Protecting Maya

by Nicole Casey

  Boyfriend? Future? You’ve known this guy two days. You’re high on sex hormones.

  Rocco barked from the doorway and I was suddenly granted an opportunity to escape before things got awkward.

  “Oh! Poor Rocco!” I said, jumping from the couch and I looked about for my clothes which seemed strewn in every corner of the room.

  “He’s okay. Just wait a second,” Slade protested but I was already half-dressed and avoiding his eyes.

  “Come on, Rocco,” I called, heading into the hallway for his leash. “Have a great day at work, Slade!”

  “Maya wait!” he yelled back but I had already slammed out of the front door, my heart racing wildly.

  I didn’t know how to process what was going through my head and heart, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to think rationally with Slade nearby.

  I needed to distance myself and figure out what I was doing without anyone influencing me.

  What you are feeling is nothing more than an intense attraction, I told myself as Rocco and I headed away from Slade’s townhouse.

  But as we made our way toward Whitehurst Point, I tried to think of a time when I had ever been so drawn to another person.

  And I could not.

  * * *

  I ensured that Slade had left for work before I returned Rocco home, checking to see if his car was gone from the garage as I led the mastiff inside the house.

  I was late for my other clients but somehow that seemed less important than avoiding Slade that morning.

  The remainder of the day went by in a daze and when I called Chase to pick me up in the early afternoon, I was surprised that Mal came instead.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, climbing into his hybrid and peering at him with concern. “Is Chase okay?”

  Mal nodded, smiling at me briefly.

  “Yeah, I just thought maybe we could grab lunch. There’s a new vegetarian restaurant on Broad.”

  I nodded in agreement. I hadn’t eaten all day and between the workouts I had gotten, I had to admit I was starving.

  As it had all day, the memory of Slade’s lips on my skin came sweeping through like a warm rain and I had to shove it aside to focus on Malcolm.

  It was odd for Mal to come for me without a forewarning.

  Not that I minded; he was my best friend and confidant, but I knew him well.

  Maybe too well.

  “Are you okay?” I asked as my cell chimed in my purse. I reached for it, my eyes on my housemate.

  “Yes,” he replied slowly, eyeing my cell with unusual curiosity. “Who is that?”

  I glanced at the screen and then back at him, my brows knitting.

  It was also strange for him to ask me anything about my personal interactions.

  We talked about everything, yes, but for him to blatantly ask…

  “It’s Slade,” I replied, putting the phone back in my purse without responding. I still needed to get my head in order before I spoke to him.

  I didn’t know how I was going to handle whatever was happening, not yet.

  Malcolm’s body seemed to relax, and he nodded.

  “What’s going on?” I demanded as he steered the car toward the main street in town. “You’re acting weird.”

  Malcolm shook his head.

  “Nothing…”

  I stared at him waiting for the completion of his thought, but he didn’t elaborate.

  Shrugging, I flopped back against the car’s seat.

  How would he feel if he thought I was falling in love with someone?

  I gasped aloud at the inane thought.

  I can’t be falling in love with Slade Payne. I don’t know him, and I don’t fall in love.

  But it seemed like the more I fought with the idea, the more the feelings seemed to consume me, and I couldn’t get Slade’s face out of my mind.

  “You seem distracted,” Mal commented as we pulled into the parking lot. “Something on your mind?”

  Suddenly I felt defensive.

  Is he sensing something about me and Slade and getting jealous?

  It seemed unlikely. Mal was really not the jealous type.

  He had engaged in relationships with women which were more serious than what we had, and we still maintained a healthy friendship.

  I think in the end we always knew we would outlast any sparkly honeymoon affections newcomers might provide.

  But it was clear that something was eating away at him.

  “No,” I replied evenly. “Nothing is on my mind.”

  I realized then that I had a guilty conscience.

  I should be talking to Malcolm about whatever is going on with Slade, I thought. He’s your best friend outside of Vy and Yve. And we all know what insights my sisters will provide if I bring this to them.

  Still, I wasn’t ready to talk about it.

  Not yet.

  How can I talk about it? It doesn’t make any sense.

  Malcolm nodded, his eyes averted as he removed the keys from the ignition.

  “All right,” he said.

  Suddenly he whipped his head around and looked at me, his brown eyes filled with sincerity.

  “You know I have always got your back, right, My?” he asked tenderly, and I felt a small fission of apprehension flow through me.

  “Mal, what is going on?” I demanded but he shook his head again and forced a smile.

  “Nothing,” he insisted. “I just want you to know that. Come on. I’m starving.”

  He leapt from the car before I could press him further and I reluctantly followed him.

  My well-honed sixth sense was warning me that Malcolm was trying to tell me something important, something unrelated to our open friends with benefits situation.

  I wondered why he didn’t simply come out and say what it was.

  I caught up with him and put my hand on his arm.

  “Mal, I can tell something is up. What is on your mind?”

  He sighed heavily and grit his teeth together.

  “I just keep getting this awful feeling that something bad is going to happen to you,” he confessed.

  The words sent chills through me and I studied his face closely.

