A Marriage of Convenience
arranged marriage
n she hadn't fought back. She told her father flat out that sh
d pragmatic Mr. Bellavance actual
ael-he's mature, steady, clean in both reputation and background. The Sterlings are
she was i
ther, a man with impossibly high
cial circle was particularly close to him. She didn't know him
d know the
s who had fought in the trenches during World War I. A family that had accumulated gener
Mr. Bellavance dropped his usual cold
en your sister wil
ossible! Evelyn is
me, and her younger sis
're at it, you can shut down t
ft no room
was nothing her father didn't know-her
e on the chopping block, pressuring her from both side
. She was still financially dependent on them, raised in
She wasn't naive or foolish enough to
She had already
e ye
ll she w
ars passed, s
, overbearing, or insufferable man? Then he wou
ra
voice pulled he
urned her head-those deep, stormy blu
f the car, standing by the open d
rsonally held the door open for her, extending hi
ing warmth of the car interior. Under the moonlight
cuff of his tailored suit peeked out fr
dazed. Was the act
ered to the fr
instantly-a long-time employee of the Ste
cli
simple gesture-it w
en elegantly placed her other hand-four
firmly around hers, his long fingers wrapping securely aroun
se, Raphael helped
waited patiently, never
ched the ground, Rapha
his gaze calm as he looked
inger-unembellished, understated, just a fa
e the ma
alm shifted slightly, adjusting its angle as
tely n
as the wind gently lif
l, commanding frame, his broad shoulders cutting a
slightly, but
how his steps slowed
car engine behind them, she instinctivel
time, his grip
ead slightly, his ex
one. You can
but he didn't ask why. Instead,
ir duplex penthouse
eline, the renovations had only just been completed before th
tayed here fo
e-height entryway chandelier lit up,
nd modern sophistication-ornate hand-painted ceilings, r
roperties, this w
n-from the living room, she
liked lively places, which was l
asted n
side, she kicked off her
per approaching Raphael,
headed straight u
king past the spacious suite to a c
int scan, the doors s
iar fragrance
sanctuary-a vas
orange basil diffuser, its notes of bergamot
lounge sat beside a glas
binets stretched along the walls-one dedicat
f designer clothing,
s, silk scarves, perfumes, hats, and other less valuable accessories. Adjacent to it, a s
es lined the floor, making th
guest rooms, but she had knocked down
favorite part
deep chestnut hair spilled down her back like a silk cascade. As she reached up to remove
suit
kind that looked precision-engineered, en hit her a se
wner of those suitcases was already stand
urned h
inches away from the doorframe. He had been
outside, but you didn't re
s hand, tucking it
ips parte
dered tonight, she had somehow
our rooms-one master bedroom, two that she had
it into a priva
re was just
as her husband s