“But—”
“That was for you. You’re too tired for anything else.” He didn’t sound annoyed or frustrated. He still sounded gentle, almost fond.
“But you didn’t—”
“I’m not going to fall apart. It wasn’t about me. I wanted to do that for you.”
He seemed to mean it, and she didn’t have the energy to argue anyway. She was so deeply relaxed in almost every way she couldn’t keep her eyes open.
“Thank you,” she managed to mumble, nestling against his side, under his arm, where it felt warm and safe. “Thank you.”
She felt him press a few kisses against her hair just before she fell asleep. “You’re welcome, baby.”
Ten
Deanna woke up with a tight, deep feeling in her chest—a feeling she immediately recognized as an overly full heart.
She was still in bed, and Mitchell was still beside her. He was sound asleep.
She rolled over on her side so she could see him without turning her head, and she just watched him for a few minutes. He had one arm resting on his belly, and the other was clenched in the covers. His brown hair was a mess—just a little too long—and his eyelashes looked very dark against his skin.
He was still handsome. He was never anything but handsome. But he looked different to her than he usually did. She noticed the wrinkles on his shirt, the way his trousers were hiked up over one calf, the way the hair on his arm looked ruffled rather than lying neatly over his skin.
He felt like a real man—not a handsome stranger, a powerful personality, or a sex god. A human being not all that different than her.
She felt a force of yearning toward him that she’d never experienced before, like she wanted him in every way, like she could see a life with him spreading out before her like a road.
It should have scared her, but the feeling was too consuming to share space in her mind and heart with any other feeling. She reached out toward him, absolutely incapable of resisting the compulsion.
He opened his eyes when she touched his chest, and their eyes met across the short distance between them.
“Hey,” he said thickly. “Is it morning?”
“I don’t think so.” Her hand rested on his shirt, just over his heart. She should have felt silly reaching for him like that, but she didn’t. She glanced over at the clock and saw it was just before midnight. With her other hand, she checked her phone and saw that Rose had texted a little while ago, saying their grandmother was doing fine.
She put down the phone, relaxing again.
Mitchell glanced down to where her hand was on his chest, and his expression changed, grew softer. “How are you feeling?” he asked.
She scooted over closer to him, suddenly remembering last night, all last night, all the ways he’d taken care of her. “I feel good.”
“Good.” He adjusted to wrap an arm around her as she moved closer.
She stretched up to press a kiss against his jaw. “Thank you.” Then, feeling far more than she could easily handle, she kissed him again. And again.
He shifted his head so her next kiss landed on his lips, and then he took control of the kiss, cupping the back of her head with one hand and moving his lips against hers hungrily.
He murmured against her mouth, “You don’t have to thank me.”
“This isn’t thanking you,” she said, moving over him so her body was pressed fully against his. “This is because I want to.”
“Oh, good.” Then he kissed her again, sliding his hands down to palm her bottom possessively.
They kissed for a long time, and she reveled in the feel of his big body beneath her, the texture of his skin, the heat that seemed to radiate off him, the hardness of his growing erection. Eventually, they were rocking together in the motion of lovemaking, and she was so turned on she couldn’t stay still.
“Mitchell,” she gasped, unable to tear her lips away from his.
“Are you ready?”
“Oh, yeah.”
He rolled them over, moving on top of her and positioning himself between her legs. Then he started to undress her slowly, kissing all the skin he revealed. He spent a lot of time at her breasts until it was almost torture.
“Okay, Mitchell,” she panted, tugging at his hair in an attempt to get him to move on.
He slanted a grin up at her and closed his lips around her nipple, tugging it slightly and making her gasp and arch up.
“Is this some sort of power trip?” she teased. “Because there’s never been any doubt that you’re able to turn me on.”
“Is that right?” He rubbed his jaw against the skin between her breasts, the texture of his bristles making her shiver. “You sure haven’t given much evidence of that.”
“What is that supposed to mean? You turn me on all the time.”
“Really?” He lifted his head, as if he were surprised.
She stared at him, bewildered. “Didn’t you know that?”
“I don’t know. I do know that I’ve never had to work so hard at seducing a woman in my life.”
She took a minute to process that, and then her cheeks flushed hotly—although she wasn’t sure if she was pleased or embarrassed by this knowledge. “That’s not because I’m not into you. That’s because I’m trying to be smart. And careful.”
“Ah.” He was smiling as he lowered his mouth again, flicking her nipple with his tongue before he started trailing kisses down her belly. “Well, I’m not going to waste my chance here by taking a shortcut. So try to be patient.”
She moaned as desire washed over her, making her squirm her hips as his lips got lower and lower. “I don’t want to be patient.”
“I don’t think patience is required only when we want it to be.”
“Jerk.”
He shot her a significant look that made her giggle. Then the giggle turned into a whimper as he nuzzled her intimately.
“Mitchell, please,” she begged, as he teased her a little longer. She clenched one hand in the covers and tried desperately to hold her hips still. “Oh, please.”
