Page 68 of RAKEish

“My hope is if I bring you home and tell Father you’re my I’ll-give-up-everything-for-her person, he’ll not force me to go through with the arranged marriage.”

She sniffed again. “But if the king says no, you won’t actually give up everything for me. Correct?”

He reluctantly shook his head thinking of his friend sitting in prison. An explanation sat on the tip of his tongue, but Rose’s plea for him to keep her and Mark’s love a secret, prevented him from giving one. Mildred never made a threat she wasn’t willing to keep.

“That’s what I thought.” Lux jerked away from his touch.

“Not because I don’t want to,” he added quickly. “But because there are other factors I must take into consideration. Why don’t we take a walk, and I can try to explain better.”

She shook her head forcibly. “Not necessary. You see, I get it,” she said. “I really do. You know why I do? Because there are things I also must take into consideration as well. Which is why I asked to meet with you tonight.” She opened her purse and pulled out a wrapped pastry and pushed it toward him.

“What is this?”

“It’s the antidote to your curse. Eat it, and your heart will be freed from its bondage.”

Her words caused his head to spin. “I don’t understand.”

“Ms. Birdie told me about your curse and recruited my help to break it.”

“Why would she involve you when she damn well knows…”

“Knows that the woman who brings the antidote must be in love with you,” Doc said when he sputtered to a stop. “And the woman must give you the antidote while knowing that by giving it, she will never receive your love in return.”

“Then you do love me?” Joy swept through him. He wasn’t the only one feeling the strong connection between them. “You’re crazy if you think I’m going to consume the antidote knowing you love me. Mother and Father were happy even without the antidote—we can be as well.”

“Scott, while I admit you own a small section of my heart, let me be clear as to why I’m choosing to give you the antidote,” she said in her Dr. Stone voice. One all business. “You see, by doing so, I know it guarantees you won’t love me back. And that’s what I desire.”

“You want me rendered forever incapable of loving you?” He was so confused.

“Yes. That way, I won’t have to worry about doing something stupid—like lowering my standards when it comes to the type of man I want to spend the rest of my life with.”

Pain ripped through him like a white-hot poker to the heart. “That makes no fucking sense. You love me, but you don’t want me? Is it because of Rose? Because I’ve told you—”

“It’s because you’re not the right man for me,” Doc said coldly.

Trying to find the calm he needed, he exhaled hard, but didn’t succeed. Too many emotions were detonating inside of him. Anger, fear, hurt, more fear. “You seriously don’t want my heart, because I don’t meet your preconceived notions of the perfect man? Bloody hell, if it means that much to you, I’ll start wearing corduroy jackets and attending lectures on college campuses.”

“It’s more than that.” Her lips trembled, and she bit down on them.

He reached for her hands again. “Doc, please—”

She yanked her hands away. “You’re not the type of man who will ever be happy with just one woman. It’s not in your DNA. I know that. You know that.”

“I know nothing of the sort, and you know nothing about me as a boyfriend. All you know about me is what Naked Runway has allowed you to know.”

She scowled. “What does that mean?”

“It means I’m under a nondisclosure clause with them. I’ve not been allowed to mention my bride in waiting—”

“That’s a very convenient NDA.”

“And my contract with Naked Runway requires me to date a different woman every week.”

“In other words, between your NDA and your contract, you were given a license to be a serial dater. Always the flirt, never the deep stuff. Eat the damn cookie, already.”

He thrust the love knot back at her. “I don’t want this. I want to love you even if you don’t want to love me back.”

She shook her head. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. When I leave here tonight, I’m walking away from you forever. I’ll go on remaining rake-dates per our agreement with Frankie, and then I’ll never look back at this episode in my life.”

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