Dangerous Proximity
523 Words
Chapter 7: Dangerous Proximity
Elena woke up to the scent of coffee drifting through the penthouse. For a moment, she forgot where she was. Then her eyes snapped open, and reality came rushing back.
She was married to Jaxon Wolfe.
It wasn’t a dream. It was a deal.
She padded barefoot through the hallway, still in her silk robe, her nerves raw from the night before. She hadn’t slept much. Her mind was spinning with what came next. What he expected. What she was supposed to feel.
Jaxon stood at the kitchen island, sleeves rolled up, dark hair slightly tousled, coffee in hand. Too relaxed. Too composed.
His eyes lifted as she approached, skimming her from head to toe with maddening ease. “Morning, wife.”
Elena arched an eyebrow. “You’re chipper.”
“I slept well,” he said. “You didn’t?”
She crossed her arms. “Hard to sleep when you’ve just signed your life away.”
He handed her a mug. “Drink. You’ll need energy. We have interviews today.”
“Interviews?”
“People want to know about the wedding. Our love story.”
Her stomach turned. “We’re lying.”
“No,” Jaxon said smoothly, stepping closer. “We’re telling a story. And if we tell it well enough, it becomes real.”
She took a shaky sip. His scent—dark cologne and something expensive—wrapped around her. She hated how aware she was of him. How tall he stood. How easily he filled the room.
He reached out and tugged the belt of her robe just slightly, eyes locked on hers.
“You should be careful walking around like this. You might tempt me to ignore the contract’s timeline.”
Her breath caught.
“I thought you believed in restraint,” she whispered.
“I do,” he murmured. “But you’re testing it.”
Their eyes clashed—hers uncertain, his dark with something between amusement and warning.
She pulled away, heat crawling up her neck. “Don’t play games with me.”
“I’m not.” His voice dropped. “I’m showing you what you’ve gotten yourself into.”
Later that day, dressed in designer clothes she hadn’t picked and posing on a white couch in front of flashing cameras, Elena realized something terrifying.
The world believed in their love. Strangers gushed over their chemistry, their “fairy tale.” Jaxon played the perfect husband—attentive, charming, a hand always lightly touching her lower back.
But it wasn’t real.
It was all for show.
Only when the cameras were gone did his mask slip.
“You played your part well,” he said that night, removing his jacket and loosening his collar. “I almost believed it myself.”
“Almost?”
He stepped closer. “Keep looking at me like you did today, Elena, and even I won’t be able to tell the difference.”
She wanted to scream. To push him away.
But instead, she stared back—and hated the shiver that raced down her spine.
Because maybe, just maybe… she didn’t want to run.
- Writer
