by Davies, Amy
I’m pleasantly surprised that I like it and then she shows me the shoes. “Scarlett, I won’t be able to walk in those! Please, can we go for a smaller heel? I will do anything else, just please pick a smaller heel.”
I look at my sister, pleading with her and I pout. “Oh Pup don’t look at me like that. No pouting, you know how it effect’s me.” Yes! It worked; I mentally high five myself.
“Fine Pup, I will look for a smaller heel, okay?” I wrap my arms around her shoulder and give her a squeeze.
“Thank You Scar,” I bounce over to James who is finishing up our meal. “What are you cooking?” I ask, while I sit on the counter.
“Chicken wraps with peppers, onion and mushrooms. I assumed since they were in the fridge that you both liked them. Oh shit, do you both like all this stuff?” I smile.
“Yeah babe, it’s fine.” James’s head snaps up at me in surprise that I just called him ‘babe.’ I smile at him and he returns a sexy smile. This feels nice. It feels strange to feel this happy again but I don’t want it to change; it feels good. James turns and stands between my legs, puts his hands on my ass, and slides me closer to him. He kisses me slowly, licking my bottom lip. I can feel his smile while he is kissing me. I pull away “So what do I have to wear to this wrap party?”
James shrugs “Whatever you want.” Scarlett darts over to us.
“James, don’t tell her that. She will go in jeans and Converse. We will look for something at the store tomorrow, okay?” I nod. I like some of the clothes we sell at Scarlett Avenue and I know I won’t have to pay for any of it. Perks of the being the owner’s little sister.
The three of us eat the chicken wraps that James made for us and they are delicious. We chat about the wrap party and Scarlett’s party. “Jeans and Chucks are fine with me as long as I get to show you off to all my friends. You can meet my best friend Marcus, he is a legend. All the ladies love him. He is hot, single and likes to party.” I look at Scarlett, who has risen from her birthday folder, to take in all this info on Marcus.
“What does he look like, you know since you said he is hot?” I smile at him.
“Why? Have you had enough of me already, baby? Did you not enjoy yourself upstairs?” I whip my head back to face him.
“JAMES!!!” He smiles his sexy smile at me. “Really, my big sister is sitting right there. Do you have to tell her about our sex life?” Scarlett just smiles at the both of us.
“She has a point James, what does Marcus look like? How old is he? Come to think of it how old are you Mr Wilde?”
He takes a sip of his water and answers our questions, “Both Marcus and myself are twenty-five. He is my BFF, as you girls would say.” He laughs and shakes his head, “We have been friends since we were three years old; his parents moved into the house next door to ours. We hit it off and have been friends ever since. Scarlett, for your main question. Marcus is six feet tall, give or take an inch, with dark hair a bit longer than mine, and green eyes. Is that to your liking?” Scarlett’s face is a picture; I could have sworn she was drooling. I reached over the table and closed her mouth, which in turn she snatched her head away.
“Any tattoos? Oh, I love a man with tattoos,” Scarlett swoons.
James smiles. “Yeah, he has tattoos. So am I going have to fight you off, since I have two tattoos?”
Scarlett looks at me and then back to James “I see. Can I have a closer look?” Oh great, here we go. Scarlett has a big weakness for men with tattoos. Every boyfriend she has had; has had a tattoo. James stands and Scarlett comes around the table to meet him.
Scarlett moves in closer, and she goes to run her hand over my boyfriend’s ribs. “Scarlett, don’t you dare, that body belongs to me.” I shake my head at her and she quickly puts her hand down. I look up at James and he is smiling at me, so I wink at him. Scarlett is still hovering, “Live & Breathe.”
She looks up at James, “I don’t get it, what’s it mean?”
Before James can answer “It’s for his brother Nate.” James smiles, leans over and kisses the top of my head before sitting back down next to me. Scarlett looks confused. I’m not confused, but I don’t know the reason behind the tattoo. I hear James take a deep breath.
“Scarlett, the tattoo is for my little brother Nate. Nate died when he was six years old from cancer.” Both Scarlett and I gasp.
