The Billionaire's Marriage Contract

by Avery James

  Ethan reached his palm over Amy’s cheek and he held her as they kissed. As they pulled back for a moment to take a breath, he ran his thumb across her lip. A rush of excitement ran from her lip toward her chest. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she felt like her entire world had collapsed around her until all that was left was her and Ethan, and, as they began to kiss again, she closed her eyes and let out a little sigh of delight. It was almost like she and Ethan were melting into each other as waves of bliss ran through her.

  Ethan slid his hands down over Amy’s sides and hugged her, kissing her neck slowly while she leaned back and savored the pleasure. Each motion of his tongue against her skin sent a thrill jolting through her chest, and she could feel her heart pounding. “So is that your promise?” Amy asked.

  “I believe it was.”

  “Well, I think I’m starting to like your promises. You still haven’t told me what that second kiss is supposed to be.”

  Ethan leaned back and smiled. “If the first kiss was any good. The second should be a barn fire. It should consume you completely. You just got a bit ahead of yourself. There’s no reason to rush things.”

  Amy knew what Ethan meant, and she wanted it badly. She wanted to slip out of the tub, and beckon to Ethan as she walked back to the bed. She wanted to be that woman, the seductress, the one who took exactly what she wanted, but she didn’t know if she could give in to her desires like that. Everything felt like it was happening so fast. In a moment, Amy’s euphoria had transformed itself into nagging ball of worry deep in the pit of her stomach. What was she doing? Why was she pretending that this was real? Amy tried to remind herself that this was all a game, that this was Ethan’s way of amusing himself while he made his business deal. Deep down, she wanted to believe that part of him was interested in her.

  Amy placed her hands on Ethan’s chest, intending to push herself away, but instead she held them there for a moment before saying, “I think maybe it’s time we called it a night.” Then she leaned in to give Ethan one more kiss. She pressed her lips against his and savored the warm rush she felt from kissing him. It was a gentle buzz that filled her with excitement. Amy knew that if she didn’t stop soon, she wasn’t going to stop at all. Finally, she pushed back and smiled at Ethan. “Maybe sometime you can show me one of those real kisses you were talking about,” she said. She gave him a quick wink and then stepped up out of the hot tub and grabbed a towel.

  For her first few steps across the frozen deck, her euphoria kept her from feeling a chill, but soon, she could feel the cold clinging to her wet skin. By the time she was back by the bedside, she was shivering. She turned to see Ethan, towel mercifully wrapped around his waist, closing the doors out to the deck. She sat down on the edge of the bed as she tried to think of what to say next. She watched Ethan as he walked around the bed. He stopped on the other side and leaned over the bed. Amy wondered if he was going to climb in and start kissing her again. She couldn’t deny that she wanted that to happen.

  She watched as Ethan grabbed his pillow and tossed it on the floor. For a moment, she couldn’t figure out what Ethan was doing. She gave him a puzzled look. “I’ll sleep on the floor,” Ethan said. “I know not to push my luck. Especially after what just happened, I don’t want you to think I’m just trying to make a move on you.”

  “So you’d rather sleep on the floor than share a bed with me?” Amy asked with a laugh. “I must be a terrible kisser.”

  “On the contrary, you’re quite a good one, which is yet another reason I won’t protest your decree that I must sleep on the floor. I’m hoping to convince you to do that again at some point.”

  “Do you need to kiss me in front of someone else for some other business deal?” Amy asked.

  “No, it would be just for you and me, if you’d like that. Believe me when I say I’m not going to try anything. I might give you a hard time, but it’s only because you seem to get a real kick out of it.”

  “It’s fine,” Amy replied. She shook her head. “You can sleep in the bed with me. Just behave yourself. And don’t say some crap about being my husband.” Amy walked back over to her suitcase and grabbed herself a t-shirt and some shorts to sleep in. She grabbed a pair of boxers from Ethan’s suitcase and tossed them to him. “Put these on while I’m changing.”

