Sophia walked slowly into the living room balancing a fancy gold-trimmed tray in her hands. Her loose auburn waves were piled on top of her head in a messy bun and she was wearing black yoga pants and a loose-fitting blush pink shirt, effortlessly looking A Pea in the Pod flawless.
“Now, what do we have here?” Zora’s brows bounced with excitement. She licked her lips and rubbed her hands together at the scent of warm bread and rosemary wafting through the air.
“Just a little something to munch on.”
Sophia gently set the tray down on the coffee table beside a stack of board games. The tray was filled with two wine glasses, a cup of juice, cheese, grapes, and the mouthwatering little pita crackers she made from scratch. Sophia was careful not to knock over the tiny Faberge egg given to her by her mother. It was one of many knickknacks Helen had scattered around, insisting it would make Patton Place feel like a home.
She passed the wine to Zora and Oli before taking her juice. Then she settled into the cushy chair beside the couch and propped her feet up on the table. “Now, I’m ready. Start right after you noticed this guy in the back, and don’t leave out any of the details.”
“So, I had just flipped to the green station and I was starting to feel the music. It was like the perfect mix of verse and voice over a slow beat,” Zora said remembering the easy ambiance of the club. “As I started to dance, this crazy woman,” she pointed at Oli, “drags Andre over to me—”
“Stop editorializing.” Oli rolled her eyes and flashed Zora a quick smile. She was listening, but as usual, an early morning wedding photo shoot had sapped most of her energy, and now she was nodding off.
“Then what happened?” Sophia sliced a thin layer of brie and spread it over a cracker and popped it in her mouth. She closed her eyes, relishing the flavors.
Zora couldn’t help getting sidetracked. Food had a way of always taking her off topic. “Did you get this at the farmer’s market at that booth way in the back?” She cut off a small piece and pressed it to her tongue. “Hmmm. Good god, that’s amazing.”
“I’ll give you all the details later,” Sophia said. “Now keep going.”
“Anyway, by then, the tequila shots were in full effect. At least behind the beer goggles, he was decent looking, so when his hands slid down my sides and around my waist, I got caught up.”
As Zora described the guy’s bass-filled voice, and the way they danced with their bodies molded together, Sophia took longer sips from her cup. Zora took her time, sparing no detail as she told them how he didn’t take his eyes off of her…or his hands. Then those hands slid behind her and palmed the curves of her ass. There was also the delicious goodness she felt dragging her hands over his chest…
Then he kissed her, and everything went south.
“You were probably fantasizing about Mike the whole time,” Oli droned.
Zora laughed, but she had closed her eyes and imagined Andre was Mike. She imagined they were on the dance floor in between a few dozen people and he slipped his tongue in her mouth like he did when she was eighteen. She was back there—his hands roaming her body, the heat of their skin pressed together as he made love to her in Babs’s wine cellar.
A shiver ran down Zora’s back. Just then, her phone trembled across the table. She stole a glance at the screen and heat crawled up from her neck to her cheeks as she bit down on her bottom lip. When she looked up again, she could feel the giddy smile return along with the tingles.
“With that goofy grin, it sure as hell isn’t Andre.” Oli grumbled. Then she curled into a ball and let her eyes close again.
A new bout of giggles bubbled to the surface. Zora touched her fingers to her lips. She and Mike had texted all through the night after she got home from the club. The questions in the game were crazy, and strangely, bordered on flirtatious.
I sleep naked.
It was a truth that had tortured her into the early morning.
Lord have mercy, the images of Mike covered in nothing but her body, were still reeling through her head. She could feel her cheeks flush.
While it sucked lying to Oli and Sophia, Zora loved having this one thing to herself.
Oli had said to lose herself.
So what if I did while fantasizing about Mike?
Sophia nearly spilled her juice as she sat up. She cleared her throat and held up a finger. “Okay, so let me get this straight. Not only did you wear a skintight hoochie dress that barely covered your hoo-ha, but you kissed this guy you met the same night?”
