“No stipulation in the will about us sharing a bed?”
My heart rate accelerates faster than the speed of the car. “Did you think there was?”
Charlie’s already-dark skin grows darker with his blush. “N-no! Of course not. Just a joke.”
I focus on the road and try to dismiss the stray thought of what it would be like to slide under the covers with Charlie. I wonder if he sleeps in a shirt and shorts. Or just boxers.
Or nothing at all.
I shove the thought from my mind.
“No. She didn’t go that far. No proof of our marriage getting consummated is needed.”
Awkward silence descends between us, which does not bode well for our marriage.
“This is weird, huh?” Charlie’s question pulls me out of my head. “I mean, we’re going from zero to sixty. Maybe more than sixty. I don’t know what speed a fake marriage is, but it’s definitely something that takes easing into.”
The laughter in his voice soothes my nerves, and I grin over at my new partner as we slow down for a stoplight.
“Yeah. Not sure how to prepare for this.”
He squints at me. “You’re telling me you have no prior experience with fake marriages?”
I struggle to keep a grin off my face. “Oddly enough, no. Zero.”
Charlie reclines his seat a few inches, and I realize he’s already slid the seat back as far as it’ll go. The guy is like Dash—long legs.
“Sounds like we’ll learn together then.”
I nod, accelerating as the light turns green. “You know, everything my grandma is demanding we do, I think it comes from her idea that long-term associating and building shared interests will keep a marriage going. Since this isn’t real, we could approach it as friend bonding. By the end of this thing, you and I will be best friends.” I drum my fingers on my steering wheel. “Or we’ll hate each other.”
“I don’t see how I could hate you, Luna.”
That draws a dark chuckle out of me. “Just you wait.” Wanting to get off those confusing topics, I switch us back to casual chatting mode. “How was your flight?”
“I got an emergency exit aisle. That was nice.”
“Uh, because you’re worried about a water landing?”
Charlie laughs as he leans his head back on the headrest. “No. I trust pilots and flight technology. No, I like them for the leg room.” He pats his thigh, and I can’t help noticing how his pants hug his legs tight.
Charlie Keller is a well-formed man on the lanky end of the spectrum. He’s tall and lean, towering without being imposing.
Some women might enjoy the challenge of climbing him.
Not me. Nope. Definitely not his future wife.
“Still couldn’t sleep though.” He sighs. “It’s going to take me a while to get off Germany time.”
“You tired? You should nap. I’ll wake you up when we get to my place.”
“You don’t mind?”
I glance over to see his lids already drooping. “Nope. Go forth and sleep.”
Charlie reclines the seat the rest of the way, and in less than a minute, he dozes off. As he slumbers beside me, I get an almost-protective sensation. Like I’m keeping my future husband safe when he’s at his most vulnerable.
More like I’m desperate to figure out a way to pay the guy back for this amazing favor he’s doing me.
