Page 70 of Whatever You Need

I swallowed and averted my gaze. “I’m not sure what you mean?”

I was acting dumb and trying to avoid giving him an answer. Truthfully, I wasn’t sure. I’ve done everything I could to get Marco to talk to me, but he was so damned stubborn. I’ve called and left messages and even sat outside his house waiting for him to come home. His decision was clear, and I really should have paid attention when he told that he didn’t forgive easily. If he would have just listened to me, and took the time to really understand my situation, then I wouldn’t be sitting here right now.

Owen stared at me for a long, uncomfortable moment as if he were trying to figure me out. “I was just curious because you keep your private life pretty closed off.”

I tipped my champagne glass to my lips and swallowed. It felt like acid rushing down my throat. “My focus has always been on my work. Something you already know. I don’t have time to invest in relationships.”

He nodded his head, seeming satisfied with that answer. “We should probably set a few ground rules, don’t you think?”

“Such as?” I plucked the bottle out of the silver ice bucket and poured myself another glass. The champagne was pricy and tasted bitter, but there was no need to let it go to waste.

“We’re going to have to live together. How attached are you to your townhouse?”

I couldn’t give a shit about my house. If I learned anything about myself over the past month, it’s that the house itself doesn’t make it a home, it’s the people in our lives that do. And I’ve never felt more at home than at Marco’s little ranch.

“Where are you suggesting we live?” I asked, chugging the liquid down my throat, hoping it would wash away the sadness and anger I was feeling.

“Well, my condo is too small, and your place is too out of the way for me. I need to be close to the city, but still in the suburbs. A lot of my connections are made on the golf course. I need to be near a country club where I can shake hands and make connections. But I still want to be close to all the action in the city.” I didn’t speak, so he kept going. “Our legal team will be drafting up an NDA. No one will know about this arrangement but the people involved. I want to prove to my grandfather that I’m serious about this. I want to appear solid and show him I’m ready for this commitment.”

I’ve heard enough and felt like it was time for me to establish a few rules of my own.

“I’m willing to hold your hand in public, and put on a front at the office, but behind closed doors, I want my space. I’ll give you yours as well. I also want to make it perfectly clear that I’m not sleeping with you.”

“Wrong.”

I drew back in my seat. “Excuse me.”

“We will share a bedroom and you will be my wife in every sense of the word. I know I have a bit of a reputation, but I’m getting it all out of my system now. One of the stipulations in the agreement is that I have to stay monogamous. I’m too young to go without sex, Amelia, so you’re the only game in town now. And just so we are clear, you won’t be getting it elsewhere either.”

I glared at him and did my best to keep my shit together. I lowered my voice, but I was still seething. “You expect me to believe that you won’t sleep around. Is that what you’re saying?”

He looked everywhere but at me. “You have my word that I won’t fuck anyone once we are married.”

“Have you ever thought that maybe I don’t want to fuck you? Not to mention, we both know that your word doesn’t mean shit. It never has and it never will.”

His laugh was dry, and it held no humor. “I know I’ve got my work cut out for me, which I might say is quite intriguing. It’s actually refreshing because I’m not used to a challenge. Getting pussy comes way too easy for me. However, my darling fiancée, I’m going to enjoy touching you and learning about all the things you like. You know all the familiar things that go along with intimacy.”

He reached for my hand, but I yanked it away. “The only reason why I’m agreeing to this is because I have no other choice.”

“You always have a choice.” He ran his hand along the back of his neck; he looked like he was getting impatient. “Look at it this way. We are doing this with a clear head. We know what we are walking into and what to expect. This isn’t about love. It’s a means to an end.”

I swallowed the tears that I refused to shed and grabbed my purse off the back of my chair, knowing my life was about to change.

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