Page 46 of Dex

“Why not?”

“Daniela Knight?”I shake my head.“It’s like chalk and cheese.”

“That’s because wearelike chalk and cheese.”

I sigh.“Okay, fine.We’re getting to know each other.”I rest my chin on my palm.“Tell me something about you.”

“I like to have a lot of sex.”

I blink.“Did I need to know that?”

“You’re going to be my wife, aren’t you?”

I straighten up, feel the heat inching along my cheeks.I can tell by the way his eyes twinkle that he’s noticed.

“I’m joking!”he cries, probably because he’s realized how awkward I feel.And why do I feel awkward?He was joking.

I frown.“Why tell me, then?”

“So you understand what this isn’t.”

Ouch.Way to put me back in my place.Not that I was harboring any ideas.I just liked that we were starting to feel comfortable around one another.

“I understand that this isn’t a real marriage,” I say, carefully choosing my words.“It’s a marriage on paper only, and neither of us will become romantically involved with one another or with other people, for the duration of this alliance.”

He nods.“You understood completely.”

A beat of silence.I want to know what a man who likes to have a lot of sex will do in the sandy desert of a one-year loveless alliance.

“You asked me about my previous relationships, but I didn’t get a chance to ask you about yours.”

“What do you want to know?”He picks up the second glass of scotch he’s ordered.I’ve only taken a few sips of my cocktail.But I can tell this man is buying some time.He’s hiding something.

“Tell me about your relationships.”

He brushes something off his dark shirt.“Don’t have one at the moment.I tend not to go for relationships, per se.I’m more of a friends-with-benefits type of guy.”

A gasp falls from my lips.I pray he didn’t hear it.“Why?”

He lazily puts his arm up along the top of the booth.“I don’t like getting involved.I love sex, and I already told you that, but commitment scares the shit outta me.”

“Why?”

He inhales a long breath, stares down at his drink.Wraps his palm around it, as if contemplating, then fixes me, his eyes cold.“We don’t need to become each other’s therapists.You don’t need to psychoanalyze me.”

Touchy.

The cutting sting of his barbed wire words is a subtle warning to stay away.

“But you asked, so I guess you deserve an answer about my previous hookup.”He clears his throat, eyes averted.“She’s abroad.Working in Europe.Has been for a few months, and won’t be back for a while.Don’t worry.I won’t even look at anyone while we’re married.”

I clench and unclench my hands which are on my lap.What do I say to that?Thank you?I appreciate that?

“Your turn.Tell me something about you,” he prompts.“What’s your favorite color?”

“Green.”

“What shade of green.There must be a gazillion.”

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