Til Debt Do Us Part (Married At Midnight #4)

Chapter 17

Seventeen

Dare

T he Morgan estate is absolutely bursting at the seams with charitable donors and their hangers-on. It’s the usual sort of crowd here: a packed house full of people in black tuxes and splashy, colorful ball gowns.

Honestly, it’s what I’ve become used to. In the last few years, Remy has become increasingly charitable, especially when the charity involves him giving up the house for the night. He's a grumpy old motherfucker, but I have a sneaking suspicion that he's a deeply lonely old man.

I shut the door that separates the partygoers from the rest of the house. I can still hear the violin music and the murmur of voices, but as I turn and look at all my relatives, scattered here and there on the living room sofas and standing by the fireplace, I suck in a deep breath.

I hate these big events. In fact, when I take over the company, I am going to be glad to see them held at someone else’s house for once. When Remy dies, this entire house is going to be a ghost town. And the balls and galas will follow him.

At the moment, no one even looks my way. Instead, my brother, Daisy, and all my cousins are focused on the sight of my Uncle Felix going toe to toe with my father, both screaming at one another. Red-faced and clutching their fists, they have eyes for no one else.

"You guttersnipe!" My Uncle Felix howls. "You are an absolute piece of human garbage."

"That’s nice coming from you. We all know what happened to your first and second wives. They both died under mysterious circumstances. Which I interpreted to mean that you paid someone to knock them off so you could avoid paying them alimony. So, you’re actually a murderer!"

Felix gulps. "I'd like to see you present your evidence for that claim."

"If I had hard evidence? You would already be in jail," my father says.

"I’d be careful what you wish for. If I think I might go to jail anyway, what’s another murder on my conscience? After two life sentences, why not add whoever I feel like adding?" He cracks all the knuckles on both his hands and glares at my father.

"We’ll just have to see about that claim. When our dad gets here, I am contesting his will. I have my whole legal team already on it." He points at a rather standoffish group of men in suits that are bunched together in a corner, looking uncomfortable. They look as if they have been pulled from other businesses by a man with a vile temper. That man would be my uncle, so that all tracks.

My brother clears his throat, shooting me a look. "Look, I have no idea what exactly the nature of your deal with Remy was in the past. But he has made it perfectly clear that you and dad are to receive a token amount of money when he passes and not a penny more. He has repeatedly told me that the controlling interest in the company will only go to Dare or me."

My father grows red. His fists bunch up, and he looks at Burn as though he’s about to launch an attack. It wouldn’t be the first time that my father hit my brother or me. But it’s been years since he was strong enough to hit one of us without repercussions.

I tense up, my hands gathering into fists. No matter what Burn does, I will still back him when the opposing party is my father. Burn and I have been twisted and damaged by our family legacy, but there is something to be said for the cruelty of my father and the way that Burn and I naturally became unspoken allies. A unit against my father, my Uncle Felix, and Remy. I’m not sure why exactly all the men in our family are out for their own interests or when my brother and I drifted apart, ending our childhood need for each other's support.

My dad casts a glance at me, and his lips curl up in a sneer. But before he can make any move toward either of his sons, the door bursts open and Remy barrels through it, looking as red and angry as I have ever seen him.

He looks around wildly, pointing a finger at everyone in the room. “How dare you all congregate here in my house and complain about how I choose to split up my assets that I earned after I’m dead?" He grits his teeth.

"Wait a second." The words are out of my mouth before I really think about them, but I just shake my head. "We are here for a gala. And then we were called into this room by uncle, apparently. But we have nothing to do with any scheming on his part."

Remy levels me with a malevolent look. "Did I ask you for any more information? No. I’m here to shut this down. Felix, you and your lawyers can get the fuck out of my house. And the rest of you?" He gestures toward the room. "You can go, too, double time. Everybody fucking leave."

"Just a second," my brother says. "I want to be clear about what you want us to do with your will."

