Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 94915 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94915 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 475(@200wpm)___ 380(@250wpm)___ 316(@300wpm)
Julien stops in front of me. His eyes burn into mine and his full lips press together in a tight line. Kim chirps at him some more, but she might as well try punching a brick wall for all the good it does.
“Ronan tells me you’re the one willing to be my wife,” he says with that sexy-as-silk accent again. “He tells me you’re important to this family. Is that true?”
“What the fuck is with you and this weird status obsession, you Frenchy fuck?” Kim snaps at him.
Julien continues to ignore her. He holds out his hand. “Give me your phone. We’ll exchange numbers.”
That finally breaks my spell. I gape at him and burst out laughing.
My weird reaction makes both of them pause. Kim stops trying to bite his head off, and Julien’s eyebrows pull in tighter, like he’s confused about what’s so funny.
I laugh in his face, unable to help myself. The situation is so absurd, it’s ridiculous. The guy just tried to reject me for not being important enough, and now he’s demanding my phone number. I can’t even begin to fathom how I found myself here.
“I’m not joking around,” Julien says, tone turning dangerous. I feel a chill at the intensity of his stare. “If you are going to be my wife, then I think we should have the option of speaking to each other.”
“Listen, you egotistic maniac, you just called me unimportant to my face and asked Ronan for another girl like we’re cattle you can just buy. There’s absolutely no way—”
Julien steps forward and puts a hand on my elbow.
It’s not threatening. He doesn’t apply any pressure. Only his fingertips brush my skin, and that’s enough to send a sudden rush of fluttering butterflies right into my stomach. He’s close enough now that I can smell the musky warmth of him, the sharp scent of his cologne or deodorant or whatever he’s got on mixed with a husky, outdoorsy smell, which is shockingly pleasant.
And there’s the way he’s staring, like he’s out of patience and he’s going to take what he wants now.
“Don’t pretend like you give a shit about me,” he says, low and rumbling. Kim’s standing to the side, her mouth hanging open. “I have my reasons for wanting a marriage and I’m sure you do too. Let’s not pretend like they have anything to do with each other.”
Well, crap. I didn’t know someone saying you’re unimportant to me could be so freaking sexy.
And also infuriating.
I brush his hand away and set my jaw. “You’re right about that. I don’t care about you at all.”
“Perfect. Then we can agree on something. That’s the basis for a good marriage, no?” He holds out his hand again. “Give me your phone.”
Kim chooses that moment to find her voice again. “Don’t you dare, Brianne. This outrageous piece of shit doesn’t deserve your number, let alone your hand in marriage. Why don’t you scamper back to your stinky cheese and shitty French threesomes, you pathetic surrender monkey?” She pushes his shoulder, but he doesn’t even budge, and he still hasn’t looked at her.
His eyes are entirely mine.
“Kim,” I say, cutting off another tirade. “Will you give us a second?”
She lets out a shocked grunt and throws up her hands. “Unbelievable. You should be kicking him in the nuts right now.”
“Kim.”
“Fine. I bet you’re going to tell him about your little list next.” Kim storms off, looking frustrated, and I glare after her. Heat fills my cheeks. That comment about the list was childish and stupid, and when I look back, Julien’s face has softened.
“What list, mon minou?”
“It’s nothing, and don’t call me that. Whatever it means.” I’m completely knocked off balance now and annoyed with my friend. And I’m picturing Julien ticking off all my boxes, which is… not unpleasant. “Listen, you really screwed this up. I don’t know what your deal is, but that was just about the shittiest way to introduce yourself to your future wife imaginable.”
“I can see why you might think so, but from my perspective, we are doing this for our own reasons.”
“Still, we can at least be civil.”
“Yes, I agree with that. Give me your phone and we’ll be civil.”
I want this to be over with. More people are staring now and I’m totally embarrassed by Kim’s behavior and by Julien’s overly intense attention. I want to melt back into the background and let this be done with, and if giving this guy my phone and letting him type in his phone number is what it’ll take to get out of this interaction, then I’ll do it.
“Just be fast.” I unlock my phone and shove it at him. He takes it, a slight smile coming across his face as he swipes a few times. I glance back at where Kim’s waiting near the bar and cross my arms over my chest.