The Marriage Contract, Natasha Black [thriller books to read .TXT] 📗

Our cries joined together and were muffled by a kiss as I exploded into her, emptying myself in huge waves until we crashed into the bed together, spent and satisfied. The last thing I was conscious of was her naked body wrapping itself around mine, the covers pulled up to our chins, and her heavy, contented sigh as she fell asleep.

18

Chloe

I slid out of the bed, realizing that I was completely naked, and began to patter toward the door. Matt stirred while I was walking, but I didn’t stop. I made it all the way to what was now my room and opened a bag with a bunch of my clothes in it. Pulling out some panties, a T-shirt, and some sweatpants, I slid into the bathroom and cut on the shower.

By the time I was out of the shower and opened the door, Matt wasn’t in bed anymore. I strained to listen and heard him in the bathroom in his bedroom, showering himself. Feeling a little more relaxed, I went ahead and got dressed while the night before rolled through my head. I put away clothes into the dresser while I waited on Matt to come out of the bedroom, prepared to follow his lead on addressing last night.

It had been amazing and I didn’t regret a second of it. But it had also been the one thing we’d said we wouldn’t do.

Now what?

Just as I finished putting my clothes into the drawers of the dresser, I heard the bathroom door in the master bedroom open, and Matt came into the main space, already dressed. I had to admit to myself that I was just a little disappointed he wasn’t just in the habit of wandering around in a towel, sopping wet like I found him before, but I pushed that thought deep into the recesses of my mind.

He looked over at my room and saw me standing by the dresser folding clothes and waved.

“Morning,” he said.

“Morning,” I responded. “Figured I could get started on putting things away.”

He nodded and leaned against my doorframe.

“Good plan. I was wondering, though, if you wanted to go get brunch? I don’t know about you, but I’m starving,” he said.

“Let me get dressed,” I said, and he grinned. Walking away to the kitchen, he grabbed the coffeepot and began brewing while I changed into a pair of yoga pants and a cute shirt I’d found at the store while I was with Hannah. When I got out, he had a mug waiting for me, and we drank our coffee while standing, both going through our phones for a few minutes of comfortable silence. When I was finished with mine and put it in the sink, he slipped his phone back into his pocket and stood.

“Ready?” I asked.

“Was just waiting on you,” he said. “Let’s go.”

We made our way to the diner as if nothing happened. There wasn’t any awkwardness or change in how we spoke to each other or acted. When we sat down at the diner, he joked about how he could eat everything on the menu, and we ended up ordering nearly half of it to split. Talk drifted to the visit with his mom and some of the stories of his brothers from childhood. I responded with stories that were similar with Hannah growing up, and it felt for all the world like nothing had changed.

But it had.

I couldn’t just deny that we’d had sex. I wanted to pretend it didn’t happen, just like he clearly was, but it was bugging me. Maybe it was because as he talked about his life, all I could think was about how last night was the most passionate, thrilling night of my life and that it was hands down the best sexual experience I’d ever had. Hands down.

I caught myself daydreaming about the night before as we ate. Watching him roll up his sleeves to the elbow made my breath hitch. I’d seen those forearms flex like that already, when his incredible, chiseled body was melded with mine. When his cock was buried so deeply inside me that we became, for a moment, one. Watching him lick his lips to get an errant bit of syrup from the corner reminded me of how his powerful tongue felt on my clit. How hard I’d come.

“Are you okay?” he asked, snapping me out of my trance. “You just shuddered really hard. Are you cold?”

“Maybe, yeah,” I said, pulling my arms across me as if I were. “They keep it chilly in here.”

“Here,” he said, handing me the light jacket he had worn. “Wear this.”

I slipped it on, and the smell of his cologne surrounded me. I squirmed in my seat. I felt like I could rip his clothes off right then and there. I wanted him to toss all the food onto the floor and fuck me on the table.

This was why I didn’t want to have sex in the first place. What if it was as good as I thought it would be? Now I knew that not only was it as good, it was far, far better. I was insatiable. And now I was living with him. I had to see that gorgeous body and that sexy face every single day, and somehow try to keep my pants on.

He was going to keep seeing other women, though. That was bothering me. I knew it shouldn’t, but it bothered me. I was jealous of fictional women, any woman he could bring back to the apartment. It was another reason why giving in last night was such a terrible idea. But our chemistry was off the charts, and I couldn’t deny it. Every time we made eye contact, it was like the world disappeared, and all I wanted was to be naked and in his arms.

After brunch, we headed back to the apartment, got changed in our separate rooms, and went to work. Both of us were due at the same time, and