  He was being sincere, that I could see and that terrified me.

  For if there was one thing I knew about Malcolm, he was very rarely wrong about anything, especially not where I was involved.

  7

  Slade

  Things seemed both hazier and clearer if that makes any sense.

  I floated to work in this sense of anxious euphoria after leaving the house that morning.

  I had waited for Maya to return as long as I could, but I also knew I couldn’t risk being late.

  Barely recalling the drive to work, I seemed to be on autopilot as I texted Maya and went through my day, waiting for her response.

  I couldn’t figure out why she had left so abruptly but I had to admit that the time we had spent together had been mind blowing.

  Time to process was a good thing for both of us but I couldn’t shake the feeling that she was pushing me away by running out the door.

  I couldn’t recall a time when I had felt so connected to another woman either sexually or emotionally.

  It was more than just the obvious physical attraction we shared; she was realer than anyone I had ever known.

  I knew it was ridiculous to have such strong feelings for someone in such a short time, but I couldn’t get her out of my head and when she didn’t respond throughout the day, I found myself growing desolate.

  She warned you that she didn’t date. Did I come on too strong? Can she sense how strongly I feel for her already?

  Maya was far too intuitive not to sense the overwhelming emotion I was experiencing. It seemed almost palpable to me and no matter how I tried to reason it was too soon, too fast, I couldn’t deny it.

  She made me want to give up the life I had spent so much time building for myself and live under a blanket fort with her.

  In the middle
of the afternoon, I decided that I couldn’t wait anymore to hear her voice, and I stole away to my car, dialing Maya’s number.

  I felt like a high school kid, asking the head cheerleader to prom, a sweat exploding on my brow as the phone rang.

  “Hello?”

  Her voice was even butter in my ears and I felt a now familiar sense of comfort wash through me.

  I was incredibly relieved that she had picked up.

  The thought of leaving a voicemail was humiliating.

  “Hey. It’s me. Uh, it’s Slade.”

  She chuckled lightly.

  “I know,” she replied. “Is everything okay?”

  I smiled to myself. How could I tell her that everything was more than okay? That I felt lighter than I had in years?

  “Yeah,” I answered simply. “I was just wondering if we could still meet tonight. I didn’t really get a chance to see you before I left, and you haven’t returned my texts.”

  I winced at the sound of my own neediness, but I couldn’t help myself.

  Never had I wanted to be so open with someone. I didn’t want to play games with her or hide anything.

  Again I was lost in the insanity of it all because logically, I knew I could be setting myself up for a massive heartbreak.

  “Sorry,” Maya said simply. “I have been working all morning. Mal and I stopped for lunch and I am home again now.”

  She paused, and I listened to a slight rustling and a murmuring of voices as she spoke to the man I knew as her housemate.

  “So…?” I drawled, cringing at my tone. “Tonight? I can pick you up from your house…”

  “Hang on a second, Slade,” she said, and I glanced at my watch, gritting my teeth.

  I knew she wasn’t playing hard to get but I also had to get back to work.

  I listened as her voice registered surprise, but I couldn’t make out the words until she suddenly came back on the line.

  “You sent me flowers?” she laughed. “They’re beautiful.”

  My brow knit and for a fleeting second, I contemplated taking the credit.

  Sighing, I shook my head even thought I knew she couldn’t see me.

  “No,” I muttered. “Not from me.”

  I heard her inhale sharply, but she didn’t speak to me. Her voice grew muffled as she spoke to Malcolm again and an unexpected spark of envy coursed through me as I wondered who else she was seeing.

  I bet there’s another poor schmuck sitting in an office across town waiting for her to call right now.

  But I couldn’t bring myself to believe that Maya had connected with anyone the way she had with me.

  Call it ego or denial but I didn’t want to imagine whomever it was who had given her the flowers.

  I didn’t want to question the elation I was feeling.

  “Hello?” I called playfully. “Maya?”

  But my heart was sinking and when she came back on the phone, I expected her to brush me off.

  “Come over around 7,” she told me. “We’re going to stay here. But I have to go now.”

  She disconnected the call before I had a chance to respond and I stared at the cell in my hand trying to reconcile what had just happened.

  Swallowing, I decided not to pursue the matter.

  I had the date I wanted. Why look a gift horse in the mouth?

  Because it’s a Trojan horse.

  * * *

  I couldn’t help but notice that Maya was on edge when I arrived at the farmhouse on the outskirts of town.

  Is she so jumpy because of me or is there something else bothering her?

  I wondered if she had invited me over to call off whatever it was we were doing. I hadn’t planned for that and I wondered how I would handle it if she told me she never wanted to see me again.

  I couldn’t see me handling it well.

  She seemed to be watching the road as if she was expecting someone else but when I asked her about it, she shook her auburn head and smiled, albeit tightly.

  “Come in,” she urged and shut the door, again training her eyes past my shoulders to look into the lawn.

  I walked inside the vast foyer and looked around, eyebrows arched.

  It was something out of the turn of the twentieth century, old wood trim and gold flecked chandeliers.

