Bought Bride Read online

  When he began to plead like that—and he’d shown her proof of his father’s desires, his final letter, which detailed all the problems he saw within his own company, and also the fear of what would happen to it if Rafe didn’t win it—she finally caved. Pleading did not look good on him.

  Finally, resting her hands on his shoulders, she tilted her head to the side and offered him her best, most winning smile.

  Did she hear him gasp?

  She did as he squeezed her ass.

  ****

  Holy shit!

  That smile.

  Rafe watched as her teeth sank into her lip, and her entire face just seemed to change. There was a brightness that simply took his breath away. She didn’t have any frown lines or worries at all as she smiled at him. He couldn’t resist squeezing her plump ass.

  Ever since she’d moved in with him, he’d found a huge fascination with her ass. In fact, he rather liked her curves, especially as she’d been bought clothes that actually enhanced the roundness of her stomach, hips, and ass, while also showing off her waist. She had the classic hourglass figure, and he loved it.

  He’d been wanting to get his hands on her body for some time, and held himself back as he knew she didn’t trust him. Not that he blamed her. He was trying to deceive the entire board, but it was all for a good cause.

  That smile though.

  Fuck.

  It had his cock hard as fucking rock. He wanted to bend her over the desk and show her exactly how much he wanted to make her his wife after that tender smile.

  “See, that isn’t so bad now, is it?” he asked.

  “No, I guess not.”

  He leaned in forward, and she jerked back.

  “What are you doing?”

  “I’m going to kiss you.”

  She quickly turned his head and pecked him on the cheek. “There, we don’t have to kiss in public.”

  Sinking his fingers into the plush length of her hair, he slammed his lips down on hers, and silenced any protest out of her. Flicking his tongue across her lips, he released a little moan as she gasped, and he plunged inside, taking advantage. Closing his eyes, he enjoyed every second of her lips on his, and didn’t want it to end.

  Running his other hand down her back, he cupped her ass and pulled her forward. Her hands moved from his shoulders, up around his neck, and teased the strands at the back of his neck.

  Feeling her curvy body against him, all he wanted to do was rid them both of their clothes and finally feel her naked.

  They hadn’t consummated the marriage, but he wanted to.

  She didn’t know the other clause within the marriage about needing a child, but he’d hoped to win her over to his side by then, to have her in his bed, at his mercy for the rest of their lives.

  The sound of the intercom forced them apart, and he cursed the damn machine. His secretary alerted him that the board was waiting for him.

  He sighed. “Are you ready for this?”

  Her lips were slightly swollen. “Yes.”

  “They’re going to be evil.”

  “You’ve already told me the speech about them being wolves, and I’ve got to be the lamb with a spine, or something like that.”

  “You’ve got to stick up for yourself. I’ll be there.”

  “You want me to fake it through the meeting and show them that I am totally, one hundred percent in love with you. I’ve told you, I will try.”

  He took her hand, and together they left the room.

  In the past couple of years, he’d not been the party animal he once was. Prior to his father’s death, he’d had a new woman in his bed every single night, sometime two or three. Come morning, he’d kick them out, and they’d be moaning about his treatment of them. He’d not given a shit about anyone or anything. All he’d cared about was the next party he would attend, the women he’d fuck, and the money he’d spend.

  He’d been born into riches, knowing he’d take his father’s place when the time was right.

  When his father became ill, Rafe had gotten a reality check. The whoring around, the partying; it had to stop. His father had begged him to take back what was rightfully his, and he’d also learned of his mother’s schemes behind his back. She’d abandoned him during his time of need, and proved everyone right. From the beginning, Mrs. Shawl had been described as a gold-digging bitch. For years she’d had everyone fooled, even his father. The moment he fell ill, she’d forced her way into the company, and now, Rafe was going to honor his father, take what was his, and he wouldn’t go down without a fight.

  He held onto Ellis’s hand as they both entered the boardroom. Mostly men, with two women, one being his mother, sat around a large table. Standing in the doorway, with Ellis out of the line of sight, he thought of his father and all that he’d achieved.

  Seeing the smug smiles on their faces, he gave them one of his own, and then revealed the woman at his side. His wife.

  “I’m so sorry that I kept you waiting, but now that you’re all here, I can introduce you to this very special lady.” He placed a hand on her hip, and she didn’t even flinch. In fact, Ellis turned toward him, and once again he was struck by her amazing smile. It did things to him that no woman ever had before. “This is Ellis. My wife.”

  There was a gasp around the table.

  Ellis placed a hand on his chest and rested her head against his shoulder.

  “This is outrageous,” his mother said, standing up.

  “How come we’ve never heard about her before?” one of the board asked.

  “It was like out of a fairy tale,” Ellis said. “Over spilled coffee, I think.”

  “Then a conversation. Let’s not forget that.”

  “And then one date led into another.” Ellis sighed. “And before we knew where we were, we’d gotten married.” She held her hand out for them to see not only his engagement ring, but also the ring that his father had given him. The ring that belonged on a true Shawl wife, and not a gold-digging bitch.

