Page 57 of Papers Don't Lie

There’s a tight urge in my chest, asking me to punch myself so thoughts like this will stop. Unfortunately for me, I can’t do it with Esmeray next to me, and I definitely can’t do anything to release some of the tension that builds inside me every time I’m around her. She’s just like a damn walking tease.

God.

It’s going to be a long night.

THIRTY-TWO

ESMERAY

“That’s it?” I ask, gesturing at the mess we made in the kitchen that took us less than twenty minutes to create.

When I woke up this morning, for some reason I breathed lighter despite everything that’s going on, and since I couldn’t go back to sleep, I got up and chose Kai’s outfit for today before walking downstairs. The chef, Marina, was beyond surprised to see me at six a.m. with an inexplicable wish to cook something.

My parents never let me cook, saying it's for the poor people, and the rich ones only taste the food, not make it. That’s the stupidest thing if you ask me, but I also could never defy my parents or their rules, no matter how much they lacked logic.

So, today seemed like the perfect day to try it. Marina smiled at me when I mentioned it was my first time cooking, and she decided we should start with something easy—waffles with bananas and chocolate because it’s Kai’s favorite dessert.

“Yes.” She laughs, her brown eyes lighting up.

“Oh,” I whisper, placing the sliced bananas on the plate. I take it with me, ready to go surprise my husband with an excited grin that could be like a child’s. “Tomorrow morning?” I smile, looking at her over my shoulder as she starts preparing something else on the table.

She nods. “Of course.”

“Thank you so much, Marina,” I tell her before I walk away, but I don’t get to take two steps out of the kitchen when a door opens powerfully, followed by a very rough way of calling my name.

“Esmeray!” Kai’s raspy voice fills the house, and I pass the living room, going for the stairs.

“I’m here,” I say in a singsong voice, surprising Kai who is standing in the front of the room that became ours in nothing but his pants. He can’t even keep his eyes open when I get to him. “I made you breakfast.”

The moment he has me next to him, his shoulders slump in relief. Kai takes away a small strand of hair from his forehead, inhaling deeply. “Never leave the bed without telling me, understood?” he pushes, lifting a brow.

My palm finds shelter on his neck, squeezing it tightly. “I’m fine.” I reassure him with a smile before forcing the plate in front of him. “Eat this quickly so you won’t be late for work.”

He’s reluctant for a moment. “Say yes, Esmeray.”

“Yes,” I tell him.

“Thank you,” he mutters before he sits down on a chair and eats my waffles.

When he takes the first bite, I hold my breath, waiting for his verdict. He groans, nodding. “If you made this, it’s really good.”

I put a palm on my chest, acting attacked. “Of course I made it. Why is it so surprising?”

“It’s not, but is this something I should get used to?" he asks, cocking a brow at me as his beautiful eyes stare me down.

“Yes, just like you should get used to me picking everything you wear.” I grin, cupping my hands together before walking to his closet to show what I chose for him today.

The suit looks like any other suit, but there are a few details I added—a purple shirt and purple buttons to go with the rest of the black outfit.

Before judging me, it’s not a girly purple, it’s a very male purple, and I think it’ll look hot on him. Plus, I’ll have my footprint on it. I spray a little of my perfume that came with the blueberry box set I bought on his coat and shirt, an evil smile on my face.

When I return to the front of the room, Kai’s plate is empty, his eyes rounding on the suit I’m holding.

“So you love purple, huh?”

I nod. “Very much. Do you like it?”

He takes a few seconds to reply before he grabs the hanger from me. “It’s not something I would normally wear, but maybe I’ll change my mind when I put it on," Kai murmurs, leaning down to place a kiss on my cheek. “Thank you, wife,” he says, turning his back and walking to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

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