by Lisa Lace
“Now you can breathe.”
“Yes.” She lets out a long, low breath, then grins. “It feels good to breathe.”
“Interesting place you picked for tonight.”
“I didn’t want to dress up,” Zoe tells me. “After this week, I just wanted to go somewhere I could disappear for a while.”
“We didn’t have to come out.”
“No. Having a change of scenery is nice. The empty apartment has been haunting me this week. I couldn’t stop thinking about Laura and dreading the worst. Maybe I’ll finally be able to sleep again.”
“You could have stayed at Laura’s. You didn’t have to be alone.”
“You know why I wouldn’t.”
“And now?”
“What do you mean?”
“Now that Laura’s on the mend, does it mean we can get back on track?”
Zoe looks surprised. She clears her throat, tapping her fingers on the edge of her glass. “I know she’s awake, but it still doesn’t feel right to focus on anything else.”
“I don’t want to miss our chance.”
I wonder if I’m fucking up again. It seems that my priorities are never in the right place. My timing is always wrong.
I care about Laura, and I’ll be there for her kids. I want nothing more than for her to get better and come home. That doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten all about Zoe.
The more time I spend with her, the more I want her. She’s effortlessly brilliant. She’s steady, sure and calm in an emergency. Since Laura’s accident, I’ve appreciated her lack of judgment—even when I’ve been making mistakes left, right and center.
“I don’t want to miss it either,” she says at last. “But we have to tread carefully. We’re still responsible for Megan and Jack. We can’t get carried away in some romance that leaves them behind. I’m serious about that.”
“I understand.”
She smiles at me, and then the waiter brings our orders. We both have a burger and fries. The taste reminds me of our teenage years. We used to pick up burgers on our way to the beach and suck down Cokes on the shore.
“The taste of burgers always takes me back to East End Beach.”
“I remember. The summer I was sixteen, I gained seven pounds. I was eating fries for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”
“Where’d that go? You’re all muscle now.”
“I’m on my feet all day at work.”
“How’s it going?”
I make a face. “Things have been on hold. Laura comes first.”
“Do you need some help?”
She smiles. “You’d do that for me?”
“Of course, I would.”
“Maybe I’ll take you up on that. Are you any good with wreaths?”
“Wreaths aren’t my forte, but I’ll give anything a shot.”
Zoe’s smile grows. She’s looking over at me with eyes full of affection. I’m not sure she’s ever looked at me like that before. Annoyance, yes. Desire, sure. But affection? That’s something new.
After dinner, Zoe asks how much time we have before we have to pick up the kids. I check my cell; my Rolex is still in a drawer at Laura’s house, banned as a symbol of my apparent ego.
“A couple hours.”
“Do you want to come back to mine?”
“Yes.”
I drive to Zoe’s apartment, and we head upstairs. As soon as the door is shut, things pick up from where they were the night before Laura’s accident. We tear off each other’s clothes like we’re making up for lost time.
Zoe grabs my hand and pulls me after her toward the bedroom. She’s not wearing any special underwear tonight—I haven’t seen her silky black robe since our first meeting. She’s only wearing an old cotton bra and panties. It tells me she wasn’t expecting to go to bed with me tonight. Zoe always has her priorities in order.
In the bedroom, Zoe drops down onto the bed, beckoning me.
She’s laid out before me: gorgeous. Her body is slim and toned, but womanly. My eyes follow the rise and fall of full breasts; they trace the line of her slender navel, and they travel down her long, delicious legs.
My cock grows hard. Zoe turns me on like no other woman ever has. Her allure is natural, yet magnetic.
I move toward her. She grins up at me. She’s a vixen. Her flaming hair tumbles over her shoulders, framing her angelic face. She lowers her head and looks up at me with those emerald eyes from under her thick lashes. She bites down on her lower lip.
Everything she does is an invitation. Her body is calling to me. My body answers.
I slip my fingers into her panties and seek out her clit. I rub her, first soft and then harder. Slow, and then fast.
She lets out low, soft breaths dripping with pleasure. The sight of her arching back and fingers grasping at the bedsheets drives me wild.
I rub her wet clit until her toes begin to curl, then she comes, letting out a blissful moan. “Fuck me, Tom.”
I enter her and move back and forth with long, hard strokes. Zoe’s breathless cries fill me with wild lust. I pound into her harder.
Zoe wraps her hands around my neck and pulls my face down into a kiss. Our tongues brush against each other as I move inside her, faster and harder as we draw nearer. Zoe gets close to her second orgasm. I feel her body shuddering beneath me.
I thrust into her deeper; she locks me in another kiss. Our lips are pressed against each other when I come. We kiss afterward.
We cannot let each other go. We hold onto each other, exchanging kisses and running our hands over each other’s bodies. We’ve waited so long.
My cell starts to bleep. “Shit, it’s my alarm.”
Zoe sits up. “You have to get the kids?”
“I’m sorry. Tess can only have them until ten. It’s nine-thirty.”
“Oh. You better pick them up then.”
I pull Zoe towards me and kiss her head. “I’m sorry.”
