“I thought you might want to take a little break,” he says, smirking. He sets the bag down on the counter and I fight every urge inside of me not to tackle him against it.
I walk over to him and come to a stop just out of reach. “I guess I have time for that.”
He grins wider, leaning into me slightly. “Oh, yeah? What else do you have time for?”
Before I can answer, he tugs me by the waist until I land against his chest. His lips hover over mine and my stomach resumes the summersaults it’s been doing since last night.
Feeling bold, I trail my finger down his chest. “I have at least an hour before my next appointment.”
His hand threads through my hair, pulling me even closer. “Perfect.”
30
Say When
Perry- Now
The entire time I was at Cornell I thought about Tess. The entire fucking time. When she kissed me in her garage before I left—I was shook. It caught me so completely off guard that I didn’t know what to say. So, I pretended it didn’t happen. And now? I can’t stop kissing her. Literally every time I see her all I can think about is how amazing her lips feel against mine. How I can’t believe we waited so long to actually do it—and how I’m not sure what it will mean moving forward.
I’d be totally lying if I said I’m not still thinking about Sloan. My proposal was real and with her feelings still in the air, it creates a problem I didn’t see coming. I have a real shot with Tess, and I’m desperate not to screw it up. If only I hadn’t been so impulsive. Sometimes falling into old habits is easier than trying for something greater. But I guess I always learn the hard way.
Today was the first day I technically worked at her shop. I had several clients and it actually went really well. So, to celebrate my return to the tattoo world I’ve decided to take Tess out tonight. A part of me is terrified. We’ve gone out together a million times over the years, but tonight feels different. Tonight feels like a date.
I’m back at my apartment getting ready when my phone rings. I glance at the display and immediately wish I hadn’t. Taking a deep breath, I answer.
“Hey, Sloan.”
“I tried to call you last night. You didn’t answer.”
She sounds irritated, which pisses me off. She’s the one on a trip with Johnny right now. I didn’t expect to hear from her at all.
“Well, I was busy.”
She scoffs. “Busy doing what?”
I laugh bitterly while trying to find a decent shirt in my closet. “That’s not really any of your business, is it?”
“Really? That’s how you’re going to be now?” She sighs heavily. “Perry, I’m sorry about how I acted the other day in your car. You just surprised me.”
Her voice is almost background noise as I continue to rummage through my closet. When’s the last time I bought clothes? I don’t want to take Tess to dinner looking like a thug.
“Perry? Are you listening to me?”
“Yes,” I say quickly. My tone is short, but I really don’t want to be bothered with this at the moment. It’s bad enough that I have to figure out what’s going on between me and Tess. Adding Sloan to the mix and her constantly changing mind, only makes this that much harder.
“You sound angry.”
I squeeze my eyes shut and take a few deep breaths through my nose. “I’m sorry, okay? I worked all day and now I’m running late for dinner.”
I regret the words as soon as they escape my mouth.
“Who are you having dinner with?”
“Tess.”
“Tess, huh?”
“Yeah, so?”
“I just think it’s weird you’re spending so much time with her. You two work together and now you’re having dinner.”
I finally spot a black button down in the back of my closet and pull it angrily from its hanger. “What’s your point, Sloan?” I balance the phone against my ear while pulling the shirt on.
“Is there something you need to tell me?”
This causes me to laugh. “You’re really one to talk. You have dinner with Johnny every night. You sleep with Johnny every fucking night. It’s total bullshit for you to even think you have the right to question what I’m doing.” I switch the phone to my other ear and finish buttoning my shirt. “And just so you know, I’m not doing anything. I’m just having dinner with my friend.”
I know it’s a lie as soon as I say it, but the last thing I need is for Sloan to go off on some rampage because she thinks I’m with someone else. She does it every time we break up. I’ve never been able to form a meaningful relationship outside of her and that scares me too. This thing with Tess has to be real. If we jump into this and it doesn’t work out, we’ll never be the same. I’ll lose my girlfriend and my best friend at the same time.
“Okay, fine,” Sloan says finally. “I’ll call you when I get back then?”
She says it like a question and my stomach sinks a little. Obviously she’s still under the impression that my proposal is still an option—and at this point, I’m not sure that it is.
“Yep, I’ll talk to you later. Have fun.” I end the call before she even responds. We could talk in circles all night and still not get anywhere. Tonight, I need to focus on something I started, and I’m not sure I can finish it.
I grab my keys off the dresser and take a deep breath. I’m not going to panic until I find out how Tess feels. Maybe I’m blowing this whole thing up in my head for no reason?
When I picked her up, she was quiet. That’s not really like her, and I find myself acting weird too. I kept glancing over at her out of the corner of my eye while trying to remember where I’m driving to. The dress she has on and the way she smells is distracting. Tess always smells amazing—but tonight, I want to devour her. Every darkened curl is meticulously in place and that tight little dress is hugging every curve in just the right way. I’ve had to stop myself from my salacious thoughts several times already and we haven’t even made it to the restaurant yet. I think I’m in trouble.
After parking the car, I get out before her so I can get her door. It’s a fairly normal reaction for me because I’ve always done it for Sloan, but I’ve never been in a situation to do it for Tess.
She smiles up at me and takes my hand as I help her from the car. When we start walking toward the entrance, I keep her hand in mine, and it makes my heart beat faster. We’ve held hands countless times and never did it make my chest ache like this. Literally everything we’re doing now feels different, but I can’t stop myself. I like the way it feels. I don’t think I realized how lonely I was until I kissed her. It’s been so long since I’ve actually felt close to someone. Sloan doesn’t count. She never made me feel secure. Not even once.
We get a table by the window in the back that has a view of the harbor. Just enough of a romantic atmosphere to make this awkward. Maybe I should have chosen a less obvious place? She’s going to know something’s up and I have no idea what she’s going to think about it.
Silently, we browse the menu for a moment until she finally speaks.