The Marriage Agenda by Sarah Ballance Page A

covering her ears. Whatever Lila would say next, Chloe probably wouldn’t want Knox to hear, and with the racket Lila was making, he’d hear it for sure. “I said yes.”
    “Why the hell would do you that? What happened to Jeff?”
    “Don’t ask. I think he would have left me for Knox in a heartbeat—in fact, I’m pretty sure that’s what happened.”
    “You do realize that tells me absolutely nothing of what happened.”
    “Jeff was starstruck. Knox handed him a business card and told him to call him later. It was almost humiliating.”
    “Only almost?”
    Chloe shrugged, though Lila couldn’t see her. “I got the man.”
    Lila laughed. Or maybe sobbed. “You got the wrong man. Please tell me this is some kind of revenge thing. I get Jeff was a bit…grounded…for your taste, but I figured that was what you needed. You know, to get over Knox. Over. Not under. This is utter insanity.”
    “As far as you’re concerned, this is the natural evolution of a relationship that’s been kept quiet for the last few months.”
    Lila grunted.
    Chloe sank onto the edge of a bed that probably cost more than her car. Her old car, that was. Knox had provided a brand new one, which had been delivered to the house within a couple hours of him signing the lease. They hadn’t needed long to house hunt. As far as she was concerned, one million-dollar mansion looked the same as the next, and considering Chloe’s entire apartment would have fit easily into her new closet, she hadn’t felt the need to argue the finer points. The second home the Realtor showed them was both fully furnished and immediately available, so they’d taken it.
    “Think about this, Chloe. Really think about this—about how he left you. What changed? I don’t doubt you have feelings for him, but what did he do to deserve you? There’s got to be more to this story.”
    Of course there was. But she had signed a nondisclosure agreement, the terms—and consequences—of which left her praying she didn’t have a habit of talking in her sleep. “He said he was ready to get married, and I was the only person with whom he could see that happening.” That part, at least, was true. Chloe sighed. Who the hell was she mad at? Knox hadn’t lied to her, and she hadn’t exactly surrendered her self-respect by saying yes. As far as she was concerned, she had more to gain than he did. Even if she did have to deal with media scrutiny, they’d quickly grow tired of her. She was an only child with an uneventful, lower-middle-class upbringing, and parents who believed in staying together for better or worse…nothing newsworthy there.
    “I am marrying him because I love him,” she said quietly. Because that was what she was supposed to say.
    “Chloe, after what he did to you…”
    She sighed. She didn’t have many close friends, and her marriage was the last thing that should come between her and the best of them. “Look, Li. He said he made a mistake. I believe he’s genuinely sorry, and you know better than anyone that I’ve never stopped loving him.” Ouch.
    “Fine. Love him. But do you have to marry him? If he loves you now, he’ll love you in six months and then … Oh, hell, now I sound like my mother.” Lila blew sharply. “I may never forgive you for that.”
    Chloe laughed. “Look, I know it’s a hard sell, but can you trust me here? I know what I’m doing.”
    Lila sighed. “That must have been some amazing sex.”
    Amazing was an understatement. The sex was so amazing it had “bad idea” written all over it. Despite the tingles wreaking havoc with her body, Chloe outwardly ignored the comment. “The wedding will be just him and me and the minister and the required witnesses, but there will be a reception next Friday at the Wyndham Club.”
    Lila’s long, low whistle cut the silence. “Nicely played.”
    Chloe let go of a breath. Lila’s tone had lost its suspicious note. Chloe had been worried her friend would push until she got