Page 92 of The Arrangement

I shake my head, laughing softly through the new round of tears. “We have very little in life that means anything. Our connections to each other and our dignity are all there really is at the end of the day. And to be able to give that to someone is really the best gift in the world.”

I pat my eyes with the edge of my napkin and settle myself.

“You have me now,” Jason says earnestly. “You’re not in this by yourself anymore.”

“My problems aren’t?—”

“Why do you do this?” He leans back again, surveying me carefully. “Why are you constantly poised to throw up a barrier between us?”

I grin. “I just let you fuck me without a condom. So, your words don’t really hold water, but thanks.”

“You know what I mean.”

I want to argue with him and pretend I don’t know what he means, but the argument would be futile. This is a look I’ve known for years. It’s a silent expression that saysdon’t push me too much further because I will take this to a place you don’t want to go … and I’ll win.

“I’ve told you this before,” I say, pausing as a couple walks by our table. “Every time I’ve sucked it up and allowed someone access to that part of my life, it’s bitten me in the ass. And not like the thought that just ran through your head.”

His brows shoot to the ceiling.

“I can read you like a book,” I say, laughing.

He chuckles, too. “Eventually, you’ll realize you’re wasting a lot of energy fighting me. I’m here, Chloe. I’m not going anywhere. And if you won’t tell me what you want or need, I’ll cover all my bases.”

My heart swells. “Like the insane amount of clothes in my closet?”

“Oh, sweetheart. That’s just the tip of the iceberg.”

“The last time you promised me it was just the tip, you lied. My ass still hurts.”

His laughter is quick and loud as I remind him of round three last night.

“Then I guess you better not push it,” he says, smirking. “Trust me or don’t. I’ll win you over eventually.”

You’re well on your way.

The server comes back, and Jason requests a check. We sit quietly, sipping what’s left of our wine, waiting for him to return.

“I talked to Nickie today,” I say. “And I told her about us.”

“You did? How’d that go?”

“She has a laundry list of questions I’m going to contend with on Monday, but she’s really happy for me.”

“What did you tell her?”

“We’d been dating quietly because we didn’t want to make it weird in case it didn’t work out.”

He takes the check from the server and scribbles on the paper before handing it back. Once we’re alone, Jason stands and offers me his hand. I take my new purse from the seat next to me, place my palm in my husband’s, and rise to my feet.

“I want to fuck you right here in front of all these men watching you, so they know you’re mine,” he whispers in my ear.

“There are men in here?”

He grins, pressing a kiss against the curve of my neck—a spot I’m learning is one of his favorites—then he guides me out of the restaurant.

The evening air is still thick and hot, and my dress sticks to my skin. When the valet brings our car to the front, Jason opens my door, settling me in my seat, before hopping in the driver’s seat and jetting away.

Lights flicker from all directions as we roar down the Strip. It’s a menagerie of sounds, advertisements, and offers of everything from shows to prostitutes. It’s much,muchdifferent from Nashville. Brighter. Louder. More exciting.