Green Card

5 Maid on Rosè (Piper)

I waited in my room until I was certain that Lucas had left for work before making my way to the kitchen in an effort to grab a muffin and a glass of milk before anyone noticed. Unfortunately, this house was crawling with servants and Luisa caught me immediately. I made some excuse about sleeping in, tired from the flight and the time change, and slunk back to my room to be alone.

But being alone had meant a night full of no sleep and thoughts about my husband that had me questioning my own rules already. I needed to get out of my head and, maybe, out of this house. But first, I needed to call Leah.

She answered on the second ring.

"Girl, spill," she snapped the second her face popped onto my screen.

"We have been staring at your gorgeous hunk of a husband for twenty four hours now," Connor added from nearby and Leah turned the phone to show an image of Lucas filling the screen of her Macbook.

"I'm here too!" a familiar voice shouted from off screen and Leah adjusted the camera so I could see Vince as well. "And not at all threatened by Connor referring to another man as a gorgeous hunk."

"I'm sorry but you do have eyeballs, yes?" Connor queried.

"Great, you've called the council together," I groaned from my end and Leah turned the camera back onto her.

"Sorry babes but this is some serious shit you're in. We just want to help."

"I know," I told her and I did.

"So... how was night one in the Malibu Barbie dreamhouse?" Connor gushed, leaning into the frame.

"It was... unexpected."

"How?"

"I didn't think things would be so... easy. I mean, I was intimidated. I scrolled through news article after news article about the sexy self-made billionaire all the way here and got myself worked up into a panic attack. But then, actually seeing him, and talking to him, I realized he's still a person, you know? And not just a person but the same person that I married six years ago. I mean, not the same. He's... definitely different. But he's still Lucas. Our friendship is still there. Like it never stopped. Sure, it has some added complications now–"

"Like the sexual tension you can literally cut with a knife?" Connor asked.

"Yes," I replied with a grimace. "That."

"What are you going to do about that?" Leah asked.

"I might have... made my stance on the matter uncomfortably clear at dinner last night," I confessed and she raised a brow. I sighed and continued. "I made him agree to some ground rules."

"That's good. Ground rules are good. What are we talking here?"

"No talking to the agent without informing the other person. No making arrangements for me without my knowledge. He already had everything planned out when I got here. My day was scheduled the moment I stepped off that plane, it was ridiculous. Also, no dating other people. I don't want to look like a fool, you know. And, er, no sex."

I said the last part quietly, hoping they wouldn't catch it. But they did.

"What?" Connor exploded. "You said that to the man's face on day one? You just looked him dead in the eyes and said 'no sex' just like that? To your husband?"

I winced. When he said it like that...

"I want to set firm boundaries. I don't want his expectations to differ from mine. This is what's right, Connor. It's what's fair," I told him.

"I don't disagree," Leah said carefully. "And generally I would be all for setting firm boundaries with men but... babes, he's your husband. Would it... really be so bad to sleep with the man you've been married to for six years? Especially if you... well, do you want to?"