The Marriage Pact (Viral Series)

by Mara White

  “Ryan, sixteen minutes til kickoff!” his father banged on the window, holding up a string of lights, the colored one with the oblong giant bulbs in opaque candy colors that would shed rainbows of light onto the snow when it finally decided to fall.

  “My dad’s obsessed with Christmas decorations. He’s like the Gestapo of Christmas. Sorry, bad joke. I’ve got fifteen more minutes before I’ve got to climb the roof with four fiberglass reindeer.” he said morosely.

  “Oh, my God, that’s so cute! You know how we do it in my family. Well, since mom left—”

  Ryan noted how she chose to say “left,” instead of passed away or died. Was that how it made her feel? Like her mother just left the family and had some volition in it.

  “I drag the bone dry, brown tree out back to our dump pile—during Spring Break! ‘Cause my dad just lets it sit in the house to die a slow death. It’s more like just the branches because all the needles fall onto the floor by New Year’s.”

  Jackie sounded cavalier, like those things were inconsequential or funny. But Ryan could hear the painful edge to her voice, the disappointment covered up by beer or cider, Jackie’s painkillers of choice.

  “Pretty pathetic, huh?” she said. For a blink she sounded like herself. The one she never let anybody see, the Jackie who was vulnerable and needed comfort. He wanted, more than anything else, to be the person she looked to whenever that feeling arose. Ryan wanted to surround her. Be her shelter from the cold.

  “That settles it.”

  “What?”

  “Next year you’re coming home with me, like it or not.”

  She paused. Cleared her throat. “I would, but my sisters.”

  “Bring them, too, I don’t care. We’ve got a pull-out in the basement.”

  “You really mean that?” she asked. Again, she sounded vulnerable. Ryan’s blood whooshed through his veins, he stood taller, prouder, determined. Maybe this really was what it felt like to be in love.

  “I’d even invite your dad. Hell, we got guest rooms at the parsonage.”

  “Seriously?” She sounded softer, more pliable, she was letting down her guard with his sweetness.

  “Let’s make it a date. I’ll tell my mom and dad tonight. You might have to climb the roof to decorate, but my mom’s cooking more than makes up for it.”

  “But I have to decorate the roof?” he could tell she was smiling.

  “Yeah. I’ve got a feeling my dad is locked in competition with the neighbors. We have to win Christmas this year.”

  He ran his hand through his dark hair, which was cut short on the sides, but he liked to leave it long on top. Long enough so that it brought out his natural wave. Ryan felt relief. He was floored. As long as he could feel that connection, he was okay. Not scared, but rather determined.

  “I would love that. It sounds like a fairy tale.”

  He wanted to give her a fairy tale, cocoon her in his arms and protect her from any more heartache. Or if he couldn’t protect her, he could at least soften the blow. Whatever it was that Jackie needed, he wanted to be the one to give it to her.

  Chapter 8

  Jackie

  Christmas break came quickly. Jackie had gone home for the vacation but was back in the dorms by New Year’s Eve. She and Ryan had agreed to spend New Year’s together during one of their Sunday night movie marathons. Both were near sleep and cuddled together in a blanket cocoon.

  She was currently attempting and failing to put on eyeliner. Makeup wasn’t her forte. Frustrated, she gave up. Mascara and eye shadow would have to do. She pulled on a skirt and one of Ryan’s sweaters. It was huge on her but she loved it. Jackie left her hair down in soft loose waves. She dabbed peppermint extract behind her ears and between her breasts. It was cheaper than perfume- a trick her mother had taught her before she died.

  She didn’t own tights, but she did have some legwarmers her sister had knit for her years ago. She pulled them on to keep her legs warm on the walk to Ryan’s. She knew he’d try and be a gentleman and pick her up but she didn’t want that, so she was ready early.

