iel felt cool beneath Audrey's trembling fingers. She took a deep, st

'd concealed the flush of her fever, the dark circles under her eyes, the hollowness in her

against the restaurant's opulent gold a

tapestry of the New York skyline. He was tall, his shoulders broad beneath a perfectly ta

cked shut, and the breath

arp jawline, dark hair, and eyes the color of a stormy sea. There was an air of predator

leering look she was used to from men in this world, nor was

a low, smooth baritone that sent an unexpecte

at opposite the chair he had presumably been using. A waiter materialized, p

eyes unreadable. The usual script for these encounters involved poli

no time f

im, meeting his piercing

ap to hide their shaking. "I know this is our first m

slightly. A ghost of a smile pla

, however small,

e year. In return for the use of your name, I will act as a dutiful wife in any public or private capacity you

le unnervingly loud. He moved from the window to the table, pulling out the chair opposite her and si

he cracks in her composure. She felt

" he stated. It

plet

. The pause was agonizing. She had laid her last, desperate card on the table,

rantic bird trapped in a cage. But on th

ly asked, his voic

" she said, offering a half-truth. "The Sinclair name car

. Tap. Tap. It was a measured, thoughtful sound that grated on her

verything on this

he single word cuttin

linked.

confirmed, his expression unr

herself.

id, his blue eyes locking onto hers. "It has

e clause in his favor. This was... easier. Too

a wave of dizzying relief washing ove

pushed his chair back and stood up, adjusting t

t's go,"

outstretched hand, co

amusement returning to his eyes. "If we hu

ng. She had expected negotiations, lawyers, contracts drawn u

ouldn't afford. This was her esca

r hand in his. His grip was firm an

s if sensing the strange, powerful current between them. They d

e curb. The driver held the door open, and Julian

and the car pulled smoothly int

ing alien and strange. The world was tilting on its axis, spinning too fast. Just a few hours ago, she had been si

rney wa

process was a whirlwind of paperwork, identification, and the bore

wo strangers under the f

take Audrey Beaumont to be

sonating with a certainty tha

ake Julian Sinclair to be y

, the words feeling f

. The clerk stamped the documen

rtificate in her hand, the ink s

udied it for a moment, then a slow, deliberate smile spread across his face

l, w

, charged and heavy. It sent a strang

desk for the night, cleared her th

d by an intense seriousness. The world seemed to shrink to the space betwee

and instinctively, she closed h