Chapter 4

Sabrina's POV

The word "marry" was still echoing in my head when Dominic's driver pulled up in front of a tall iron gate.

I sat in the back seat wearing one of his black sweatshirts.

It was too big on me. The sleeves covered my hands. The fabric smelled like him. Clean soap and something warm.

My wedding dress was ruined and crumpled on the floor of the car. I had changed in the back seat while he waited outside with his back turned.

Now we were in his living room. The place was huge and quiet. Dark wood floors. Big windows that looked out at the city lights.

He stood near the fireplace with his hands in his pockets, watching me.

"I need a wife," he said. His voice was calm and direct.

"My grandmother has been pushing hard. She arranges three blind dates a week for me. Different women every time. I'm tired of it. If I have a wife, she will stop. After one year we can divorce. I will give you one million dollars as alimony. If you don't want this, you can leave right now."

I stayed quiet. My fingers twisted the edge of his sweatshirt.

He continued. "About Mike and the investment. I will have someone in the company handle it properly. They will do another full review of your parents' farm. If the project is solid, the money will be released. If it's not, it won't."

I thought about the timeline. Mike had always dragged his feet on paperwork. This new review would probably take at least a month. Maybe longer.

But our strawberries were almost ready to pick. We needed that money now for trucks and cold storage and shipping. Without it we would lose the whole harvest.

I looked at Dominic. He was giving me a way out. I could walk away and try to figure something else out. But there was nothing else. My parents' whole life was on that land. I couldn't let it disappear because I was scared.

I took a slow breath and tried to sound steady. "It's just a fake marriage. One year. Then we go our separate ways."

Dominic's eyes stayed on me. He didn't smile.

"It's not just a piece of paper," he said. "You will live here with me. We will act like a real married couple when it matters. And I have needs. I'm not interested in a sexless marriage."

The words landed hard. I felt my face go hot.

My hands tightened on the sweatshirt. I stared at him, trying to process what he had just said.

Dominic's POV

She looked small in my sweatshirt. The black fabric swallowed her. Her hair was still messy from the street.

There was a smudge of makeup on her cheek. She kept twisting the sleeve between her fingers while I talked. Those big green eyes stayed on my face the whole time.

I knew I was taking advantage of the situation. She was desperate. Her parents' farm was on the line. I could have let Andy handle the investment and still given her the money.

But I didn't want to.

I had been dreaming about this woman for six months. Wet, filthy dreams that left me hard and frustrated in the middle of the night.

I would wake up with her name in my mouth and my hand already on my dick.

Now she was standing in my living room wearing my clothes, looking at me with those innocent eyes, and my cock was already straining against my pants. Just from watching her breathe.

I liked the way she fought back in that bridal shop. I liked the way she bit that guy on the street without hesitation. And I really liked those strawberry tarts she made.

Sweet, honest, exactly the way I liked them. Strawberries had always been my favorite. Only my grandmother knew that. Most people assumed I preferred expensive whiskey or cigars. They were wrong.

She had a clean, natural kind of beauty. No heavy makeup. No fake attitude. Her body was soft in all the right places. I could still feel the shape of her waist under my hand from when I caught her earlier.

I wanted to feel more. I wanted to taste her. I wanted to see what those eyes looked like when she came.

If she said no right now, I would still invest in the farm. I wasn't lying about that.

But I wasn't going to pretend I didn't want her here. This was my chance to keep her close. I wasn't going to waste it.

She was still staring at me after I told her I had needs. Her lips were slightly parted. Her cheeks had gone pink. She looked shocked, but she hadn't run yet. That was something.

I waited. I wanted to hear what she would say.