The Fallout (The Therapist #3) - W.S. Greer

1

~ Demi ~

He sits next to me smelling of a masculine, seductive cologne, but the stench of the past is what captivates me. My husband, Eli Lane, is what dreams are made of. He's sexy, a thick one hundred and eighty pounds of masculinity and strength. His shoulders are broad, his voice deep and commanding. Physically, he's everything I ever wanted. He’s everything anybody could want.

“So, what'd you think?” he asks, his mouth lifting into a playful smile, continuing the good mood he's been in all evening. That’s another thing about Eli I’ve always loved. His sense of humor is perfect—an impeccable combination of funny and flirtatious.

“It was amazing,” I reply, my smile soft and genuine. It’s also forced.

“Thank you,” Eli says. “It was the least I could do for someone who’s as stunning as you. I love you, Demi.”

Tears begin to sting my eyes, threatening to breach the contract we’d signed before the evening started saying I wouldn't show how much I’m crying on the inside. I fight them back as I lick my lips and look Eli in his blue eyes.

“Thank you for dinner. I loved it.”

It comes out choppy and staccato, but it's the best I can do. I've gotten really good at acting lately, and when Eli leans in to kiss me, I put on another Oscar-worthy performance by tilting forward and pressing my lips against his. Like it doesn't bother me. Like it doesn't feel like a vice gripping my entire body in its jaws.

“All right, what do you say I get this cleaned up and we cap it off with some wine?” Eli asks. He sounds like he doesn't expect me to say yes, so when I nod my head, his smile is filled with relief and excitement.

I stay at the glass dinner table while Eli lifts the plates of leftover salmon off and walks them into the kitchen. I watch him go, marveling at how attractive my husband is. I can't speak for every woman, but my guy is stunning, and has been since the moment I met him at a bar here in Rehoboth, Delaware. I was there with two of my girlfriends from the office, and Eli walked in with two of his friends from his job. I remember the moment because he stood out from the crowd of guys trying to look good. Eli and his crew weren't trying to look good. They were just there to have a drink and blow off some steam, wearing an assortment of flannel shirts and dark blue jeans. His friends’ beards were long and scruffy, but Eli’s face was smooth. The group looked strange, like Eli was the celebrity and the guys with him were his bodyguards. The moment I saw him, I was instantly his, even if he didn't know it yet.

I remember how they walked in a triangle, with Eli right in the front. He was the point, the leader of the group, and he looked the part. His posture overflowed with confidence, and the way his eyes swept across the bar as he searched for the bartender certainly caught my eye, because as he looked for the bartender, he spotted me. We locked eyes, smiled at each other, and he left his friends behind to come sit next to me. He didn't even order a drink. I was all he saw. He was all I saw. My friends disappeared into the fuzzy background of people and voices while Eli and I talked amongst ourselves, as if life had shined a spotlight on the two of us. We’ve talked every day since then. Every single day.

He’s still that man. Even now, as he stands over the sink wearing a similar red and black flannel shirt, looking like the posterboy for domestication while he washes dishes after having cooked dinner for his wife. Marrying me didn't change the allure. He’s still unbelievably sexy, masculine, and perfect. He still commands attention.

“So, shall I bring over the entire bottle, or are we just going with glasses?” he says with a chuckle, and I smile back.

“Umm, glasses will do. Just fill mine to the very top. If you don't struggle to keep it from spilling, you haven't filled it enough.”

“Too much wine to keep it all in the glass is the perfect amount,” he replies in that quick-witted way he does. “Since we’re both off work tomorrow, I think I’ll fill mine the same way. Maybe we can knock off the entire bottle between the two