Weekend Wife (Sassy in the City 1)

I wanted to have sex with Grant, without question.

And while punishing him was essentially punishing myself, I couldn’t give him everything. Not all at once. I’d already crumpled like a tissue when confronted with his rationale for the fake engagement.

Grant groaned. “I hate myself for buying those damn things.”

“Don’t be upset with yourself. It was a shining moment of your thoughtfulness, proving you miles above your family in character and content.”

“You are the wisest woman in the world,” he said.

Chapter 12

I wouldn’t have thought it would be possible to have my mood turn around after our first hour at the house. But Leah managed to have me grinning in the pool in no time at all. She kept trying to jump up into my arms but just kept managing to collide with my chest and knocking us both back into the water.

We were soaking wet, my beard dripping and her hair clinging to her cheeks and shoulders, but I couldn’t stop laughing. “Leah, don’t jump at me.”

“That’s how it’s done!” she insisted. “I’ve seen Dirty Dancing three hundred and eleven times. At least.”

“But we’re in a pool, not on a dance floor. There is physics involved, you know.”

“How would I know that? I flunked physics in high school. Anything involving math and science is not my jam.”

“Then trust me when I say that you have to let me lift you first, then you can reach forward.” She was bouncing on the balls of her feet impatiently, looking more adorable in the red bikini I’d gotten her than anyone had a right to be.

“Fine. We’ll do it your way.” She shoved her hair back and lifted her arms in the air. “Let’s do this thing.”

“Awesome. On the count of three.”

Leah jumped. She fell back down with a splash.

I waited until she was done spluttering. “I said on the count of three. Which means you have to wait until I actually start counting. You’re really terrible at following directions.”

“Directions are like contracts. No one really needs them.”

“You’re killing me. I might actually die listening to you say something so horrifying. Look at me in my final moments before I have a heart attack.”

“Okay, drama queen,” she said with an eyeroll and a grin. “Your mother’s son, I see.”

Oh, no, she didn’t. “Hey! Bad Leah. Very, very bad Leah.” I picked her up around the waist.

She let out a shriek. “Let me go!”

I tossed her through the air. She hit like a mortar. Water went everywhere and she sank.

She came up sputtering, shoving her hair off her face. “What the hell?”

“You said let you go. I let you go.” I gave her a smug smile.

Leah splashed me. I splashed her back.

She shrieked and splashed me again, all while backing up.

But I had the advantage of height and larger hands. I splashed in rapid succession until there was almost a constant wave of water hitting her in the face.

Finally, she screamed, “Stop! I give up!”

I stopped. She wasn’t mad, she was laughing so hard she could barely breathe. She was soaked, blinking and wiping her face.

“You suck, Grant Edward Caldwell the third.”