AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Don’t get comfortable. Leave the jacket on, Taylor.”
“Afraid you’ll get the wrong idea and want to take me to bed?”
“You are delusional.”
“You know, it’s perfectly fine to want your husband in the biblical sense, lass.”
A soft gasp tore Becca’s gaze from mine. I followed her focus to where Scarlett stood, eyes wide, mouth agape, a tray of cupcakes tilting precariously in her hold.
“Husband?”
“Aye.” I wrapped one arm around Becca and pulled her close. “You got yourself a new brother-in-law.”
Scarlett’s tray of fairy cakes tipped, the pastel-decorated treats falling to the floor in a multicolored splat.
“Shit, you couldn’t have let me ease her into it?” Becca pulled free of my hold and rushed to her sister to help her clean up.
“You got married?” she hissed. “To him?”
“I’m right here. I can hear you, you know.”
“I did it for a reason,” I grumbled. “I’ll explain everything after he leaves.”
“It’s better she find out now rather than read it on the news tonight after the auction anyway. I don’t know why you’re cross with me.”
Her gaze could have set me on fire if she’d had the power. “I was going to tell her before that. Just not with you in the room, taking up every available ounce of space.”
I leaned against the table and smirked. “From where I’m standing, there’s plenty of space in this house.”
“I think she means in her head.”
“Scarlett, that’s not helpful. His ego is already so big I don’t know how he fit through the door.”
I excused myself to use the toilet, and when I returned, the Barnes sisters were still chattering about Becca’s decision. I couldn’t really add anything beneficial to the conversation, so I planted a kiss on my bride’s cheek and said, “As lovely as this has been, I’ll be off. I hope you’re planning to wear something sexy tonight, wife. It’s our wedding night, after all. I plan to show you off to my mates and make a fucking splash with our news.Meet-Cupidwon’t know what hit ‘em.”
Becca swallowed hard, her face going a touch pale.
“Don’t worry, lass. This is a good thing. You’ll see. Being the wife of Taylor Savage isn’t the worst thing that could happen to you.”
“Oh, no? Then what is?”
I winked. “Never being mine at all.”
She laughed nervously, and I knew exactly why. Because this arrangement was temporary. Fleeting. And if I didn’t pull back on the flirty banter, it would end up being dangerous to both of us.
But after I was back in my car and headed toward the ferry terminal, the worry about falling for Becca was eclipsed by a multitude of emails from my agent, from Eva, the team’s publicist, and from Trick Huston. Offers for off-season stints on reality dating shows, requirements fromMeet-Cupid, and then my teammate needing my help with his own date.
No matter how attracted to Becca Barnes I was, falling in love wasn’t an option. She was getting me out of years of obligation to life as an eligible bachelor in the public eye. I was helping her with her kitchen. It was a win-win. And if one thing was for certain, I loved to win.
8
BECCA
The morningafter the charity event was like any other morning. Get up at the crack of dawn, go for a run to get my blood flowing, then caffeinate, hydrate, and shower. That was the plan. Except, of course, Taylor had publicly introduced me as his wife to his entire team and some of the richest people in Seattle last night. It felt like everyone was watching me as I passed. Let them watch.
Just because I was married to the bad boy Scot with a heart of gold, as he was now named, that didn’t mean I had to change a damn thing. Except as my feet pounded the pavement on the street where I lived, the last few yards of my run turning to a cool down, my heart rate did anything but slow. Taylor Savage stood on my front porch, a large duffel bag in his hands and a shit-eating grin on his stupid handsome face.
“What are you doing here?”
