Declan (Wild Men Book 8)

by Melissa Belle

  But as I stare into the gray eyes of the man I slept with less than fifteen hours ago, I’m sure as hell that this wasn’t it.

  Declan, dressed in a light blue t-shirt and a pair of well-worn jeans that fit him like a glove, is sitting on my uncle’s office couch.

  He stands when we walk into the room and doesn’t take his eyes off of me. I flush under the heat of his stare. The irony of my goodbye note hangs between us as my uncle puts his arm around me.

  “This is my niece, Mia Carroll.”

  “Hi,” I say awkwardly.

  “Hey.” Declan’s jaw ticks, and I know he’s as surprised to see me as I am him.

  Neither of us says it, though. And neither of us admits that we’ve met before. It’s almost like an unspoken agreement.

  “Mia, this is Declan Wild, my star client.” Ned claps Declan on the shoulder. “Declan plays for the Wild Kings.”

  “You’re an ice hockey player?” I can’t believe I didn’t ask him more questions about what he did.

  “He may have only joined the Wild Kings last year, but he’s got a championship cup to his name, not to mention multiple MVPs of the league. He’s going to be in the Hall of Fame one day soon. He holds so many records I wouldn’t know where to start.”

  “Wow. That’s amazing,” I say with genuine admiration. “Good for you.”

  “Not a big deal.” Declan shifts uncomfortably, and his cheeks flush. It’s adorable. He’s adorable. He’s also so freaking sexy with that day-old scruff and messy dark hair that I resist the urging I have to kiss him.

  “So.” Ned gestures to the couch, and Declan sits back down.

  I join him, trying to sit as far apart from him as I can without making it seem weird. Because this entire experience is weird. My only one-night stand is in my uncle’s office with me.

  But it’s about to get a lot weirder.

  “I’m sure you’re both wondering why I’ve called you here,” my uncle begins as he takes the seat behind his desk and looks at each of us.

  We both nod. Well, I think Declan nods. I’m trying so hard to keep my gaze focused solely on my uncle so he won’t suspect anything. But, out of the corner of my eye, I think I detect a slight head movement.

  “I’ve decided you two will get married.”

  Silence.

  I can literally hear my breaths as I nearly pant like an anxious dog. My palms are sweating ridiculously, and my stomach starts doing backflips.

  “What?!” Declan and I finally both say at the same time.

  Ned just smiles. “I’ll draw up a foolproof contract so that your marriage will end after one year. A pain-free cut where neither of you will walk away with any earnings that the other makes.” He turns to Declan. “Just to be clear, though, Mia is the opposite of a gold-digger. She has no interest in your money, and you can trust her implicitly. She will sign an NDA, of course, and she’ll need to move into the cabin with you on Wild Ranch because her place doesn’t have the security protection or the privacy that you need.”

  “I’m sorry—what?” I glare at my uncle. “I’m right here, Uncle Ned! And I haven’t agreed to this yet.”

  “Mia’s right,” Declan says, his voice coming out scratchy. “It’s not fair to get her roped into something like this just to help me get a job. She doesn’t need any of this.”

  Uncle Ned has the audacity to chuckle heartily. “I apologize. I should have made clear what each of you will be getting out of this. Because trust me, Declan, I would never involve my favorite niece in an arranged marriage if she hadn’t asked me for the help herself.”

  “You what?” Declan shifts to face me. “I don’t understand.”

  “Mia’s father won’t let her take over the family company until she’s been married for a year,” Uncle Ned interjects before I have to.

  Declan’s eyebrows shoot up. “Why would he force your hand like that?”

  I don’t want to talk about my mother’s passing right now. Uncle Ned and I exchange a glance, and I know he understands.

  “The requirement is misguided,” my uncle says quickly. “Kind of like the stipulation that you be married to become part owner of the Wild Kings, Declan. Except unlike your situation, which is about protecting the team’s public image, Mia’s parents truly only had good intentions for her when the contract was drawn up.”

