“I told you, I don’t really know him. Maybe hot and broody are his defining character traits.”
“Oh my God. You finally admitted he was hot.”
I blushed. It was a fact really, not an opinion, but it still felt like a betrayal to Richard to say it out loud. “You know what I mean.”
“Hey,” she said softly. “It’s okay to admit another guy is good looking. You think Chance and Richard go through their days never noticing the gorgeous women they pass?”
Sometimes I did think that. At least about Richard. He never really mentioned beautiful people even in an abstract way like noting Kate Beckinsale somehow got hotter with age or staring a little too long at an attractive waitress. I couldn’t even remember if he’d ever called me beautiful. He praised my qualities like being caring and considerate and he often told me how much he loved how hard I worked at my job. Those were the things that were important to him – not looks. Why did that suddenly annoy me? It’s not like I wanted to be with someone who only cared about the outside either.
“I know you’re right, but I just don’t see him like that.”
She was scrutinizing me in that way she did, slipping back into her former days as a lawyer, so I grabbed my mug. “Come on, let’s go outside and enjoy the sunshine.”
The four of us sat at the outdoor table while CJ and Pixy ran around the yard. Aubrey sat next to Chance and they leaned into one another. I don’t think they even did it intentionally – it was just how they were together. Always wanting to be closer, drawn together like magnets.
“So, Richard’s coming next weekend?” Chance asked, placing his hand over Aubrey’s on the table.
“Actually, he’s coming in tonight. There is some big meeting in the California office on Monday and he’s gunning to be the point man.” I left out that I was ninety-nine percent sure Richard’s sudden visit had something to do with the man staying at my house. He could finally see for himself that I was perfectly safe.
“You guys should come over for dinner then,” Aubrey said and looked to the odd man out. “Finn, you should come too.”
I looked to him to gauge his reaction to a night in with two couples. It looked pained, as I expected.
“Thanks for the offer, but I’ve got plans.”
“Hot date?” Chance asked.
“Eh,” Finn started and then ran a hand over his scruffy jaw.
Chance laughed. “Good for you, mate.”
On the walk back to my place, Finn made small talk. “The boyfriend lives in New York?”
“Yeah. He got transferred to start a new office, so he travels back and forth. Though most of his time is spent there right now since he works such long hours. He’s indispensable. Been at the company since it started.”
Finn nodded; hands shoved in the front of his jean’s pockets. “Does he know I’m staying at your place?”
“Of course,” I said maybe a little too pointedly.
“And he’s cool with it?” He slowed and waited for my answer. We were only a few steps from my house, but it seemed like the answer was important before he walked inside again. Was Richard cool with it? I hadn’t really given him any other option, had I?
I went with, “He trusts me.”
I moved past him and he followed me inside and past the maze of boxes. Kitty was hiding behind the last one and jumped out at me making me scream and stumble.
Finn was beside me in a split second. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
His hand wrapped around my elbow in a protective hold. I glanced at the place where we were connected and up into his concerned blue eyes before I answered breathlessly, “Your cat scared me.”
I leaned down, breaking his grasp, or maybe he let go, and picked up kitty. I petted her head and I swore the little thing smiled happily at me like she’d been playing a practical joke.
“That tiny little thing scared you?” His concern had turned to amusement.
“What are all these boxes?” I changed the subject, turning the tables on him and wondering why I was suddenly so frustrated and annoyed by them. They were just boxes and somewhere deep, deep down I knew I was being irrational but couldn’t stop it. “You’re blocking the whole entry way. The Feng Shui is all off in here now and I’m liable to break my neck.”
He laughed, a deep rough chuckle, head tilted back. “Good thing the boyfriend is coming tonight. Someone’s in need of a good dicking.”
I seethed. “All I need is for you to move these boxes.”
Richard arrived late in the afternoon. Finn had disappeared sometime after I’d stormed off to my room for a long shower and still hadn’t returned.
Richard smiled at me and pressed a peck to my cheek. “Missed you.”
“Me too.” I leaned into his embrace for just a second before he pulled back.
“I’m exhausted.”
“Were you able to sleep on the plane?”
“No, I needed to finish some reports for Monday and then I got sucked into that new Jason Statham movie. I thought I’d put it on and fall right to sleep, but the next thing I knew, the flight attendants were preparing for arrival and Statham was saving the day.” He stopped when his rolling suitcase got caught on the edge of a box. “Woah. You weren’t kidding about him taking over the place. Those boxes are a real inconvenience.”
Hearing Richard make a big deal out of it made me realize how dumb it really was. They were just boxes. One more week until they’d be gone for good. Along with their owner. One week.
Okay, eight days to be exact, not that I was keeping track.
I followed Richard into my bedroom. He placed his suitcase tidily in one corner and then finally wrapped me in his arms and pulled me against his chest. I nuzzled in, closing my eyes and inhaling his familiar scent and the feel of his starched shirt against my cheek.
“We need to be at my brother’s in forty-five minutes,” I said as I raised my head and tilted up to brush my lips along his. He smiled and my body hummed with need. It had been too long without sex. I craved the connection between us as much as I did the orgasm. Or nearly as much anyway. Days apart and weeks without being touched, I didn’t know how he hadn’t already torn my clothes off and tossed me to the bed caveman style.
Actually, I did know. Richard treated me with the utmost respect and patience. He knew all about my past and you couldn’t know those things without treating me and sex with me differently. I’d learned that over time. Harry had been the same way. Eventually I hoped Richard would understand that it was okay. I wasn’t as fragile as he thought. It wasn’t like the sex was bad – it was great, it just lacked that eyes rolling back in the head, out of breath, passion I believed was still possible for me sober and damaged.
At the height of my addiction, I’d been raped. Though I didn’t remember it, only the excruciating days after when Chance had found out and went on a rampage to destroy everyone who had a part in it. Being raped hadn’t killed me or my ability to enjoy sex. It just made it so everyone else believed it had. In some ways it probably saved my life. Who knows what else might have happened if I hadn’t had such a brutal wakeup call?
“I’m so tired. Is it okay if I skip dinner? I’ll see them tomorrow.”