Chapter 40
Chapter Forty
Poppy
Everything about me glimmered and shimmered.
My hair was glossy and curled to perfection.
My body had been oiled up and rubbed down and I, once again, didn’t recognize the woman staring back at me when I pulled the black dress over my body.
Marta dabbed perfume behind my ears, and I tried my hardest to not scrunch up my nose.
It was a sugary scent, one I would have never put on myself.
I didn’t know what she was doing with this one, but I didn’t have a single say, and after spending the last few hours with her…
I knew better than to even try. It was about Mr. Madden.
“Your date is at Le Cygne Noir,” she said, watching my reflection rather than me. “A private dining experience. Only the most elite. The guest list is tight.”
I’d learned through all the pampering I’d undergone that she didn’t care much for responses. She just expected me to listen and obey. If I tried to make the wrong sound, she looked like she was ready to paddle me. I wouldn’t put it past her to have one hidden in her suit coat.
Marta checked her watch. “It’s time to go.”
The city lights outside already burned low, the sky a backdrop of deepening blue as the car waited at the curb—another sleek black sedan.
“Is Donovan meeting us there?” I asked carefully.
Marta adjusted her coat.
“If he wanted you to know,” she said, “he would have told you.”
I should have known better.
The leather was cold against my thighs as I slid across the seat in the car. Marta didn’t join me. She merely leaned down, her face framed in the door like a stern painting.
“Smile when you see him,” she instructed. “Be on your best behavior.”
I opened my mouth to say something—anything, but she was already closing the door in my face. My shoulders rolled forward, and I toyed with the edge of my dress. At least I looked incredible, even if I didn’t look like me.
***
Donovan was waiting at a singular table set up in the center of the room when the elevators to the very exclusive restaurant opened up.
I imagined that any other night, this place was full of people and other tables…
but tonight there was only one, and it was surrounded by roses.
The only lighting in the room was various candles placed about, also surrounded by flowers.
Behind Donovan were floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the city lights.
He was wearing a suit, and it looked like he had gotten a fresh haircut.
He stood when I entered, and a small smile graced his lips.
Somewhere in the room, I could hear a camera shuttering, but I was too flabbergasted by everything happening that I didn’t care to look where it was coming from.
He adjusted his sleeves and then his cuff links before he met me halfway.
“I know we didn’t get off on the right foot, and I know you are still very unsure about this alliance, but I want you to know that I will treasure you. I will find out all of your favorites, and I will try my best to be devoted to you.”
His words were soft—soft enough that for a split second, if I hadn’t known better, I might’ve believed him. Might’ve thought he truly meant them. Might’ve let myself fall for the illusion of gentleness and redemption.
But the memory of Aisling’s voice echoing down his hallway slammed into me like a wall.
Donny, come back to bed…
And then the feel of his fingers crushing my cheeks, squeezing until my lips puckered.
You are my property.
The room smelled like roses and candle wax and something expensive I couldn’t name, but underneath it all lay the faint scent of deceit.
I forced a smile as he reached for my hand.
“You look beautiful tonight,” he said softly, and I believed him. He truly thought that about me; I could see it in his eyes and the way he held my hand. But I couldn’t think of anything else about it… because before I knew it, he was down on one knee before me.
“Like I said, this might not be easy to get used to, but I will be a good husband to you. Eventually, you may come to love me, and I can’t wait for the day, but until then, will you Marry Me? Will you allow me to protect you and yours?”
My throat closed.
The room fell away.
The distant click of a camera was hardly registered.
All of it blurred into a single, suffocating moment as Donovan Madden looked up at me from one knee, and he was smiling.
Not the cruel smirk from the penthouse.
Not the bored, lazy grin he flashed when he flirted with waitresses.
A real smile.
All I could think about was Ivan, all I could see was Ivan. All I wanted was Ivan, and he was somewhere else playing babysitter with my sister.
“Will you give me the joy of being your husband?” he asked again, voice warm and earnest. He pulled a small velvet box from his pocket and produced one of the biggest diamond rings I’d ever seen. All I could do was nod, completely stunned and unsure of what happened to my voice.
Relief broke across his face, and it made my stomach twist so violently I thought I might be sick right there on the roses and his shoes.
“Thank you,” he whispered, voice thick with emotion. I wished more than anything that it wasn’t real.
He slid the ring onto my finger with careful and reverent fingers.
The metal felt heavy, cold, and final.
I stared at it, unable to move, unable to breathe.
It looked ridiculous sitting on my hand as I’d never imagined anything so big and audacious before.
I’d always wanted something practical, something other than a massive diamond.
Maybe a pearl or moss agate. Something that spoke to who I was and what I loved.
I’d never cared for diamonds, and here I was staring at one that cost a small fortune.
“You’ve made me the happiest man alive,” he murmured as he cupped my cheeks gently and placed a soft kiss on my lips. His face glowed as he pulled away from me.
I swallowed a sob. I knew this day was coming, but I didn’t think he would make it so romantic.
I didn’t think he would put so much time and effort into this.
The last thing I’d expected was for it to hurt so badly because I knew there wasn’t going to be any taking this thing off either, and Ivan would be one of the first to see it.
I could already picture it—the way he would try to mask the devastation, that stiff pull in his jaw, that flicker of pain in his icy eyes he thought no one could see. He would look at the ring, then at me, and then there would be the final nail in the coffin. I would lose him for good.
It was one thing for us to pretend when Donovan wasn’t around and I wasn’t having to go on dates left and right, but it was another to have a constant reminder, and that was exactly what this was.