I look at my watch, seething at how Remy talked to me. I got yelled at for literally no reason.

I glance at my watch, wondering if I could get out of here now and save the night. Maybe I can call Tristen and get him to go out for a drink. Somewhere that I can blow off some steam and pick up a girl or two.

Everyone in the room bursts into loud, cacophonous shouts at the same time. Rolling my eyes, I turn and leave the room. My footsteps are quick, as are my thoughts on the future as I head for the foyer.

When I’m approaching the foyer, I hear her voice. Talia says something, her voice agitated. I move closer, intrigued. In the next second, I hear Clive’s voice.

"No one is here, Miss. I think you had better go home."

"I can hear them arguing!" Talia says.

I step into the foyer, and Talia looks right at me, going as white as a ghost for some reason. Clive looks between the two of us and arches a brow.

I jerk my head to the back of the house, indicating without words that he could leave. He turns without ceremony and heads out of the foyer, happy enough to leave me with the visibly upset Talia.

My brows arch and my lips thin as I stare at her. She's still dressed in her oversized winter coat, as if she's being swallowed alive and drowning in it.

She tosses her hair and puts her fiery copper hair in a messy bun, then raises her chin. "Are you Burn or are you Dare?" She says.

In an instant, I already know that I am going to lie. I’m not sure why she would be looking for Burn. After all, she claims to have no desire to see anyone in the family ever again. But the fact that she said his name first makes me curious about what she would say if she were talking to him. I purse my lips and tilt my head to one side. "I’m Burn. Why? Are you back for more?"

She swallows, and her gaze darts around the room, making her seem unsettled. "Is there a more private place where we can talk?"

I keep my face a blank slate, but inside I am full of questions.

What would Talia have to talk to Burn about?

I shrug, playing it cool. But I’m at a low simmer inside, almost ready to boil over with my need to find out.

"I can do that, sure," I say, keeping my tone light. "Why don’t we head into the library? We should have plenty of privacy there."

Grabbing her by the arm, I steer her down the hall. We walk through the living room, my steps quickening so the family doesn't notice us as we pass. Then I walk her all the way down to the end of the house, near the kitchen. I open the library door and practically shove Talia inside, closing it after myself.

I look around at the bookshelves lining the walls and the overstuffed leather furniture. This room doesn’t really have any windows, and it’s lit by sconces along the walls, creating a warmer, more dimly lit environment.

Talia walks into the room, her eyes growing wide as she takes in the bookcases and the warm walnut wood that the bookshelves and the floor are made of. I take a few steps, stopping by a long couch and leaning against it. I cross my arms and look at Talia.

She looks taken aback, as if her thoughts have been quite derailed by the opulence and the books all around her.

I snap my fingers at her. She looks back at me with some surprise, as if she had forgotten about me for just a moment. "What do you want to talk about?" I simply ask.

Talia’s face pales, and she smooths a hand over her long coat. "Well…"

She seems reluctant to tell me whatever it is that she came here to say. I try to figure out what my twin brother would do in this situation. He would probably act like an ass, no doubt.

I reach out a hand, beckoning her to come closer. Her mouth twists, and she gives me a hard look. I remind myself that I’m pretending to be my brother Burn, not my usual self. So I should be seductive rather than forceful.

I straighten and close the distance between us, grabbing her by the waist and pulling her close until the softness of her body is pressed against mine. I hear her breath catch, and she looks up at me with these wide, brilliant blue eyes.

I thread my hand into the hair at her nape and tug it back, so that she has no option but to look at me.

Bracing her back with my free hand, I slowly lean down to her lips, pressing my own against them. The taste of her lips is sweet, and the feel of her body is familiar. She offers no resistance to my embrace, so I lean her back and plunder her lips, using my tongue against her teeth until her mouth parts.

I kiss her harder, more deeply. Our tongues entwine, dancing like two figures dancing close together, undulating in a rhythm that is as old as time.

