Isabelle’s heart hammered away in her chest. Why was he suddenly asking that? Had she said something to give herself away?
If he found out the truth and cancelled the marriage… No! She couldn’t let that happen. If he discovered her family’s deceit, her parents would no longer cater for Hannah’s treatment.
“Of course I am,” she replied, crossing her arms across her chest. “Why would you ask that?”
He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, his eyes narrowed as he continued to stare at her. It made her even more uneasy.
“You are the Garcias' eldest son, right?” she asked, attempting to shift the attention from her to him.
Jacob shoved his hands in his trouser pockets and rocked on his feet. “I am.”
She nodded. “Well then, it’s all good, right?”
Was it? Jacob wondered as he studied Isabelle.
Knowing that he was going to marry a strange woman to fulfil his mother’s wish, he sent someone to investigate the eldest daughter of the Cruzes. He had needed to know about her so he could figure out how to encourage her to divorce him quickly.
But now, he was wondering whether his source had gotten his information wrong.
When Jacob appeared at the wedding, he was ready to meet a haughty woman who would turn hostile at the sight of their living arrangement. Because according to his source, his intended bride would never settle for such a life.
The reality was turning out to be completely different.
Isabelle was not showing any animosity towards the situation. Did she really not mind being married to a poor man she wasn’t even in love with? Was she so devoted to her family that she was willing to sacrifice her own desires to ensure they met their end of the agreement?
Because if that was the case, Jacob was afraid it would be so much harder to get her to divorce him. But that couldn’t happen. Whether this woman was who she said she was or not, he didn’t care. As long as he was concerned, he had fulfilled his mother’s wish and married the eldest daughter of the Cruz family.
Now, all he needed to do was find a way to end the entire thing. What besides passing off as a notorious man could make a wealthy heiress divorce you?
“It’s all good,” he replied finally. “It has been a long day, we should go to sleep.”
“Yeah,” Isabelle said, then her eyes slid past him to the only bed in the room.
Jacob held out one hand to her. “Care to join me?”
She shook her head quickly. “I’ll take the sofa.”
“The bed is big enough for both of us,” he pointed out.
“You’re only my husband on paper, Jacob. Other than that, you’re a stranger to me. I don’t share a bed with strangers.”
He took a step towards her, crowding her. “You don’t?”
Isabelle swallowed as he stepped closer. “I don’t.”
“I’ll not try to touch you, if that’s what you’re worried about,” he assured her.
Did he really think she would agree to sleep in the same bed with him when they were in a fake marriage? Ah, or was this one of his ploys to seduce her? She had heard that he was the player, after all. And not long ago, he had offered to satisfy her sexual needs…
She cleared her throat and gestured to the sofa. “I’m good with the sofa.”
She actually wasn’t–after the long day she had had, she was hoping for a good night’s rest. Now, not only was she trapped in a room with a strange man, but she also had to make do with a sofa. None of that screamed ‘good night’s sleep.’ Forget having a good rest. She would be lucky if she could get a few hours of shut-eye.
Jacob shook his head and took yet another step towards her. She wished he would stop doing that. It was getting harder to focus on the important things with him getting in her space. The closer he got, the more attuned she became to the scent of his soap, the slight dampness of his hair, the curve of his upper lip…
She shook her head mentally. Those were not the kind of thoughts she was supposed to be having if she was determined to keep everything platonic.
“No, I can’t have that, he told her. “If you won’t come to bed with me, I’ll take the sofa.”
Would he really do that?
“No, you don’t have to. It’s your bed, after all.”
“Our bed,” he corrected. “And, fake or not, you’re my wife, and I won’t let you sleep on the sofa.”
She looked at him, met his gaze for a second, and then looked away. So, even after saying they would only pretend to be a couple in public, was he going to treat her like his wife indoors?
“Thanks, then, if you’re sure,” she told him.
“But,” he said, reaching forward to lean one of his hands on the counter next to her. “Do we really have to resort to that?”
Isabelle swallowed, her throat going dry at his sudden closeness. His arm brushed against her side and she stepped to the side, attempting to create more space between them. “What?”
