Chapter 160
We said so.
He does not greet anyone at first. He walks straight to the table, tying his tie as he gives me a nod. “Ellie.”
“Dominic-”
He approaches my chair.. Fast.
I stiffen right as a thick packet of documents is tossed down front of me.
Paperwork. In a official looking folder.
I eyed it, then tilt my head to him.
“If you decided to add more to your side our agreement, sorry to say, we already signed.”
He leaned down over me, brow raised. “If I had wanted something, I don’t need a document to get it.” His finger tapped the folder. “This is everything needed to reopen your mother’s case once we are legally married,” he says.
I stare at the stack, my eyes slowly widening.
“Also, you’re unfairly distracting today,” he murmurs, plucking an apple slice without asking. “I hope you know that.”
“You…” I start, ignoring his comment. “You did all this? It hasn’t even been a day.”
He shrugs slightly. “It is not complicated when you know who to call. Besides, you’re mother will be be family soon enough.”
Power.
What a perk.
I swallow, suddenly very aware of how close he is standing. Close enough that I can feel the warmth radiating from him, that the faint scent of cedar curls into my lungs.
I tilt my head up so I can meet his eyes properly. “Thank you. Really.”
The words come out softer than I intended.
He holds my gaze. His chewing pauses.
For a long second, neither of us moves. His gaze drops to the curve of my mouth before returning to my eyes.
Im not sure what i was wishing happened, but I feel a slightly burn when he steps back from the table, the warmth turned a chill.
“I have meetings,” he says. “You should visit your mother soon. Let her know she will be out.”
My heart tightens at that, hands squeezing in my lap.
“She will not believe it until she sees the paperwork,” I murmur. “Besides, she’ll know I did something to get her free…I’ll have to-”
“Tell her we’re engaged?”
I expected a hint of irritation from him at my hesistance, but when I looked up, he was smirking.
“She’ll find out eventually. Why not today?”
“Because maybe I just need a minute,” I say, propping my cheek on my hand. “This is… a lot. I haven’t even wrapped my head around it yet, let alone figured out how to explain it to my mom.”
“She’ll be ecstatic for you” he murmurs.
1/3
+30 Bonus
Then he leans down.
I barely have time to process it before his lips brush my check.
The contact is light.
But the effect is not.
Heat spreads through my body almost instantly. The light nausea that has been lingering since this morning loosens even
further.
My body snaps away after a moment, shooting him a look sharply. “The contract.”
He tilts his head. “But you feel better, right?”
There is a small smile at the corner of his mouth.
I can feel my face heating. Why does he have to look so…like that.
“We agreed,” I press, pushing his face away. “No unnecessary contact.”
He does not look guilty. He looks calm, grinning as he lets me.
“It’s not unnecessary. Affection stabilizes your condition when we are apart,” he says evenly. “It is practical.”
Practical.
He takes my hand from his cheek and squeezes it.
After a moment. Or two.
I nod stiffly, but yank my hand away.
“Fine. Practical it is.”
Duh.
“Visit your mother,” he says with a grin. “Or maybe do a practice round on someone who won’t cry or interrogate you.”
“That doesn’t leave many,” I grumbled.
Then he leaves with a nod, servants trailing him with questions for the day.
I stay there, watching him walk away.
My cheek still tingles where he kissed me.
He looks different. Broader somehow. Taller. Like he grew into himself overnight. We’re still young, technically, but he doesn’t feel it anymore.
It’s strange. I know him. I’ve known him. And yet this version of him feels unfamiliar. Like he finally caught up to the role he’s always been meant to play. One he never really did in our past life.
My gaze peels from the wall and I pull my phone from my skirt.
“Hey, can you… Yeah. Yeah….I know. I’ll explain. But maybe you should…come over”
2/3
+30 Bonus
