Foolish Games(23)

“God, you two deserve each other,” Carly mumbled as she stalked out of the kitchen.

Will insolently leaned a hip against the counter as he crossed massive arms against his chest. “Eight minutes into married life and you’ve already got a problem, Princess? Why am I not surprised.”

He’d been counting the minutes they’d been married? It would have been romantic had her husband been anyone else. Julianne took two steps forward, standing inches from Will as she waved her left hand in his face. “This is my problem!”

Will didn’t flinch. “You don’t like it? Your best friend picked it out. Complain to her.”

She felt her face flush with anger. “It’s not about the actual ring, you idiot! I won’t like any ring because I’m not going to wear one for a marriage that isn’t real.”

He stepped away from the counter, pulling himself to his full height, and Julianne had to tilt her head back to look at him. “Listen carefully, Princess. There are only two rules in this little farce of a marriage: One, no touching. And two, you’ll behave like a devoted wife and mother in public. Unfortunately, I can’t trust you to carry out rule number two, so the ring stays put.”

Julianne’s head was spinning. “Can’t trust me? Haven’t I done everything you’ve asked so far?” She fully intended to honor his request to act the dutiful wife and mother while in his hometown. But only when and if she ventured out of the house into town.

“Only because you haven’t had a choice. For all I knew these last few minutes while your business manager and your BFF the priest have been chatting me up, you were making a break for it. So no, I don’t trust you!”

She let out an exasperated huff. This man was seriously paranoid. She didn’t have the financial resources to make a run for it right now, even if her conscience would let her. But he didn’t need to know that. It would just give him something else to hold over her. So she tried another tactic.

“Fine.” She placed her hands on her hips. “If I have to wear one, so do you. We don’t want to give people mixed messages, after all.”

“Nice try, Princess. But I’m not the one playing a part. Everyone has already figured out you trapped me into this marriage. Now you have to sell it that you’re devoted to me and trying to make it right.”

Julianne shook with fury. Will wasn’t just paranoid, he was crazy! “Hold on a second, buster. You have seriously been wearing your helmet too tight because that is not how it went down. Yes, I got pregnant, but that wasn’t entirely my fault. You were the one who forced me into marriage. Not the other way around!”

She hadn’t realized she’d stepped in closer until Will’s eyes lowered to the finger she had jabbed into his chest. Julianne felt his rapid heartbeat as he slowly lifted his gaze. Before she could react, he snared her wrist in his big hand and was dragging her around the corner and into a powder room. He slammed the door, locking it, before pressing her against the wall. Grasping both her wrists in one of his hands, he yanked them up between them, while he used his other hand to pin her hip to the wall.

She was locked in a small room with a man twice her size and capable of shattering her wrists with a single squeeze. Still, Julianne wasn’t afraid. Not of Will Connelly, anyway. She was, however, terrified of herself and her body’s reaction to his closeness. Arousal blazed sharply through her as her hips pressed against his hand in an effort get closer to him. Eyes closed, he appeared to be counting silently to himself, but she could still feel his heart beating as if he’d just sacked the quarterback. If he took her now, her body would sing with joy instead of protesting. Worse, he likely knew it.

She had to defuse the situation before she did something stupid. Like lean into him and start kissing him everywhere. Taunting him was not the brightest idea Julianne had, though.

“You’re breaking rule number one. No touching.” It might have been more convincing had she not sounded so breathless.

Will’s eyes snapped open. She pressed her head back against the wall, trying to put more distance between them. The anger once there had morphed into something else: hunger. Sweat pooled along her back, making her silk blouse stick to her body. If he hadn’t been holding her, she might have slid down the wall; her legs were like jelly. One side of his mouth rose up in what probably passed for a smile on William the Conqueror.

“You started it.” His lips moved in for a kiss and Julianne closed her eyes. “Again,” he whispered, his mouth bypassing hers and moving to within millimeters of her left ear.