“I’m just glad thatyoudo.”
Stopppppp.
My phone was nowhere to be found. Jade seemed unbothered after hers didn’t turn up either. She picked up the hotel phone and dialed the reception desk, idly fiddling with the belt of her robe as she waited for them to pick up.
“Hello. This is Jade Rost from room 725. My wife and I seem to have misplaced our belongings.”Wife. She really just said that. “Yes. Some clothing and two cellphones. Also an emerald purse with two heart keychains on the strap. There’s a long repair stitch on the side.” She described my purse perfectly, as if she was the one who owned it. “If they have been stolen, I’m afraid I will have to question the security of this hotel, and the relationship between the Wyndol hotel group and the Rost corporation.”
Wow. Trotting out her family’s reputation to bully people? Not that I was surprised. That was very on brand for Jade.
She hung up and spun to face me, her eyes immediately going to my chest. Her mouth tightened, and she took a deep breath before looking away. “I can see your nipples.” Gritting my teeth, I quickly covered the puckers that had appeared on my shirt.When did my nipples get hard??? “The front desk said they’ll deliver our belongings in a few minutes, however long it takes them to ride the elevator. I’ll order some room service when they get here. Strawberry pancakes, and an iced latte. Right?”
“Stop that. You’re not my girlfriend.”
“Correct,” she responded, her eyes piercing right into mine. “I’m your wife. For now.”
Chapter Seven
An hour after we woke up naked in bed together, Jade and I were properly dressed and in the hotel lobby, waiting for our lawyers to arrive. Two wealthy, prominent people got married without a pre-nup, so there were bound to be lawyers involved. The Rost lawyer arrived first, and then mine came not a minute later. I’d never met her before, she was from a local branch of my family’s firm.
“Ms. Hayes, nice to meet you.” I shook her hand, ignoring the way Jade tensed when I did. My lawyer was only a beta, hardly something to be jealous over. “I’m Abigail Mercer. I’m happy to help you out with your situation.”
Jade’s lawyer was an older, no nonsense kind of beta, and he turned his nose up at me when I dared to look at him. “Ms. Rost. A moment in private, please, before we discuss things with your…bride.”
The amount of venom in that word made me flinch. Did he think I did this to steal Jade’s money?
Abigail placed a gentle hand on my arm, guiding me away while Jade and her lawyer went in the opposite direction. “Ms. Hayes.” She glanced over her shoulder, spotting Jade watchingus from across the hotel lobby as her lawyer said something to her. “Your mother was informed about your marriage as soon as you called us.”Fuck. I was really hoping she wouldn’t find out. “Ms. Rost’s lawyer is going to push for a post-nup to secure her inheritance. He sent me the file to review before I came over. You should sign it. I’m afraid your family’s financial situation is more tumultuous than you were led to believe.”
Typical moms not telling me anything. That felt like something they could’ve brought up at our weekly family dinner.
“Why? What happened?”
“Your brother apparently spent more than he should have in his latest investment.”Damon, you little shit. “If you don’t sign the post-nup and you get a divorce, your inheritance will be split with Ms. Rost, and your parents will have nothing left.”
“What about my bakery?”
“If Ms. Rost doesn’t want to split it, the bakery will be sold to help keep any remaining family assets. It’s the only thing of value after what Damon did. Even the family estate is in jeopardy right now.”Damn it. My stupid brother. I couldn’t lose Sweet Sensations. I’d worked too hard on my bakery to have it cruelly ripped away like that. Jade knew how much the bakery meant to me. Surely she wouldn’t let that happen. “There’s one more thing in the post-nup we should discuss.”
More??God, what now?
Jade’s lawyer joined us, giving me a tart look as he clutched his briefcase. “Ms. Hayes. If you’ll please follow us.”
I walked behind him, stealing glances at Abigail as we went down the hallway. Jade wasn’t looking at me. She always looked at me. What else was in the post-nup? Was it worse than ruining my family’s fortune and stealing my dreams?
Once we got to the conference room, Jade took the seat opposite me at the large conference table. Her lawyer was stilleyeing me like I was a slimy toad as he opened his briefcase and pulled out two blue folders.
“Ms. Hayes,” he opened, smoothing out the frown and smiling at me with no less venom than before. “My name is Bernard Anderson. I am part of the Rost family legal team. You and my client failed to sign a pre-nup before your marriage last night. I have written up a post-nup agreement that your lawyer reviewed before we arrived. This is your copy.” I took the blue folder from him, scanning the post-nup papers inside. Mine and Jade’s names were written out as Party A and Party B. “This outlines that both parties will retain any property or inheritance in the event of a divorce. Nothing will be split or sold.” So Jade’s inheritance wouldn’t be split with me either. Fine. Not like I wanted her money. “Before this document is signed, I do want to go over a few things with you, mainly the issue of an heir.”
My hand slipped from under my chin so quickly, I knocked myself in the jaw. “A what?”
Jade remained silent, only a twitch of her lips betraying any emotion on her face. Her lawyer, on the other hand, had plenty to say.
“Ms. Mercer, you were supposed to explain this to your client.”
“You interrupted me before I could.”
All but rolling his eyes, Bernard folded his hands on the table and squared me with a firm stare. “Regardless of if you and my client had signed a pre-nup, there is a clause in my client’s inheritance regarding the conception of a child. In order to ensure no heir is ever taken away from the Rost family, divorce or annulments are not allowed if there is any possibility of a pregnancy. Since there has been physical contact between you and my client, no annulment will be granted for ninety days after the last time you were intimate with each other. At the end of the required time, a blood test will be done to fully determinethat there is no pregnancy. If either of you refuse to comply and dissolve your marriage before the ninety days are up, my client will lose her inheritance.”
So… Jade needed me. Not just that, she needed me to do her a favor. As far as I saw it, agreeing to stay married to her for three months was exactly that. And that meant I could negotiate too.
