The Arrangement

by Thayer King

  ***

  Ariadne waited until she heard the door close behind the men before she turned on her friend. “Why didn’t you tell me that Asher wanted me?”

  Erika blinked. “Excuse me? I suggested that he may have had ulterior motives for the marriage.”

  “Emphasis on the ‘may.’ Here I was thinking that he was indifferent to me.”

  “What difference does it make? You said that nothing would happen between the two of you….” Erika’s gaze grew sharp and Ariadne looked away. “Oh, my God, you guys haven’t been married a minute and you already gave in to him?” She made a sound of disgust. “I can’t believe you. You all but promised me that this wouldn’t happen.”

  Ariadne took a deep breath. “I’m sorry.”

  “Do my feelings mean nothing to you?”

  “Of course they do. You know I love you. It…” She struggled to find words to explain how and why she’d ended up having sex with Asher. “Erika, I’m sorry. The moment got the better of me. We’d been together all day. And we were getting along, pretending to care about each other. He was just so great and I forgot myself. You know I’ve never approved of the way he lived, but lately, he’s been completely different. We haven’t even been arguing.”

  “Are you in love with him?”

  “That’s crazy!”

  “Ari, you don’t just sleep with a guy because of attraction. You can tell me if you are.”

  Ariadne swallowed. She could not have possibly been so stupid as to fall for Asher, could she? The man was an unrepentant slut.

  At her continued silence, Erika sighed and leaned back against the counter. She crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, it seems that he’s got a new member of his fan club.”

  She glared at her friend, irritated by the unfounded accusation. She was a grown woman, not some teen lusting after a boyband member. “I’m not a fan. Erika, I love you, but you really should have gotten over this crap with Asher a long time ago. I’m really sorry that I slept with your high school crush, but high school was a really long time ago. I ignored him and made an enemy of him all for you.”

  “What? Are you saying you no longer want to push him away?”

  “I’m saying you’re married. Let it go. He’s going to settle down one day with someone and that someone won’t be you because you’re married to Ted.”

  Erika’s face suffused with red. “And you think that someone will be you?”

  Ariadne threw her hands up in the air. “It doesn’t matter. It won’t be you.”

  The two of them glared at each other. When the men came back inside, Ted said, “Honey, I was thinking that we could-”

  “Come on, Ted,” Erika snapped. “We’re going home.”

  Ted looked from one woman to the other, his brows raised. “Okay,” he said slowly. “See you guys later.”

  “Whew,” Asher blew out when they were gone. “What the hell happened?”

  She pinned him with a finger in his bare chest. He hadn’t bothered to put on a shirt. “You happened. You and your sexy laugh and your stupid charm and your damned good looks. Erika’s been-” She stopped and bit her lip. She might be angry with her friend, but she wouldn’t betray her confidence.

  Asher gave her a sad smile. “I thought she was over that crush. I don’t want to come between the two of you. You’re like siblings. Like me and Ted.”

  “You knew?”

  He shrugged. “I knew she liked me in high school. Until this summer, I’d believed she’d moved on with Ted.”

  “She does love Ted,” she said in defense of her friend. “She just can’t seem to shake you.” He mumbled something she couldn’t understand. “What was that?”

  “Nothing. So, I take it you told Erika about us?”

  “She guessed.”

  “And she’s pissed?”

  “Yeah and then things got heated.” Ariadne bit her lip as guilt assailed her. She shouldn’t have talked to Erika that way. But she was still confused about what was going on between her and Asher. She had reacted poorly to Erika’s accusation that she was nothing more than another fan to Asher and she had gone on the offensive. It may have been only one night, but it felt like more than that. “I shouldn’t have let anything happen between us. I knew how she felt.”

  “That’s crazy and unreasonable,” Asher snapped. His lips thinned in irritation. “I don’t belong to Erika. She’s with Ted and even if they weren’t together, she’s like a little sister to me.” His anger stunned her. She could recall very few times when she’d actually seen him angry. “She can’t expect me to spend the rest of my life alone.”

