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Elise looked down at her faded T-shirt and denim shorts. He must think she looked like a total mess. She hadn’t even worn makeup that morning since they were just going to be in the truck for a few hours. They had stopped for lunch at a truck stop, and she fit right in. “Sure, I think I’ll change clothes.”
She stood and grabbed her suitcase, then pulled it into the oversized bathroom with her. Closing the door, she put both hands on the back of the door and leaned over as she took several deep breaths. What in the world were they going to do for the next few days? The only thing she knew they weren’t going to be doing was the thing everyone had sent them away for. Maybe there was a museum or a movie theater or somewhere they could go to waste a few hours. She would focus on that when they got back from dinner.
With that decided, she unzipped her suitcase and began to pull out what she needed. Glancing at her watch, she saw that it was still a little early for dinner. Maybe she had time for a shower. She’d gotten up and dressed this morning and had only hurried to rinse off. She turned around and quietly gasped when she saw the large frameless glass shower. The tile was gorgeous, and there were two shower heads. Her face flushed with heat at the thought of what some couples would do with that. Her gaze drifted over to the garden tub with two white towels draped over the side and a plate with chocolates and two wine glasses.
Elise put her hands to her face taking it all in. Then she jumped into action and quickly stashed the glasses and plate in the bottom of the bathroom cabinet out of sight. The chocolates she scooped up and stuffed into the front pocket of her suitcase. No need for those to go to waste.
After that, she showered in the luxurious water. Lately, she had been rushing through the shower to leave before Garrett or to be done before he got home. As long as they had time, and as long as the door was locked, she could take a nice long shower.
When she had toweled off, she pulled out the nicest jeans and top she had brought with her. It was a simple outfit, but it was clean, and definitely a step up from her old T-shirt. She took the time to dry her hair and put on a light amount of makeup. Finally, she stepped out of the bathroom.
Garrett sat in one of the chairs trying to work the remote, but he turned to look at the sound of the door opening. “Wow,” he said. “You look great.”
Elise self-consciously ran her hand through her hair. When was the last time she had fixed it and put on makeup? Of course, she had looked nice for the wedding ceremony, but she had been busy since and hadn’t done much for herself. “Thanks,” she said. “Are you ready to go?” she asked, nervous to be standing in this room with him.
He stood and brushed his hands down his jeans. “Sure, let’s go get some Italian.”
22
Garrett closely watched Elise as they walked into the restaurant. She had been very quiet since the reveal of the suite and the news that they didn’t have to go to an auction. He couldn’t really say what his emotion was. On the one hand, it was so nice for his family to do this for them and surprise them. On the other hand, this wasn’t what they wanted, and he could have been helpful on the ranch. Guilt swirled in his gut, knowing his brothers thought they were doing something special for them. They had no idea they only sent them on an awkward weekend.
He followed behind Elise as the hostess led them to a table. When he sat across from her, he could see the worry in her eyes. Without looking at the menu, he set it down on the table. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
Elise’s eyes grew wide. “How can you ask that? Your family sent us off here to have a private weekend together. They don’t have a clue that it isn’t necessary. That we’re married, but we’re not a real couple. We don’t need alone time, and we certainly don’t need a fancy hotel to spend time together.”
Garrett stared at her, speechless for a few moments. He knew she was echoing his own thoughts. “We could look at it another way,” he said.
Elise threw her hands up in the air. “What other way is there to see it?”
“Well, to be honest, I was kind of upset too. I could be at home working. There’s no end to stuff that needs to be done. For you, I think it’s a nice break. But you might be wrong.”
“About what?”
“Maybe we do need some time together alone.”
Elise looked up at him. She didn’t look convinced. “Why?”
“Because we’re married.”
“But we’re not married in the way that we need time alone.”
“Actually, we are. We have known each other our whole lives, but we’ve been apart for a while. Now, we rushed things and went on a few dates so people would see us together and make our quick marriage believable. But the truth is, we haven’t spent much time together, and we don’t know each other as adults very well. I told you, I’m committed to this marriage. I have no plans for this to be a temporary thing. If we’re going to spend the rest of our lives together, we can’t keep passing in the night.”
Elise looked away and folded her arms in front of her.
“You don’t think I’ve noticed that you avoid me.”
Elise’s eyes snapped back to his. “I…” but her voice trailed off. “No, I hoped it wasn’t so obvious. But you’re busy with work too. Like you said, there’s no end to it, and you’re happy to keep working until you fall asleep at night.”
Garrett slowly nodded as he ran his fingers through his hair. “You’re right. I do like work. And it’s easy for me to just stay out there with my horse working until the day is done. I’m sorry if I’ve been too busy.”
“But you don’t have to apologize. I told you I have no expectations of you.”
“Maybe it’s time for that to change.” Garrett reached across the table and took her hands in his. “I don’t want you to have zero expectations. We made a commitment, and I agreed to be your husband, not just a guy that you share a house with. Let’s take the opportunity this weekend to get to know each other again. We can spend time talking about how we can be there for each other and learn to be the couple we said we would be in our vows.”
Elise bit her lip. “I’m not sure I’m ready for that.”
“I’m not asking for anything you’re uncomfortable with. Let’s just see what it’s like to spend time together, talk, and act like a couple who wants to be together.”
