Page 205 of The Reason I Married Him
“It’s fine. You must be exhausted. After the day’s excitement combined with the nerves and the long travel, I’m sure you’re ready for bed.”
“Yeah, I am,” she says.
With both bags in hand, I nod toward the stairs. “Bedrooms are that way.”
She follows the way to the stairs and starts to climb them but turns around. “Do you need me to take my bag?”
“Uh, no,” I say, which makes her laugh. “I can handle it.”
“I know you can handle it, but I didn’t want you to think I’m using you as my mule.”
“I’m your husband, you are my wife, and I’ll treat you as such. I’ll take care of the bags.”
“Okay.” She smirks and heads up the stairs.
After the wedding, she changed into a pair of leggings and a crop top with a long-sleeved flannel shirt. She looked all kinds of cute, and now that I’m getting a great view of her ass in those leggings, I’m appreciating the outfit change. Not that she didn’t look stunning in Cassidy’s wedding dress because she did. But I like Aubree casual and comfortable like this. I think it’s when her best self shows.
When we reach the top of the stairs, she looks between the two bedrooms across from each other with a bathroom between.
Now, if it were up to me, I’d plop both of our bags in the bedroom on the right and call it a night. She’s my wife, so she’s sleeping with me. But given this is the first time we’re offered multiple beds, I don’t want to assume she’ll sleep with me. So even though it’s painful, I ask, “What bedroom do you want to take?”
“Oh,” she says, looking between the two. “You can have the big bed. I’ll take the bunks.”
Of course she’d say that.
“Are you sure?” I ask. Are you sure you don’t want to sleep with me? Share a room? Let me hold you while you fall asleep?
“Yeah, I’m much smaller than you.” She takes her bag from me and moves into the bunk room while I mentally curse myselfout for even giving her the option. There should never have been an option. Fucking idiot.
“Do you want to use the bathroom first?” I ask her.
She shakes her head. “You’re faster than me. You can use it first.”
“Okay,” I answer as I bring my bag into my room, but before I set it down, I look over my shoulder and ask, “Are you sure about the bunk beds?”
She smiles back at me. “Positive.” And then she starts unpacking.
Yup, you’re a fucking moron, Wyatt.
Chapter Nineteen
AUBREE
The bathroom door shuts, and I take a seat on the bottom bunk as I let out a heavy sigh.
Holy shit, what a day.
I can’t believe that I stood in front of my friends, family, and some people from town and took Wyatt’s hand and placed a ring on it. I can’t believe I said I do. And most importantly, I can’t believe the fluttery, magical feeling I felt the entire day, as if it was all real.
That the kiss we shared when pronounced man and wife was real.
That the pictures we took of me leaning into his embrace was real.
That the first dance we shared with Ethel singing in the background was real.
It wasn’t.
It was all fake.
