Page 95 of The Marriage Agreement (Agreement)

“I’m not in love with her. We have an arrangement that’s working fine, and we have an end date,” I respond, just as my subconscious yells at me,Liar!

Bruce looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. I turn my attention back to the information we’ve been reviewing for hours to find the best ace to use. I need an ace on this guy before the next steps are discussed.

“I ran into Lily yesterday and asked her out on a date.”

“Good, have fun. You will make a good catch for her,” I respond without looking at him.

“Since you don’t mind me dating Lily, when your contract is over with Dele, would you mind if I went on a date with her?” When I don’t respond, he continues, “When are you two over again?” I look up from the document to see his relaxed face.Is he fucking serious?We stare at each other for a few seconds, neither of us blinking. I lean forward.

“I don’t care how good you are at what you do, and I love you like a brother, but if you go near my wife, I’ll put a fucking bullet in your head,” I state with every intention to act on it. He burst into laughter.Fucking asshole. He just called me out.

“Yet, you are not in love with your wife. I mention Lily, and you didn’t even look up from the documents you’ve been reading for hours. I mention getting with Dele years from now, and you’re putting a bullet in my head. Dude, in case you didn’t know, you are worse than Declan.”

“Fuck you.” He laughs harder. Declan is crazy about Anne. The guy put his father six feet under for Anne. Granted, his father was a top-notch asshole.

Bruce starts sniffing. I already know he’s going to stay for lunch. There’s no kicking him out now that he smells the aroma of Dele’s cooking.

“Who’s cooking?”

“Dele is cooking,” I respond with a duh look.

“I’m so staying for lunch, invited or not, and if you try to kick me out, I’m calling Daniel. He’s in town.”

I figure Daniel would be in town, since he texted last week about meeting at ‘The Corner.’

“Like I said, fuck you.” Having him and Daniel over isn’t a bad idea, but I was looking forward to a quiet afternoon with Dele. She’s working tomorrow.

“I can make the same arrangement you made with her, if I get to come home to such aroma.”

“Once again, bullet. Head.” I pantomime a gun aimed at him; he laughs again, getting off his seat.

“I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry, and I’m done talking to you. I need food.” He heads towards the door as I jump out of my chair, racing after him. “Dele, what are you making?” I hear him holler. I doubt she heard him over the music. I get closer only to see Osei popping some of the fried plantain into his mouth. No way am I having a quiet afternoon with Dele. I wink at her as she stirs the rice. My stomach growls once the smell of spices hits my nostrils. Bruce takes a seat next to Osei after a quick handshake and mimics Osei by taking a few of the fried plantain and popping them into his mouth. His eyes widen at the taste of it, then he turns to me. “I’m so calling Daniel.”

I mouth, “Fuck you,” to him.

“Daniel is going to shorten our portion,” Osei whines next to him.

“I’ll make more,” Dele says, like she wants more people over. I know she loves to cook, but no way is she going to spend her time cooking all day.

“Bullet. Head,” I snicker to Bruce. He laughs louder at me, grabbing his phone. He calls Daniel. I move closer to Dele and wrap my arms around her. She leans into me as I kiss her neck.

“Don’t overwork yourself,” I whisper.

“It’s fine, I don’t mind.”

“She’s fine, Luke,” Osei says, as though I’m disturbing her cooking process and that’s serious business.

“I can still kick both of your asses out,” I say to him.

“Sure, after we’re full,” Bruce replies, and I chuckle.

Hours later, Daniel, Bruce, Osei, and I laugh together. We’re all full and have all enjoyed Dele’s cooking. She packs a few to-go packs for all three of them. Bruce seems happy about that. Itell Dele to go and rest while Osei and I clean up the kitchen. The guys helped as well, making the night a good evening.

I check on Dele a few times and find her studying. I leave her to her books and return to the guys. We make a night of hanging out together, watching a basketball game and having a good time. As we all laugh, I realize this moment only happened because my wife is warm and welcoming, plus her cooking brought us all together. I smile and enjoy the moment. When they all leave, I turn the light off and go in to find Dele already in bed.

Getting into bed with her, my hands go under the T-shirt and cup her breast. She stirs. I run my hand over her smooth skin and take a nipple in my mouth. “Luke,” she purrs. I roll my tongue around her hardened nipple, giving each one attention. My finger finds its way inside her wetness, and she moans. I know she’s tired; we’ll have to make a quick one of it. I pull the T-shirt off and get on top of her, spreading her legs. I kiss her nipples and kiss her body while my fingers work on her. She moans louder. I pull my pants off and sink myself into her wetness. Her walls tighten on me, sucking me in. I kiss her mouth, and she opens up for me, our tongues rolling in harmony. She wraps her legs around me, I sink deeper into her wetness, moving in slow ecstasy. I break the kiss, my tongue trailing her neck, it sends her wild. “Luke, faster please.” I smile and increase my pace. She matches my movement. “Oh god,” she cries out loud as she comes. I move faster and soon explode my seed in her. I fall on her, kissing her neck more. She laughs, and I roll off her to her side. I lace our hands and bring it to my lips.

“My plan was to have a quiet evening with my wife, but those guys just had to show up.” She laughs.

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