The Entanglement Clause ✓

Chapter 5, part 2

"I think I should probably stay quiet now."

"Because you and I have a no entanglement clause. That means we get to exercise our bodies together, however we see fit, and then we both get to go off and live our lives without judgement or attachment or weird jealous rages. I believed you to be capable of this. Was I wrong?"

"Wait, you just spoke about our agreement in the present tense. Does this mean you'll have sex with me again? I thought it was a onetime deal."

Emmie uncrossed her arms, crossed them again. "Answer my question. Are you capable of maintaining the non-entanglement agreement we came to yesterday?"

Ryker took a step towards her, hoping that Sam might be able to spot them through the diner's shaded windows. He grabbed her waist. "You're so no-nonsense. I like it."

Emmie bit her lip, straining to keep a straight face. "Just answer the question."

He pressed her hips to his. "Yes, I am capable of our sex-only arrangement provided you add the clause to our entanglement clause stating that our one-night stand has now been extended to an unspecified number of nights and/or days in which both claimants wish to extend their contract."

"I hope you have a good lawyer looking over all of your company's legal matters because not all of that made--"

Ryker stilled her words with a kiss, then pulled away from her surprised face, grinning. "I think we have a deal. And when I say "deal" I hope you know that it includes the pizza that I'm bringing over to your place tonight."

"Well, I..."

"Please say you like pizza. I'm not sure if I can go through with this arrangement of ours if you don't."

"Is it deep-dish?"

"Is it... what? No, it's just pizza, regular pizza."

"That's disappointing. Deep-dish is my favorite."

Curious. He couldn't help but wonder again where she was from. Deep-dish pizza wasn't exactly common place in the Pacific Northwest. "You've never had Marty's. He's been throwing pies for almost thirty years. He's got this one that's topped with clams and--"

"I'm sorry, did you say clams? I thought it was just 'regular pizza.'"

"It is around here."

"Well, I guess when in Rome..." She laughed. "I'll see you at six. But tell Marty to go light on the mollusks, okay?"

Eying the door, Emmie took a step away from him. She was already late for work and now he was making her even later. It's not like Trish would fire her. But maybe she didn't realize that.

"I'll let you get to work. See you tonight."

He turned and walked back to his car at a brisk pace, refusing to look back in her direction. Somehow, she had the upper hand here. She'd gone missing for five minutes and he'd come running. And he'd let on to the fact that he'd pretty much agree to whatever she wanted in order to spend another night—and hopefully nights, in her bed. The most disturbing thing was... he wasn't sure if he minded her having the upper hand.

Something must be wrong with him. He hadn't let a woman have precedence in his life since Carin and he wasn't about to begin now. Maybe it was the fact that Emmie's insistence on keeping things physical made her seem safe.

That smile of hers, though... there was nothing safe about it. He'd have to guard himself against her charms with the vigilance of a bear protecting its cubs. As long as they both stuck to their agreement, he had nothing to lose. So, for today, he would focus on a different mission: convincing Marty to put a deep-dish pizza on his menu.

A/N: A little background: Chicago deep-dish pizza, for those of you who don't know, is a really big thing in the Midwest. Emmie was inadvertently giving Ryker a clue as to her origins when she brought up deep-dish. I'm not saying you can't get that style of pizza in the Pacific Northwest, but it's not common. I am from Milwaukee originally and now live in Washington State. I have never had clam pizza, however. Someone tell me if it's good or not! I do prefer a thin, crispy crust, though. 

So, Sam and Ryker meet. It could have gone worse, right? Is Ryker really jealous? What will Sam think of him? Will Sam go away and not come back or is he going to stick around? Thoughts?

Today, votes will be collected to buy Emmie the mollusk-free deep-dish pizza of her dreams. Perhaps it will sooth her homesickness a bit...

My dedication today is for jennijames2 who came through with many great choices of actresses to play Emmie. Thank you, Jenni!