Jamie held the door open as Bethany slipped back into his car. He watched her legs as she swung them in. His lips burned with the memory of that kiss. It was all he could do to not lean in and ask for a repeat. He wondered if she felt the same, or if this was just an act for her. He shouldn’t expect it to be anything other than what it was. She hadn’t said much as they walked back to the car.
He stuck his key into the ignition. “You okay?”
She nodded and toyed with her ring. It looked so great on her finger. Like it belonged there.
“It feels weird, doesn’t it?” he asked, putting his finger on her ring. That ring marked her as his. He liked that.
“Yeah, does yours?”
The simple silver band he’d purchased earlier looked good on his finger.
“A little. I really do appreciate this, you know.” She’d never know how much this meant to him. Not really. She’d saved his bacon, and he wasn’t about to forget that.
“I just hope it works.”
“Annabelle said it should. We’ll see. The next court date is a week from Wednesday. That should at least secure me some visitation. Do you mind if we buy some toys and things for the guest room?”
“Not at all. You can completely redecorate if you want. I can put it back to normal after you leave. We want it to look like he’s got a permanent place in our home.”
Jamie’s heart constricted. He hadn’t thought about that. He realized he didn’t have a prayer of winning the case without someone like her on his side.
“Well then, I guess I know what we’ll be doing tomorrow afternoon.”
After dinner Bethany threw herself on the couch. She flicked off her shoes and rubbed her feet.
Jamie sat next to her. “Feet hurt?” he asked.
She smiled and nodded. “I don’t wear shoes like this much anymore.” She probably never wore shoes like that, but he didn’t want to point that out.
He grabbed her foot, and she jerked. Jamie chuckled. “Chill. I’m good at this.”
He massaged the ball of her foot, and she groaned. “Where have you been all my life? I could’ve used that when I was dancing. Especially when I was doing ballet.”
He leaned back on the couch with both of her feet in his lap. “You mean no one’s ever done this for you before?”
She closed her eyes. “Not like that, they haven’t. Maybe we should’ve added this to the pre-nup. ‘Jamie must provide Bethany foot massages every day.’”
Jamie chuckled. “And what do I get?”
“What do you want?”
“Hm. I don’t know. That kiss earlier was pretty amazing.” The words were out of his mouth before he could stop himself. He shouldn’t have said that.
Bethany’s eyes flashed open, but her expression didn’t change. Jamie continued to massage her feet, trying to play it off as nothing. But the look in her eyes told him she wasn’t about to let it go.
“What are you saying? Bethany gets foot massages, and Jamie gets kisses?”
“Yeah, I guess.” He kept his hands on her feet, because if he didn’t, he might actually reach over and pull her in for that kiss. He was having trouble remembering why that would be a bad idea.
Bethany tugged her feet from out of his grasp and tucked them under her dress. She leaned forward. The look in her eyes was impossible to read. Maybe he’d gone too far, and she was about to bolt. He should’ve just kept his mouth shut. That was a dumb thing to ask for.
“Seems fair enough.”
Jamie’s heart raced. Before he could so much as ask if she was sure, she crawled into his lap and put her arms around his neck. Jamie’s body reacted immediately, and Bethany’s eyes widened. She leaned into him and whispered in his ear.
“You know, I am your wife. That does come with certain benefits.”
He pushed her away before she could kiss him. He gently moved her off his lap, and he stood up.
“No, not this way. I’m not sleeping with you because you feel obligated. This is a business deal. Nothing more.”
He escaped from the room before she could argue. He didn’t want her talking him into doing anything she didn’t really want to do.
He shut his bedroom door and leaned against it, breathing hard. He couldn’t believe she’d been so bold. Especially considering the circumstances. Her feelings were probably hurt, but he couldn’t risk this heading down the wrong path. They had to make it for his son’s sake, and that wouldn’t happen if their feelings got involved.