Her face is filled with disappointment. Her blissful expression has turned into one of abandonment, but I know I have to go. The kids come first.
Zoe
It’s eight-thirty the following night. I’m at the hospital alone with Laura. Tom and the kids visited earlier, while I spent an extra few hours at work, catching up on everything.
Laura’s looking better. Her hair is freshly washed, and it looks soft and fluffy. Her ashen face is starting to regain some color, and her lips aren’t as chapped as the night before. Even her voice is back, albeit hoarse.
Laura can’t sit up. She’s locked into position by the traction. I pull up a chair to a spot where I think she’ll be able to see me best.
She smiles. “Zoe.”
It makes tears spring to my eyes to hear her speaking. I’ve been so worried about the kids, I’ve barely let myself feel my own fear. The thought of losing Laura, my best friend in the world, has been unbearable. Now I know she’s going to stay with me. Thank God.
A tear rolls down my face as I return the hugest smile. “Welcome back, stranger. How are you feeling?”
Laura winces. “Like shit.” She laughs, a dry cackle, but it’s the most beautiful sound. My Laura, a fighter.
“You had us worried for a while there.”
“You can’t get rid of me that easy.”
I grasp her hand, swallowing back the rest of my tears. “I was so scared. I don’t know what I’d ever do without you. You’re my best friend.”
She squeezes my hand. “You, too. Stop crying! You’ll set me off. I’ve only just gotten the waterworks under control after seeing the kids.”
Laura licks her dry lips, clears her throat. “How have they been?”
“They take after their mom—little fighters. Jack has been worried, but I don’t think he really understands all the ins and outs of what’s going on. He’s been a bit quiet this last week. And Megan, well, she’s struggled. She’s been worried sick. We all have.”
She creases her brow, her expression twisted with guilt. “The roads were icy
. I lost control on a curve.”
“You remember?”
“Yes. Not much after that, though. The next thing I know, I wake up here, strapped into this damn thing.”
I make a face. “It looks uncomfortable.”
“I’ll say. It’s like some medieval torture device. I’m never going to take looking sideways for granted again.” Even now, she’s got her sense of humor. I admire Laura’s determination more than I can describe. I’ve always admired her grit and tenacity. Super Mom.
“How have the staff been treating you?”
“Like some sort of queen.” She smiles knowingly. “How much is Tom paying them?”
“God knows. I know he wants the best for you.”
Laura looks humbled. For the first time, I see her own eyes welling. “I don’t know what I’d have done without him. Usually, I tell him where he can stick his money, but not this time. I don’t think my insurance would have covered half of all this.” She flicks her eyes toward me. “And he’s still here. He hasn’t taken off.”
I don’t tell her that he almost did. “He’s trying.”
Laura sniffs and smiles. “Good. Damn, though. It’s true what they say, isn’t it?”
“What’s that?”
“Be careful what you wish for. I desperately wanted him to spend time with the kids. How has he been with them?”
I nod. “Better than I expected. It’s a big learning curve for him. He’s been in Megan’s firing line a couple of times, but like you say—he’s still here.”
“Megan told me he’s completely clueless.” Laura laughs again. “I told her to go easy on him. Hopefully, now that she knows I’m not going anywhere, she’ll be a bit less hostile.”
“She’s been dealing with some big emotions.”
“I know. This after what happened to Mike. I want to get home as soon as possible and be there for them. I can’t imagine how scared they’ve been. Have you spent much time with them?”
“As much as I can. I haven’t wanted to step on Tom’s toes.”
“You mean it’s been awkward because of the whole sexting and dating thing?”
I laugh. “Haven’t lost a shred of your intuition, I see.”
“It looks like I’m going to be in here a while.”
“Until the New Year, at least.”
Laura lets out a long breath, flicking her eyes up to me again. “That’s a long time to leave them with Tom.”
“He won’t let them come to harm.”
“It’s more the stability and emotional support I’m worried about. Tom isn’t a sentimental person. If they’re struggling, he won’t understand.”
“I can check in more often if you want.”
Laura pauses, bites her lip. I can tell there’s something on her mind.
I squeeze her hand. “What is it?”
“It’s, well, I was wondering if you’d consider being more of a presence until I’m home.”
“A presence?”
“Move in.”
“With Tom?”
Laura raises her eyebrows. “With the kids.”
“Uh-huh.”
“I’m worried about Megan. It sounds like she’s spending an awful lot of time at Justin’s, and she’s at an impressionable age. I know that she’s staying away from the house because she doesn’t want to deal with Tom, but I don’t want her to be at Justin’s every night.”
“Maybe Tom needs to be a little firmer with her.”
Laura laughs. “With Megan? That’s a recipe for disaster. She’s a real little rebel these days. If she thinks Tom’s trying to take my place, she won’t like it. But I know she’ll listen to you. She knows you, and she knows how close we are. If something’s coming from you, she’ll trust that it’s coming from me too.”
“Megan’s more than welcome to move in with me until you come home. You know my door’s always open to you and your kids.”
