A cold, rational part of him insisted that the attraction would make their fake relationship more believable. While the part of his anatomy that refused to remained unstirred urged him to change the parameters of their agreement. To make certain sections of it real.
He suppressed that urge and led Arabella to his car.
Even if he were on the market for a brief dalliance, Arabella Daniels wouldn’t be his choice of partner. Her wild, brash approach to life would never gel with his, even for the weeks-long period his affairs usually lasted. Besides, she’d all but admitted to being as unscrupulous and lacking in integrity as her father.
There was no way he could risk exposing such a person to Maria.
Satisfied with his decision, he saw her into the car and slipped behind the wheel. The return journey back to her flat went much faster. When she went to open the door, Draco growled, ‘Stay.’
As before, she seemed surprised by his gesture as he rounded the bonnet and opened her door.
‘Thank you.’
Taking her by the elbow, he walked her to the front door and waited as she dug through her clutch for her keys.
Another furtive glance at him prompted a twitch of a smile. She was nervous.
‘Invite me up.’
Nerves turned to surprise. Then suspicion. ‘Why?’
‘Because there’s one more thing to address before we end the evening.’
Her eyes rounded before she caught his meaning. ‘Oh, the engagement ring. I thought you wanted to do that in front of an audience?’
He shrugged. ‘We lost our audience while we were discussing...other matters. And I don’t intend to place my ring on your finger on the steps of your flat. Invite me up.’
The breath she inhaled was a shaky one. ‘Umm...okay.’
She opened her front door and he held it wide for her, then followed her up the flight of stairs to her flat. In her living room, Draco waited as she turned on lamps and straightened cushions. Then watched, bemused, as she twisted her fingers and eyed the entertainment centre.
‘You seem nervous.’
She laughed and shrugged. ‘Not sure why I am. I guess I’ve never been genuinely fake-proposed to before.’
The idea that she’d been proposed to at all sent a thin vein of tension through him. He dismissed it and reached into his pocket. As his fingers closed over the velvet box, tension mutated to something else. Something Draco faintly recognised as trepidation for this moment. The kind that ran parallel with monumental tasks he didn’t want to fail at. Frowning, he pulled the box from his pocket. There’d been no words to practise because this wasn’t a prelude to a love union . They were each playing a finite role with a clear endgame in mind. The moment shouldn’t contain as much gravity as was moving through him.
‘If you want dramatic music to draw out the suspense, just say the word. I have tons,’ Arabella quipped, one perfectly shaped eyebrow raised.
He fisted the box for a brief moment. ‘That won’t be necessary.’
Striding to where she stood, he held it up and pried it open.
She gasped, then frowned. ‘It’s real. I mean, I’m not a gem expert, but that looks...real!’ Blue eyes met his, alarm swimming in the depths.
His teeth gritted. ‘You thought I would supply you with a fake ring?’
‘Well...yes. To go with the fake engagement? I don’t know why you look so offended, but that would make sense, wouldn’t it?’
‘It would also announce our engagement as a sham to the whole world.’
Her gaze dropped down to the box. ‘But this is probably worth more than I owe you. You’re sure you trust me with it?’ she murmured. ‘What if I lose it?’
‘It’s insured against loss. And theft.’ Draco wasn’t sure why he added that. When she raised her gaze and he spotted the hurt she tried to hide, a tiny spark of remorse burst through him. Which was absurd because this situation had come about because of her collusion with her father’s duplicity. Brushing aside the feeling, he growled, ‘Give me your hand.’
She hesitated for one moment. Then two. At the back of his mind, Draco faintly wondered if this was what the average man felt like when he got down on one knee. If so, then he pitied them. Her unnecessary hesitation was irritating in the extreme. And he wasn’t even on one knee. Nor did he intend to be.
‘Arabella. Your hand.’
* * *
Rebel slowly held out her left hand, nerves eating her alive. ‘Damn,’ she muttered under her breath.
Draco’s gaze rose from where he held the ring poised. ‘What’s wrong?’
She shrugged. ‘If I’d known I’d be sporting a rock like this, I’d have made more of an effort with my nails.’ She kept them trimmed short for training, but a little gloss wouldn’t have gone amiss. She swallowed as she caught his frown. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to ruin the moment.’ Realising she was babbling, she pressed her lips together.