by Linda Verji
Guilt niggled at her when she glanced at his unfinished meal. If she was a better hostess, she would’ve asked him to at least stay a while and finish it. But she knew that spending more time in his presence would be tempting fate so she said nothing. Without another word, He crossed the room and let himself out of her apartment.
When he was gone, she stood there trembling and cursing herself. How could she have let things go so far? How was she supposed to face him at work after the way she’d pounced on him? Moving to the armchair, she sank down and raised a shaking hand to her temple. Did this count as cheating? What kind of woman broke up with one man in the morning and kissed another one so enthusiastically in the night? And what had Greyson meant when he’d said ‘not today’? Was he planning a repeat performance?
Her heart jolted in excitement at that thought. But she immediately quelled it. No. No. No. Stop it. She had to be crazy to be thinking of kissing Greyson again… Yup! Blame it on temporary insanity. She was so distraught from her break up with Charlie that she’d gone looking for consolation even if it came from the worst of places. That was the only way to explain the madness that had gripped her tonight.
Yet even as she made the excuse, her conscience taunted her. When she’d been kissing Greyson, Charlie hadn’t even crossed her mind. It was all about Greyson and how he made her feel. Snow closed her eyes, recalling how she’d responded to his erotic kisses, how she’d come alive in his arms. Even now, her body was still swimming in drugged pleasure aching for Greyson and only Greyson.
Ugh! What was wrong with her.
CHAPTER 5
To say Snow had a rough night would’ve been an understatement. Her sleep was restless, haunted by the kiss she and Greyson had shared and by visions of what could’ve happened had he not stopped it. Her dreams taunted her with glimpses of his bare limbs tangling with hers, his skin brushing against hers, their sweat mingling and their breaths hushed and rough. It was so bad, she’d woken up a couple of times during the night to gulp cold water. Not that it helped. As soon as she closed her eyes again, his kisses and touches consumed her thoughts. No matter how hard she tried to shake him off, Greyson held tight to her dreams.
Ring. Ring. Ring. The persistent sound shook her out of her disturbed sleep.
She opened her eyes and was immediately assaulted by bright light that sent pain searing through her head. Whimpering, she turned to her stomach and hid her face in the pillow.
Ring. Ring. Ring.
“Ugh!” She groaned as she blindly reached towards the bedside table. Her fingers trailed the wooden top until they came into contact with the dastardly gadget that was making all that noise. The act of opening her eyes was like having her eyeballs pricked with tiny, bright needles but she somehow managed it. A glance at the caller ID revealed that it was her stepmother calling.
“Yvonne!” Snow exclaimed as soon as she answered the phone. “It’s too damn early to be calling me.”
“Early?” Her stepmother laughed. “Sweetheart, it is eleven a.m.. Jamie and I are outside your apartment.”
“Nooo.” Snow groaned. She wasn’t ready to wake up much less deal with her cheerful stepmother and rambunctious little brother.
“Yeees.” Yvonne laughed. “Come and open the door.” And before Snow could protest further she hang up.
Snow glared at the phone in her hand. Who in the world visited someone without asking if they were around – especially on their day off? That was sacred time. If Yvonne and Jamie weren’t family, Snow would’ve left them out there. Grumbling under her breath, she slipped a bra on under her t-shirt and dragged a pair of sweatpants up her legs before shuffling to the front door.
The moment she opened the door, her four-year-old brother hurled himself against her legs and his little arms circled her thighs in a bear hug. “Snowy.”
And just like that her annoyance faded. A smile quirking her lips, Snow lifted him into her arms until they were face to face and bussed his lips. “What’s up, Daddy?”
Like her father, Jamie’s full name was James Harrison. Snow was supposed to be the Jamie of the family, but her birth-mother, Nina, had refused to have her carry the name of the man who was too busy working to even attend the birth of his own daughter.
“Fine.” Cupping Snow’s face in his small hands, Jamie glared at her. “Where were you? We waited here for so long.”
“Please ask her,” Yvonne said, drawing Snow’s attention to her.
