“A text is not the same as a phone call. How can you be sure it was me on the other end of the phone responding to those texts?” She throws up her hands in frustration.

  Frowning, Kyle looks down at her. “You’re the only sixteen year old on the planet who prefers phone calls over texting.”

  She shrugs and grins from ear to ear. “Thank you.”

  That’s when she turns to me. She has hazel eyes like her brother, but her heart-shaped face belongs to her mother. I’m surprised to realize that one side of her head is completely shaved and has a line of ear piercings running up her entire earlobe.

  It was the heavy combat boots on her feet that had made so much noise as she rushed down the stairs.

  “I’m Anastasia, but Stasi for short. Only my parents call me Anastasia, and that’s when they’re pissed at me,” she rattles on.

  “Stasi, language,” their mother interjects again.

  “Sorry,” she mumbles before sticking her hand out to me. “Who are you?”

  “This is Riley,” Kyle’s mother introduces. “And this is Eve.” She nods toward my niece. “Why don’t you take Eve into the entertainment room for a minute while we wait for everyone to arrive and for dinner to be served?”

  “Cool.” Stasi shrugs. “What do you like to do?” she asks Eve.

  “I like math,” my niece answers.

  Stasi gives her a skeptical look. “Not my favorite subject.” Then she snaps. “Ohh, maybe you can help me with my latest measurements for this recipe.” She takes Eve by the hand and pulls her out of the room.

  I watch my niece eagerly trail the older girl.

  “Don’t even think of turning on one of your true crime podcasts for her to listen to,” Kyle calls after his sister. “The last thing we need is for Eve to have nightmares from listening to that shit,” he grumbles.

  I stare at him as he continues looking after the empty doorway where his sister and my niece exited. From the wrinkle in his forehead, I can see that he looks worried.

  “They’ll be fine,” his mother finally says. “Besides, don’t you have more pressing matters to discuss?”

  The like how in the hell you’re married with a whole family goes unsaid.

  I look between the two of them because I also wonder how Kyle plans to explain this situation. Is he going to out me to his entire family?

  “What’s to discuss?” Kyle says so nonchalantly that my mouth falls open.

  Mrs. Townsend, however, must be used to this side of her son because she doesn’t even look annoyed at his response.

  “Maybe the part where you’re married all of a sudden? Let’s start there. How did this come about? Just a few weeks ago you weren’t seeing anyone. You were more married to that damn company than to anyone else. You must really be in love to move this quickly.”

  A snort falls from my mouth accidentally, causing them both to look my way. “Love, yeah right,” I mumble. “He blackmailed me into it.”

  His mother’s eyes widen and then dart over to Kyle. “What? Tell me that’s not true.”

  Kyle looks between me and his mother. “I have my reasons.”

  When I think his mother is going to demand more of an explanation, she simply stands there. She glances between Kyle and me, as if trying to figure us out. Good luck to her. I can’t even figure this situation out.

  “The apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree,” she finally says, surprising me.

  I want to ask her what she means by that, but another set of footsteps start coming down the stairs. My heart rate quickens. Not from the knowledge that I’m pretty certain I’m about to meet Kyle’s father for the first time face-to-face but because Kyle moves closer and places his hand at the small of my back.

  His mother looks me over. “You’ve married the apple. Now it’s time to meet the tree.”

  I scrunch my face in confusion but I’m not given time to ask what the heck she’s talking about.

  A few beats later, Aaron Townsend enters the room. The scowl on his face would put me off if it wasn’t a well-known fact that this is his regular expression. His eyes, the same color as his son’s, move around the room and soften when they land on his wife, who stands in front of Kyle and me.

  Then they light up even more at the sight of his son. Finally, his gaze lands on me and his scowl returns.

  “Who is this?”

  I part my lips to reply, but Kyle beats me to it.

  “This is Riley.”

  “Our new daughter-in-law,” Kyle’s mother finishes for him.

  His father’s gaze never wavers from me. It’s not difficult to see at all where Kyle gets his imposing nature from.

