Marriage Pact

Chapter 4

Marriage Pact

(Hayes’s POV)

Ella didn’t look at me once during the drive to my penthouse. She stared out the window like the city offended her. I couldn’t blame her. If I were her, I’d probably throw me out of the moving car.

Instead, she sat perfectly still, hands folded in her lap, shoulders straight, every inch of her controlled. Ella Evans never let the world see her crack. Not even when the groom vanished.

I watched her from the corner of my eye and felt my chest squeeze. I’d been in love with her for years. And now she was my wife.

A wife who didn’t want to look at me.

Fantastic.

When we arrived, she stepped out of the car before I even rounded the trunk. Reese would punch me if he knew I wasn’t holding out my hand for her. Ruby might actually kill me.

The lobby staff stared like we walked in dripping diamonds. I nodded to them and tried to keep up with Ella.

She shot me a glance. “Do you always walk this slowly?”

I blinked. “I’m letting you go first.”

“Why?”

“Because you look like you’ll bite anyone who gets in your way.”

She let out a breath that almost sounded like a laugh. “That’s accurate.”

I held the elevator door for her. She stepped inside without hesitation.

As soon as it closed, she crossed her arms. “Say it.”

“Say what?”

“That you think I’ve lost my mind.”

I shook my head. “I don’t think you’ve lost your mind.”

“You think I’m dramatic.”

“Ella,” I said quietly, “I think you were humiliated by someone who should’ve loved you. That’s not dramatic. That’s cruel.”

Her eyes flicked to mine for the first time since the ceremony, like she didn’t expect honesty from me.

The elevator dinged. She stepped out fast and into the penthouse.

She froze.

I exhaled, watching her take in the huge windows, the tall ceilings, the clean lines, the ridiculous amount of space. I’d never cared about the place, but watching her look at it made my heart thump hard.

“It’s… nice,” she said slowly.

“That’s the most enthusiasm you’ve ever spoken with.”

She rolled her eyes and walked farther in. “You don’t have to be charming.”

“I’m not.”

“Then what are you being?”

“In love with you,” I almost said.

Instead, I shrugged. “Polite.”

She shot me a suspicious look, like she didn’t buy it.

I cleared my throat. “You can have any room you want. I’ll take the guest suite.”

She blinked. “You’re not sleeping here?”

“That would be weird, Ella. We barely talk. And you hate me.”

“I don’t hate you,” she said quietly.

My heart actually tripped.

She added, “I’m just overwhelmed.”

“That makes two of us.”

Ella turned and pointed at me. “You didn’t run.”

“Would you have preferred I sprinted out of the church?”

“Maybe.”

I laughed before I could stop it. Her lips curved slightly, almost a smile, and it hit me harder than anything else today.

She sat on the couch. I stayed standing, afraid I’d sit too close or say something stupid.

After a moment, she looked up. “So… we’re married.”

“Yes.”

“And we have no plan.”

“Correct.”

“And my parents think I’ve lost it.”

“They might be right,” I said.

She threw a pillow at me. I caught it, grinning. “That was attempted battery, Mrs. Flynn.”

“Don’t call me that,” she muttered, cheeks warming.

My smile slipped into something softer. “Ella… we don’t have to tell anyone anything right now. We don’t have to figure out what this is yet.”

She nodded slowly.

I tried again. “We can stay married until things calm down. Or until you want out. No pressure.”

“No pressure,” she repeated quietly.

“Ella,” I added, voice lower, “I won’t touch you without your permission. Ever.”

Her head snapped up. “I didn’t think you would.”

“I wanted to be clear.”

Her expression softened in a way that made it painful to breathe. “Thank you.”

I shrugged, pretending it didn’t matter even though it mattered more than anything. “You deserve control. After today, you deserve everything.”

She swallowed, looking away for a moment. “Hayes… earlier… when I asked why you didn’t walk away… you said you did it for me.”

I nodded once.

“Why?” she asked softly.

Because I’ve been in love with you since before Lucas even realized you existed.
Because I’ve never been able to say it.
Because you deserve someone who would show up every time.
Because you’re the only woman I’ve ever wanted.

None of those words made it out.

Instead, I said, “Because you looked alone. And I couldn’t let that happen.”

She stared at me, eyes searching my face like she was looking for lies. I never lied to her. Not once.

She looked down at her wedding band then, spinning it lightly with her thumb. “This is insane.”

“Absolutely.”

“We’re married.”

“It appears so.”

“People are going to talk.”

“Let them.”

She looked up at me again. This time something warm flickered in her eyes, something she probably didn’t even notice.

“What now?” she asked.

I took a slow breath. “We make a pact.”

“A pact?”

“We stay married until you decide otherwise. We give you time to process. You take the master suite. I take the guest room. And we don’t touch unless you ask. That’s the pact.”

She stared at me like she wasn’t sure if she should trust me or laugh at me. Then she nodded slowly.

“Fine,” she said. “That’s the pact.”

I extended my hand. “Deal?”

She hesitated only a second before placing her hand in mine.

Her fingers were warm. Soft. Sure.

“Deal,” she whispered.

My heart did something reckless. Something hopeful.

Something dangerously close to falling deeper in love with a woman who still didn’t know what she meant to me.