Page 25 of London Dynasty

“Excuse me?” I blurted out. Yanking my hand away, I stared at him, waiting for an apology.

But he didn’t look remotely sorry. “Would you prefer to ignore the rather large elephant in the room?”

“I’m not just some slot for you to stick your cock into,” I said angrily, ignoring the small voice that laughed inside me. Wasn’t that exactly what I was? Hadn’t I agreed to be just that? A placeholder until Kerrigan returned?

His lips twitched at this, but his expression remained moody. “I’ve offended you.”

“Yes.” An alarm went off in my brain but I ignored it. Now I was willfully disregarding the mission I’d been sent to perform, but I couldn’t help myself. I had expected Spencer to romance me a little, perhaps flirt, but he didn’t seem to care about any of those things. His expectations were clear. I’d already been bought for him. It was up to him to decide if he wanted to keep me.

“Given that you agreed to our families’ wishes, I thought you were comfortable with being transparent about this situation.” He shrugged, emphasizing his strong shoulders. I fought the urge to grab hold of them and haul him toward me.

Instead, I dug my heels in and shot him a haughty look. “Who said I was given a choice?”

He paused, tilting his head, and then said the last thing I expected him to say, “I did. Why do you think I called off the announcement?”

Chapter Fourteen

My mind was spinning so quickly I was finding it hard to breathe. The humid air was stifling, leaving me feeling too hot and sticky. I refused to believe it was more than the greenhouse effect. But the truth was it was him. Spencer flustered me. He confused me. His motives were cryptic, given his directness about other issues, such as going to bed together. I didn’t know what to think of him.

“But you expect to fuck me?” I struggled to bring the words to my lips, but my voice was clear and strong when I finally spoke.

“I’ll admit that I didn’t think you would be so opposed to the idea, given that you’d agreed to marry me.” If I’d expected him to be angry, Spencer surprised me again by sounding amused. “Married people usually sleep together.”

“But we aren’t married,” I hedged.

“I had no idea you were so innocent.” He was definitely holding back laughter now. “Tell me, Kerrigan, are you a virgin?”

I could tell what he thought of that possibility.

Annoyance flared inside me along with a sensation that felt dangerously like arousal. “Does it matter? You seem to think my body belongs to you.”

“And you seem to be under the impression that I’m going to force myself on you.” He moved closer, bringing his face into a shaft of moonlight, revealing an expression that bordered on interest. I had no doubt the wind would shift and he’d be back to his brooding boredom in no time.

“Isn’t that how arranged marriages work?” It popped out of my mouth before I really thought about it. I wasn’t engaged to Spencer. The announcement I’d been dreading had been postponed. I was beginning to wonder if it would come at all.

His eyes narrowed, his pupils so wide they looked almost black. “I don’t see a ring on your finger, Kerrigan.”

“K,” I blurted out. “People call me K.”

“I’m not most people. Nor am I looking for an arranged marriage with someone who thinks I’d force myself on her.” He tapped the edge of his glass and waited for me to respond.

“I’m sorry. That came out wrong. I just thought after…” I stopped short of letting another assumption slip.

“Yes?” he prompted.

“Nothing,” I said with a swallow. “‘I suppose none of this matters if you don’t want to marry me anymore.”

“I didn’t say that. Regardless of your father’s concerns, I expect to move forward according to their wishes.” He paused, giving time for this to sink in. When I didn’t respond, he continued, “I simply want this to progress on our terms.”

“What if our terms are different?”

“I expect they will be, so let me be frank. If we’re going to marry each other, there are a few things we need to get clear on, Kerrigan.” He emphasized the name, letting each syllable drip suggestively off his wicked tongue. It made me wish it was mine. “This is a merger of two powerful families. We both need something from one another. I’m content to give your family the title and reputation your parents are after. Your family’s wealth will help shore up various estates that need a cash influx. In those ways, this is an arranged marriage. But I have no interest in forcing you to do anything but be a good wife.”

My mouth went dry at the suggestion in those words. “And how will I do that?”

“Smile. Be pretty. Hold a conversation in private and your tongue in public.” He paused as if giving me time to process this.

“You assume we’ll go to bed together, but you don’t want to sleep with me? ” I asked in confusion. A ripple of displeasure rolled through me and landed between my legs. My traitorous body didn’t seem confused about this development. It seemed upset as if it had feelings and I was ignoring them. My skin wanted his hands on me. My thighs wanted his fingers to dip between them.