As usual the woman was the picture of immaculate elegance and style. Her ombrée weave had been styled perfectly to match her flawlessly applied make-up and the tailored teal dress adorning her tall, slender figure. Though, Yvonne was eight years older than Snow, Snow felt like a frumpy, old maid next to her.
Yvonne leaned forward to kiss Snow’s cheek before nudging her to move from the door so she could get into the apartment. “Having a day off is not an excuse to sleep in.”
“Yes, Mother,” Snow said sarcastically before she noted the food-bag Yvonne was carrying. “What’s that?”
“Your breakfast,” Yvonne threw over her shoulder as she started toward the kitchen. Before Snow could ask, she added, “And yes, it has lots of cheese and meat, you little cannibal.”
Snow grinned. “I love you, Mommy.”
Yvonne’s response was a short snort that made Snow’s grin widen.
Though Snow couldn’t stand her father, she and her stepmother had a close relationship. However, it hadn’t always been this way. Nine years ago when James had introduced them, Snow had hated Yvonne on sight. Why would a twenty-six-year-old woman marry a man old enough to be her father if not for money? And Snow was supposed to think of her as her mother? She didn’t need a mother. She’d lived without one for thirteen years and was doing just fine.
Snow had to admit that she hadn’t been the best of step-daughters. No, that was an understatement. She’d been a monster; rude, ignoring Yvonne, ranting about her to anyone who would listen. To make matters worse, James treated Yvonne much better than he’d ever treated Snow’s mother. He’d made an effort to cut back on work and was affectionate to the younger woman. It only made Snow angrier and more resentful and she’d done everything in her power to make Yvonne’s life a living hell.
Any other woman would’ve tanned her hide or at least insisted that her father enroll her in a college in another state – or galaxy. Lucky for Snow, Yvonne had chosen to go the high-road by being persistently kind and caring even when Snow didn’t know she needed someone to care for her. Slowly, she’d broken down Snow until Snow had raised the white flag. You win, woman!
“Hey, when was the last time you cleaned your microwave?” Yvonne asked when Snow and Jamie emerged in the kitchen.
“I don’t know.” Snow peered over Yvonne’s shoulder to check the microwave. “It looks clean to me.”
Yvonne turned her head to glare at her before shaking her head. “You must be blind.”
The older woman opened the drawer where Snow kept her cleaning supplies and brought the soap out. A moment later, she was vigorously scrubbing the microwave. Cleaning the microwave turned into wiping down the counters, eventually it moved on to emptying the fridge to make sure that none of the contents were spoilt. Meanwhile, Snow and Jamie sat on one of the counters eating and chatting about his week and his friends.
Yvonne broke into their conversation. “You didn’t come for dinner yesterday. Why?”
Even though Snow had expected the question eventually, the abruptness with which it came caught her by surprise. She froze with her half-eaten sub poised inches from her mouth.
Yvonne plucked several tins from the fridge before turning to Snow again. “And your phone was off so I couldn’t call you.”
Snow thought of lying that her battery had died on her, but realized that that would be a waste of time. Yvonne already knew why she hadn’t come to dinner yesterday. So instead, she asked, “Did he send you to ask me?”
This time Yvonne turned to face her fully. “D
oes he have to send me? Can’t I ask because I want to know or because I missed you? You know there’s more than one person at that dinner table, right?”
Her words were enough to prick Snow. Feeling guilty, Snow lowered her eyes to her lap. “Sorry, I’ll come next week.”
The older woman responded with a narrow-eyed skeptical glare that had Snow whining, “I will, I promise.”
“If you don’t, we’ll come for you on Monday. At five a.m.,” Yvonne threatened. “And don’t even think of running to any of your little friends because I’ll track you down then make them pay for abetting a fugitive before dragging you right back to our house.”
Snow chuckled. “Calm down, Sergeant Yvonne. I’mma be there.”
Her stepmother gave her one more warning glare before ordering, “Go shower and dress.”
“Why?” Snow bit into her sub. “I’m good the way I am. And I plan to go back to sleep as soon as the two of you leave.”
