He flashed me a boyish grin. “I’ll take you snowmobiling this winter back home. Christmas isn’t Christmas without freezing your ass off.”
A warmth flushed through my chest. It was March; we were a long way off from snow. Yet, he was picturing Christmas together in his hometown.
I’d been all over the world, including some of the most sought-after ski resorts in the world. That world wasn’t what he was describing. My eyes flicked over the familiar sights of the strip. Bright lights, big buildings, and hordes of people. I’d grown up here, but I wanted to see Derek’s world too. To meet his sister and see all the things that were familiar to him.
We arrived at the restaurant, and the media were already lined up along the sidewalk. Derek took a shaky breath, then stepped out and went around to open my door. Whether it was old-fashioned chivalry or he was nervous, I didn’t know. When he grabbed my hand and held it tightly in his, my heart gave a little flutter.
We were seated right away at a table outside where we could be seen and photographed. The whole thing had been prearranged, we just had to follow the script.
“I feel like an animal in a zoo,” Derek said, tapping his fingers on the table.
I grabbed his hand and held it, feeling vindicated when his shoulders lost some of their stiffness. “Just focus on me and pretend they’re not there.”
He glanced towards the sidewalk where a man was pointing a camera with a comically long lens in our direction.
I looked over the circus happening on the sidewalk and considered how different it was from what he’d described. We were married, for the time being anyway. How long could he stay in Vegas before he was too homesick or stir crazy?
We made it through the meal with as much forced calm as we could, and when our car pulled up out front, Derek looked relieved to go. His hand never left mine as we made our way to the sidewalk.
“Rumours say your marriage is fake. Let’s see a kiss,” a particularly loud man yelled from the sea of cameras.
Derek paused where he was opening my door, and his eyes met mine. “Should we give them something for the front page?”
I nodded. The man gave me butterflies so often that I could start my own sanctuary.
He wrapped his arms around my middle, then stood to his full height, taking me with him. I sealed my mouth over his, keeping my tongue to myself despite that I wanted to take the kiss further. The hard planes of his chest pressed against the curves of mine, and the way he effortlessly held me made me feel safe in a way I had never craved before. All too soon, my feet were back on the sidewalk, and we were heading home. Through the entire drive, his hand never left mine.
Chapter 7
Derek
As evening approached, my mind wandered to the sleeping arrangements. Lunch had been awkward as hell, but my wife’s presence had calmed me. It was hard to remember what was real when Rosalind kissed me like I was more than just a drunken mistake. Even without an audience to play to, her hands had roamed, and she’d brought her body close to mine. If I suggested we consummate this marriage, would she be interested? Or would it make her uncomfortable to have some giant man in her house who was trying to convince her to sleep with him?
I grabbed my sandpaper and got to work on smoothing out the putty in the hallway. As long as I kept my hands busy, I could keep them to myself.
It also kept my mind from questioning this whole thing. It took a team of people to make it seem like I fit into her world. How would we ever keep this up? I was a fish out of water; sooner or later, I’d need to go back where I belonged.
As I was finishing up a coat of paint, Rosalind appeared in yet another silky robe. “You going to bed soon?”
I tensed my jaw. “I want to finish up here first; I’ll be a while. I’ll try to keep it down.”
She nodded and crossed her arms tightly across her chest. “Night then.” She padded barefoot into the master bedroom andshut the door. I may well have just missed out on a night in bed with my wife. I may also have kept this whole situation from getting way messier than it needed to be.
Before I went to bed, I made a list of stuff I wanted to work on in the house. I had to be busy to keep from crossing lines that couldn’t be uncrossed.
******
“What are you doing now?” Her voice sounded more affectionate than annoyed.
Or maybe that was wishful thinking.
I descended the ladder and turned to face her. She looked beautiful, even first thing in the morning. “I thought I could put a few shelves up so you could display your pictures. The whole point of this is so you can get to do what you love, right?”
She looked at the sawdust on the floor, the circular saw, the extension cord, and the shelves I planned to hang, but didn’t reply.
“If you don’t like the idea, I can take them down and patch the wall. I just—”
“Thank you,” she said. “No one’s ever supported my dream before.” Her eyes looked a little watery.
