Page 36 of The Contract Marriage

I shudder. Good thing Frederich isn’t here to hear this, or he’d collapse in outrage. “I’m sorry.”

“Yeah. Me, too.” She eats with more enthusiasm than I expected. “This is amazing. If I’d known you had a chef this awesome, I would’ve definitely invited him to the wedding.”

Toward the end of the meal, Frederich places a narrow ceramic tray with six squares of chocolate dusted with cocoa powder and a few raspberries in front of us. “Your dessert. Enjoy.”

“What is it?” I ask. I’ve never seen these before.

“Nama chocolate, originating from Japan. My own recipe, however.” He puffs out his chest. “Use your spoon or fork, please. Don’t bite into it, just put the whole piece on your tongue.” Then he leaves as discreetly as he came.

“That looks interesting.” Olivia leans forward to study the plate. “But I’m sure it’s good.” She spoons a square and puts it into her mouth, just the way Frederich instructed. Her jaw moves as though to chew, then immediately stills, and she blinks. “Oh my God.”

“What?”

“You have to try it. This is divine.” Eyes bright, she scoops up a square and brings it to my mouth.

I open instinctively and take it onto my tongue. It instantly begins to melt, flooding my taste buds with intense chocolate. The texture is too soft and creamy to be ganache, but it’s incredible. My eyes meet hers, and she flushes, like she just realized what she did. But her chin tilts up with a hint of defiance and a so-what attitude.

“Am I right or am I right?” she says.

“You’re right. Heavenly,” I reply, my eyes still on hers.

“Better hurry or I’ll eat all the pieces.” She smirks.

“We can’t have that.” I pick up a raspberry and put it into her mouth before she can scoop up more chocolate.

She gives me a sidelong glance. “Trying to distract me?”

“You need your fruit.”

She giggles, then takes another square. I take one as well, but I’m too busy watching her to really eat. I owe Frederich a huge favor for this dessert. It’s so rare to see her let her guard down and glow the way she’s meant to.

The final square vanishes into her mouth, leaving a smear of chocolate at the corner of her lips. I lean close and kiss the spot, licking it clean.

“What…?” She sounds slightly breathless, but doesn’t pull away.

“Chocolate. Didn’t want it to go to waste,” I murmur.

Her pulse flutters in her slender throat. I pull back just slightly, but we’re still close enough to share the air.

“Time to dance, Mrs. Kingswood.”

She blinks. “Dance?”

“Every married couple ought to dance after the wedding.”

Her gaze goes to my mouth, then to my eyes. Something flashes over her face, but she finally nods. “Okay. Let’s.”

Chapter Fourteen

Olivia

I reach for his hand, then stand. Why not dance under the beautiful, now purple, sky?

For such a perfect afternoon and evening, this seems like the perfect ending, even though I’ve been telling myself it’s just a contract marriage for my benefit.

Liam taps his phone, and we move to a clear section of the enormous terrace. We get into position, our bodies close enough for me to feel his heat, but not quite touching. Somehow the proximity without contact feels especially intimate, like we’re on the precipice of something dangerous and hot.

The sound system starts to play the familiar tune of Gershwin’s “Embraceable You.” No lyrics, but it doesn’t matter because I remember them.