Page 47 of The Sweet Spot

I nod, butterflies taking flight in my stomach.

“What would we tell Kennedy?” He runs his fingers through my hair and tugs before they trail over my bare arms.

“What if we tell her the truth if she asks.? Well... a very curated version of it. We couldn’t wait to get married, so we didn’t. But I’m switching jobs, and we’re both high-profile people, so we decided to keep things quiet for the next week.”

“And you’d move in once you switch jobs?” Deacon’s eyes flare and heat, and I find myself straddling the line of wanting him to fuck me senseless and wanting to sit down and figure everything out.

I nod and rest my hands under his shirt, right above his belt, needing to feel his skin under my hands.

“Call your judge, Brynlee,” he growls, and every single inch of my body stands at attention.

“Yes, Coach.” I smile.

“Oh, baby, we can play with that later.”

“Oh, I like that. Better yet...”—I run my teeth over my lip—“husband.”

BRYNLEE

Iwasn’t nervous when I basically proposed to my now husband.

I was no blushing bride when I called in my favor and said my vows in a ceremony that lasted less than five minutes. Even my friend explaining how she was going to handle our marriage license Monday and me thanking her again for pulling all sorts of strings didn’t make me hesitate. But now, standing at the edge of the lake and staring into the light show the fireflies are putting on for me while Deacon escorts Judge Guiliano out, I’m left with a rapidly racing mind I can’t silence.

I just promised myself to a man who barely knows me and certainly doesn’t know the complicated future I could be looking at. And that thought alone gives me my first small niggling of doubt.

Soft footsteps fall in the damp grass behind me, but I don’t turn.

I don’t need to.

I can already tell it’s Deacon from the cadence of his steps. He walks with purpose. Always. And after spending just a few short nights with him, I already know this man doesn’t believe in wasting time in any aspect of his life.

I guess that worked in his favor tonight.

Strong arms wrap around me from behind, and he rests his chin on my head. “How are you feeling, red?”

His words are soft and serious, and my heart pangs in response.

“Like a woman who just got married without any of the fuss or stress of a wedding.” I wrap my arms around his and lean back into the safety of his chest. “I feel strangely... free. Which makes absolutely no sense.”

“You are free. You run this show. You make the rules,” he soothes my slowly fraying nerves.

I turn in his arms and press my palms against his chest, enjoying the weight of his hands on me. “What if I don’t want this to be a show?”

“I’m not following you.” He runs a hand over my hair, tucking a lock behind my ear, and I’m struck by just how hard I’m already falling for this man.

“I guess what I mean is... I know this marriage is for show. At least it will be once we can tell people. But you and me... I want us to be real with each other. I want us to be honest. I think what I’m trying to say is I don’t want it all to be a lie.”

“It’s not all a lie, Brynn. We’re not a lie,” he attempts to reassure me.

“But how can you be so sure?” I ask, unable to settle the thoughts in my head.

“Because a lie wouldn’t feel like this.” Deacon’s eyes flare. “I think it’s time I take you upstairs and reassure you just how much I want my wife.” Before I can argue with him, he throws me over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry and slaps my ass as his long legs quickly eat up the distance to the house.

“You cannot carry me up those stairs...” I argue, staring up at the huge wooden staircase, but this man isn’t listening.

“Like fuck I can’t.” He takes the steps two at a time, then kicks his bedroom door open and tosses me to the bed like a rag doll.

I bounce with a laugh and try to catch my bearings. “You’re crazy...”

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