‘DON’T THINK OF it as a marriage,’ he added, when she hadn’t spoken for several long, confused seconds of silence. ‘Think of it as a job offer.’
‘To be your wife?’ She roused herself, finally, blinking as though that might help make sense of matters.
Thanos’s eyes narrowed speculatively. ‘Yes.’
‘Do you feel okay? Are you drunk?’
He laughed; a hoarse sound. ‘No.’
‘You can’t seriously be expecting me to marry you?’
‘Why not?’
‘Um...’ She sipped her water for something to do. ‘Because we just met yesterday?’
‘Yes,’ he agreed. ‘But I already know everything I need to know to make this marriage a success.’
Alice lifted her brows in a silent entreaty for him to continue.
‘You are efficient, trustworthy and intelligent. I have been very impressed with your work ethic.’
Pleasure zipped through her.
‘But more than that, Alice, you need money, and this marriage would simply be a business
arrangement.’
‘A business arrangement?’ She echoed his pronouncement, trying to make sense of that.
‘Why not?’
A crease formed between her brows and she lifted a hand, tucking a loose bit of chestnut hair behind her ear. ‘Is that even legal?’
His smile held a hint of derision. ‘You think arranged marriages are not binding?’
‘I...’ She couldn’t think straight. ‘I’m sorry. This has come totally out of the blue. You’re seriously saying you want to marry me?’
His gaze was laced with fierce determination, sharp enough to send a blade of apprehension down her spine. ‘I would do anything to get Petó back. Kosta has made his terms clear. This is the only way to fulfil them.’
‘I can kind of see that, I guess.’ She sounded anything but convinced. ‘Except I’m the last woman you’d ever marry. He’s never going to believe this is genuine.’
‘On the contrary, the fact that you are not like the kind of women I am attracted to makes you perfect for this ruse.’
Alice let out a soft laugh, hiding the way his pronouncement hurt. She knew she wasn’t particularly beautiful, and she had no hope that a man like Thanos would ever look twice at her. Not that she wanted him to—she was done with men, done with love altogether. Still, she had a little pride left and in that moment it had been completely hollowed out. ‘How do you figure?’
‘Because you are different. It makes sense that when I do eventually settle down, it would be with someone who challenges me, who stands out compared to my usual...type.’
She resisted the urge to pull a face, even though this conversation was becoming somewhat mortifying. ‘Okay, fair enough. But we just met yesterday.’
‘He doesn’t know that.’
‘I...’
‘For all he knows, you and I have been seeing one another for months.’
Alice lifted a brow. ‘Well, that would hardly be a ringing endorsement of my judgement.’ She lifted her hands apologetically, but continued explaining. ‘I mean, you’ve been in the papers—recently—photographed with different women.’
He waved a hand in the air, as though it barely mattered. ‘Kosta is an intelligent man, who has also done his share of living in the public eye. He knows as well as I do that papers make stuff up. I don’t particularly care what is written about me. I understand the newspapers and blogs have a job to do, but only a fool would take gossip as gospel.’