A careless shrug. “I wasn’t going to let her manipulate me like that.”
By all accounts, Etta Mars was a very wealthy woman. Gideon had been prepared to walk away from hundreds of thousands—millions?—of dollars to avoid having to marry someone. To avoid marryingme.
Throat tight, I asked, “So what happened?”
Gideon’s eyes slid to the side, and he let out a long sigh. “When I was young and dumb, my security business was failing, and I went to her for help. I agreed to sell her half my business. Fifty-one percent, actually. She has a controlling stake.”
“She threatened to take it if you didn’t get married?”
He let out a bitter snort. “She threatened to chop it up and sell it like a venture capital vulture,” he told me. “My livelihood. Mybrothers’livelihoods. We built Marswood Security together. We saw all these rich people building second and third homes on the outskirts of town—homes they barely visited—and we decided they wouldn’t ruin us. They were a new market that needed security, and they were happy to pay for it. My grandmother said she was proud. She said I reminded her of my grandpa. And then she told me she’d take it all away unless I did what she wanted.”
“She’s ruthless.”
“Oh, you have no idea,” he agreed, leaning back against the couch. He took a sip and shook his head. “She wants these weddings to happen, no matter what. I agreed to six weeks. If Iget to the end and my bride decides not to go forward, she’ll let me be—and let me keep the business running as-is.”
Embarrassment swallowed me whole. I’d thrown myself at him last night, made a mess of everything, and now I was learning that he’d married me under duress. Of course he had! Wasn’t I in exactly the same situation?
“What if you don’t go the full six weeks?”
“She’ll use her judgment as to whether I made enough of an effort,” he answered, sardonic and bitter.
“Oh.”
He grunted in response.
He could lose his business if I left today. And still, he was willing to let me go. Because he wanted me to leave that badly? I wasthatawful?
Or was he just that kind?
“What’s stopping her from cutting you out of the will even if you go the full six weeks and don’t stay married?”
Gideon let out a humorless laugh. “Nothing. She’ll always have this leverage over me.” A tense silence followed. His blue eyes were suspicious when he met my gaze. “What’s your excuse?”
“Same story, kind of. My business is failing. I needed a way out. The only other option was moving back in with my parents, and that was an absolute last resort. Which, I guess, is where I’m at now.”
He clicked his tongue, ripping his gaze away to stare at the fireplace. It sounded like the words were torn out of him, but he finally said, “Stay, Sadie.”
“I wouldn’t want to put you through that,” I answered, caustic.
Gideon let out a bitter laugh, like my words had been a joke only he could understand.
It was clear he had agreed to be married against his will, and meeting me hadn’t changed his mind. Last night had been an aberration. We’d both gotten carried away.
These embers inside me would die. I wouldn’t be attracted to him forever.
It was a terrible idea to stay…but I was tempted. It was a soft place to land while I figured my life out. I’d loved everything I’d seen about this town. Would it hurt to explore it some more? I had six weeks of free housing. Maybe I’d find a third option, and I wouldn’t have to crawl back to the family fold.
“How would that look,” I started slowly, “if I stayed.”
Gideon cleared his throat. Shifted on the couch, like he couldn’t get comfortable. “We would live here for the next six weeks,” he said, spreading his arms to indicate the cottage.
The cottage with only one bedroom. Only one bed.
I sat very still. “Okay.”
“I’m busy with work,” he said. “You’d barely see me.”
That was a blessing and a curse, but I nodded. “Right. And at the end of the month and a half, we decide what we want to do next.”
