Marriage by Law by N.K. Pockett Page B

asked with a smile. Orange is such a nice color, so bright, so orangey, so...bright.
     
    Isn't it a lovely color?

     
     
    Present Time
     
     
    Something shook me. It wasn’t an earthquake. And if it was, too bad I was going to sleep right through it. I was way too comfortable to move. There was a rougher shove and I groaned. Okay, maybe this wasn’t as comfortable and I slowly opened my eyes, waiting a few seconds for my eyesight to adjust.
     
    "Wake up, sleepy head," I heard a voice say. I blinked back the sleep and stared into a black sleeve shoving me and I glared at it, making it go away with my stare.
     
    Only then did I realise that the sleeve I was staring at belonged to a body, the same body I was using as a pillow. I sat up straight away, putting as much distance between us as possible and rubbing my head. Actually, I’d rather be in that earthquake.
     
    "Is it over?" I asked awkwardly, surprised that he even let me lean on his shoulder.
     
    "Yes."
     
    Darius stood up while I groaned and leaned back into the seats that were too soft now. Damn, that was the best sleep I had gotten in ages. I yawned again. I felt his shadow over me and peeked to see that he was standing with his arms crossed over his broad chest.
     
    "Still sleepy? You just slept through the whole movie," he said, his eyes sparkling with amusement.
     
    "A girl needs her beauty sleep, okay. And it wasn't the whole movie, more like the last five minutes," I said with yet another yawn and a wave of my hand.
     
    "Oh really? What happened in the movie then?" he dared, propping himself against the seats behind him and crossing one ankle over the other. I was just waiting for him to lose balance and fall backward; it didn’t happen.
     
    I closed my eyes and waved a hand. Darius grabbed it and effortlessly pulled me up like I weighed nothing. The sudden movement made me squeal. I opened my eyes to tell him off when I came face to face with his chest.
     
    "Eh, the random cliche?" I asked, looking up. His green eyes stared down at me, his eyebrows knotted. I only just realised how close we were. I could even smell his cologne or whatever it was. I stepped away first and walked down the aisle.
     
    "Or was it about monkeys and a planet?" I asked, yelling over my shoulder. That was the last black and white movie I watched before. I had fallen asleep on someone else's shoulder. I shook my head and tried to erase that memory.
     
    I heard him chuckle as we both hit the pavement for the walk back home.
     
    "What's the plan for tomorrow?" I asked as I placed my hands in my jacket pocket. It was freezing and I was grateful I had brought my jacket.
     
    "What do you want to do?" he asked. I shrugged as I looked up at the bright moon. The clouds looked gray in the sky. There were a few stars here and there you could see between the clouds.
     
    "Snorkeling?" he asked.
     
    I shot him a look. "Seriously? I just went!"
     
    "Well I didn't, so let's go again," he said. I shrugged. I did have a good time last time, apart from one thing.
     
    "As long as you don't book the same guy as last time," I muttered.
     
    "What?" he asked.
     
    "Nothing," I sang, walking faster. "Hurry up. I am starving and I might make food when I get home," I said, looking over my shoulder. I saw the glint of his teeth as he smiled and walked faster home. Damn, I was hungry.
     

     
    Dinner was quick and quiet, which really meant opening a packet of chips and eating them. Yep, we were so healthy. Darius left and said goodnight, which was a first, and I went over to the computer to see what we can possibly do.
     
    I was Googling things when I remembered we were in Melbourne, and apart from the fashion, food and culture of this town, what else is famous? Football, of course!!
     
    I quickly Googled possible AFL matches and nearly screamed when I realised my team and a rival were playing tomorrow night! Only the tickets were nearly sold out. Grabbing my purse and the credit card