Page 18 of Improper Proposal
My pulse jumps in my throat, a little taken back by that. “Why would you think that?”
“From experience.”
He looks down, and I get the sense that he has a hard time trusting. Has he been hurt? Some social climbing woman wanting him for his money and stature? Or maybe he’s seen his family get hurt and won’t open himself up to it. Either way, who am I to judge? I try to keep men at an emotional distance, as well.
“How were you going to prove it?” I ask.
“By seducing you. I figured if you were in love with George, then you wouldn’t have sex with me.”
My stomach knots, and I swallow hard. Here I thought we had a connection, a sexual pull so strong that it had us acting on our urges despite the consequences. Could I have been so wrong? Then again, I’ve been wrong about a lot of things so far this week.
“So that’s why we were intimate,” I say. “You were testing me?”
“Jesus, no,” he says, his words rushed. “You’re beautiful, Harper. I wanted you from the second I met you, and I couldn’t help myself. It happened because my brain wasn’t working. I’d never do anything to hurt George.”
Relief moves through me. “I wanted you from the second I met you, too,” I admit, then shake my head at all the confusion. “What a pair we make.” I wring my hands together. “I have to come clean and tell your family. I just need to find the right moment.”
“Agreed.” He scrubs his chin, looking off into the distance. “How about this? I’ll keep your secret for as long as you need me to, on one condition.”
“Oh, what might that be?”
He grins is slow, like the devil’s himself when he says, “We go for epic again…and again.”
My pulse speeds up. “Blackmail?”
“More like an improper proposal.”
Chapter Six
Harper
I had so much fun at the wax museum, and seeing another side of Will as he relaxed and mimicked the poses was hilarious. There are so many sides to him, and so far, I have to say, I like every one of them.
With the dinner dishes cleared and everyone lounging in front of the massive hearth and chatting as they put together puzzles, I stand and stretch, my muscles sore, probably from hitting the ground with a thud when I slid off Buttercup.
“I think I’m still jet-lagged,” I say as I move toward the fire. I put my hands in front of the hearth and absorb the heat. It’s so cozy, I’d like to stay here and laugh with this family a little longer, but the truth is I’m tired, and if I hang around them any longer, I’ll never gather the courage to tell them who I really am. They deserve that from me, but not only do I not want to hurt them, there is a part of me that wants to bask in their love and camaraderie a little longer.
After a round of good-nights, I climb the long staircase to my room, and when laughter reaches me from below, my heart misses a beat. I know I’m on the wrong adventure, and I need to get out of here, but it’s difficult considering it’s the adventure I want, dammit. I like this family, and as much as I said it nauseated me to be hugged and kissed, that was a flat-out lie. Eating around the table, working in the garden, tomorrow’s big family Sunday dinner. I want to take it all in, just for a while. I know it’s wrong, and I keep trying to leave, but every time I do, I get sucked back in. But I allow them to suck me back in.
Oh, and why is that, Harper?
Because it took me all of ten minutes to fall for them—for Will.
God, I am so screwed.
I make my way to my room and glance at all the pictures on the wall again. If George’s surprise was a girl, I hope she’s not a gold digger—a conclusion Will may automatically draw. It’s a shame he’s so jaded, because there is a part of me that wishes fairy-tale love really did exist, and that his cousin finds the happiness everyone deserves. Not that I ever expect to find myself in such a situation.
After all the men who walked out of my mom’s life—mine, too—I’m just as jaded as Will. What a pair we make. While neither of us believes in happily ever after, and are both realists, we’re quite compatible in the bedroom. Then again, we had fun outside of it during horseback riding and the wax museum.
Maybe we could have fun back in New York, too.
Don’t go there, Harper.
Don’t think there is more going on here than sex. He’s not looking for more. Which is good because I’m not either. Besides, I’ve dealt with enough rich men at work to know they play by their own rules to get what they want. I’m just girl from Brooklyn, one who worked her ass off to get where she is. Nothing was handed to me, nothing taken for granted. They’ll all likely think I’m a gold digger when the truth comes out, and that makes it so much harder for me to confess.
I quietly close my door and walk to the fire burning in the bedroom hearth. So comfy. I hug myself and smile, despite the situation I’m in. No wonder Will comes back often. It’s not a place I’d like to live, but I sure wouldn’t mind visiting once in a while.
I spin at the noise behind me, the opening of the bathroom door. Will stands there, hands in his pockets, looking so sexy my thighs quiver.
