Page 21 of The King Contract
“That’s why we’re practicing,” I say, stepping closer and sweeping my gaze down her face.
Millie’s curly and untamed ebony hair frames her heart-shaped face. Her cheeks always seem softly flushed and her lashes are so thick I could swear they were fake like the ones Sofia used to wear.
Her eyes widen. “Now what are you doing?”
I smile. “Gazing at you with love and adoration.”
Millie wrenches her hand from mine and slaps both of hers to her face. “I am never going to survive this.”
As much as part of me wants to rile her up, I know it won’t help her relax around me. Gently, I peel her hands away from her face. She looks defeated, almost grimacing at our closeness. “Not only will you survive, but you’llthriveat this. I have faith in you.”
“Because that means so much,” she says dryly.
“You need to practice. Let’s try again.”
I step back and hold out my hand, patiently waiting for her to ride out the battle currently going on behind her big brown eyes. “It’s just a hand, Millie.”
She exhales loudly before sliding her small hand back into mine. I offer what I hope is a comforting smile as I manoeuvre my fingers around hers, so they’re intertwined. She watches them with apparent fascination.
“Good job,” I say. “Now, let’s try something else.”
I reach up with my other hand to push a lock of curls behind her ear—and she slaps my hand down before I even make contact.
“Jesus, Millie.” A choked laugh escapes my throat. “You’re acting like you haven’t been touched by a man before. Wait, youhavebeen touched by a man before, right?”
“Of course I have!” she snarls.
“Just checking,” I assure her.
She blows her fringe out of her eyes in frustration. “I’m overthinking this. I know that. But you’re a stranger to me. A stranger is trying to touch me and it’s weird.”
She’s got a point. I might be affectionate from the get-go, but Millie is clearly not.
“I’m coming at this the wrong way.” I take a step back from her. “We wouldn’t be rushing this if we were a real couple, right? It’d happen organically.”
She nods. “Right.”
“Let’s hang out here for a while,” I suggest. “Get used to being in each other’s space and see if we can handle handholding once we’re more comfortable.”
I see the war waging in her eyes, before she reluctantly agrees. “Give me a tour.”
“Give me a tour,please.”
I grin as she huffs and makes her way across the living room without waiting for me to lead her. This might be a disaster, but it’s going to be fun niggling her while she’s here.
MILLIE
It’s only a hand. A large, manly hand.
“Would you relax?” Noah hisses.
I dig my nails into his flesh, and he flinches, tightening his grip in response.
Noah and I ended up holding hands for about twenty minutes. He took me on a tour of his home, from the main suite to the guest bedrooms, to the office, which he said Mack uses the most when he stays over. He gently grabbed my hand when we made it to the garage to see hisactualsurfboard collection. It was hard to act like I wasn’t impressed. It was basically an art gallery inside his home.
“This is the most stupid thing I’ve ever been a part of,” I tell Noah as we make our way down his street.
Noah insisted we start small and head outdoors to practice our fake relationship skills, explaining we don’t have time to go any slower than we are already. We’re walking to a collection of shops near Noah’s house under the guise of buying food for a home-cooked meal.