  I shoot my uncle a grateful look. “That’s right.” I nod at Declan. “So I need an arranged marriage too. Small world, huh?” I break into nervous giggles.

  Declan’s lips twitch like he’s fighting a smile.

  “I’m game if you are,” I say quietly, so quietly I’m not even sure my uncle can hear me. “I know it’s a weird situation.”

  Without taking his eyes off of me, Declan says, “I’d like to speak to Mia alone.”

  Chapter Nine

  Declan

  I wait to speak until Ned’s closed the door behind him and Mia and I are alone in his office.

  “Why did you leave this morning without saying goodbye?” I ask her without preamble.

  Her cheeks turn red, but she looks me dead in the eyes when she says unapologetically, “Because of this right here. This arranged marriage nonsense I have to deal with for the next year. I like you, Declan. And I wouldn’t have dreamed of dragging someone I like into this.”

  “What if I’m being dragged willingly?” I say.

  “Well, obviously I didn’t imagine the man I picked up at a bar last night would also be looking for a fake spouse. Silly me.” She smiles so big I can’t help but grin.

  “I get your point,” I say. “We just slept together. It’s not like we were in a relationship. You thought it best to make a clean break. No mess. Right?”

  Her eyes flash with pain, but she lifts her chin stubbornly. “Right. And I dare you to tell me you don’t agree with my logic.”

  “I do agree,” I say. “I don’t know what I would have done if you’d still been in my bed when I woke up. Honestly, that’s not true,” I say as my gaze drifts to her sinful mouth of pouty pink lips. Her upper lip is heart-shaped, and it drives me crazy. “I know exactly what I would have done.”

  She licks her lips. “And then? After you were inside me again?”

  I adjust my seating position. My dick is liking her question a little too much.

  “Then, what would you have done?” she asks.

  I try to put myself in that position. “I don’t know,” I finally admit. “I probably would have told you the timing was off, so it would be best we go our separate ways.”

  She nods sadly. “Exactly.”

  “But I wouldn’t have wanted to,” I say quickly. “I’ve thought about you all morning, Mia. I can still taste you on my tongue.”

  She glances toward the closed door. “Declan…”

  “Don’t worry. That door is completely soundproof. I should know—I’ve tried to listen in a couple of times to find out how much trouble I was in.”

  She laughs. “So what do you think about my uncle’s proposal?”

  “I don’t love the idea that he proposed to you on my behalf,” I joke. “But if you’re serious about wanting to do this…”

  “I need to do this,” she says firmly. “It’s not a question of want.”

  “Then I don’t want you marrying anyone but me.” The statement pops out of my mouth unbidden, and Mia blinks in surprise.

  But I stand my ground. “I’m the right man for your arranged marriage problem. You can trust me to respect your boundaries, to honor the contract, and to never take advantage of you.” The next thing, I have to force out. “And even though we had an amazing night together, we should probably just stay friends. You know, so lines don’t get blurred.”

  The quick flash of disappointment in her eyes is gone so fast I almost think I imagined it.

  “I agree,” she says. “But what about us being with other people?”

  “No other people,” I say firmly. “We have to appear like a real, genuine, married couple. If one of
us were with somebody else and it ever got out, we’d both have a lot to lose.”

  She fiddles with her purse next to her and doesn’t say anything.

  “Unless you disagree?” I say, a lurching sensation hitting my gut at the idea of Mia going on dates with some other guy.

  “I don’t disagree. I just…” Again, she dips into silence.

  “You just what?”

  She raises her gaze to meet mine. Her cheeks flush the sweetest pink when she says, “Can you truly go for a year without sex?”

  I break into loud laughter.

  “Shut up!” She swats at my arm.

  I lean in close to her and kiss her cheek. “It’s not ideal, but I have other ways to take care of myself.”

  Goosebumps break out on the part of her shoulder and neck that are exposed. “Well, so do I. So that part’s settled then,” she says in a businesslike tone.

  “Great.”