  He stared at his mother.

  Let the games begin, bitch!

  Chapter Three

  Ellis couldn’t recall ever meeting such horrible people before in her life. The board had been brutal, firing questions all at once. They’d demanded to know everything, and only with Rafe’s arm around her had she been able to play her part. In fact, seeing all those men, the greed in their gaze, it had made her role so much easier to play, as she wanted him to win.

  When his mother spoke, he’d stroked her thigh, letting her know exactly who the woman was. He’d told her that was what he’d do, and the woman before her didn’t show any maternal instincts. All she’d shown was her anger at the fact the company was being taken away from her.

  After their constant arguing, questions, and threats, Rafe ordered a chair for her, to sit by his side.

  She’d done exactly as he said, taking a seat and watching as each man and the two women glared at her. All of her life, from playschool to high school, she was used to men and women alike glaring at her. They didn’t hold a patch on teenagers.

  The meeting had gone ahead, with questions designed to stump Rafe.

  Rubbing cream into her skin, she stared at her reflection and thought about the man in the other room.

  She didn’t want him to fail, or to be seen as a mockery, and now had decided to make sure that he succeeded. Five years was nothing, so long as they didn’t get Rafe’s company. She’d dressed in a pair of pajamas, and she made her way outside to see takeout was already waiting for her. Taking a seat on the large sofa, she watched her husband pace the room as he spoke on his phone.

  Using the available chopsticks, she slurped up the noodles, waiting for him to be done.

  After what felt like a lifetime, he finally hung up.

  “Is everything okay?”

  “Yes. They’re doing some digging into your background.” He took a seat beside her.

  “They won’t find anything. If anything, it’ll make them wonder what you
see in me.”

  “Let them wonder. I don’t give a flying fuck what they think.” He took one of the cartons, opening it up and eating.

  “We did well today, I think.”

  “Yeah, we did.”

  “I’m sorry your mother is a total bitch,” she said.

  He started laughing, leaning back and watching her. “You did good. Better than good. You were extraordinary.”

  “If I wasn’t enjoying this food so much, I’d give you a bow.” Instead, she offered him a wink. “Will it always be like that?”

  “I’m afraid it will be that way every single week. I’m going to keep you by my side.”

  “That was what I was going to ask you about. Is it really necessary for me to be there all the time? No one keeps their wife next to them like that.”

  “I know, but I also don’t want to leave any room for doubt. We’ve only just known each other, so I’m trying to help create that air of love that we both have. I also don’t want you alone. My mother can be a very manipulative bitch.”

  “Okay, fine.”

  “It was my father who suggested it,” Rafe said.

  “Your dad suggested that you keep your wife by your side at all times?” she asked.

  “Yep. He said it’s the only way of knowing she’s not going to step out on you.”

  She saw the sadness in his eyes. “You miss him, don’t you?”

  “I wasted a lot of time because I thought he’d be alive forever, and guess what, he died.”

  “I’m so sorry.”

  “Yeah, I just wish I could get some time back, you know?”

  “I get it. I do. You can’t feel guilty for what happened though. There’s no way for you to change it.” She reached out, taking his hand.

  “I can’t stop thinking about what I’d have been able to do if I’d been there to pay attention. If Mom hadn’t just shoved him to one side when he became too ill. It just … pisses me the fuck off that she was exactly what people claimed. A money-hungry whore.”

  She put her food down, and then hugged him tightly.

  He held her close, and she rested her head against him. “We can do this, Rafe.”

  “I need you, Ellis. I know it’s a lot to ask, and I know you’re really just a stranger, and this doesn’t matter to you at all. But I really do need you.”

  Looking up at him, she sighed, rolling her eyes. “You’ve got me, Rafe. Wow, how cliché does that sound?” she asked, chuckling.

  He stroked her cheek. “You know, running into you that day was pure luck.”

  “Yes, for you. Not so for me.”

  “What job were you going for?” he asked.

  “It was for secretary work at a lawyer’s office. They paid good money, and I hoped that my brains would be more appealing than someone who didn’t know what they were doing,” she said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I’d been out of work for a few weeks. Every interview I went on, I could guarantee the perky blonde or the slimmer brunette always got the job. I know that because I’d visit them a week later, and ta-da, they were in that role.” She shrugged. “I guess in a way this was a great deal of luck for me as well.”

  “I’d see it that way.” He stroked her cheek, and she bit her lip, staring up at him.

  Rafe was a handsome man, but she also knew that if it wasn’t for her job description, he wouldn’t even look twice at her.

  “Thank you for the food. I’m going to go and get some sleep.” She reluctantly pulled away, and made her way toward her room.

  “Ellis,” he said.

  She stopped and turned toward him.

  “Thank you for all this.”

  “You’re welcome.” She offered him another smile and left.

  ****

  Time passed, and Rafe’s life didn’t get any easier. He knew his mother had hired a PI as his own had alerted him to one following him. What he didn’t like was if the guy tailing him decided to break into his home or his apartment, finding the evidence that his mother needed.

