“Stop this,” Draven booms. “You will not marry her, Simon.”
Simon frowns. “What do you mean? She needs a husband.”
“And that husband will be me,” Draven says, moving to stand on the other side of me.
“You?” I glare into his dark eyes. “You can’t be serious.”
“I’ll marry her, Uncle.”
“No, she’ll be marrying me.” Draven stalks out of the room, leaving too many unanswered questions in his wake.
I stare at Simon. “I am not marrying him.”
Simon places his hand on my shoulder. “Don’t worry, you won’t have to.” He looks over at his mother. “Mom, he can’t be serious, can he?”
Lina volleys her gaze between her son and the others. “You know how he can get.”
“I want to be the one to marry her. This isn’t fair.”
Lina crosses to Simon. “I know you do. He has to have a good reason to marry her, dear.”
“Um, hello. Hi,” I quip, waving my hand. “I don’t want to marry anyone. I want to go home.”
“We’re long past that now,” Viggo says, rising from his seat. With a shake of his head, he leaves the room, probably to chase after Draven.
I roll my eyes. “Well, that’s all good and dandy, but I have a paper to complete and a life to get back to.” I leave the room the same way Draven left. They can’t seriously expect me to marry some stranger, can they? They can’t force me to do anything.
I march up the stairs, stopping just before I get to the second floor. From my spot on the stairs, I can see down the corridor into the room where Draven speaks with Viggo.
I creep on tiptoes to get a better listen.
“Why do you want to marry her?” Viggo asks.
“You think I trust a job like this to some kid? Simon is young. He’s naive, and we can’t put this on him.” Draven’s voice is deep and demanding.
“Are you sure that’s all it is?”
“Of course,” Draven bites out. “What else would it be?”
“I see the way you look at her.”
My defenses are on high alert when Draven laughs, as if the idea of being attracted to me is preposterous. “That’s highly unlikely. I only want to marry her to protect her. That’s it.”
“Why don’t I believe you?” Viggo asks.
“You should. When have I ever lied to you before? That plain girl doesn’t interest me.”
My mouth drops open. Who’s he calling plain girl?
With anger fusing itself to my bones, I head toward my room, so I can pack my bag and get the hell out of here.
Five
Draven
* * *
I’ve never lied to my best friend, Viggo Kelgar, but I’m lying to him right now. There is something about Allison that makes the thought of Simon marrying her ignite a fire in my veins. Saying Simon’s naive is the truth, but that doesn’t change how I’m feeling.