Surrender to Temptation (Agent Lovers Series Book 1) (27 page)

“You
want?
You
want? Kiss my ass!” When she finally let go of his hand, Gray looked at her as though he thought he had lost. But she whispered in a voice so soft it could barely be heard, “You’ve won! I’ll marry you.” With her back rigid, she turned away from him and trudged to the door.

Out! She had to get out of this room and away from Gray, or she would drop down on her knees in front of him and wail in despair. Once again, Gray had forced his will on her. And this time it would be
forever.
No time limit from the outset. All that Liz could do was hope that he would think better of all this by their wedding date.

Her hand was already on the door knob when Gray started to speak. Liz’s heart sank, as she felt a premonition that her flicker of hope was about to go up in smoke. “Your wedding dress is on your bed,” he said. “We’ll be picked up in an hour. Please be ready.” Liz nodded, her gaze trained on the wood of the door. Silently she slipped out of the room.

After Liz had closed the door behind her, Gray fell against the back of the chair and ran both hands over his face. Feeling drained, he let his head drop and closed his eyes. The last few minutes had taken more out of him than any active mission ever could.

I’ll make it up to you, darling,
he promised.
This will work. I know it’ll work.

Gray didn’t like that he had had to behave like a bastard in order to get the woman he loved to commit to him, but he needed a point from which he could begin. Considering Liz’s compulsion to escape relationships, he saw no alternative to forcing her into marriage.

He didn’t have to be a genius to know that, if left to her own devices, Liz would refuse to see him as soon as she returned to her old life. And Liz at a distance was something that he couldn’t allow and didn’t want. That was why he had to put a plan—even one as devious as this—in to motion as quickly as possible. The more pressure he put on her and the less time she had to think about it, the smaller the chance that she would find a way to foil him. But he failed to take into account the fact that by behaving so tyrannically, he might be extinguishing any affection Liz had for him.

Gray deleted the message and saved the video file that he had used as leverage. Then he stood and closed the small jewelry box, put it in his jacket pocket, and walked out of his study. It was time to get changed for his wedding.

Liz looked at the Justice of the Peace—a stocky, gray-haired man pushing sixty—as he spoke pleasantly to her, but she didn’t really pay any attention to him. Her thoughts swirled in confusion and it was difficult for her to concentrate on him.

Had she and Gray gotten married just minutes ago? She had lost all sense of time. How had she ended up here and how was it that she’d been able to whisper “I do” in a voice that was so shaky she almost didn’t recognize it as her own?

Liz still didn’t understand what had happened. Didn’t want to accept that she was married. Married to Gray. A gorgeous ring adorned her finger: a visible symbol to the world that they were joined together. Liz had hoped right up until the end that he would change his mind. She’d clung to this hope until they reached the place for the “I do’s.” She’d looked in Gray’s eyes, imploring him to spare her, but all she saw there was pure determination. At that moment, Liz knew her hope was in vain, and she submitted to his will. Gray had left her no other choice.

The sound of someone clearing his throat brought Liz back to earth. She looked at the Justice of the Peace. “Mrs. Blackwood?” he said. “You have to sign here.”

Liz looked around in irritation. No, there was no other Mrs. Blackwood; he meant her. There was no doubt about it. With a trembling hand, she took the pen he held out with a smile and signed the paper that ultimately joined her with Gray. Her new husband took the pen from her hand and signed it next, and then the Justice of the Peace handed him the marriage certificate.

“Are you coming, darling? I’m sure Chris and Jennifer are waiting already.” Gently yet firmly Gray took hold of Liz’s elbow and led her out of the office, back into the small vestibule where their friends were also waiting to appear before the Justice of the Peace. Jeff had served as a witness to their marriage, as had the wife of the Justice of the Peace, and he stayed behind now to perform the same duty for the next ceremony.

When Chris saw them come out of the room, he nodded briefly to Gray, then pushed an extremely reluctant-looking Jennifer past them and ahead of him into the room.

Silently Gray led Liz outside. The driver of the spacious limousine in which they’d arrived an hour earlier opened the back doors for them. After they’d sat side-by-side on the soft black leather upholstery and the doors had closed behind them, Gray turned to his new wife and studied her. “Liz?”

