languorous. He tastes like his sweat, but I don’t mind it one bit. I sigh into the kiss, bringing my hands up to cup his face.
We rest like that for a long time, until I slip off to sleep.
Chapter Thirty
I lie on my side watching Cate sleeping beside me. Her lower body is burrowed against mine but her spine is twisted so that her face is angled away. It looks uncomfortable to me but she seems to be sleeping peacefully.
The early morning light streams across her still figure, throwing shadows across half of her body. I look at her delicate dark eyebrows, the sweep of her black lashes against her cheeks, her sweetly bow-shaped mouth. Her face is in profile, the light making it seem more angular than it actually is.
She stirs for a moment, pulling the blankets up and murmuring something softly. She turns away from me and I sigh.
Tomorrow is Madisyn’s wedding. Not that I give two fucks about Syn getting married, but that’s the entire structure of my marriage to Cate at this point.
What happens after the wedding? The future slips through my fingers like sand through an hourglass. Everything is tentative. Our entire relationship seems to be held together by half-spoken promises.
I woke up in a mood about it and it isn’t going away. I know myself. I need a distraction or I’m going to brood about this for the next twelve hours. So I get up and get dressed, texting Owen as I go.
Drinks?
He responds in a couple of minutes. I mean, it’s the daytime… but sure.
I think for a moment, trying to choose a place that’s equal distances from his house and mine.
Whiskey Soda Lounge, twenty minutes.
I grab my leather coat, leaving Cate a scrawled message. Back soon.
Leaving the piece of paper on my pillow, I head out to the bar. When I pull my bike into the parking lot, Owen is already waiting for me.
“Hey,” he says, scanning my face.
“Hey.”
I push past him, heading in the front door of the bar. There are a couple of people drinking at the far end of the counter. The bartender gives us a nod, motioning for us to seat ourselves.
As we slide into a booth, I pluck a menu from the bracket on the wall. Owen does the same, watching me carefully. The bartender comes over and takes our order.
After I don’t say anything for a minute, Owen sighs. “What’s up, man?”
I favor him with a frown. “What, I can’t just want a drink?”
Owen narrows his eyes at me. “You seem to forget that I’ve known you for too long. I can tell something is going on with you.”
He’s right, of course. But it still irritates me. “Mmm,” I grunt.
The bartender brings our drinks. I don’t taste mine, I just roll the amber liquid around in the glass.
“Things with Cate aren’t going well, then?”
I exhale a long breath. “I don’t know. She took me to see the house she wants to buy and live in once the annulment goes through.” I take a sip of whiskey, making a face when it burns a little going down.
Owen shifts in his seat. “And that’s bad?”
I glance at him, shaking my head. “I don’t know. I mean… I offered her ten thousand dollars, contingent on her faking this marriage until Madisyn’s wedding. But now the wedding is here, and I just…”
“Wait, you offered her ten grand?” he asks.
I nod. “Yep. I said we would sign the paperwork on the annulment after this wedding, and then I would pay her.”
Owen purses his lips. “But you don’t want things to change, I am guessing?”
“Yeah.” I scrunch up my face. “Actually, I don’t know. I just feel like Cate moving out isn’t going to help clear things up.”
He takes a sip of his drink and swishes it around his mouth. “Have you talked to Cate about any of this?”
I look at the ceiling, sighing. “Sort of.”
“What does that mean?”
“We talked about it a little when she showed me the house. And then she kissed me.” I bite my lip with a frown. “Actually, it’s been like that for the last two days. I try to bring up the annulment and she kisses me.”
A note of humor ripples across his face. “You’re telling me that you can’t resist her advances, or what?”
I shrug. “I guess I haven’t wanted to. Not yet. What if I ask her to stay and she says no?”
Owen looks down at his drink. “Is it better to just keep