Page 55 of Marrying Mr. Majestic

He nodded. “Foster did the same. He was a deputy at the time but also volunteered to work with no pay since he’s a partial owner in the Love Muffin and was still living at home with his mom at the time. Jenks Dairy, the Godfrey family holdings, which includes a couple oil wells, and Duke Stanner’s construction company all loaned the town enough to cover the biggest commitments. We negotiated some of the other stuff into better terms.” He shrugged. “We got through the worst of it those first two years, and now… if we can sign AdventureSmash to a big race next season, it’ll finally put us back right.”

“How much debt is left?” I asked before reminding myself it was none of my business.

“Three million. But we project the exhibition will take care of almost a third of it, between tax revenue and the resulting bump in tourist traffic we expect this summer, thanks to media coverage for the event.”

Part of me wanted to donate the money. It was only three percent of what I earned each year from my investments, and I’d spent enough time in Majestic and with its leader to feel comfortable it would be well spent. Waylon was a hard worker. Dedicated and smart, too. He cared more about Majestic than his very own comfort.

But I also knew that if I was going to give anyone three million dollars, it should be my actual husband rather than, essentially, his employer. He and his family could do a lot of personal good with that money on the ranch and in their own individual business endeavors.

And there was my promise to the brotherhood to consider. Throwing around seven-figure sums of cash wasn’t a great way to fly under the radar.

“What are your remaining pain points?” I asked, falling back into the familiar corporate strategy rhythm that had become second nature in the past decade.

As Way methodically laid out the areas of greatest concern, I did my best to make low-pressure suggestions, making sure to use real-life examples to justify each one.

Thankfully, Way listened without getting his back up, and we spent the next forty minutes discussing various municipal topics as well as the challenges remaining for the AdventureSmash exhibition. One way I could help mitigate the town’s debt was by quietly securing a few additional corporate sponsorships, something I’d already asked Kenji to work on.

I’d also texted Kenji to find out if he could lure an experienced rock climber out here on short notice to help vet the rock climbing routes AdventureSmash planned on using during the exhibition. While I knew Way wanted me to stop interfering, that didn’t mean I couldn’t have solutions on hand when they were needed. As long as I didn’t push them on him, surely he wouldn’t argue against having a problem solved without additional effort on his part.

As we cut across another stream, this time hopping from flat rock to flat rock to cross the wider expanse of running water, Way glanced back at me with an unexpected smile on his face. “Thanks for talking this out with me. Maybe I was premature when I asked you to stop helping. Seems like you know a few things.”

I couldn’t help but snort. “A few.”

When I took the final jump to land on the dry bank next to him, he stopped me with his hands on my shoulders. “I’m sorry.”

I stepped closer and put my hands on his hips. Any excuse to touch him. “You already apologized, remember? We took an apology shower yesterday.”

Heat flooded his cheeks. “I seem to recall some kind of shower…”

I moved one hand up to trace the pink blush. “You’re not familiar with the apology shower?” I murmured, moving even closer. His hands moved over my shoulders and around my back.

“Mm… not sure. Remind me what’s involved…”

I leaned in and kissed him lightly on the apple of his cheek. The faint taste of sunscreen lingered on his skin. I moved over to take his earlobe between my teeth. “Perhaps I need to do something bad again so we can work toward another apology shower.”

The garbled noise in his throat made my dick fill.

I moved my hand to his ass and pulled him against me. “Way, fuck. There is never a moment when I don’t want to get you naked and run my mouth along every inch of you.”

The sound of chatter behind us on the trail broke the moment, causing us to pull apart. I rubbed my face in both hands, trying to shake off the lust fog.

“Save those thoughts for later?” Way murmured with a smile in his voice.

I groaned and grabbed his hand before continuing along the trail. The mood was lighter as we teased each other about being such stereotypical newlyweds, at least in one respect.

We couldn’t keep our hands off each other.

He smirked at me from under the bill of his cap. “If I’d known marriage was all it would take to get this many orgasms…”

“Marriage to a man, Waylon Fletcher. Don’t forget that critical detail.”

“I see.”

Something had been inching its way into my mind recently, and I decided now was the time to ask about it. “Do you think after this you’ll… I mean…” I couldn’t think how to ask this question without sounding ridiculous and needy.

Way quirked an eyebrow. “It’s not like you to trip over your words, Silas.”

“Do you think you’ll date men?” I blurted. “After us, I mean. After we… After the divorce.” I clamped my mouth shut. The only thing worse than the invasive question was the stupid post-question babble.

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