Page 42 of Indulge
I blink, stunned by the edge in his tone. “It’s cookies, not a kidney, Regginald.”
He stands and leans back against the counter, arms folded. “You spend a lot of time over there for someone who’s supposed to be settling inhere.”
My pulse spikes. “Are you seriously jealous right now? I’ve been there twice.”
I like this look on him. The first chink in his armor.
His jaw tightens. “I’m not jealous.”
I laugh; it’s a sharp, humorless sound. “Sure sounds like it. You have no interest in me, but the second I bake something for your brother, suddenly you give a damn?”
He doesn’t answer, just stares. That same unreadable stare that drives me mad.
“You’re impossible,” I mutter, shaking my head and moving toward the door again.
He pushes off the counter and catches my wrist. Not rough, but firm enough that I stop. That damn spark zaps through me again. “I’m serious, Bella.”
I turn on him, fire rising in my chest. “Because what, Irish? Because it makes you uncomfortable that your twin actually has a personality? Or because you can’t stand the idea of someone else treating me like I’m human? Maybe you shouldn’t bore me so much.”
He flinches, just barely.
“I’m not some piece in your business game, Reggie. I’m not a silent bride that you get to wheel out when it suits you. I don’t give a fuck who you or your family are. I am Bella King. And you’ll start treating me with some respect, or I’m gone.”
“Ah, my mafia Princess has arrived,” he snaps, almost amused. “Youarea business arrangement. This marriage is politics, not passion. You knew that the second you agreed to it.”
The words hit like a gut punch. My throat burns. “You really are a piece of work. I didn’t agree to shit. You kidnapped me here, remember. I don’t want this.”
I throw my arms up in the air, nearly dropping Rowan’s cookies, and step towards him, tipping my chin up to him.
“I am not scared of you, Irish. I just wanted this arrangement to be more pleasant for us both. You know what, fuck you,” I spit.
He drags a hand over his face, like he’s trying to reset, but it’s too late. The damage is done.
“I’m trying to protect you,” he says finally. “Rowan’s… complicated. So am I.”
I let out a hollow laugh. “Damn right you are. The difference is, he actuallytalksto me.”
His eyes darken. “You think he’s your friend?”
“I know he is.”
“Then you don’t know him at all.”
Something inside me breaks. I shove the plate onto the counter with a loud crack. “You know what? Maybe I don’t know either of you. But at least he makes me feel like I exist.”
We stare at each other, breathing hard, the air between us crackling with something too volatile to name.
“Bella,” he warns, voice low, but it sounds more like a plea than a threat.
“No,” I whisper, shaking my head. “You made it very clear what I am to you. A business arrangement. Fine. I’ll act like one.”
I stick my middle finger up at him and his eyes go wide.
“Fuck you, Reggie. I never was wife material. Now I’m about to be a royal pain in your ass.”
I leave the cookies on the side on purpose and walk straight past him, brushing his arm as I go. The contact is electric, cruelly brief.
His hand twitches at his side like he wants to reach for me, but he doesn’t. He just stands there, jaw tight, watching me leave.