She didn’t deign to answer him—or to even look at him. Instead, she stared obstinately out of the limousine’s darkly-tinted side window. With a sigh, Gray moved to the seat across from her and tried again. “Liz?”

Finally she turned to face him. Her eyes blazed with overt rage. Liz didn’t act anything like a new bride on the happiest day of her life.

“What do you want from me?” she hissed. “I’ll hate you for the rest of my life! I’ll make your life a living hell, you’ll see! You have no idea yet who you’ve crossed!”

“You really think so?”

“Leave me alone! I’d rather become a nun than live another day with you! Who do you think you are? You’re such a jackass. You make me sick!” She stared out of the window and ignored him again.

But Gray wasn’t about to allow that. Liz’s rage at him was huge, but he’d do whatever he could to try to alleviate it. Gently, he took her hand that bore the ring he’d placed on it during the marriage ceremony. With a start, Liz pulled her hand back from him. Without even looking at him she hissed, “Don’t touch me! Don’t
ever
touch me again!”

Gray took Liz’s hand once more and held it tightly this time. Softly he stroked his thumb over the ring and smiled in encouragement. “Being married to me won’t be as bad as you probably think. Of course we’ll fight sometimes,” he said. “But that happens in every marriage. I promise there will be no patronizing, and I’ll give you the freedom you need.”

“What a load of crap. Don’t give me that! Freedom? That’s a laugh! Just how many square feet are you going to give me? ‘No patronizing,’ my ass! Just like there was nothing patronizing about you forcing me to recuperate at your house—or forcing me to marry you? Maybe you prefer the word blackmail? Anyway, what’s the damned point? I used to be a free person, for crying out loud!” Liz railed at him bitterly. “Is that the custom these days? Men get to force reluctant women to the altar?” She wrenched her hand out of his.

“I only did it because I didn’t want to lose you. Because what we have between us means too much to me.” He couldn’t say more than that yet. Gray intended to confess his love for her as soon as the time was right. But not now. No way could he do that now! He didn’t want to lose Liz. And as furious as she was with him now, it was certain that if she knew about his love, she’d use it against him to regain her freedom.

“That’s all fine and good, but that’s not even close to being a good reason to get married. And you’ve forgotten something: you can’t own a person! One other news flash: you just lost me!” She waved her hands around in agitation. “Let me tell you: if I’d been forced to the altar by every man I ever fooled around with, I would have been convicted of bigamy a long time ago.”

With those words, Liz hit him where it really hurt. Burning jealousy made Gray’s stomach clench. He didn’t want to hear about other men she had been with in the past, but he calmed down quickly enough. After all, Liz was married to him and no one else. That was what mattered. Sooner or later, she would develop the feelings for him that he already felt for her—he was sure of that. He wouldn’t even consider any other possibility.

With her hands balled into fists in her lap, Liz struggled to regain her composure. She forced herself to breathe evenly, even though she would have preferred to strangle the man in front of her, the man who was now
her
husband. She wanted to lash out, but she knew that wouldn’t help. Was it too late to find a way out? She had to remain calm and try to think clearly.

How could someone who seems so rational behave so irrationally, so against his character?
she wondered. Liz could think of no reason for Gray’s incomprehensible, excessive behavior. But maybe on some level Gray was having second thoughts. Maybe she could convince him that the path he had chosen was the wrong one. The situation had devolved into a hideous, perverse game that had to come to an end. Their marriage bond had to be annulled. That was the logical next step: not a divorce, but an annulment.

Liz raised her head and searched Gray’s face. “Look. I don’t want to hurt you when I say I don’t want a committed relationship.” Although she maintained a completely calm appearance, her stomach was in knots. Liz worried that she wouldn’t be able get through to him—that he wouldn’t accept her view of things and would remain obstinate. “My refusal didn’t have anything to do with you as a person.” Liz forced a smile and shrugged. “This is just how I am. I’ve handled things this way for years and it’s worked out pretty well. Sex without commitment suits me better than a permanent relationship does.”

