Chapter 35
Chapter
Thirty-Five
ROSE
I wasn’t surprised to turn around and find Caden at my side.
“I’ve been looking for you,” he said, his voice soft, and the tone casual.
No, he hadn’t been, because he knew exactly where I was. Linda would have made sure of it. He deliberately gave Amelie and me space, knowing she was Team Caden and would push me toward him.
“I was catching up with Amelie.”
His apprehensive blue eyes traced my face, trying to decode my mood.
Cornering someone into an engagement was morally gray at best, though there was no admission of guilt or remorse in his expression.
I expected as much. Empathy didn’t seem to be a part of his personality.
According to him, he was always on the right trajectory; others merely needed to accommodate.
He was only concerned about how the path he chose for us affected our dynamic.
A part of me wanted to lash out at him for his manipulations.
Another part of me felt guilty for rejecting him for his own brother.
But the biggest part of me clung to Amelie’s words about how Caden had rushed me to the hospital, refusing to leave my side.
Something twisted inside my heart at the thought of this unfeeling man pining for me at my bedside.
My heart told me to go with him.
My brain told me he was bad news and to run for the hills.
In the end, I went with my heart.
Extending my hand, I laced our fingers. The familiar sparks ran up and down my arm at the contact.
Suspicious eyes watched our adjoined hands. “I wasn’t expecting the warm reception.”
“What were you expecting?”
“Anger.” He seemed skeptical. A normal person would have scathed him.
I shrugged. “I’ll admit. Some heads-up would’ve been nice for my own engagement. But you know, lemons, lemonade. If you had asked, I probably would’ve said yes anyway, and I like jewelry.” I glanced at the glittering blue diamond on my finger.
He remained guarded.
“Why did you spring an engagement on me in front of all those people?” I had an inkling about the answer, but I decided to ask anyway. “Why didn’t you just ask me to marry you?”
“It would’ve given you the opportunity to say no .”
Direct and blunt as always.
It only confirmed my suspicions that I had rebuffed his advances so cruelly that he felt his only option was to trick me into a relationship. The fact that I had done it out of misplaced love for his twin made it worse. Though it no longer mattered, I wanted to ease the agony of the past.
“I would’ve said yes. ”
There was a slight shift in his eyes that told me he processed my response. I wasn’t sure he believed me. Perhaps he would always expect me to reject him based on our history.
Feeling the weight of the ring dragging me down, I added, “But please don’t spring a surprise wedding on me.”
Caden remained impassive instead of agreeing to my terms with a verbal commitment. Not at all relieved by his reaction, I was fully convinced he might do just that. Without another word, he spun on his heel, guiding me through the throngs.
Confused, I asked, “Where’re we going?”
“It’s a surprise.” When I tried to dig my heels into the ground in alarm, he glanced over his shoulder and rolled his eyes. “It’s not a wedding.”
He was quick to lead us out of the ballroom, not hurrying but not dawdling, either. People occasionally blocked our path to congratulate us, and I kept my chin high, even as my insides burbled with uncertainty.
He took me to a room just off the grand ballroom that was no less impressive in grandeur. We were still close enough to hear the music—the DJ was playing Stardust—but the sound was smothered when Caden shut the door behind us.
Inside, the lights were dim except for a shimmer on the glass cases.
It was a museum of sorts. Or perhaps a shrine to novelty vintage items. The formality of the room radiated from the hush of the carpet to the velvet ropes guarding valuable items. The polished brass plaque identified each item and its estimated value.
A cigarette case belonging to the wife of a Russian ambassador.
A signed first edition of a Hemingway novel.
A Cartier brooch that looked like an insect trapped in amber.
“What is this place?” I asked, hands folded.
“Auction hall for vintage items. Guests will bid on these collectibles tonight, and the proceeds will go to charity.”
“Are we allowed to be here if it isn’t open yet?”
“Only if you know the owner.” He smirked. “See anything you like?”
I blinked. This felt an awful lot like a consolation gift for ambushing me into an engagement.
It was starting to dawn on me that Caden didn’t believe in apologies or regrets, but rather trade-offs and exchanges to squash hurt feelings.
I could only imagine this stemmed from an unhappy childhood or unhealthy relationships.
Based on what I remembered, it was both.
