Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

Placing my small suitcase on the floor beside the front door, I slipped on my shoes. Dane had texted me to let me know that he was outside. When it came to business trips, I usually met him at the airport. We were apparently deviating from our normal routine. Maybe he didn’t trust that I wouldn’t back out of the trip or something.

God, I was gonna hurl at some point. My stomach was all queasy and fluttery, and the sensations worsened each time I thought about the wedding. I’d gone from dreading it to wishing the time would fly by faster. The sooner it was over and done with, the sooner things would get back to … well, as normal as they were going to be when I was fake married to my boss. The marriage certificate was the only thing about it that would be real.

Grabbing my purse and suitcase, I left the apartment, took the elevator down to the first floor, and then headed outside to where the car waited. Sam took my suitcase and put it in the trunk while I slipped into the rear of the car.

I flashed a smile at the man sitting a few feet away from me. “Hi.”

Dane looked up from his phone, and his gaze flitted over my face. His brow creased. “You’re tired.” He said it like it offended him.

“I didn’t have a great night’s sleep.” I would have made a joke about pre-wedding jitters if the privacy screen had been up.

Before long, we arrived at the airport and boarded his jet. He spent most of the flight working. I did a little work myself followed by some reading, intent on distracting myself from the upcoming wedding.

Soon enough, the jet touched down in Vegas. A luxury, chauffeured car picked us up from the airport and drove us to the opulent hotel that was a favorite of Dane’s. After checking into his suite, we ordered room service and then ate dinner while going over some business matters.

In the past, I’d occasionally sat with Dane in his hotel suite while we discussed work, but I’d always returned to my own room to sleep. This time, however, my room wasn’t on another floor. It was in his suite, which was big enough that we both had our privacy and wouldn’t get in each other’s way.

The bed proved to be comfy as hell, but I woke early after yet another annoyingly restless sleep. Fortunately, I didn’t look as haggard as I felt.

I could never eat first thing in the morning as my stomach always felt unsettled so, as usual, I first showered, dressed, slapped on some makeup, and styled my hair.

Walking into the dining area a short while later, I found an array of foods spread out on the table. Dane was already there—clean, dressed, alert, and delicious—reading something on his tablet, a plate in front of him on which only a few crumbs lay. He greeted me with a mere raise of his eyebrows before going back to whatever he was reading.

Once I’d eaten a light breakfast during which I scanned both my emails and his, I made my way to the tall window. I felt a smile curve my mouth. I’d gotten a load of the Las Vegas strip before, but the view never got old. It honestly took my breath away every time.

Hopefully we’d get to explore the place a little while here. It wouldn’t happen today, though. No, this day would be an eventful one that consisted of two conferences, a business lunch, an industry dinner where he’d make a speech, and then an after-reception during which we’d eat, talk, smile for photographers, and fake the fuck out of our relationship.

“Vienna?”

It really was not fair that that deep, rumbly voice could twist my insides. I turned to see him fluidly stalking toward me, all dark and broody and sinful.

“Put your hand out,” he said.

I did so, and he placed a sleek platinum ring on my palm that boasted a sparkling princess cut diamond. I sucked in a breath. “Wow. It’s …” Gorgeous. Stunning. Elegant. “Not as subtle as I’d hoped,” I finished, not wanting to make a fuss in case he thought I’d gotten swept away in the moment and forgotten that this wasn’t real. I never let myself forget that anymore.

“I told you, I don’t do subtle.”

“I didn’t think you were giving this to me until tomorrow.”

“The story will be that I proposed this morning, so you need to start wearing it now. But don’t mention to anyone that we’re getting married tomorrow—you’re not supposed to know yet; it’s supposed to be something I spring on you.”

I nodded. “Gotcha.” I slipped it on my finger, surprised my hands weren’t trembling. “It fits.”

“Of course it fits,” he said, seeming offended that I’d assume he’d struggle to correctly guess my ring size. “From now on, you wear this wherever you go.”

Well, shit just got serious. “Can I make the story of your proposal all romantic?”

“Only if you don’t want it to sound realistic.”

I snickered. “Okay, let’s just keep it simple and say you slipped it on my finger while I was half asleep, informed me that we’re getting married, and then told me I wasn’t ever allowed to take the ring off?”

