Chapter 18

I sigh as I glance over the wedding plans Celeste sent me. I refused to engage in any of the planning, but I did make one request — to hold the wedding right at the centre of the elaborate maze at my family’s estate, with no one but our closest family present. It’s bound to piss Xavier off when he finds out, and that’ll just make my day. Apparently, he gave us free rein to do whatever we want, and my sisters-in-law are doing all they can to romanticize it, none of them willing to admit that he cares even less than I do.

I look up in surprise when Graham walks into my office, and he sighs as he approaches my desk. “Did you forget about our resource allocation meeting?”

“I’m so sorry,” I tell him, quickly clicking away all the wedding stuff before I rise from my seat. “It completely slipped my mind!”

Our project hasn’t been high on my list of priorities, not in light of the hospital appointments I’ve attended with Grandma, and my upcoming wedding. I bite down on my lip as I glance at my office door, my heart beating a little faster at the thought of seeing Xavier again, even if it’s only for a business meeting I’d forgotten about entirely. Since we signed our contract with Lena we only have a meeting once a month, so I haven’t seen him since we last discussed our marriage in his office, and I’m not too sure what to expect now that we’re technically engaged.

“What’s wrong?” Graham asks, reaching for me. He gently pushes my hair behind my ear, and I instantly feel guilty, my mind replaying the lies I threw at Xavier in anger. Don’t pretend you’re actually going to stay away from Valeria, and I won’t pretend I’ll stay away from Graham. I don’t even know why I said it, when there’s absolutely nothing but friendship between Graham and me. I suppose I did it to get on his nerves, and to make myself feel a little less pathetic.

“Nothing is wrong,” I lie. Graham cups my cheek, and I lean into his touch. I need to tell him, but I don’t know how. I can barely believe I’ll have to marry Xavier Kingston, and acknowledging it feels impossible.

“How do I make it better?” he asks, his voice soft. Graham and I have been hanging out a bit more frequently, and it’s been so refreshing to have a friend that isn’t also one of my family members. He looks at me like he really sees me, and I need it now more than ever before. He’s unlike Xavier, who reserves all his chivalry for Valeria, never extending so much as a kind word to me.

Just as I’m about to answer, my office door opens, and Xavier walks in. He tenses when he catches sight of us, and Graham reluctantly pulls his hand back. For a few moments, Xavier and I just stare at each other, neither of us quite sure how to act around each other now.

I take a step away from Graham and gesture toward the sofa in the corner of my office. “Let’s get started.” I sigh and run a hand through my hair, annoyed with myself for forgetting about this meeting. I’d remembered, I could’ve just cancelled it. I’m not ready to be in the same space as Xavier, especially not with the lies I told standing between us.

I’m nervous as I sit down, and he doesn’t hesitate to take the seat next to me. His thigh presses against mine, the hand on his knee brushing against the hem of my pencil skirt. I shift away a little, but he just moves with me, ensuring our bodies are pressed against each other no matter what I do.

“We’ve already agreed to equally split the budget three ways, but we need to determine what each firm’s strengths are, to ensure we capitalize on synergies between our companies,” I tell them, hoping to just get this meeting over and done with. I can just tell that Xavier is itching to get on my nerves, and I’m not going to give him any opportunity to do so.

Xavier barely says a word as Graham and I begin to assign different parts of the project to our own firms, and I can’t help but wonder what he’s thinking about.

I’ve spent the last few days analyzing everything he’s said to me, noting how often he’s contradicted himself. One second he’s telling me that he isn’t romantically involved with anyone, and the next he’s showing me that his words are a lie. For years, I’ve witnessed him catering to Valeria, going as far as carrying her out after long nights because her feet seemed to hurt. He’s carefully kept her out of the media and by his side, protecting her from the gossip and slander my family and I are often subjected to. He clearly cares about her, so why is he marrying me?

“You both seem distracted tonight,” Graham remarks. “What are your thoughts on this allocation?”

“I apologize,” Xavier says, running a hand through his hair. “Can we reschedule? I don’t think either Sierra or I will be able to focus tonight. There is something else she and I need to discuss privately first.”

“Privately?” Graham repeats, a hint of irritation in his eyes.

I sigh and rise to my feet. “He’s right, Graham. I’m sorry. Can we reconvene early next week?”

He looks between the two of us, confusion written all over his face. “I— yeah. Sure. Of course.” He stares at me for a few moments, and I throw him an apologetic look, unsure how to explain. Graham sighs before walking out reluctantly, and my shoulders sag in relief when the door falls closed behind him.

“What was that?” Xavier asks.

I turn my back to him, but he grabs my wrist and pulls me onto his lap. I gasp and straighten in his embrace, but my protests die on the tip of my tongue when I see the look in his eyes. “What did I walk in on, Sierra? Why the fuck was he touching your face like that?”

I place my hand against his chest, his heart beating wildly against my palm. “It was nothing,” I promise him, my voice not as confident as I’d have liked it to be.

He cups my face, his thumb swiping over the part Graham touched, almost like he believes it’ll brush away any remnant of his touch. “Maybe I haven’t been clear enough,” he says, his voice soft. “You’re mine, Sierra Windsor. You can avoid me all you want, but there’s no avoiding this marriage. I’m being as patient as I can be, Kitten, but you crossed a line today. You never should’ve let him touch you at all.”

He forces me to face him, and I’m captivated by his tumultuous dark eyes. “Maybe keeping up this act for our families won’t be that hard after all. You almost had me fooled, Xavier.”

“You were born to frustrate the fuck out of me, weren’t you?” he asks, his voice pained.

I smirk and slide my hand up his chest, around the back of his neck. “Yes,” I whisper. “You really should think twice before making me your wife. I won’t mind if you leave me at the altar.”

He chuckles, the sound husky. “You have no idea just how many times I’ve thought about it,” he whispers, his gaze roaming over my face. “No clue at all.”