  Wallpaper lined one shadowy hallway and there was even a room under the stairs.

  I bet that house held more secrets than most graveyards.

  Almost as soon as I entered the foyer, a couple walked down the stairs, chattering as they stared into each other’s eyes.

  The amount of love exuding from them was almost nauseating, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from them, even when they almost plowed me over.

  “Whoops!” the girl laughed. “Sorry!”

  She looked started to see me there as if I was an apparition and then she glanced over at Maya.

  “Another friend, Maya?” she asked slyly, and I watched as Maya shifted her eyes downward, seeming embarrassed.

  “This is Slade, Sterling. Slade, these are Sterling and Luke, my housemates.”

  “Hi,” I said offering my hand to them, but they were already lost in each other’s gazes again and heading out the door.

  “You have lots of visitors?” I asked, trying to sound nonchalant but my heart was pounding.

  My competition was much fiercer than I had expected.

  “Ignore them. They have no social filters,” Maya explained, grimacing slightly. “Since they found one another, they forget anyone else in the world exists. Sterling thinks she’s being cute and she sounds like a six-year-old.”

  “How long have they been together?” I asked, following Maya’s lead back into the house, trying to shake off my worries.

  It certainly didn’t feel like Maya was about to dump me.

  Can someone even be dumped after one date? Although I did fall asleep on her…but I made up for it this morning, didn’t I?

  I was playing a sickening game of back and forth in my own mind.

  As we travelled through the corridor, the smell of something delicious and spicy filled my nostrils.

  “Six years,” she replied, and I choked.

  “Six years?” I echoed, and she laughed.

  “Hard to believe, I know but they love each other. I suppose they are mated for one another. Even when they fight, they stare into each other’s eyes as if they are transfixed.”

  She paused and glanced shyly at me, her freckled cheeks growing pink.

  “Do you believe in fate?” she asked quietly, and I swallowed deeply.

  “I think I do,” I murmured. “Now.”

  I couldn’t help but step forward and pull her into my arms, kissing her soft lips. It was the one thing which had kept me going all day and the embrace made the excruciating wait worthwhile.

  She peered up at me with shadowed green eyes and it was clear something was amiss. I could also sense it had nothing to do with me.

  “What happened?” I murmured, stroking her dark hair aside. “You can tell me. Maybe I can help.”

  She opened her mouth to respond but a male voice cut off her answer before she could utter another word.

  “Ah! You must be Slade,” he boomed, and I turned to look at the man I presumed to be Malcolm.

  He was huge and bear-like, almost like a UFC fighter with better hair.

  I accepted his hand and he shook mine with gusto, grinning at me like I was a long-lost friend.

  But beneath the surface of the smile, I could feel a sense of wistfulness.

  Or maybe I was just imagining it.

  It seemed that the entire house was a bizarre compilation of mismatched auras and it only got more confusing as I walked with them into the kitchen.

  A man was chopping vegetables at the counter in a pair of boxer shorts and a tank top, apron covering his wiry frame.

  He glanced up and did a double take when he saw me.

  “Well hello handsome!” he called, wiping his hands on his apron and rush
ing around to introduce himself, his eyes wide with interest. “I am Chase. You must be Slade!”

  “I am,” I agreed, taking his hand. “Nice to meet you, man.”

  I glanced furtively at Maya.

  “Chase is another housemate,” she volunteered. “It’s his night to cook supper.”

  A peculiar sensation tickled the back of my neck as I tried to make sense of the living situation.

  A couple, a gay man, Maya and Malcolm. They take turns cooking. This is like no housemate situation I have ever been in. Am I missing something here?

  “How many housemates do you have?” I asked aloud, stifling the urge to ask anything more pressing.

  I wasn’t entirely sure I could handle the answer.

  “That depends on the day,” Malcolm explained, and I laughed, thinking he was joking but I could see he was serious.

  “Oh.”

  I didn’t know what else to say.

  I peered at Maya unsure of where else to look but she seemed unfazed by the conversation as if everything said was completely normal.

  “Sit down,” Mal encouraged, gesturing at a worn wooden chair. “Drink?”

  I nodded.

  “A beer would be great – if you have.”

  “Rough day?” Maya asked gently, and I watched as her eyes flittered toward the kitchen island.

  It was then I saw the two dozen red roses sitting on the surface.

  “Every day is a rough day when you’re in finance,” I joked and Mal’s eyebrows shot up.

  “You work in finance?” he asked, casting Maya a look. “I had no idea.”

  “Yes, he does,” Maya answered before I can speak. “Not everyone works odd hours and unstable jobs.”

  Both Mal and I were startled by the ice in her tone.

  I knew she was defending me, but I didn’t feel like Malcolm had been attacking.

  She’s acting weird, I thought, and I eyed Malcolm who smiled apologetically.

  “I didn’t mean anything by it,” he said quickly. “Sorry if it came across as rude.”

  I shook my blonde curls.

  “Not at all,” I replied. “In fact, I have been thinking about a career change lately. The stress is becoming a little bit much.”

  “You have?” Maya laughed. “Since when?”

  I smiled enigmatically.