She smells good and has the sweet, light taste of mint. Her body is slight, and her weight is nothing against my own. Some animal instinct that I have is very excited by that, though I don’t fully understand it.

She kisses me back, her lips moving so tentatively against mine. But then she seems to remember herself and pushes against my chest. When I don’t give her space immediately, she protests.

“Burn!” She stops kissing me back and begins to struggle, her face scrunching up.

I growl at her, my lips leaving hers and my lips trailing down her neck, leaving little marks in my wake.

She grimaces, her face contorting. She drives her foot down hard on top of mine, causing a jolt of pain to radiate out from it. I freeze, uncertain how to deal with the pain. She takes advantage of my momentary lapse to wriggle out of my arms.

"I didn’t come here for that, Burn."

I look at her, her chest heaving, her face flushed. She has this wary look in her eyes, like I am a known murderer, and she is just trying to stay alive.

I don’t know why, but I like it when she looks at me that way.

Wiping at my mouth I smirk at her. "No? What did you come for then? Because if it is money, I have nothing left in my charity fund for you, little girl."

She looks at me and walks across the room and back, pacing, her hands shaping into fists. "You got me pregnant, Burn." She stops, pinning me in place with a hard gaze. "That’s why I am here. I wanted you to know."

Letting my head rock back, I stare at her, trying to ascertain whether or not she is telling the truth. A grandfather clock in the corner begins to chime the hour as the silence stretches between us. I don’t say anything. Or maybe it’s that I can’t. I am too busy thinking of what this might mean.

This changes everything. I tilt my head to one side and try to gauge whether she is serious. But it seems like she is.

"Is this a shakedown?" Sure, Talia seems too honest and too proud to do something like lie about being pregnant. But I don’t really know her. Not well enough to guess.

She starts pacing again, wrapping her arms around herself. She shakes her head vehemently. "I wish it was. When I first found out that I was pregnant, I wasn’t sure that I was going to keep it. But now, I think…" She trails off, turning away from me and walking slowly toward the other end of the room. "Now I think that I will keep it."

I run my tongue over my teeth. "How do you know? Have you been to see a doctor?"

She shakes her head. "No. But I have taken three different brands of pregnancy tests."

I stroke my chin, pondering. "And how do you know that it is mine?"

The question makes Talia turn around, her eyes crackling and snapping. She seems to be on the brink of screaming. "I think you know it’s yours."

I shrug my shoulders. "Maybe. Maybe not. That isn’t really the point."

Her face reddens. "My baby can only be yours. Do you understand what I’m saying? I’ve only ever slept with one person, once. And all roads lead to your door."

I snort. "You can’t be serious. Are you telling me that you expect me to believe that you are a virgin?"

Talia crosses her arms, stalks up to me, and points a finger right in the center of my chest. “Was. I was a virgin. Now I’m carrying your child."

Her words ring out in the quiet of the library. I take a deep breath and look at her serious face. I’m going to have to come clean with her about my identity sooner or later. I might as well do it now.

I hold my hands up in a placating gesture. "All right, so let’s say that you are pregnant and that it is Burn’s child.”

I see a note of puzzlement on her face before it is soon replaced with a look of understanding. "Are you fucking serious? You were lying about who you are again?"

"Lying is an awfully accusatory word."

Her nose flares, and she leans forward, giving my shoulder a hard push. "I can’t believe you did that again, Dare! Who do you think you are?"

"Obviously that depends on what information I can get by acting as if I am my brother."

She makes a sound of disgust and starts to walk out of the library. But before she gets to the door, I grab her by the wrist and pull her back. She resists for only a moment before turning to look at me. "Let me go. I have to find Burn."

I raise my hand, attempting to calm her. "Just hear me out. Okay?"

She rips her wrist from my grip and crosses her arms, her expression humorless. "Hear you out about what? I’m not here to make any more deals with you, Dare. I’m here to inform your brother that I’m carrying his child."

