The Marriage Contract by Marlee Kimbrell (the snowy day read aloud txt) 📕

back to the girl and stared down at me, mirroring my shock from earlier. I looked back up at him with perfect nonchalance and his slightly confused expression stayed in place for a few seconds before he let it drop. "I'm sorry, I'm coming. Just let me pay for the food," he said, finally pulling the money out of his wallet.

The girl sent another glare my way, but wiped it off as soon as Ryland looked her way again. "Thank you, sir," she said, taking the money and handing over the pizzas. "You should totally call me sometime," she said flirtatiously, trying to hand him a little slip of paper.

My blood began to boil as I stared at her. Before she could place the paper in his hand, I stepping in front of him and grabbed it away from her, "Of course, sweetheart! If there are any openings in the mail room, we'll give you a call," I said sarcastically, slamming the door in her face. 

I stood there fuming for a minute, feeling Ryland's eyes baring down on me. "What," I asked, slightly defensive.

A large smirk peeled across his face as he looked down at me, "A bit jealous aren't we?"

I rolled my eyes at him, half playfully, "Don't flatter yourself, hubby. And I could ask you the same question," I said and walked back over to the couch and took my seat at the very end. When he didn't sit down next to me, I turned around to see him staring after me with an almost bewildered look on his face, still sporting his smirk half way. "Well, what are you waiting on? Get your butt over here so we can watch this movie!"

Ryland shook his head at me, but made his way over to the couch. He placed the pizzas down on the coffee table in front of us and picked up the remote and pressed play. 

It was as the beginning credits started to play and the tiny raptor hatchling started to emerge from her egg that I realized how excited I actually was to get to see this movie. I remembered going with my parents to see the second and third movie when they had first come out in theaters when I was just a kid, and it was almost a surreal feeling to be sitting with the man that I was to be marring in 2015, watching another Jurassic Park movie.

"So, I heard that this movie is supposed to be pretty good," Ryland said as a little boy talking to his mother came on the screen.

"Yeah, no doubt," I said, not for a second taking my eyes away from the television, "Jurassic World is supposed to have taken place like the second movie never existed."

He nodded, "Yeah, I think that I heard that somewhere, too."

-

Other than the casual and normal reactions to things going on in the movie, we both stayed quiet for the most part. As the movie wore on, I noticed myself getting more and more comfortable just being around Ryland like I would anyone else. And somewhere in the middle of that, I began to question my initial opinion of him.

The ending credits began to roll and I stretched my arms out and rolled my wrists, getting them out of their cramped state. Ryland and I had gone through the majority of the two large pizzas that we had ordered and downed at least three coke's a piece. I stood up from the couch and stretched up onto my toes, and looked back at Ryland with a small smile. "That movie was awesome," I said and he smiled back at me.

"Yeah, it was. It kind of hurt me for the velociraptor's that most of them had to die," he said. 

"I know! I was getting sort of attached to them. Like I want to get a puppy just so I can name it Echo or Blue," I said with a smile as I sat back down on the couch,

Ryland laughed, but agreed non the less. "Do you want to watch another? I don't have work tomorrow. I took of considering the fact that we have an engagement party." 

Both of us groaned at the same time, then laughed at ourselves and one another. "Sure," I said, sitting back down on the couch next to him. "You pick."

And thus went the rest of our night, even though I still slightly questioned his motives, he was successful in at least one thing - I may or may not actually enjoy his presence. 

Imprint

Text: Marlee Kimbrell
Publication Date: 05-23-2015

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