Page 72 of Cherished Lands

"It's good to see you this happy, even with everything going on. I was getting worried for a second there."

"Worried, why?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because you never dated, never slept with the same woman twice."

"Yeah, well, no one could keep up."

Andy snorted into his beer. "Well, you certainly picked a wife who can. In fact, she'll probably bring you to your knees.

I smirked. "Oh, she does. Daily. Enjoys spending time on hers, too."

Andy was still laughing and shaking his head at me when another text came through.

TESSA

I'm sure your next wife will give you plenty of little Elliots after we get our divorce.

Yeah,that won't fucking do.

An hour later, I was pulling the truck up to our house. It was still snowing—felt like it hadn't stopped in weeks—and a thin, powdery layer had accumulated on the porch.

Shoveling could wait, though. I needed to talk to my wife.

I pushed through the front door and kicked off my snow-crusted boots. Tessa was lounging on our leather couch, her long legs stretched out before her. As far I could tell, she was wearing one of my flannels and... not much else. My cock twitched at the sight.

"Hey, hubby."

The word struck me differently tonight. Yes, it made me want to fuck her into the couch, but it was more than that. It feltright,and the thought of hearing it from anyone else's lips created a cold, sick feeling in my stomach. That text had given me a vision of my life without Tessa, and I didn't like it. I couldn't let her go. Not now. Not ever.

"What if I don't want a divorce?"

Her eyes stretched wide, and her mouth fell open. "I— What?"

"What if we stay married?"

She sat up straighter, pulling the flannel down to cover more of her thighs. "Elliot, you don't want that."

It was like being hit in the face with a two by four. I opened and closed my mouth, trying to gather my scattered thoughts. This wasnothow this conversation was supposed to go. All I could muster was one question. "Why the hell not?"

"Because we're either fucking or fighting. That's not a healthy marriage."

Heat coursed through my veins as I stalked toward her. "Who says? Sounds great to me."

She looked at me with a shaky laugh. "You can't be serious."

"Dead serious." I planted my hands on either side of her head, caging her against the couch. "Tell me one good reason why we shouldn't stay married."

"Besides the fucking and fighting?"

"Yeah, besides that." I lowered my voice. "Because from where I'm standing, those are points in our favor."

"We... we don't even like each other."

"Bullshit." I traced one finger down her neck and felt her pulse jump. "You like me just fine."

The moment stretched between us, heavy with possibility. My mouth was dry, and my heart thundered in my ears. She was breathing fast. Hot little puffs that brushed across my face.

We both jumped out of our skin when her phone buzzed on the coffee table. Elena's name lit up the screen. Tessa's eyes flicked to it, then back to me. "We should... we should talk about this when we're both thinking clearly."