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not.”

      The night had cooled and a wind blew, tugging at her hair, and the label of her thick white robe. “Please, just give me a chance—”

      “For God’s sake, do not beg, Kassiani.”

      “Just give me a chance. One chance. That’s all I ask.”

      “Why?”

      “I want out. I want a life away from my family—”

      “You’re not going to get a happy family with me.”

      “I’m not asking for a fairy tale. I’m not pretty and popular. I find dating a nightmare. I’m so awkward but at the same time, I’m practical. I know you were marrying my sister because you wanted heirs. Obviously she’s not ready to marry and be a mother, but I am. I want children. I’ll be a good mother, too. So give me a chance to show you I could be a good wife, and...please...you. If I can’t, and you have no...interest...despite my best efforts, then I will go home, and I’ll accept your decision. But I can’t accept rejection before I’ve had a chance to prove myself—”

      “This isn’t about you,” he gritted, spinning around, features twisted. “This is about your father manipulating me—”

      “But you got everything you wanted...the deals, the ports, the ships, the agreements, everything but Elexis. And you said you didn’t love her, so why can’t I be a substitute bride? Why can’t I be the woman to give you your children? Is it because I’m so much plainer?”

      “No.”

      “You protested too quickly.” She struggled to smile. “I don’t believe you. But that’s okay. I know what I look like—”

      “Stop it, Kass!” He grabbed her by the upper arms and gave her a shake. “Stop this madness. Because it is madness. I may not have been born with much, but I would never take a woman against her will, and you were forced into this marriage by your father to save his hide, not yours.”

      “But that’s not true. This marriage saves mine. This marriage gets me out.” Her voice broke. Tears fell. “I hated living in that house on Nob Hill. I have never fit in, never belonged, and I’m fully aware of who I am in that family. I’m the ugly one. The embarrassing one. The one they choose to leave behind. Marrying you lets me escape that legacy. You give me a new life, and a future.”

      “You’ll be no happier with me.”

      She hesitated, a lump welling in her throat, a lump so big it made swallowing hurt. “I know it’s not easy to look at me—”

      “Good God!” He gave her another shake. “Do not say such things. You are not your sister, but you are not ugly, not even remotely ugly.” His grip eased, his hands half sliding down her arms. “Don’t ever say such a thing again because it’s a lie and you seem far too intelligent to believe lies and mistruths.”

      Her head jerked up and she searched his face. “Could you make love to me?”

      “Kassiani.”

      “You can’t imagine it?”

      “That’s not the point.”

      “But it is. If I can please you, and prove to you I’m a good wife, you might realize this is the right marriage.” Her chin lifted, her expression provocative, despite the trace of tears. “So do we have a deal, Damen Alexopoulos? I know you like making deals, so make one with me.”

      “This is a terrible deal.”

      “Because if you lose, you’re stuck with me?”

      “No, because if you lose, you’ll apparently be weeping all over my villa and I’ll feel like a—oh, what is the word in English? A beast? An ogre?”

      “A schmuck.”

      “A schmuck,” he echoed.

      “But I won’t be weeping and you won’t have to feel like a schmuck if you give me a fair chance. I understand your objections. I know you don’t want me. I know you have no feelings for me. But history is filled with arranged marriages and many of them turned out to be good partnerships. Beneficial relationships. Why can’t we be one of those?”

      “So how do we know who wins?”

      “You give me to dawn. If we consummate our marriage tonight, I win. If we don’t, you win, and you can have your security return me to the villa first thing in the morning.”

      He sighed and dragged a hand through his thick dark hair, rifling it on end. “Do you have a plan, kitten?”

      “I do. I’m going to seduce you.”

       CHAPTER THREE

      HE HADN’T COME to the bedroom to make love to his new wife. He’d come to send her home, and yet she was fierce and stubborn, determined to fight for this marriage.

      So different from Elexis, who hadn’t even bothered to show up for the ceremony. So different from Elexis, who couldn’t even hold a conversation with him. Kassiani could hold a conversation and more. She was fierce, smart, eloquent. She would have been an incredible trial attorney. She’d be amazing in the boardroom.

      Maybe that’s why he was here, sitting in one of the leather chairs in the master bedroom, telling Kassiani to unpin her hair and then shake it out, before letting her try to entertain him.

      He was intrigued by her, curious as to her next move.

      Her next move proved to be a rather awkward, but earnest, dance in front of him.

      She was still wearing his robe but every now and then a lapel slipped open, revealing the pale slope of a full breast, or a knee and thigh.

      He hadn’t allowed himself to think of her as a woman before this, because she hadn’t been his woman, but as she danced, her hips slowly, sensually gyrating, her arms lifted over her head, eyes half-closed as she swayed, he couldn’t look away. He was fairly certain she’d never done this before, which was maybe what made her efforts so appealing. He hadn’t thought he’d find her arousing, and yet he was hard, and growing harder as she danced and swayed, using her body to entice him.

      He watched her from beneath heavy lids, body heating, blood humming in his veins. He’d wanted to be done with her. He’d come to his room to dispense with her, and yet here she was, dancing as if her life depended on it. As though he were a sultan, and she a disgraced member of his harem.

      And perverse as the thought was, that, too, aroused him. The only way he felt anything, anymore, was through sex. Hard, carnal sex. Sex threaded with power. Sex laced with pain. He hadn’t always been this way. He’d been...normal...once.

      He’d had feelings, and tenderness. But that had been stripped from him in his teenage years, along with his pride, leaving only failure and shame.

      It’s why he wanted to marry Elexis. She was hard. He wouldn’t break her. But Kassiani...she was entirely something else.

      And she was entirely something else right now, as she slowly sank down, going to her knees before him. Her hands rested lightly on his knees and her head tipped back to look up into his face.

      He didn’t know what she saw in his face, but whatever she did see, it emboldened her. She ran her hands lightly up his quadriceps, her palms warm against his thighs. Reaching his hips, she lightly stroked down, brushing the inside of his thighs. His shaft throbbed. He felt as if he would burst out of his skin in a moment. His virginal little bride was not acting so very virginal in that moment.

      It had been a long time since he’d been so turned on. A long time since his chest felt heat and warmth along with his groin. Normally only his erection worked, but tonight his entire body heated and thrummed as her hands stroked back up his thighs, moving toward

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