Chapter 2

Nadia snapped out of it when she heard the teasing voice in her ear.

"Your younger brother had just finished messing with me, and now it's your turn. Is this how it goes?"

On the other end of the phone was Julian Jones, Harry's older brother.

When Nadia had first gotten together with Harry, Julian had never once been nice to her.

"You already got stood up once, and you're still afraid of a second time?" Julian's tone was full of sarcasm. "You're not as fearless as I recall."

Nadia was a hothead and could not stand being goaded like that. She snapped back, "Fine, I'll go! I'm not scared of you! But even if I go with you, the Clerk's Office has already closed."

Julian answered coolly, "You don't need to worry about that."

-

Twenty minutes later…

Nadia was once again back at the doors of the Clerk's Office. Julian's tall, sophisticated figure appeared in front of her. His face was so strikingly handsome that it almost did not seem real. The force of his presence was especially daunting.

Even though Harry was considered one of the more handsome men among the good-looking ones, Julian was on another level.

"You actually showed up," Julian said with a faint smile. His eyes were full of mischief, with a hint of something wicked lurking beneath.

Nadia no longer had the reckless boldness she had felt on the phone when he was actually standing right in front of her, and she could not help but shrink a little. "It's useless, anyway. The doors are already half closed."

Julian raised his eyebrow and glanced at the door behind her, his voice low. "You really want to register your marriage with me? Have you thought it through?"

Nadia refused to back down. "If you're not afraid, what's there for me to be afraid of?"

She felt that if anyone should be scared, it ought to be Julian. After all, he and Harry were brothers.

"You do have guts." A flicker of hidden approval appeared in Julian's eyes as he took her wrist and walked inside.

Nadia froze.

They were really...really doing this?

She suddenly stopped dead in her tracks.

Julian looked back at her and raised his eyebrow. "What's wrong, having cold feet?"

Nadia hesitated for a moment. "Why do you want to marry me?"

He clearly did not like her.

Julian let out a quiet laugh. "I have to get married sooner or later, correct? Rather than wasting time looking for someone else, I might as well pick someone the family is satisfied with."

Nadia did not ask anymore.

Maybe it was because their families had been close for years.

Harry and Julian's parents, and their grandfather Charlie Jones, were all very pleased with her.

It was pretty normal for him to do this, she guessed.

-

Less than ten minutes later, they walked out of the Clerk's Office, each holding a copy of the marriage certificate.

Seeing her staring at the certificate in a daze, Julian's cool voice rang again. "It's useless to regret it now. Even if you go back in to get a divorce, you still have to wait for a month."

What in the name of all that was holy?

They had just gotten married, and he was already talking about divorce? Who said she wanted a divorce?

Nadia rolled her eyes at him, though her tone stayed polite. "As long as you don't regret it."

She walked down the steps. Julian suddenly reached out, pulling her straight into his arms. Nadia was pressed against his chest. Even though she was five-foot-six, she was still much shorter than he was.

The faint scent of cedar on Julian filled her nose, and Nadia's heart skipped a beat for no reason at all. Her face went red.

"Where are you going?" Julian's voice sounded above her head.

It took Nadia a while to steady herself and to calm her breathing. "I'm going home."

"You've just gotten married, and you already want to go your own separate way from your husband?" Julian lowered his eyes to look at her.

He watched her dark eyelashes flutter with each blink, her fair face stained with a faint flush. That pure yet seductive face and the frosty aura around her worked a little too well together to tempt him.

"...I forgot." Nadia raised her head and met his gaze, never noticing the darkness in his eyes.

Julian calmly shifted his eyes away and let her go. "Come with me."

He walked down the steps first. Nadia did not think much of it and followed. They were legally married now. It was not as if he could really sell her.

Besides, turning her ex-boyfriend into her brother-in-law... Just thinking about it made her feel better already.

-

Golden Bay, Highport City.

The villa halfway up the hill stood on land that was worth a fortune. The decor looked simple at a glance, but every detail showed its luxury.

Nadia was baffled by Julian as she stood in the middle of the living room. "What's this?"

"Our marital home. You'll live here from now on," Jones explained.

"And you?" The question almost slipped out of her mouth.

Julian raised his eyebrow slightly with a cool stare. "Are you so shocked you don't even know what a marital home means?"

Which meant that he would live here too, naturally.

Nadia smiled awkwardly and grumbled inside her mind that he was as sharp-tongued as ever.

Just like when they had first met ten years ago!

His words were still as harsh, his tongue was still as sharp!

He wasn't likable at all!

-

Julian told the house staff, Mrs. Smith, to show her around the villa as he headed upstairs.

Only then did Nadia feel she could finally breathe. He was so cold, it was like she owed him money.

Following Mrs. Smith around, Nadia realized just how large this villa was. It was one of a kind, with five floors and an elevator inside. There was a team of ten house staff working here, all newly assigned.

From Mrs. Smith, she learned that Julian had flown back from overseas that very morning.

Nadia was quite surprised. He had just got back and already knew Harry had stood her up at the Clerk's Office? Had he gone to register their marriage just to get back at her for what had happened three years ago?

Nadia wanted to find him and ask, but was told he was busy working in the study.

She had no choice but to wait.

She waited, and waited, and waited…

And she ended up lying down on the couch in the master bedroom and fell asleep.

She did not wake until she felt someone moving around her. Nadia opened her eyes in a daze, and Julian's handsome face filled her sight.

"What are you doing?" Nadia inhaled sharply. She folded her arms over her chest, suddenly on guard.

Julian raised his hand from the blanket, and his lips twitched. "Relax. I'm not so desperate that I would be interested in that underdeveloped body of yours."

Anger flared in Nadia's heart. "I'm not the same as I was three years ago! I'm a grown woman now, okay?"

She grabbed his hand and started to guide it toward the curves on her chest… And she snapped back to her senses at the last second, stopped, and let go of him.

She really was losing her mind.

She had dated Harry for five years, and they had not even kissed.

Yet she had almost...

Seeing Nadia's cheeks red all the way to her ears, Julian smiled faintly, and he deliberately teased her. "Why did you stop? Afraid that you'll be a letdown?"

Nadia's face became even redder as she shoved him away, annoyed. "Even if I really am underdeveloped, it has nothing to do with you."

She got up, ready to leave. Julian suddenly pushed her back down, her back hitting the couch again. She struggled to get up as Julian's tall body leaned over her and his dominant presence washed over her.

"Nadia…" Julian's low voice was laced with temptation. "You had the nerve to marry me, but you don't have the nerve to do this?"

He had a handsome face and an elegant aura that perfectly hid the wicked glint in his eyes. The open collar of his shirt exposed the line of his throat.

A scene from three years ago flashed across Nadia's mind.

She had not done this herself before, but she was not clueless. She suddenly grabbed Julian's collar as her emotion got the better of her, yanked him down, and caught his lips in a firm kiss.

Nadia opened her mouth and went at him, pretending to be experienced, but her movements were clumsy and stiff, as she knocked against his teeth several times.

Julian's eyes darkened as he remained restrained, his voice rough with suppressed emotion. "Nadia, do you know what you're doing?"

"Of course I do. I'm making a move on you." Nadia was still acting out of spite and leaned in again. "What is it? Are you scared?"

She met his eyes with a clear taunt. She knew he was just like he had been three years ago, deliberately toying with her.

"You had better not regret this." Julian lowered his head and took control as he deepened the kiss. He stole the air from her mouth, his warm body burning against her.

His voice turned hoarse, his dark eyes now holding none of his desires back. "Why don't we finish what we started three years ago?"