The Girl He Craves novel (Sophie and Aiden)

Sophie's pov

Aiden asked me if I wanted to put the ring in the jewelry store or somewhere more private.

I wasn't sure which to choose seeing as I was so stunned by the sight of the sapphire diamond ring that was worth 1.2 million dollars.

That's enough to buy at least two mansions. Enough to feed a good bit of poor people too. I didn't want him to spend this much money on me. Not when I clearly did not deserve it.

"Aiden you can't spend so much on me," I whispered so only he could hear me as he observed the ring for flaws. His eyes were set on the ring so fixedly that I thought he was way too into it to even have heard

me.

His mouth tugs into a grin a second later. He heard me.

"Don't worry about it, darling. Like I've mentioned," He turns. to me with the ring pinched between his fingers. "Only the best for my woman," He whispered, leaning forward.

For his woman....

Focus Sophie!

Play it cool. You're supposed to pretend too, don't forget that. Don't forget that this is all for show. Everyone's watching, be calm.

Aiden leans forward even more, his eyes falling to my lips.

I held my breath because he was getting so close that I can feel the warm air from his nose on my face.

But then the tension cracks when he lifted his hand between us and asked. "Do you like it?"

My eyes crossed as I looked at the ring between us. It was sterling silver, and those pretty sapphire diamonds shone brightly.

They were not meant for someone like me.

A beautiful ring that should not be wrapped around my finger.

I felt like a fraud. Aiden was supposed to give a woman he loves this beautiful, expensive ring. Not someone who was supposed to act like his fiance just to get him out of trouble.

"It's beautiful," I answered, smiling lightly. Frank had his eyes on us like a hawk. One disagreement and I was sure he'd run to the media and say how I'm a selfish and unsatisfied bitch. Aiden grins and asked me again in a low voice that I alone could hear. "Where do you want to put it on?" He asked and then his eyes shifted to somewhere in the room and his jaw clenched.

He looks back over at me and leans forward and then draws his mouth over to my ear to murmur tightly. "Don't look but there are two employees mumbling together. One has a phone and the other is watching us fixedly. We have to act accordingly."

I'm confused until I got what he meant when he suddenly got

on his knee before me.

My heart jumps in my throat and then resumes its beating, only that it was beating so quickly that it was alarming.

I know this was all part of the game we were playing at but that still did not help my poor heart.

Seeing Aiden on one knee, holding up the ring with shaky fingers, a sloppy nervous grin, and an even more edgy look flashing in his eyes made this all too real.

I'm trembling, especially my fingers that I try to fist to help not make it obvious how jittery I was at the moment with the father of my child down on his knees for me. "Sophie Bell-

He started and gulped, and my heart skyrocketed.

Aiden was definitely an actor in his past life because he currently was making this look too real.

But that's what the two of you are striving for Sophie, to make this look all the more real. My conscience reminded me.

But even though it warned me to not read into this too much, my heart was not heeding the warning. Especially with the way he was currently watching me, it had the foolish organ beating rapidly. "I've never fallen in love with someone so much to the point I cannot breathe if I think of losing them. You've managed to capture my heart Sophie, you've captured it a long time ago-

I sucked in a sharp breath at his words. What did he mean?

Was he just saying that to make it more believable?

Aiden continues, looking as nervous as ever as if I had a choice to say no. Maybe I did, but I was not going to. Because maybe some part of me secretly wants this to be real.

Farfetched I know. But one can't blame me. I have loved this man for years even through the bullying. Don't judge me, sometimes the heart doesn't choose who to fall in love with. It just happens.

"I've realized that my life was incomplete when you were not in it and when you showed up again, you have no idea how much you filled that void. I love you with every breath I take, every single breath. And I want to love you until the day that I can no longer breathe. I want to love you forever. I want you to be my wife." He flashes me a shaky smile, his eyes misting.

The emotions in his eyes were pure and I could not focus on anyone else inside this store but Aiden. He had trapped me in his gaze. A gaze that seemed all too real. I realized, with every breath I took, that I was still madly in love with Aiden.

I was still so madly in love with him that my heart didn't know the difference between his facade and the real side.

My eyes fogged with tears, ready to flow. Every worker had their eyes set on us. But they didn't matter. Their phones in their hands didn't matter. Their murmurs didn't matter.

It was the man with the stormy gaze I had known for years that mattered. Always did.

"Let me love you Sophie Bell. Let me take care of you for the rest of our lives. Give me the honor to be by your side. Let me

love you until death do us part. Will you marry me?" He whispered, looking jittery as he waited for my response.

My heart was beating wildly, my fingers were shaky. Fisting them did not help.

The longer I take to respond the more nervous he got. One would think that this act was true....

It was what we were striving for so I suppose that was a goo thing. But was it good for my foolish heart? Probably not.

I nod, my shaky hand pushing over to him. "Yes.