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“You’re welcome, now stop talking about your boyfriends, I thought we already covered that your new husband is a psycho,” I joke, aiming to lift the mood, and finally she laughs, turning away from me. “Goodnight, Mr. Peters,” she sighs into the dark, as I stare up at the ceiling, still not believing we are here right now. Yet still I smile as I reply, “Goodnight, Mrs. Peters.”
“I hate you,” I tell him, and he smiles. “No you don’t,” he gleams, putting both hands behind his head as he watches me squirm, but all I can focus on is the flex of his muscles.
“Then I severely dislike you,” I amend, as I stomp towards his bedroom door in desperate need to get away from him. “Now that’s not even slightly true,” he muses, sitting up and running his hands through his hair.
“We were too hungover to leave before coffee,” Archer confirms, flicking his stare over the both of us before he adds, “Nice legs, Mrs. Peters.” Josh pushes past me and smacks him across the back of the head on his way to the coffee machine. “Keep your eyes off my wife, and her legs, you little man whore.”
“Are they always like that around one another?” I ask, wondering if Josh has seen it too. “Who, Daemon and Archer?” he replies and I nod, sipping some more of my coffee which of course he made exactly how I like. “Yeah pretty much, they have hated each other since first year, but no one knows why.” Oh, I think I know why. “How interesting,” I muse out loud,
Is there some secret bl stuff going on??
“What’s interesting?” My new husband questions, and I can’t help but smile at how clueless he is. Boys can be so dumb sometimes. “Oh nothing,” I tell him, focusing back on him and my coffee. “Now are you making your wife some breakfast, or do I have to starve and beg first?” Josh's eyes meet mine instantly, his mouth taking on a wicked smirk as he leans across the island from me and purrs, “I could definitely get down with some begging.”
The breath clears from my lungs and it takes every ounce of respect and self control to not react to his flirty remarks, especially when I know he doesn’t really mean it.
Riiiight
It would be so easy to give in, to taunt and tease him in return, and rip up that list of rules and forget all about them. Yet if I let myself do that I won’t just fall, I’ll break. I’ll smash into a million pieces at his feet and he won’t have the map to put me together.
“No falling in love” type of rules are meant to be broken
“Josh, seriously it’s fine, I’m the fussy one, don’t even worry about it.” My actions and words are no use as he turns to me and snaps, “Hallie, you aren’t fussy, you have a sensory aversion to certain foods that is fairly easy to manage.” My heart soars at not just his attention to detail, but his care too, then he turns back towards his father and with a voice like quiet death he seethes, “So, can you cater to my wife's needs or should we find somewhere else to enjoy our dinner?”
For once he is looking at Josh like a father should a son, with nothing but pride and admiration in his eyes, and it isn’t there just to fool any potential voters. It’s like he is finally seeing his son and heir become a man and achieve something.
His grandmother however raises her glass of wine in cheers, nodding in agreement with her daughter-in-law, before she adds, “Yes very nice, just try to keep your dick away from women who aren’t your wife, young man, you don’t want to turn out like your father.”
Bro, that grandma is awesome
“I can see the headlines now praising, ‘Mayor’s son claims his bride, next stop: his title’.”
I’m sorry, CLAIMS?!
Sheesh, his dad sucks
“Hallie, you’ll make a great wife, my son can charm the voters with his words, and you can charm them with your…” he trails off, his eyes gesturing towards my chest, and his son sees red. “Don’t fucking look at her like that,” he seethes, pushing his chair back as he shoots to his feet. “And how many fucking times do I have to tell you, I am never going to be a fucking politician,”
EXCUSE YOU?!?
I have to refrain from giving him the finger as I leave. It’s that or an axe to the face, I’d enjoyed both.
Gone is the Josh who joked and flirted with me over breakfast this morning, and the one left standing in front of me, is the one I hate the most. It’s the one who has been torn down and berated by his father time and time again, until he is barely a shadow of himself. I hate it, I always have, but I hate Hugo Peters even more.
Anger bubbles to the surface of my skin, and to stop myself from going back in there and letting him win, I smash my fist into the wall beside his office. “Hey, those hands belong to me now, twenty-two, so you better not be wrecking them,” Hallie jokes, walking towards me, looking as sweet and sorry as always. I can’t fucking believe I dragged her into this mess.
she shrugs, searching my stare for answers that I’m not used to having to give, but I can’t deny her what she wants, not when she has put so much on the line for me.
“Then let’s do this,” she demands, before throwing her arms around my neck. Panic floods my entire system as the hair on the back on my neck stands on end. “Hallie, what the hell are you doing?” I whisper, letting my hands fall to her hips to keep her in place, so her body doesn’t touch mine too much. “Acting like I want to fuck you.” she tosses back without pause, rolling her eyes at me in the process, and I almost choke on my damn tongue. “I beg your pardon?”