Licking my lips, I motion toward the couch. "Sit down with me. In ten minutes, if I haven’t said anything that’s worth your time, I will pay you one thousand dollars."

Her brows wrinkle with confusion. "For what? I swear, you Morgans have too much damned money."

Grabbing her by the shoulders, I struggle to get her over to the couch and sit her down. I take a seat just inches away. She is looking at me with distrust. I don’t blame her, honestly. I’m not usually the most trustworthy person.

"Okay." I lean in, adopting a very serious expression. "You know that my brother is already engaged."

Her lips curl. "Yes. I didn’t know that at the time, though."

"You met Daisy. Remember?"

"I do." She gives me a look. "Where is this going?"

"If you go to my brother and tell him that you are carrying his child, he might offer you money to ‘take care of it’. Or he might break up with Daisy in order to take you on as his fiancée."

She wrinkles her face up. "That’s not… No. I have no interest in becoming engaged to Burn. Actually, I think that he’s pretty despicable, now that the whole cheating scandal is out in the open."

"That doesn’t really matter; my point is that Daisy is not the sort of person that you want rooting against your team. She is pretty nasty when something or someone gets in the way of her goal, and you and your baby would be in her way. She wants to marry my brother. She has worked for a long time, casing our family. You'd show up at the last minute and derail all her carefully laid plans."

Talia’s brows furrow. "I don’t want that. But there’s nothing I can do about that. I have to tell Burn because he deserves to know."

I peer at her. "This kind of scandal could tear the whole family apart. It could cause a lot of problems."

"Again, what am I supposed to do? I’m just following the natural conclusion of events."

My heart thumps in my chest, and my mouth feels dry. I have a wild, reckless idea that is rattling around in my head.

Looking down into Talia’s eyes, I grab her hand, taking it between both of mine. She looks at me, her eyebrows raising. But before she can say anything, I shake my head.

"You shouldn’t tell Burn anything. You already know that he is a fucking liar. He cheated on Daisy and got you pregnant. Is that really the kind of person you want to spend your life with, or at least raise a child with?"

Her expression is skeptical. She exhales. "Maybe. I don’t really know. As I've been saying all along, I don't know much about either of you other than the fact that you're both rich assholes."

"That’s what I’m saying, though. I have a clean slate when it comes to cheating and jerking you around."

She puts her hands on her hips, leaning away from me and fixing me with a hard look. "You’re just as deceptive as Burn."

"Yes, but that is all I’ve done, and that was out of desperation.”

She opens her mouth and I silence her with a finger to her lips. Looking down at her, I say the words that seem so farfetched to me.

“What I’m trying to say is that you should marry me. Be my wife. Tell everybody that the child is mine."

Her eyes widen and her pupils contract. For several seconds, a shocked silence reigns between us. She blinks, and her throat works gently.

Finally, she pulls her hand from my grip and shakes it, as if trying to remove the traces of my touch. "Why would I do that?"

I grab her hand again, gripping it and looking at her intently. "My grandfather challenged us both to marry a woman and produce an heir. The first one of us that does it will win the company and billions of dollars."

"So?"

"So, Daisy will not look kindly upon losing out on being married to that kind of wealth. She doesn’t let things go easily. When we were in college, her freshman-year roommate didn’t like Daisy’s controlling ways. Daisy eventually wore her down and humiliated her enough that she dropped out of college and disappeared. Daisy does not let things go. I think she would actually have zero problem doing bodily harm to you and your baby if it suited her needs."

“What?” Her word comes out as a shout as much as a question. She breathes in and out slowly. Then she looks at me and shakes her head. "No. I’m sorry, Dare. It’s not the worst idea. But it’s easier if I try to go it alone. Less complicated, for sure."

"What do you mean go it alone? You’re willing to be a single mother and deal with all the hassle that it entails rather than marry me?"

Her face softens, and she reaches out, putting her hand on my knee. It’s intimate, and it makes me want to flick her hand off or say something sarcastic in response. But she gives me a tiny smile, and my bitter words are washed away.