  As she changed, Ethan said, “If I were your husband, Amy. I’d want nothing more in the world than to lie down next to you and wrap my arms around you as we drifted off to sleep,” he said. “Nothing sexual. Not that at all. I’d want that deep down comfort of not being alone. I’d trade the rest of it away in a heartbeat for that.”

  After quickly changing in the bathroom, Amy came back into the room and got into bed. The bed felt so cold around her, but she could feel the hint of heat from Ethan lying next to her. “If you promise not to make a move on me, you can put your arm around me,” she said. “I’ll let you make that trade.”

  “Smartest deal I’ve ever made,” Ethan said. Her turned toward Amy and placed his hand on her shoulder, slowly sliding his fingers over her arm. There was a gentleness to his touch that she hadn’t expected. Despite his usual boldness, he held her like he was holding a priceless work of art. The smoothness and care of his touch made Amy regret telling him not to try anything. As Ethan wrapped his arm over her stomach and nuzzled his nose against her neck, Amy wanted nothing more than to see what he would do next.

  “You know, if you don’t watch out, I think you might start to like me,” Ethan whispered. He started to say something else, but he trailed off before Amy could make sense of his words. Within a few moments, he had fallen fast asleep.

  I think I already have, Amy thought. As she listened to his rhythmic breathing, Amy couldn’t help but smile. The room was still cool from having been open for so long, and a chill still hung in the air, emphasizing the warmth of Ethan’s body against hers. She loved the way he had draped his arm over her as he drifted off, and she loved how warm and safe she felt with him beside her.

  She wondered what she would have done if Ethan had made another move on her. A thrill ran through her core as she imagined Ethan sliding his hands over her hips to pull her tighter against himself. She imagined his light touch against her inner thigh and his lips against her neck. Though she was warm now, she felt a quick shiver as she reminded herself not to get carried away in fantasy. And, for the first time, she decided that maybe, just maybe, she’d consider seeing where things went over the rest of the trip. As she closed her eyes, she knew she’d sleep well.

  Chapter 12

  The next morning, Amy woke alone. There was no sign of Ethan in the room. Even his half of the bed seemed like it hadn’t been slept in. She wondered for a moment if she had just dreamt the whole thing, but then she turned over and saw her wet bathing suit on the bathroom floor. The whole thing seemed like a blur in her mind. She almost felt hung over, like she had been intoxicated the night before on the idea that she and Ethan could actually have something together. Instead, she was left alone again.

  A moment later, Ethan came back through the door, holding a tray. “Morning, sunshine,” he said as he walked across the room. “Hank had a meeting with his lawyers in town this morning. They’re going over a few of the finer points of the potential deal I thought maybe you and I could spend some quality time together. I brought you breakfast in bed because, well, I think you’ll need your energy.”

  Amy looked at the tray of food, and, as she sat up in bed, she wondered what exactly Ethan had in mind for her. Then she looked at what he was wearing: snow pants and a long sleeved shirt. “No more snowshoeing,” Amy said.

  “Of course not,” Ethan said as he placed the tray down on Amy’s lap. “I’m going to teach you how to ski.”

  “You what?” Amy replied. Snowshoeing was one thing, but skiing, downhill, that was another. “Trying to kill me off already?” She smiled at him. “And here I thought you were starting to like me.”

  “Easy, Amy,” Ethan replied. “It will
be fun. Hank has a private slope. I’ll teach you myself. All the gear is ready to go. You really slept in this morning.”

  “Are you serious about this skiing thing?” she asked.

  “I’ve got your gear ready downstairs.”

  “Where did you find rental skis around here?”

  “I bought them before we left for the trip. I wanted it to be a surprise. Like I tried to tell you before, Amy, if you step outside your comfort zone, you might be surprised what you learn about yourself.”

  “I’m 2500 miles outside my comfort zone, darling,” Amy said. She had been a good sport throughout this whole thing, but she didn’t need Ethan telling her how to live her life.

  “Well, honey, what’s a few more miles then? I promise, there will be hot cocoa after.”

