She pretended to write that down. "Sharp tongue—no." She marked a big X on the paper. "What else?"
We stared at each other for a few more strained seconds, her expression a phony look of intense interest and mine a mild smirk. The truth was, I didn't even know if the legal aspects of the fake marriage she'd proposed were legitimate. But talking about calling it off before even knowing caused a spear of disappointment to shoot through my body. I hated the idea, hated the little spiky-tongued witch standing in front of me, hated that in reality, she did have more power in this situation than I did . . . but at the same time, it was the first thing in a long while that had given me some hope. And I didn't even realize until that moment how sweet that hope tasted. I looked away first, breaking the intensity flowing between us, but she was the first who spoke as she set the pen and paper on the table. "Listen, this situation is . . . unusual to say the least." She paused again and I looked back to her. The spark had gone out of her eyes as if the idea of calling it off wasn't exactly what she wanted either. "I called the executor of my trust before I walked over here. He can see us late in the day tomorrow. Maybe we could find a way to coexist at least until we've ascertained everything is as I've said. And then we can make a final decision from there."
"I can agree to that."
She took a deep breath. "Okay, good." She held out her hand. "Truce?" She arched an eyebrow. I looked at her hand and held out my own from across the table.
"Truce. Come here so we can shake."
"You come here," she challenged.
I smiled slowly. "Meet in the middle."
She narrowed her eyes, but nodded, stepping away from her chair. I stepped away from mine, and we met next to the center of the large table. I took her warm hand in mine and shook it as we regarded each other warily. Finally, she smiled and I gave one in return. She returned to her seat and so did I. When Charlotte came over to refill Kira's wine, she regarded her not with disdain, but with a wary curiosity. Interesting that somehow our fighting had ingratiated Kira to Charlotte. Women were all a mystery to me. Kira gave Charlotte a small smile and thanked her for the delicious meal.
"Would you like to see the rest of the house?" I asked, trying to make a small peace offering.
Kira looked surprised, but nodded yes. We got up from the table, and Kira thanked Charlotte for dinner. Charlotte smiled a smile that seemed genuine but didn't offer me one.
I brought Kira back to the main foyer and we started from there. "My father had this place designed to mimic a French chateau."
Kira nodded as we entered the formal living room. "It really does. It reminds me of a smaller-scale fairy-tale castle. There's something . . . enchanting about it." She gasped when she spotted the large window overlooking the back of the house. The pool was directly below, down a set of steps, and off a natural stone patio. However, her head was lifted and I knew she was staring at the hedge maze just beyond that. She whirled toward me. "It's a maze!" she gasped. "And it's massive."
I clenched my jaw just as I did each time I looked at that hateful thing. "It's completely overgrown. If I had the extra money, I'd have had it mown down when I moved back."
"Oh why?" she gasped. "It's incredible! Can I go inside sometime—?"
"No. Absolutely not." I gentled my tone, though when I said, "It isn't safe." She didn't know why I hated it and she never would, but I had spoken the truth—it was too overgrown to be safe.
She was studying me with those bright, penetrating eyes. I could feel them boring into the side of my face. When I made eye contact, she raised one delicate brow. "The heart of your lair, I suppose?" She smiled prettily. "Where you were . . . hatched?" I narrowed my eyes, and tried to give her a scathing look, but I knew she was joking and I couldn't resist the smile that made its way to my lips. I chuckled softly.