Total pages in book: 151
Estimated words: 142976 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 715(@200wpm)___ 572(@250wpm)___ 477(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 142976 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 715(@200wpm)___ 572(@250wpm)___ 477(@300wpm)
Chapter
Nineteen
Cade wasn’t sure where the fuck this was coming from but it pissed him off.
“That wasn’t the agreement,” he reminded. “Three years, remember?”
“We said we’d stay married for three years, that doesn’t mean we have to co-habit.” She sucked her top lip into her mouth and stared at him pensively before asking, “When do you plan to leave?”
“I was thinking we could leave next week.”
“What about Christmas?”
“Uh, what about it?”
“It’s in three weeks’ time.”
“I’m aware of that.”
“What do you normally do at Christmas? Don’t you spend it with your family?”
Cade couldn’t remember the last time he’d spent the holiday with his family. His father had spent the last two Christmases celebrating in Cape Town with Beth and Gideon. Last year Kenny and Smith had joined them as well. Cade had been invited to join them, of course, but he’d declined.
Instead, he’d spent last Christmas on his yacht, off the coast of Ambergris Caye, with a leggy model for company. The year before, he’d been in Dubai on business.
“I don’t usually celebrate it,” he replied and she tugged at her top lip with her teeth. He wondered if she’d somehow gleaned how distracting he found it when she toyed with that lip and was now doing it deliberately.
“So, you won’t be returning for the festive season?”
“Unlikely.”
“Oh.”
“Not sure what Christmas has to do with anything though.”
“Right. I was thinking if you left next week and returned in a few weeks for Christmas it would only be a short separation. After a few instances of us commuting back and forth like that for appearances’ sake it will eventually become our norm and people will lose interest. Nobody will even notice when the time apart gradually increases.”
“Fern, if this fake long-distance, gradually drifting apart narrative is really what you want then yes, it’s worth exploring… but I think it’s too soon. After six months maybe. But not now.”
“I don’t see any point in delaying the inevitable.” God, she was being stubborn.
“Abernathy just publicly accused me of sexually and emotionally manipulating you into this marriage.”
She visibly started at his words, and her hand flew to her mouth in horror.
“Now you might not fucking care,” he continued, his voice gruff with outrage. “But I take exception to being labeled a sexual predator.”
“Oh my God, I didn’t…” Her luminous gray eyes swam with tears above her hand and her voice was soft and unsteady. “I’m so sorry. This is an unending nightmare for you.”
“Not quite yet,” he said, gentling his voice while he strove for patience. “But it will be if we don’t do this right.”
“I just want to feel like I have some semblance of control over my life,” she admitted softly, her hand dropped back into her lap, where she enfolded it in her other hand, as if she were somehow trying to soothe herself. He ignored the overwhelming urge to reach for that hand and be the source of comfort she so clearly needed.
“I understand,” he admitted, hating the look of utter desolation in her eyes. “You will, Fern. I promise you will. But right now, we’re both pretty much in the same leaky boat.”
“I feel like we’re about to be tossed against the rocks and shipwrecked,” she said disconsolately and he felt a twinge of amusement at her melodramatic statement.
“Then we’ll be marooned on the same deserted island together,” he said, just to see what her response would be.
“It’ll probably be inhabited by massive man-eating anacondas and surrounded by great white sharks,” she said with a sniff and a sad little shake of her head. She was staring at her hands and missed his quick grin at her comeback.
“Then, as you’re being swallowed whole by an anaconda and I’m being torn apart by a great white, we can take comfort in the fact that we’re not suffering alone.”
That finally brought her gaze up to his, she searched his eyes for a while, before—aah there it was—a shy, hesitant smile curved her lips.
“You’re being silly,” she chastised mildly and Cade nearly choked on nothing but spit.
Nobody had ever accused him of being silly before.
She sighed heavily and got up.
“I’m going to make some lunch. Will you be joining me?”
“I’m not very hungry.” His head still felt like it was being split apart and it was robbing him of his appetite.
Her eyes sharpened on his face and if he was the type to squirm, he would shift beneath that astute regard.
“Why are you doing that?” Her question baffled him and he watched her in confusion, remaining seated while she hovered not too far above him.
“What?”
“Your eyes are narrowed into slits,” she said. “At first, I thought you were doing your usual glarey, glowery thing. But this is different.”
“What glarey, glowery thing?” he repeated, mild outrage creeping into his voice at the lowering description.
She scrunched up her face and stared at him through narrowed eyes, with her lips pursed. She looked cute as hell but he wasn’t entirely sure why she was doing it until she spoke.