  Her heels clacked on the sidewalks. Snow made walking quickly difficult. So did the heels but she plowed on. Snow fell in a steady rhythm. Barely anyone was back on campus. It was peaceful and serene. She turned her face upward and stuck out her tongue to catch snowflakes. When she got to Ryan’s dorm, she buzzed herself in and jogged up the stairs to warm herself up. Jackie opened the door to find Ryan shirtless. Her breath caught. She’d seen him in varying stages of nakedness plenty, but it was usually at night before going to bed. Something about seeing him now made her heart stutter. She blinked. He caught sight of her and laughed.

  “You look like a hobo.”

  She glanced down. She did. Oversized sweater, skirt, heels, leg warmers, a knit hat. Jackie smiled. “At least you have shoes on. And those things.” He pointed to the leg warmers.

  “Hey, I tried.” She shrugged.

  He walked up to her while he straightened his shirt.

  “Hobo looks good on you.” He spun her around. “I like you in my clothes.” He pulled off her hat. “I really like your hair down.” He brought his face close to hers—too close. “I really like the way your lashes look when they’re wet from snowflakes.”

  Jackie squeezed her thighs together. She couldn’t move. She felt frozen. Stuck under the weight of his stare. “Fuck New Year’s,” he growled. His hands wrapped around her and he leaned in. “All I want for next year, is you.” He put his lips on hers and Jackie lost her shit. Lost. It.

  “Yeah?” she breathed. Ryan grinned like a wolf.

  “If you’re mine, you’re mine,” he stated.

  “Just friends with benefits. Take off those clothes,” she ordered.

  Ryan put a finger to his chin. “Fine. Deal. But I’m stripping you, and you’re stripping me.”

  Jackie laughed as he lifted the hem of her shirt up and over her head. She helped tug it off. His fingers danced along her skin from her hips to her lower back and up her spine until he reached her bra. He unclasped it with an ease that impressed her. She tried not to think of all the other women he’d practiced on. In her fantasy world, Ryan never touched anyone but her. It helped keep her feelings in check, her jealousy at bay. Her fingers dragged over his abs, followed that perfect hair trail right to the top button on his jeans. She flicked the button open and pulled the zipper down slowly.

  She went for his boxers but he said, “uh uh. Not yet.” He pulled her skirt down until it pooled on the floor around her feet. His breaths came heavy and fast. “So perfect.” He hooked a finger in the elastic rim of her panties and swung it slowly back and forth. Jackie sucked in and shivered. His fingers felt delicious against her skin. With a swift motion, he pulled her panties down. She stepped out of them and bit her bottom lip. She reached for his boxers again. This time he let her. When they slid past his knees, she took a step back to look at him. His cock was thick and hard and standing straight, just for her.

  Ryan was her life. Not that she’d admit that to anyone, but to have him look at her the way he was felt life changing. His hands gripped her hips. Pulled her forward. She exhaled. When their chests connected, soft against hard, Jackie thought she might faint. She had imagined it so many times, but the reality was almost too much to take. Funny how, without words or a plan, they had both seemed to reach the breaking point at the exact same time. That, was chemistry.

  She couldn’t touch him enough. Her lips wanted to taste every inch of him. Her hands explored with greed. If only strokes could be photographs, so she could look back on this moment, relive it, whenever she felt alone or unwanted.

  He moved her to the bed and she straddled him.

  “Slow down,” he whispered. “Let me look at you. Let me memorize you.” As he lay beneath her looking up, his hands caressed her arms, her waist, her hips, the tops of her thighs.

  She went mad with lust.

  “Please, Ry,” she panted. He reached behind him to hit the pa
use button on the stereo. “No,” she said putting her hand on his. “This is my favorite song.” She knew Blink 182’s song. Dammit, wasn’t exactly sexy or romantic, but it was her favorite song and that had to mean something that it had come on.

  The way that he looked at her was a drug. She melted and lost herself. Maybe it would only be once and that was okay. She knew how to pack away memories and save them for another day. He massaged her full breasts, sat up and took one nipple into his mouth and sucked hard. She watched his lips connect with her nipple and then her eyes rolled back in pure ecstasy. He moved to the other breast, as she clutched his shoulders, his hands slid down her back to her waist, and he rested them there, the pads of his fingers hovering on the rise where her back met her ass. With a rolling motion, he flipped them so she was on the bottom. Ryan was built more solidly than any man she’d ever been with. He was big and strong, his hands rough, but his touch surprisingly tender. He kissed a delicate path from her breasts to the crest of her pelvis.

