Between Commitment and Betrayal (Hardy Billionaire Brothers, #1)(76)

“And what about you?” I countered.

He smiled and leaned close, “I’d like a ring made of that string like the one on my wrist. Black seems to be our color, right?” He tapped the bracelet I’d already made him. “I can give you ring measurements.”

I bit my cheek as I tried not to feel his answer in my heart where it could settle and bloom into something like love. Instead, I gave him a jerky nod as he slid the ring on.

“The stipulations might be crazy, and I’ve tried my best this past month to get more information, but Mrs. Johnson had it locked down.”

“We can figure it out together.” I shrugged but felt the anxiety of the reading building, felt my world starting to shift again, and felt my breath becoming shallow because of it.

When we exited the SUV, he rounded the vehicle, hooked his arm in mine, and grumbled, “You didn’t wait for me to open your door.”

Combing my hair back from the wind, I sighed. “I didn’t think we were still doing that.”

He stepped in front of me to open Mrs. Johnson’s office door. “We’re always doing that, Everly.”

The elder woman straightened her knitted blazer as she cleared her throat when we walked in and she wiggled her beaded glasses at us as she told us to take a seat.

The other lawyers, dressed in all black huddled in that same corner as last time. She shuffled around a few papers and then dove right in. She didn’t spare me five minutes or even a warning before she dropped the bomb on my life. “If you two wish to proceed in your marriage and thus the conditions of the will, at this juncture, it is required that you produce an heir.” She sighed and dropped the air of formality as all the air seemed to be sucked from the room. “It’s just one baby, and technically you’ll be meeting the requirements of this condition as long as you’re trying. Carl did tell me it’s for the good of empire and for your reputation, Everly. This should be easy peasy.”

“Easy … peasy?” I wheezed with wide eyes.

“Yes, Carl made this the last condition. The terms require you to go see a doctor, send me your visit information, and updates when you start trying for a child. If you can’t conceive after six months, IVF would be the next step for the remaining three months of marriage, then everything is yours.”

“If we don’t agree?” Declan ground out and I saw how the blood had drained from his face like he’d seen a ghost, or maybe the ghost of the life we’d been living before this idiotic will.

“If you both don’t agree, you may divorce after your sixth month of marriage, but it is expected that you try for a child with Ms. Anastasia Milton if you wish to retain majority shares, Declan. Everly, you have your choice of the Hardy brothers to conceive with if you wish to retain your mother’s home and business. It’s all here”—she held up the folder—“but quite complicated. Anastasia will only be made aware of this caveat under those specific circumstances and—”

She kept going and going and going like she hadn’t just rattled off the fact that my father expected me to be a freaking baby factory with my choice of Hardy brother. I white-knuckled the chair, tried to take a breath, and bit my tongue until I tasted blood in order to maintain a poker face of some sort.

I turned to the only person here who would know how I was feeling, who would be on my team, who I trusted now. I fisted my hands and felt the ring he gave me on my finger. Yet, Declan was watching my every move, his forest-green eyes studying me. Cautiously. Warily. Almost like he’d agree, like he was willing to sign on the dotted line again without thinking this through.

“Declan,” I whispered. “You can’t honestly—”

“Oh, Everly. Now, it isn’t a big deal.” Mrs. Johnson reached across her desk and patted my fist with her perfect manicure. I pulled my hand away and folded them into my lap because if I didn’t, I’d claw his and her eyes out for staring at me.

“Everly, we’re already sleeping—”

“Just because I fucked you doesn’t mean I want to have children with you.” The words flew out of me fast and were meant to be vulgar, meant to be vicious and cutting. I wasn’t thinking about who was listening or watching or judging me now. I wanted a war if he thought this was something we could just dive right into.

“Well,” Mrs. Johnson’s eyes widened as if she’d suddenly realized this was deeper than a transactional deal. “Seems the marriage is very convenient, and we should give you two a moment to discuss.”

“Mrs. Johnson, we can commit to visiting the doctor’s office and go from there,” Declan said, like I wasn’t even present. Like he thought I was just fine with going with the flow.

I scoffed. “We won’t be going to the doctor’s office.”

Mrs. Johnson slid papers across the table toward Declan instead of me. “Well, if you do agree, it’s all here.”

She left us staring at that sheet of paper. I didn’t look at him. I couldn’t. I got up instead and walked over to the side of Mrs. Johnson’s beautiful oak desk and vomited into her gold trash can.

He held my hair back and then used a stupid hair tie that he had on his wrist to wrap it up. The gesture brought tears to my eyes, tears of fury and pain and love and hate. I breathed in and out as I stared at that ring he’d just put on my finger. It shined so bright against the dark oak.