Skye smoothed the wrinkles from her scrubs. Ash had invited her to dinner, and she hoped he realized she had nothing else to wear. Stopping by a small mirror on the way out, she pulled her hair out of the messy ponytail and finger-combed her long waves into submission. She wished she’d carried makeup in her bag. A bit of eyeliner or mascara would help make her appear less ragged for her date.

She exited the staff entrance, nervous but hopeful. Beneath the shelter of the covered driveway, nurses and respiratory therapists gathered, planning their off-shift rituals, while EMTs cleaned out the ambulance rigs.

Despite his promise, the sexy man with the gorgeous green eyes and toe-curling kisses was nowhere to be found.

She shifted the weight of her backpack over her shoulder. With a sigh, she headed toward the metro but pulled up short.

Someone was waiting, but it wasn’t Ash.

Spencer opened the door to his car and climbed out. He walked over, his long legs devouring the distance between them in determined strides. He greeted her with a chaste kiss, taking her bag from her shoulder, as he’d done hundreds of times before.

“We need to talk.” The stern, clipped tone pointed to his anger, but a vulnerability had settled in the clench of his jaw. The way he kept his chin tucked had her expecting one of his rare apologies.

She placed her hand inside her pocket and curled her index finger around the platinum band. The words that would end their relationship died in her throat while she took in his injuries. A white bandage bridged his nose and a black eye darkened his expression. He sported a swollen and cut lip, and a bruise discolored the angle of his jaw.

She stretched out to cup his cheek. “How do you feel?”

He gripped her wrist, pulling her toward the car, dominating her with his size.

“You embarrassed me in front of your coworkers.” His terse words told her no apology would be forthcoming.

“I’m sorry.” She couldn’t help the words from tumbling past her lips even though she had no reason to apologize.

A shadow crossed his face, and he looked around, but the few people present weren’t within earshot.

“We’ll talk more at home where we can have the privacy we need. I understand why you did what you did, why you felt the need to get back at me, and I want you to know, I forgive you.” Dark eyes implored her to accept his brand of forgiveness.

She gulped at the raw edge to his voice and placed her hand on his forearm.

“You accepted my ring. You belong to me. Yet you let another man kiss you, Skye. I’m very disappointed.”

Spencer never kissed her with the passion Ash had shown. Ash’s unrestrained urgency had stirred her heart. He’d made her feel like she couldn’t breathe, whereas Spencer merely filled the aching loneliness eating at her life.

She looked around, searching for Ash. Maybe, just maybe, he would actually appear.

Spencer's grip tightened, and his jaw worked from side to side. “I’ve had all day to think about what happened. If we’re to be husband and wife, you must adhere to certain standards, and there are consequences for when you fail. We must be more diligent.”

She swallowed against the lump in her throat. Her eyes went to his belt and the way he stroked the leather. Run was what she should do, but a lifetime of avoiding conflict told her not to resist. They’d talk when they got home, and she’d make him understand.

With a weak smile, she lowered herself into Spencer's car. He had his flaws, but he still wanted her as his wife. Why he had been with another woman was a question she needed answered, but there were worse things than infidelity within a relationship. Her gaze dipped back to his belt, apprehension brewing in her gut.

Where was Forest? He always knew when the light grew dim.

The door to the car slammed, shutting her inside. She trembled with the feeling of being trapped.

He was disappointed, not angry. They would talk this through, like any other couple.

They’d been together for three years. Did she really want to give up their history and their future for a man she’d just met? A man who had stood her up?

Spencer was many things, but compared to the monsters of her past, he was but a flea. She didn’t doubt he cared for her. She only wished it hadn’t hurt so much.

He climbed into the car and laid a hand on her knee and squeezed. “You know I love you.”

She gave a fragile smile but couldn’t bring herself to repeat the words.

“Where’s my ring?” He stared at her left ring finger.

“You know I can’t wear it at work.”

“I’ll get a necklace for you to put it on when you’re at work.” He reached behind his seat and pulled out a manila envelope. “Speaking of…I need you to sign this.”

“What is it?”

He guided the car through the parking lot and merged into traffic. “It’s our prenup.”

“Our what?”

Heat flared in her cheeks. Why did she care if he’d had a prenuptial drawn up when she’d planned to return his ring? But she did. She hated everything about a prenup. Marriage was the complete binding of two people’s lives, not a contractual division of assets.

The traffic thickened.

“This can’t come as a surprise.”

A prenup admitted failure before the vows were even spoken, and she wasn’t after Spencer's money. She didn’t need it. He came from old money and a distinguished family, but she wasn’t destitute.

Her finger itched to text Forest and tell him. He would have a good laugh about Spencer's money concerns, but she did nothing.

Staring at the envelope, she found her resolve. “I’m not signing this.”

Spencer sucked in a breath and slowly blew it out. “Listen, we come from different backgrounds. You grew up in foster care, and while you pulled yourself out of that, you carry the debt of medical school while I have a trust fund.”

“I’m not marrying you for your money.” She wasn’t going to marry him at all although he seemed determined to continue with their engagement. “I thought you understood that.”

“I’m more than willing to shoulder the burden of whatever student loans you might have, but I owe it to my family to protect their assets.”

She fished the ring out of her pocket and placed it on the dash. “I’m not marrying you.”

Spencer's fingers squeezed the steering wheel, and his jaw clamped down. “You’re being unreasonable.”

The diamond sparkled with the light from oncoming headlights. She stared at the glittering light. “Pull over.”

His grip tightened on the steering wheel, and his foot pressed on the gas. “Don’t be melodramatic, Skye. I’m not pulling over.”

“I’m not marrying a man who cheats on me the day after he proposed.”

His jaw clenched, and he shot her a glare. “You should thank me, to be honest.”

Damn, he could cut deep.

“Thank you? For cheating?”

His thumbs tapped the steering wheel. “This is a useless argument. And I don’t blame you. I know what happened when you were younger, and I accept you as you are, but I have needs. I could have had some sordid affair, but I spared you that embarrassment. I keep things discreet.”

Had he really shifted the blame for his infidelity to her?

His expression softened. “I haven’t given up on you. We’ll get help. Find a therapist who deals with sexual trauma. We’ll work through this together—as man and wife. Until then, I’ll manage my needs as I see fit.”

“So, you’ll sleep around, and I’m supposed to be grateful?” He was a true bastard. How had she been so blind?

He breathed out. “Those women are professionals, and what I do is behind closed doors, unlike your little display. You’re my fiancée, and you kissed a man in front of everyone at your work. Imagine how that makes me look. The bastard broke my nose.” He pointed to the envelope. “Sign the prenup, Skye.” He grabbed the diamond ring off the dash and thrust it at her. “And put this back on your finger. I intend to marry you. This is nothing more than a tiny disagreement.”

Tiny? Was he delusional?

They pulled off the main road onto a side street. In another few turns, they’d be at his place.

Darkness cloaked the streets and shrouded her heart as he pulled into his driveway. She sat quietly as he turned off the ignition and got out of the car.

Spencer insisted on opening her door. She lifted her hand for him to help her out.

He drew her into a hug, and she stiffened. Images of that woman’s legs wrapped around his hips assaulted her mind, and she wanted to throw up. She didn’t have the strength to argue though. Besides, she was afraid of what would happen when he really got mad.