He murmured against her arousal as his tongue found her clit, rolling it until she was biting her lip to keep from crying out too loudly as an orgasm tightened inside her.
“Please,” she hissed, just before he sucked hard at her clit and she came apart completely, shaking through the spasms of pleasure.
He stroked her gently with his tongue until she’d fully come down. She was gasping out, “Oh God,” and “Thank you,” as he raised himself over her again and kissed her deeply.
She could taste herself in his mouth, and she didn’t even care.
Eagerly, she reached down to unfasten his pants, pushing aside the fabric of his underwear until she was able to free his erection.
She stroked and squeezed him, loving how he jerked and grunted in obvious response.
Then he pulled a condom out of his pocket and rolled it on. His hands were shaking slightly. She noticed it particularly since it seemed a clear sign of how deeply he was affected by their lovemaking.
Just as affected as she was.
With the condom on, he repositioned himself and then guided himself into her slowly. She arched up at the penetration and bent her knees, making room for him in her body.
“You feel so good,” he rasped, his mouth just next to hers. “Oh, baby, you feel so good.”
“You too.” She clutched at his back, wanting to feel him everywhere, wanting to somehow become a part of him and never come out. “It’s so incredibly good.”
He started to move slowly at first, a leisurely, deep rhythm. She tried to match his motion and not hurry it along, but she felt another orgasm developing that kept urging her on. When she got too eager and jerked her hips, he moved his hand to her bottom to guide her motion, ensuring they were moving together.
For some reason, being so out of control of their speed made the sensations all the more intense. Soon Deanna was stifling cries of pleasure and frustration, and waves of
sensation were building slowly at her center.
“Can you come, baby?” he asked, his voice tight with effort. He was working hard to not rush things himself, to make sure it was really good for her, and it meant something to her.
“Yeah.” She arched up, fighting again against speeding up their motion, following the guidance of his hand. “Coming. Soon.”
The whole world was heating up and blurring, and she could barely take a full breath as the pleasure intensified with each thrust. When it finally broke, she couldn’t hold back her cry of release, and it was matched by his as he finally let himself go too.
She could feel him shaking through his climax, saw the pleasure wash over his face, and it filled her with as much satisfaction as her own orgasm.
She held on to him afterward, feeling his body softening against hers.
This was what she wanted. And she didn’t want it to end.
Not even three months from now, when their marriage would be over.
She couldn’t let herself think about that as he pressed clumsy kisses against her mouth. If she thought about it, then she might come to the inevitable conclusion that she’d just made another big mistake.
***
The next day, Mitchell was in a very good mood.
There were a lot of reasons why he shouldn’t be in a good mood. His wife’s grandmother was still in serious condition in the hospital. He hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before after waking up at midnight. And he had a couple of meetings in the morning that he absolutely couldn’t miss.
But he found himself smiling when he was sitting by himself. He felt kind of stupid for feeling that way—it definitely wasn’t normal for him—but it simply wouldn’t go away.
He was putting stuff up on his desk at around lunchtime, getting ready to head over to the hospital where Deanna had gone first thing when his phone rang.
He picked it up. It was Brie.
“Hey,” he said.
“Why didn’t you tell me about Deanna’s grandmother?” she demanded.
He blinked, completely taken aback by his sister’s annoyed tone. “What?”
“Why didn’t you tell me about it? It was serious, right? It didn’t occur to you to let me know?”
It actually hadn’t occurred to him at all. It had never even crossed his mind. “Sorry,” he said, feeling a wave a guilt that wasn’t characteristic of him either. “I didn’t think about it. It just happened—”
“On Saturday. I know. Two days ago. I felt pretty stupid when a friend happened to mention it and I didn’t even know. I know it’s a weird fake marriage, but you might consider at least pretending it’s a normal situation. I mean, poor Deanna. Did you at least try to give her a little support, or have you left her all alone to deal with it while you do your normal thing?”
His guilt transformed to indignation. “I have not left her alone. I’m on my way to the hospital now. Give me a little credit.”
“Credit for what? Being sweet and sensitive? Being a loving husband?”
He was about to snap back a reply, but he bit it off as he realized she had every right to question him. He’d never been a sensitive or thoughtful guy. He’d always done what was easiest for him, regardless of other people’s needs.
Brie had no reason to assume he’d act any differently with Deanna. In fact, three months ago, he’d told her that was exactly what he intended to do.
When he didn’t answer for too long, Brie said, “Shit, I’m sorry. That was going too far. I’m sorry.”
Mitchell cleared his throat and shook his head even though there was no way for her to see the gesture. “No, it’s fine,” he said lightly. “I deserve it.”
Now Brie was silent for a minute. Then she said, “What’s going on?”
“What do you mean?”
“What’s going on? What’s gotten into you? You’re never like this. You normally blow off any hint of a serious conversation.” She paused for a minute and then gasped. “You’ve fallen for her!”
