my hardest not to make this year suck too bad for you. No matter what it costs me.
Her eyes dropped as soon as I finished speaking. I slid her wedding band on her finger.
“You may kiss the bride.”
She gave me a rueful smile as I bent my mouth towards her. Our lips met so tentatively. I could feel her mouth trembling against mine. Not knowing what possessed me, instead of lifting my head, I pushed further against her mouth, deepening the kiss. Her eyes went wide, opening her gaze to mine.
She tasted fucking delicious.
That thought made me pull back. She flushed a pretty pink and as she pressed her lips together, she looked anywhere but at me.
“Congratulations,” the judge said. “You’re now husband and wife.”
After the ceremony, Krista organized us in a series of poses for photos in front of city hall, which she deemed perfect to release on social media.
“This is the start of your happily-married campaign,” she assured me, when I grumbled over the number of pictures she insisted on taking. Charlie didn’t speak a word. She did what Krista asked her to do and smiled for all the photos, but she barely looked at me.
Krista pulled me aside when Charlie went inside to freshen up. She did not look happy. “What the hell is going on?”
“What do you mean?”
“Charlie’s house burned down?”
I pressed my lips together. “Yeah.”
“So, she’s moved in with you?”
“Yup.”
“What’s going on between you two?”
“Nothing,” I insisted.
She raised her eyebrows and poked me hard in the chest. “You two are acting like polite strangers. Did you fight?”
“No.”
“Are you giving her a hard time?”
“You’d have to ask her that.”
“Well, you pretending to be in love is about as convincing as one of those after-school specials. That’s how shitty your acting is. You’re like two strangers who aren’t comfortable with each other, and you need to figure this out before the entire world figures this out.”
I didn’t know how to figure this out. “I’ve got this under control.”
“Mark said you’re playing tomorrow.”
“He called.”
She gave me a critical look beneath her fake eyelashes. “What the hell is going on with you, Mica?”
“We’ve had a tough weekend with Charlie’s place and getting ready for today.”
“Tomorrow they are having a celebration for you. The whole team and the WAGs. You’d better have your game face on.”
“We will.”
She nodded, satisfied. “Is Charlie okay?”
I completely freaked her out.
“Like I said, we had a tough weekend.”
“You treat her right, okay?”
“I am.”
“Go. Both of you. Take the day off. Get your stories straight, because everything is riding on tomorrow night, and you’d both better be more convincing than you were today.”
Back at home, I watched Charlie disappear into her bedroom. She didn’t come out. Krista’s words rang in my head. Charlie and I were two strangers who didn’t know each other. That was mostly my fault. I couldn’t seem to accept this situation and as a result, I was pushing her away.
My phone was blowing up with congratulations from teammates and dozens of pissed-off messages from bunnies. I ignored them all as I looked towards Charlie’s bedroom.
How uncomfortable was I making her feel through all of this?
Intending to talk to her, I made my way to her room. The door was partway open. She lay on her bed, still wearing the dress she wore to our wedding. She stared out the balcony doors, her fingers twisting her rings on her finger. She looked lonely.
Feeling like a coward, I backed away from her door.
That night, I couldn’t sleep. Charlie and I had silently eaten dinner together before she had again retreated to her room. I felt edgy and restless and horny as hell. I took off my shirt, and I sat on the edge of the bed and debated my options. I rarely liked to jerk off. I preferred to save my sexual energy for my partner, but for the first time in as long as I could remember, I found myself without a partner, without access to bunnies and without sex. I would have to get used to taking care of business myself.
With reluctance, I lay back on the bed and pulled my hard cock out. I shut my eyes and envisioned a faceless woman, riding me reverse cowgirl. Her long, black hair hung down her narrow back.
I started to stroke myself.
“Oh yeah, baby, give it to me,” she gasped.
My hand began to move faster.
The image faded and then Charlie’s face swam before my eyes. She was on her knees, looking up at me.