  When he spread her thighs, she exhaled out all of her demons. To relax under his touch was intoxicating, to trust him felt like an indulgence. She was always aggressive in bed because she didn’t want anybody to take advantage of her. But she let go in his arms and the result had her feeling near hallucinatory with the lightness of it. Ryan’s tongue worked its way to her clit. She’d never let anyone go down on her before. She clutched his hair. Her hips tried to squirm away involuntarily, until Ryan pinned them down with his hands and continued to destroy her with his mouth.

  Giving in to Ryan was the scariest thing she’d ever done in her life. More than anything, this, being with him, was what she wanted but she knew that Ryan’s future deserved more than a poor farm girl. She squeezed her eyes shut and attempted to let sensations replace emotions. She came into his mouth and Ryan didn’t stop until her hips stilled through the aftershocks.

  “Fuck, I’ve wanted to do that for so long.” Ryan’s baritone voice between her legs sent aftershocks through her body. She laughed and squeezed her thighs together away from his face.

  “You,” she said tugging on his hands. “I need you.” Ryan crept up her body slowly with a wolf’s grin on his face.

  “Say that again,” he whispered.

  His powerful legs kneed her thighs apart to accommodate his body.

  ”I need you,” she said quietly. The statement was true, but Jackie wasn’t sure how happy she was about it.

  He groaned and thrust into her. Jackie took a deep breath to try to acclimate her body, everything about Ryan was big and for a moment, she felt like she was splitting, but as he moved slowly inside her, she met his thrusts willingly. She lifted her hips and pushed against him, drawing him deeper. Everything about Ryan was overwhelming, his feelings for her, the way he looked out for her and protected her. Jackie didn’t know if she deserved it. Ryan made her feel cherished and the vulnerability that brought was terrifying. Jackie was splayed open, her heart beating exposed, her emotions naked and raw, like some freshly birthed monster she now had to take care of. Their lovemaking ratcheted to a furious pace. Jackie wanted to hurt him, to rake her nails on his skin, tear up his perfection and make his feel as defenseless as she did.

  A spark flickered and lit when she got aggressive. Ryan responded to her aggression with his own angry energy. They flipped, her on top.

  “I can’t. It’s too deep,” she said. She arched her back and cried out in pain.

  He rolled them again, flipped her on her stomach, yanked her hips up to meet him. Ryan took her from behind. She worked to keep up with him, one hand clutching the headboard, hair tumbling forward over her face. In this position, he hit her G spot and Jackie started to tremble with every thrust.

  She’d had plenty of partners in the past but nothing made her feel like Ryan did, sex with emotions was a fiery mess, a bonfire where feelings eclipsed sensations and they all ended up in an inseparable heap. His warm lips grazed her shoulder blade and the touch sent her spiraling back to earth. That didn’t happen in casual sex. Ryan loved who she was. The little kiss was an intimacy reserved for just them. He repositioned them again. Him sitting, her sitting on top of him. Face to face, she couldn’t look away from her emotions. He moved them slowly, deeply, with care together.

  “Can you come with me?” he asked.

  Jackie nodded and ground herself on him, her fingers trailing down to where they were connected. She kissed him slowly, taking her time, treating their kiss as if it were the very last one. She savored it dreamily, drinking all of the love potion from Ryan’s lips. She’d never been with anyone who cared about climaxing together. Sex had always been about pillaging and getting out quick. Ryan replaced her fingers with his and she put both hands behind her back.

  “I want to see you come,” he said. She nearly did, from his voice alone.

  When she felt the precipice near, she pulled back instinctively and bit her lip.

  Her breath caught for a drawn out moment. Ryan looked into her eyes and she watched his deltoids tense, the cords in his neck. Their orgasm was a collective explosion, where matter rearranged. All solids became liquids and slowly dispersed into vapor as their breathing returned to normal alongside their rattled heartbeats.

