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“What do you want in this arrangement?” I ask.
“I want you to stop putting yourself and those trying to protect you in danger.”
I watch him carefully, waiting for him to say something to which I can’t agree.
“I want you to stop fighting this and marry me willingly this Saturday,” he goes on.
Metal cages go up around my heart at the thought of being married in five days. I hold my stomach that’s churning. Marriage is not something I want—ever. I can’t be controlled; I need my freedom.
“I want us to agree on where we’ll live. If it’s a mansion or—”
“Here,” I say.
He pauses, cocking his head to the side.
“I don’t want a big mansion. Plus, Hayes and Gage have their own apartments here. It’s far enough away from Vincent, but also close enough that we can easily meet up with people when we need to.”
“There’s only one bedroom here,” he says, stone-faced.
I meet his gaze, staring him down, trying to figure out what his endgame is. He’s hiding something. But if we do share such a small place together, I’ll find out his secrets eventually.
“I have no problem with us staying here. But if it becomes too much for you, then I’m fine moving too,” he continues.
I nod, feeling oddly calm here, unlike how I feel about marrying him. It’s simple and cozy. It is small, so we’ll probably end up killing each other. At least if I can’t prevent the marriage from happening, I can hope for a quick divorce.
“Of course, when we have a baby, we’ll want to move.”
“Baby?” I squeak.
“Yes,baby,” Lennox rubs his forehead as if I give him a headache at how slow he has to explain things to me. As if I’d never considered the word.It’s not the word I have a problem with.
“I’m in love with Kit. How can I have a baby with you when I love him? How could I live with myself if I have a relationship with him but fuck you? I can’t do that to someone I love.”
“You’re in love with him?” he says with a look that radiates his arrogance. He thinks I don’t know my own heart—that I’m too young and naive to know what love is.
“Yes, I am,” I say forcefully, irritated again.
“Hmmm,” he says, turning with a wide stance to look out the window as rain gently taps on the glass and a streak of light flashes across the sky.
“Don’t ‘hmmm’ me, talk to me.”
“I don’t think you want to hear what I have to say.”
“I don’t, but you’re going to tell me anyway.”
Lennox turns and faces me with a smug amusement in his eyes. He likes getting under my skin; it fascinates him.
“This is all just a game to you,” I say.
With a harsh squint and puffed-out chest, he says, “You have no idea how serious I take this arrangement. You have no idea what the stakes are.”
“So enlighten me!”
He turns his head, staring back out the window with an unnatural stillness. Whatever or whoever he’s thinking about isn’t going to be revealed tonight.
“Discretion. You can fuck lover-boy all you want, but no more public displays of affection like tonight. No one knows except me and those closest to us,” he says.
I frown, not wanting to agree.How am I supposed to live a life where I keep the man I love hidden?
