Page 69 of All In

She’s right. It’s not. Not at all. I know I haven’t been married to Grayson for all that long, and I know it wasn’t like I wanted to marry him, or like it was a planned thing, but the thought of not being married to him makes me feel… strange inside.

“I don’t want it to end,” I admit sheepishly. “It’s like the best thing ever. I’ve always loved spending time with Gray, but now it’s even better.”

She snickers. “Because he fucks you like a god.”

That, but other things too. “Sure.”

“You know what you have to do, right?”

I shake my head. “What?”

There’s a sparkle in her eyes that I’m not quite sure how to feel about. “You have to make him fall in love with you. Then he won’t want to end the marriage. Show him how good being married to you will be, and maybe he’ll want to keep you.”

A shiver runs through me. Being kept by Gray sounds like the best thing ever, but I don’t want to manipulate him into having feelings for me. That wouldn’t be fair at all. If Gray only wants to be married for three months, then I need to respect that. No matter how much I already know it’s going to hurt when it ends.

Chapter 21

Grayson

“Still enjoying being a married man?” Carlos asks, poking his head into my office.

“I’d be enjoying it a lot more if I were home with my husband,” I say, shooting him a wink.

The last few weeks have been an absolute dream, and the more time I spend with Harlow, the easier it all feels.

Our friendship has always been effortless, as easy as breathing. And even though there are still days that I’m not sure I’m gonna survive how much I love Harlow, our marriage is much the same.

We’ve settled into an easy routine. We cook together and laugh together and watch movies. It’s all so… perfect. Then there’s the added bonus of being able to hold him all night long, being able to kiss him, being able to sink into his body and forget that he’s not mine.

I teased him for being a fiend, but I am too. There’s nothing like those moments. Harlow is already unguarded with me; he always has been. But there’s unguarded, and there’s the way his head tips back into the pillows as he’s crying out my name. There’s our normal, effortless friendship, and there’s the way he curls into me and toys with my hair and drums his fingers against my chest.

“When María and I first got married,” Carlos says, dragging me out of my thoughts, “we just wanted to be around each other all the time.” He smiles, his eyes softening like he’s remembering those early days. “It was amazing. Still just as in love with her today.”

I sigh. I’ve been in love with Harlow for as long as I’ve known what love is, so I can relate there. Unlike Carlos, though, Harlow doesn’t love me back. Not like that. That’s okay. I’ve always been content to have him in any way I could, and that won’t change now. It can’t.

“I can’t imagine not being in love with Harlow,” I say, since I can’t say any of that.

“It’s something special,” Carlos says, nodding. “When you find someone like that. There’s nowhere I’d rather be than by her side.”

I can’t help but smile. “I hope for many more years of happiness for you and María both.”

He raises an eyebrow. “Why don’t you get out of here?”

I bark out a laugh. “I can’t. I’ve still got paperwork to finish up.”

Carlos shoots me a grin. “What are you even getting done?”

Glancing around my desk, I look at all the paperwork I was supposed to be filing. As it stands, I’ve been doing nothing for the last hour. I mostly just want to get home to Harlow. I grimace. “Nothing, I guess.”

“Dios mío.” Carlos shakes his head. “Young love. Get out of here.”

Gathering the papers on my desk, I organize them into a pile before stacking them up in front of my computer. I’m not going to look a gift horse in the mouth, and I’m always ready to get home to Harlow. “Thanks, man.”

“No need to thank me. You’ll always have more work. You won’t always have more time with your loved ones.”

I say goodbye with a grateful nod before shooting off a quick text to Harlow, letting him know I’m on my way.

By the time I’m in my car, he’s texted me back, telling me to be safe and he’ll see me soon.