Page 13 of Boss with Benefits (Boss of Seduction #6)

The judge secretly married them at midnight inside of Brady’s den.

It was a sterile, no-frills wedding without any of the usual entrapments.

Judge Wilson even provided them with two witnesses: the old married couple sat in the corner and didn’t say a word.

None of that mattered to Jessica. She didn’t have a family outside of her son and didn’t want any of her friends to see her make what could be the biggest mistake of her life.

She stood next to Brady in a random dress she’d pulled from her closet at the last second.

The shiny pink material stretched to accommodate her curves.

Slinky, the dress ended on her upper thighs and pushed up her cleavage.

It hugged her like a second skin. Maybe it was too sexy for a wedding.

She hadn’t been in her right mind when she grabbed it.

Brady was wearing one of his expensive three-piece suits. Charcoal gray. He looked incredible and was definitely believable as a groom right down to the nervous sweat. His hands were a bit clammy, and perspiration dotted his forehead.

He wasn’t the only nervous one in the room.

She purposely stiffened her body as tremors tried to shake it apart.

Her inner voice screamed at her to stop the wedding before it was too late.

Marrying Brady could turn out to be the dumbest thing she’d ever done.

She had more to lose than her son. What about her poor untested heart?

In her lifetime, she had participated in half a dozen one-night stands and a few short relationships that ended on a bitter note.

But to this day she hadn’t fallen in love with anyone.

She prayed her heart wouldn’t choose Brady to be her first.

He’d smash her heart to bits.

Since meeting Brady for the first time—he took photos of her for an ad when she was sixteen—she had wanted him.

He was a dream come to life: tall, dark, and handsome with millions of dollars in the bank.

His only real flaw as far as she could see was his inability to commit to one woman longer than it took him to change his socks.

Brady held her hands and stared deep into her eyes.

He repeated the traditional wedding vows after the judge with such sincerity she might have believed he loved her if she didn’t know he was only marrying her to save her son.

The words flowed over her, and a crazy narrative rambled through her head.

She could see them as an old married couple, teasing each other after decades spent together. Maybe they would retire to Florida. She would be a social butterfly, and he would take pictures of birds with a zoom lens. Their grandchildren would visit during the summer and—

“Jess?” Brady squeezed her hand to get her attention.

“Huh?” She blinked at him and then at the judge. “Sorry, what?”

“It’s your turn,” Brady said.

She apologized to the judge.

Judge Wilson nodded. “Repeat after me. I, Jessica Bishop, take you, Brady, as my lawful wedded husband.”

With numb lips, she repeated every word.

Time slipped away from her. They were pronounced man and wife before she completely wrapped her mind around the fact it was happening. Brady’s head swooped down. His lips barely brushed hers. Then he was shaking Judge Wilson’s hand.

Jessica stared down at the plain gold wedding band on her finger. It didn’t seem real. She was Mrs. Brady... what? The realization hit her that she still didn’t know if Brady was his first or his last name. Maybe it was his only name like Madonna or Prince.

Hysterical laughter bubbled up her throat, but she caught it in her hand. She didn’t want to go to pieces in front of the judge. He probably already thought her reaction to the marriage was odd. She had no idea how much of their problem Brady had shared with him.

“Jessica?” Brady waved her over to his desk. “You need to sign our marriage license.”

Judge Wilson explained, “I backdated it fourteen days ago, and that is when I will say I married you if asked. Since I have thirty days to file it after the ceremony, no one will question the fact I was too busy to do it until now.”

“I really appreciate this,” Brady said. He jerked his chin in Jessica’s direction. “ We appreciate this.”

She stared at the judge and wondered why he looked so familiar. Maybe she’d seen his face on the news. No. That didn’t seem right. A faint niggling in the back of her mind pushed at her to remember. She’d seen his face more than once. Recently. She was sure of it.

The judge told them, “I have someone who owes me his life working in the county clerk’s office. He’ll make sure every legal paper he has states you got this license weeks ago.”

Brady clapped the judge on the back. “Sounds good. Let me know if you need anything.”

“I owe you,” Judge Wilson said. “If it wasn’t for you…”

“Consider us even,” Brady said.

