Vows in Name Only--An arranged marriage romance by Naima Simone

Author:Naima Simone
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2020-08-12T12:46:06+00:00

Ten

Devon glanced at the ornate clock mounted on the foyer wall.

6:28.

Cain should be arriving any moment for another night out—another performance as the loving, happily engaged couple. Cupping her left hand, she brushed her fingertips over the gorgeous four-carat, princess cut diamond ring encircling her finger. Any woman would be delighted to receive it—including her. Not ostentatious, but elegant, with small, flower-shaped emeralds decorating the band and adding a touch of whimsy. Oh yes, it was a dream ring, and she would be a liar if she claimed the sight of it hadn’t squeezed her heart.

But in the next moment, a deep sadness had filled her.

Because the ring was a lie.

Another lie in a chain of them that slowly strangled her more and more each day. And each time she slipped it on her finger, the weight of it became heavier and heavier. A constant reminder that she was so enmeshed in this sordid mess that her father had created, she couldn’t inhale a breath that didn’t contain the acrid, bitter tang of deception.

And ever since Cain had visited the community center two weeks ago and revealed the man who existed beneath the cold, embittered executive, the act had become even harder to perpetrate. The truth had become more difficult to confine.

When he’d asked her who she really was... Her throat had ached with restraining a plea for him to see her. Take a hard look past his preconceptions and really see her. The need to inform him that he wasn’t the only victim of her father’s blackmail clawed at her. But she’d glanced around the empty classroom, envisioned how it’d appeared only minutes earlier, packed with excited kids safe from the dangerous lures of the streets, learning and having a ball.

And she’d remained silent.

Because confessing to Cain would’ve been for her sake alone. Being quiet was for the teens she loved, the staff who devoted their time and hearts, the community who depended on the center’s existence.

So she continued to play her role. Continued to participate in this charade of a romance that at times careened too dangerously close to feeling real.

She wouldn’t emerge from this unscathed. And that terrified her almost as much as losing the community center.

Her left hand curled into a fist, the lights from the foyer’s chandelier bouncing off the diamond.

Oh yes. Beautiful lies.

The doorbell chimed, snatching her from her morose thoughts. Swiping her damp palms down her thighs, she moved forward and unlocked the door. She didn’t need to glance through the video monitor; she expected only one person this evening.

Pulling open the door, she revealed Cain standing on the other side. His bright gaze met hers before dipping to the black high-waisted cocktail dress with the daring square neckline and roaming down to the stilettos with a delicate ankle strap. When his regard returned to her face, she sucked in a low breath at the heat flickering in those beautiful depths. The same warmth tingled her skin, swirled low in her belly...instigated a sweet, acute ache between her legs.

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