Understudy [ABO] [MxF] [18+]

T W E N T Y - O N E ~ 1 8 +

Did ya'll think I'd forgotten this is a smut story? Think again lol. Get ready for some back to back chapters of steamy goodness xx

~

Ally decided she could get used to being spoiled like this.

They had been at the beach cottage for a few days now, and she had barely lifted a finger. Although her comment to Daisy about him earning his place had been a joke, Elias really had been doing all of the little jobs around the cottage, leaving her to simply kick her feet up and relax. Her morning sickness had finally settled for the most part too, which meant she was also able to sleep better than she had in weeks.

She looked up from her book to watch Elias cooking their dinner in the small kitchen, his back turned to her. Poppy had said that clothes had been provided, but she had certainly chosen some interesting items. Most of Elias' shirts were a size too small, and almost seemed painted onto his body rather than sitting loosely like a shirt should. Not that Ally really minded. Watching the way the muscles in his back moved as he prepared their food stirred something in her that she knew was dangerous. She also hadn't seen him dressed in casual clothes much, and decided she liked it far more than his usual suits or clinic coat.

Her resolve to maintain their distance had crumbled a little each day, barely hanging by a thread now. She was at least keeping up a front to him; he still avoided touching her, and let her dictate their plans for the day, but she knew in her own heart that she was one touch away from caving. With not a lot else to do in the cottage but read and swim, they had ended up talking quite a bit, and she could tell he really did regret what he did. She did too. He tried to tell her that she had been justified in how she left him that evening at the restaurant, but she still felt awful about it. And more than a little guilty about banging on the restaurant's table.

Elias assured her with red cheeks that the restaurant had been more than compensated for it.

"Food is ready," he called out to her, and she quickly looked back down at her book before he turned around and caught her staring. "Ally?"

He had finally taken to using her nickname for the most part, after she forced him to. She had said it was because her parents called her Allegra and it made her uncomfortable; truthfully, it was because every time he said her full name, she couldn't stop her face and core from burning something fierce. It had been too dangerous.

"Coming!" She replied and slipped her bookmark into its place, then made her way out to the verandah overlooking the beach. There was a small dining table setup out there where they had taken to eating their meals, particularly dinner, where they could watch the sunset.

Elias came out carrying two bowls of some kind of creamy pasta and set them down, and took a seat in his usual spot. Ally did the same, and didn't hesitate to dig into the meal.

"This is delicious, as always," she almost groaned, savouring the flavour. "It's not fair. What are you not good at? There has to be something."

Elias chuckled as he spun his fork in the pasta, "Oh, there are plenty of things, but I won't give you the answers freely."

"Cheapskate," Ally stuck her tongue out at him playfully before going back to her pasta.

She didn't really pay attention to their conversation after that. It wasn't anything particularly exciting. Elias had a skill for avoiding topics of conversation that she found engaging, typically because they involved him acknowledging their relationship. He was sticking to his promise of a marriage in name only more than she liked. Not that she had any right to complain; she had been the one to ask for it, but she hadn't expected... this. It wasn't just that he wasn't trying to get close to her, it was like he was purposely taking a step away whenever she reached out to him.