Scarlett looks at me, “Did you know about this?” I shake my head, too afraid to speak; I can feel the burn in my eyes. Scarlett stands and packs her planner away. “I think you to need to talk before you tell me anything, I’m going to bed. James if you’re staying, I will see you in the morning,” and with that she leaves us alone in the kitchen. I take James’ hand and lead him into the lounge.
We sit on the large L shaped sofa facing each other. “Tell me about Nate.” He smiles and takes my hand.
“I was eleven at the time but we were very close. We did almost everything together, that we could do anyway. He was ill for a while and the chemo worked for a small time but Nate got sick again and went downhill pretty fast. I still remember coming home from school that day. My dad was sitting on the front porch and I could tell he had been crying.” He shook his head like he was trying to get rid of the picture in his head.
“James, if it’s too hard we can stop.” I grab a hold of his hand.
“God, what did I do to deserve you? You need to know Tally, if we are going to make a go of this. I want you to know.” I smile and kiss the back of his hand. “I came home from school one day and had a stomach ache most of the day, but didn’t really think anything of it. I just went through the motions of my school day. When I got off the school bus I had a feeling of dread hit me but didn’t fully know why. When I saw my father, I knew in my heart that Nate was gone. I remember screaming, dropping my school bag and running for my house. My father held me tight but I needed to see my brother.” He took in a big breath, “After some time, we walked into the house. I remember how quiet the house was, how it smelled.” A shiver runs through his body and I take that as my cue to climb into his lap. He wraps his arms around me, holding me tight to him. I kiss his neck and a small groan escapes from his mouth. I kiss him again and trail my kisses up to his ear, grazing my teeth across his earlobe; he tenses and tightens his grip on me. I smile against his hot skin.
James moves so that I’m now lying beneath his perfect body on the sofa. He runs his fingers down my cheek and I can’t help but lean into his hand. My heartbeat quickens and it’s from his touch. His lips brush mine, and I part my lips, inviting his tongue to play with mine. Our kisses deepen and my body heats with sexual awareness for James. I feel my way up from his wrist to his elbow, up to his shoulder until I find his hair. His soft hair. James’ hand trails down my body from my face, across my shoulder, and down my arm. He stops at my wrist and pulls away from my lips to plant a sweet gentle kiss on the inside of my wrist. He smiles at me with his devious smile, “Do you know how beautiful you are Tally? How amazing you smell?” All I can think to say is, ‘Oh, you smell good too Wilde.’ A shy smile slips across my face as I pull him back to my lips. I can taste him and smell him and it’s a head rush. How can James do this to me, to my body? He can make me forget everything in the world. I can now, for the first time since Dean, can see my future with someone. I could see myself making a life with James but can James see that with me? My heart skips a beat. I place my hand on James’s and run it along the side of my body, down past my hip and around to my ass.
Chapter 13
Wednesday morning was the best morning for as long as I could remember. Waking up next to James Wilde, in my bed after a very hot but sensual night of love making, was amazing. We made love twice. Each time James was gentle with me, planting soft kisses all over my body, cherishing every inch of me. We even talked more about my situation with Dean and how things went down in my life after that dark time. From the delicious memories I can feel my blush creep over my face and chest. I’m sitting in the staff lounge at Exposu
re, sipping at my tea when Carlos and Sam walk in. They take one look at me and smiles appear on both their faces. “So Miss Tally, what did you do on your day off? Or should I say who did you do?” I gasp and look at Sam, who has the most ridiculous smile on his face. Carlos sits in the chair next to me.
“So by the look on your face, you sorted things with James.” I nod, still blushing.
“See, I told you,” Sam says over his shoulder, while making coffees for himself and his lover.
I roll my eyes, “Yes Sammy, you did.”
Carlos looks at me with caring eyes “Are you both okay? Did you talk or just fuck? I don’t know what’s gone on between you two but there is something there.” I’m not sure how much Carlos knows about my past, but I can only assume that Sam has told him some details. I place my mug on the table and tuck my hair behind my ear, sitting back in my seat and looking at Carlos.
