“Morning,” I said, raising my chin.
“Good morning.” His eyes flicked to me. The sweater I was wearing, my bare legs, and then back up. “Nice sweater.”
“Yeah, I didn’t pack anything.”
“I have clothes for you,” he said, returning to his newspaper.
I stilled mid-step. My brow furrowed in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“I knew you’d be here. I spoke with your personal shopper. She sent over a few parcels. They’re in the billiards room.” He gestured to the closed double doors.
“Wonderful,” I said as if I wasn’t actually amazed that he’d had the forethought.
He’d spoken to my shopper and had clothes sent over. Who did that?
“And, Katherine?” He stopped me before I opened the doors. “Wear something warm.”
He dismissed me after that. It wasn’t a request. It was a command. And thus, I bristled at it.
No, last night hadn’t happened. He hadn’t been caring or comforting or kind. He hadn’t cuddled me, holding me as if I were a precious, rare object. That must have been a dream.
I wrenched the doors open, and my eyes bulged. He’d said a few parcels. He hadn’t said a new wardrobe. It was as if I’d stepped into a fashion shoot. There were two hanging racks full of dresses and pants and blouses and jackets. A dozen pairs of designer shoes and all of my favorite brands of makeup.
The opulence of it all wasn’t what shocked me. It was that it felt like a gift. And yet, I knew it wasn’t. It was a bribe. His money for my body. And this was a show of all of his money. A little something that I’d have when I was here, offering myself to him.
No gifts. We hadn’t exchanged anything on our wedding day. No need when the terms had been written so clearly. We had appearances to maintain. This was the only way I could do that.
I stripped out of his sweater and exchanged it for a camel-colored cashmere sweater that clung to my body as if it had been made with my measurements. When I actually looked at the labels and my shopper’s notes, my mouth hung over. Every article of clothing had been hand-tailored. Fuck, it had been a long time since I’d been able to get everything personally fit for me besides the dresses I wore to events.
I slid into a pair of black pants, black boots, and a long dove-gray coat. I touched up all my makeup and returned to the kitchen a few minutes later. Camden finished off his coffee and then stood.
His eyes appraised my outfit. “That will do.”
“So glad that I meet your approval.”
Something inside of him stilled at the bite in my voice. He nodded. As if he’d realized that everything was back to how it had always been. “Shall we?”
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
I followed him to the elevator. The limo waited for us at the entrance, and we drove toward the park. A few minutes later, we were dropped off in front of Central Park. I pulled gloves out of the pockets of the jacket and tugged them on.
Camden took my arm and tucked me in close. I kept looking at him sideways, waiting for the catch. But he said nothing as we strolled down the path. Christmas was everywhere in the city. Tourists flocking through the park, laden with packages. We passed carolers singing holiday music. The ringing bell of a Salvation Army Santa asking for loose change. Everyone was bundled up against the cold. Snow had covered every inch of the ground last night, and it was a winter wonderland, perfect for sledding, snowball fights, and constructing snowmen.
Finally, we walked down the frost-laden steps and to the nearly frozen lake behind Bethesda Fountain.
“What are we doing here, Camden?” I asked finally.
“I want you to move in.”
I blinked at him. “What?”
“You heard me.” Finally, his gaze shifted to me. “I don’t want you to live in your place.”
“But … why? You don’t want me around all the time and in your business.” My mind was reeling. “Is this why you got me a new wardrobe?”
“One of the reasons. Though I don’t see why I need to have a reason for it. You have my money.”
He produced a black card out of his pocket and offered it to me. I wanted to reach for it, snatch it out of his grasp. But something made me stall.
“You’re just giving me that?”
He tilted his head to the side. “If you don’t want it …”
“What’s the catch?”
“Katherine,” he said evenly, “you are my wife.”
When I still didn’t move to take it, he sighed and slid it into my pocket.
“You don’t have to suspect every one of my actions.”
I arched an eyebrow. “Don’t I?”
“No. I’ve no intention of treating you poorly. This is our life now. You should find a way to enjoy it. Spend my money. Move into my penthouse. Be there … with me.”
There wasn’t quite a hitch in Camden’s voice. But he’d paused, as if he had to fight to admit the last part. To let himself be … not exactly vulnerable, but at least exposed to my ridicule if I denied him.
And suddenly, I realized that I hadn’t dreamed last night at all. Every part of it had happened exactly as I’d imagined. Camden Percy had hidden this side of himself so thoroughly that I’d thought there was nothing beneath him, only the bastard on the surface. My mask was evident. But his was so plastered to his skin that even I hadn’t known it was a mask at all.
As terrifying as it was to let my guard down, I’d chosen this. He was offering more than I’d thought he would. Even with a contract in place. And a small part of me—the part that had drawn his body against mine and fallen asleep in his arms—wondered exactly where this could go. Wondered if I could be happy here … with him.
“Okay,” I said.
His eyes widened a fraction. “Okay?”
“I’ll move in.”
And then to my surprise, without a photographer in sight, Camden tugged me close and pressed a firm kiss to my lips.
Everything was finally working out for me. For us. I’d never suspected that I’d fall for the man I had an arranged marriage with. But here we were, on a precipice, prepared to fall.
It was a Christmas miracle.
An arrangement, a wedding, a wedding night, soon Christmas, a honeymoon, maybe even love … and a partridge in a pear tree.
Thank you so much for reading ONE CRUEL WEDDING NIGHT! I hope you enjoyed this holiday short story about Katherine & Camden story. I absolutely loved having the opportunity to write more about them!
If you want to read more about their arranged marriage romance, grab their full length story: Cruel Marriage.
If you want to start the Cruel series at the beginning, you can get Cruel Money for FREE! Gossip Girl meets Cruel Intentions in this second chance bet story! Plus, Katherine & Camden are major characters throughout the entire series.
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