Zora winced and peeked over her shoulder toward the kitchen to see if Everett was within earshot, but she couldn’t stifle the smile spreading across her face. “Something like that.” She fell back onto the couch and covered her face with a pillow.
“You did!” Sophia accused. Her mouth fell open as she shook her head.
“I told her that dress was magic.” Oli high-fived Sophia who was apparently still in shock because they were locked in a weird staring contest. “I can’t tell you how helpful it was. It worked all kinds of magic.”
Zora leaned back and propped her hands behind her head then immediately jolted back up when Oli asked her next question.
“Did I tell you guys what kind of doctor he is?” She paused for a few excruciatingly long seconds. “He’s a gynecologist.”
Zora and Sophia gasped, their eyes wide with shock.
“Besides the horrible fact he kisses like a fish, now I know I’m never going to see him again,” Zora said. “I don’t want to have sex with someone who’ll probably take notes and compare my ‘hoo-ha’ to every other ‘hoo-ha’ he’s pried open with that duckbill speculum thingy.”
The three of them burst into loud, contagious laughs.
In the front of the house, Zora heard the alarm chime and the front door open. Everett was talking to someone. When she heard the bass-filled voice, she figured it was probably Mike. She wondered if he’d brought Kate, the woman he was dating, who he still had yet to bring around. Or maybe it was Jason, Mike’s friend who loved to play games but happened to be the biggest sour loser ever.
“Hey.” Mike walked into the living room with a red game box tucked under one arm and a bottle of champagne in his hand, ripping and ready to go. Even in loose navy sweats and a plain, white tee with a scruffy goatee, the man was a sun-baked god among peons. He flashed the girls a cocky, lopsided grin, slowly blinking his adorable lashes at them, giving them a glimpse of his piercing green eyes.
Zora sighed.
He didn’t even look at me.
Zora craned her neck to look behind him. No Kate. No Jason. Hmm. His head was down, and he still hadn’t looked at her. She was pretty sure it was by design.
“You get my text?” she asked, sounding far too anxious. The content had been way beyond PG-13.
“Uh, yeah. I was driving, though.” He went to set the champagne bottle down on the table but missed the edge and scrambled to catch it.
“You okay?”
Mike finally met her gaze and that’s when she saw it. Was that heat in his eyes? It couldn’t be. She cocked her head and blinked.
No. Uh-uh.
They were flirting last night, but she’d figured it was one-sided and that Mike was humoring her.
She wanted to look over her shoulder because surely someone behind her was the recipient of the panty-dropping, half smile hinged on his chiseled jaw.
Zora’s mouth watered as he licked his lips, and her heart did a little flip. She only realized it because in that moment, she stopped breathing.
Oh, yeah. I’m losing it, all right. Hallucinate much?
No question about it, she was definitely going to keep her little dance floor fantasy to herself.
Chapter Four
Mike
Mike placed the board game on top of the stack already sitting on the wooden coffee table. He took a deep breath and hugged Sophia preparing to take the seat beside Zora when he met Olivia’s eyes. He could already feel his body tensing as he clenc
hed his teeth.
“Olivia.” He didn’t smile or hug her because he was not happy to see her. He was still trying to figure how he was going to make it through game night when a war was being waged inside him.
Between the urge to lash out at Olivia and the battle with his body not to physically respond to Zora, Mike wasn’t sure how to act. He only came to game tonight to confront Olivia, but now…his emotions were all over the place instead of neatly tucked away where they belonged.
One emotion in particular stood out.
Anger.
The second he sat down beside Zora, their thighs touched, and the memory of her kissing some random dude shot fire through his veins.
He’d been played.
Hard.
Mike studied Zora’s friend, if one could call her that. What kind of person secretly invites you to a setup under the pretense of a celebration? What Olivia did was foul. Dirty. And it was burning him up inside.