“We are both adults,” he said, his eyes running up and down her body openly.
Was he checking her out? What exactly was he trying to do? She tried to maintain her composure, but it was hard when his dark eyes rose to hers. They penetrated hers, and for a second, she forgot how to breathe.
It wasn’t her fault that he was so good-looking…
The closer Jacob got to Isabelle, the stronger the whiff he was getting of her soap or shampoo or whatever it was she had used in the bathroom got. And damned if he didn’t want to close the few remaining inches between them and press his nose into her neck, or hair, just to take a deep inhale.
Dammit…was it really possible to play house with this woman without crossing the lines he had intended to draw even before he met her?
He was loving her reactions to him a little too much. As he got closer, she looked as if she wanted to bolt, but also as if she was trying hard to act like he wasn’t affecting her. Her chest was rising a little more rapidly, and her hands had closed into fists.
Maybe while they were stuck in this situation, it wouldn’t hurt to have a little fun…
Moving quickly, he stepped in front of her and placed his other hand on her other side, effectively caging her to the kitchen counter.
Her eyes widened instantly as her hands dropped to brace herself on the surface behind her. “What…what are you doing?”
He leaned in, closing in on her, bringing his lips to her ear. “Would you like us to be a real couple… behind closed doors?”
Her wide eyes fixated on him. “I…I…”
“You’re a beautiful woman,” he whispered, making a point of keeping his voice as low as possible. “I wouldn’t mind sharing a bed with you. And, of course, doing other things that a normal couple would.”
Isabelle’s face burned red at Jacob’s words and proximity. Why was he suddenly acting this way? She had already made it clear she wasn’t going to share the bed with him, let alone sleep with him! He must be teasing her!His lips so close to her ear, he whispered, “What do you think?”What did she think? She couldn’t think, for one. The only thing she knew was that she needed to get out of that situation…Quickly, she ducked under one of his arms and sprinted across the room to the bathroom. She didn’t care how she looked like running away. She would deal with the embarrassment the next day. Now, all she had to do was remain in the bathroom until he went to sleep and she could slip back into the room.Heaving a sigh, she walked to the mirror and took in her appearance. Her face was a raw shade of red, and when she touched her fingers to it, she felt how hot it was. Whenever was she going to stop having such a reaction to him?When Jacob woke up the next day, the first thing that regist
When Jacob got to his new in-laws house, he didn’t expect to be welcomed by the sight of his wife all but being thrown out of the house.As Isabelle stumbled onto the porch, he reached forward quickly and caught her arms, steadying her. “What’s going on?” he demanded, taking in her face. Her face was flushed, her lips pursed, while her eyes were teary and red.“Nothing,” she muttered, turning her face away from him and freeing herself from his grip. “What are you doing here?”Jacob looked towards the open door, where Isabelle’s sister had been standing a few seconds ago. Turning around, he spotted Kevin who was carrying several shopping bags. “Kevin, bring them into the house,” he told him.“Okay, boss,” Kevin agreed and walked past the couple into the house.“What is that?” Isabelle asked as she looked closely at the bags Kevin was carrying.“Gifts for my new in-laws,” Jacob answered, and then reached for her hand. “Come on, let’s go inside.”As Isabelle went back into the house in J
Isabelle was taking in the spectacle unfolding before her when Jacob took her hand and led her towards the front door. Of all the ways she had expected Jacob’s visit to go, that was definitely not one of them. She could still hear her mother and sister’s grumbling as the door closed behind them.Jacob kept his hold on her hand all the way to the front of the house. When he let go, he came to a stop and regarded her. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming to your parents’ house?”She looked towards the door, half-expecting her mother to appear with more flattering words for Jacob. While she did, she jogged her brain for an excuse to give Jacob. It wasn’t as if she could tell him that she came to collect money that her parents had promised on account that she married him…“Isabelle?” Jacob’s voice urged.Looking away from the door, she faced him and said, “I’m sorry about that. When I left the house, I got a call from my father asking me to come by immediately. I didn’t have time to te
