pulled neatly into a parking spot and turned off the car, but made no move to get out.
He unbuckled his seat belt and turned to face her. “It is a good thing the friendship is over from your side. Timwater signed a nondisclosure agreement that covers every aspect of his association with you. The penalties for breaking it are severe.”
“But he’s going to talk about our friendship.” It had spanned the same six years as the dearth of Vik in her life.
“No, he is not.”
She had no desire to see the man again, but she wasn’t sure how she felt about their friendship disappearing as if it had never been, either. “It isn’t going to help with what he’s already done.”
Vik’s eyes bored into hers. “He’s signed a retraction, admitting everything he told the tabloid was a lie.”
“Won’t that leave him open to a lawsuit from them?” And why was she worried about someone who had so very blatantly not been worried about her?
“They don’t get a copy of the confession...unless he screws up again.” The threat in Vik’s words would have been spelled out to her ex-friend in no uncertain terms.
“And that will protect him?”
“Do you care?”
“I probably shouldn’t.”
“You would not be you if you didn’t,” Vik said with something like indulgence and no evidence of judgment.
“I’m not a pushover.”
“No one witnessing you facing your father down in the conference room this morning would ever question that.”
“Okay.”
Vik smiled. “You are a strong woman whose strength is tempered by compassion. My grandmother Ana is such a woman.”
“And you love her.”
“Yes.”
Did that mean he might love Maddie one day? She did her best to quash that line of fantasy thought. Like she’d told her father earlier, Maddie wasn’t the fairy-tale believer her mom had been. She had no expectations of marrying for undying love and irresistible passion.
So, she couldn’t understand where the tiny ember of hope burning deep in her heart despite Maddie’s strictest self-talk came from.
Unaware of the war going on inside of Maddie from that simple admission, Vik added, “Timwater will make a public apology for his prank after our engagement is announced.”
Even though they weren’t engaged, according to Vik.
It suddenly occurred to her that they hadn’t come to the overlook for privacy to discuss Perry.
Even so, she needed to know one thing. “How much?”
“Did we pay him?”
“Yes.”
“The way his apology will play, he’ll get to keep his fifty thousand from the tabloid.” Vik didn’t sound particularly happy about that fact.
“And?”
“The only thing I gave Timwater was my word not to destroy his name in the business world. The nondisclosure agreement guarantees we will not sue him in civil court, either—so long as he keeps his side of it.”
“He never would have believed I would do that.”
“I would. Regardless of if it was on behalf of the company rather than you, Timwater would be just as screwed.”
“You’re ruthless.”
“It’s not just an Archer family trait. We do what we need to get what is important to us.”
“Like marrying the owner’s daughter to take control of a Fortune 500 company.”
“Yes.”
“Thank you.”
“For?”
“Not trying to pretend this is something else.” No matter what her heart wanted.
“What exactly do you think this is?”
“Necessary.”
He nodded. “Yes, but it will be a marriage in every sense of the word. You do realize that?”
“You mean...”
“Sex. We will not be living celibate lives.”
“No affairs?” Not that she would be willing to take this step if she thought he was a womanizer, if she herself had plans to look outside the marriage for that kind of companionship.
“No affairs,” he repeated, making no attempt to suppress how disgusting he considered the idea.
Vik wasn’t that guy.
He was the grandson of a very traditional Russian man. Vik would never do anything that would disappoint the old man. He thought his father had done enough of that.
He’d shared that, and a lot more she hadn’t expected him to, when they were friends during her teen years. He’d never been like a brother, but he had been one of the few people she’d believed she could rely on back then.
Could she rely on him now?
“Be very sure you understand what I am saying here, Madison.” Vik reached across the console and cupped her nape in a move that was becoming familiar. “I am not Maxwell Black. My children will not be conceived in a test tube.”
“Of course not.” Whatever their feelings for each other, this situation was very personal for him.
He nodded like that had settled everything still left unsaid between them. She wasn’t so sure she agreed, but she didn’t hesitate to get out of the car with him.
They took the path to the overlook, Maddie grateful she’d worn the sensible pumps and that the ground was dry. Neither of them spoke while they walked, but he kept his hand on the small of her back, moving it to her elbow in the uneven patches of terrain.
When they stopped, they were at one of the favorite overlooks that gave a view of both the famous bridge and the San Francisco skyline. A few tourists dotted the area, but none near enough to hear any discussion she and Vik might have.
Vik maneuvered them so he stood only a few inches from her, his body acting as a barrier against the incessant winds off the harbor. The close and clearly protective positioning felt significant.
“My grandfather gave my grandmother her first view of San Francisco in this very spot,” Vik said after a moment of silent contemplation of the vista before them. “He promised her a future with food to put on the table for their family. A future without oppression for their Orthodox beliefs.”
“He
