Page 48 of The Marriage Agreement (Agreement)

I ate dinner, then went to take my cold shower. Another night of no sleep. It didn’t help that I went to her room to smell her perfume. I was torturing myself, but it also brought me closer to her.

I punched my pillow again for the second night in a row. I must’ve knocked out a few more imaginary teeth this time. I finally fell asleep at some point. When I woke up the next morning, I went straight to her room, expecting her to have returned. But it was clear she hadn’t.

I left for work, my anger and frustration brewing deep inside. Dele hadn’t come home.

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Chapter 32

LUKE

Three fucking days. I haven’t laid eyes on her. I know she comes home and leaves traces of herself around the house, along with text messages about her whereabouts, but this passing-in-the-night craziness ends today. Enough of this fucking stalemate. She wins, and I’m breaking the silence. Today, we are spending it together.

I look through her class schedule—at least she shared that with me. I get into the car with Martin.

“We’re going to Dele’s school.” He nods and pulls out. Checking the GPS tracker I had installed in her car, I locate it. He parks near it, a few spaces away. I get out and lean against her car. Checking my watch, she should be out soon—an hour-long break between her next class.

She steps out, and I watch her talk to a friend. Then, another guy—he leaves after hugging her. She takes off the oversized shirt she’s wearing, revealing a crop top that shows off her stomach. The ripped jeans hug her body in all theright places. Her high-top shoes add some inches to her height, which attracts attention—though she’s oblivious to it because she’s distracted by her phone. I feel a stir.Down, boy—we’re in public. Yes, we’ve missed her, but we don’t need the nasty side-eye from people.

As she gets closer to her car, she finally lifts her head and notices me leaning on her car. I catch the mixed emotions crossing her face—a glint of joy, changing to surprise, and finally settling into a neutral expression. She looks around and sees Martin. I think that confirms her mind isn’t playing tricks on her.

I lean off the car as she approaches.

“Hi,” she murmurs. I hear it all in her voice—the silent cry for each other, but she’s quick to mask it.

“Did I forget to text?” I smile. She’s good; her texts were her way of keeping me at bay, but they only frustrated me more.

“No, you did the texting perfectly—so perfect that at one point, I had to wonder if you were doing it to avoid me.”

“Why are you here?” Her voice is firm.

“I’m spending the day with you.” She gasps, and I know that’s the least expected thing she thought I’d say. She makes a good effort to rile me up, but I don’t take the bait. I’m upset when she tells me her parents don’t know about me. Livid is a better word, but I hold it in. She’s not getting a fight from me today. As she explains her reasons, I smile. All the reasons I would fight for—well, I’m going to use every one of them to my advantage.

Twenty minutes later, we sit across from each other. She’s devouring her sandwich, while I’m barely touching mine. We’re quiet—a silent battle for power is brewing between us. My wife has a spine, I’ll give her that. My phone rings. It’s Kevin. I take the call and step a few feet away from Dele.

Chapter 33

DELE

Three days into my cycle and still no sight of Luke. I’ve just been texting him my whereabouts, so he doesn’t feel obligated to wait around for me to show up. I step out of class and head towards my car, but I freeze in place when I see Luke leaning against it. My eyes dart around and land on Martin idling at the corner.

“Hi,” I murmur. His tired eyes and the faint five o’clock shadow on his face lend him a rugged charm. But what’s he doing here? My gaze shifts again, scanning for any onlookers.

“Hi,” he replies, stepping away from the car and moving closer to me.

“Did I forget to text you?” A sly smile tugs at the corner of his lips, but I still can’t figure out why he’s here.

“No, you were perfectly diligent with your texts—so perfect, in fact, that I started wondering if you were avoiding me,” he says. He can’t be serious.

“Why would I avoid you? I’ve just been busy. Besides, we live in the same house.”

“Yet, we’re like two ships passing in the night,” he counters. I scoff lightly.

“That’s not true. We’re just both busy, that’s all. I was about to grab lunch before heading to my next class.”

“Well then, let’s have lunch,” he says casually.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

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