“You don’t have to buy me anything to make up for tonight.” I lifted my right shoulder. “Like I said, I would’ve said yes anyway.”
He leaned closer, his voice low. “I’m not making up for anything because I don’t regret my actions.” Despite the assholey words, a shiver went down my spine when his lips grazed the shell of my ear. “It’s an engagement gift.”
I wasn’t sure how to feel about his confession. Instead, I followed Caden as he moved through the exhibits, trailing a finger over a display case without actually touching the glass.
I stopped in front of the most prominent item in the middle of the room—a classic, vintage car. According to the plaque, it was a Rolls-Royce Phantom I.
One look at it, and I knew this car was meant to make an entrance.
It looked like a rolling throne, the embodiment of elegance, wealth, and untouchable status.
The long, stately silhouette was finished with a hand-crafted coach-built body.
Wide sweeping fenders framed enormous wheels, capped with pristine whitewall tires.
The headlights were large and commanding.
The tall, imposing radiator grille gleamed with a silver finish, crowned by an elegant hood ornament.
I peeked inside, which was equally impressive. The rear was upholstered in leather, accented with polished mahogany. The chauffeur’s compartment up front was trimmed in black leather to emphasize the separation between the two cabins.
The car exuded power, yet it was refined, kind of like Caden.
Caden’s hand wrapped around my waist. “You want it?”
My brows shot up. “You want to buy me a car? I don’t even remember how to drive.”
I watched as his hand gripped the velvet rope. With a practiced flick, he dropped it to the floor. “I’ll teach you.”
“How? We can’t exactly test drive a car on a boat.” I strolled around the car, tracing its outline from close.
His lips quirked. “There are other ways of taking it on a test drive. For example, I’m particularly curious to find out if the back seat’s sturdy.”
I caught my reflection in the glossy hood and realized Caden was right behind me. His eyes were dark, and he closed the nominal gap within the blink of an eye. The hairs on my arms rose, every nerve alert and ready. He pushed me against the hood and pressed his body against me to keep me pinned.
I ran my tongue across my parched lips, my heart slamming so violently against my rib cage, I was sure he could hear it. My eyes lingered on the ridges of his abdomen through his shirt, then drifted higher to where his chest rose and fell with quickened breaths.
Looking at him stole the air from my lungs.
My ears started ringing, and when he whispered something about getting the all clear from my MRI results, I squeezed my thighs together.
We both knew what it meant.
Despite every thundering beat urging caution, I couldn’t deny him. I didn’t want to.
I kept thinking about Amelie’s words— tabula rasa .
I thought about what it meant to have a blank slate and start fresh.
For so long, my past colored my choices and my restrictions.
The notion of simply wanting and taking was alien.
Not to mention, who was lucky enough to experience their first time twice? God, I wanted to remember sex.
“I can’t wait anymore,” he growled, his voice so deep and rough it barely sounded like words. “I need you.”
Caden rounded the car with me in his arms, opened the back seat door, and tossed me inside.
This was really happening. My body trembled at the edge of something primal as he jerked his jacket off and tugged at his shirt before climbing in.
He practically ripped off my clothes until we were both left panting and staring at our naked forms.
His eyes studied my body like I was the center of his universe. For all his dominance and possessiveness, the way he stared at me, the way his fingers trembled against my skin, told a different story. That I held power over him, unlike anyone else.
I tilted my head back, my gaze traveling slowly up the towering expanse of his body.
Every inch of him radiated raw power—from the carved definition of his thighs to the broad sweep of his shoulders.
Reality blurred at the edges as I stared at every magnificent inch of him, overwhelmed by his nakedness.
The evidence of his desire jutted proudly between his legs, the same impressive thickness my lips had stretched around earlier tonight. His length nearly reached his navel.
I gulped. “You’re too big.”
Caden chuckled low in his throat. And fuck, why was that so sexy?
My gaze dropped to his erection, glistening at the crown as he drew his hand slowly over himself, the fluid easing his movements. I wasn’t kidding, he was too big.
At my dreaded expression, some of his amusement seeped out.
“I’ll try to be gentle.” He wasn’t speaking to me but rather reminding himself to fight his instincts. Whatever came next would reduce us both to animals of pure instinct and probably leave marks on both my body and soul.