  “You do know the way to my heart,” Amy replied, fanning her hand over her chest like a damsel in distress.

  “I’ll be downstairs, getting ready,” Ethan said before heading back out the door.

  Why was he doing so many nice things for her? Why was he going through all of this effort if he already knew that she’d play along and help him? Amy wanted to ask him if he were really doing all of this for her or if he just wanted her to be more believable as his wife. Was that the plan? Did he want her to fall in love with him so she’d be more convincing? As she asked herself that question, she couldn’t help but ask herself another: was she falling for Ethan? She knew one thing for sure, if she tried to ski, she’d be falling all day.

  ***

  After Amy had gotten ready, she found Ethan waiting by the door with ski boots and goggles and gloves. “Come on, we have to get going if we’re going to make it out to The Matterhorn.”

  “The Matterhorn?” Amy asked. “That sounds a little intense,” she said as she pulled on the ski boots.

  “Hank thought you’d chicken out, but I have faith in you. Besides, are you the one who just loves a challenge?”

  “You’re the one who will have to inform my family that I’ve died trying to impress you and your business buddy.”

  “Let’s go,” Ethan said, he pointed to a snowmobile parked outside. “It’s a bit of a ride.”

  ***

  It was past noon before they finally made it out to Hank’s ski slope. It was off at the edge of the property. Amy had spent the rest of the morning imagining some steep mountain where she’d look down at the clouds below as Ethan zoomed off beyond her. Instead, the slope rose gently before them. It was wide and open, and a small rope tow ran up the side of the trail. I can do this, Amy thought as she clicked her boots into the ski bindings.

  Ethan led her over to the rope tow and started it up. “Just follow me. Keep your skis together as you go up and then, when you get off, keep your skis perpendicular to the slope so you don’t slide away. After that, we’ll start.” Amy watched as Ethan grabbed onto the rope and began to slide up the hill. It looked effortless. When she grabbed the rope, she felt like it was going to knock her down. She jerked forward, and it took all of her effort to hang on as she began to rise up the hill.

  After a few moments, she got the hang of it. She looked at the line stretching way up the hill. Then she watched as Ethan let go about halfway up and signaled to her. A moment later, she was standing next to him. “I thought we were going up,” she said, pointing to where the hill got steeper. “And when do I get poles?”

  “Not yet,” Ethan replied. “Let’s get some practice in before giving that a go. And I’ll let you use ski poles when I’m convinced you won’t impale yourself. Here’s what we’re going to do,” Ethan said, “keep your skis together like a snow plow and follow me back and forth across the slope. After a few runs, we’ll start to work on gaining speed, but for now take it nice and easy.” Ethan reached out and placed his gloved hand over Amy’s. “You’ll be a natural. Trust me.” Then he pushed off and started sliding slowly down the hill.

  Ethan spun around and started skiing backwards as he signaled to Amy. Showoff, she thought. She lurched forward as she tried to gain speed, but she felt like she couldn’t move. I’ll be a natural, Amy thought, a natural disaster. She waved her arms as she tried to move forward. Suddenly, she felt herself starting to move. She pointed her skis at Ethan and slowly gained speed. Soon she felt like she was zooming down the trail toward him, even though she knew she couldn’t be moving much faster than five miles an hour.

  “That’s great!” Ethan called out. “Now try to turn. Just follow my lead.” Ethan slowly made a wide arc as he turned down the trail. As Amy followed, she tried to do what he had told her, keeping her skis at an angle, but as she turned, she straightened them out, holding them parallel to each other like she had seen Ethan do as he went ahead. She wanted to impress him by turning like she had seen people turn on skis in movies: a little rotation of the hip and she’d nail it. She felt the wind picking up as she gained speed. For a moment, she felt like a pro, like she had figured out exactly what she needed to do, and then she started going even faster, too fast, and she was heading right back toward the rope tow, and she had no idea what to do to stop. “Turn!” Ethan shouted to her. “Turn!”

