His lips stretched in a slow grin as though he could guess her thoughts.
Ariadne cleared her throat. “Thank you for coming to the reunion with me.” She knew it was their part of their deal, but he’d performed the role of loving husband far better than she would have expected. “You saved me from what could have been an embarrassing situation.”
“No problem. You’re welcome. Let’s not forget that you’re helping me, too.”
It was odd laying here with him in her bed. It was cozy and intimate. They’d been together for practically forty-eight hours without arguing. It had to be a record. “Well, I haven’t helped you yet.”
Laughing that husky laugh of his that went right between her legs, he propped himself up on his elbow. “Just being married to you has helped me. You got Tara off my back. She was texting me practically every day. And if all I got out of this was last night, I’d consider it worth it.”
She rolled her eyes. “Be serious.”
He held her gaze. “I am serious.”
She was the first to blink. She wasn’t ready for such a heavy conversation tonight. She could barely believe the position in which she found herself. A month ago if someone had even suggested that she’d be sexually involved with Ash she would have balked and probably slapped the person stupid enough to have predicted it.
“Well, um, I’m beat.” She reached behind her and clicked off the lamp. “Goodnight, Ash.”
“Night, Ari.”
***
Asher woke with Ariadne folded in his arms. It was both a wet dream and a nightmare come true. He’d been fantasizing about being in her bed since he was a teenager. Her t-shirt had worked its way up around her waist. His hand spanned her belly, his thumb just brushing the underside of her plump tits. Her ass was snuggled in his lap, only a thin layer of silk separating his cock from her skin. As she wiggled said gorgeous ass, he bit back a groan. Too much of that and he’d embarrass himself and make a mess of her sheets.
Resisting the urge to touch her more intimately, Asher rolled away from her and slid out of bed. If he didn’t he didn’t know how long he would be able to control himself. And he knew she’d be pissed with him if he took advantage of her. He used Ariadne’s on suite bathroom and showered. He used cold water in hopes of cooling his libido. He dried off quickly. For once, it was convenient to have his clothes in her bedroom. He crossed to the closet and found a pair of jeans. He tugged them on and zipped them up but didn’t bother to button them.#p#分页标题#e#
He crawled back onto the bed to watch Ariadne sleep. She was beautiful. He liked that she wasn’t vain and that she never used her looks to take unfair advantage. If anything, she usually played down her sexuality.
He took a shiny midnight lock of her hair between his fingers and rubbed it. It was very soft. Her hair tumbled across her pillow and around her face. She’d either forgotten or been too tired to bind it. Her curls were crushed.
He’d never dated an African American woman before. It wasn’t that he hadn’t been attracted. It was that he’d always feared he’d be using the other woman as a substitute for Ari. To a certain extent, all the women he’d been with were merely distractions for him. Over the last year or two, he’d tried and failed fall in love with some great women. It seemed that he was a one woman man. She’d hooked him early and hooked him well. Ted was correct when he’d accused him of lying to himself. He was as strung out on Ariadne as he’d ever been. Marrying her, making love to her, had only deepened the addiction.
Ariadne hummed as she stretched. Then her big brown eyes popped open. She frowned at him. “What are you doing?”
“Watching you sleep.”
“Why? What are you planning to do to me?”
Propping himself up on his elbow, he laughed at her. “You’re so suspicious. I was watching you because you were so lovely I couldn’t look away.”
She frowned. “Really, you have to be the happiest person I’ve ever met.”
He shook his head. “No, I figure you can laugh or you can cry. I choose to laugh. Besides, I probably laugh more when I’m around you because you make me happy.” He knew he was getting awfully close to laying it all on the line with her, but he was tired of hiding it. Besides, if both Ted and Erika knew, she seemed to be the only one who couldn’t figure it out. Maybe it was because of their fights or maybe she just didn’t want to see it. Thinking of their many skirmishes, he smiled. “And you have to admit, it drives you crazy when you insult me and I laugh it off. I swear sometimes I can see smoke coming out of your ears.”