  “I need you to move into my room,” he said, opening Ellis’s bedroom door. She sat up in bed, reading a book.

  “Where has this come from?”

  “My mother has a man investigating us.”

  “And?” Ellis asked.

  She looked so sexy sitting in bed, reading a romance book. He’d caught a glimpse of the semi-naked man on the front.

  “And I know, as I have my own PI, exactly the lengths they’d go to.” He moved toward her wardrobe. “I know this wasn’t part of the deal, but my mother’s plan is to take my father’s place, and I can’t risk it.” He picked up her clothes and made his way toward his own room, opening the large closet and finding the empty space for all of her stuff.

  “You don’t think this is going too far?” she asked, standing in his doorway. She wore a pair of rabbit pajamas, which exposed her calves. She seemed to love them so much, and had requested several sets.

  Not that he blamed her. With tits and ass like she had, he’d have been unable to resist her in more revealing lingerie.

  “Nope. This is not going too far.” He kept making the trek from his bedroom to hers and back again. Somewhere between the second visit, Ellis began to help him, humming as she did.

  They’d been together now for nearly a month, and what she didn’t know was that they were going to have to attend their first ball next week. The invitation had landed on his desk on Monday. He’d wanted to wait until the time was right to tell her, but there never was a great time.

  Once all of her bedroom had been moved into his room, they both stopped at the bottom of his bed, staring at it.

  “I sleep this side,” she said, pointing to her left.

  “I sleep this side.” He pointed to the right.

  They climbed into the bed, and Rafe felt her nerves.

  “You know, I’ve never slept with a man before,” she said.

  He turned toward her, resting his head on his hand. “You’re a virgin?”

  “No, of course not. I mean, I’ve never had a sleepover, or had a man in my bed for longer than the deed was done. Do you snore?”

  “I’ve not had any complaints,” he said.

  She sighed. “Each day I think this entire situation couldn’t get more scary or weird, and yet, that’s exactly what is happening. I’m sharing a bed with my husband, and I’m a bought bride. Purchased, really. Does that make me a whore?”

  “You’re not a whore, Ellis. To be a whore you’ve got to start accepting money from men for sex.”

  “I know what that means, but I’m accepting money to be your wife.”

  He couldn’t resist reaching out and placing his hand across her stomach. Each time he looked at her, he remembered the other clause in his father’s will, but he still didn’t say anything.

  “Can’t we just agree that you’re helping a friend out?” he asked.

  “Yes, I can. Is that what we are now, Rafe, friends?”

  “Yes.” He stroked her stomach. “There’s something I’ve got to tell you.”

  It was on the tip of his tongue to tell her about the baby, but he couldn’t do it.

  “Why am I scared all of a sudden?”

  “There’s a ball,” he said, instead.

  “A ball?”

  “Yes. They throw a summer ball every single year, and it’s just a way of the wealthy spending time together, rubbing shoulders, making business deals.”

  “And?”

  “And we’re going,” he said. “It’s going to be our first event as husband and wife.”

  “Wow.” She took several deep breaths. “You know I enjoy a simple life, right? I like reading a book, having takeout, watching a movie. How do you guys do all of this socializing?”

  “It can be fun.”

  “From everything you’ve told me, it’s more like a feast of the wolves.”

  He winced. “Yeah, it kind of is. I promise I won’t leave your side.” He moved in close, pulling her
into his arms as they lay in bed.

  “PIs, wills, gold-diggers, and now a ball. You live a soap opera.”

  He liked that she didn’t sound impressed. Her ass nestled against his dick, and he had to keep counting in his head in an attempt to not get hard, and he struggled. The feel of her body against him, damn it, just being near her had him hard.

  When he first saw her, he’d known she’d be perfect.

  She wasn’t extremely beautiful, but she was pretty. There was a kindness in her eyes, and of course, she was also desperate. A woman in need of a hero to help her, and he’d been the one to do that.

  Not once during his plan had he thought about wanting her, protecting her.

  “Are you okay, Rafe?” she asked.

  “Yes. More than fine. Why?”

  “I just realized that you’ve lost your father, and that you don’t trust your mother. You’re all alone in the world, and your father died. Did you mourn him?”

  “Yes, I did.” He’d cried late one night after one too many scotches, and he’d allowed the loss of his parent to seep into his core.

  “I find it all sad for you. You’ve got no one.”

  “Neither have you.” He’d learned that her parents had died a few years ago as well.

  “We were never close.” She snuggled against him, and he couldn’t resist kissing her neck. The scent of vanilla filled his senses, and his cock began to harden.

  He felt her soften against him as she fell asleep.

  “What have you done to me?” he asked.

  He’d had many women in his bed, but none of them had made him feel this way. He didn’t want to leave her alone, and he was starting to see this marriage as something more than an agreement. He didn’t want to let her go.

  Chapter Four

  So many people were staring at her, and Ellis felt her stomach turn as they spoke and looked toward her, only to speak again. Did they know she was a fake? Rafe hadn’t left her alone, and she stayed by his side, listening as he spoke business to three men.