The Call Boy I Met in Paris – Episode 15
Joey stood behind the register with three suit bags arranged across the counter. Their actual price was irrelevant to Justin, but Sophie was already opening her purse with the determined generosity that had started this entire misunderstanding.
“Actually, we’re having our annual sale now,” Joey announced. He avoided Justin’s eyes, unwilling to discover whether the improvised lie met with executive approval.
Sophie paused. “An annual sale?” She had been shopping with Joey for years and had never once seen him discount custom work.
“All the suits you chose are thirty percent off,” he said. Thirty percent was the first number that came to mind, and he committed to it with a professional smile.
“Really? You never have sales.” Sophie’s suspicion returned. She looked from Joey to Justin, who was studying a row of cuff links with exaggerated innocence.
“A new tradition,” Joey said quickly. “Let me wrap these up for you.” He processed a carefully reduced total while privately deciding that Lake Enterprises could absorb whatever accounting fiction became necessary.
Justin carried the garment bags outside. The afternoon light caught the satisfaction on Sophie’s face, and guilt briefly pressed against his amusement. She had spent money she believed he needed, never once using her wealth to humiliate him.
“I promise I’ll make enough money to pay you back,” he said. It was technically possible, although one minute of his income would likely cover the entire purchase.
“You’re my husband, okay?” Sophie replied. She took one of the bags from him despite his protest. “You don’t have to pay me back.”
Justin tilted his head. Her cheeks colored as she realized how intimate the reassurance sounded. “At least not with money,” she added before she could stop herself.
His expression changed at once. “Should I ask what form of repayment you prefer?” The warmth in his voice brought the hotel memories rushing back again.
“Don’t get ideas. Your job is to convince people we’re married.” Sophie started toward the car, but the speed of her retreat betrayed her.
Justin followed with a smile. “I’ve never had a woman take me shopping, buy me expensive clothes, and offer to take me home.” He made the arrangement sound scandalous when she had intended it to be practical.
“Lucky you,” Sophie said. “You just won the jackpot.” She meant the salary, clothes, and temporary security she believed she had provided.
“There’s no argument there.” Justin was not looking at the shopping bags when he said it. He was looking only at her.
The sincerity in his gaze unsettled Sophie more than the teasing had. She turned toward the curb and reminded herself that their marriage had an expiration date. Feelings would turn an efficient solution into another chance to be betrayed.
“Come on. Dinner’s on me,” Justin said. For once, he wanted to pay for something without revealing that cost meant nothing to him.
Sophie raised an eyebrow. “With what money? The salary I haven’t paid you yet?” Justin laughed and opened the car door for her.
Before she could get inside, someone called her name from across the sidewalk. “Sophie?” The voice carried surprise, familiarity, and a masculine warmth Justin noticed immediately.
Sophie turned toward the approaching man, recognition breaking across her face. Justin’s hand tightened on the car door as the stranger smiled at his wife—and for the first time since agreeing to the fake marriage, the billionaire who could command an empire felt the sharp, unfamiliar pull of jealousy.
