Chapter 4
Holland
“I said he wasn’t my type.” I plop down on the sofa in our living room, taking care to avoid the broken spring that pokes through the cushion like it’s trying to stab my ass. The apartment carries the scent of garlic bread Heidi made to go with the spaghetti for dinner.
On the coffee table before me is the business card Theo held out as right as I’d left his office. He’d held it carefully by one corner like he didn’t want to touch me. I stare at the black font.
Theo Montclair. His name sounds imposing and I already learned he can be demanding. He probably has a ruthless side, too, but I don’t care.
When I got back to the apartment and called my grandmother to tell her I had the money to save her home, she’d cried so hard I could barely understand her.
For her sake, even though my instincts say the fallen god might be too hard for me to handle, I’ll take a chance.
“Wasn’t your type?” Heidi scoffs. “In other words, you lied your ass off.” She hands me a cold glass of lemonade and plops down in the upholstered chair we thrifted last month.
“Exactly.” Because Theo is absolutely my type. Tall, dark-haired, sharp jawline. Piercing eyes. The type that makes me wonder how hard he’d pump into me while I screamed his name.
I take a sip and my lips pucker. “That’s strong.”
“I know, I think I added too many lemons.” Heidi frowns and pokes a lemon slice with her fingertip then guilt flashes across her face. “I feel bad because if I hadn’t taken the dresses, he wouldn’t have the leverage to make you work for him.”
“I’m glad this happened. With that money, I can save my grandmother’s house and we can catch up on bills.”
It still feels slightly unreal that a problem I thought was impossible to solve is now fixed.
Beside me my phone dings and I read the text.
“Your ride?”
I nod.
She glances at the window. “Do you want me to go with you?”
I follow her gaze and my stomach tightens. Night has fallen, bringing with it steady rain.
I hate the rain. Hate that it drags me back to a memory of a downpour drowning out my cries.
“I’ll be okay,” I lie. I’m so good at lying. I’m fine. All is well, really. I hardly think about that night. Only every time I see the scar on my hand. The one that stole my ability to chase my dream.
A hard knock on the door jolts me.
Heidi answers, leaving the chain latched as she opens the door a crack. “Attorney Fare?” she asks with surprise before she slides the chain off and opens the door fully. “Why are you here?”
“Mr. Montclair’s driver is unwell. I volunteered to pick up Miss Flanagan.”
He clasps his hands together and glances at Heidi, then looks away. Then glances again.
I almost smile in spite of the knots in my stomach.
She has that effect on men. She’s as beautiful as she is thoughtful and even though life hasn’t been kind to her, she’s cheerful and optimistic.
“Call me if you need me,” she says as I put on my shoes.
“I will.” I grab the biggest umbrella we have and walk out with the attorney and into a dark luxury car. It probably costs more than this entire block of rickety buildings.
I grip the umbrella until my fingers are nearly numb. The water from it drips onto my shoes, but I don’t relax my hold until we drive out of the storm.
The closer we get to Theo’s penthouse, the more I get the feeling fate is putting my life in the fast lane with Theo Montclair at the wheel. It’s unnerving.
Seeing the building where he lives is even more unnerving. I’ve never seen anything like it. The architectural wonder curves toward the night sky as if it’s stretching to reach for the stars.
“Beautiful,” I murmur.
“Mr. Montclair likes beautiful things,” the attorney says. He lowers his voice. “Expensive ones, too.”
Yeah. No kidding.
The building doorman unlocks the entry door and greets us with a slight bow.
I ride up with the attorney in an elevator that’s so quiet it doesn’t feel as if it’s moving at all. Once the doors open, he gestures to a massive, ornate front door then he steps away and I’m alone.
I approach the security camera but the door opens before I press the bell. An older man in a suit and tie says, “Good evening. May I say who is visiting?”
“Holland Flanagan.”
“This way.” The butler directs me with a sweep of his hand.
I step in. Wow. Luxury overload.
Floor to ceiling windows host panoramic views of Laketon Heights. The cityscape lights glitter like diamonds scattered across the night.
Artwork I’ve only seen in museums hang on the walls. Sculptures, sleek, modern and expensive grace the tables.
