Considerably Wicked: A Dark Romance

by Leigh Frankie

  “Ms. Miller,” Will called, snapping her out of her thoughts.

  She looked in his direction as he joined her in the kitchen and took in the sight of him. Although nothing had really changed with the way he looked—boyish manner and laid-back presence—it had become quite a challenge for her to look him in the eye now.

  “Ms. Miller, about that kiss,” Will started, trying to seem nonchalant.

  She only blinked and waited for him to continue.

  “I actually really really liked it.”

  She instantly felt a hot blush on the back of her neck while he chuckled and ran his fingers through his hair.

  “And I’m hoping you do too because I, honestly, would really like to do it with again…and again.”

  Una couldn’t be entirely sure with her answer given that she had never kissed someone before. But wouldn’t kissing each other all the time automatically put them in a relationship? Una wondered. Not to mention, she didn’t watch too many rom-com movies or read romance novels to, at least suggest anything to her.

  For a moment, the two of them were quiet. Una could feel her heart race a bit. For some women, getting a surprise visit, by mistake, from one of the richest bachelors in the city, and being told by the person who was slowly making you feel things you hadn’t felt before in the same day, would be crazy, but for her, it raised a slight concern.

  “If we do that, wouldn’t that make us boyfriend and girlfriend?” she finally spoke again, surprised by how casual she sounded.

  Will nodded softly with a crooked smile. “It would, and I wouldn’t mind. Would you?”

  Deep down inside, Una knew she wouldn’t too, and remarkably enough, she had no idea why it was so easy with Will. She had heard Liezel told her more than a couple of times of the vast possibility of her ending up alone for the rest of her life. She was told men would find her too difficult to handle. But it was different with Will. She felt different with him.

  “So, what do we do now?” In her opinion, it was a legit question.

  He slowly walked towards her, and when they were close enough, he said, “We’ll have a nice dinner and watch a good movie. Sounds like a plan?”

  “Yeah, I guess so.”

  “Good. Let me just go get changed.”

  “Okay.”

  “Oh, and…” He looked down at her mouth, and before she could react, he crashed his lips to hers. His hand raised up to cradle her face as he finally pressed his lips more firmly to his. Una answered the kiss wholeheartedly. Their tongues met and caressed each other. His hand pushed back, and his fingers tangled into her hair. He then tilted his head slightly to get closer and to deepen the kiss, taking it from sweet to passionately sexy.

  Slowly, Will changed the pace and proceeded to just barely brush his lips over hers. He softly glided them over hers, so faint that it almost felt like he was teasing her.

  “God, all I could think of today was kissing you,” he whispered into her mouth.

  When they finally pulled apart, they just looked at each other, mouths parted to catch their breaths. Una could see the desire in his eyes as he looked back up at her.

  “Crap…I want more,” Will whispered without thinking. Trying his best to seem casual, he gathered his courage and went for it, craving more of her more than he’d ever desired anything.

  Chapter 16

  Cinderella Ending

  It was finally the beginning of December, and the first signs of winter had become visible. While Boston was yet to see a single snowflake, the weather had already been cold. Much to Una’s dismay, she still had to suffer waking up to an icy morning for over a week to attend classes. She was thinking of not going back after the holidays—maybe do a gap year. Deciding on what she would want to major in had been nothing but frustrating to her. Perhaps a gap year could help her figure things out.

  “The university has over three hundred programs. There’s no way you still can’t choose a major,” Professor Cullum told her when she was asked to drop by his office that day.

  “I know. I will work on it over the holiday,” she assured the professor who looked thoroughly unconvinced.

  She felt her phone vibrated in her pocket and quickly checked it when her professor walked over to a cabinet in a corner.

  Lunch on me. Sanson Road Café.

  “Ms. Miller, I’m being serious here. You have been stalling for far too long.” He paused. “Now, your dad and I were close, and I can see him frowning at me right now.”