A good man only has so much restraint, and I’m not a good man. Yet she looks at me like I am the crazy one here as she states, “Come on, what else would we sneak into his office for?”
It takes everything in me to not act on her crazy statement, especially when I can feel the scrape of her rings against my cheek, and all it does is remind me that technically she does belong to me now.
“Now pretend to kiss my neck and back me up to his desk,” she commands quietly, and I can’t help but laugh at how crazy she is acting right now, but is it so crazy that it might actually work? “You’re insane, you know that right?” I tell her for the millionth time in our lives, as I spin her around and start leading her back towards his desk. “So you’ve been telling me since I was nine,” she muses with a smile, before she adds, “Now can my fake husband please fake kiss me?”
I let out a deep sigh before leaning my head down and pressing my lips to the side of her neck, making her yelp in surprise. “I said fake kiss, Joshua, do you have any idea how sensitive my neck is?” Fuck. Does she have any idea how hard she is testing me?
“For the love of god,” she groans, throwing her head back to look at the ceiling in despair. “Pick me up and put me on the desk dammit. Come on Josh, I know your reputation, stop acting like a little virgin and pretend you’re gonna fuck me.” Never did I think I would hear such words come from my little sister's best friend's mouth, and even more so I never thought I’d be intrigued by them.
“I’m sorry about this,” I add in a whisper. “About what?” she whispers back, her hand finally feeling around to where she needs to insert the device. “About touching you,” I confirm, ensuring I am putting on a perfect show while not overcrowding her too much. “I know how much you hate it.” Her head flicks back from mine, eyes trailing over my face before she admits, “You’re touch doesn’t bother me, Joshua.” My hand flexes over hers at her words and at the sound of my name.
“Since when?” I demand, more bite in my tone than I intend but it doesn’t faze her. “Since always,” she shrugs, like it’s nothing,
“I hate you.” All I can do is smile as I respond, “No, Hals, you really don’t.” “Oh god,” she groans, and I crick my neck before I give her something to really moan about.
She’s my wife. My wife. And here I am on my knees for her, again. Yet we are just faking it, again. This marriage is only one day old and it’s already becoming a real problem.
“Stop, I’m sensitive,” she pleads, and god the images it puts in my head of what I could do to make her truly sensitive. What the fuck is wrong with me? She’s your best friend you fucking animal, not one of your random hookups.
“Tink, not once have I ever been on my knees for a girl and she has asked me to stop, so please refrain from trying to ruin the said reputation you told me about.”
“That’s it, forget the dick punches, I’m going to slice the damn thing off,” she almost shouts, and I smother my laugh against her skin without thought, making her grasp again.
I can see panic and confusion in her stare, and before it fully takes flight I rise to my feet and lean in, pulling her in for a hug. “Thank you, Hals, I couldn’t have done this without you,” I tell her honestly, pushing away all thoughts of me on my knees for her, and remembering who she truly is to me. She isn’t some random hook up, or a fucking bunny desperate to bag a hockey guy. She’s Hallie, my best friend, a steady rock in my life since before I can remember. I can’t fuck that up just because of a buzz of attraction when her legs were wrapped around me, that’s stupid, and unreliable. I
...more
“Don’t mess with me today, Arch, I am in no mood,” I warn him, forcing myself to lift my head off the desk to glare at him. All he does is smirk as he drops a takeout cup of hot chocolate on my desk that has the logo from my favorite campus cafe. “Figured you might be needing this,” he grins, taking a sip from his own before holding it up in silent cheers. “Archer Gray, I knew there was a reason I kept you around, and it isn’t just for your bad rep and good looks,”
“Now, now, don’t go flirting with me, Mrs. Peters, what would your husband say?” he teases, clinking his cardboard cup against my own,
Why is it when people say no offense, they always follow it up with something really offensive? I’m all for being a girl’s girl, but seriously, right now, fuck this bitch.
Josh has had a no touching rule on you from the moment you arrived, and now we all know why. Unlike her, he actually cares about you, hence that pretty little diamond ring you are now toting around. So some people might be jealous, but fuck them, you’re the one who gets to keep him forever.”
Aw, that was actually super sweet 🤭
Yes I am wearing his ring, and I am his wife, but that’s it, it’s just a ring and a piece of paper, nothing more. I will never know him like those girls do, and he will never know how much I wish all of this was real.
“Are you heading over to practice now?” I ask Archer, as he moves to leave, and he pauses to look at me. I’m not sure what he sees on my face but it has him holding out his arm for me to hook mine through. “I certainly am, would you like me to escort you to the viewing area so you can perve on your husband, Mrs. Peters?”
