KIER
"Aren't you supposed to be home with your new wife instead of checking out single ladies?" Charlie teased, his tone dripping with mockery.
I barely spared him a glance, raising a brow as the bartender slid my whiskey across the counter. "Would you lower your damn voice? Do you want everyone to know I'm married?"
He scoffed. "Really? That's what you're worried about? When you called me in Rome to tell me you were getting married, I was shocked. Then happy. Then horrified."
I took a slow sip, letting the burn sear the back of my throat. Maybe it'd knock some sense into me. I had taken my wife against the wall. Like a maniac. I shook it off.
Turning back to Charlie, I exhaled. "Okay, I get the shock. You should have seen me that day."
I forced out a laugh, hollow even to my own ears.
Charlie swirled his drink before leaning forward. "The Kier I know doesn't just stop sleeping around. You didn't earn the Cold‑Blooded Casanova title for nothing. So yeah, I was horrified… for that poor girl wedded to you."
I scoffed. "You make it sound like I married her just to ruin her life."
Charlie raised a brow. "Didn't you?"
I clenched my jaw. "I didn't have a choice."
"Ah, yes. The classic forced‑marriage excuse." He leaned back, stretching. "Tell me, Kier, was there a gun to your head? Were your bank accounts drained? Did a crime lord threaten your life?"
"You wouldn't understand."
"Try me."
Charlie had been my closest friend since college. If anyone deserved the truth, it was him.
I signaled the bartender for another drink. "It was a deal. Between me and my father. He literally threatened to take everything from me if I didn't marry her and give him an heir."
Charlie chuckled. "Sounds exactly like your dad. But why'd you agree, You don't need his money. You have your…"
I shot him a sharp look, cutting him off.
They say walls have ears. In this bar, the walls definitely had ears. Someone could be listening, and they didn't need to know the truth about me
I lowered my voice. "I keep up the act, he thinks I depend on him. If I don't play along, he'd hand everything to some random schmuck."
Charlie tilted his head. "And your wife? Has she heard this?"
"She doesn't need to know. We have a deal. Give him the heir he wants, then go our separate ways."
Charlie's gaze lingered. "I don't think that's the only reason your dad arranged this. He didn't just pick her to push out a baby and disappear."
I clenched my jaw. "She doesn't mean anything to me. She agreed to the arrangement, so why should I care?" I signaled the bartender again.
Charlie smirked. "If I didn't know better, I'd think this wife of yours is getting to you." He paused. "Wait… have you slept with her?"
I froze. That hesitation told him everything.
"Shit, you have." He looked far too pleased. "Then I have to meet her. Why the hell call me out here on a Sunday morning instead of having breakfast with this damsel?"
"I drink in the morning," I muttered.
Charlie barked a laugh. "You're a womanizer, heavy drinker, but you hate morning booze. So I knew something was up the moment you called. I thought it was your dad, but this? This is better. And I love it."
I was about to tell him to shut up when my phone rang.
I didn't check the caller ID. "What?"
The voice on the other end made me stiffen.
"What?" I shot up from my stool.
Charlie frowned. "What's wrong?"
I ignored him, gripping the phone tighter. "I'll be there in ten."