  Time paused for Jackie. She let herself be in the moment, steeped herself in the love that swelled between them. She realized it was a stolen moment. But moments tasted better when they were stolen anyway.

  “What time is it,” he breathed. She buried her nose into the spot where his shoulder and neck met and inhaled. She didn’t remember what time was or what it was used for.

  “I think it’s next year.”

  Chapter 9

  Ryan

  It was January first. A fast approaching blizzard was all over the news. Over a foot of snow was predicted, with near white-out conditions. The weather man warned of black ice, possible freezing rain and public transportation came to a grinding halt. The remaining buses on State Street already wore snow chains around their tightly grouped tires.

  The oncoming calamity relieved them of any awkward conversation about last night, the new dimension to their friendship apparently now included love making. Jackie was less direct than usual, she slipped out of bed in Ryan’s jersey, kissed him on the nose and made for the showers. Ryan clasped his hands behind his head and stared at the ceiling. A grin spread across his face, like a single drop of ink dispersing in water. The grin advanced from his face all the way through his limbs. Ryan’s whole body was smiling, spilling like warm milk across a countertop, all the way to his fingertips and his toes. He would do that again. He would do that exclusively. Would she? He didn’t think so.

  Ryan used his arms to walk across the carpet, reach his discarded jeans and pull the phone from his back pocket, all without leaving the bed. The first thing to greet him was a text from his mother Diane that said: No driving, Sweetie!

  Ryan snorted and quickly checked his missed calls. Jackie came back in nothing but a towel and flip-flops. Her skin was pink from the water, steam was rising off her shoulders.

  “It’s freezing in here!” she said. Her long brown hair dripped heavy drops that splattered on the blue speckled carpet.

  Ryan pulled back the comforter and offered her warmth. He was naked and his erection already pressed into his belly. Jackie dived in and he squirmed when her cold, wet hair hit his chest.

  “I’ve got to drive up north and help my sisters bring in our dog to get euthanized. He got hit by a car last night and he’s in pain.”

  “Wait, what? Can’t your dad do it? How’d all that happen in the shower?”

  “Mia called. If my dad could, would I be going?” Jackie’s voice flared with annoyance and Ryan pulled back. Maybe it was none of his business.

  “Look,” Ryan handed Jackie his phone and showed her the text from his mom. “We can’t drive. My mom said so. There’s a blizzard on its way and they’re taking everything but emergency vehicles off of the road.

  “Pfft!” Jackie
said and dismissed the text with her hand. “I’m not scared of a little snow.”

  Ryan grabbed her wrist and yanked her to his chest. What do you feel? He wanted to demand, but he kissed her instead. She tilted her head back and softened under his touch. He palmed her breasts and loved the weight of them in his hands; they were tear drop shaped with perfect nipples that tipped up. Ryan gently bit one and Jackie’s defenses buckled. “You can’t drive. But I can!” she said with a devious smile.

  By the time they were ready, Jackie had an arsenal assembled; she looked like a yeti dressed in some quilted, thick snow pants, a fur-lined ear flap hat and aviator sunglasses. She had Twizzlers, a two-liter of Coke, a bunch of equipment and a rusty snow shovel. Ryan had his red and black lumber jack’s jacket and his wool beanie. He felt under prepared.

  “What’s the kitty litter for?”

  “Snow leopards. Just pray we don’t need it.”

  Ryan felt like a novice, he’d seen snow in Des Moines, but nothing this epic. From the looks of it, Jackie was trained in alpine rescues and deep-snow emergency excavation, avalanches, maybe.

  The snow was falling sideways and it was wet-sticky flakes, with enough frozen water in it to sting your face or any other part left exposed to the elements.

  “Shit it’s frozen,” Jackie said.

  “The keyhole?” Ryan asked. He’d never heard of such a thing. Jackie produced a lighter from one of the many pockets in her jacket. When she couldn’t get a flame, she held it to her lips for thirty seconds and tried again. It lit.