to the car. She jumped in and the engine purred so silently, she barely heard it.
âIs it on?â she asked.
Sage laughed. âYes.â
Nadalia noticed Sage hadnât gotten in the car yet. âArenât you going to join me?â
âAh, I really need a shower. Itâs been a long day.â
âAwww, come on.â
âBabe,â Sage scrunched his face. âIâll take my joyride on the way to dinner tonight. How about that?â
âCool!â
Sage didnât wait for Nadalia to get out of the car. Nadalia huffed, got out, and headed into the house behind him, skipping to catch up.
âWant me to join you?â she called after him as he trotted up the steps.
âNo! I mean, I donât think you should.â
Nadalia pouted.
âI mean, I donât think you want to. Let me just...freshen up first.â Sage turned and continued trotting up the stairs.
Nadalia stood in the foyer and watched him until he disappeared into their bedroom. Lately, he always managed to leave her with a sense of longing that his extravagant gifts werenât able to fulfill. She hoped he wasnât getting bored with her. How could he? She was beautiful, successful, and she kept herself up. Nadalia wondered what else it would take to get her husband to pay her a little more attention.
She thought about the bold statement her aunt always made: Men donât need much. If you feed and screw them, you can keep them happy. Nadalia surely wasnât much of a cook, so she had to resort to being phenomenal in bed.
âSage, honey!â she sang.
Nadalia decided to surprise him with a little special birthday attention before dinner as an appetizer. She slipped out of her clothes, tipped into the bathroom, and eased open the shower door. Sage stood under the stream of water with his head back and eyes closed. She stepped into the stall, which was large enough for six, and slid her arms around his waist. Sage jumped, startled by her presence.
âWhatâs wrong?â Nadalia dropped her hands.
âNothing, babe.â Sage looked annoyed. âYou just startled me. Thatâs all.â
âOh...well, I think youâve had enough time to freshen up on your own.â She threw her arms back around him. âI just wanted to say happy birthday to my big teddy bear.â
âThanks, babe,â he said, then leaned down and gave her a peck on her forehead.
Sageâs kiss felt so distant and void of passion. She sighed inwardly, but wasnât ready to give up. Instead, Nadalia squatted, taking him into her mouth. She couldnât decipher if she heard him gasp from the anticipation of the pleasure she was about to give him or if he had huffed. Deciding this was not the time to question it, she worked on his shriveled manhood, trying to massage it to life. Every time she let it go, it fell limp against his leg. After several attempts, her ego couldnât take it anymore. She chucked it up to Sage having a long day.
Nadalia pressed her hand against the tiled shower wall and lifted herself up. She read the apology in Sageâs eyes.
âIâm just a little tired, babe, but Iâm sure Iâll be better tonight after hanging out with the gang. All of the stress from today should be gone by the time we return home.â
Nadalia thought about the âgangâ. She would have never chosen the women as friends. They were forcibly juxtaposed because their husbands were so close. She tolerated them at the very least.
She didnât really have an issue with any of them specifically. Well, maybe she did have a little bit of an issue with that Pearson. Her mouth was uncontrollable. That and the fact she could drink anyone under a table. Pearsonâs curt mouth didnât scare Nadalia. In fact, Nadalia always met her toe-to-toe.
Not wanting to waste another second thinking about Pearson, Nadalia turned her thoughts back to her husband and her