His clenched teeth couldn’t hide the tightness in his expression. He was glaring at Olivia and itching to confront her, but he wouldn’t do it front of Zora.
Olivia was apparently feeling the weight of his stare because she abruptly got up off the chair. “I’m going to be right b—“
“Can I chat with you for a second?” Mike cut her off, getting to his feet, too.
She sighed. “I have to pee.” Then she looked at him, pursed her lips, and gave a light tug of her earlobe as she looked off to the left.
“That’s fine. I’ll wait in the kitchen. Everett said he needed help with a few things, anyway.” The words seethed from his mouth. At his temple, a vein twitched and his muscles quivered.
Why am I so angry?
All night, he’d tried to convince himself he was only irritated because Olivia had deceived him. Zora didn’t even know he was there, and he was all cocksure, assuming he was her surprise. What a fool! What did he even think was going to happen when he walked over? Either way, he was with Kate, so what right did he have to be mad or jealous?
I am not jealous.
Mike stalked off toward the kitchen where he grabbed a beer from the fridge and leaned up against the counter with his arms folded. Was he pouting now, too?
Everett jumped headlong into talk about the upcoming purchase of the Chessington building the following week. Mike had been trying to convince him he could handle the deal. It was a great time to really drill down on the reasons he was the man for the job. Even though the investment would take the commercial end of the company to the next business tier, at the moment, he could not focus on work..
He was only halfway listening.
His mind was stuck in the same place it had been since the night before: back at the club watching Zora kiss a man who was not good enough for her.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Everett asked, snapping Mike out of his trance.
“Nothing.” He was pouting. “I just have a bone to pick with Olivia, that’s all. She’s in the bathroom. I’m waiting on her to come out.”
Everett swiped Mike’s beer from his hand and took a swallow before posting himself up beside his friend. With the bottle, he pointed at Mike then toward the bathroom door, his face twisted into a question.
“No, fool. I would never do that.” Even the insinuation that he would hook up with one of Zora’s friends felt dirty to Mike. He let his head fall into his hands. “I don’t even know why I’m so upset.”
“I do.” Olivia sashayed into the kitchen with her blood-red lips curved into a smirk. “You know what they say, denial is more than just a river in Africa.”
Mike stood taller now. “What the fuck was all that about last night? What was your plan…to make me jealous?”
“Are you?” Olivia and Everett barked in unison.
Suddenly, he felt like he was on the defensive, but against what? This whole thing was for the birds. He wanted to go back to seeing Zora as the sweet, untainted girl he knew.
He let his head fall into his hands as he slid onto the barstool at the massive granite island. “I don’t know what I am. All I know is…that I hated seeing her kiss that dude. He’s not nearly good enough for her.”
All this time, Mike told himself he wasn’t waiting for Zora, but watching her in that dress with that guy… She was most definitely grown up. It was no longer a question of whether she rejected him all those years ago because she wasn’t ready. Maybe she just didn’t want him.
His shoulders slumped as the air inside him slowly leaked out.
“Mike, you don’t even know him. Besides, why do you care?” Olivia asked.
“Wait, who are we talking about here? Kate?” Everett asked.
Olivia took one look at Everett and rolled her eyes. “Oh, lord. I think it’s time we start the games.”
Mike realized he shouldn’t have come. He threw his hands up in the air and glared at Olivia as he walked back to the living room and planted himself beside Zora on the couch.
“What’s going on with you guys? What did Oli do now?” Zora cocked her head toward him, appearing to sense his mood. “What happened?”
He met her gaze as Everett and Olivia filed into the room, plopping down on the leather armchairs. “Is it okay if we don’t talk about it right now?”
“Yeah.” Zora searched his face for a brief moment. Her eyes were the color of whiskey imbued with light, so they appeared amber with flecks of gold. They were wide and pleading the way they were when Mike wanted nothing more than to give her the world. That was back when he knew the only way to keep her safe was to keep his distance. He’d wanted to wait until she was ready.