I swallow and decide that this is not the time or the place for my sardonic sense of humor.

"You’re presenting me with a great offer. There is no doubting that. But agreeing to that would be like agreeing to lie to everyone from here on out. I don’t want a child who is born into a house of deception. I’m sure you can understand."

I give her a cold smile. I know exactly the words to say to make her agree. After all, she’s only a human, and humans have a weakness for money. "I didn’t even mention the best part of the deal."

She looks a little confused, scooting to the edge of the couch and looking as though she is about to get up. I put my hand on her knee this time, my fingers digging into her flesh as I give her the most intense look possible.

"I’m not sure what you mean," Talia says. She studies me, perhaps looking for flaws that she can pick apart.

"Agreeing to marry me comes with a cash reward. Being my wife earns you five hundred thousand dollars that you can use any way that you see fit. Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars will be deposited into an account of your choosing as soon as we are officially married. And another two hundred fifty thousand when the baby arrives. Plus," I raise a brow. "I will pay for anything and everything that you and the baby need for the next eighteen years. Surely that will sway you to agree to my plan."

I sit back, a satisfied smirk on my lips. But Talia just looks confused.

"Do you really want the Morgan family business that badly? Eighteen years is a long time to tie yourself to another person just for a business deal."

I squeeze her knee and cock my head to the right. "There would be other benefits to being married. For instance, we could fuck like bunnies. I am game for it if you are."

She pries my hands from her body, getting up and walking away. "That sounds horrible," she says over her shoulder. "You make it sound like I would be in for a lifetime of tawdry sex just because I accepted a one-time cash infusion from you."

"And because you would theoretically be my wife. Don’t forget that," I tease.

Talia turns, shooting me a glare. "No. How could I ever forget that?"

I sit back on the couch, putting my arms behind my back and stretching out. "The real question is, why should you have a cheater's baby when his identical twin brother is sitting right here, asking to raise the child?"

For just a fleeting second, I catch the conflicted look on her face. I hold my hands up, trying to stall her protests in their tracks. "You know what? You should think about it. You definitely shouldn’t go tell my brother before you’ve had time to weigh all of your options. I’m only asking for a little time to let the genius of my plan soak into your system."

I rise from the couch, stepping closer and reaching out a hand. I take her hand and turn her palm upward, kissing the smooth skin. She looks at me again, that same look of conflict in her eyes. Then she pulls away, flushes, and makes up an excuse.

"I really have to go."

I grab her hand again, squeezing her flesh hard. "Tell me that you are not going to find Burn tonight. Tell me that you won’t run to my brother and tell him about what I offered you."

She struggles, trying to pull her hand from my grip. "I am not going to talk to him tonight," she insists. "I’m going to think about it, like you told me to. Is that what you want to hear?"

I release her hand and give her a cool smile. "No. What I want to hear is that you will accept my proposal. But for right now? I’ll take what I can get."

She steps back, ripping her hand from mine and I let her go. She opens the door and looks out into the hall. I suppose she is checking to see that my family has gone. I motion to her to get back from the door and then head outside, looking both ways. I fish my cell phone out of my pocket and send Clive a text. I hear movement in the service corridor just to the right of the library, and then Clive steps out. I swing open the door to the library and beckon to Talia.

"Come on. Clive can guide you off the property without anyone else knowing that you were ever here."

Her eyebrows go up, but she flushes and hurries through the doorway, only looking back at me for one moment before dashing through the servants' passage that Clive holds open. Clive bows to me ever so briefly, and then I watch him pull the passageway door closed once again.

Pursing my lips, I pull out my cell phone. I feel like I have her in the palm of my hand. But corporate life has taught me to always have a backup plan. In case anything happens, I need to be absolutely sure that Talia will say yes to my offer.

I thumb through my contacts and then make a call. "Yeah, it’s me. I need a huge favor."