Page 53 of The Reason I Married Him
I point at his shoes. “Put those back on. You’re not staying.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll leave before you go to bed, but I just want to get a good look at where I’ll be living.” He moves to my closet and opens the door. “Hmm, we’ll need to make some room for my stuff.”
I shut the door and block him from it with my body. “You’re not staying here. Therefore, we don’t need to make room.”
“Oh, you want to go for the tiny house situation? Not a problem. We can also do a small barndominium, and once we get divorced, you can turn it into an Airbnb. You’re welcome for the idea.”
“I didn’t say thank you.”
“You will when you start seeing the extra income.” He flops back on my bed, arms extended. “Ooo, comfier than I thought it would be. This will do.”
“You have lost your freaking mind if you think I’ll share a bed with you.”
“Where else would I sleep?”
“On the floor,” I reply as I grab my toothbrush and start brushing my teeth.
“Aha,” he says, lifting and pointing at me. “You’re thinking about it. I’m wearing you down.”
Crap, that got past me.
“I meant, on the floor outside because you wouldn’t be my husband.” I spit into the sink and rinse my toothbrush.
“Nice try,” he says, flopping back on the bed. “You know, the Airbnb wouldn’t be such a bad idea. Think about all the branding you could incorporate into the space. Offer up a gift basket of all things from The Almond Store and fresh eggs for breakfast.”
“Can you stop it with your ideas? They’re getting annoying.”
Because they’re actually pretty damn good. An Airbnb would do very well here, especially since the inn is one of the few spaces available to book with all the amenities. Apart from the RV park outside of town, there’s a camping ground about three miles up the coast.
“Sad that you’re not thinking of them? It’s okay, babe. We can think up some ideas you can develop.”
“That’s so condescending,” I say as I sit on my bed because my legs are sore, and I have nowhere else to sit. That’s how small this room is.
He turns to face me and props his head on his hand. His five o’clock shadow is coming in very dark, making it look like he almost has a full beard. Not that I care to admit it, but it looks nice on him.
“Trust me when I say I won’t be condescending when we’re married.”
“Oh great, so you’re just condescending when you try to court me?” I scoot down on my bed, freaking exhausted from the day. When I sink into the pillow, my eyes start to droop.
“So you think that we’re courting? Good to know. Is this like a . . . I bring you flowers every day kind of thing? Because I know how to woo.”
“How about you try leaving me alone? That’ll score you some points.”
“Thank you for the suggestion. I’m afraid I can’t take it because I’m rather attached to you already.”
“You like to be tortured with sarcasm and sass?” I ask as I sink deeper into my pillow and cross my legs at my ankles.
“Call it my guilty pleasure,” he replies as I slowly shut my eyes. “Are you falling asleep on me?”
“I am,” I say, not bothering to open my eyes. “And if I find you here, in my bed, in the morning, you will face a serious problem.”
“Shouldn’t you want to get used to sleeping with me?”
“No,” I answer. “Because I’m not marrying you, so there’s no need to get used to sleeping with you. Simple as that.”
“You say that now, but I’ll wear you down.”
“I wish you luck in your endeavor because you’ll need it. I know how stubborn I can be. You’re in for a real uphill climb.” I curl into my pillow.