Though it’s all stunning to a woman who buys everything secondhand, the beauty is cold.
Theo sits on a white sofa, leaning forward over a laptop set on a coffee table, not acknowledging or even looking up as I take a seat on the opposite end of the sofa.
I study him while he works. His once carefully styled hair is in disarray as if a lover’s fingers have tangled through it. He looks sexier this way. Relaxed and approachable.
He’s still wearing his dress shirt, but the tie is missing. The sleeves are rolled up to reveal his forearms.
I drink in the side view of his handsome face then let my gaze wander across his chest, down where his shirt is tucked in. Down to his belt and lower. Lower.
I wonder about that just like I did at the restaurant. How big he is. How well he would use it to please me. How he would sound when he found pleasure.
Theo suddenly straightens. The full impact of his gaze is directed on my face. “I’m ready for you now.”
Likewise, my fallen god.
He swings the laptop around to let me see the screen. “Read through the contract and if the terms are acceptable, I’ll print out copies.”
I lean closer to scroll the document. “It’s over twenty pages!”
“I’m thorough in everything I do.” His smile is wicked. A come and see for yourself invitation.
I will definitely RSVP.
I return my attention to the contract, reading quickly, then stop. “You added a sex clause?”
“I believe in covering all my bases,” he says calmly.
I read aloud, “If the parties have sex, party B will not demand compensation in excess of…” I can’t even speak aloud the number I’m seeing on the screen.
For one second, I get angry and want to storm out.
But then a thought hits. How many women have tried to manipulate Theo using sex?
Maybe this clause isn’t him being arrogant or assuming the worst about me. Maybe it’s history he’s lived through.
“Rewrite this sex part,” I say.
Theo lifts an eyebrow. “To say what?”
“To say that if we have sex there are no monetary or emotional demands on either side.” I hold his gaze. “And add that neither of us will make declarations of love or requests for future commitment.”
“I can definitely promise that,” Theo says with a short laugh.
That kind of emphasis? It stings a little. Like the idea of falling in love with me is funny because I’m not on his level.
I read on, making sure I carefully go over every word, but everything else in the contract looks good. No interviews to any publication for any reason. Like I want the world to know about this deal?
No mentioning the contract in any context to his friends or family. Once the contract ends, I must immediately part from him. No calls, no texts, no reaching out to him using third parties.
This is all cut and dried. Which is fine with me. I have no use for messy emotions.
Theo prints the contract and we both sign. Then he opens a hidden wall safe and puts his copy inside.
I give him my banking information.
“I’ll transfer the money into your account now.” He leaves the room.
Any misgivings I feel are quickly squashed when I remember my grandmother wringing her hands, trying to find hope in a hopeless situation.
After Theo returns and settles back on the sofa, I ask, “Where’d we meet?”
“We bumped into each other while on vacation because that will be harder for my grandmother to check than if I say we met locally.”
I nod approvingly. “Good idea. That’s believable. Then…we met, had drinks and talked all night.”
He grimaces. “She’d never buy that we talked all night.”
“Okay,” I smirk, “then we fucked all night.”
“Sure, she’d love it if we phrased it like that,” he says sarcastically, his gaze darkening and dropping to my lips.
Why does he have to be so hot?
My nipples pebble, reaching for that heat like a flower seeking the sun. I cross my arms over my chest. I want him, true, but I don’t have to be a titty billboard.
“We can say we spent the night together and kissed goodbye the next morning thinking that’s all there was to it.”
“We’ll need to work an emotional attachment in,” he says.
“Hmm…you’re right, because a one-night stand wouldn’t cause a deep, emotional connection. Let’s say we started dating after we bumped into each other here.”
He frowns. “Except the tabloids would have splashed our dating across the front page.”
“Not if I insisted we date secretly because I didn’t want to be the center of media attention to protect my family.”
“Isn’t it just your mother?”
Pain smacks my heart. “My late mom,” I say, my voice quivering. I don’t want to acknowledge the rest of my family for fear it’ll expose what kind of people my father and brother are.
“I see,” Theo’s expression softens.
We’re both quiet for a few minutes until he says, “Since we’re lovers, we’d be comfortable with each other physically.”
