Page 22 of Made For You
He looked so serious I almost expected him to growl.
“Um… that’s okay. You came to my rescue. So, thank you.”
“You’re… welcome.”
I could sense he was unfamiliar with someone thanking him for anything, which just left me feeling bereft and sad for him.
Dean coughed from over at his post in the kitchen and pointed to his very-expensive-looking watch. Talon got the hint and nodded.
“What’s going on?”
“I don’t have much time, but I wanted to ask you to do something for me.”
“Is it illegal?” Was my first question, because gorgeous men like Talon and Dean didn’t just show up in your room for nothing. I wondered if they were part of the mafia or the cartel. Of course, they would have charmed me first.
“Not technically.”
“How is something nottechnicallyillegal? The law is pretty cut and dry. It either is or isn’t, Talon.”
The corner of his mouth quirked up as if he was amused. He stood from the couch and came to stand in front of me, then quickly dropped to his knees, grasping my hands in the process. I hoped they weren’t sweaty.
The scent of his cologne washed over me, and the scent was familiar, but it wasn’t just from the bar. There was something inside me that said we met before.
“I want you to marry me. To be my wife.”
That was definitelynotwhat I expected him to say. I wasn’t even sure it would have fallen into the top hundred ideas of what he wanted my help with.
“Um… can you repeat that?”
“I want you to be my wife.”
Why did that sound so good coming from him? But it seemed suspicious, and I found myself asking, “Want or need?”
“Told you she’s smart,” Dean chided from the kitchen, but my eyes were locked on Talon’s.
“Need,” he admitted. “My grandfather has a ridiculous rule that the heir has to be married to take over as CEO of the hotels. My uncle is running the chain down to the earth’s core, but I can fix it. I just need to have a wife.”
“I… I can’t.” I didn’t need to tell him I’d made a mistake like that once before, and it had been the last time I’d done something without thinking of the ramifications.
“Can’t or won’t?”
“I….” I hesitated, and Talon swooped in.
“Please. It would be for six months, and then you’d be free to go. I’ll pay you one-million dollars and take care of everything else that goes along with being my wife.”
The money made saying no harder. Not that I could be bought, but there were so many people I could help with that much cash. Kids who came to school in dirty clothes after working the mornings in the fields. Kids who didn’t think college was an option, because their family was already struggling tokeep their farms or businesses afloat. And the town needed these farms and businesses to succeed.
Talon stared at me as he watched me cave with each passing second.
“What would everything entail?” I whispered.
“Anything. Clothing for events, designer handbags, shoes, cars—take your pick. We’ll be photographed together at events, and tabloids are notorious for following me around when I travel.”
“I’ve never seen you in a magazine before.”
“Maybe you weren’t looking at the right ones.” That was true. I tended to read magazines other than celebrity gossip. When Colton came into our family, we all swore off the rags, because they notoriously published lies about him and Autumn. Nate always knew how to hide from photographers and lay low.
“That’s fair. I don’t pick those up too much.”
