he had forgotten his role in their split eleven years ago. Delta had broken his heart, crushed his spirit, and almost caused him to give up on his love of making movies. And she had used her father as her messenger of destruction.
Ignacio slid his gaze to Edward. “I’d like to speak to Delta in private, please.”
Her father looked surprised, then straightened his shoulders. “All right. I’ll step outside and let you talk.” With a final glance at his daughter, he went onto the balcony and closed the door behind him.
Standing in the room alone with his ex, Ignacio experienced the unexpected crack of electricity. Delta was born to be a star. A dancer and singer with lethal curves, she was beautiful and sexy, with dark chestnut skin, dark eyes, and thick lashes naturally curling back toward her lids. Her pouty lips invited kisses, whether bare or covered in maroon lipstick like they were today.
“I don’t start filming my next movie for six months, so I’m moving back to Atlanta during that period. It’ll give me time to polish my script and work on securing funding. I had planned to rent a place, but if you and I are going to pretend to be a couple, you should come house-hunting with me. Nothing says we’re a couple like looking for a place together.”
“Fine by me,” she said in a bored tone.
Her lack of enthusiasm aggravated him. “If you don’t want to do this, say the word and I’ll walk away.”
Her pretty eyes narrowed. “Your flippant attitude isn’t fooling me, Ignacio. If my father’s right, and you’re having difficulty securing funding for your movie, you’re in the same situation I am. So as much as you’d like to pretend you’re doing me a favor, you need me as much as I need you.”
Need her? He’d spent the last eleven years not needing her, and he sure as hell wasn’t about to start now.
Ignacio stepped closer, looking down at her with insolence. “That’s where you’re wrong, Delta, mi amor . I don’t need you. Don’t ever make the mistake of thinking that I need you.”
The tension in the room quadrupled, and he felt the change in the stiffness of his muscles. Turning away, he walked to the love seat to give himself time to calm down.
“You couldn’t wait to say that, could you?”
“I wanted to make sure we understood each other.”
She swallowed, then her expression shuttered as she hid her true feelings. She’d always been good at masking her emotions. After all, she’d convinced him that she loved him, right up until she had her father do her dirty work and dump him like trash.
“Believe me, we do.”
“ Bueno .” Ignacio rested his hands on his hips and caught the fleeting movement of her eyes on his chest. His nipples tightened under the heat of her gaze, and he gained a certain satisfaction from knowing that maybe she wasn’t completely immune to him. “We need to discuss the issue of… sex.”
Delta’s eyes widened in alarm. “It’s a fake relationship,” she said pointedly.
He smirked. “I know. I wasn’t suggesting we have sex, unless…?” He arched an eyebrow.
Her lips flattened into a grim line—as much as her full, luscious lips could.
“What were you suggesting?” she asked.
“I wanted to remind you that during this period neither of us can have sex with other people.”
“Abstinence is not a problem for me, but you, on the other hand…” She smiled tartly.
“I can abstain.”
“Can you?” She looked around his wrecked apartment, her gaze landing on the stiletto in the corner.
“Don’t worry about me. I’ve been known to go without sex for months. I’ve had a lot of practice,” he said.
During their tumultuous five years as a couple, during their off periods, he had remained faithful to her and kept away from other women. Foolish, in retrospect. He should have been living it up instead of being loyal to a woman who deemed her career significantly more important than their relationship. A woman who strung him along until the very last moment.
“We’re on the same page,” Delta said in a cool tone.
“In that case, we need to keep the rumor mill going about us. I think we should make a big splash.”
“An unofficial but official announcement?” she suggested.
“Exactly.”
The room fell silent as they thought.
“What about the Black and Gold Music Experience?” Delta proposed. “It takes place next week, and I attend every year. We could make our debut as a couple on the red carpet.”
Ignacio nodded slowly. He’d gone before but hadn’t attended in recent years. “That would be perfect.” He paused as another, crazier idea came to mind. “You seem very committed to making this work.”
“Of course I’m committed.”
“How committed are you? Are you willing to do anything?”
Her eyes narrowed a fraction. “Within reason,” she said carefully.
“You’re sure you’re up to this?”
In some ways, the question was directed at himself. Physical attraction aside, Delta had proven years ago that she had no attachment to him, and no doubt she felt even less now. He, however—how would he handle being in close proximity to the woman he had intended to marry? Especially since his body still wanted her, and her presence caused a strange tightening in his chest.
“I’m ready,” Delta replied with vehemence.
“Good,” Ignacio said with deep satisfaction. “Here’s my idea. I think we should move in together.”