  Ariadne shrugged. “Well, up until our marriage, you’ve kind of drifted through a series of flings and I don’t know. She just liked you being single.”

  He looked off to the side and ran his hand through his hair. “What I was proposing before, us adding a sexual component to our marriage, is that out of the question because of Erika?”

  She wanted to say no, but she was unsure of so many things right now. Erika would calm down eventually. But she could she repair their friendship if she was involved in an ongoing affair with Asher? “She’s my best friend. I can’t just ignore her feelings.”

  “And your feelings don’t matter? Hell, does what I want even come into play? This is between you and me. Erika shouldn’t have a say in what we do in our bedroom.”

  “And she wouldn’t except I’ve known about her crush on you since the beginning. You’ve always been off limits.”

  “That’s extremely selfish of her and-” He stopped, his eyes widening. “Shit.”

  “What?”

  “You’ve always been attracted to me,” he said slowly.

  She rolled her eyes. “The ego on you-”

  “But you turned me down because of Erika.”

  She nodded. She didn’t see the point in keeping the truth from him. “Yes, but my other reasons were valid, as well. You really were a jerk in high school and college.”

  He shook his head. “You can’t let her keep coming between us.”

  “There isn’t really an ‘us.’”

  “And whose fault is that?” He stepped forward and took her hands. “Look at me. Both Erika and Ted have known since high school that I wanted you. She knew how hung up I was on you. That’s why she fought this marriage. She knew that given time, we’d find our way to something real. What she feels for me is a stupid, selfish crush. If she loved me, she would want me to be happy. And to be happy, I need you.”

  Ariadne’s mouth dropped open in surprise. “W-what?”

  “I love you, Ari. It feels like I always have.”

  She felt faint as her mind whirled with the implications. She realized now that he had been serious when he’d asked her out all those years ago. “But you were so mean to me.”

  “I was angry because I wanted you and you hated me. At least, I thought you did. But even then, arguing with you made me feel more than I ever did in any of my other relationships.”

  “A-and Erika knew how you felt…?” That seemed so cruel that she’d known and purposely ruined any chance that Asher had with her. She discounted any injury to her own feelings. While she was attracted to Asher, she’d never expressed any affection for him. Erika had no reason to believe that her actions were hurting her.

  “I never said anything, but both she and Ted knew.”

  “How could she do that to you and still call herself your friend?” She was indignant on his behalf.

  Asher cupped her face with his hands. “I don’t care about any of that. I care about where we go from here. I want to be with you.”

  Her heart thumped. He kept surprising her. “Y-you mean beyond sexual? Like a real marriage?”

  He nodded eagerly. “Yeah. Like forever and babies and all that.”

  “Can I think about it for a while?”

  “Yeah, you can think abou
t it. And while you’re considering being mine, think about this as well.” His mouth slammed over hers. Ariadne whimpered as his tongue darted inside to duel with hers. He angled her head to the side and deepened the kiss still further. Her legs felt weak. She gripped his arms.

  Asher backed her up until she was pressed against the only wall in the kitchen with no adornment. Once he had her where he wanted, his hands slid down her sides. He pulled her closer even as he leaned into her.

  “I want you, Ari,” he breathed into her neck. “You set me on fire without even trying.” He yanked her shirt and bra up to reveal her breasts.

  She moaned as he latched onto one of her nipples. Threading her fingers through his dark hair, she held his head to her. He suckled hungrily and each pull of his lips caused a corresponding ache to bloom between her thighs.

  “Take it off,” he ordered as he switched breasts.

  Ariadne wrestled her shirt over her head and unclasped her bra. Asher shoved her pants down and she stepped out of them. He dropped to his knees before her and pushed her legs apart. “Ash,” she said, about to suggest that they head upstairs when he spread her folds and swirled his tongue around her clit. Her hips bucked when he sucked. The next time she called his name it was in a near scream. He latched onto her pussy and ate her like he was starving. When her legs threatened to give out on her, he shoved one thigh over his shoulder. He penetrated her with a long finger. On the second thrust he added another.

