Page 3

Matty's eyes widened, but then his lips quirked up in a slight smile. "It's okay. I'm used to people overestimating my size."
I nodded, shutting the door and walking around to the driver's side. The cab fell silent as I started the engine and pulled out of the courthouse parking lot.
"Where to?" I asked, realizing I didn't even know where Matty lived.
"Bayridge Apartments, off Thornton Parkway," he said, his voice soft. "Building C, but you can just drop me at the entrance if you want."
I frowned, glancing at him. "Drop you? We're supposed to be living together, remember? That was part of the deal."
Matty bit his lip, looking down at his hands. "Right. Sorry. I just... I didn't know if you'd want to stay tonight or if you needed to get your things first or..."
Jesus, this kid was nothing like I'd expected. Where was the entitled brat I'd heard about? The one who threw tantrums when he didn't get his way? This Matty seemed almost... afraid. Of me? Of the situation? I couldn't tell.
Unless he was the best actor I’d ever seen.
Yeah, that was probably it.
"I've got a go-bag in the truck," I said, keeping my eyes on the road. "We’re supposed to live together, so I can get the rest tomorrow." Ricky had told me Matty didn't have his own car, but I assumed with the cash he had access to he rode around in chauffeur driven limos or whatever.
"Okay." His voice was barely audible over the engine.
The silence stretched between us. I couldn't help stealing glances at my new husband. He sat rigidly in the passenger seat, hands folded in his lap, staring straight ahead. Something wasn't adding up.
Bayridge Apartments turned out to be a mid-range complex—not the luxury high-rise I'd been expecting. The buildings were well-maintained but nothing special. I pulled into a visitor spot near Building C and killed the engine.
I hopped out, grabbing the duffel from behind the seat. When I came around to the passenger side, Matty was already out of the truck, fidgeting with his keys. I frowned. “Matty, you should wait for me to help you down. You could have hurt yourself.”
His lips parted but no sound came out at all, and for a moment he looked completely stunned. But that was what he was paying for, right? A Daddy?
We rode the elevator to the third floor in silence. The hallway was clean but bland, beige flooring and off-white walls. Matty stopped at Apartment 307, unlocking the door with slightly trembling hands.
"It's not much," he said as he pushed the door open.
I stepped inside, taking in the modest apartment. The living room was small but tidy, furnished with a comfortable-looking, if slightly worn, sofa and a coffee table stacked with books. A tiny kitchen opened off to the right, and a hallway presumably led to the bedrooms and bathroom.
It was nice. Homey. But nothing like what I'd expected from Harold Coombes' godson. Just what the fuck was actually going on?
Chapter two
Matty
I cringed when Novolooked around the apartment, but it was all I could afford on the measly allowance I got from my godfather. He wanted me to move in with him, but I would rather die, so this was it. Part of the marriage contract meant paying for Novo’s living expenses as well, so he’d just have to suck it up. I’d already gotten a fold-up camping bed for myself I could stow behind the sofa.
I didn't want to explain how hard I had to work for this place—the long hours at the coffee shop, the careful budgeting, the constant fear that Harold would find a legal way to cut me offcompletely. I’d been so stupid for so many years. Money had never been an issue. Then two years ago I’d gotten a call from the bank to say my account was overdrawn, followed by both my credit cards being stopped.
My godfather demanded I return immediately, and when I did, he told me he was sick of paying for my wasteful lifestyle.
It was a shock. I knew he didn’t care about me, and it was my money. But since he stopped everything but the minimum allowance he had to pay me, we’d been in a standoff.
I even went to see my lawyer, only to find out I never knew the terms of my mom and dad’s will, as I'd never bothered to update my mailing address. Although to be honest, I never really knew my mom and dad either.
And I didn’t know what to think of the bombshell my lawyer dropped on me.
Looking at Novo now, taking in his massive frame, his intense eyes, the way he filled my small apartment with his presence—I wasn't so sure of this anymore. When Ricky had first told me about Rent-A-Daddy, it had seemed like the perfect solution. Find someone willing to play the part of my husband for two years, get my trust fund, and finally be free of Harold's control.
Because the first time I'd tried it on my own it had been a disaster.
I just hadn't expected someone like Novo.