Page 73 of Insta Bride

Pathetically, I tried for a half-truth. “My university graduation.”

“I recognize you, who’s the other guy?”

My eyes burned, “That’s—” I didn’t want to say his name.

“The last person you dated before me?” Kye asked as if the name didn’t matter.

“Yes.”

“You’ve got a photo of him in the house you’re about to share with your husband?”

“To be fair,” I laughed, not wanting to make the photo a bigger deal then it needed to be. “I didn’t realize I’d be bringing a husband home until half an hour ago. I didn’t realize I’d have a husband until less than a week ago.”

“Have you been together in this house?”

“Yes.” I’d never picked Kye as the jealous type, and this was over a photo of a guy who’d been out of my life for years.

“Hmm.”

I snapped, “Are you telling me that you’ve never had women back at your place?”

“I’m telling you that there are no photos of me with any women in my apartment.”

“How about online?”

“Their feeds, not mine.”

“So, our first fight is over my graduation photo?”

“Have you got other photos from the day—without him?”

“Yes, but I liked the way I looked in that one.”

“Like a woman in love.”

“That was then. Years ago.”

“Are you going to burn the photo?” Kye asked, fully serious and I thought back to the shoebox. I didn’t have any attachment to the photo, but I resented Kye walking in and expecting to make changes to my home.

Our home.

Reality had a way of smacking me across the face.

I remembered how he wanted to resolve arguments, and figured that flirting came half-way between fucking and food.

“Let me put it another way,” I said, nuzzling behind him, my chin resting on his shoulder as I took my graduation photo from his fingers and placed it, face down, behind all others. “If I’ve kept this photo on display, there must be a reason, right?”

“I guess,” Kye said, nodding.

“And, if I’ve kept other photos from the same time period, it might be for a different reason, especially if you can’t see them.”

“Yeah.”

I felt Kye relax back into me. I’d spent so many days jealous of other women, it had never occurred to me that Kye wouldn’t be the same confident, cocky, alpha back home. This side of him was endearing—as long as it didn’t get out of control.

“If we make it to six months, I’ll not only show you where the other photos are, I’ll hold the match while you burn them.”

“What about this one?”