8. Lauren
LAUREN
Ireally should have eaten breakfast. That was Lauren’s first thought as a married woman. She felt dizzy and a little weak-kneed, but it must have been because she’d skipped breakfast out of nerves and not because she’d just kissed James.
Yes. The lack of food was why she had to steady herself with a hand on the desk as they pulled away from the kiss.
It also explained why her cheeks felt warm and why her heart was racing.
It didn’t quite explain why she suddenly couldn’t meet James’s eyes anymore, but oh well.
She just needed to eat something. It had nothing to do with James.
James seemed completely unaffected by the kiss. He turned to Justice Kowalski with a smile.
“Thank you for your time,” he said, rather formally.
“Take your paperwork,” Justice Kowalski replied dryly, handing over a stack of documents. “I wish you all the best in your married life.”
“Thank you,” Lauren said, though the flat delivery somewhat undermined the justice’s kind words.
If this were really her wedding, she probably would have been disappointed by the justice’s disinterest. Secretly, though she never really planned to marry, Lauren had dreams of a wedding at a beachside destination, beneath the sunset, surrounded by family and friends, barefoot.
This was nothing like that.
Without looking at James, Lauren followed him out of the stuffy, menthol-scented room and into the hallway.
“Are you ready to go to my place?” James asked. He sounded normal. Completely unaffected by what had happened.
“Yes,” Lauren said. “My bags are in my car. I can follow you?”
“Sounds good.”
Without speaking further, they headed out to the parking lot.
Lauren had driven herself today. She easily found her car, and James waited at the edge of the lot in his.
They hit the road, following a main street toward the hills at the edge of town where San Valentino’s richest and finest lived.
Lauren was glad to be in her own car with a little time to breathe.
“This is fine,” she said out loud. “This is fine.”
It wasn’t fine. She still felt dizzy from hunger and overwhelmed by what had just happened.
She was really, technically married to this man.
And they’d kissed. Even though it had barely counted as a kiss, and Lauren’s strange dizziness had only been due to hunger.
Or perhaps to the fact that she hated James with such a burning passion.
After all, they always said hatred felt a little like a swoony crush, right?
It took about twenty minutes to drive to James’s house. Lauren took the full time to calm down and recenter herself. Finally, they stopped in front of a large building on the hill overlooking the city. Lauren parked in the spot beside James and got her bag out of the trunk.
“Come on in,” James said. He held out his hand. “I can take your suitcase.”
“That’s fine.” She readjusted her grip. No way was she taking any more help from James than she already had.
“You don’t have much stuff.” He frowned. “Should we get more things from your apartment later?”
“This is enough for now.” In truth, Lauren hadn’t wanted to pack up her stuff because it would have made all this seem far too real.
Now, it was easy to imagine that she was just going on a short, strange vacation instead of moving in with her rival.
Her furnished apartment was still waiting for her, just in case.
“Fine.” They entered the building, which had a large, gleaming lobby and a friendly, bright-faced doorman. Together, they rode the elevators to the eleventh floor, where the doors opened onto an expansive entryway.
“Welcome home,” James said. Lauren stepped in after him and swept her gaze over the apartment.
There was a shoe rack with a single pair of shoes on it.
Where were the rest of his shoes? The floors were hardwood and so clean they gleamed.
The walls were off-white. There were no pictures, not even a coat rack for jackets.
James took off his shoes, so Lauren did, too.
Then she followed James into the next room, a living area. Here was a large white couch, as spotless as the floor, and an armchair. There was no art on the walls, no pillows or blankets, not a single book or knick-knack or anything that might have made this place feel like a home.
“Did you just move in?” Lauren asked.
“People keep asking that, but I’ve lived here for eight years,” James replied. “Through here is the kitchen.”
It was equally spotless and white. Lauren felt like she’d just stepped onto a movie set or into a model home. Every room was equally soulless. There were no personal touches, nothing to make this place a home. She was worried to walk normally for fear that she might smudge the floor or something.
