"Did I stutter?"
His voice was a low grate. I scoffed, my fingers digging into my palms. "You want me to marry you? I'd sooner marry a scoundrel off the street than a man who treats human beings like line items on a spreadsheet."
"I need to marry someone," Adrian said, his gaze flicking to the peeling paint on my ceiling as if to remind me exactly how little leverage I had. "And based on the fact that I already know exactly how much of a headache you are, you're the least objectionable option."
"Wow. Is that a compliment? My heart is doing backflips."
He looked at me, his jaw tight, as if he were literally biting back a more vitriolic response. He stepped closer, his scent filling my lungs. "If you agree, I'll tell you why I'm a Reyes now. I'll tell you how I went from the kid you hated to the man who could buy and sell this entire block without blinking."
I opened my mouth to refuse, to tell him to go to hell, but he leaned down, his eyes gray and cold. "Think about it well, Alexandra. If you agree, tell Penelope. I'll have you picked up on Friday at 6:00 PM. We'll meet at The Sky Pavilion."
My eyes widened. The Sky Pavilion? The restaurant where the tasting menu alone cost more than my rent?
"Dress your nicest," he added, his gaze lingering on my messy hair one last time. "I'm taking you out."
He didn't wait for an answer. He turned and walked out, the door clicking shut with a finality that left me trembling in the center of my tiny, empty living room.
He looked for me. The thought looped in my head like a broken record. He said he looked for me. And God, I hated needing this. I hated that my mother had left me in a hole so deep that my only ladder out was held by the boy who used to mock my very existence.
But a man who could buy this entire building? That wasn't just a ladder. That was a private jet out of purgatory.
~
Friday, 5:50 PM
I stared at the mirror. The red gown was a relic from a better time, spaghetti straps holding up a silk fabric that hugged every curve I had gained since I was fifteen. I'd pinned my hair up, leaving a few tendrils to frame my face, and applied a shade of crimson lipstick that felt like war paint.
A sleek black car pulled up and horned.
My cue.
I stepped outside, my heart hammering.
The window rolled down. Richard Alfonso sat in the driver's seat. "Miss Calloway. We meet again."
I felt the heat rush to my face. "Richard….look, about the 'shove it' comment from the other day. I am so sorry. I was...having a moment, and you didn't deserve to be at the end of that."
Richard let out a dry, surprisingly kind chuckle. "In this business, Miss Calloway, I have been told worse by people wearing much more expensive clothes. Yours was tame by comparison. Please, step in."
When we arrived at the Pavilion, the city lights of Los Angeles stretched out below like a carpet of diamonds. Adrian was already there, standing by a window. He wore a black suit that looked like it had been molded to his frame. He looked like a god. A very, very angry greek god.
His eyes widened when he saw me, his eyebrows almost disappearing into his air. He actually stumbled over his next breath, letting out a faint cough as he adjusted his tie. "Alex…..Hmm. You look... decent."
"Decent?" I pulled out my chair before he could. "Is that the best you've got? I spent forty-five minutes on this hair."
"Did you want me to say you look gorgeous?" he snapped, but his eyes were traveling down the length of the red silk, and they looked hungry. He breathed out slowly. "Shall we?"
We sat. I ordered the most expensive thing on the menu out of pure spite. Every time I looked up, he was watching me, not just looking, but observing.
"Stop eye-fucking me, Adrian," I scoffed, snapping my linen napkin.
"Eye-fucking you? I wouldn't do that in my dreams, Alex," he countered, though his smirk suggested he was a liar. "Anyways. Since you are here, I assume you want the truth. Here it is. My father was a Maddox, but my mother was a Reyes. The Reyes family is.….old money. Massive. My dad ran away before I was born because he couldn't handle the pressure, or maybe he just liked being a loser. No idea. Some years ago, he was arrested for a botched bank robbery. He almost killed a guard. I was just nineteen."
I froze, my fork halfway to my mouth. "Oh god."
"The Reyes elders came looking for the 'lost heir' to clean up the image. They offered me the empire on one condition: I take their name and lock down the succession. I have two cousins, Damon and Jasper. They're airheads. If they get the company, they'll tank it in six months. So.…..the board wants me married. Stable. Locked in."
He cut into his steak way too easily, like a professional. I went to do the same, but my knife slipped, clattering against the china.
"Steady, you klutz," he mocked, a glimmer of the old Adrian appearing.
"Shut your pie hole," I hissed.
"Back to the point," he said, leaning in. "You hate me. I hate you."
That stung. I didn't know why, but it felt like a slap.
"We only need to be wed for a year," he continued. "My grandparents are.….elderly. If they pass, the inheritance is locked. If not, a year of 'wedded bliss' satisfies the board. You get fifteen million dollars. You have enough money to restart. I get my company. What do you say?"
Holy shit. Fifteen million dollars???
My mouth stayed open like some pathetic blobfish before I snapped out of it. "Whoa…I….I…"
Get it together!
"Fine," I finally whispered, shifting in my chair. "But we need ground rules."
"I couldn't agree more." He pulled out his phone and sent a quick text.
Moments later, Richard appeared with a thick, leather-bound document. "Here, Mr Reyes," the older man placed the document on the desk.
"Thank you, Richard," Adrian said softly.
I flipped through the pages, my eyes scanning the legalese.
SECTION 4: COHABITATION
The Parties shall reside in the same primary residence (The Reyes Estate) to maintain public image. Separate wings are permitted.
SECTION 7: FIDELITY & OUTSIDE RELATIONS
Public displays of affection are mandatory. Private conduct is discretionary. External partners are permitted provided they remain 100% undetected by media.
"External partners?" I looked up, cocking up a brow.
"Unless you don't want to," Adrian said, his voice dropping an octave as he leaned across the table. "Or would you rather finish what we started ten years ago?"
I felt my face turn the same color as my dress. Why did he still remember that? I had shoved it into the deepest part of my brain and pretended it never happened.
Until he showed up, with his arrogant face.
Fuck.
"Shut up and give me the pen."
Before I could talk myself out of it, I signed it. Afterwards, I stole a glance at him, shocked to see that his eyes were still locked on me. I handed him the document, and he closed the folder. It was only then his eyes tore away from my face, lingering on my signature.
"One more thing, Alex. I am a public figure. You should know this, but I know you have never paid much attention to the world of celebrities and filty rich people. Prepare for every socialite in the city to come after your head for 'stealing' me."
"Oh wow, I am so terrified," I said sarcastically.
He smirked, a real smirk that reached his eyes. "You should be." He went quiet, his expression shifting back to its much preferred serious, brooding intensity. "So you really left because your mother lied about us replacing you?"
I nodded slowly. "Yeah. She made it sound like we were in danger."
"And look where that got you," he muttered. He looked like he wanted to ask me more, but he stopped himself. "I believe there is no more need for our dinner, is there?"
"Oh. No, I believe not."
We stood up. As we walked out into the cool night air, the breeze caught the thin straps of my dress, making me shiver.
Great job, Alex. Wearing this sort of dressed on one of the coldest nights of the month.
To my shock, Adrian stripped off his suit jacket and draped it around my shoulders. It was heavy, warm, and smelled entirely like him. Wow…that was sort of…romantic?
"Whoa, Adrian. I never thought a stoney heart like yours was—"
Before I could finish, he reached out, his hand cupping the back of my neck. He pulled me in, crashing his lips against mine in a kiss.