Page 40 of To Tango, with Desire

Zane stiffened. The man looked like he was carved from stone. And for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out what he was thinking.

“Marriage is a transaction. A contract between two people.”

My stomach dropped. “A transaction? Oh please, go on, my heart is positively melting.”

He placed his palms flat against the table, out of sorts. “What do you expect?”

“A little romance when offering to spend your life with someone else would be a start!”

“Romance?” He said the word as if it were his first time hearing it.

“Yeah, ya know, flowers, music, scattered rose petals. Romance.”

His direct stare made me want to squirm in my seat.

“And that’s what you want in a relationship?”

“Don’t you?”

“No.”

I toyed with the soft satin skirt, processing my shock. “No? You’re kidding, right?”

“I want a companion, Amira. An invigorating sex life. A satisfying relationship built on mutual understanding. That’s all. I think we’d be well suited. So here I am.”

“There you are.”

“What?”

“I’m just overcome by your passionate declaration. Forgive me if I don’t fall on my knees in supplication, given you just turned my whole fucking life upside down in the span of twenty-four hours.”

“I’m offering you something that most women would cream their pants for.”

“Oh well, in that case, let’s hightail it to the registry office and get hitched. Hell, why don’t we get on the next plane to Vegas and get Elvis to marry us?”

“I rarely fly commercial.”

I gripped the fabric in my hand, wanting to strangle him and his nonchalant attitude.

“That’s right. Commercial airline travel’s for plebs.”

“Amira—”

“You can’t expect me to agree to this sham.” I shook my head. “A marriage is a sacred thing.”

“So is LEGO.”

“I beg your pardon?”

He shifted, approaching me in that controlled way of his. I tried not to notice how good he looked in jeans and a polo shirt. How his muscles shifted in a way that left my mouth watering.

“To some, LEGO is sacred. Something to create and display in their homes. For others, it’s a nuisance that gets underfoot and causes chaos among siblings.”

“What the hell has this got to do with marriage?”

“It’s a matter of perspective. I happen to see marriage like LEGO. Something that some people enjoy and take great pride in, and for others, it’s merely a means to an end. I care more about the end product—being married to you—than I do the process.”

“That’s cold.”