Ugly Bride, Ruthless Groom: The Ultimate Power Couple

Shawn's fingertips swept along Caitlin's neck and met nothing but smooth, untouched skin.

For a moment, he wondered if he had misread everything.

A quiet breath of relief slipped through Caitlin. Hiding that wound with medical concealer had saved her.

She gently wrapped her hand around his. "Sweetheart, what parking lot are you imagining right now?"

Shawn's expression shut down, and his grip shifted as if he meant to shove her away.

A faint shuffle echoed near the door.

He halted mid-motion and pulled her back into place.

With practiced swiftness, he flipped their bodies and pressed her beneath him as though it took no effort at all.

"You—"

Caitlin tried to protest, but Shawn's hand covered her mouth before she could finish.

He leaned in until his breath touched her ear. "Stay still."

With those words, he steadied her waist and reached for the buttons of her top.

Was he actually planning to continue? Had this man been starved of intimacy long enough to want her even with the face she wore now? Disbelief shot through Caitlin, and she tried to drive her knee straight into his groin.

Shawn intercepted her leg easily and let his palm slide slowly up the warm curve of her thigh.

"Shawn Harris!"

His name escaped her in a shaky gasp she could not hold back.

Shawn's eyes gleamed with wicked humor. "I like it better when you call me darling in bed."

This jerk!

Caitlin glared up at him and prepared to spit every insult she had ever learned, but he pinched the tender skin inside her thigh instead.

"Ah!"

The burst of pain tore her planned outburst into a helpless cry.

Shawn let a slow smile curl across his lips. "Did that sting?"

Before Caitlin managed a single word, he added, "Then I suppose I should try being softer."

She could only gape at him. What on earth was wrong with this man?

Right outside the door, Nikolas and Betsy crowded close enough that their ears nearly flattened against the wood.

Nikolas barely kept his voice down. "No way. They're actually doing something in there? He really kissed that woman with that face?"

Betsy's expression flickered with interest. "Shawn has been on his own for years. A man gets desperate."

Nikolas scowled. "He isn't planning to let her stay, is he?"

Even if Shawn did, a woman from nowhere could never make much of a dent. With that thought in her mind, Betsy whispered, "That's enough gossip. Let's leave before he realizes we're listening."

Both retreated down the hall as quietly as shadows.

As soon as the last footstep faded, Shawn let go of Caitlin's leg and rolled away. His tone dropped back into its usual winter chill. "Get off the bed."

Caitlin let out a clipped laugh. "Hah."

She had heard every word from the hallway.

Obviously, he had been putting on a show, and she had been the convenient prop.

While Shawn pushed himself upright, Caitlin looped an arm around his neck. "Sweetheart, why are you stopping now?"

He tightened his grip around her neck. "Move unless you have a death wish."

Instead of flinching from the pressure, Caitlin offered him a small smile. "So you finished your performance and now you're tossing me aside? Mr. Harris, ever thought about teaming up with me instead?"

Shawn kept his gaze fixed on her, saying nothing, though his hand didn't tighten.

Caitlin gently wrapped her fingers around his wrist. "Here's my offer. I'll play the perfect wife whenever anyone's looking, help you wrangle the Harris family, and handle whatever mess lands in your lap. All you need to do is call me your wife when it counts."

She gave him a sly wink. "Your personal business? Off limits. I won't step over that line, not once. Just let me keep the title for a year, and then I'll walk away like none of this happened. Sound fair?"

Her pitch sounded too good to be true.

Still, Shawn couldn't shake the feeling that this woman had layers he couldn't see.

He let go of her neck and smoothed out his cuff. "You'll be sleeping on the floor tonight."

With that, he silently allowed her to remain in his room.

Caitlin eyed the plush rug, weighing her options.

She pointed at the mattress. "Look at all that space. You want me down there on the carpet? Is chivalry really dead in this house?"

Shawn shot her an indifferent look. "Never had any to begin with."

Whatever. Caitlin stood up, yanked a spare pillow and blanket from the closet, made herself a nest on the floor, and settled in without another word.

Shawn glanced once at her form on the rug, and then reached for the lamp and cut the light, letting darkness fill the room.

When dawn broke, Caitlin, still tangled in sleep, rolled over, tossed an arm and leg around something warm and firm, and snuggled in closer.

Best pillow ever.

Firm in all the right spots.

"Hang on, are those abs?" Caitlin muttered to herself.

She snapped awake and found herself draped across Shawn, one leg slung over his hips and her face pressed against his chest.