The judge gave them both a stern look. “Keep in mind I will lose my job if anyone finds out about this. It could mean a large fine or prison time, so keep your mouths shut. Forever. I married you two weeks ago. Got it?”

They both nodded.

Jessica wanted to ask what Brady did to warrant such a huge risk, but she didn’t. Since the man had done them a huge favor, she wasn’t going to question it. She placed her hand on the judge’s arm. “Thank you so much. I would die if I lost my son.”

“I understand,” the judge said with moistened eyes. “Believe me. I get it. A parent will do anything for their children.”

“I know I would,” she said.

“I looked into the case,” Judge Wilson said. “Your ex has been on good behavior for about a year, but before that he was a real piece of work. The fact he didn’t pay child support or visit your son before this summer speaks volumes.”

“I wish you could be the judge presiding over our case,” she said. “You can’t, can you?”

Judge Wilson shook his head. “Sorry. I don’t do family law. Wish I did. It would have been safer for me to do that than to backdate a marriage license.” He held a finger to his lips. “Remember, not a word to anyone.”

They both nodded once again in full agreement.

Brady slid an arm around her waist. “As soon as I can, I’m going to find out why that man suddenly wants custody of a boy he refused to acknowledge until this summer.”

“Good idea,” Judge Wilson said. “I’ll call you after I file the paperwork. There shouldn’t be a problem, considering I am well-respected and haven’t done anything untoward... until now.”

Brady walked him and the two witnesses to the door while assuring them he would be discreet. As long as everyone kept their mouths shut, there shouldn’t be a problem. Jessica wished she believed that. She had a bad feeling Randy and his lawyer wouldn’t take their marriage at face value.

She heard the front door close behind their three co-conspirators, and everything in her itched to make a run for it.

She wanted to dash out the terrace doors and run away before Brady looked too closely at her.

He was too perceptive for her own good. She didn’t want him to see how much the wedding had affected her.

Feeling suddenly cold, she wrapped her arms around herself and stared out a window at the swimming pool. The shimmering water beckoned to her. She longed to go wild, strip off her clothes and jump into the deep end. At least he wouldn’t be able to question her there.

Footsteps headed her way.

“Well, that’s done,” he said behind her.

Turning into a human whirlwind, she raced across the room to grab her keys and purse. “I have to pick up Axl.”

She heard him call out after her. “Isn’t Bridget bringing him home?”

Pretending not to hear, she slammed out of the house and hurried to her car.

She needed alone time. Maybe she could gather her wits if she had a moment to think.

Mixed up, twisted, and all over the place, her emotions threatened to overwhelm her.

She didn’t want to fall apart in front of her new husband.

∞∞∞

After tucking her son in for the night and answering a million questions on their sudden move to the huge house, Jessica went in search of her new husband.

She’d kept her answers to Axl as vague as possible.

There was no mention of marriage or an upcoming custody battle.

As far as he was concerned, Brady wanted them to keep him company for a while because he was lonely.

She searched the place for Brady, worried he might already be regretting his decision to marry her.

If she didn’t reassure him soon she wouldn’t try to make it a real marriage, he might flip out and do something drastic.

Brady was a wild tiger who needed freedom to survive.

She understood. Now he needed to understand what was at risk if he freaked out on her.

Barefoot, she walked from room to room, only to find them empty.

Her feet padded across the polished hardwood floor, moving from the spacious living area to the luxurious kitchen and to the master bedroom after that.

She froze for a moment in the doorway of her new room and stared at the huge bed.

Although she had slept with Brady for two straight weeks, the thought of sharing the bed with him every night made her stomach muscles clench. It was too intimate. Too final.

When she realized he wasn’t inside the house, she went out the terrace doors.

Lights illuminated the swimming pool, and the beauty reflected against the home’s stucco exterior.

She found Brady in the adjoining hot tub.

With his head resting on the back and his eyes closed, he looked like he might be asleep.

Steam rose off the heated water like an illusion. Poetic and ironic. She felt like she was living the illusion. How could any of this be real?

She hesitated and almost turned back, not wanting to disturb him.

He opened his eyes and looked straight at her as if he’d known she was there the whole time. “Is Axl settled in?”