“You’re leaving with us.”
“I am?”
“Yup! We’re going shopping.” Yvonne grabbed her wrist and pulled her off the counter. “Jamie needs new clothes.”
“I need new clothes,” Jamie piped in.
“Can’t you go alone,” Snow whined.
“No,” Both Yvonne and Jamie said.
“This my day off,” Snow pleaded. “I want to chill.”
But Yvonne was unmoved. “You should’ve thought of that when you skipped dinner last night. You owe us.”
Snow didn’t want to go. All she wanted to do was sleep and forget all the mistakes she’d made last night. But she knew how persistent Yvonne could be so she surrendered. “Fine! But I’m only going on condition that you don’t insist on buying me anything.”
“Girl, please! I’m not that eager to spend my money on you,” her stepmother scoffed.
“I’m serious, Yvonne,” Snow insisted. Ever since James had cut Snow off financially because of her decision not to follow his preferred career path, Yvonne had been trying to make it up to her by buying her stuff or trying to deposit funds in her account. But to Snow that money was still James’ money, and she didn’t want any of it. Taking it made her feel weak, like she couldn’t make it without her father’s help. She gave Yvonne a level look. “Promise you won’t try to buy me stuff.”
“Fine. Fine. Fine,” Yvonne agreed as she pushed her towards the door. “I won’t buy you anything.”
An hour later, they left for Yvonne’s favorite store. April called while they were still on the road and after Snow told her where they were going, she met them at the mall. April wasn’t kidding when she’d said that she loved shopping. Judging by how enthusiastically, she dived into the activity one would’ve thought that she was shopping for her son and not Yvonne’s. Fortunately, Yvonne didn’t mind and even left them with her credit card while she went to meet a friend at a coffee-shop nearby.
Once Yvonne was gone, Snow lowered her voice so Jamie, who was clinging to her hand, wouldn’t hear and murmured, “Greyson kissed me last night.”
April’s head snapped towards Snow so fast that it was a wonder she didn’t get whiplash. Her eyes wide with shock, she gasped, “Lies!”
Snow shook her head. “Not lies.”
“Greyson?” April stared at her disbelievingly. Snow nodded. It still wasn’t enough for April. “Greyson Teller?”
“Yes, Greys-”
“I like this one.” Jamie cut into Snow’s words to point to a t-shirt on the rack. “It has Peter Pan.”
“No, that’s Robin Hood.” Snow pulled the t-shirt out from the hanger so she could get a better look. When she saw Jamie’s expression fall, she added, “But he’s just as cool as Peter Pan, maybe cooler.”
“Really?” Jamie looked up at her hopefully.
Though she could see that April was practically vibrating with questions, Snow focused on her little brother, “Really. Robin Hood used to steal from the rich and give to the poor.”
Jamie’s jaw dropped. “You mean the rich like us?”
His horrified expression was enough to draw laughter from both Snow and April. Between laughs, Snow said, “Okay, that might not be the best hero to teach you about. Let’s see if we can find another t-shirt for you.”
But Jamie wasn’t prepared to let the subject of Robin Hood go. He wanted to know who exactly this Robin Hood was and whether he was a reverse-Santa who took away gifts instead of giving them. It took a while for Snow to reassure Jamie that Robin Hood only went after bad rich people and he wouldn’t come in the night and take away his toys. Snow was winding down her explanation when Yvonne reappeared, effectively pausing the conversation between Snow and April.
By the time Yvonne led them to the food-court to get lunch, April was practically at bursting point. Lest her friend explode with Yvonne in the vicinity, Snow dragged her to the ladies room.
The door had barely closed behind them before April asked, “Details. Details. Details.”
“I met him at the mall while I was buying Elsie’s bike and he helped me pick it out. Afterwards I bought him dinner as a thank you, and we went to eat at my place. One thing led to another and we ended up kissing.”
April’s eyes widened. “Then?”
“Then nothing.” Snow shrugged. “We kissed. We stopped. He left.”
“What kind of kiss was it?”
