Jennifer's Lion

She tried to push the thoughts away to the back of her mind. She couldn’t.

Something bugged the hell out of her. Two weeks after Seth had proposed, he had wanted her to sign life insurance papers, with him as the beneficiary. Seth called it a safety net, since they were going to get married and build their future together. She signed it, since he had also taken out another policy on himself, with her as the beneficiary. Nothing fishy about that. She believed Seth was just doing the right thing.

What did she know about financial planning? Besides, she was a kindergarten teacher, and Seth was the successful banker.

Would he be willing to kill her for a five-million-dollar policy? She had seen people kill others for a lot less.

Jen clenched her teeth. The bitter reality sank into her brain. She blinked. A shard of pain lanced through her heart.

Had he planned everything from the start?

Had he, really?

When she thought of how they’d met in the first place, it did seem kind of artificial. Banking where he worked, one day out of the blue Seth approached her, and asked her for a date, as she sat in the mortgage specialist’s office, to refinance her home.

Back then, she’d nearly swooned, that a man like Seth was even interested in her. He was good-looking, soft-spoken, highly cultured, not to mention stinking rich too, since his uncle owned the bank and paid him an insane amount of money to work there. A real catch. She had been so over the moon, that during the first two months they had been together, she’d failed to realize the little things that now seemed out of place.

For one, Seth had never introduced her to his family, whom he claimed were a tight bunch. She had never even been to Seth’s home. He had practically moved in with her just after they’d slept together for the first time, telling her he was totally in love with her, and he couldn’t stand being apart from her for a moment. And, after they married, he’d move her into the family mansion.

Had it all been nothing but a lie? Was Seth really not the man he claimed to be?

As much as she hated to admit it, Cyeon was right. The more she thought, she knew nothing about Seth Richards. He could have known all of her information, because she banked with him, and vetted her as a potential target. She had clean credit, and had recently inherited a large family estate in the Alps. Since she hadn’t gotten along with her mother, and having been estranged with her side of the family for years, the inheritance had come as a surprise, making her a perfect victim for this kind of scheme.

Jen felt so stupid.

So fucking stupid.

Cyeon seemed to notice as she struggled to fight back her tears. “Hey, what’s wrong? Did I scrub too hard?”

She quickly shook her head. “It’s nothing.”

“Talk to me.” Cyeon turned her around and embraced her.

Her gasp stalled in her throat when her bare skin pressed against his. Her nipples grazed his chest. Warmth radiated from him.

“What’s wrong, babe?” Cyeon asked. He rubbed her back, sending delicious shivers down her spine.

She didn’t know what to say. She was bummed about Seth. And horny too, because of this man. It was all so confusing.

“Hey, talk to me.” Cyeon tugged her chin up.

The intensity in his eyes surprised her. He seemed concerned about her well-being. The invisible lump in her throat made it impossible to talk. “It’s nothing,” she croaked.

His eyes narrowed. “I would never hurt you.” He caressed her cheek and brushed his thumb over her lips. “I want to protect you.”

Something deep inside turned sentimental from his declaration. How chivalrous of him. She was hopelessly romantic, as mushy things always melted her heart. It had been the same when Seth had told her he had fallen in love with her at first sight, and that she was his soul mate. Considering how different their social backgrounds were, she remembered thinking that dreams in fact, did come true. She had always wanted a perfect gentleman, but she should have also known if something seemed too good to be true, it probably was.

“Do you think my fiancé really wants to kill me?” she whispered.

She saw a wan smile tug at the corner of Cyeon’s mouth. “You wouldn’t be the first. People have been doing that for years, and for numerous reasons. Trapped in a marriage. Inheritance. Insurance policy. Greed.”

“You seem to know an awful,” she said dryly. His statement quickly hit home.

“You think I’m just a simple country boy?” Cyeon laughed. “I went to Harvard, you know. Under a different name, of course. Most people can’t pronounce our names right.”

She blinked. “Harvard?”

“But I like it here. There’s no place like home.” Cyeon grabbed her hand. He plucked off the engagement ring from her finger and threw it in the sink. “Forget about him. A true gentleman would never give his fiancé a fake ring.”