The Accidental Wife (Emily and Julian)

or annoying.

"Silas, stop," Maisie whines, making me laugh as I hold the bottle high in the air. She is shorter than me, so she's struggling to reach it. Our friendship has grown stronger over the past two weeks and I no longer find helping her out with her work with the team exhausting She's over at my place today and we're cooking together. I enjoy teasing her, and I'm aware that she hates our height so to annoy her more, I hold the difference because it makes her feel short even though she's considered tall among girls bottle she wants up. "Why do

you I have

to be a pain in the a****" she groans as she jumps up, trying to catch the bottle. "What's the magic word, Maisie?" I smirk, making her roll her eyes at me. words f

"No magic

for you, Cromwell!" she hisses, doing her best to jump up, but ends up slipping. Quickly, I drop the bottle and catch her before she completely loses her balance. She holds onto my arms tightly as I adjust her body. My arms are around her waist. There's almost no space between us. "I owe you a a thank you I guess," she says with a smile.

"I guess,"

"I say. I know I should let go of her, but I don't and I'm not sure why.

I find myself leaning towards her and she does the same. Before I know it, we're kissing. I know I should pull away. I miss Rosie and I probably want to fill the void I have in my life, yet I don't stop myself from kissing Maisie.

Kissing her doesn't feel wrong, but it doesn't feel right either. I know if I keep comparing every girl that walks into my life with Rosie, it won't be fair, because nobody compares to Rosie. She has this special place in my heart and I'm certain nobody can take her place. "I think we should casually date," Maisie blurts when we pull apart, taking me by surprise. I don't know where this is coming from, but I don't find myself annoyed by the idea. "Nothing serious, Silas. But you're lonely and I'm lonely, so maybe we can help each other with "I'm not looking for something serious, Maisie," I truthfully say.

loneliness.

says. "Neither am I. I'm not ready to be in a serious relationship, but I miss dating and I trust you. I trust that you won't take advantage of me in any way if we casually date and I won't take advantage of you either," she

There are two conflicting voices in my head. One is telling me to go for it because there's nothing to lose. We're not looking for anything serious and we're just trying to find solace in each other's company. The other one is screaming at me to snap out of it. It's urging me to remember Rosie and my love for her My love for her isn't dead and whenever I see her, I fail to focus on anything but her. However, Rosie is moving on and she's building herself a new life that doesn't have me as her lover. What if I need to start thinking about doing the same?

"Maybe casual dating can be good for us," I find myself saying.

"But there's something I want you to keep in mind, Silas," Maisie tells me in a serious tone

"What is it?"

"If

If you ever feel that our casual dating is standing between you and getting Rosie back, we both have to stop," she says. I don't understand how she's casually talking about all of that. She jumps onto the kitchen counter and looks at me as she continues talking "Silas, I know that I'm going to be your rebound and I'm okay with that. It's casual dating, remember? Nothing serious. You want distraction from Rosie's relationship with that guy and I want company in the form of relationship." "I want you to promise me one thing, Maisie," I say. I don't want to cause her any pain and I want to make sure that we're

both on the same page.

"What?"

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"If you find the whole situation hurtful, walk away," I tell her.

"Deal." She smiles at me.

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I'm not sure if the decision we have just made is right or wrong, but I'm tired of overthinking. Maisie is right. I do need a distraction from everything that has been going on lately.

"Do you want this to be our secret?" she wonders, and I frown. "I mean, do you want us to keep this from the team?"

"Why would I want that?" I ask in confusion. Even if we're casually dating, why would I make Maisie my secret?

"There are many reasons actually. The whole team knows that you love Rosie and maybe the coach would think that it's not good if we mix personal life with business." She forms quotation marks as she says the word business. "I'm also putting Rosie into consideration to be honest," she admits. away from me "I'm not keeping you a secret, Maisie. Rosie has her life and I have my own. She made her decision to walk and date Everest and I have the right to make my own decisions. I run my fingers through my hair. "As for the team, I don't interfere with anyone's personal life, so I don't really appreciate anybody's interference with mine and I know how to put everyone in their places if I need to. As for the coach, he should focus on me being a good player and captain and you being a good social media manager. Nothing else." "If you say so." She shrugs with a smile as she hops off the counter. "Do you know what the best part of this is?" I give her a questioning look as I watch her movements. "I," she bends down and takes the bottle off the floor, "got the bottle in the exd." A wide grin is plastered on her face.

I have to admit, Maisie really puts me in a good mood.