  She put her phone back in her pocket and gave him a quick nod and got up from her seat to put on her coat. “I know. I will figure something out.” No, she didn’t want to talk about that now, so she briefly thanked her professor and left the office.

  The wind was biting as Una rushed across campus, the cold chilling her skin despite the layers of clothing she had put on. Rushing out of the university to meet Liezel for lunch, she decided to ditch her last three classes in the afternoon and go straight home. She pulled her coat around her tighter and started her walk along the damp sidewalk, feeling the frigid air against her face.

  When she arrived, she swung the door open, and a rush of cool air entered the Sanson Road Café with her. Boring music played in the background instead of the usual news channel on TV. She looked around and saw people sitting by the small tables having lunch.

  “You’re here!” Liezel’s high-pitched voice caught her attention.

  Una turned to see that Liezel wasn’t alone. Sitting in the booth across from her was a man dressed in a grey suit and a black pea coat, his dark brown hair nicely combed. She approached their table and scooted next to her friend without glancing at the man who was busy scribbling something on his pocket notebook.

  “This is officer Frederick Duffy,” Liezel introduced. “This is my best friend, Una Miller.” She looked at Una, and her facial expression changed from jolly to concerned. “Annika’s missing.”

  “The waitress? What do you think happened to her?” Una stared at the officer indifferently.

  “She’s been missing for a week now. I’m just doing some rounds, asking people who might know where or what happened to her that may help us.” Frederick said. “Your friend here filled me with all the information during your interactions with her.”

  “We weren’t really friends. She took our orders, but nothing other than that.” Una remained cautious, staring at Frederick.

  “Yeah, about that, I’m just waiting for the manager to get her address.” He stood up and said, “Thank you for your time, ladies.”

  “No problem, Officer,” Liezel replied with her sheepish smile. She turned to Una as soon as Frederick left the table. “Annika has been missing for a week now. She was last seen by her mom outside their house at around eight o’clock in the evening, parking her car. She heard her daughter walk up to her room, even heard the door closing. She waited for her to come down for dinner. After a few minutes, she started to wonder what had taken her so long.” Leizel continued. “Annika wasn’t in her room when she checked—”

  “Alright, here are your orders,” a waiter suddenly interrupted, placing their plates in front of them.

  “Thanks for coming. I ordered for you. Croissant sandwich for you and a roasted beef sandwich for me,” Liezel said and looked up at the red-haired waiter whose facial expression looked bored and his light brown eyes tired. “Hey, do you happen to know what might have happened to Annika?”

  The waiter forced a smile. “I heard she gone missing. Sorry, I just started workin’ here a couple of days ago. Enjoy ya meal,” he said coolly and sauntered off.

  “I’m starving,” Liezel declared and started eating her sandwich. “Has Will told you about the office Christmas party?”

  Una stood up and sat across from her. She pulled her plate and sliced through her croissant. “No. When is it?” she asked, noticeably looking flustered, worried that it was on that day.

  “It’s next week. Have you thought about what to buy Will for Christmas?”
/>   “No.”

  Liezel just laughed, shaking her head as she continued with her meal. She wasn’t surprised. Una had gotten so used to living alone that the only time she ever started buying presents was when she met Liezel and had to buy her birthday and Christmas gifts. “Don’t worry. You still have enough time to look for a really nice pair of lingerie.”

  Una sighed and looked up at her, perplexed. “Why? I don’t get it.”

  “Una, I know you’re a virgin, but when do you think is the perfect time to lose it? Oh, wait, I think I know… how about this Christmas? If you come to think of it, it’ll be the best gift ever.”

  “I don’t think it is. And I haven’t really given sex much thought. There are more important things than deciding on whom and when—”

  “Una, stop. Will is your first ever boyfriend. You actually made the decision to make him your boyfriend, which is, knowing you, says a lot. Plus, you two will be having sex at some point in time. That’s a given.”

  “We don’t really have to.”

  “Oh, but you will, my dear friend. We’re talking about Will here. Not Glen.”

