The Marriage Contract by Natasha Black (best novels ever .TXT) 📗

what you’ve been able to accomplish together. And I’m so proud of you for all of it.

But what I’m most proud of is the men you’ve become. That all of you are married to the most wonderful women. They all became part of the family, stepping right in to join the fold rather than expecting you to break away. I was so worried about you, Matt. I didn’t think it was going to happen for you. I didn’t think you wanted it to. But look at you now. Look at the amazing wife you found. You finally discovered your other half and the two of you are perfect together.”

Matt reached over and held my hand on top of the table. I turned to look at him, and he smiled, squeezing my hand. I couldn’t think of anything to do but squeeze back. For the rest of her visit, I played my part as well as I could, but the entire time, I felt incredibly guilty about lying to such a sweet, sincere woman. After everything else, I felt like the real weight of the decision we made was weighing down on me.

27

Matt

“So, what’s for dinner, do you know?” Chloe asked as we neared Jordan and Hannah’s house.

“If I know Mom, she likely insisted on making something. Considering that she kind of sprung this on us, I don’t think it’s something she spent all day on, so that takes out lamb, roast chicken, and turkey. Probably her pasta sauce or soup, unless she brought some of the jars with her, which would be on-brand for her. Essentially, I have no idea,” I said. “Just prepare to stuff yourself, whatever it turns out to be.”

“I can handle that,” Chloe said.

Things were good between us, and I was happy for that. Chloe had seemed to settle into the rhythm and routine of playing wife in public, and when we were back at the apartment, it was easy hanging out. It felt like we were getting into a pretty good routine.

Jordan and Hannah seemed excited to have us over. Jordan asked if there was anything we felt like we needed as a wedding gift, and when I told him no, he cackled. I expected that whatever was on his mind would be suitably silly and extravagant. It was possible he planned on giving it to us tonight, though I doubted he would.

We pulled into Jordan and Hannah’s new place, and I marveled at how perfectly “them” it was. A cute city house in a nice neighborhood, but still easily accessible to the bar and everywhere else nearby, it was exactly what they wanted. When we got to the door, I knocked, and Hannah answered enthusiastically, bringing us inside and greeting Mom on the way.

“Oh, my baby,” she said as she pulled me into a hug. “And my new baby,” she said, pulling in Chloe. Chloe smiled wide and embraced her on her other side, making a sandwich out of my tiny mother. “You have no idea how happy I am right now.”

“I’m glad, Mom,” I said, “I thought you’d be mad about us going to the Justice of the Peace without you.”

“Nonsense,” she said, waving it away. “It was what fit the two of you, and that’s all that mattered. Hannah let my video call in to see the vows, so I wasn’t left totally out.”

“It was amazing how fast it was,” Jordan said as he came in from the kitchen, giving me a hug and then hugging Chloe. “If I had known…”

“No, you wouldn’t,” Hannah said, cutting him off.

“No, you’re right, I wouldn’t,” Jordan said, grinning. He pressed a kiss to Hannah’s lips and went back into the kitchen, throwing his dishtowel over his shoulder.

“So, is Jordan cooking tonight?” I asked, somewhat hesitantly.

“Oh gosh, no,” Mom said. “He’s just helping me out with the dishes. He’s such a good boy.”

“Ahh,” I said.

“He’s also made us a couple of cocktails,” Hannah said.

“Ooh, fun,” Chloe said. “I never get to drink the special stuff he sends out of the bar. I’d love to try one or two of them.”

“We can certainly do that,” Jordan called from the kitchen. “You name a drink, and I’ll whip it up. I do all my experiments here anyway.” He poked his head out of the kitchen and pointed to the bar in the dining room. “At my lab.”

“You finally did it,” I said. “You went from living at the bar to having the bar living with you.”

Jordan laughed, and Mom beckoned us to join her in the living room. As we headed that way, Chloe’s hand slipped inside mine, and I felt a tingle. It was different from the way she was playing the wife. Different than the little kisses or cuddles. Those all had a veneer of play to them. We were acting. But her slipping her hand in mine felt so natural I almost didn’t notice it. It was just something she did.

I had to shake that thought off. No matter how much my brain might want to see signs, she was just pretending. She had made that clear. I had made that clear. There were rules.

“So, I was thinking,” Mom said, starting a thought that usually ended in some plan. “My ladies and I usually do a big trip somewhere each month, but Tessa has been ill recently, and Rosetta is just plum tired of going on trips, so I got to thinking. What if we did a girls’ trip? Me and my daughters-in-law? Now, I know you are still very much in the honeymoon stage, but I thought it would be a wonderful chance for us to get away and get to know each other.”

“Wow,” Chloe said, “that sounds amazing.”

She was smiling, and it seemed genuine, even though I knew it had to be terrifying. Here was this woman she was pretending to be the daughter-in-law of inviting her to a vacation with three other women she barely knew and her cousin. At