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CHAPTERTWO
To MyLong-Lost Bride,
I’m counting the days until I see you again. It’s been almost a year and I can’t get you out of my head—or my heart. Your brother sent the annulment papers, but I don’t care what they say. You’ll always be my wife, the woman who will bear my children, my Forever Love, the person I’ll adore until the day I die. You are my sweetness in an often-bitter world.
I’ve been working hard these long, lonely months, saving every penny. Iknow one of your brother’s concerns was that I couldn’t support a wife. But I’ve been smart. Iinvested my earnings and am planning the perfect home for you. It won’t be much to start, but it’ll be allours.
The Anniversary Ball is just a week away. It’s to celebrate the first anniversary of those who married at the Cinderella Ball, and even though our marriage was annulled, Iknow you’ll be there and that this time when we become man and wife, no one can part us. Keep fighting, Shayne. And come back tome.
Until I hold you in my arms again... you are my ForeverLove
To Chaz’s private amusement, the bells on Marianna’s mask clattered together in discordant protest. “Take off—”
“Your mask. Yes.” He lifted an eyebrow. “Problem?”
“I’d rather not,” she admitted.
Something about such devastating honesty had him regarding her with acute suspicion. “And why’s that?”
“What does it matter what I look like?” It was her turn to clench the coffee mug with white-knuckled desperation. “I don’t recall your mentioning that as part of your requirements. You wanted someone who’d turn your house into a home, who’d be willing to live with you in Colorado, who’d—”
“Sleep with me.”
It was a wonder the cup didn’t shatter in her hands. Did she find the idea of being intimate with him so overwhelming? He’d soon ease her past that particular concern.
“Yes,” she acknowledged. “And to sleep with you.”
He stood and approached her side of the table. “Don’t you think we should have a peek under the masks to make sure we can face each other over the breakfast table every morning?” he asked.
She held him with inky dark eyes, eyes that stirred memories he’d sooner forget. “And if my looks don’t appeal, we go our separate ways?”
Damn it! Did she think him so heartless? “I didn’t say that.”
“So it’s not whether or not I can make a home for you that’s important. It’s whether or not I’m attractive enough to share your bed?”
He stooped beside her, taking her hands in his. “Honey, in case you didn't know it doesn't much matter what your partner looks like once the lights are out, so long as part A fits pleasurably into slot B.”
He’d insulted her. It hadn’t been intentional. He just had an unfortunate knack for brutal frankness. Hell, he wanted a wife. Or rather, he needed one. If he were perfectly honest, he didn’t care how plain-faced the woman he married, so long as she could satisfy his requirements.
He’d had beautiful. If he was forced to take a wife, then this time around he wanted practical.
Chaz studied his prospective bride. He could see her intention to walk away as clearly as if she’d spoken it aloud. But something held her back. Something he couldn’t quite understand. Still, he saw it in the slight softening of her chin and the gentling of the anger darkening her passionate brown eyes. Asmile flirted with her mouth, asmile as feminine and appealing as any he’d ever seen. Warmth pooled in his gut, stirring a reaction he hadn’t felt in far too many years.
“If it doesn’t matter, then the mask stays,” she said. “You decide. Are you willing to marry, sight unseen?”
Aw, hell. He carefully disengaged their fingers. “You’re asking me to take a lot on faith.”
“You’re not a man with a lot of faith, are you?”
“Not a scrap.”
“What happened?” she asked with the sort of kindness he couldn’t handle, the sort of kindness he didn’t deserve.
“I lost it long ago.”
“Perhaps someday you’ll find it again.”
“If that's what you're holding out for, you're going to be sorely disappointed.” He straightened, towering over her, and thumped his index finger on the linen-covered surface for emphasis. “I'm offering you a house. I'm offering you a warm bed. The closest you'll get to faith is that I'll remain true to our marriage vows for as long as they legally last. And I'll see that you don't want for anything it's within my power to give. Take it or leave it.”
