Free The Arrangement by Thayer King

he’d dated when he was in high school who’d basically turned into a stalker when he began avoiding her. Admittedly, Susan hadn’t been nice to any of them. But then, neither had been Asher’s sentiments about her after he’d dumped her. “I didn't want to date her. I wanted to do her. And I did. And now I'm done.” So, no, she wouldn’t risk her friendship with Erika for a mere fling. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
    “Do I sound like I’ m kidding?”
    She struggled until he finally let her go. “Good grief, Asher!” She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “I only let you kiss me because of the dare. There’s no way in hell I would put myself through the indignity of dating a wastrel like you.”
    His eyes narrowed. “You enjoyed that kiss as much as I did.”
    She didn’t bother to try to deny it. She didn’t want to challenge him. “Look, it was nice-”
    “ Nice ?”
    “But I’m sure it’s no more than what you’ve experienced with hundreds of other girls. Thanks, Ash, but I’m not interested.”
    “Fine,” he said shortly. He opened the door. “ You’re right. There are hundreds of other girls that are far more willing.” He preceded her out of the room. For the rest of the party, if they happened to cross paths, he either ignored her or glared at her. After that night, their relationship had gone from mildly antagonistic to all out warfare. Thus she had begun to avoid him whenever she could.
    And now she was married to him. She had to admit that nothing she had seen over the last few weeks reminded her of the guy she had known before. He seemed more mature and more grounded. It was an ironic twist. Once she hadn’t even considered him proper dating material and now she would be proud to introduce him as her husband at her family reunion.
     

Chapter Six

    July third dawned cloudless and hot. Ariadne let Asher do the driving. She’d asked her mother if she wanted to ride with them but Aurora was travelling with her new boyfriend. They drove straight to the park where a many of her family members were already gathered. Ariadne’s mouth began to water at the smell of hot dogs and hamburgers being cooked on the grill. Breakfast, a simple meal of tea and toast, had been hours ago.
    Asher held her hand as they walked over to the tables laden with food. Over breakfast they’d decided that handholding was the appropriate amount of affection. It wasn’t over the top or offensive, but it would signify that they were one unit.
    The park was filled with her family, their mates, and their children. Dozens of children screamed and laughed as they ran around the playground area.
    Greetings by several family members waylaid them on their path to sustenance. Though they tried to play it cool, Ariadne could sense their interest in Asher. Some of them couldn’t hide their surprise at finding out that she was married. They inspected Asher from head to toe. It wasn’t until that moment that she remembered that Asher was white. She’d known him for so long, she saw so much beyond his race. To her, he was simply Asher. Admittedly, much of what she knew about him was no longer true. He was no longer a smoker who drank to excess and exchanged women at the same rate that she changed her underwear. What remained was a more mature male, as smart as before and sexier than ever.
    After they both filled their plates, Ariadne led them to a picnic table below the shade of a few trees. It was so hot that holding hands had become a sweaty burden for her. She lifted her hair off her neck. She wished now that she had styled it in a ponytail instead of wearing it loose.
    They were soon joined by her mother and her new boyfriend Jamil. Ariadne knew in a moment that her mother would not be with him for long. They had nothing in common. He engaged Asher in a conversation about sports. The only person Ariadne knew who cared less for sports than her was her mother.
    Something tickled her arm. Assumi ng it was fly,