Chapter Thirteen
1265 Words
~ Alistair’s POV ~
“No, I’m here to ask you to marry me.”
The words hang between us, and for a second, nothing happens. She just stares at me like I’ve suddenly grown two goddamn heads.
Her eyes go wide. Her mouth opens. Then closes and opens again, like her brain is lagging behind her ears, trying to catch up, trying to make sense of something that doesn’t make sense.
I’m not surprised by her reaction. I know exactly how this sounds. How it looks.
I know exactly how f*****g insane it is to walk into a hospital room and drop a proposal like it’s a business pitch.
But what I don’t expect is what the look in her eyes does to me.
She is so different from ten years ago.
Fuck.
I can’t think about that. Not right now. Not when I need her to say yes to this.
Because this is the only way to get what I want, although that is not entirely the reason.
Suddenly, she starts laughing. Actually laughing. It’s not the kind of laugh that sounds happy, though. It’s the kind of laugh that sounds like she’s losing her f*****g mind, and all she can do is laugh at the absurdity of it all.
It keeps going longer than it should until it is suddenly cut short when she flinches.
Her hand flies to her side, fingers pressing hard into her ribs as I watch her face twist with pain.
Every part of my body wants to move towards her. To touch her. To make sure she’s okay. But I hold myself back because that’s what I do.
I hold back. I keep my distance.
I hate that look on her face. It pisses me off. I hate that she’s hurting. I hate that I still care even though I shouldn’t.
Even though I promised myself I wouldn’t.
But I don’t know how long I will be able to keep that promise to myself.
“Are you serious right now?” she asks, trying to sound very serious. One of her hands is still pressed against her ribs.
Cute.
“Completely.” I reach into my jacket pocket and pull out the envelope I’ve been carrying since I left the office. The one with the contract my lawyer, Vi spent three f*****g hours perfecting. Every detail is already accounted for. Every loophole is sealed. Every way I can protect her while still using her is all in the contract.
I’m a bastard, but I’m a smart bastard.
“What is that?” She’s looking at it like it might bite her.
“See for yourself.”
She doesn’t move. She just stares at the envelope in my hand like it’s a loaded gun.
“Sienna.”
That gets her attention. She reaches out and takes the envelope from me. Her hands shake a little as she opens it, and I notice.
Of course I do.
She has been living inside my head ever since the night I held her in my arms.
I watch her as she flips through the pages, and her face shifts with different expressions like a live feed of every thought running through her head.
Shock. Confusion. Disbelief. Understanding. Fear.
She wears everything on her face. And that is going to be a very big problem.
“This is…” she starts, then stops. Reads more and continues. “This is completely insane.”
“It’s practical,” I say. And I mean it. “It’s a way to protect you. And your baby.”
She looks up from the papers, and her eyes are red-rimmed. She’s been crying. Recently. Probably during that ultrasound Maria said she had this morning.
“So you just… what? Walk into hospital rooms and propose to random women? Is that your thing, Mr. Kincaid?” she asks, setting the papers down.
“Only to ones who are about to have my enemy’s baby while sitting alone in hospital gowns.”
“How romantic.”
I feel my mouth twitch. She’s testing me. She is trying to see if I’m serious or if this is some kind of joke.
“What do you get out of this?” she asks.
“Your ex-husband.”
“I’m not married.”
“Sienna Hayes,” I say, leaning into my chair. “Married to Vincent Ashford for three years, recently divorced for less than a week, currently unemployed.” I pause and smile a little. “Would you still like me to go on?”
She just stares at me like she can see exactly where I’m going with this. And she probably can because, from what I know, Sienna is smart.
Well, not so smart for being involved with a douchebag like Vincent.
“So you want to use me to get to Vincent?” she asks quietly.
“Yes,” I answer, not bothering to sugarcoat it because she deserves honesty even if I don’t deserve her. “But you also get protection. A name that carries weight. A house. Money for the baby. Healthcare. Security. Everything you don’t have right now. Everything you need.”
“Like a business transaction,” she says slowly, laying out each word like she’s confirming her thoughts. “I get safety. You get revenge. That’s it?”
“That’s it,” I confirm.
“You say that like it’s so simple.”
“Isn’t it?”
She laughs again, but this time it’s different. Her laughter is hysterical this time. “No. No, it’s not simple at all. It’s…” she trails off, looking down at the papers again. “It’s the most absurd thing anyone has ever asked me to do.”
“You marry me. He disappears. There is nothing absurd about that.”
“It’s crazy!” Her voice rises and I can see the panic creeping into her. “I can’t just marry you. I don’t even know you. I only know that you are a CEO who knocked me down, but now you are here in my hospital room with this contract and promises and—”
“Seems like you know me quite enough,” I cut her off. “I also believe knowing me shouldn’t be your biggest concern. Marrying me is also the safest option. For you and the baby. And it’s a way to keep Vincent as far away from both of you as legally possible.”
God, I don’t know why I’m being chatty all of a sudden. Usually, it takes me a few f*****g words to get exactly what I want, but Sienna is making this difficult.
Sienna sets the papers down on the bed. “I can’t do this.”
“You can take all the time you want to think about it,” I say. “But I need an answer within the week.”
I pull a business card from my wallet and set it on the nightstand.
“Call me when you change your mind,” I say, standing up to leave because staying here any longer is going to make this harder, and I need her to make this decision without the weight of my presence pushing her around.
She looks at the card but doesn’t pick it up.
“You can take the card with you because I won’t change my mind,” she shoots back quickly.
I pause at the door and turn back towards her.
“Oh darling, trust me. You will.”
And with that, I open the door and leave.
- Writer