She gathered him into a side hug, and he did his best not to linger. “We can talk whenever you’re ready,” she whispered.
Relief flooded his body. How was he going to do this? How was he going to pretend like something hadn’t shifted between them?
Sophia tilted her head sideways reading the spines of the board games. “What should we play first?”
“I vote for Apples to Apples or Taboo,” Zora said, tucking her legs beneath her on the couch. “Do you have the Midnight version?”
“I don’t know what that is, but I say we go with a classic—either Monopoly, Scattergories, Clue, Sorry, Scrabble, or Battleship,” Everett suggested. “I’m probably going to win, anyway. You pick, Soph.”
Before she could select a game, Olivia chimed in. “I’ve got a better idea.” Mike didn’t miss the sly wink she gave him. “Since Mike and Zo are always on their phones playing games, why don’t we go with their favorite? How about we play Two Truths and a Lie?”
She slouched into the chair pressing a pillow to her chest looking rather pleased with herself.
“Fine by me,” he said, lifting his chin with a confidence he didn’t feel.
While Sophia and Olivia helped Everett hunt down pens, paper, plastic cups, and more drinks, Mike took the moment to swipe the champagne he’d brought from the table.
“This was for you, by the way.” He leaned over to hand Zora the bottle. As he did, her smelled her light floral scent with hints of coconut. Something roared to life inside him and he stifled a growl. It took every fiber of his being to ward off the flashes of her body in the blue dress as it blurred into a night so long ago when he’d crossed the line.
No.
He didn’t want to go there. He couldn’t. Those feelings had washed away, but now all at once, they threatened to come rushing back. He was caught in the undertow. He could deny a lot of things, but he couldn’t deny the temptation to be with Zora was always lying dormant.
It was never this strong, though.
Mike didn’t want to feel it. He didn’t want to want her. Zora deserved someone she could trust with her heart, someone who could protect her.
That night years ago, he’d swallowed hard over the lump in his throat as heat crawled under his skin and settled there. He could still see the hurt in her eyes, the agony, and he couldn’t have left her…even if she was his best friend’s sister.<
br />
She was his friend, too.
The memory of their night stirred in his groin and he adjusted himself, shifting closer to the armrest. “Congratulations, again. I uh…know the cookbook is going to be amazing.”
He was staring straight ahead and hating the stilted tone to his voice. Their normal banter was replaced by an awkwardness he hated even more.
“Thanks for the champagne.” She fingered the bold red script lettering on the bottle, biting down on her lip. It drove Mike crazy. He knew the sweet taste of her swollen lips. He could still feel the memory of them on his aching skin.
His cock hardened and understanding washed over him. He blew out a cleansing breath.
That’s what this is. It’s not emotional, it’s just physical—one body reacting to another. I’m driving myself crazy for nothing.
Mike almost sighed with relief.
I’m just horny.
He pressed his fist over his mouth to hide his grin. This was the same Zora in a new dress, which just so happened to highlight every curve of her tight little frame.
New. This was his body telling him it was tired of fucking the same woman. All he needed was a good lay. A new lay.
He was so happy he could almost kiss her.
“I’m going to go grab some water.” He sprang to his feet. “Want anything?”
“How about a glass for this stuff?” She held up the bottle.
His grin spanned from ear to ear as he let the words fall from his mouth. “Anything for my friend.”
Just friends.
Yes. This was just his body talking. He might not be able to undo the texts he’d sent last night, but he was only going to be thinking with one head from now on.
Mike made his way to the kitchen where he found the “three amigos” conspiring in hushed whispers. As soon as he walked in, they all scurried like roaches in the light. He had to laugh because he knew they were plotting something, but at the moment he didn’t have one fuck to give.
He wasn’t nuts, he was just horny.
Mixed Emotions Page 3