Lauren could also tell that this house must have cost a fortune.
Every piece of furniture was extremely high quality, from the sofa to the industrial-grade stove in the kitchen.
Plus, the penthouse was enormous, taking up the whole top floor of the building.
There was a home gym, a fully equipped home office, and a library.
Lauren spotted several bedrooms as well.
“This is my room,” James continued, leading her past a closed door. “And this is yours. Next to it is your office.”
Lauren peeked into the room. It was enormous, with a desk, a huge bed with white sheets, and an en-suite bathroom.
The room next door, her office, was fully equipped with a curved monitor, an ergonomic chair, and a glass-topped desk.
Lauren didn’t even want to imagine how much James had spent getting this set up for her.
And worse, it probably hadn’t even been a drop in the bucket of the generational wealth he had access to.
Although Lauren had found success, she’d never have as much money as James. And she’d never be able to spend it with such ease, either. She felt completely out of place in this house — and in James’s life.
“I hope everything is to your liking,” James said. Then he shook his head slightly, as if clearing it. “And if it isn’t, no complaining.”
“Don’t worry,” Lauren managed with a smirk. “I’ll keep out of your hair.”
James ran a hand through his hair, a smile flickering across his face. “Good. I will, too. Keep out of yours, I mean.”
They stood beside each other for a few long moments before Lauren let out a sigh.
“Okay. I’m going to work a little.”
“Me too,” James agreed.
“I thought it wasn’t polite to work on your wedding day.”
“I’m sure it isn’t, but I still need to beat you, don’t I? How would it look if I just gave you all my clients now that we’re married?”
“It would look like you were being a generous husband.” Lauren pretended to consider. “You know, maybe you should give me all your clients. To really sell the ruse, I mean.”
James laughed. “Good try.”
“Thank you.”
“Despite your wit, you’ll have to work around the clock to beat me.”
“No problem. I don’t need that much sleep.” Lauren raised her eyes to meet his, and a bolt shot through her heart at the sight of his broad lips. She could remember all too easily how it had felt to kiss him. Lauren quickly looked away. “Okay. So, see you later, I guess.”
“Right.”
They turned away, Lauren entering her office and James heading down the hall.
She closed the door behind her and engaged the lock, then leaned back against the cool wood of the door and closed her eyes.
That had been… well. A lot more than she’d expected from the ceremony.
This was all so overwhelming. How was she supposed to live in this strange, barren house?
How was she supposed to navigate being James’s wife?
Lauren felt once again like a little girl in a tiny apartment that smelled of mildew, her parents at work, the cupboard empty apart from a box of stale crackers, her younger siblings staring at her with worried eyes.
This situation gave her the same panicky feeling of helplessness.
“You can do this,” Lauren whispered. This wasn’t the same as when she’d been a child.
For one, she was in a penthouse, not an apartment where paint peeled off the walls and the heater only worked now and then.
Plus, she had more power now. She was married to James, but that didn’t mean she had to rely on him. She could rely on herself.
One thing always made Lauren feel better when life was stressful: checking tasks off her to-do list. So, she headed to the desk and started setting up her computer.
She needed to focus on work anyway. The marriage was a temporary fix, but it would only last a year.
By the time the year ended, she needed to be ready to stand on her own two feet. No more reliance on anyone.
And she needed to make sure James wasn’t planning to steal her clients, humiliate her, or take over her company. She still wasn’t sure why he’d agreed to this marriage. Eventually, she’d figure it out.
Until then, she’d work, around the clock if she needed to.
The best way to show James that she wasn’t in his debt for this marriage would be to beat him.
She’d steal his clients. She’d win contracts they were both up for.
She’d show him that she was just as capable as she’d ever been, even though she’d needed his help.
With that in mind, Lauren logged into her email, opened her design software, and got to work. She still had plenty of small clients to keep happy, and she had a big contract to find and win.