Page 4 of Promised Vows

Anger burned in my chest. The audacity to think he could command me to marry a man I didn’t even know. “I don’t have a say in this, do I?”

“No.” He inhaled and exhaled slowly. “Good luck with your audition tomorrow, Anna.”

“Wait. You were aware of my audition?” He made no sense. How could be so indifferent, and at the same time, keep track of me? He had to be one of the most frustrating men I’d ever met. The guy in the cab was now a solid second place, maybe third. My boss was a complete horse’s rear, so it was a toss-up.

He looked at me, his eyebrows knitted together. “You’re my little sister. Of course, I keep an eye on you.” He tipped his head toward the door. “If you need a car, stop by Cora’s desk, and tell her. She’ll make it happen. Shut the door on your way out, please.”

Bam, the conversation was over. I’d seen my father do that to people, including Jason, more than once. Guess he’d been an A-plus student.

I seethed as I marched out of his stupid office and slammed the door. His secretary let out a scream and jumped, glaring at me as I stalked to the elevator. Yeah, right now, I don’t like you either, honey.

Shoving the front door open, I stepped outside and even the blustery air couldn’t chill the heat coursing through my veins. The nerve. The sheer arrogance to think that I’d happily go along with this.

Unless I could frustrate that Ari Kalantzis guy to the point he’d run screaming, the marriage was happening. I hated it, and to most, running would be an option. But it wasn’t an option for me. It’d been ingrained in me from a very young age that my father was the boss, and what the boss decreed was law. That power had transferred to Jason. He declared I was getting married and that was all there was to it.

Taking a deep breath, I held it to the count of three, and let it out. It was a calming technique my yoga instructor taught me. Reason returned. There was nothing I could do about it tonight. I didn’t have Ari’s number, and even if I did, I needed to prepare what I was going to say without sounding like a petulant teenager. He didn’t want to marry me any more than I wanted to marry him. By the time he called, I’d have something prepared that would get us both off the hook.

Chapter Two

ARI

I had the cab circle the block and drop me at the same location where my soon-to-be bride, Anna Georgiou, was dropped off a few moments earlier. Right in the middle of West Loop, and maybe twelve blocks from her apartment located near the Riverwalk.

My phone chimed and I pulled it from my pocket. “Ari.”

“Hello, Ari. Anna was informed of our arrangement last night,” her brother, Jason, said.

Yeah, I’d guessed that when she exited the guy’s building the night before. Once I knew my fate, I’d checked out the future Mrs. Kalantzis to get a read on her before I introduced myself. I didn’t realize she would hail a cab, nor did I put much thought into telling the cabby to stop for her.

The second she’d plopped down next to me and tossed her dark blonde hair back, I knew I was in trouble. Her sweet scent had collided with my senses, and it’d taken me a second to get my thoughts together. I’d felt her hazel eyes on me. They had traveled from my head to my feet and back up.

Then it was my turn, only I was far more subtle. I’d raked my gaze down her form when she wasn’t looking, and man, she was stunning. I’d seen pictures and knew she was attractive. But photos had failed to capture how beautiful she was. Her heart-shaped face, perky nose, and pale pink lips, shaped like Cupid's bow, made it no surprise that she was a model.

Finding out she was twenty-two caught me a little off guard. I’d done a little research before offering myself up and thought our age difference was closer to three years, not eight.

I’d caught her staring at me. Her deer-in-headlights look lasted a fraction of a second before she’d unabashedly answered yes. The offer to introduce me to people so I could land an audition was comical. I’m not unattractive, but I could say with complete confidence that was a line I’d never heard before.

She was sassy too. To my detriment, I loved mouthy women. I wanted a woman who would challenge me. One who would push me to be a better man. Someone willing to put up a fight, and the bedroom make-up frolic that would inevitably happen once the argument was over.

She’d paused with the door slightly ajar, and I knew she was waiting for me to ask for her number. There was no way a woman as hot as her didn’t get loads of requests, which was why I didn’t ask.

I wasn’t giving her my name either. At least, not in the cab. I could see her launching herself at me, teeth bared and claws out. Once she knew who I was, the fight would be on, and I suspected she was far more spirited than that small vehicle would accommodate. That little huff and near-slam of the cab door was amusing.

“Good. Did it go well?” I wouldn’t tell Jason that I’d been following his little sister since last night. We weren’t family yet, and I didn’t need our tentative alliance jeopardized by my curiosity.

I crossed the courtyard, ducking behind one of the tall shrubs framing the entrance of the building Anna entered seconds before. I didn’t like being out in the open. Not when my family was on Franklin Benoit’s radar. At the moment, with him and his daughter mucking around in my family, I wasn’t taking any chances.

Franklin, that repugnant short Frenchman, was responsible for my baby sister’s death. We’d lost Gianna and my dad within weeks of each other. Shortly after Gianna was found by a pier near Lake Michigan, Dad was stabbed in front of a convenience store. With the way it happened, my theory was that Dad had proof of Franklin’s involvement and he’d been murdered. To this day, I didn’t understand why he’d gone alone, and I guessed I never would.

Jason grunted a mirthless laugh. “Hardly. Listen, Anna can be a handful, okay? Give her a second to get used to the idea.”

She wasn’t the only one who needed to adjust to the thought of holy matrimony, but I’d volunteered. She might take a minute to swallow since she’d had it foisted on her, so I’d be as understanding as I could. “Yeah, I think we’ll both need a second.”

“I’ll text you her number and leave the rest up to you.”

“Thanks.” I already had it, but again, that was information he didn’t need. I ended the call, stepped out from my temporary shield, and headed to the coffee shop to park myself inside until Anna reemerged.

I’d barely ordered my coffee when my phone chimed. It was my brother Dimitris. “Yeah?” I took a sip of my drink.

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