He pursed his lips. “People would buy that.”

Admiring the platinum band once again, I found myself recalling the last time I’d worn a ring on this finger. The one Owen bought me had been cheap and cheerful—all he was able to afford back then. But I hadn’t cared, because it hadn’t been about the ring; it had been about what it represented—that he loved me and wanted to forever be with me. Or so I’d thought.

Now here I was wearing another ring. It was pristine. Sparkly. Breathtaking.

And meaningless.

I felt a momentary pang of sadness. The ring didn’t really belong on my finger. It didn’t signify that there was someone who loved and was committed to me. It was just a prop.

“What’s wrong?”

Wiping all emotion from my face, I lifted my head. “Not a thing. I’m just bowled over by the level of bling.”

That steady, unblinking stare narrowed on me. “Hmm.”

Hoping to distract him, I was about to ask how much the ring cost, but then he spoke again.

“I want you to move in with me this weekend. No later than Sunday.”

My lungs seemed on the verge of seizing up. I coughed. “I don’t think I can make it happen that soon, Dane. I’ll need time to pack everything. I won’t get home until Thursday, and I’ll be at work on Friday. There’s no real rush, is there?”

“Travis is going to go into a blind panic when he hears we’re married. He’ll step up his game in an effort to make you divorce me. He already showed up at your building once. The security around my home is tight, so he can’t pester you there. Plus, I’m possessive of what belongs to me, and I have enough control issues that I’d want my wife close—my family knows that about me.”

Well, at least he was honest. “You don’t lack in self-insight, do you?”

“A person should always be self-aware if they wish to succeed in life. Knowing your strengths and blind spots is important.”

True. “Back to the whole me-moving-into-your-house thing, what about all my stuff?”

He sank into the nearby sofa and draped his arms over the back of it, claiming the space in that dominant-male way of his. “I have storage space you can use to store anything you don’t wish to place in the room I’ve allocated you. It has all the furnishings it needs. But if you’d rather put your own things in there, it’s not a problem.”

I shrugged. “I’m not fussed about furniture.”

“Then yours can be stored in my outhouse with anything else you don’t want to keep close at hand.”

I nodded, biting my lip. Although it made sense for me to move into his house, I wasn’t looking forward to it. For one thing, I liked to have my own territory. A space where I could relax and unwind and just … be. It wouldn’t be so easy to do that in a place where I was pretty much a lodger.

Also, I’d miss my apartment. As I’d told him, it wasn’t anything special, but it was my home. And it sucked balls that I wouldn’t be able to go back there after the divorce. If I continued paying the rent, the landlord might agree to hold it for me, but it was highly unlikely. Even if he did agree to it, I couldn’t really do such a thing. It would look odd to my family and friends that I was reluctant to give up the apartment.

“You knew this would happen at some point, Vienna. I made it clear in the beginning that you’d need to move in with me eventually.”

“I know. I was just thinking that there’s no way I’ll be able to keep my apartment on hold. I really like that building. I like being close to my friends.”

“If you keep the apartment, people might think you’re not 100 percent sure of me, in which case it would look strange that you’d so readily agreed to marry me this soon. Or they’d wonder if this relationship is truly real. It’s the sort of thing Travis and Hope will look into, because they’ll want to believe that this is all a lie and they’ll be desperate to find proof. She’s as greedy and money-centered as he is.”

“Travis wouldn’t have warned me away from you if he didn’t believe the relationship was real.”

“But he’ll be suspicious when he hears how quickly we got married, especially because it will suit him to think this isn’t the real deal.” Dane tapped his fingers on the top of the sofa. “I’ll hire a crew to help you pack your things so that you’ll be ready to move in this weekend. Then the pressure is off you. All right?”

I gave him a stiff nod and rolled back my shoulders. Shit, everything seemed to be suddenly moving at hyper-speed, and I was struggling to emotionally keep up.

“Wishing you hadn’t gotten yourself into this situation, Vienna?”

I narrowed my eyes at the amusement in his tone. “How did you handle the situation with my ex?”

“The one who tried to blackmail you?”

“Yes. You were delightfully vague when I originally asked.”

He twisted his mouth. “You really want to know?”

“Yes, I do.”