“We’re ex-lovers,” I stress the word as I correct him, “and had a painful breakup. I’m still mad at you.”
“And the reason?”
“You weren’t there for me emotionally. It’s vague enough for your grandmother to buy that.”
Theo looks impressed. “Do you have a hidden acting career I didn’t discover?”
I laugh. “No, I’m just good at lying.” Lies kept me alive. Let me go. I won’t tell anyone.
His posture shifts, his expression tightening. “I see.”
I yawn and then glance at time on my phone. “It’s late.”
“I’ll drive you home.”
We head to the elevator and I stop, putting my hand on his forearm. “Wait. I just thought of something. When we visit your grandmother, will we have to stay in Lucky River overnight?”
“I won’t let that happen. It’s too risky and we might slip up.”
The elevator doors slide open and we walk through the lobby and outside into the dark. Thankfully, there’s no rain in sight.
“Good. Oh, another thing just occurred to me. I’ll leave traces around your penthouse like I was here often and I’ll also give you something of mine. Something you couldn’t throw away because you were pining for me.”
“Pining?” His mouth flattens. “I don’t do that sort of thing.”
“It’s just something to make our story believable. I can do this job, Theo, but you have a part to play as well. You need to act like a man who lost the woman he loves.”
“I can do that.”
“If you’re sure?” I know he hears doubt in my voice as I open the passenger door.
Theo stops me from getting in, closes the door and presses me against it. The sudden contact from his body makes it difficult to think straight.
He swallows hard and closes his eyes. “Don’t walk away.” His whisper is filled with agony. “I can’t lose you again.”
He rests his forehead against mine. “I can’t bear it. Please.”
I feel every inch of his body. His muscled chest against my breast. His hard thighs against my core.
Theo settles a hand on my hip, gently digging in his fingers. “Come back to me.” His lips graze the side of my neck, then he lifts his head. His lips hover close to mine. “I’ll be so good to you. Stay with me.”
He’s convincing. I almost believed him.
When he doesn’t move away and his cock stirs, I put my palms on the crispness of his shirt and push. Otherwise, the headline will read Woman Shags Billionaire in a Car.
“Okay, you proved you can act.”
He immediately steps off and his mask is back. He’s not breathing fast like I am. If it hadn’t been for his cock bumping me, I would think he was unaffected.
He reaches around me to open the door.
The drive to my apartment is awkward for me at first until he begins to talk about Lucky River. He explains who his friends are and how he spent summers there with his grandmother. His tone is warm, tinged with nostalgia.
“Do you wish you lived there instead? That you had a different life?”
“No.” He doesn’t even hesitate. “This is what I was meant to do.” He glances over as he parks in front of my apartment building. “You’re an artist?”
The information he has about me is outdated.
“No.” I used to be. Before that night took my dream away. The scar on my hand tingles from the memory. “Right now, I’m working part time here and there.”
I quickly open the door, not wanting him to ask any more questions. “See you tomorrow.” I rush out and up the stairs.
Inside my apartment, I close the door then lean against it.
“Trouble?” Heidi asks with a yawn as she gets up to shut off the television.
“Not yet, but there’s always tomorrow.” It’s our usual joke. “Goodnight. I’m turning in.”
I head into my bedroom to stash my copy of the contract.
Then I sit on the edge of the bed and check my bank account. As promised, Theo deposited the money. Seeing all those zeroes is worth whatever trouble comes my way.
My phone buzzes in my pocket and I take it out, hating that it’s a text from my brother. I already know what he wants. Money.
I read the message. I was right. He’s asking about money. I don’t answer and start searching for my pajamas.
My phone buzzes again. Now he’s demanding money. Saying I owe him because look what that night did to him too. My chest tightens. I turn off my phone before he can contact me again.
Tomorrow, I’ll go to Lucky River. Tomorrow, I’ll pretend to a be a woman Theo Montclair wants.
You’re excited about being with him, my sinner self smirks. Sinner self isn’t wrong. Theo is insanely, unfairly handsome.
I’m curious about him. About what he’s like when he takes off the mask. When he removes his armor. And bad or good, right or wrong, the thought of spending time with him appeals to me.