  Una frowned at the question. “Well, sorry to burst your bubble, but honestly, I’m not sure.”

  Liezel grinned as she watched her blush like mad, looking utterly uncomfortable over the topic. “Okay, whenever I’m not sure whether I should have sex with a guy or not, I usually ask myself three questions: Do I like this guy? Do I fantasize about him in a not so modest way? Am I gonna regret having sex with him after I had sex with him? If my answer is a Yes-Yes-No, then I go ahead and have sex with the guy.”

  “That doesn’t really—”

  “Do you like William?” Liezel sighed and cut Una off before she could finish her sentence.

  “I guess—”

  “Yes or no?

  Una sunk in her seat. “Yes.”

  “Do you fantasize about him?”

  “I don’t—”

  “Do you sometimes think about kissing him?”

  Una hesitated, then answered, “Kissing him? Yes.”

  “Do you think you will regret doing it with him after?

  “What? The kiss or the se—”

  “Yes or no, Una? Stop overanalyzing the question.”

  “No, I guess because—”

  “Then it’s a Yes-Yes-No. Perfect. Let’s go shopping this weekend.” Liezel winked at her.

  Flicking her hair over her shoulder and looking intently at her friend, Una started on her cup of coffee. She waited for Liezel to look up and ask her what’s wrong, but when nothing happened, she just shook her head in exasperation. It had been three days since she agreed to be Will’s girlfriend, and it had also been three days since Sinclair’s surprise visit. When Liezel had ignored her calls and text messages, she somehow understood she needed time. That’s why when Liezel messaged her to have lunch with her that day, she agreed to go.

  Having satisfied her stomach with two slices of sandwiches, Liezel finally noticed Una’s intense stare and turned her full attention to her…and the salad next to her empty plate.

  “Liezel, I’m going to straight out ask you now: is Sinclair your rich boyfriend?” Una asked after a long pause. “But I don’t remember you introducing him to me as your boyfriend, so I’d assume that it’s a secret?”

  Liezel froze, the hand that held a forkful of her salad stayed still in mid-air.

  Una could sense the sudden tension in her demeanor.

  “Alright! Yes, he was. But I screwed up. Twice!” Liezel’s eyes suddenly shone with tears. “I overreacted when he went to New York without telling me. Then I screwed up again when he found out I lied about where I live.”

  Una leaned over. “You still haven’t told me why you gave him my address instead of yours.”

  Liezel tossed the fork onto her plate and sniffed softly. “It’s silly, really.” She let out a forced laugh and closed her eyes for a few seconds. “I wanted to impress him. I mean, you saw my apartment before, Una. You thought it was horrendous—your word, not mine. And I couldn’t agree more. I live in a shitty neighborhood. I wasn’t just thinking ahead, you know. I thought it was a one-time thing. I never thought it’d bite me in the ass in the future. I’m a fake. Do you hate me?”

  “When you ignored my calls and text messages, I was angry. But I didn’t hate you. Not even now. And I don’t,” started Una. “You’re an idiot for making up that lie, but you’re not a fake. I think you’re just desperate for something better.”

  And Una felt sort of pity for her friend because there was no denying that Sinclair had taken an instant liking to her, although she was sure he had ulterior motives. And she wanted to tell her about Sinclair’s invitation to the benefactors’ dinner but decided against it because she could tell that Liezel had fallen hard for her filthy rich boss and telling her about the invitation would only create tension. She didn’t want someone like Sinclair to ruin their friendship—the only one she ever got.

  “Thank you,” Liezel whispered. Her eyes were a little puffy when another tear slid down her cheek. “You’ve always been very honest with me.”

  Una suddenly remembered how hard it was for Liezel when her relationships ended back in college. “That’s what friends are for, right?”

  Liezel smiled at her warmly. “Right.”

  “So you and your boss, huh? The sexy PA and her handsome multi-millionaire boss. Could you be more cliché?” Una couldn’t let it slide. “What’s your plan now?”

