The Billionaire's Temporary Bride (Scandal, Inc #3)(54)

The old man smiled and clapped his hands together. He looked to Callie.

"Have we reached a decision?"

"Can you tell me about these flowers?" Charlotte asked. She grabbed the jar and held it up for him.

"Oh," the florist said. "I just put those out for me. Sometimes I like to remind myself that beauty doesn't always have to be so complicated."

Charlotte nodded. More than anything, she wished things could be simpler with Jack. She stared at the flowers a while longer and gathered her courage to tell Jack how she felt. She was going to do everything within her power to make their marriage real.

"Have we made a decision then?" the old man asked.

"I have," Charlotte said. "I just hope it's the right one."





***

Charlotte spent the rest of the day pacing back and forth inside the house. It was still strange to think of it as her house now and not just Jack's. Over the past month, the place had really started to feel like home.

Charlotte could barely remember what it felt like to live in a small, two-bedroom apartment that was smaller than Jack's master suite. She had gotten used to the deep soaking tub and the radiant heat in the bathroom. She had grown accustomed to the large rooms with tall ceilings and perfectly chosen — if slightly masculine — decor. She wondered if she could explain to him how she felt at home with now. She tried to find the words.

She practiced over and over again how she'd greet Jack and tell him she needed to talk. It didn't have to be hard. She could pour him a drink and flop down with him on the couch, and she could just tell him. He'd understand. He'd probably thank her. After all, hadn't he been the one to kiss her and to take their relationship from playful flirting to something more? Charlotte thought back to their morning walk on the Cape. He wouldn't have opened up to her like that if he didn't want more than just a good time. She went to the master bath and practiced her words in the mirror.


"Jack," she said to her reflection, "there's something I want to talk about."

Each time she said it, she looked over her shoulder to make sure he wasn't coming through the door. As soon as she was sure she was alone, she'd continue.

"I know this started out as a mutually beneficial arrangement, but I don't know if I can settle for the original terms of the contract."

No matter how many times she tried to find the right phrase, it never came out right. She wondered if she should call Callie and ask her for help with the phrasing, but Charlotte knew she had to do this herself.

As the hours wore on, and the windows and skylights grew dark with night, Charlotte's resolve diminished. She wondered if she should even say anything at all.

Jack hadn't picked her, after all. He had been handed her by Callie and Amy. He hadn't seemed too thrilled about the idea, and he had done everything in his power to drive her away from the start, professing his mistrust of love and contempt for marriage. Maybe he was just so good to her because he felt bad or because he was just a decent guy.

Now she wanted to tell him she had feelings for him and wanted their marriage to mean something? She felt the tightness building in her chest and wished he'd get home soon enough for her to blurt it all out and move on.

She left the bathroom and paced back and forth in the bedroom. She paced in the hallway. She decided maybe she should make herself some tea or fix a drink to take her mind off Jack for a little while.

As she made her way to the kitchen, she heard the front door click open. She froze for a second and listened to the sharp sound of Jack's expensive shoes against the marble floor of the entry way.

"Charlotte?" he called out. "You home?"

Charlotte leaned out and waved to him.

Jack lit up.

"I've been waiting all day to see that face," he said.

"I've been waiting to see you too," she replied. "I was just going to get a drink. Would you like something?"

Jack walked over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "You really are a sight for sore eyes."

"You're not so bad looking yourself." Charlotte smiled as he kissed her again. Everything felt so natural with him, so right.

Jack grinned. "It's my personality that sends people running for the hills." He wrapped his arms around her and gave her another quick kiss. He pressed his lips against hers and pulled them away before she could react, teasing her. Charlotte felt positively dazed. Jack dropped his briefcase to the ground behind her.

This was the moment. All she had to do was tell him she had feelings for him and that she knew he had feelings too.

Charlotte savored the warmth of his kiss and told herself that it was a sign that she needed to tell him. She tried to think of the words she had practiced earlier, but her mind was blank. She looked into his eyes, those impossibly beautiful eyes, and she wished that for at least one moment she wouldn't lose her mind around him.

She pushed herself back and blurted it out.

"There's something we need to talk about."

To her surprise, Jack nodded his head in agreement. "I know we've been putting this off. Callie reminded me about it this afternoon when I ran into her on the Hill."

"She what? She told you?"

"I gave it a lot of thought this afternoon, probably too much thought," he said. "I wrote it down. It's all on a legal pad in my briefcase. I'll go get it. I'm sorry if this was super stressful for you. It's a conversation that's overdue."