  Mr. Townsend raises an eyebrow at Kyle. That’s when I think he’s going to drop his hand from my waist and drop his head in shame or wither underneath his father’s stare. Hell, I feel my insides start to cave in beneath the weight of his attention myself. My heart races, and I wouldn’t blame Kyle if he told his father right this minute what I’d done.

  “Mr. Townsend—” I open my mouth to confess myself, but Kyle’s voice interrupts me.

  “She’s my wife,” Kyle says, looking his father directly in the eye.

  His father looks me over, scowl in place, but doesn’t say anything.

  “My office,” is all he says before he pivots and exits the room.

  I start to follow, but Kyle’s hand stops me. “Just me.”

  I watch as he heads in the direction his father left, wanting to follow but stilling myself against doing so. Silence surrounds me for a brief moment before Patience Townsend moves into my line of sight.

  The expression on her face isn’t as friendly as it was when we were first introduced. While it isn’t friendly, she isn’t scowling either. There’s a pinch between her eyebrows as if she’s trying to figure me out.

  “You think my son doesn’t love you?” she asks with folded arms.

  I snort again at the thought. “All due respect, Mrs. Townsend, I’m pretty certain your son hates me.”

  Her eyebrows lift. “You believe so?”

  I nod but can’t bring myself to tell her exactly why I know how Kyle feels about me. Sure, he feels some affection toward Eve. She’s a child and who wouldn’t love her? And yes, there might have been a time where Kyle felt something other than annoyance or even just physical attraction for me, but the truth of why I entered his life destroyed all of that.

  Now, I’m just a tool for him to use as payback.

  “Yes, ma’am. I do.”

  It’s Mrs. Townsend’s turn to snort. “Riley, if my son hated you, there’s no way you would’ve made it within fifty yards of this house.” Her eyes meet mine again. “Con artist or not.”

  I suck in a breath because …

  What the hell did she just say?

  Kyle

  “Is this necessary?” I ask my father as he perches his body on the corner of his desk in his home office in the basement.

  He doesn’t say anything as he folds his arms across his chest and lifts an eyebrow.

  “My wife’s waiting for me upstairs. And Stasi’s probably talking Eve into shaving the side of her head by now, too. Why would you let her cut her hair like that?” I admonish.

  “Are you telling me how to raise my daughter now?”

  “You would’ve never let me or Kennedy walk around with our hair like that.” I grunt and shake my head. “Parents really do go easy on the youngest.”

  The ringing of the doorbell sounds from upstairs. A beat later, I hear my sister Kennedy’s voice.

  “You can give me shit when you become a parent,” my dad says, lifting his gaze to the ceiling.

  My breath catches in my damn chest.

  “Choking?” he inquires casually, without moving, once I start coughing.

  “Clearing my throat,” I reply.

  “Tell me about my new daughter-in-law.”

  “What’s to tell? We’re married.”

  He narrows his eyes. “So fucking stubborn.”

  “Wonder where I got it from.”

  He snorts. “Your mother.”

  At that I laugh because we both know that’s not the case.

  “Riley Martin. The same Riley Martin we hired to consult with us throughout this merger process?”

  “Yes.”

  “And the same woman who infiltrated my company to sell business secrets to your former best friend.”

  Of course he knows.

  “Uncle Brutus told you.”

  He gives me a deadpan expression as if to say what the hell do you think?

  “Yes,” I answer, looking him in the eyes.

  “You trust her enough to fucking married her.” It’s not a question.

  I fold my arms across my chest. “It’s a business decision.” My chest tightens from those words. It’s true. It was a business decision to marry Riley.

  Then why does it feel like more?

  “Elaborate.”

  I hate justifying my plans to anyone, but as my father and CEO he’s the one person I should probably open up to.

  “She’s damn good at what she does,” I say, defensive. “On one hand, she got me to believe her.”

  “Not an easy feat,” he snorts.

  I grind my teeth because it still pisses me off that she lied to me from the beginning.

