A Dangerous Christmas Kiss

CHAPTER FOUR: DEVOTED, POSSESSIVE AND LOYAL.

NORA

I was back in the hotel suite. It had only been roughly an hour since I declared I was not going to act as his fiancée, yet here I was back to take the offer. His driver had told me he hadn't left the hotel yet, so I went back.

I pushed open the door with the spare key card I had. Gabriel stood still with his back to me, with the rays from the morning sun casting a shadow on him. The slight tenseness of his back was the only acknowledgement of my presence in the room.

I swallowed, waiting for him to spark the conversation because I didn't trust my voice to carry it through.

“I am guessing your sudden storming out earlier was a contemplation of my request,” he said, finally turning to me.

It was weird that he didn't ask any questions about why I wanted to agree after firmly saying no before.

I shuffled from foot to foot as he lowered into the single couch in the room. I held his gaze as I always did when my crush on him was under wraps.

“I accept your offer, Mr King,” I said, trying to hide how much my palms were sweaty and how my toes curled in my shoes.

I felt his eyes sweep over me in an assessing manner; for a brief second, something almost mistakable as a smile crept onto his face. It wasn't a smile; it was triumph and relief. He needed me not as much as I'd think, but there was at least a level of reliance on me.

“You made the right choice. Practicality always wins,” he chimed as if this were some kind of business deal.

To him, it was a business deal and nothing more. He got out of the chair and got a folded document from the side of the bed. When did he have the time to draft up a document? How was he so sure I was going to accept his terms?

“The terms are simple,” he began to drone out all the terms to me. “Three weeks, the King Villa, twenty times your current salary, first half paid upfront and the last half paid at the end of your service.” He paused, as if waiting for me to interject before he went on.

“In front of my family and the public, you will not refer to me as Mr King but as Gabriel. I am your fiancé, not your boss, and you are my fiancée, Nora Rhodes, devoted, possessive and loyal.”

Although I knew the intent behind his words, I still couldn't shake off the warm fuzzy feeling in my stomach. The one that made me want to hold on tighter to him and make this work.

“And what about the rules?” I asked, ignoring the knot in my stomach and swallowing the one in my throat.

“We have only two, one.” He held one finger in the air. “You will act like a real couple; I would give no room for errors.” That was expected from him as a perfectionist. “Two,” he continued. “You will not fall in love with me. I will not fall in love with you. I won't risk a second betrayal.”

“This...” He pointed between us firmly. “... is simply transactional.”

This wasn't just words; he carried a deep scar from his first marriage. It only made sense for him to want to put up guide rails. The only problem with this was that I had broken rule number two three years ago.

“I understand, Mr King.” I paused at his glance. There was no one here; did he expect me to call him Gabriel already?

“The more you practise, the easier it comes to you.”

“I understand, Gabriel,” I repeated, and he nodded satisfactorily. He dropped the document onto the table between us, and he didn't need another word out of me for me to know he was urging me to sign. I appended my signature and got up.

The deal has been sealed. No more going back now.

“I will have a stylist reach out to you.” His words cut too deeply, and I glanced down at my dress. “It is important to stand strong in the circus of the King family.”

I took no offence to his words; my dresses could never compare to what he or his family wore. To beat them at their game, I had to join them.

“We leave tomorrow,” he finished.

Elise, the stylist, had reached out to me with an ego bigger than her head and a bottomless card issued by Gabriel. Every style and clothing item was curated to stand the test of wealth. She refused my inclination to casual and insisted on cashmere, plaids and vicuña.

Every piece she had approved of to me was a reminder of how we were worlds apart. She filled bags with luxury pieces from caps to jewellery, enough dresses and two pieces for every occasion possible.

“Just in case you go horseback riding,” she had said when I questioned her.

Chloe had her thumbs up and a proud smile when the driver dropped me off at the house later that night. “Jackpot!” she exclaimed happily.

At noon, an armoured SUV was waiting at the apartment complex, drawing the eye of everyone around as they tried to figure out why an expensive, luxurious car was in our neighbourhood.

I was dressed in the two-piece cashmere skirt and jacket that Elise had picked out for the day. My hair was styled exactly how she asked me to. This was not about my feelings; it was war, and the earlier I realised it, the better for us all.

The drive to the airport was quiet; Gabriel barely glanced at me. I had felt his eyes on me a few times when I was not looking, but when I turned to him, he was engrossed in his phone.

Lawrence King had sent a private jet, something the Thorne family had, but I was never allowed to use. I tried not to give away how nervous I was since it was my first time in one, even though it was not that much different from a normal plane.

I now understand Evelyn’s harsh words. The King's mansion was a fortress carved from old stone. The kind that belongs in the classics. Two men in well-fitted uniforms opened the car the minute the car stopped.

“Remember, devoted, possessive and loyal,” he murmured when I stood beside him.

I swallowed with a nod as he led me inside, his hand resting conveniently in the small of my back. The halls were elegant, with high ceilings that didn't seem to end. A long and wide staircase, enough to fit an entire village.

In the corner was a wide crackling fireplace; next to it were three people: an old man who carried more grace than I had ever seen, an uptight woman who had a permanent judgy expression on her face and a younger woman who was most likely his sister. They were dressed in expensive silks, like all they did was lounge around all day.

As we stepped closer, Evelyn Pierce, sitting and laughing with them as if she belonged, had the same air of grace exuding from her.

Gabriel pulled me into the room. “Father,” he called. All eyes, peering and questioning, dropped on us.

“I want to introduce you to my fiancée, Nora Rhodes.”

No pleasantries whatsoever, just straight to the business of the day. Their eyes dropped on me once again, as if assessing my appearance to see if it was fit enough to be a part of their world.

“Rhodes?” Lawrence turned his nose up and shook his head. “I don’t recall hearing the name.”

Evelyn sneered, a triumphant smile stretched on her face. “I told you, Gabriel, she might be an adorable little local flower, but she’s not suitable for our weather here.”

She had been anticipating publicly degrading me since she met me, and her smirk was all I needed to know that she thought she had won.

Gabriel didn't speak. Instead, he pulled me closer, his hand sneaking up my waist, leaving me gasping as he pressed his lips against mine. Kissing me in front of his family and his ex-wife.

I shouldn't be excited, but my brain was screaming... Gabriel King – the perfectly controlled man – was kissing me.

This kiss was nothing like the drunken kiss from before. This was precise, controlled and perfect. A declaration of the war to come, and I felt like a pawn in all of this.