His gaze intense on mine, he stood and crossed to me, stopping on the boundary of my personal space. “I gave him the beating of his fucking life, and I didn’t stop until he told me the location of every copy of that video he made. I erased them all, and I ensured he understood that if he were to bother you ever again in any capacity, the beating he’d just received would be nothing compared to what I’d then do to him.”

I felt my lips part. “You … really?”

His brow lifted. “You’re shocked?”

Well, yeah. I wasn’t surprised that he was capable of such violence, just that he’d been bothered enough by what happened to actually want to hand my ex his ass. Plus … “I wouldn’t have thought you’d chance that he’d try to have you arrested.”

“He wouldn’t have done that for fear that he’d be reported for making the video and trying to blackmail you. And if he had called the police, it wouldn’t have gotten him anywhere—I’d have had an airtight alibi.”

Oh, I didn’t doubt it. The ruthless shit always had his bases covered.

He checked his watch. “We’ll need to leave for the conference soon.”

“First, I’ll need to tell my family that you proposed.”

His brows knitted together. “It can’t wait until later?”

“I wouldn’t have waited if this were real. I would have wanted to share my excitement with them.”

“All right. Get it done.”

“They’re going to ask if we’ve set a date for the wedding. So will anyone who sees this ring.”

“We’ll just say we haven’t finalized anything yet.”

I nabbed my phone from my purse, intending to tell Simon first. I bit my lip, a little nervous of how he’d take the news. He liked Dane, so it would probably be fine. The alters would warn me if there was a problem.

I snapped a picture of the ring and texted it to Simon, adding the comment: Look what Dane slipped on my finger while I was sleeping—he won’t let me take it off.

Simon called me mere seconds later, excited and full of questions. I put him on speakerphone so that he could pass on his congratulations to Dane, who thanked him and assured him that, yes, he did in fact know he was a lucky man. It took everything I had not to snort.

After I sent the same message to Melinda, Dane and I then had pretty much the same phone conversation with her and Wyatt. The process was then repeated with Ashley, who was at work so kept it short. I also passed the news on to Hanna, who squealed over the phone.

I then posted the picture on both mine and Dane’s personal social media accounts—it was part of my job to manage his. I didn’t wait to read people’s comments. I simply returned my phone to my purse. “There. Done. It won’t be long before your family starts calling to either complain or pass on their congratulations.”

Blowing out a long breath, I rubbed my chest. My heart felt heavy. My family and friends were so happy for me, so supportive and excited … and I was lying through my wisdom teeth. They didn’t deserve the deception. It made me feel like one sorry piece of shit, but I kept the guilt from showing on my face, not wanting to—

“You’ve no reason to feel guilty, Vienna.”

But I did need to be concerned that I was in the presence of a fucking warlock.

“If your family knew all the details, if they understood why you owed me a favor and why you had to lie to them, they’d get it. But they can’t know. No one can.”

“I know. And they probably would understand. That doesn’t make me feel any better about deceiving them.” But I didn’t expect him to get that. It was abundantly clear that he felt no such guilt for fooling his own family.

I thought about asking if it would have bothered him to lie to Hugh, but I bit back the question. It was too personal. It wasn’t my business.

“Come on, we have a busy day ahead. Tomorrow will be even busier.”

It would indeed. God, to think I’d be married tomorrow. Married. Yet not. Because it was only paperwork.

I took a deep breath, telling myself it was no big deal. Actors got married onscreen all the time. This was really no different. Except that the officiant who married us would be a real officiant. And that I’d have to lie to him, just as I was lying to everyone else.

I groaned. “I’m going to hell.” At least I had an “in” with its supreme ruler, having worked for him for four years. Still … “I should have said no to all this.”

“It wouldn’t have mattered if you had. I told you once before, I would have pressed you until you agreed. Now let’s get moving. It’s going to be a long day.”

He hadn’t been wrong. The hours dragged on. I couldn’t count the number of times I heard the word “congratulations.” People gave me hugs, slapped Dane lightly on the back, asked when the big day was, and shamelessly tried to get themselves an invitation to the wedding.

A few commented on how quickly he’d proposed, and I could see they assumed I was pregnant. Each time, Dane shrugged and said, “I always move fast when going after what I want.” I merely claimed it didn’t feel fast to me because we’d known each other so long and had secretly been dating for a while.