“How can you reject something that you haven’t even tried?” Gray slid to the edge of the seat, leaned forward and took her cold hands in his warm ones. This time Liz didn’t pull away. She closed her eyes, feeling tormented, and shook her head. It was clear to her: he wasn’t about to deviate from his chosen path. There was no going back now. No way out. Rage rose in her again, but she continued to keep her feelings in check.

“This whole marriage is based on a unilateral decision that you made—and that no one but you would think is a good idea!” she said in a strained voice. “Do you think that’s fair? I see all this a little differently. With some mutual interest, we might have taken it slowly. Why should a marriage be forced? This may be the custom in some Asian countries, but it’s not in ours. People have rights here. Remind me to give you a book on the subject so you can read about it.” Liz looked him in the eyes and held Gray’s gaze, “The worst reason for forcing a relationship is out of wounded pride.”

“You didn’t leave me any choice.” When Liz tried to turn her head away, Gray held her chin with gentle force and she had to keep looking at him. His expression grew hard. “Even before the doctor visit, you had already decided to relegate me to your past. You never gave our relationship a real chance and you never would have. I was never anything but a temporary lover to you. A mini adventure. Just a little snack.”

“So you think this is the punishment I deserve for that? You knew that was all I was up for. From the very beginning, I told you things would end as soon as I was better. And you were okay with that.”

“I changed my mind.” Gray leaned back and crossed his arms casually over his chest without breaking eye contact.

“That’s your problem, not mine.” Liz pressed her lips into a thin line. Her painstakingly maintained control was crumbling in the face of his male pride. “We had an agreement.”

“I never agreed.” Gray gave her a charming smile, seeming unfazed by her outburst. He leaned forward so that their noses were almost touching. “I know what you’re planning, sweetheart. You won’t get me to agree to an annulment. I don’t have a guilty conscience about the means I used to keep you.”

“’Keep’ me? I don’t need you to agree to an annulment. Our relationship is over right now! You’ve destroyed my life—and I’ll destroy yours! You’ll hate me! It’ll be pathetic how much we’ll hate each other, you miserable piece of shit!” In a fury, she pushed Gray away from her and sank back into the seat. It had become clear to her that he wanted not only to force himself permanently into her life, but to completely take her life over. Gray wasn’t about to give her any freedom—at least, not the kind of freedom she needed. He was too possessive for that.

Her hopeless situation made her almost livid. She wanted to wail like a child out of sheer disappointment. But she took a deep breath, submitted for the moment to the inevitable, and looked out the window again, ignoring Gray’s presence.

So much for trying to alleviate the situation!
Gray thought. Not only had he been unable to pacify Liz, he’d only made her more furious.

With a melancholy smile, he ran his eyes over his wife’s figure, which was hiding in the wedding dress he had picked out for her. He had deliberately picked out a modest, simple dress for Liz. When he bought it, he’d already begun to envision himself stripping the silky material from her body and making love to her, exhaustively. He suppressed a sigh of regret at that thought that the way things stood now, he wouldn’t be the one taking the dress off of her on their wedding night. Liz wasn’t about to tolerate him in her bedroom. He reconciled himself to the idea that he’d be spending the night on the couch in the living room. Either that, or he’d share a bed with Jeff—not exactly what he’d had in mind.

The limousine door opened and Jennifer got in, followed by Chris. She sat as far as possible from him and didn’t say a word. She didn’t need to; her venomous look spoke volumes.

The glass partition lowered slowly and Jeff looked back from the passenger seat. “Congratulations you four—and welcome to the family, Liz!” But his new sister-in-law only made a disagreeable sound. Refusing to let her hostile behavior intimidate him, Jeff continued good humoredly. “I’m assuming we’ll toast to your marriage later? A wedding is the perfect occasion for celebrating. The caterers should have everything set up by the time we get there.” Jeff appeared oblivious to the hateful looks Liz and Jennifer threw at him. He winked at Gray and Chris and grinned broadly.

“Caterer?”

“A small thank you from me for your generous hospitality, dear brother. I’ve also arranged a nice surprise for both brides,” he said mysteriously before turning back around and raising the dark partition with a soft whirring sound.