  “I mean, we both need this, right?” she says. “We’ll be on the same page.”

  “Exactly. It’s a win-win.”

  “But how do you know you can trust me? NDAs, security, fame—you live in a completely different reality than I do, Declan. And you should make sure you trust the woman you bring into it.”

  “I already did decide that when I brought you home last night.”

  “To have a one-night stand?” she says. “You barely knew me.”

  “Here’s the thing, Mia,” I say. “I don’t bring women home to my place. I always thought that if I did, I’d feel compelled to have them sign an NDA to avoid any sort of future concerns. So, I didn’t think it was worth the trouble. But you—you were worth the trouble.”

  She smiles. “And the NDA?”

  “I guess I must have trusted you enough that it never crossed my mind.”

  I get why she’s asking me. Because she’s right—technically, I should have been more careful. But last night with Mia, I threw all my rules out the window.

  She’s watching me intently, and something about my expression settles her because she lets out a deep breath.

  “Okay,” she says. “I’ll do it. I’ll marry you.”

  First, I’m relieved that she’s agreed to marry me and not somebody else. But then, the reality of what we’ve agreed to do hits home.

  I hate the feeling of utter frustration that shoots through me at the thought that this is all fake. I always thought my first marriage would be my last and that it would be fucking real.

  Mia looks down at our hands so close to each other on the couch. “You know I’ll have to sign an NDA if we marry. It wouldn’t be smart for me not to.”

  “I know.” But I feel awful making her do that.

  “I don’t feel bad about it at all,” she assures me. “It’s smart business. Just like this arranged marriage, right? You’re doing this for your future career. And I am too.”

  “Right.”

  But as we sit and look at each other, neither of us giving anything away in our expressions, it sure doesn’t feel like just business.

  Chapter Ten

  As soon as I say goodbye to Ned and Mia and drive away in my truck, I do what I’d like to put off but know I can’t. One of the things I learned early on about being a public figure is that if I want to make sure my family knows something before the world does or they read about it online, I have to tell them. And I have to tell them quickly.

  My brother is my first call.

  Cameron picks up on the first ring.

  “Hey, Dec,” he says. “What’s up?”

  “Are you at home?” I ask him.

  “Yeah. Why?”

  “I need to tell you something. I’ll be right there.”

  Cam spits out the sip of beer he’d just taken.

  “You’re getting married?! When did you even meet someone?”

  I give him a hard look. My little brother and I look so much alike with our dark hair and athletic builds. Only his dark eyes and my gray ones differentiate us and, as I like to remind him just to fuck with him, I’m two inches taller with twenty pounds more muscle.

  “Kind of like the way you met Savannah and then sprung her on me three years ago,” I say without thinking.

  He halts. “Wait. So this is like a real thing? You love this woman?”

  “Well...” I feel myself flush under his stare, and I wish to Christ I hadn’t had to tell him anything at all. “Here’s the thing…”

  Cam looks at me. “Yeah? What’s the thing? Spit it out, Dec.”

  He puts down his bottle of beer and crosses his arms over his chest. We’re standing by the island in his kitchen while he watches the boiling pasta that his wife, Savannah, requested for dinner. She’s nearly nine months pregnant, and Cam doesn’t want her lifting a finger. Right now, she’s out with Brayden’s wife, Leleila, but they’re due back any minute.

  Cam and Savannah moved from Minnesota to Mountainview a few years ago after they got married. Cam and Brayden were always tight, closer than Cam and I were growing up. The younger Wild cousins are made up of Cam, Brayden, Colton and Dylan, both pro footballers, and Ayden, who grew up in Maine and now lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Bella. Those guys were always a tight-knit pack of five—six when you include Colton’s best friend, Jenson.

  As the first-borns of our Wild generation, Luke and I, along with Ayden’s brother, Michael, didn’t keep as close of a bond, but we liked to joke that we know best. And I’m about to call in that joke right now.

  I smirk at him. “I’m the oldest, remember? You don’t get to lecture me.”

