Page 2 of Earned Husband

With her wine glass in hand, she walked around the island toward the door. As she passed me, I caught the subtle scent of her perfume and it gave my pulse new and exciting ways to misbehave, but after I inhaled, an explosive sneeze tore throughme that made her flinch. The wine sloshed in her glass but didn’t spill.

“Excuse me,” I said abruptly, finally rediscovering my ability to speak.

She glanced back over her shoulder as she continued on her way out of the kitchen, looking like she might laugh, but instead, amusement simply flickered in her eyes before she continued down the hallway and disappeared from view. Once she was gone, I dragged both hands across my face and silently berated myself.

What the hell was that? And when did your game become so pathetic?

I honestly wasn’t sure, but I did my best to shake it off, turning in a slow circle trying to remember what I’d forgotten instead. I’d come in here for a reason, but my mind remained completely blank.

Alex wanted… Shit, what did he want?

Finally, I stopped beside the refrigerator and forced myself to think. After a minute of staring blankly at the ceiling, the answer suddenly arrived.Scotch.

It took me all of two seconds to swipe another bottle from the collection on the counter and I returned to the party, but my heart rate was still erratic and I wasn’t really focused on where I was going until I nearly collided with someone.

“Colin?”

I blinked the room back into view and recognized the face immediately, feeling a grin break out across my lips as I looked at her. “Ashanti? It’s so good to see you. It’s been years.”

She threw her arms around me in an enthusiastic, older-sister type hug. “Look at you, all grown up. Little Colin Thayer certainly isn’t so little anymore.”

I laughed and hugged her back, happy that my brain seemed to have somewhat returned to its regularly scheduledprogramming. “That could have something to do with the fact that I haven’t seen you since I hit puberty.”

Honestly, I couldn’t even remember exactly how long it’d been. Ashanti had been one of Jane’s ride-or-die friends back in high school, around so much that she’d practically been like another child in our house, but then she’d moved overseas and I wasn’t sure I’d seen her since.

When she stepped back, she slid her hands to my shoulders and looked me over. “God, I can’t believe it. You’re, like, a real man now.”

“I’m officially in my thirties. It would’ve been a bit weird if I hadn’t grown up yet. Although I’ve always envied Peter Pan.”

“Most of us do.” She chuckled, dark eyes glittering with genuine fondness and laughter. “In my head, I think you’ve always just been a teenager. It’s really odd that you’re an adult now.”

As I laughed, movement behind her caught my attention and a familiar figure stepped into view. The woman from the kitchen was approaching.

Once again, all I could do was stare, and apparently, I was so obvious about it that Ashanti turned and followed my gaze. Jane appeared then, sliding into the conversation seemingly out of nowhere. She launched herself at her old friend, giving her a hug and gushing about how excited she was to have her here. The two immediately dissolved into girlhood, giggling and chatting like not a day had passed, but after a few moments of this, Ashanti suddenly pulled back.

“Colin, this is my sister-in-law, Deja.” She reached for the mystery woman and gently tugged her forward. “Deja, meet Colin Thayer. Jane’s brother.”

Deja. Her sister-in-law.

That meant she was DejaSaad, Basel Saad’s daughter. Ashanti was married to his son, but I couldn’t believe that hisdaughterwas the woman who’d knocked the thoughts straight out of my brain.

My father had spent years before his arrest trying to seduce Basel, a chemicals magnate, into a merger. Now his stunning daughter stood there watching me process this unbelievably surprising information with her head slightly tilted and amusement still sparkling in those golden eyes.

As soon as I extended a hand toward her, she smirked, like she knew exactly the effect she was having on me. She placed her palm against mine. “It’s lovely to meet you, Colin. Did you eventually manage to find whatever you were looking for in the kitchen?”

“Scotch, and yes, I found it. Thank you.”

That wasn’t the only thing I’d been looking for, though. It also wasn’t the only thing I’d found. As I stared into those mesmerizing eyes, it felt like the floor had disappeared from under my feet.

Never before had I been so taken with a woman, but this one was special. She was different—and if I had my way, she would bemine.

CHAPTER 2

DEJA

Iwoke to the soft hush of bare feet moving across the guest room at my brother’s house in Chicago, but I kept my eyes closed. While there could’ve been quite few reasons for movement so early in the morning, I guessed that these particular feet did not belong to someone bringing me tea or breakfast.

Experience told me that they belonged to a small, curious, seven-year-old girl who had developed a slight obsession with my makeup bag. Her name was Amari, and she was my niece.