  Amy tried to dig her skis in to turn, but instead, she felt the skis cross. A second later, she was face first in the snow. She lay there for a moment as she tried to figure out what had happened. She could feel the dull ache from crashing into the snow. Soon Ethan had climbed back up the hill to her side. He popped out of his skis and bent down at her side. “What happened?” Ethan asked.

  Amy rolled over and looked up at him. “You said to trust you!” she replied.

  “I said trust me. I didn’t say to trust yourself quite so much.”

  “I knew I had done something wrong.” Amy lay there for another minute. “What now?”

  “Well, we’re not going anywhere if you don’t get up,” Ethan said. He held out his hand and pulled Amy back up. “Let’s try it again, and this time I want you to actually follow my lead.” As Amy regained her balance, Ethan clicked back into his skis and spun around. “Come on, I’ll make sure nothing happens. This time, I won’t let you too far out of reach.”

  Amy took a deep breath and pushed herself forward. Ethan was almost close enough to touch, and she was afraid she was going to run her skis over his and fall all over again. She kept her skis in the plow as she followed him through a first turn and then a second. Soon they were back at the bottom of the hill. “Now was that so bad?” Ethan asked.

  “I suppose not,” Amy replied. She wanted to show Ethan that she could handle this, that she didn’t need him five feet away babysitting her as she went down the slope. Within a few runs, they were going down the hill fast enough that Amy could feel the wind in her hair again. Ethan stayed in front of her the whole time, skiing back and forth across the slope backwards, keeping his focus on her as they wound down the slope.

  Amy fell several more times, but each time, she got up a little bit quicker, insisting on getting up without Ethan’s help. She was going to get this right, she thought. After Amy made it clear she didn’t want Ethan to help her up, he stopped offering a hand, but each time he came to her side and waited. Aside from a joke or two designed to get her spirits up, he didn’t make fun of her, and Amy was surprised by the amount of patience he showed with her.

  Over run after run, Amy started to gain more confidence. Little by little, she grew more comfortable making turns, and she felt like she could straighten out her skis and give it a go. Finally, she waved Ethan off and said she wanted to speed up. She straightened her skis and felt herself gaining even more speed. Within a few moments, she was losing control again, and she knew it. As she sped up, Ethan maintained his speed and opened his arms to catch her. She barreled toward him, but he kept his eyes locked on her, as if to say everything was going to be ok. He wrapped his arms around her as they collided. “See, I’ve got you.”

  Amy let out a little sigh. If you only knew, she thought. “That’s enough skiing for one day,” she said. It was late afternoon, a
nd the sun was low in the sky. Most of the ski slope was already in shadow, and Amy didn’t want to push her luck any further. Besides, who knew what she’d do if Ethan had to catch her again.

  ***

  When Amy and Ethan made it back to the house, Hank was waiting for them in the kitchen. “There they are,” Hank said as they walked in through the door. “How did you two like my ski slope?”

  Amy flashed a confident smile. “It was great. I think I really got the hang of it. By the end, I was going up and down on my own. I felt like a kid again.”

  “That’s why we call it the nursery,” Hank replied.

  “The nursery?” Amy asked. She gave Ethan a look. “I thought it was called the Matterhorn.”

  Ethan and Hank both burst into laughter. After Hank caught his breath, he said, “Amy, that’s the baby slope. I’ll have to bring you two out to one of the real mountains later this week. But for now, who’s ready for an early dinner?”

  “I suppose the nursery is a fitting title,” Amy replied. She elbowed Ethan in the ribs and added, “After all, my husband can be a child sometimes.”

  Chapter 13

  After they ate dinner and relaxed for a while, Amy decided it was time for a nice long shower. She was sore from all of her falls, and she knew a little time alone would be nice. She excused herself and headed up to the bedroom. She wondered if Ethan would come up soon after her. As she stripped off her clothes so she could jump in the shower, she let herself fantasize about him walking in on her as she stood nearly naked in front of the mirror. She wondered what he would think or do, and she imagined him walking across the room and running his hands over her bare skin. Maybe it should be a cold shower, she thought.