  “First, tell me what you did, and then I’ll decide if it warrants a lecture, big brother,” Cam shoots back with his typical mischievous grin.

  I run my hand over the back of my neck as I realize just how bad this is going to sound. “The upcoming marriage isn’t exactly real.”

  His eyes widen. “It’s fake? You’re having a fake wedding?”

  “I prefer to call it ‘arranged’ rather than fake.” I fill him in on the Wild Kings’ stipulation that I need to be married in order to have an ownership stake. “And it’s only for a year. The time requirement is for her, not for me.”

  Cam passes right over my attempt to distract and goes right to the heart of things. “Who is she? Your about-to-be wife?”

  “Mia.” I curse myself for how tenderly I say her name. “Mia Carroll. She needs this arranged marriage just as much as I do.” And we fucked like rabbits last night.

  I don’t say that last part out loud, but Cam’s watching me closely. And like he always does, he calls me out. “You’ve already slept with her.”

  “Jesus, Cam.” I stare at him. “How the fuck did you know that?”

  He lifts one shoulder in a shrug. “You’re a shit liar. Your face doesn’t hide much. Except when you put on that public smile for the press and when you’re around fans. You’re pretty good at that one.”

  “Great.” I shove my hands in my jeans pockets. “Anyway, it was a one-time thing. We’ve agreed to strictly be friends from now on.”

  He cocks his head and studies me in silence for a moment. “Don’t believe you,” he says finally as he turns off the stove.

  “Well, believe it.” I glare at his back as he drains the pasta. “Mia and I have already agreed that’s what’s best.”

  “And she’s probably as earnest as you are,” he says. “I call bullshit on you both.”

  “You haven’t even fucking met her!” I say, hating that I sound like I care about that fact.

  Why would I want my brother to meet her anyway? It’s an arranged marriage, not a real one.

  “Thanks for bringing that up. I’d like to meet her.” His expression is nearly gleeful as he turns back to face me. “Before you get married. I insist. Savannah and I will meet you for dinner.” He pauses. “Savannah’s not enjoying going out to eat right now because she says it’s so far to the bathroom. So maybe…”

  “Luke is having a family dinner tomorrow night,” I find myself saying.
“I can invite Mia if you and Savannah want to come.”

  “Perfect.” Cam grins. “I can’t wait to meet my future sister-in-law.”

  “Don’t make an ass of yourself,” I warn him. Or of me.

  “You can trust me,” he says, his devilish grin still in place.

  Mia

  Since Declan and I are—you know—getting married, we decide it’s wise to exchange phone numbers. Because having your fiancé’s contact information seems like a good idea and all.

  I’m at Jamie Beth’s house, filling her in on my situation when he calls and asks me to dinner tomorrow night at Wild Ranch.

  I’m curious to meet his family, but I immediately feel like I’m going to be outnumbered.

  “Can I bring my best friend?” I ask him. “She knows the whole story, and she’s an amazing secret keeper.”

  “Of course. She’s more than welcome. I’ll see you both at seven tomorrow.”

  “What will you tell everyone who’s going to be there?” I say before I can stop myself.

  “The truth. I can’t keep something like this from them because they’ll see right through it. But they’re sworn to secrecy. And they’re the kind of people you can trust with your life.”

  And now, I have no choice but to trust them also. “Okay, that sounds good.”

  As soon as I hang up, Jamie Beth pours herself more wine. “I definitely am not drinking enough,” she says. “And I’ll drink on your behalf, Mia.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I could have sworn you just included me in an evening with your fake fiancé’s family. That means you’ll get in too deep with these people when I’ve been telling you to keep them all at arm’s length. Business marriage, remember? And you know how bad I am at being fake. I won’t last five minutes with these people.”

  “Declan’s down to earth,” I tell her. “And his cousin, Luke, was too. Hopefully, we’ll all get along.”

  “I don’t know,” Jamie says, doubt in her voice. “I hate most people.”

  “You’re a social butterfly,” I say. “You do not hate people.”