  “Yet, a number of the strategies she’s recommended over the past few months regarding the transition are working out well. It’s going smoother than expected and that’s thanks to her expertise.”

  Riley knows people, and that’s translated well into the type of consulting she does. I will give her that.

  “Then, you blackmailed this woman into marrying you because she’s good at her job?” He dips his head toward the doorway.

  I shrug without shame. “She’s valuable … for business. We still don’t know what Dean is up to or who he’s working with. She can help with that.”

  “Then this marriage is strictly for convenience's sake?”

  I tighten my fists at my sides. “Convenience my ass. This is about retribution,” I reply, feeling irritated by this line of questioning.

  “Was retribution the reason you flew back east and had staff at a certain boarding school fired? Or why you have a team of lawyers suing said school?”

  I slide my hands into my pockets. “They deserve it.” A muscle in my jaw ticks from the thought of Eve’s former school.

  “Multiple educators there will likely never work in education again thanks to you.”

  “And that’ll be too soon,” I reply without a shred of guilt. Fuck them.

  A slight grin makes its way across my father’s face, but he quickly stifles it. “This is for business, huh? Care to clue me in since I’m the CEO?”

  “I’m handling it.”

  “Is that why your wife thinks you hate her?”

  I turn to see my mother leaning against the door, arms folded. Her eyes are shooting daggers my way.

  What the hell did I do?

  “No, she doesn’t.”

  My mother huffs as she strolls into the room. “That’s what she just told me.”

  My heart clenches in my chest. Hate.

  That couldn’t be furthest from the truth.

  “You must’ve been mistaken.”

  “My ears work just fine.”

  My mother eyes me up and down. As she does so, my father, seemingly unable to keep his hands off of her if they’re in the same room, pulls her against his chest.

  These two.

  I roll my eyes. Their constant displays of affection aren’t anything new. But oddly, it makes me think of Riley. Does she honestly believe I hate her?

  “Is that all right with you, Kyle?”

  I blink and look back at my mother. “What did you say?”

  “Eve has taken a liking to Stasi. They both have. And Eve asked Riley if she could spend the night.”

  I missed that entire conversation. My thoughts were too centered on my wife.

  My fucking wife.

  The fact that the thought alone doesn’t cause the uncomfortable tightening in my chest should send up a red flag. Yet, it does the opposite.

  “What did Riley say?”

  Instead of answering me, my mother looks back at my father. They share one of those fucking annoying looks that communicates something only they understand.

  “She said she didn’t want to inconvenience us. But it’s no problem. With you and Ken out of the house, Andreas in L.A., and Theirs …” She trails off, her voice getting slightly heavier at the mention of my younger brother. Thiers in the military, like our Uncle Carter. I know my mother hates it. “I kind of miss having all of you kids in the house at once.”

  My father snorts. “I don’t. Take her and Stasi with you.”

  My mother elbows him, making him grunt. He mumbles something in her ear. Again, my thoughts go back to Riley.

  “I need to get back to Riley.” The words tumble out of my mouth without thought. I head back up the stairs.

  “You’re freaking married?” Kennedy bellows as soon as I enter the dining room.

  A slow grin creeps across my face. “Hey, twin.”

  “Don’t hey twin me.” She shoves my shoulder. “You didn’t even invite me to your wedding.”

  “That’s because we didn’t have one,” Riley tells her. From the look they exchange, I get the feeling these two have hit it off already.

  Kennedy slaps her hands onto her hips and frowns. “All of that money he makes at Townsend and you didn’t make this guy,” Kennedy thrusts her thumb in my direction, “give you a proper wedding?”

  “Hell, it’s not like you keep your ass in town long enough to attend a wedding,” I say. Kennedy has a job at a paper in the city but it often takes her out of town. Add to that she loves adventure sports and takes trips, and … well, she’s gone a lot.

  Kennedy shrugs. “We’ll have to plan one then.”

  Riley looks to me. “That won’t be necessary.”

