Page 48 of The Marriage Narrative
She silently lowered her hands back to her lap. “I think what I’d naturally do isn’t what they want. I need to step outside of myself for this—does that make sense?”
“No, you’re—”
“Jordan. I’m not a leader, okay? I never have been, but Icando this if you help me.” She held his gaze and continued in a breathy rush. “Be chaotic. Let me matchyourenergy.”
A wicked thrill shot through him. How could he make this work? She did love surprises, and he loved surprising her.
“What if we played a game?” He stood up and walked over to the large mirror near the front door. “Pretend I’m doing something. I’m being filmed, you walk into the room, but I haven’t noticed you yet. What are you going to do?”
“Say hi? Theatrically announce my presence with a twirl and pose?”
“Love that idea. But first, you have to play the game.” He grinnedat her through the mirror. She was still sitting on her knees surrounded by their blankets. “Go stand by the hallway. Linger there watching me for a few seconds. Think about something that makes you happy. With your eyes still on me, you’re going to smile, lean against the wall, cross your arms, and bite your lip—in that order.”
“Are you being serious?” She narrowed her eyes but sounded curious.
“What? Can’t a husband help his wife experiment with flirting?”
Her exhilarated, unguarded smile was the purest dopamine hit. She liked it when he called her some variation ofwife. He mostly used his newfound power responsibly.
“But in the game, you’re not looking at me.”
“Touching isn’t everything. You also need to show that you’re attracted to me. There’s no better time to do that than when I’m not looking.”
“You sound like Fiona.” She laughed. “Okay, let’s pretend that I’ve lingered and stared. What’s next?”
“You’ll make a face like you’ve just realized something amazing or that you’re feeling frustrated, and you can’t wait a second longer. Then you’ll come stand behind me.”
Zinnia hopped to her feet and headed for the hallway. Her movements were a little stiff, robotic even, but her facial expressions carried the performance.
Jordan sucked in a breath. He’d pay good money to know what, or who, inspired that bashful smile. She chose to bite her thumbnail instead of her lip—a brilliant sweetheart swap, eager and trying to hide it.
Pure liquid-gold warmth filled him from head to toe. Watching her pretend to lust after him felt like being blessed. She was luminous and honeyed, and if he wasn’t careful, this feeling mightruin everything. Because he wanted that look to be for him. He flexed his hands to ground himself as she slowly walked across the room.
“You can’t pause and wait behind me like that.” He hoped she didn’t hear the strain in his voice as clearly as he did.
“You didn’t tell me what to do.”
“Come on, Zin.” He turned to face her. “You’ve just spent a handful of minutes secretly fantasizing about your husband. How doyouwant to play the game? That’s just as important as being able to follow my lead. Match me.”
Her concentration frown immediately reappeared. Vindication had never looked so cute.
“Okay, I’m ready.” She flapped her hands at him. “Turn around.”
He raised a questioning eyebrow before moving back into position. She shook out her hands and took a deep breath. And then did it again with an excited little squeak.
“I’m waiting,” he teased.
Zinnia cleared her throat, wiped her expression, and flipped her braids behind her shoulder. Another breath in. She placed her hand in between his shoulder blades, letting it trail down his spine as she carefully stood closer to him. The questioning hesitation in her eyes disappeared when he nodded.
That was all she needed. Her face filled with yearning as she confidently pressed her warm hand against his lower back. She curved around him, movements suddenly as fluid as a dancer. He gazed down at her, waiting. She tilted her head up, mouth daringly close to his, and whispered, “I missed you.”
He felt her breath against his lips and his brainblinked. Desire squared up with every speck of self-control he had. He turned away before crossing the line, exhaling a nervous laugh.
“Was that good?” She bounced on the balls of her feet.
“It was…something.”
“Something? Your ears are turning red.” Her fingers barely grazed his earlobe before he caught her hand in midair. Moving quickly, he wrapped one arm around her waist and spun them in a circle. She flowed with him, and only a quiet gasp betrayed her when he pinned her against the wall.