  Asher growled. “You taste so damn good.” She heard him unzip his pants. Glancing down, she saw him wrap his hand around his erection and begin to stroke it. The sight of him so long and thick excited her even more. As good as his mouth and fingers felt, she needed more. She wanted to feel him stretching her open once more.

  She tugged at his hair. “Asher, please. I want you.”

  He stood abruptly. His open jeans drooped around his muscled thighs. Gripping her ass, he lifted her. “Grab my cock, baby. Take me inside.”

  She positioned him at her opening. He thrust up enough to breach her pussy with the broad head of his cock. With a swivel of his hips, he gave her another inch. He squeezed her ass. “Look at me, baby.” When her eyes met his, he slammed home. Ariadne cried out at the sudden fullness. He bared his teeth and growled. Pulling back, he thrust into her harder. “You feel so fucking good.”

  He pounded into her, fucking her up the wall. Ariadne clutched at his sweaty shoulders. She wrapped her legs around his waist and held on as best she could. In this position, she didn’t have the leverage to really move against him. She could only brace herself and accept his thrusts into her body. Asher controlled her hips. He lifted and dropped her onto his rampaging dick faster and faster. His strength astounded her. He never seemed to tire. The sound of his husky grunts had her well on the way towards orgasm. And then he circled his hips, his cock stirring inside of her, leaving no spot untouched. When she started to come, he began to fuck her with a series of hard short lunges, thrusting through her clasping tissues and making her cry out with pleasure. It was so intense that she dug her nails into his shoulders. He hissed but he didn’t stop.

  His cock swelled and pumped her full of liquid heat. Asher buried his face in her neck and groaned her name. He continued to plunge into her pussy in small jerks as though he couldn’t control himself. He braced one hand on the wall and held her with the other. She allowed her legs to slide to the floor as Asher’s legs began to tremble.

  He slid from her body, but continued to hold her close. “I love you.” Cupping her chin, he lifted her face to his and kissed her. It was brief but gentle and so sweet that it almost brought tears to her eyes. When he pulled back, he smiled at her. “Let’s go get cleaned up. Take a shower with me?”

  Chapter Nine

  Ariadne bit her lip as she perused the racks filled with frilly bits of lace and silk. She’d never bought anything like this before. She’d never had a reason to. Her relationships were usually pleasant, stable, calm affairs. In retrospect, she could see that they’d been boring. In comparison, Asher lit her world up like a ball of fire. The man loved sex and he didn’t seem to require any incentive. She could be cleaning and covered in dirt and dust and he still wanted her. Which is why she wanted to reward him. The man deserved to see her in something other than t-shirts and shorts at night. Even if he usually didn’t let her keep them on for very long.

  She was still out for the summer break for at least another month. Asher spent a few hours a day scouting out locations for the new office, but that left the majority of the day free. They went for long drives with no destination in mind. They went to museums. He took her to visit his father. And they had sex. They’d made love in every room in her house. Before the incident in the kitchen the previous week, she’d never done it outside of a bedroom. She’d never had so much sex in her life.

  “How about this one?” Sierra held up a black bustier with lace cups and a sheer waist. It had a matching miniscule sheer thong.

  Ariadne felt her face warm. She hoped the blush didn’t show. “I don’t think I could fit in that.”

  “It stretches.” Sierra tugged at the material.

  “I don’t know,” she hedged. She wasn’t sure she was quite ready for something so sexy. “I was thinking along the lines of something…less revealing.”

  Sierra sighed. “He’s seen you naked.” She glanced at her watch. “My lunch break is going to be over soon. You have to pick something. Look, you don’t have to tell me that he’s giving it to you good. I can tell. You’ve never been this happy or this carefree in your life. And he’s practically got you bowlegged.”