  “Oh hell no,” Kennedy insists. “You have to—”

  “Watch your language in this house,” my mother interrupts.

  “Sorry, Mom,” my twin mumbles. “Hey, Daddy.”

  While my father pulls her into a hug, Stasi and Riley emerge from the entertainment room.

  “Aunt Riley, Stasi cut her hair herself. Isn’t it cool?” Eve asks Riley. “Can I—”

  “No!” Riley and I say at the same time.

  She turns and looks at me, surprised.

  “You are not cutting your hair like that,” I say firmly.

  Stasi rolls her eyes. “It’s not your fault, Eve. My brother wouldn’t know cool if it bit him in the a—”

  “In the what?” my mother chides.

  Kennedy laughs and high-fives our sister.

  “Oh, and Stasi was showing me how she keeps notecards and alarms on her phone to use when she’s in the kitchen, so she doesn’t mess up what she’s making. Isn’t that smart?” Eve says enthusiastically.

  “Yeah, if you have ADHD like me, we can probably come up with some techniques to help you out, too,” Stasi replies. “Come help me in the kitchen. I was only allowed to make tonight’s dessert, but I need to do a few things before dinner.”

  In a flash the two are off.

  I turn to tell Riley something, but she’s busy talking with my sister and mother. I squint, wondering how they started a conversation so quickly. I watch my wife as her smile widens at something my mother says to her. A small laugh spills from her lips. My heart quickens from the sounds.

  This feels right. Like she belongs as part of this family—my family. Unease bristles in my chest.

  But can you trust her?

  I want to shake it off as indigestion but I know better. Ever since I moved into her place, I’ve spent weeks in her bed, lying next to her but not touching her. I’ve told myself it’s because I want to make her as uncomfortable as possible, or it’s because I need to play the role in front of Eve.

  It’s all bullshit.

  My fucking dreams have been haunted by that weekend we spent together.

  I want to touch her.

  “It’s about time they got here,” my father says.

  That’s when I realize the doorbell is ringing.

  “That should be Carter and Michelle.” My mother goes to greet my aunt and uncle, leaving Riley and Kennedy talking.

  My father moves in front of me.

  “You’re looking at her like she’s on the dinner menu,” he says.

  “She’s my wife.” The words spill from my lips without conscious thought.

  “Business my ass,” I think I hear my father mumble but I’m still too focused on Riley to really hear him.

  “Kyle, you son of a bitch, you didn’t bother to invite your favorite uncle to the wedding?” my Uncle Carter says, grabbing my attention.

  He passes a look over to my father. I ignore the teasing that comes from my uncle, and soon after, my Aunt Michelle. Despite having conversation with my father, uncle, and the rest of the family throughout dinner, I keep finding my gaze going back to Riley even as she sits right beside me.

  She, Kennedy, and my mother talk off and on about everything from Riley’s work to Eve’s school now that she’s attending Excelor Academy. I listen more to their conversation than to my father mentioning business. Or Uncle Carter telling the both of us about what’s happening at the fire station.

  My uncle rose up the ranks to become Battalion Chief.

  An hour goes by in a blur as we eat the catered dinner. I don’t even know what the hell we’ve had since I’m so focused on Riley. By the time Stasi’s dessert of the cinnamon-honey creme brulee is brought out, I’m ready for the night to be over.

  “I got to show Eve how to use a blowtorch,” Stasi says a little too excitedly for my liking.

  “Be careful with that thing,” I admonish, and then turn to my parents. “Should she be allowed to use one of those?” I insist. “Someone could get hurt. Eve, you didn’t use it, did you?”

  Eve shakes her head adamantly. “No, I just watched. It’s so cool though.”

  That seems to be her and Stasi’s favorite word of the night.

  “Calm down, bro. I know what I’m doing. Tell him, Mom.”

  “How about we bring out dessert?” my mother says instead.

  Minutes later, everyone has plates of Stasi’s dish in front of us. I’ll admit it's delicious. Riley compliments my sister which makes her preen.

 

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