“We wanted to welcome you and celebrate with you.” Her smile seemed genuine, but the way the others hung off our every word made my skin crawl with self-consciousness. It was as if she’d drawn the short straw to run the interrogation.
“We didn’t even know Jacques was seeing anyone. He comes to every function with his roommates.” She rolled her eyes with a smile and waved her hand dismissively. “How long have you been dating?”
I forced my smile to stay in place. My agreement to stay here and pretend this marriage was genuine for twelve months hadn’t even sunk in yet—we’d only just received the paperwork. I was here temporarily, but our wedding needed to appear genuine. How did I manage that?
I went with the truth, or at least a watered-down version of it.
“Not long, but we’ve known each other for years. We reconnected while the team was in Brisbane, and I flew out a couple of weeks ago.”
“Wow, that was quick.”
I shrugged and fake-smiled again. “When you know, you know.”
Jacques slipped his arm around my shoulders, and I exhaled, relaxing into his embrace. He handed me the drink I’d asked for and pressed a kiss to my head.
“Ladies,” he greeted with a grin. “Thank you for cooking all this. I see you’ve met Carina.”
“It’s our pleasure,” Nadia said sincerely.
Her smile wasn’t forced or awkward. She clearly knew Jacques and liked him. Maybe it was protectiveness, or genuine surprise. But those few words uttered to Jacques were warmer than all the ones she’d said to me.
“And we have met.” She turned to me and smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes.
“Well, if you don’t mind, I’m going to steal her for a moment.”
“Nice meeting all of you,” I said before he led me away.
Mumbled comments followed in our wake. The only one I made out was “I’ll give it six months.”
I gritted my teeth, hating that she wasn’t far off.
eighteen
Travis
IwokewithonlyRustyin bed with me. I’d sensed Jacques leaving in the middle of the night after he’d tossed and turned for most of it. He and Carina had talked after that first morning we were home and had gotten back to a happy balance. So far, the balance didn’t involve sex, but we were spending time together getting to know one another. I was happy.
But I was antsy too. Everything had felt like it was up in the air these past couple of weeks. On top of everything happening at home, I’d been updating my training certifications at work, so I hadn’t been on duty like I normally was. It was strictly nine-to-five, and I was dying to get back into it. I wasn’t used to sitting still for so long.
For the moment, we had a quiet early morning planned before I started my final training shift.
I poked my head into Carina’s room before I went out back to feed the animals. She looked so peaceful fast asleep with Jacques behind her, curled into her. He was naked—he always slept naked—but she was in a cute set of pajamas with dogs on it.
Zeus slept at her feet, curled up in a ball on the bed. He opened one eye, and I raised a brow at him. The shithead knew he wasn’t supposed to sleep on the beds. He had his own for that.
“Off,” I mouthed, and he moved, slowly creeping to the side of the bed. It was as if he thought that if he took long enough, I’d change my mind.
Zeus sulked out, but I hovered for a moment, watching them sleep. I liked Carina. I really did. She was bright and bubbly, always ready to help out, and she had a heart of gold. The no sex rule hadn’t been implemented because she didn’t want it. She wanted to make sure that Rusty was okay with her being here before she allowed either Jacques or me to touch her again. She absolutely refused to do anything if it made Rusty uncomfortable. I admired her for that endlessly.
Jacques was already head over heels for her. But I expected that. He’d held a torch for her for so long that it could only go two ways—heartbreak or love. She was as wonderful as he’d remembered, and he’d fallen hard. I doubted he’d told her yet, but it was only a matter of time.
I knew Rusty liked her too. I saw them talking together often. I’d gotten home every afternoon this week to find them sitting on a blanket under the shade of the old oak, Jacques’s head in one of their laps while they talked. He stayed quiet, marveling at the friendship they were building. She’d even been to a weekday mass with Rusty. He hated missing Sundays, and when Carina found out he’d skipped it, she’d offered to go with him. There were no questions asked. She’d just supported him. I knew it meant the world to him, just like it did us.
I felt like a creep watching them sleep, so I forced myself to leave before I ignored my chores and hopped into bed with them.
I fed the horses and topped up their water troughs before doing the same for the chickens and collecting the eggs. Zeus was hot on my heels the whole time, dancing around me as I shoveled the stalls and picked the ripe fruit. Doing these tasks gave me an understanding of why church called to Rusty. The repetition and routine of every morning being the same for me was soothing. It reminded me of exactly what I had to be grateful for—a family, a home, animals, and an orchard I could tend to. It was more than I’d ever dreamed possible, especially as a kid from a poor family who grew up on the wrong side of a tiny town on the outskirts of Dallas.
I was lost in my thoughts when strong arms with calloused hands encircled my waist, and Rusty plastered himself against my back. “I missed you,” he grumbled, then slid his hands down to my hips. He gripped me tight and pressed kisses to my shoulders and up my nape, the teasing touch sending shivers through my whole body. I leaned into him, pressing my back to his front, and rubbed my ass against his growing erection.