  Liezel covered her face with her hands and laughed. “I have no idea. Maybe win him back?”

  “How?”

  “Earth-shattering blowjob? I don’t know, Una. Honestly, I’m not thinking straight right now.”

  Upon hearing the word, Una gasped and raised an eyebrow at her.

  “Come on. Blowjob is not a swear word. It’s just like the word sex,” she reasoned.

  Una shook her head in disapprovingly and just said nothing. She knew there was just no point this time.

  “By the way, Una…”

  “Yes?”

  “Please stop being weird and start calling your boyfriend by his first name. And tell him to do the same too. Please,” Liezel implored.

  “Okay.”

  ***

  Will was returning to his desk from his lunch when he decided to give himself a couple of minutes to browse for some nice vacation package deals online before starting to do some real work. Sinclair wouldn’t mind because he wouldn’t know, he thought, and smiled to himself as he quickly pulled up the browser and began his search. Una hadn’t been anywhere outside the country, and as he continued to browse, the possibility of where they could go became almost endless.

  “Hello, William.” He was immediately pulled from his search when he heard Glen’s voice.

  Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see his friend looking over at his computer. “Hey, buddy.”

  “Are you bringing Una to the party?”

  “The Christmas party?”

  Glen rolled her eyes like the question was the stupidest thing he heard that day. “No. I meant Simon’s birthday. Our building maintenance who only shows up thrice a week,” he said sarcastically. “Of course, our Christmas party!”

  Will blinked and raised an eyebrow. “Not yet. I will tell her about it, maybe later.”

  “Caramoan Islands?” Glen leaned back into his desk, half-sitting. “Are you planning on taking a vacation?”

  “As a matter of fact, I am. With Una,” he replied. “Hopefully. Next year.”

  “To the Philippines…is that where Liezel Anne came from? I think she said before she was born there,” Glen asked, loudly munching on some crackers.

  Will just nodded.

  “But why the Philippines? If you’re planning to propose to her, why don’t you take her to Paris or Greece?” he asked again with his terror-stricken voice this time.

  “Because she told me she wants to go there. And I’m not going to propose to her, buddy. I just want to
take her there.”

  “Okay. Oh, I could use a really nice vacation too,” Glen said subtly, not wanting to make him sound desperate to get invited. When Will didn’t say anything, he added, “Swim, bask in the sun, and get a nice tan.”

  Will released a soft, quick sigh and stood up. “Yeah, that’ll be awesome, but we know we can’t take leaves together, buddy,” he said. “As Mr. Godfrey’s second-best guy, you have to stay while I bask in the sun and get a nice tan.” He ushered Glen to walk with him. “Let me buy you a bag of chips and soda instead.”

  “Bribery…”

  He chuckled as they both marched on the floor to the break room.

  ***

  With a sudden burst of determination to win Sinclair again by the only way she knew how, Liezel rolled away from her desk and strutted into Sinclair’s officer. She knocked twice before she opened the door.

  Her eyes instantly met with Sinclair’s, who was sitting in his leather chair behind his desk.

  “Ms. Blanco, what do you want? I didn’t call for you,” Sinclair demanded angrily. He folded his arms over his chest and furrowed his brow at her.

  It wasn’t the reaction Liezel was hoping for, but it was a reaction nonetheless, which was good enough for her. “Mr. Godfrey, I need to talk to you,” Liezel admitted, walking closer to his desk.

  “Really?” he shot back.

  “Yeah, really. Like, come on, all relationships go through stuff. I mean, why don’t you hear me out first, and then maybe we can agree to put it behind us and move on?” She was starting to realize that this was going to be a lot harder than she thought it would be. Sinclair was obviously still angry from what happened, but she really couldn’t blame him. It was a stupid move on her part, and she knew that now but she was just trying to tell him why she had done it and apologize. If he’d let her, that is.

  “Because I hate liars, Ms. Blanco!” Sinclair snarled. “I tried to be really nice to you, but I don’t think I have really known you enough to take another step with you.”