Total pages in book: 190
Estimated words: 181992 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 910(@200wpm)___ 728(@250wpm)___ 607(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 181992 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 910(@200wpm)___ 728(@250wpm)___ 607(@300wpm)
I cleared my throat and spoke loud enough to be heard over the chatter: “I have some news to share.” Immediately, the talk died down and everyone’s attention settled on me. “But first, I need you all to promise that you won’t repeat any of what is said here to anyone else. And I mean, anyone.”
Aside for Sabrina and Alicia—who sat either side of me on a sofa, pillars of support—people exchanged looks that were either uneasy, confused, or a combination of the two. Each person eventually gave me their word, though my dad and Ollie dragged their heels on that.
I rested my clasped hands on my lap. Seeing no need to beat around the bush, I got straight to the point. “Dax Mercier proposed to me. I said yes.”
Silence reigned. Eyes bulged. Jaws went slack. Backs straightened.
“Since when have you two been an item?” asked Vienna, her voice carefully even. “And why did you keep it from us?”
“We’re not an item,” I said. “We’re just—”
“Oh my God, are you pregnant?” Harri burst out.
I wish. “No. Dax and I agreed to a fallback marriage pact years ago and, well, the time’s come for us to honor it.”
There seemed to be a collective intake of breath, and then everyone other than Alicia and Sabrina were speaking at once. Well, they were more ranting than anything else—particularly when it came to Ollie and Dane, who both shot to their feet.
I held up a hand, palm out, and said calmly, “I can only answer one question at a time.”
“Why the hell would you agree to something like this?” my dad demanded, his expression hard, his body rigid.
“It’s insane,” Ollie added, his cheeks a worrying shade of red.
“I’m not getting any younger,” I began, “my biological clock is ticking—”
“That’s no reason to marry some random guy,” Ollie insisted, his face scrunching up.
“Dax isn’t a random person. He’s someone I know. Someone I’m comfortable with.” I looked at my dad. “You know him as well. You even like him.”
Dane snorted, his head rearing back. “Not now I don’t. He wants my daughter to marry him as part of a pact. He’s asking you to throw away any chance you have of finding something more, and he clearly doesn’t give a shit what that means for you.”
Alicia lifted both hands. “I think we should all just take a breath.”
“Take a breath?” echoed Ollie, disbelieving. “Are you even hearing what Addie’s saying? Wait, neither of you two look surprised,” he commented, glancing from her to Sabrina. “You knew?”
Not wanting him to verbally lay into them, I quickly cut in, “Alicia’s right, taking a breath would be helpful. There’s no need to rant at me.”
He threw me an incredulous glance. “No need? Seriously? I feel like I don’t know you right now. Like your IQ dropped overnight.”
Bristling, I raised a warning brow. “Careful, Ollie.”
Vienna slid forward in her seat. “What he means to say is that he’s a little too shocked by your news to be calm right now. I’m sure you’ll admit that you wouldn’t be cool and composed if either Alicia or Harri had made this announcement.”
“Probably not,” I readily admitted. “But I’d hear them out and try to understand why they’d reached their decision, not vilify them for it or act like they’re stupid.”
My mom gave me an appeasing look. “No one thinks you’re stupid, Addie. You’ve always made good, solid decisions. We’re all simply struggling to understand what made you reach this one.”
“Yeah, I don’t get it,” said Harri from her spot beside Marleigh, her voice not confrontational, merely baffled. “You’ve always been so determined to find what Mom and Dad have.”
“Which is not this,” Dane practically bit out. “Far from it. I can’t understand why you would even entertain this idea.” His eyes narrowed. “Is he blackmailing you?”
I almost rolled my eyes. “Of course not. He asked. I promised to consider it. Which I did. And this is the choice I subsequently made.”
“I get that you’re hurting over what Grayden did,” Marleigh interrupted. “But this is a bit of an extreme way to respond to it.”
I frowned. “This has nothing to do with Grayden.”
Marleigh gave me a skeptical look. “You’re sure of that? Because it sounds like you’ve taken Dax up on his offer as a fuck you to Grayden.”
I felt my face harden. “You really think I’d do something like that?” I asked, my voice flat. “That that’s the kind of person I am?”
Marleigh winced. “I don’t mean to insinuate that you’re cruel or spiteful—”
“But that’s what you’re doing. Thanks a bunch.”
“She didn’t mean it that way,” Ollie told me, putting a protective hand on her shoulder. “She’s just worried that you’re saying yes for the wrong reason. I happen to agree with her theory. It makes the most sense.”
Sabrina sighed at him. “If you’d only listen to what Addie has to say instead of leaping on her, you’d understand why you’re incorrect.”