Page 12 of Pursued By My Grumpy Fiancé
Hailey Dunn walks into the room, looking positively stunning. Her long chestnut hair is tied up in a high ponytail that bounces with every step. Her face is bare, and her green eyes are glittering with anger. What is it about angry women that is so incredibly attractive? They’ve gotten me in trouble more times than I can count.
“Let’s get to the point. How did you find out about my mother?” she asks.
“Hello to you as well, Ms. Dunn. You look stunning,” I chime back.
My compliment makes her self conscious, and she twirls a strand of hair around her finger. She shakes her head and makes a quick recovery.
“Don’t avoid the question. How did you find out about my mother? Who the hell do you think you are?”
With every statement, she gets a little closer, until she’s so close that I could touch her by simply putting my hand out. Her smooth cheeks are littered with freckles, something I couldn’t see through her makeup the other evening. They add to her charm, giving her a girl next door vibe.
“I had to find out about my fiancée. She left yesterday without any promise of meeting me again.” I smirk, if only to irk her more.
It seems to work, because her eyes flicker slightly.
“Look, I don’t know why you’re doing this, and I’m pretty sure it’s for your own selfish reasons, but I can’t accept it. I’ll be paying you back as soon as I start earning my lawyer wages.” She licks her lips nervously, and all I can think about is her tongue running over my body.
“As kind as that is, the money didn’t come from me. It was a generous donation from Gould Holdings, Tech Division,” I reply cooly.
“You’re kidding,” she says as her eyes bulge out of their sockets.
It’s not a very appealing look.
“Afraid not. There’s really only one thing that I want from you, Ms. Dunn, and that’s for you to be my fiancée.” I stand up and walk around my desk so that I’m standing next to her. Her heart shaped lips are so tantalizingly pink. If only I could just taste them.
She shakes her head and looks me directly in the eyes, which is something that I admire. A lot of people don’t make eye contact with me.
“I can’t do that. I’m sorry,” she says.
“Why not?” I say as my frustration seeps through. “Do you want more money? Because I can do that.”
“I don’t want your money!” she shouts suddenly.
“Well, what do you want?” I say, leaning down closer to her.
“I want you to leave me the hell alone!” she says as she shoves her hands against me.
It doesn’t do anything. “You can have any woman you want. You probably have thousands of them lined up to be with you. Get with one of them. I’m certain there’s someone out there who would love to be your actual fiancée.”
She turns to leave, but I grab her arm and tug her back. Not enough to hurt her, just enough to get her attention.
“I don’t want them. I want you,” I say, my voice low.
“I’m not a thing you can have, Mr. Gould!” She pulls her arm out of my grasp.
“Don’t flatter yourself!” I scoff. “I want you as a professional. As it would seem, my mother adores you, which rarely ever happens. She’s been after me to settle down for a while now, and the other night was the first time in a while I could breathe without her badgering me to settle down.”
“So, you want me to play the part? The doting girlfriend?”
“Fianceé,” I correct. “I’ll throw your tuition in as well if that makes it worth your while.”
I can see the cogs turning in her head, considering what I’ve just said. I lick my lips in anticipation, eager for her to agree.
“And I just have to act like I’m in love with you in front of your mother?” she asks, her eyes narrowing. I nod.
“In addition to accompanying me to events, galas, that sort of thing. We need to make it seem believable to the press as well. It will only be for a few months and then we can break it off. The story will be that you’ve broken my heart dearly and I can’t even fathom being with anyone again. That will get my mother off my case,” I say.
“You’ve already planned the break-up?” Her eyebrows shoot up.
