The Bought Wife

One Kiss Away

"I've waited seven years for you, Vesper."

The words settled heavily between them.

Nobody spoke.

Nobody moved.

Vesper could hear her own heartbeat.

Loud.

Fast.

Dangerously fast.

Zephyr stood only inches away.

Close enough for her to see the faint scar disappearing beneath his silver mask.

Close enough to notice the tiny flecks of gold hidden in his dark eyes.

Close enough to make her nervous.

Which was ridiculous.

She wasn't nervous.

She was annoyed.

Mostly.

Probably.

"Seven years?"

Her voice came out softer than intended.

Zephyr nodded.

"Yes."

"That's insane."

A small smile appeared on his face.

"I've been told that."

Cassian made a sound that was somewhere between a laugh and a groan.

Vesper ignored him.

Her attention remained fixed on Zephyr.

Because suddenly everything made sense.

The contract.

The timing.

The way he'd looked at her from the moment they met.

The possessiveness.

The jealousy.

None of it had started yesterday.

For him, it had started seven years ago.

And that realization terrified her.

Because part of her liked it.

A lot.

Which was a problem.

A huge problem.

"Say something."

His voice pulled her from her thoughts.

Vesper blinked.

"What?"

"I just confessed I've spent seven years looking for you."

A pause.

"Most people would respond."

Cassian snorted.

"He's got a point."

Vesper glared at both men.

"You're both annoying."

Cassian grinned.

Zephyr looked amused.

The sight irritated her further.

Then something occurred to her.

A very important question.

"You never dated anyone?"

The room went silent.

Immediately.

Cassian looked interested.

Very interested.

Zephyr looked suspicious.

"Why?"

"Answer the question."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"No."

Vesper blinked.

"No?"

"No."

For some reason, her stomach fluttered.

Which was embarrassing.

Very embarrassing.

She quickly ignored it.

"What about you?" Zephyr asked.

The question caught her off guard.

"What about me?"

"Did you date anyone?"

Cassian immediately became fascinated by the ceiling.

Coward.

Vesper crossed her arms.

"A few people."

Zephyr's jaw clenched.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

"A few?"

"Yes."

His expression darkened.

"How many?"

She laughed.

"Why do you care?"

The answer came immediately.

"Because I do."

The simple honesty stole the smile from her face.

Zephyr wasn't pretending.

He genuinely cared.

Far more than he should.

The realization made her chest tighten.

Then Cassian ruined the moment.

Again.

"Okay, this is becoming uncomfortable."

Vesper burst out laughing.

Even Zephyr's lips twitched.

The tension eased slightly.

Only slightly.

Because the moment she looked at Zephyr again, it returned.

Stronger than before.

The way he watched her should be illegal.

Honestly.

Nobody should be allowed to look at another person like that.

As if they were the only thing in the room.

The only thing that mattered.

The only thing worth seeing.

It made her feel things.

Complicated things.

Dangerous things.

Things she wasn't ready to examine.

A knock interrupted the silence.

Everyone looked toward the door.

A maid entered carefully.

"Dinner is ready, sir."

Zephyr nodded.

"Thank you."

The woman quickly disappeared.

The second she left, Cassian stood.

"Good."

He stretched his arms.

"I'm starving."

Vesper hadn't realized how hungry she was until that moment.

The entire day had been chaos.

Marriage contracts.

Secret photographs.

Gunshots.

Possessive billionaires.

A completely normal Tuesday.

The dining room was enormous.

Of course it was.

Everything Zephyr owned seemed oversized.

The table alone could probably seat thirty people.

Yet only three places had been prepared.

One at the head.

One to the right.

One to the left.

Zephyr automatically pulled out a chair.

For her.

The gesture surprised her.

A lot.

The mighty CEO was pulling out chairs now?

Interesting.

She sat.

He pushed the chair in gently.

Then took the seat beside her.

Not across.

Beside.

Cassian noticed immediately.

The look he sent his brother could have started a war.

Dinner began quietly.

For almost ten minutes, nobody spoke.

Which felt unnatural.

Then Cassian broke the silence.

"Remember when Vesper punched a boy in school?"

Vesper groaned.

"No."

Cassian laughed.

"He stole her lunch."

"He deserved it."

"He cried."

"He deserved that too."

Zephyr actually laughed.

A genuine laugh.

The sound shocked everyone.

Including him.

Vesper stared.

The rare smile transformed his face.

Made him younger.

Softer.

Human.

Dangerously attractive.

Their eyes met.

The laughter faded.

The room suddenly felt much quieter.

Much warmer.

Neither looked away.

Neither seemed capable of it.

For a moment, everything else disappeared.

The mansion.

The danger.

The secrets.

The brothers.

Everything.

There was only him.

Only her.

Only the strange pull between them.

Then Zephyr reached for her hand.

Slowly.

Giving her every opportunity to move away.

She didn't.

His fingers brushed hers.

A simple touch.

Nothing more.

Yet it felt electric.

The breath caught in her throat.

And judging by the look in his eyes—

He felt it too.

The room seemed to disappear completely.

Vesper's pulse raced.

Her gaze dropped briefly to his lips.

A mistake.

A terrible mistake.

Because Zephyr noticed.

Of course he noticed.

The atmosphere shifted instantly.

His eyes darkened.

The hand holding hers tightened slightly.

Not enough to hurt.

Just enough to make her aware.

Very aware.

Of him.

Of herself.

Of everything.

Slowly, he leaned forward.

Just a little.

Vesper forgot how to breathe.

The distance between them shrank.

One inch.

Then another.

Then another.

Her heart nearly exploded.

This was a bad idea.

A very bad idea.

So why wasn't she moving?

Why wasn't she stopping him?

Why was part of her hoping he'd continue?

Then—

"Am I interrupting something?"

The unfamiliar voice shattered the moment.

Instantly.

Both of them pulled apart.

The dining room doors stood open.

A tall woman stood there.

Elegant.

Beautiful.

Perfectly dressed.

Her eyes were fixed on Zephyr.

And she did not look happy.

At all.

The woman took one look at Vesper.

Then smiled.

Coldly.

Very coldly.

Finally, she turned to Zephyr and said the last thing Vesper expected.

"Imagine my surprise when I hear my fiancé got married without telling me."