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I snatched my hand away. “Why are you doing this to me?”
“I’m not trying to be malicious, Capri. I just wanted you to wear something I knew you’d love, and I’d like to look at. That’s all.”
“No, you’re trying to mess with my head more than you already are. This isn’t real, Elias. You just wasted your money because that’s not my ring. We’re not really engaged.”
“Money well spent, if you ask me.”
“I’ll wear it, but that ring doesn’t change the fact that this is a fake engagement, and I’m returning it to you once this charade is over. Do you understand me?”
He slid the diamond down my ring finger, adding, “It’s a gift, Capri. I don’t want it back.”
“Well, I don’t want to keep it.”
“Then sell it.”
“You’re exhausting.”
“You have to be the first bride who’s ever complained about her wedding ring.”
It was exactly what I would have wanted had this been a real engagement. I couldn’t believe he did this for me, and if I let it go, he wouldn’t stop. He’d buy me a whole damn island if he thought it would make me love him again. He was charming like that, and he was trying to win me back.
Whatever that meant.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
ELIAS
“Love is the strange bewilderment which overtakes one person on account of another person.” —James Thurber
I sat against the ottoman, and the annoyed expression on her face didn’t bother me in the least as I pulled her between my legs. Her red hair was in soft curls cascading down her gorgeous face.
“I always loved your hair down.”
When my thumb began wiping the foundation off her face, she jerked back. “What are you doing?”
“I love these freckles, and I want the world to see the real you. You don’t need all this makeup. You’re perfect just the way you are.”
“Elias—”
“You grew up to be such a stunning woman, beauty.”
She narrowed her eyes, taking in what I disclosed. I could see the hesitation in her gaze. She used to look at me with nothing but love, but now it was somewhere between hate and lust.
“This was always my favorite color on you. Remember all the times you wore white for me?”
“No.”
If it were even possible, she was more stubborn than she used to be. I didn’t expect her to welcome me with open arms. I had my work cut out for me, and I was all right with that. If she thought she could get rid of me that easily, then she was in for one hell of a rude awakening.
I wasn’t going anywhere but back into her life, where I always belonged. At least we were headed in the right direction. Once we were in front of the photographer, he snapped away, and she was so entranced by the way I looked at her that she didn’t notice. She was lost in my truths, which were on full display for her. I was done hiding my emotions from her. Look how far that got me.
The longer she hid her feelings, the harder it would be for me to get through to her. With my thumb, I rubbed her lips in a back-and-forth motion, and her breathing hitched.
“I hate this red lipstick.”
I wanted to kiss her.
Claim her.
