“I’m not going to married to you in name only,” he said, irritated by her answer.
“And I’m not giving up a career I’ve worked insanely hard for to a man who only plans to be married to me for five years.”
“I’m not asking you to, but I do expect you to uphold your end of our agreement.”
“How romantic of you to remind me of that, Drew.”
“There’s nothing romantic about our agreement,” he said flatly. Then, he wished he could take back the words. He didn’t need to be so cruel to her, especially after this morning.
“Right.” With a determined face, she rose from her seat and started clearing the table. “I have a lot to do tomorrow. I think it’s time we said goodnight.”
Yeah, he deserved to be kicked out of her house, but at least she wasn’t saying good-bye. He placed a hand on her arm. “Hannah, I wasn’t trying to start a fight, but we need to figure out the logistics of us.”
“I get that, I truly do, but it seems to me you only want your logistics to be considered, not mine,” she said tightly. “Marriage is about compromise.”
“It seems to me that you’ve already made up your mind.”
“Of course I’ve already made up my mind. I made future plans without you,” she cried. “You’ve just shown back up in my life, and yet you already expect me to accommodate you.”
“I came here to you, didn’t I?” he reminded her. “I should be at work. I should be in meetings. I should be taking calls and—”
“No one’s stopping you,” she said softly.
He scrubbed his face. “Be patient with me, Hannah. I’ve never had to consider someone else before, not like this.” Scooting his chair back, he pulled her down into his lap. “I’m sorry. I don’t apologize very often, but I am truly sorry.” She was stiff as he held her, so he started rubbing her back. “You’ll have to teach me to be a good husband.”
“I was kinda hoping you already knew,” she grumbled. “Besides, it’s not like I’ve cornered the market on being a good wife. I’ve only been one for two days.”
“Why don’t you invite your grandparents to come out to dinner with us tomorrow evening? I’ll have my pilot fly us down to—”
“We can drive to Wilmington. No need to fly us anywhere,” she said.
He leaned back in his chair to look at her. “It’s not a problem.”
“Neither is driving.”
“Are you afraid of flying?”
“No.” Her shoulders sagged. “Yes. Maybe. Okay, I’m terrified of flying.”
“That’s all you had to say.” He kissed her cold hand. “I wouldn’t force you to go anywhere on my jet.”
“I’m totally fine with sitting on the runway though. I can sit on the runway all day long. Like a champ.”
He laughed. “I bet you could.” She laid her head on his shoulder. “We’ll drive to Wilmington. Do you have a recommendation?”
“Yes.”
“Care to share?”
“Not right now.” She sighed. “I’m enjoying this too much to talk.”
He adjusted her on his lap and wrapped his arms around her while she snuggled into him. He kissed her cheek, and she sighed again. He liked the sound of her sighs.
“You’re don’t stay mad very long,” he said quietly.
“Who has time to stay mad at the people they care about?” she said.
Stroking her hair, he settled back into the chair. “Seems that I’m a lucky man.”
“I can still give you hell when you deserve it.”
“Good.” He smiled against her arm. “It’s getting late, and your schedule is full for tomorrow. I should go.”
“Yeah, you should.” But he noticed that she made no move to leave his lap. “In a little bit.”
*
The alarm on the nightstand woke Hannah up out of a dead sleep. “Ugh,” she groaned, slapping everything near her until the alarm finally turned off.
Asking Drew not to leave until a little bit later proved her undoing. They’d ended up talking, drinking, and staying up until almost dawn.
She lay back down on the bed and screwed her eyes shut against the sun. It was only eight AM, and she needed at least five more hours of sleep.
But last night—she laughed a little—and early this morning, had been… wonderful. She and Drew had talked about anything and everything, and then nothing at all. They’d sat side by side (once she made herself leave his comfy lap) and held hands while they watched the sunrise.
Over the years, he hadn’t changed much, yet he was so different. So serious and driven. So determined to do the right thing while holding himself to a higher standard. In all honesty and given his work schedule, she was completely shocked he had come to her at all.