“Yeah, actually, I think that is exactly what I need.” Which is how I find myself freezing my ass off at the rink as Archer leaves me to rush off and get changed, and I move round the bleachers until I reach my best friend.
“I didn’t know my wife would be joining me today,” he boasts loudly, causing both his coach and some of his teammates to look our way, and I hear Maddie groan beside me. “Oh I’m not here for you, I’m here supporting my team, go Flyers,” I reply in the same tone, and his answering grin has my heart thundering in my chest. “Then I guess I’ll just have to show off for you today huh?”
I hear a few members of his team that weren’t in attendance of the wedding asking him about it and he snaps, “Yes, I got married, what the fuck has it go to do with you?” Maddie stifles a laugh. “And there’s the asshole we know and love.”
He’s such I grump. I like it tho 🤭
“Mads, I know you don’t wanna hear this, but your best friend is now permanently banging your brother,” Alexander taunts her while eying me with a smile, before Nova knocks him in the back of the head. “You’re right, Reign, she doesn’t wanna hear that,” Nova snaps, shaking his head at his friend, before moving to leave and dragging the others with him. “Come on and leave the girl alone, see you later, Hals.”
“Where are we going?” Josh just looks at me with a smile I’ve never really seen on him before. “You’ll have to wait and see,” he quips, starting the engine and I scoff. “Joshua, you know I hate delayed gratification,” I remind him, knowing full well that he knows that I hate to wait for anything. Food, traffic, answers, all of them the bane of my life. All he does is smirk. “Hmm, give me a couple of hours and I bet I could change your mind on that,”
“Josh, this is huge, why didn’t you tell me sooner?” If I thought he couldn’t surprise me after the whole will you marry me thing then I was wrong, because watching the brooding boy with the sad smile tighten his skates so he can go and teach some kids has my heart soaring in my chest. “I haven’t told anyone,” he admits with a shrug, focusing back on his skates as he adds quietly, “I do this just for me, and for the kids.”
Stop that’s so cute 🤭
“You’re amazing, Josh Peters, do you know that?” I tell him with a smile, as he finishes with his skates and turns back to me. “Well if my wife thinks so then it must be true,” he jokes, grabbing some gloves from his bag, and then zipping it up. “Your wife thinks she is lucky to have you,” I tell him truthfully, wishing in this moment more than ever before, that all of this was real. As if hearing the direction of my thoughts he laughs sadly, “It’s okay, Hals, you don’t have to pretend, no one can hear you.”
The little girl has a huge smile on her face, and Hallie pretty much mirrors it. I’m not sure how long I stare at the two of them before one of the boys interrupts my thoughts. “Josh, is that your girlfriend?” one of the little boys asks with a laugh, and I respond without thinking. “No, she’s my wife.” It falls from my mouth with an ease I didn’t think I would ever be able to manage, but this is Hallie we are talking about, she has always been like family, and I guess in a way she now legally is. “Ew, you got married, why?” Another boy cuts in, making the rest of them laugh,
before I can answer him, another voice beats me to it. “Because I am awesome,” Hallie coos, flying around us in a circle with ease, Penelope still being pulled along with her, as she spins them both. “And we all know Mr. Josh here needed some more awesome so he isn’t a cranky pants all the time.” The kids laugh, falling for her infectious smile instantly, in the same way I did, as she adds, “Besides, who else is going to show you how to beat him?”
The kids all gasp, until Penelope gushes, “You know how to beat Josh?” Hallie rolls her eyes, flicking her stare to mine. “I taught him everything he knows,” she tells them, and their tiny jaws hang open in shock. This girl. “You’re going to pay for that, Tink,” I warn her, skating over to the sides to grab two hockey sticks. If she wants to play then we can ...
This highlight has been truncated due to consecutive passage length restrictions.
Hallie and I spend the next ten minutes in a battle of wills, flying around the ice with the aim of not letting the other score a goal. The kids are yelling furiously from the sides, in support of my new wife mostly, and every time she manages to slip a goal past me, I see Penelope’s smile get brighter and brighter. As the only girl in my class I have found that I have taken her under my wing more than the others, which I probably shouldn’t do, but everyone has favorites, right?
“I can’t believe you still remember that trick,” I say in surprise, closing the distance between us before the kids reach us. She looks at me with a frown. “Of course I do, why would I forget?” “Because it was like a million years ago.” We haven’t played in my backyard since we were both still in high school, but apparently that doesn’t matter, because all she does is laugh. “Josh, trust me, when it comes to you, I never forget anything.”
All I can do is watch as she digs herself deeper into the world I tried so hard to push her away from, and it’s clear to see that this won’t be the last time she comes here.
Y’all, I need answers to what happened between them before