After settling in her new home, Isabelle had one more thing to do: find a job. The sooner, the better. She was no longer getting any money from her parents, and Jacob’s financial situation wasn’t the best.So the sooner she got a job, the better it would be for all of them. Once she found a job, maybe she could look for a new apartment to rent. While the house they were living in wasn’t exactly the worst, it was practical at best. Living with Jacob in the same room when they were only pretending to be a couple had its own share of challenges she wished to fix soon.With a good job, she could be able to afford to rent a good apartment where they could each have their own rooms. Also, once she found a job, she would have fewer things to worry about and finally focus on finding ways to raise funds for Ruth’s medical bill.She had high hopes of finding a job quickly. Just the other day, she had received a call for an interview from Larson Group, a famous design company that was renowned i
“Yeah, please do tell us,” the man sitting next to her encouraged.Ann crossed her arms across her chest and pursed her lips before saying, “I just don’t have a good feeling about her, that’s all.”“That cannot be a good reason to not hire her,” someone pointed out. “It sounds as if you have a personal grudge against her. You need to give a good reason why you don’t recommend her for the position.”“I do not have a personal grudge against her,” Ann claimed firmly. “But yes, I know her from school. We were classmates. That’s why I know she might not be the kind of person we want in this company.”“What kind of student was she?”“The kind that cheats on exams,” Ann said. “Look, I didn’t want to bring this up because I’m not sure it’s relevant now, but who knows? Maybe she hasn’t changed at all. Back then, she copied a classmate’s design and won an award with it. The other student was disqualified. I have no idea how she managed to convince the professor that she was the original design
Isabelle looked up and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. She eyed the pamphlet in his hands and shrugged. “Yeah.”Then she looked away again and focused on her laptop. But Jacob didn’t miss her tone, and how her face fell at his question.“And?” he urged.“I didn’t get the job.”“Oh,” he mumbled, frowning. “Can I take a look at your resume?”“Sure.”He took the document and sat back on the sofa. The more he scrutinised the document, the deeper his frown grew. From what he was seeing, it didn’t make sense that she wouldn’t pass an interview at the Larson Group.According to her resume, she was a top student at her college and even won a scholarship after winning a design contest. That aside, she had recently won a design championship. Both were enough proof that she was a brilliant upcoming designer.“Why were you rejected?” he asked after looking through her resume.“Probably because I didn’t pass the exam,” Isabelle replied. But even as she said that, she doubted it. She
Isabelle walked into the kitchen to the sight of Jacob standing over an overturned recycling bin, with several shattered beer bottles at his feet. He had a broom in one hand and a dustpan in the other, still as he looked at the mess he had made.When Isabelle appeared, he looked from the mess to her and then back again. “I…uh…” he began, then went to rub the back of his neck, but realised that was impossible with the dustpan in his hand. So he dropped his hand and shrugged.Isabelle was relieved that he didn’t seem to have hurt himself. But she couldn’t help but be amused at how he looked standing there looking at the mess he had made as if not sure how it had happened.He cleared his throat and looked at her. “I was sweeping and then…I hit the bin.”Yeah, she had guessed as much. Stepping forward, she reached for his broom. “Let me clean it up.”“No,” he said, stepping back. “Careful,” he added, looking down at the shattered glass. “Don’t step on them.”Isabelle stepped back from the
When Isabelle got to the Larson Group building, she headed up to the floor she had been on the previous day. However, when she emerged at the waiting room leading to the room she had been interviewed in, a well-dressed lady approached her.“Are you Isabelle Cruz?” she asked politely.“Yes, that’s me,” Isabelle replied.“Welcome to Larson Group, Ms Cruz. I’m Linda, the vice president’s assistant. Please come with me, the vice president is awaiting you.”Isabelle blinked. “The vice president?”“Yes. I’ll show you the way.”Isabelle went with the lady, surprised at the turn of events. She had expected to be led to an interview room. Why did the vice president want to see her?As they went, she noticed that many people stared at her. Did they know her? The previous day, nobody had really paid her any attention. But then she thought of the apology email from the company. Maybe the people here knew about what had happened with her interview?Linda came to a stop in front of a door and pushe