Page 8 of About That Rule

CHAPTER3

WHEN NATE CAMEhome from Las Vegas, his mood didn’t improve. He still couldn’t get over the fact that he’d gotten married. What the fuck had he been thinking? If nothing else, at least he was married to someone who understood him and was on the same level when it came to relationships. He and Samantha had been friends for so long, even though they lived across the country from each other, they constantly talked. Whether it was through their frequent emails, a text of something funny, or a random drunk dial, they’d stayed connected over the years.

Sexy, funny, and smart was the best way to describe her.

Samantha was the total package. But she was only a friend. His partner in crime. He couldn’t count the number of times they’d played wingman for the other. She was the female version of himself when it came to dating.

The irony of two heartbreakers being married to each other hadn’t gone unnoticed.

In fact, if he wasn’t the one stuck in a commitment, he would’ve found their situation hilarious. But he was married. And it was not funny.

His phone rang. It was Samantha.

“Hey,” he answered, slouching down on his couch. She let out a small giggle, which was confusing. Nothing was funny to him. “How are you laughing right now?”

“Because I refuse to let this whole husband and wife thing ruin my attitude. I figured you’re about to go bananas, so I’m here to tell you it’s nowhere near as bad as you think. You’ll get to see more of my pretty face, how awful could that be?”

She had a valid point. Samantha did have a pretty face. “Outside of the whole celibacy thing, not bad at all,” he responded.

“It’s only a few months. You can manage.”

“Can you?” Curiosity set in as he sat up.

“These won’t be my favorite three months, but I can do it. Neither of us want to be married, but that doesn’t mean I’ll make a mockery out of the institution of it all.”

“Yeah, I agree. And it seems sleazy to cheat on you, even though, it isn’t like real cheating.”

Ever since the ruling, the thought of sleeping with someone else while he was married to Samantha seemed wrong. It was Sammy. She didn’t deserve to have someone, real or fake, not be faithful to her.

“Only two days into our marriage and you’ve turned into such a romantic. Your words are so sentimental.” Her voice was filled with sarcasm.

This made him chuckle. “I didn’t know you wanted romance, Sammy.”

“Romance always seems manufactured to me. I want something real, not pretty words because you think you have to say them.”

“Well, I promise to never tell you something because I think it’s what you need to hear.”

“Same.”

“Thanks for calling. I was on the verge of losing my shit over this.”

“Somehow, I knew that,” she said in a soothing voice. “Do you think we should set up some…I don’t know, some rules? This is new territory, and I don’t want either of us to end up scathed.”

Seemed simple enough. “That makes sense.”

He heard her shuffle around, probably getting comfortable. “Our first rule is obvious: we’re on a sexual hiatus until this contract is annulled.”

“Ugh,” he groaned. No sex for three months was brutal. He was the king of random hook-ups. This would be the longest he’d gone without sex since…well, since he started having sex.

“I feel the same way, but it’s not like we can’t flirt with other people. I guess kissing would be okay too, we just can’t do anything naked.”

“I’m going to have the worst case of blue balls.”

“Don’t be so dramatic.”

“I’m not a monk.”

“I’m not either. I wonder what the female version of a monk is called?”