When photographers snapped pictures of us at the after-reception, I said to Dane, “Those photos will probably be posted online.”

Standing close to me with his arm curled around my waist, he put his mouth to my ear, making the tiny hairs there stand on end. “I know. And they’ll be posted very quickly, due to that ring on your finger.”

He was often featured in online magazines for one reason or another. And now I probably would be, too. How lovely.

The urge to chug down my champagne hit me hard, but I sipped at it instead. Honestly, I was a little tipsy. Breathing in Dane’s dark cologne didn’t help—it seemed to give off seriously potent pheromones. Or maybe that was just the man himself.

Each time he touched me, whispered in my ear, or played his fingers through my loose hair, I came that much closer to melting into him. My body practically throbbed with need. The air around me felt electrically charged, but it was more than obvious that he wasn’t similarly affected. If I hadn’t had four years-worth of practice at standing strong against the one-sided chemistry, I’d be close to trembling with the power of it. Sometimes, it almost felt like the sensual ever-present hunger had settled so deep into every cell of my body that I’d never escape it.

I needed to put a little space between us and give myself a reprieve, but he didn’t seem inclined to let me move. He never let me out of his sight. He had the role of possessive fiancé down to a tee.

“Has any of your family members called you yet?” I asked.

“My brothers did. Travis claimed to be thrilled for me, but he’s not as good a liar as he believes he is.”

“What did Kent say?”

“He’s pleased for me, but he’s concerned that I’m moving too fast.”

“Well, you are.”

“I’m moving at my speed. It’s not my issue if other people like to hem and haw over things.”

I sensed it truly didn’t bother him that his brothers weren’t 100 percent behind him. On the one hand, I was pleased he wasn’t upset. On the other hand, it was kind of sad that he could be so aloof about it.

It was past 1 a.m. when we returned to our suite. He was already back in work-mode, his attention fixed on his phone, so I bid him a quick goodnight and headed to my room. I was just kicking off my shoes when my cell phone rang. I cursed, because the only people who’d call me at such a late hour were my dad or one of his alters.

Hoping to God there was nothing wrong, I quickly grabbed my cell. Frowning at the sight of an unfamiliar number, I nonetheless swiped my thumb over the screen and answered, “Hello?”

“What the fuck, Vee? You’re engaged to Davenport? Seriously?”

I stilled. “How did you get this number?”

“Tell me it’s a fucking joke,” clipped Owen. “Tell me you don’t intend to marry him.”

“Why would it be a joke?”

“Vee, you’ve worked for him for years. You know that man’s dead inside. He feels nothing. Nothing. You’d marry someone who doesn’t, and never will, care for you?”

“You’ve met him twice. You don’t know him.”

“I don’t need to know him to be sure that he’s cold right down to his soul. Anyone can see it. I don’t understand how you could possibly miss it. You’re one of the most observant people I know.”

“Then maybe you should consider that you’re wrong about him.”

“No, Vee, I’m not wrong. He’s never going to be or give you what you need.”

I bristled. “You don’t know what I need. You knew me well once. Not now. Not anymore.”

“Wrong, Vee. I know that being Simon’s emotional caretaker hasn’t been easy on you. I know that having your mother abuse and abandon you fucked with your ability to trust. I know that you blame yourself for what Deacon did all those years ago. And I know that you didn’t really find stability with Melinda and Wyatt because Heather kept shitting all over it. You’ve never felt that the ground was solid beneath you.”

I closed my eyes and swallowed hard, hating that he was right.

“If you think you’re going to get that from Davenport, you’re wrong, Vee. You’ll get financial stability from him, but not emotional stability, because he’s never going to make you feel loved. Ever.”

My gut twisted. Which wasn’t good, because I shouldn’t care that Owen was right about that.

“Work will always come first to him, and you deserve someone who’ll put you first. Why else do you think I broke up with you? It wasn’t just because I was selfishly set on pursuing my own goals. I knew I wasn’t giving you what you needed. The long-distance relationship wasn’t working for you. You hated it.”

He was right, I had. Not just because being away from him was hard and I’d missed him, but because he’d called less and less, and those calls had become shorter and shorter. I’d felt him slipping away, and I’d felt helpless to stop it happening.