“We talked … a lot Carlos. It was good. We both got a lot off our chests. He told me about his brother who died when he was younger. It was nice.” I can see Sam giving me that you’re-not-telling-us-everything look. My heart rate picks up and a smile at the boys. “God! Sammy, do you have to look at me like that?” I blush yet again.
“Yes Talls; c’mon girl, don’t leave anything out.” I sigh and Carlos looks at his boyfriend, giving him a look.
“Yes Sam, we fucked okay. Is that what you want to hear?” We all burst out laughing. From behind us, I hear a familiar voice.
“Well, I thought we made love, but fucking is good too, as long as it’s with you.” I spin around to find James leaning against the door frame and I blush a whole new shade of red. Where the hell did he come from? I can’t pull my gaze from his and he walks further into the room and sits next to me, not taking his eyes off mine. He leans in and gives a full James Wilde kiss, full of passion. Wow. We pull apart and I look at Carlos and Sam and I can’t believe what I’m seeing; both Carlos and Sam are blushing. So it’s not just me that James effects, Thank god. I look at James and I’m wondering why is he here.
“What are you doing here?” James smile and fakes a hurt expression.
“Can’t a guy come and visit his girlfriend at her work place?” My heart skips a beat from the word ‘girlfriend.’ I look at James confused, and he frowns back at me; my happy loving mood just took a nose dive.
“That’s our cue babe, let’s leave these two to it.” I watch as Carlos and Sam leave me alone in the lounge with James. Why does it shock me when he says the word ‘girlfriend?’
“Why are you still having trouble with me calling you my girlfriend, Tally? I thought after last night we would have been able to get past this.” I play with my ring again, it’s a nervous habit and I can tell that James is catching on about it. “Why are you nervous baby? Talk to me please.” Taking a deep breath I look up at James, his eyes searching mine. His hair is still perfectly styled but he is looking all boyish, even though he is twenty-five. He is wearing faded blue jeans and a tight blue v-neck t-shirt. He is just simply hot.
“It scares me, being someone’s girlfriend again. I know that you won’t hurt me James, believe me I know.” I touch his thigh and I can feel the heat radiating through his clothing. “Give me time and I will get used to it.” I give him a pleading look and he smiles at me. “James, I’m trying, okay?” I kiss him and I know instantly that it was a mistake. James deepens his kiss and pulls me onto his lap so that I am straddling him, one hand on my ass and the other trailing up my back under my shirt. Both of my hands are around his neck holding him to me, tugging at his hair slightly and James moans into my mouth, which sends hot burning shivers down my spine.
It suddenly hits me that I’m at work, not good. I pull my face away but stay seated on his lap, feeling his arousal between my legs. I sigh heavily, as I don’t want to stop, “James we need to stop, I’m at work.” James trails soft kisses down my neck, making me burn for him even more. I go to climb off but he stills me.
“Just a few more kisses please? You know you want to.” His sexy smile makes my mouth go dry, as I want to kiss him more, but I know that we should stop.
“I do want to James, but you have to go; my client will be here shortly. I will text you later, okay?” I reluctantly climb off him and pull him to his feet. He towers over me and bends down to kiss me goodbye. I walk James down to reception and I can see Bella staring at us. She smiles at me and I can’t help but smile back at her. James has his arm around my waist, holding me to him. As we hit reception, Mrs Silver enters through the main door and I pull out of James’ grip. I try not to look at him, but I know he is staring at me.
“Good afternoon, Mrs Silver. How are you today?” She smiles at me and shakes her head.
“How many times Tally? Please call me Erica.” She glances at James and frowns. “Mr Wilde, did we have a meeting today?” I look at James who still has his eyes on me. I see hurt in them. Fuck.
Without looking at Erica, James replies, “I just came to visit Tally … Sorry Miss Slone.” Oh Miss Slone, fuck he called me Miss Slone. I just know that he is pissed off by me pulling away. I didn’t know how Mrs Silver would have reacted; I don’t know what the policy is about staff dating the clients. Carlos hasn’t said anything. In fact, he pushed for me to be with James.
