Page 30 of Cruel Love
“Yes, James,”I replied, earning a disapproving scowl from him.
Lesson one. I needed to not be so robotic.
My door was opened by our driver, who stepped aside to let me out.James got out on the other side but quickly joined me on the sidewalk. I was too busy gawking up at the beautiful entrance to notice James fishing something out of his jacket pocket. It was only when he grabbed my hand that I tore my gaze awayfrom the huge water fountain in time to watch him shove a gold wedding band on my ring finger.
“Can’t have you telling people your collar was my symbol ofownership. From now on, you don’t take this ring off.”
Like my collar, the ring felt like another weight tied to me, pulling medown into the darkest depths of the ocean, and I had no hopes of surviving.
“Come,”he said, lowering my hand, but not letting go. Instead, helaced his fingers through mine before leading me up the wooden stairs to the restaurant.
Nerves threatened to buckle my knees as the maitre’d led us throughthe restaurant. Eyes of diners watched us pass through, some of the women’s cheeks heating when they saw James. I understood why. The devil looked handsome in his light graythree-piece suit, freshly shaven, and with his hair swept back. It was a shame that underneath his looks beat a cruel heart.
If he had a heart at all.
When we reached a set of double doors, the maitre’d explained thatwe would be dining on a private terrace, and that the other guests had already arrived. He held the door open, allowing us to step through.
“Uncle James!”a little girl squealed before running up to James andthrowing her arms around his waist.
“Hey, squirt. I like your dress,”James said, gazing down fondly at thegirl, a look of adoration I’d never seen on him before.
“Me too! Mom bought it for me earlier,”she giggled before spinningaround to make the rainbow skirt flare out.
It took all of my effort to not let my jaw hit the wooden deck when Ilooked to James and saw an affectionate smile had taken over his face.
And, gosh. He was beautiful when he smiled.
The girl stopped twirling, facing us once again, her eyes darting tome.
“Squirt, this is my wife, Willow. Willow, this is my niece, Squirt,”James said, eliciting another high-pitched giggle from the girl.
“That’s not my real name, duh. I’m Billie,”she replied, her tone full ofsass.
She held out her small hand for me to shake, her gorgeous, big,brown eyes blinking at me expectantly, and a bright smile on her face. I took her hand and gave it a delicate shake.
“It’s so lovely to meet you, Billie. I’ve heard lots about you,”I said,using every ounce of courage I could find, and feeling terrible for lying to the little girl. I just hoped she’d understand if she ever found out the truth one day.“And your dress is very pretty.”
“Yours too,”she beamed, melting my heart. It was easy to see howshe’d managed to melt the monster’s heart.“Will you tell me all about the wedding?”
“Let the poor woman sit down and have a drink first, Billie,”awoman with the same dark eyes and full lips as James said, appearing next to Billie.“Hi, I’m Kiera. I’m this bozo’s sister.”
She nudged James with her hip as she gave me a warm smile, soalien from the sneer I was used to receiving from her brother.
“Hi, I’m Willow,”I replied, taking her hand and shaking it like I’d done with Billie, aware that James was watching my every move, making sure my performance was nothing but perfection.
“I must admit, it was a bit of a shock when James announced he wasmarried, but it’s great to see him finally settle down. Welcome to the family,”Kiera said kindly, helping to relax me fractionally. I’d been expecting James’ family to follow his lead and hate me.“Oh, this is my fiancè, Alec.”
She waved her hand to a man who’d appeared next to her, hisgreen eyes raking over my body and stopping blatantly on my breasts, causing the small hairs on the back of my neck to stand up.
“Nice to meet you, Willow,”Alec said, offering me his hand.
Before I could take it, James stepped between Alec and me, knockinghis hand away, his customary scowl set on his face.“Let’s sit.”
Kiera gave me a knowing smirk before stepping aside so I couldfollow James. Proving that he was capable of being a gentleman, James pulled out the chair for me before taking the one next to it.
On the other side of the table, Billie, Kiera, and Alec took their seats, and when they were settled, three sets of eyes stared at me and James, ready to interrogate us.
I sucked in a shaky breath, preparing myself for the performance of alifetime.