“But you never would have said anything, because you wanted me to succeed; you wouldn’t risk that I’d drop out of college to stay with you. So I ended us. I had to do it over the phone because I knew I’d never be able to make you believe it if I’d done it face-to-face; you’d have known I was lying.”

The sincerity in his voice was impossible to ignore. He meant it. Meant every word. Once upon a time, that would have mattered. But it was too late. “None of this is relevant now.”

“Wrong again, Vee. I couldn’t give you what you needed back then. I can now.”

The cell was snatched from my hand. I whirled, my heart jumping. Dane stood there, his jaw hard, his shoulders tense.

He put the phone to his ear. “Who is this?”

It was quiet enough in the suite that I heard Owen’s sharp intake of breath. “Put Vienna back on the phone,” he finally said.

“Who is this?” repeated Dane, though I suspected he knew. “If you’re going to have the balls to call my fiancée in the middle of the fucking night, you can at least tell me who you are.”

There was a long moment of silence. “Owen Redford.”

“Ah, yes, I remember you. Vienna’s childhood friend.”

“We were more than that.”

“Yes, were being the key word. You’re nothing to her now.”

“What, because you proposed to her? You can’t erase the kind of history me and Vienna have. We’ve known each other since—”

“I said, you’re nothing to her now,” Dane calmly repeated. “You had her. You lost her. Now I have her, and I intend to keep her.”

Owen barked a laugh. “You’ll never manage to hold Vienna. You might have her fooled into thinking you care for her, but it won’t last long. She’s not stupid. To you, that ring is just a corporate brand that states she belongs to you. She’ll realize that soon enough. When she does, she’ll leave you.”

“Are you finished?” asked Dane.

“Actually—”

“You’re finished. Believe what you want about me—I don’t give a fuck. Just stay away from my fiancée. You don’t want to cross me on this, Redford. I can make your life uncomfortable in ways you can’t imagine. It’s not something I’d enjoy doing for the simple reason that you aren’t important enough to matter. But I’ll do it in a heartbeat if you don’t do the smart thing and keep your distance from Vienna. So be smart.” With that, Dane hung up. He looked at me, his dark eyes blazing. “How did he get your number?”

“Not from me. His boss’s PA has it. Owen could have gotten it from her.”

Dane handed me back my cell. “Block his number. If he tries to contact you again, I want to know about it.” His brow furrowed. “What did he say that put that expression on your face?”

“What expression?”

“You look like someone ran over your puppy.”

“It’s just sad that someone I once considered a close friend has no issue with trying to end what he believes is my current relationship. I would never have done that to him.” And because I really didn’t like that it had hurt to be reminded that Dane didn’t truly care for me. That wasn’t supposed to matter.

“He’s not doing it to hurt you. He’s doing it because he’s jealous and bitter. He wants you to doubt me so that you’ll return my ring and walk away.”

“Yeah, I get that. But it’s still sad.”

“What did you do with the ring he gave you?”

“I put it in an envelope and slipped it through his aunt’s mail slot. She doesn’t live very far from me.” I forced a smile. “Don’t worry, I’ll give this one back to you in person.”

“I don’t expect you to give it back to me. It’s yours.”

I almost jerked back. “It’s a prop. An expensive prop.”

“That I’ll have no use for, so you might as well have it.”

“And do what with it?”

He shrugged and walked toward the door as he replied, “Keep it. Sell it. Gift it to someone. Whatever. Your ring, your choice.”

“How much did it cost?” Because something told me I could probably feed a small country with it.

“Not much.”

Oh, I doubted that. Just as he went to leave the room, I called out, “Dane?”

Sighing, he threw me an annoyed glance over his shoulder. “I have things to do, Vienna.”

What a snippy little shit. He did that sometimes if he had work on his mind—went from civil to frustrated in an instant, wishing to be alone.

I was going to thank him for letting me keep the ring, but now the idea of pricking at his patience seemed far more appealing. “I just wanted to say … if you hear any noises in here, there’ll be no need to investigate.”

He frowned. “What kind of noises?”

Hiding a smile, I answered, “Oh, vibrating. Gasping. Moaning. Whimpering. That sort of thing.”

He flexed his fingers, snaring me with that relentless stare. Then he shook his head and sighed as he walked out. “Only you, Vienna. Only you.”

Snickering to myself, I began to get undressed.