Page 22 of An Inevitable Marriage

“Yes.” I sighed. “That’s what my boss told me.”

“That’s odd.”

“Why?”

“Should I be worried about my future wife and best friend beingthiscozy?”

Gosh, that reprieve was way too short.

Not nearly long enough for me to get a grip on myself. Because instead of ignoring him like I’d intended to, I spun on my heel and almost yelped when Liam was right there behind me. I swear if I moved my head forward even an inch, I’d press my nose right in the center of his chest.

Which actually didn’t sound like the worst idea.

Dammit, Evie, get a grip.

In a desperate attempt to recenter myself, I stared at the stretched black material for two more heartbeats before slowly lifting my gaze to his. As I suspected, those blue eyes were already intently trained on me.

“Better?” he rasped, his voice all deep and gravelly.

Not even a little. He might have covered up, but the Henley he’d tossed on did nothing to hide the grooves and ridges of his chest and arms. And the way he pulled his hair back into some sort of knot behind his head only accentuated the sharp lines of his stubbly jaw.

Screw him for being so effortlessly gorgeous.

Since I couldn’t say that out loud, I pressed my mouth into a thin line and forced a muttered “Much” over my lips.

He didn’t answer, just grumbled under his breath as he held my stare for a few more seconds before finally turning his attention to his friend.

“What now?”

“Well…” Rafe cleared his throat. “Now we talk details.”

Liam nodded once, then his icy-blue stare was back on me. “Can I assume we agree on our living arrangements?” When I nodded, he continued, “Good. So, finances. How does five million sound?”

I choked on air. “Five million…dollars?”

“Okay, we can make it ten. Two for each year we need to stay married.”

More choking. “Are you freaking kidding me?”

The words barely left my mouth when a cloud of disgust washed over Liam’s features. “That’s not enough?”

“No, no.” I shook my head furiously but couldn’t get another word out. Only after Rafe got me a glass of water, and I greedily guzzled half of it down could I finally speak. “It’s too much.”

Liam stared at me like I’d suddenly grown a second head.

The longer he stared, the more doubt seeped into my pores. Who did this? Who agreed to marry a man for money? An uncomfortable feeling settled deep beneath my skin. I was essentially selling myself for an obscene amount of money.

That didn’t feel too great.

I couldn’t do this. Ishouldn’tdo this. There were other ways to help my parents.

I parted my lips to apologize for wasting Liam’s time, but my phone rang before even a sound escaped. Giving him an apologetic look, I quickly pulled it out of my jacket pocket to silence. My finger hovered over the red button when I caught sight of the name on my screen.

“I’m sorry, I need to take this.”

I hurried out of the kitchen and pressed the device against my ear.

“Hey, Mom. Everything okay?”