Mitchell had been in the middle of standing up since he wanted to get to Deanna as soon as possible. But he froze halfway through rising at these words. “Brie, don’t be—”
“You’ve fallen for her!” Brie repeated, a victorious note in her voice. “I knew you’d been acting kind of weird lately, and now it’s all making sense. You’re crazy about your wife!”
Mitchell was washed with the strangest waves of embarrassment and pride. “Brie, would you st—”
“Don’t try to deny it. You’re not going to convince me. I seriously wondered if it would ever happen, and now it finally has. Oh, this is fantastic. I can’t believe it. I’m so excited!”
“There’s nothing to be excited about right now,” he said, managing to sound mostly normal.
“Oh, I see.” Her tone had changed. “So how are you going to convince her to stay married to you for longer than three more months?”
He had no idea. Absolutely no idea.
But he was sure as hell going to try.
***
Kelly had gone to her college classes today, but both Deanna and Rose were in the hospital room when Mitchell arrived.
He stood in the door and saw that Deanna was sitting in a chair, her head leaning against the wall, looking tired and wan and worried.
His heart went out to her—it actually felt like it was straining in his chest—and he wasn’t clueless enough to not recognize the feeling.
He had no idea how or why it had happened, but he loved her. So much he wasn’t sure he could contain it.
She glanced over, as if she sensed his presence, and he took comfort in the way her expression transformed on seeing him. Her face relaxed—not into a smile but into a kind of peace and pleasure.
He thought it was a good sign.
She stood up, stepping toward him as he approached. “Mitchell,” she said.
He took her hands and reminded himself this was hardly the place for grabbing her into a kiss. “How is she?”
“She’s doing better. They say the swelling has mostly gone down. She was awake for quite a while this morning, and they think there isn’t any sign of brain damage.”
He let out a relieved exhale. “Good. I’m so glad.”
Deanna turned her head quickly, as if she suddenly remembered they weren’t alone. “This is my other sister, Rose,” she said, gesturing toward the pretty and very curvy brunette who was sitting on the opposite side of the hospital bed.
Mitchell stretched his hand out to greet her as she stood up. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m sorry we haven’t been able to meet before.”
“I know,” Rose said, smiling and looking a little curiously from her sister to Mitchell. “I was in London all summer with my family.”
“Her family” must be how she referred to the family she was a nanny for.
She added, “But I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“I bet you have. Hopefully, you didn’t hear anything too bad.”
“Oh, it wasn’t…” Rose stuttered to a stop, looking a little self-conscious. “Well, I did hear about the Pride.”
Mitchell groaned, remembering how ridiculous he must have looked in his shock over seeing the dead cats in the midst of his sneezing attack. “Great.”
Deanna gave a little laugh. “He’s had a lot of good moments to make up for that.”
Smiling down at her, he had to resist the impulse to cup her face. He’d moved closer without being conscious of doing so.
When Deanna pulled away from him again, he saw that Rose was giving them more curious looks.
Then she said, “I got some lunch earlier, but Deanna hasn’t had any. Maybe you could take her to get something to eat?”
“I’m fine—” Deanna began.
“That’s a good idea,” Mitchell said, at the same time, talking over her and pairing the words with a hand on her back. “We won’t be too long.”
Deanna slanted him an annoyed look as they walked out. “You’re going to have t
o get over the habit of bossing me around or your balls aren’t going to make it for three more months.”
Mitchell chuckled, although he didn’t like her reference to the three months, as if she never questioned the fact that their relationship would be over for sure at the end of the contracted time.
“I’ll work on it,” he murmured as they entered the elevator.
“I don’t believe you.”
“What don’t you believe?”
“I don’t believe you’ll work on it.” She was smiling and looked fond, but his heart took a sudden nosedive as she said, “You like being bossy, and you don’t work on anything, if you can help it, so I don’t think you’ll be working on not being bossy.”
She was teasing, he knew, but she meant it. It would never cross her mind that for the first time in his life he might want to work on something—even if it was hard.
***
That evening, Mitchell was heading back up the elevator, going to pick up Deanna and take her home.
Her grandmother was recovering, and there didn’t seem to be any permanent damage. She was still really weak with the broken bones and the head injury, so she’d have to stay in the hospital for several more days.
But things were definitely looking up.
He got off the elevator and started in the direction of her room when he saw a small dark-haired figure standing in front of the windows in a sitting area across from the elevator. Her back was toward him, but there was no way he wouldn’t recognize the long thick hair, the shapely ass, the graceful curve of her neck.
He walked over toward his wife, wrapping his arms around her from behind when he reached her.
She jerked slightly, as if surprised, but then relaxed back against him. “She told me to leave,” Deanna explained. “The physical therapist had come in, and she didn’t want me there. She doesn’t like anyone to see her when she’s weak.”
“Hmm,” Mitchell murmured, pressing a few kisses against her hair. “That sounds familiar.”
“I’m not that bad.”
He actually laughed since she seemed to sincerely believe this was true.
“I’m not,” she said, sounding slightly confused. “I’m just…” She trailed off, as if she was thinking about the words.
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