Chapter 23: I STILL WANT THE DIVORCE
Alanis dragged Harlow up the stairs, his grip firm but not forceful, until they arrived at his private study. He opened the door, pulled her inside, and closed it with a decisive click.
Harlow, as if coming back to her senses, immediately yanked her hand free from his grasp, her green eyes blazing with defiance.
"Don’t think for a second," she began sharply, "that just because you helped me out there, I’ll change my mind about the divorce."
Alanis leaned against the door, a faint, almost amused smile playing on his lips. Are you deliberately using this method to anger me and to arouse my interest... Wife?" His tone was teasing, playful, a sharp contrast to the cold detachment she’d always known from him.
In all the years she married him, he has never addressed her as his wife.
"Why would I do that?" Harlow snapped. She hated him, despised every fiber of his being. She wasn’t here for his attention; she was here for revenge.
He didn’t answer. Instead, he pushed off the door and started toward her.
Harlow instinctively stepped back, but he kept advancing, a predator closing in on his prey. Her movements were clumsy, hesitant, until she felt the edge of his large desk press against her hips. Her escape was cut off.
Alanis stopped only when he was mere inches away, his frame towering over her. He placed his hands on either side of the desk, caging her in.
"A transparent nightdress for breakfast," he murmured, his voice low and smooth. "The little stunt you pulled with my family..."
His head dipped closer, and Harlow’s breath hitched. She could feel the heat radiating off him, his scent, a heady mix of cedarwood and something darker, invading her senses. Her pulse raced erratically, betraying her.