  Ariadne heard giggling behind her. Face burning, she snatched the bustier from her cousin and shoved her along so that they were moving toward the cash register. “Thanks for advertising my business,” she hissed.

  Sierra laughed. “What? You didn’t think we’d all notice? Besides, your mother’s telling everyone about how she walked in on the two of you going at it on the stairs.”

  She buried her face in her hand. “We weren’t having sex,” she defended. But they would have been given a few more minutes. “And I was in my own house.” Her mother had used her key and barged in as usual. Though after that incident, Aurora had promised to use the doorbell going forward.

  “Here, get these, too.” Sierra gave her a handful of lacy thongs in a rainbow of colors. “Greet him in just these, and you’ll have him on his knees begging you for it.”

  Asher didn’t have to beg her. All he had to do was give her that slow, sexy smile and she grew wet. If she thought his laugh affected her before, it was doubly effective now because she knew how much pleasure he could give her.

  “You never said. Is this for a special occasion?”

  “No.”

  “Well it sure as hell can’t be because he’s losing interest.”

  Ariadne shook her head. Though she harbored more than a small bit of fear that that’s exactly what would happen. She’d watched Asher go through numerous girlfriends over the years. She’d never seen him with the same girl twice. She had every reason to believe that he would tire of her. She was nothing like the exotic and bold beauties he’d dated over the years. He’d even admitted to breaking women’s hearts. She didn’t want to add hers to the pile. Sure, he told her he loved her often, but she didn’t know how many other women had received the same words. Anyone who knew his history couldn’t blame her for being cautious. She was head over heels in love with him but she couldn’t trust him or what they had enough to tell him.

  “He’s taking me out to dinner tonight. I just thought I’d surprise him.”

  Sierra grinned. “Well, aren’t you being the perfect little naughty wife.”

  “Oh, my God, Asher Hollister, is that you?”

  Ariadne could tell from the wince on Asher’s face that the woman approaching their intimate little table for two was one of his exes. Sadly, it wasn’t the first time t
hat they’d run into one of his previous bedmates. And it surely wouldn’t be the last, but Ariadne was hoping that the news that he was off the market would spread soon because none of these women were in the least bit deterred by the sight of another woman on his arm. Since Ash didn’t tend to stay in relationships long, they figured they only had to bide their time until he was available again.

  The tall, curvy brunette bent and hugged him. “I haven’t seen you in forever. How have you been?”

  “I’ve been well. And you?”

  “Good, good.” She finally turned her head to look at her and her eyes widened in surprise. Ariadne was also taken off guard. She remembered this woman from high school. “Ari? Hi.” She glanced back at Asher. “What are the two of you doing together?” Taking in the setting for two, she asked, “Are the two of you planning something for Ted and Erika?”

  “No, Sandy. Um, Ash and I got married.” She held up her left hand and smiled.

  Sandy’s eyes almost popped out of her head and her knees wobbled. “You’re kidding?” Several heads turned their way at her exclamation. “But the two of you hated each other?” She stared at Ash and then she laughed. “Oh, hell, why didn’t I see it before? I always thought your obsession with teasing her bordered on obsessive. I remember one time when I-”

  Asher cleared his throat. “So, Sandy, what have you been up to since high school?”

  “I opened a boutique with my cousin Mary. The two of you just have to visit. I got married and divorced.” She shrugged. “These things happen. But life is good. So how did the two of you get together?”

  “It’s a long story. Suffice it to say, we couldn’t fight the attraction anymore,” Ash said. “Anyway, it’s been nice seeing you again, Sandy. We’ll have to catch up more some other time. Ari and I are still newlyweds. I’m sure you understand.”

  “Certainly. I’ve got to get going anyway. It was good seeing you. You’re gorgeous as ever.” To Ari, she said, “And, please, tell Erika I said hello.”