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Her jaw dropped open, and she stared at me in complete silence. The sounds of the restaurant grew even louder as the seconds ticked by. The low hum of conversation. The clinking of silverware against ceramic plates. The distant clatter from the kitchen. Finally, she chuckled. “Is this a joke? You can’t seriously think that I would agree to that.”
“I’m not joking, Jillian. I need you.”
“Why don’t you just divorce me and find some other chick to take my place?”
Because I don’t want anyone else.
I lifted a shoulder. “Takes too much time.”
“The faster you sign those divorce papers, the faster you get the ball rolling,” she said as she smiled brightly and pushed to her feet. “Because there is no way I’m going to pretend to be your wife again.”
I stood up too. “Like it or not, you are my wife, and as you pointed out, I do have money and influence. In a way I never had… before.” Damn, we’d been so broke back then. “In fact, I’ve been invited to a rather large charity bachelor auction. I’m going to turn them down because I find the whole idea of being auctioned off like a horse distasteful. It’s actually pretty annoying how frequently I get invited. I should just make a public announcement to let them know I’m married and get my name taken off the list permanently.”
She glared and gripped the table as she instantly understood the underlying threat. “You wouldn’t.”
Guilt smacked me in the face, but I smiled through it as I practically blackmailed the woman who already hated me.
“The charity gets a lot of press too. I can’t imagine how many interviews I would have to do. Do you know what would be easier? If I just quietly turn down the offer like I normally do and head back to my small town where nobody cares if I’m married or not.”
Jillian’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “And I guess the only way to get you to slink back like the snake you are is for me to agree to go with you?”
I flashed her my most charming smile. “Dinner should be coming up soon, sweetheart, and you don’t want to miss it, do you?”
“I think I hate you.”
“I’ve heard those words before. They didn’t bother me then, and they don’t bother me now,” I lied with a shrug. “But this doesn’t just benefit me. With the power I now hold, I can make our dissolution of marriage disappear in a way that I wasn’t able to do before.”
I watched her process that news. “So, I can really pretend that I never met you without worrying that my bad decisions will come back to bite me in the ass professionally.”
She finally eased back in her chair, and from the tight line on her lips, I could tell that even if she agreed to my plan, she really did hate me for it.
I had hoped to not have to blackmail her. In fact, I’d hoped that our little reunion would go quite differently. I’d hoped maybe she’d see my little proposal as the win-win I thought it was.
But I couldn’t let her anger stop me. It would only be for a few months, after all.
First, I’d reclaim my wife.
Then, I’d let her go.
Again.
CHAPTER FIVE
Jillian
Two days had passed since Brendan Ward completely shattered my life.
Again.
I was in a daze. I couldn’t focus on my dissertation. I couldn’t focus on work. I was avoiding Danielle because I knew that she would pick at me until I finally told her the truth.
Brendan was still my husband. Brendan wanted to continue to be my husband. Brendan wanted me to move to the middle of nowhere and pretend to be his loving wife.
What had happened to my life? All of my plans were crumbling, and it was all his fault.
Technically, it was the fault of some down and dirty scam artist of a lawyer, but I couldn’t blame him, and I needed to blame someone, so Brendan was the target of my wrath by default.
Aimlessly flipping the page in my notebook, I tapped my pencil on the table. The computer screen was dimming, so I nudged the mouse and sighed. I couldn’t hide in the library forever, and if I was going to keep spending my days here, the least I could do was perfect my dissertation in record time.
Groaning, I slowly lowered my forehead to the table. What was I going to do? My career would tank before it even began if my impulsive marriage and sham of a divorce came to light. On the other hand, I couldn’t go live with Brendan for a few months. The idea was absurd.
“If that’s the attitude that you’re taking with your dissertation, it’s no wonder you haven’t completed it yet,” Don lectured as he approached me.
Inhaling sharply, I sat up. “Don, what are you doing here?” I’d never seen him in the library before.