“Does it matter?”
April thought about it for a moment before saying, “I suppose not.” After another pause, she murmured, “You can’t tell Charlie about this. If he finds out, he’ll throw a fit.”
“Why would he? It’s not like he and I are together.” Even as she said the words, doubt assailed Snow. She hadn’t thought of Charlie’s reaction.
“You two will be back together soon,” her friend explained, “and if he finds out that you kissed a man you spend more than half your day with, he’ll just cause unnecessary drama.”
“You’re assuming that Charlie and I are getting back together,” Snow said dryly.
April gave her a ‘please!’ look before continuing, “Just keep the kiss a secret. As for Greyson, I’m sure he also knows that it was a spur of the moment thing. Just pretend like it never happened.”
Snow listened to her friend but didn’t answer. She hated how April assumed that her getting back with Charlie was a guarantee and that Greyson was a non-factor. Was she so predictable that even her friend didn’t take her dalliances with other men seriously?
Anger swirled within Snow but it wasn’t directed at April. No, she was mad at herself. She was mad at herself for acting like she was Charlie’s doormat – the kind he could step on freely and without consequence as he went in and out of her life. The only reason Charlie took her for granted was because he knew that she’d be there when he came back to her.
Look at their situation now – despite him being in the wrong yesterday, all he’d done was send her a picture of her couch. That was it! He hadn’t even bothered to call and apologize. Probably because he assumed that when and if he finally decided to apologize, she’d just forgive him and keep acting like they were a fairy-tale couple.
She was mad at herself for acting like Charlie was the only man out there for her. Twelve years of crap yet she’d never bothered to see what else was out there. She’d treated Charlie like he was the only choice for her, the only one she could love. He, in turn, had treated her like she was just one of his many options.
For the first time, she felt like her eyes were open. Like someone had cleared the fog that had held her hostage for the last twelve years. With that clarity came a decision. She’d made the choice to be Charlie’s doormat, and now she was making a different choice. To open up herself to whatever, or whoever, else was out there. Whether it was Greyson still wasn’t decided.
* * * * *
GREYSON WAS GLAD that it was Snow’s day off. After last night, he didn’t know how he could’ve managed to cook with her in the same kitchen. Their kiss had affected him more than he’d expecte
d. He’d craved to take that kiss much further. He’d wanted to not just have her on his lap, but to have her there naked. He’d hungered for her delicate hands to caress his body, drift over his bare skin and touch him.
Even now as he sat in his office trying to study the restaurant’s accounts, Greyson couldn’t restrain his errant thoughts from wandering back to her. He couldn’t help picturing her as she’d been last night; her eyes wild with desire, her lips swollen with need, her breasts heaving with unrestrained passion. His cock strained against his khaki pants at that thought, taunting him with images of what could have happened had his common sense not intervened.
He could’ve undressed her, finally had a glimpse of her exquisitely voluptuous body. He could’ve finally had a chance to lick her smooth skin, suckle those ripe breasts, fit his body between her thick thighs. His imagination teased him with images of her laid out on the carpet open and eager for him. He imagined covering her with his body, sinking into her slowly, thrusting in deep and hard until her velvety tightness gripped every needy inch of him, until she clenched and shivered around him, until she screamed his name…
But along with those imaginings came the certainty that had he done all that, Snow would’ve regretted it and he would’ve ended up as a one-night stand. Greyson had no intention of being her one-night stand. He wanted much more than one night. Pulling away from her and leaving her apartment was the most difficult thing he’d ever done, but it was the right thing to do.
Unfortunately, he might’ve done it too late. He didn’t need to be a relationship guru to know that he’d screwed the pooch with that kiss.
“Damn.” Grinding his jaw in frustration, Greyson rose abruptly from his desk. “I shouldn’t have moved so fast.”
Sure, he wanted her more than he’d ever wanted any woman but he hadn’t intended to take things quite that fast. Snow was the kind of woman you wined, dined, courted before pushing for more. He’d started out so well but because of lust had ended up bungling his original plan and in the process scaring Snow.