Paper Bride ✔️ (Book 4 - DP Series - COMPLETE)

5. I'm A Dragon

The question throws me off a bit and the look of complete bafflement on his face doesn't go unnoticed. Does he not realize how uncommon this is? He takes a step back when I just continue to stare at him with my eyes narrowed and brows tilted down in question.

"I just—you never come to our room anymore," I brave saying.

"Oh." If I'm not mistaken, I'd say that he nearly looks dejected. He starts to leave and I can't fathom at all what just happened. Did I say something wrong? Adrenaline spikes through me in a wave of alarm and I take a step towards him. The movement snags his attention and he stops, his hand on the doorknob.

"You don't have to go," I say, motioning for him to come in. "It's as much your room as it is mine."

"Right." The single word leaves his mouth with mock amusement like he finds my statement to be ridiculous. He hovers in the doorway, not making any move to enter any further. I want to snatch up his hand and drag him into our room, throw myself in his arms and then carefully tempt him toward our bed, but I'm positive that would not go well. "I just came in to ask what the dinner plans were," he says.

I'm so startled by his words that I stutter a couple of times before I find the right thing to say. "Well, we can do anything you want." I know I'm treading on dangerous ground, but I'm so desperate to gain his attention that I'm willing to make a fool of myself. And that's why the next question escapes my lips. "We could go out somewhere?"

He looks at me for several heart-pounding moments. His green eyes are like fire, burning holes and sweat stains into my clothing. He's analyzing me, trying to figure out what the catch is. He can't fathom why I'd want to spend time with him. His thoughts are so incredibly clear to me at this moment that I can almost read them directly from his head.

"What if we just order in?" he counters, and my shoulders sag in defeat.

Of course he wouldn't want to be seen in public with me or have to suffer through agonizing conversation with me. I want more than anything to argue with him, but instead, I just nod. It's what he wants, and I'm all for giving him what he wants.

We get pizza, and then like every other night, we plop ourselves in front of the tv to eat in silence. I've finished off my fourth piece and have just settled back to relax when Seth stands to grab another slice. I take this moment as a perfect opportunity and slyly move a bit closer to where he had been sitting.

I see the hesitation in his movements when he returns. It's like he doesn't want to draw attention to the fact that he's noticed the change. Furrowing his brows, he shrugs off my attempt at getting closer to him and sits down.

Progress.

I could almost start dancing around the house at this point, and it's sad that something so minuscule could feel so gargantuan. So, I test the waters just a little further and swing my legs up on the couch so that they're crossed in front of me. My knee brushes his thigh and I can feel him tense.

I don't move. He doesn't move. We stay frozen like this for a good ten minutes before he leans over the armrest of the couch to set his plate on the floor. When he sits back up straight, I watch from my peripheral vision as he crosses his arms, and sinks his body away from me as far as possible without being obvious.

I'm almost having fun with the game. I just want to see how far I can push him before he breaks. I need to know what his limits are so that I can prod and massage them until they weaken.

A commercial starts and I take that as my opportunity to change positions. I end up scooting to the other end of the couch and then stretch my legs out so my feet are brushing his leg. This time he doesn't try to hide his reaction. Instead, he glances down, glaring at the offending foot. I ignore the heated stare he offers my extremity and, instead, shift it slightly so it rubs against his knee.

"Give it a rest, Mercy," he suddenly says, his words weary, yet forceful.

I hit the limit. Or, I guess, my toe did.

Darn toe.

My entire body has tightened into a firm ball of ice. I have no idea how to react to his words. Everything inside of me is dying to explode out. I want to tell him I love him. I want to beg him to give me a chance. I want him to want me. But I don't say a word.

Instead, I pull my knees up to my chest and turn to face the tv. I'm not watching it anymore. I don't care who lives or dies on the screen, because right now I'm the one dying. My heart is beating so fast that I know it's going to give out at any minute.

I'm humiliated. I should be able to touch my husband. I should be able to show him how much I love him. And yet, I can barely speak three words to the man without shriveling up in fear or being shot down by his lack of care.

Before the movie ends, I excuse myself and head back to my room. I'd rather leave by choice than have Seth kick me out with a lame excuse of needing sleep. So now I'm sitting alone on our bed, rewinding through our entire marriage and trying to piece together the moment things went wrong. But I can find nothing. We were perfect one day and shattered the next. Somehow I missed the small cracks that led to our demise.

I'm sure of one thing though. I will do everything I can to win his heart. I will not go down without a fight, and Seth Vans better prepare himself for that because I'm a freakin' dragon when it comes to winning. He might just have to learn that the hard way.