Page 68 of War

Tyler: Ava.

Me: No, this is good. We needed this reminder. You do you, and I’ll do me. Or maybe other people. We’ll stick with focusing on the kids. That’s our marriage contract going forward. Got it?

Tyler: No. You signed the document, so now we have to follow it. Don’t test me.

I let out a derisive snort, garnering the attention of a few of the mothers sharing the bench.

Me: What are you going to do, spank me???

Tyler: There’s a list of punishments for me to choose from in the contract. Take a look. Better yet, don’t test me and we won’t have to worry about it.

Fuming, I scroll back up to his first text and take screenshots to send to Hannah and Lennox.

Me: My husband has lost his damn mind. I may just kill him.

Immediately, my phone rings, and Hannah’s name flashes on the screen. “Hey,” I whisper. “I can’t talk. I’m at Josie’s dance class.”

“Okay, I’ll make it quick, then. Don’t kill him. That’s a far too easy punishment. We’re going to drag this death sentence out a bit.”

Okay, I’ll bite. Straightening, I ask, “What are you thinking?”

She launches into a frighteningly well thought-out plan, making me giggle. The moms are all staring again, but I can’t hold it in. And I can’t temper the excitement that races through me at the thought of Tyler’s face when he finds out what we’re up to.

“Okay, I’m in.”

TWENTY-FIVE

TYLER

Ava: No, this is good. We needed this reminder. You do you, and I’ll do me. Or maybe other people. We’ll stick with focusing on the kids. That’s our marriage contract going forward. Got it?

Oh,my wife is really looking to push my limits. I gave her one last night to pout, but I’m done with the distance. We are going to talk today, whether she likes it or not.

And to be honest, I’m a bit pissed off. Ava’s a reasonable person. And although her anger over the ridiculous contract was justified, if she’d answered her damn phone, I could have explained Hall’s stupid joke and smoothed things over.

But she obviously believes I’m not worth the effort of working through our issues. What pisses me off the most is that she really thinks I would have a contract like that one drawn up and sent to her. That I believe a woman should be treated like that.

When have I ever given her any reason to believe that’s the kind of guy I am?

Should I have signed the contract and held it over her head?

Maybe not.

But I do love fighting with her. Especially if the option of kissing her is off the table. And I think it’s safe to assume that if I tried to kiss my wife right now, she’d punch me in the face.

“Hey, Cap,” Hall drawls, leaning over my shoulder. “You excited to be reunited with the wife tonight? She gonna take the hardware for a ride?”

I stand from the bench and give Hall a hard shove. When he lands on his ass, he grimaces up at me. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

Anger simmering just beneath my skin, I grit out, “What’s wrong with me is that my wife found the damn contract you sent to me.”

From across the locker room, Brooks looks up, brow furrowed. “What contract?”

My stomach knots. Fuck, so much for the guys not knowing the marriage is fake.

Still on the ground, Hall guffaws. “No way.”

“Yes way.” I have to fight the urge not to kick him while he’s still on the floor. “And she fucking signed it.”

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