“I think we’re done, so I was just leaving.” Without saying goodbye, or even looking at me, James leaves and my heart sinks. Mrs Silver leaves to go to her office and my legs feel like they are going to buckle beneath me. I feel arms wrap around my waist and hold me, leading me to one of the back rooms. They sit me on the sofa and kneel in front of me. Only then do I see that it’s Tanner.
“Get her a glass of water, Bella. Tally, can you hear me? Talls, blink sweetie, please.” I blink a few times and Tanner visibly relaxes. Bella hands me a glass of water and the ice bobs in the glass.
“Tally, are you okay?” I shake my head. I have just upset my, well, I’m not actually sure what James is to me now. Have I just thrown away the one thing that was good for me? My chest tightens to think that James might have walked away from me for good.
A chill runs down my spine and Tanner rubs my arms. “I think James just walked out on me. I...I didn’t know how Erica would feel about us being together. About James being my … boyfriend” Oh God, did I just say that? I did. I have just admitted that James Wilde is MY boyfriend.
Tanner smiles at me and looks at Bella then back to me, “Feels good, doesn’t it? Finally, admitting that Wilde is yours.” I nod and my smile grows bigger.
“Thank you, you two. For being my friends. Speaking of you two, how are you doing?” Bella blushes and Tanner strokes her bare leg as she sits next to me.
“We’re good” He nods proudly at Bella, who flashes him a seductive smile.
“I’m so happy for you guys.” I genuinely was happy for them, and I plastered on a smile, even though my heart was breaking quietly. After my afternoon clients I was finished for the day, so I decide to stop by Scarlett Avenue to visit my sister. I step into the shop with my forced smile again. The shop is quiet, just a few customers. Scarlett is finishing up with a customer, when she sees me and smiles her big sis smile.
I walk over to the counter and give her a hug. “How are you doing, pup? Work okay?” I nod.
“Work is great, been busy all day today. It’s all good.” I smile. “You been busy today?” I gesture at the store.
“It’s been the usual, to be honest. I have done a lot for my party, though. The girls have handled the store today. You okay Pup, you don’t seem right?”
I shrug “I’m good Scar.”
“So let’s go and have a look at what you’re going to wear for the wrap party.” Oh God, I had forgotten that. It’s been a few hours since I have heard from James. Do I text him, ask him if we are okay, asking if I’m still invited to the wrap party?
My stomach knots just thinking that he doesn’t want me to go with him and I image him going with someone else. No! James wouldn’t do that, he promised n
ot to give up on me. On us. But the way he was looking at me in work this afternoon, I really don’t know what he is feeling or thinking right now. Maybe I should text. “I’m going send a quick text first then we will have a look at some clothes, okay?” I leave Scarlett standing at the counter. I sit in the staff lounge and pull my phone out of my back pocket.
Me: I’m so sorry for this morning; I didn’t know how Mrs Silver would react to us being together. I’m sorry James, please text or call me back. I hate not hearing from you.
I wait for a reply from James, but I know that I’m going to wait a very long time. He is gone. I can’t bring myself to tell Scarlett that I won’t be going to the party. She is so excited for me. I try on various outfits for her and in the end we settle on a not to dressy dress and heels, not too big though. I give her a satisfied look that shows her I’m happy with the outfit, even though I probably won’t be going. We lock up the store and walk to our cars. “I will meet you at home, okay?” I say before getting into my car. I check my phone again, but nothing. The drive home felt longer that it was. Scarlett is already in the house when I pull into our drive. I take a deep breath and climb out of the car. My phone pings, which lets me know that I have a text. I look at the screen. It’s a text from James.
James: Is that what we are ….together?? You could have fooled me!!!
Tears spring to my eyes, I’ve really hurt him. I can’t stop my stomach from painfully knotting up.
Me: I said I was sorry and I really am, please believe me. I miss you, can I see you tonight? Please James, we need to talk.
I hit send and sit and wait for his reply but after what seems like forever I give up and go inside. Scarlett is in the kitchen making us a bite to eat. “God Talls, what took you so long? I got here ages ago.”
“Sorry Scar, I was on the phone to Bella from work. What are you cooking?” Smells like chicken stir fry.