Page 9 of Their Diamond Ring Ruse

Lily wondered if by sheer chance she had found someone who could understand what she was going through. What she needed.

‘Everything I could to get myself out.’ Julian turned to look at her then. There was something tumultuous in his eyes. ‘To live on my terms. To have freedom and peace.’

Lily wanted that too. Desperately.

She didn’t know what Julian had seen in her face when he had asked her to step outside with him, but she hadn’t expected him to offer this bit of strength to her. A little piece of him, she realised. A kindness...a small offer of himself from a man who gave nothing away.

It made her feel reckless, and before she could stop herself—before she could consider that she had only known him for a few minutes—Lily found herself revealing her situation to this man who made her feel so inexplicably comfortable.

‘My father promised me to Lincoln. I’m supposed to marry him. It’s what my brother wants,’ she said.

Understanding lit his features. ‘You’re a bargaining chip.’

‘Pretty much,’ she replied, suddenly realising how impulsive she was being. Wondering if she’d made a mistake telling him.

‘And what do you want?’

No one had asked her that before. Not one person cared enough but here stood Julian asking how she felt. A lump rose in her throat and she had difficulty talking around it.

‘I want the chance to live my life. Whether I end up marrying someone or remaining single for the rest of my life, I want it to be my choice. Everyone should get that. Why should I be deprived?’

His unflinching gaze held hers, sending goosebumps up and down her arms.

‘You shouldn’t.’

He looked away. Immediately she missed the way his eyes felt on her.

Shifting the focus away from herself, Lily asked, ‘What do you want from this night?’

She watched him glance though the glass doors at a group of men talking animatedly. A group that included her brother and Lincoln.

‘The one thing I can’t have.’

She heard the note of frustration in his voice and understood. She knew exactly how reluctant this community was to let in new money. It was elitist and judgemental.

‘I’m afraid they’re going to take a lot of persuading.’

‘Tell me something I don’t know. You should probably go back inside,’ Julian said.

‘I probably should. They’re going to wonder what we’ve been talking about.’

‘Tell Harrison I’m looking to buy a cake,’ Julian said, amusement twinkling in his eyes, even though he still did not smile.

Lily choked out a laugh around her wine.

‘We’ll speak again, sunshine,’ he said.

‘Julian!’ she called, before she disappeared through the doors. ‘Your secret is safe with me.’

‘Likewise,’ he replied.

CHAPTER THREE

WITH A THUNDEROUS RUMBLE, Julian brought his car to a stop in front of a large concrete building with industrial French doors in Fisherman’s Wharf. The streets were busy. And there was a cacophony of sounds in the air as he stepped out of his car.

This was not a part of San Francisco he often visited. He had no reason to. He’d moved to this city because it had been the best place to start IRES. The only support he’d had as a young man had been Henry, so the fact that he resided here was a bonus.

Still, he could appreciate the place Lily had chosen for her store.

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