The Unwanted Marriage: Chapter 54

My heart is pounding as I walk up to the pool, where Dion has been swimming laps for over an hour. It isn’t often that we both have a weekend fully free, but whenever we do, we try to spend it together. Yet all day, he’s avoided me, coming up with one excuse after another.

“Dion?”

He looks up at me, and I smile nervously as I drop my towel, standing at the edge of our pool completely naked, a champagne bottle in one hand and glasses in the other.

“Fuck,” he groans. His gaze roams over my body hungrily as he rises from the water, slowly making his way toward me.

“Do you mind if I join you?”

He shakes his head, unable to tear his eyes off me, and I can’t help but smile. Relief rushes through me, and some of my unease is put to rest. I know he’s often busy at work, and so am I, but he’s been different in the last couple of days. It could just be lingering desolation from his parents’ and my mom’s death anniversary, but it feels like more than that. There’s distance between us that wasn’t there before, and I have every intention of bridging it.

Dion reaches for me, and I grin as he helps me into our heated pool. “Champagne, moonlight, and my sexy wife,” he says as his hands find my waist. My legs wrap around him instantly, and he smiles down at me. “Perfection.”

“I missed you,” I murmur.

His expression falls for a split second, but then he forces a smile. It isn’t the same carefree teasing smirks I’ve gotten used to, but it’s more than he’s given me all week. “I missed you too, angel,” he whispers.

I hold on to him tightly as he reaches for the bottle I placed at the edge of the pool. “This reminds me a little of Hawaii,” I tell him. “That was actually the first time I’d ever had champagne, you know?”

He chuckles. “Was it? I’m honored I got to share that first experience with you.”

My eyes roam over his body leisurely. “You got all of my firsts, Dion. All the ones that matter, anyway.”

His smile slips again, and he looks past me, busying himself with the glasses. “Here you go,” he says, his voice soft.

Normally, he’d have wanted to toast to us, but today he simply lifts his glass to his lips and empties half of it instantly. I raise a brow and take a sip before untangling myself, only to remember that the pool is too deep for me to stand properly.

I gasp and flail, dropping all of my champagne into the water, and Dion bursts out laughing as he pulls me back to him. “Fucking adorable,” he groans, his forehead dropping to mine.

“Not funny,” I chastise, but he just continues to smile at me, amusement dancing in his eyes.

“It’s a little funny, baby.”

I pout at him, and his gaze heats as his eyes drop to my mouth. A soft, needy whimper escapes my lips, and his hand threads through my hair. His touch is rough as his lips come crashing against mine with the same urgency I’m feeling.

My back is pressed against the pool’s wall, and he moans into my mouth, his hips tilting into me, his desire obvious. We’re both panting when he pulls his lips off mine, and I can’t help but smile. I’d been so worried something was wrong, but that kiss… it’s exactly what I needed.

“Let’s try this again, hmm?” he says, reaching for the champagne bottle to refill our empty glasses. It’s a miracle we’ve both managed to hold on to them at all.

I raise my topped-up glass to his, a hint of defiance rushing through me. “To us,” I say, my tone sharp.

Dion smiles as he taps his glass against mine. “To us, angel.”

His eyes are glued to mine as he lifts his champagne glass to his lips and takes a sip, and just like that, everything feels right in my world.

“I love you,” I murmur, the words rushing out of me without any rhyme or reason. I’ve never felt this way before, so desperate to reassure him when I can’t even pinpoint why.

He places his glass down at the pool’s edge and places his arms on either side of me. “I love you more, Faye.”

I reach for him hesitantly and brush his hair out of his face. “What’s going on, Dion? You seem sad, somehow. Is there anything I can do to make it better?”

He shakes his head. “Stay,” he whispers. “Just stay with me, Faye.”

I nod and study him carefully. “I had no intention of going anywhere.”

He looks away for a moment, and when his eyes find mine, there’s something in them I can’t quite read. “But if you did, if you could, where would you go? If not for me and this marriage, what would your life look like, baby?”

I bite my lip as I ponder his question. “There are a few things I’ve always wanted to do, but I… well, I just, I think we could still do them. Together.”

His eyes widen a fraction, hope dancing in them. It makes his whole face come alive, and I can’t help but smile. Is that what this is about? Is he worried about the restrictions placed on us because of our marriage?

“Tell me about your wildest dreams, Faye. I want to know.”

I place my glass down beside his and wrap my arms around his neck, my face tipped up toward the sky. “I’ve always wanted to eat gelato in Italy and throw a coin in the Trevi fountain. I already know what wish I’d make too.”

“Yeah? What would you wish for?”

I shake my head, a soft giggle escaping my lips. “I can’t tell you, or it won’t come true.”

Dion reaches for me, his lips brushing over my exposed throat. I lean back against the pool’s edge to give him better access, my heart fully at ease now. “What else, my darling wife?”

“I want to dance in the rain, with you. Take the train through Europe and enjoy the scenery. You don’t like flying, so it’d be ideal, right?”

“It’d be perfect,” he whispers, his teeth grazing over my ear. I shiver and tighten my legs around his waist, my heart racing. “What else?”

“I want to see the Eiffel Tower, and the Berlin Wall. Just the idea of walking amongst the remnants of history fills me with such humility and reverence.”

“What else?” His hand makes its way in between my legs, and I moan when he teases me, his touch gentle, careful.

“I want to cycle through Amsterdam with you and kiss you at every canal we go past. We’ll be obnoxious tourists that all the locals will hate, and I’ll love every second of it.”

He chuckles, and I push his swim shorts down, desperate for something more than just his fingers. I need to feel closer to him. He’s right here with me, yet he feels so far away, and I can’t figure out why.

Dion gasps when I line him up against me, but he pulls away, his expression dark. “Would it truly be okay if I make your dreams my own? Can I insert myself into the future you envisioned for yourself, Faye?”

“Yes,” I tell him, my tone unwavering. I reach for him and push the tip in, not taking no for an answer when he clearly needs me just as desperately. “Yes, Dion. I want it all with you.”

He groans and slips into me just a fraction, holding back still. “Tell me you’re sure, Faye. Tell me you want to spend the rest of your life with me until we’re old and gray. I’ll make every single one of your dreams come true, so long as you stay with me.”

I grab his face and look into his eyes, taking in his desperation, his insecurities. “I’m sure,” I tell him. “I want you for the rest of our lives, Dion. I want it all with you.”

He bites down on his lip, his breathing shallow as he studies me, as though he’s trying to check for insincerity. He won’t find any. “I will never let you go, Faye. Not even if you beg me to.”

“Good,” I murmur. “Because I don’t want you to.”

He pushes into me, a loud moan escaping his lips as pure delight takes over his face. “You’re mine,” he groans, before pulling back almost all the way. “All mine.” He slams back into me, drawing a low, needy whimper from my throat. The need in his touch is palpable, and it fills me with equal parts confidence and relief.

“Yours,” I agree, my lips finding his. I’ll never tire of this, of us. All of my dreams fade in comparison to the reality he’s crafted — I just wish he saw it too.