A shiver hit her at Nicolas’s icy tone. But the more he froze over, the hotter she burned.
“I’m trying to solveyourproblem,” Emily fired back. “And don’t call me that.”
His eyes darted between her gaze as if he couldn’t believe she’d said that.
“I. Don’t. Need. You. To.” He enunciated each word slowly, as if he were teaching a child their ABCs.
“No, but what youdoneed is a wife.” His gaze hardened at that. “Turns out I need a husband too. Let’s help each other out. Simple as that.”
He leaned forward, his handssteepled. “What makes you think you’re qualified for that position?”
What is this? A job interview?
Burying the snarky remark, she forced herself to say otherwise. “You know my social standing and I know yours. But beyond that, I can give your company the kind of visibility no board member can argue with. My image might not be squeaky clean, but I have influence. Influence no one can deny.”
His brow rose with an unreadable expression.
“There will also be a prenup.”
A corner of Nicolas’s mouth twitched, his eyes brimming with amusement, but he said nothing.
She did her best not to waver under his gaze during the silence. It was causing something to happen inside her stomach. Butterflies? They better not be.
“Plus, there are no obligations about a business merger or anything of that sort. We can do this the old-fashioned way. No strings attached.” Her bottom lip slipped between her teeth, her patience growing thin.
Why is he so goddamn quiet? It’s unnerving.
Nicolas had been taking in every word she’d said without blinking. His eyes clung to her, as if she might vanish if he looked away.
Emily had never been the superficial kind, she tried not to overindulge in worldly pleasures, but Nicolas had her imagining what it was like to constantly get attention from someone who looked like him. It must be a riveting experience. Or it would be if he wasn’t such a pain in the ass.
His eyes drifted to her nervous lip bite. She could have sworn she saw the flicker of an impulse there, or maybe the alcohol had messed with her senses.
He turned to John. “You said to give them what they want, right?”
The lawyer’s eyes lit up with recognition.
“You have thirty minutes,” he said. “Call David to run her background. If there’s so much as a rumor that can’t be buried, we walk away.”
John left the room with his phone pressed to his ear. That was when Nicolas finally stood up.
She gulped.
He was tall. So damn tall. At least 6’5”.
Emily’s breath staccatoed as he walked toward her. One blink and he was already leaning in. The scent of him blurred her thoughts. Whatever it was, he smelled exquisite. It must have been custom-made to match the kind of man he was.
His lips were an inch away from her ear as he spoke. “If I say yes to this proposition, you do understand what you’re getting yourself into, right?”
She didn’t flinch. Not with the smugness dripping from his voice.
“Doyou?”
The heat which had bloomed behind her ears faded as his mouth went away. She felt colder than before with it gone.Certainlythe aftereffects of the alcohol from earlier.
This time Nicolas didn’t try to hide how humored he was as a wicked grin split across his face. “I’m just making sure that you understand. I’m not the one who looks like she’s auditioning for a role in somenoirfilm.” He tilted his head, intensely eyeing her. “Misunderstood heiress? Disillusioned actress? Runaway bride?”
“I’mnota runaway bride.”
