Contract of Deception

Chapter 5

His pulse quickened as he brushed his fingers across her chin, his heart pounded crazily like it was about to burst out of his chest and make its escape. Her brown eyes were the prettiest thing he had ever seen. Her hair shone in his well lit office, but it wasn’t greasy, unlike most of the women he came across in the building everyday.

He could tell she had put a lot of thought and effort into how she looked before coming here, but still it all managed to look absolutely efortless. She had on a simple straight black dress that hugged her body in all the right places, accompanied with simple red heels and an air of confidence.

He could smell her before he even saw her, and he was sure the scent wouldn’t be leaving his senses anytime soon. She smelled like fresh berries and sweet flowers and fresh air with a hint of vanilla, he simply couldn’t resist the urge to take a deep inhale when she walked in, he swallowed the scent of her, and hoped it would remain there forever.

Here he was telling her there could be absolutely no intimacy between them when he had already thought of all the ways he could feel her. He frowned at his own hypocrisy.

“Definitely no s*x”

He didn’t miss the surprise in her tone when he brought it up, he also didn’t miss the relief on her face when she agreed with him either. He couldn’t blame her, he had a reputation. The poor thing must have thought he would jump at the first opportunity to feel her up.

But then there was that look in her eyes again, she had it when he had almost killed her just the night before; that quick flash of fear when she looked in his eyes, almost like she had locked eyes with the devil himself.

“Great! Glad we’re on the same page. Do you have any special requests before we continue?”

He casually walked over to his seat.

“I want to be able to keep my apartment”

“That’s not even an option Scar.” His eyes flitted to hers, she frowned at the nickname, he smirked.

“And why’s that so?”

“We’re getting married. Married people do not live in separate houses.”

“But-”

“And what would people say if I let my wife live in some dingy broken down apartment downtown?”

“Hey! It’s not broken down, it’s perfectly okay. And not everyone can afford to live in expensive highrise buildings!”

He almost chuckled at how feisty she was.

“This isn’t up for debate babygirl. You move in with me in two weeks and my home is where you’ll stay for the duration of our marriage.”

She blew out a breath in response.

“If you love your apartment so much, I can keep paying for it till our agreement is over.”

“You don’t have to do that. I’m not some charity case to help you feel better about yourself.”

She crossed her hands over her chest. Her smart mouth was cute, but it was getting annoying. He would have to make her understand that he called the shots here, this wasn’t some negotiation, he was in control and she would have to learn to respect that or suffer the consequences.

He took a deep breath and rose from his seat, then he strode over to her side of the table.

“Get up.”

“What?”

“Get up”

He took her by the arm and pulled her up. She took a step back in surprise. His dark eyes were set right on her as he took one step towards her, she took another back, scrambling to escape. He took slow steady steps towards her until her back hit the wall.

The movement of her eyes were frantic.

“What are you doing?”

“Listen here Scarlett.” He trailed his fingers up her arm until they arrived at her neck and he softly wrapped his fingers around it.

“I own you. You do not get to make decisions here, I make the decisions. You are here simply because you owe me and I’d suggest that you do not forget that I am in charge.”

He towered over her even in her heels and the rise and fall of her chest called out to him. Her dress had a low cut neckline and shiny skin rose and fell as she breathed. He directed his fingers to her mouth, gently running his thumb over her lower lip. He felt her gasp and her lips parted just the slightest way, or maybe it was all in his head.

He dropped his hand and stepped away from her.

“I suppose you understand that you have to quit your job at the bar too, we cannot risk anyone recognizing you there and saying something to the media.”

She didn’t say anything to this, she just nodded her head in agreement. Good, she was starting to understand the situation.

“And you’ll be expected to show up to social events with me. This will all be in the contract. Your father’s hospital bills are paid for. I will take care of everything Scar… all you have to do is be my pretty little wife.”

“Do I at least get control of my wardrobe? Or are you in charge of that too?” Her words were dripping sacarsm and he couldn’t help the smile that took over his face.

“You do have total control over your wardrobe.” He looked her up and down, she had a great sense of style, and he felt something harden within him.

“Okay.”

“Well, I will text you whatever details we need to go over again, feel free to message me if you need to add anything. The contract will be delivered to your place tomorrow.”

“Great.”

He watched her leave his office. She was pretty steady despite his reaction some minutes ago, he knew he did not have to rattle her like that and he tried to ignore the feeling of guilt gnawing at his insides.

His phone range just in time to distract him. He looked at the caller ID and saw the contact that had not reached out or spoken to him in months, it was his father. He must have heard all the rumors too from whatever island he was on with whatever model this time. He shook his head, it was one thing he had in common with his father, a keen eye for the most wanted women, only in his fathers case, they were often 10 years younger than him.

He contemplated ignoring the call but he knew the older man would just keep calling anyways. Just like him, his father never stopped until he got what he wanted. He slid his thumb across the green icon and raised the phone to his ear.

“Father.”

“What are you doing to fix this situation you’ve got yourself in?” The voice on the other end inquired.

It was typical of his father to not even ask if the rumors were true in the first place.

“I’m on it.” He decided to keep it short, he had no intention of talking about this longer than he had to.

“I believe you know the damage that rumors like this could cause, it wouldn’t only affect you, it could —“

He rolled his eyes and held his head with his palm, of course the old man was worried about himself. He only ever thought about himself. Wade shook his head, he didn’t even know why his father bothered, he didn’t have anything to worry about.

“I’m on it father. You do not have to worry about anything.”

He hung up the phone before the older man could say anything more, then made a quick call to his lawyer. He couldn’t control the feeling of satisfaction within him as one though repeatedly ran through his mind.

Scarlett… she was finally his.