“That’s really kind, Laura, but your place is sort of far from her school, don’t you think? Plus, you don’t have a spare room. I really want her to have some stability; to be somewhere familiar.”
“So, you want me to be in the house with her?”
“I know it’s a lot to ask. I wouldn’t even think of it if I wasn’t so worried about Megan and if I didn’t trust you as much as I do. You were there when Mike passed. You’ve always been there. You’re family to those kids. I know you being there for them would make a huge difference.”
“You know I’d do anything for you, Laura. But let’s talk about the elephant in the room: Tom and me.”
“I know you two had a couple of awful dates. So there must be all kinds of bad blood, but you’d make a good team.”
It’s my turn to look guilty. “Actually, the date we had the night before you left for the trip went well. Extremely well.”
Laura’s eyes widen. “That’s right. Tom didn’t come home that night. He stayed with you.”
“Awful timing, I know. We hit it off, and we’ve tried to keep things cool between us since, to put the kids first. I don’t know if living together would be pushing things too far.”
“Megan already knows that you two had a sort of thing. It doesn’t have to be weird.”
“She resents our ‘sort of thing.’ She thinks Tom is only hanging around for me. I wanted to keep my distance to keep that kind of thinking out of her head.”
Laura thinks, then presses on. “I know it’s not ideal, but I don’t want the kids to be on their own with him for weeks. Megan really needs someone watching out for her right now, or she might go off the rails. She was already starting to drink and spend too much time with Justin. Tom’s too irresponsible. He’ll turn a blind eye. Even if he called her out on it, you know Megan—she wouldn’t listen. She needs you. She respects you.”
I let out a long, pained breath, and make a face. “Are you sure this is what you want, Laura? Is it what you think is best?”
“I really do. Please, try it. Just for a week and see what you think. Please, Zoe. If I know you’re with them, then I can rest easy in this damn Rube Goldberg machine.”
“I’ll talk with Tom, see what he thinks.”
Laura smiles. “Thanks, Zoe. I knew I could count on you.”
After a couple of hours keeping Laura company, I say goodbye, kissing her on the forehead and promising I’ll be back soon.
I take the bus home, and the first thing I do when I get inside is pick up my phone and call Tom.
When he answers, he sounds flustered. “Hello?”
“It’s Zoe.”
“Oh.”
“Everything okay?”
“Justin just came by to pick up Megan.”
“What! It’s after ten at night.”
“I know. There was nothing I could do except block the door. I’ve called Tess, and she’s told me not to worry. She says she’ll make sure Megan stays in the guest room.”
“Why didn’t you tell her she couldn’t go?”
“I did! She doesn’t listen to me.”
Laura’s words echo in my head. She predicted that Megan would start to break the rules with only Tom watching over her.
I want to be angry, but I can hear the frustration in his voice. I bet it’s been a damned long time since anybody ignored Thomas Vermont. “It’s good that you called Justin’s mother. That was a responsible move.”
There’s a pause. Then I hear Tom laugh, the tension slipping for a moment. “Why do I feel like I’m a schoolkid all of a sudden? Good job, Tom, that was responsible. I have been known to behave like an adult, you know.”
When Tom says it, I realize how condescending I sound, and I laugh too. “I’m sorry. I was trying to make you feel better. You sounded frustrated.”
“I am frustrated. Megan won’t listen to reason, and she rolls her eyes every time I tell her something she can’t do and does it anyway. I’m not going to physically hold her back or block her way. I don’t want her to feel like a prisoner or to scare her. After all, as everyone keep
s telling me, I’m a strange man in the house.”
“Actually, that’s why I was calling.”
“Why?”
“I went to see Laura this evening. She’s asked me for a favor.”
“Uh-huh.”
“She thinks I should move in with you guys for a while, to help keep an eye on the kids.”
“To lay down the law when Megan completely ignores me?”
“Megan’s a tough kid to get through to. Don’t blame yourself; she can be a challenge. Laura thinks that maybe she’ll listen to me because she knows me better.”
“Does Laura know about us?”
“She remembers you not coming home the night before the accident.”
“Oh.”
“Mm-hmm. I told her that things were complicated between us right now.”
“To be honest with you, Zoe: I’m completely out of my depth. I’m with Laura. You should move in.”
I expected at least some resistance from Tom, so I’m surprised. I don’t know if he’s so keen for me to move in because he’s struggling with the kids, or because he’s missing me.
“Are you sure?” I ask him. “We’d have to keep our distance from each other. We don’t want to make the kids uncomfortable.”
“I can control myself. As long as you keep that little black robe in your closet.”
“I’ll bring my ugliest pajamas.”
Tom laughs. “I think it’s a great idea. Help me, please.”
“Okay. I’ll come by after work tomorrow.”
I finish the call and hang up. My stomach is filled with nervous butterflies. I feel excited to know I’m going to be near Tom again, but I also feel wary. It’s going to be hard to resist him. If I catch the scent of that cologne on his skin, I’ll lose it.
I wonder if a tiny bit of Laura is still trying to push us into each other’s arms. I smile. I’m onto you, Laura.
Tom
Zoe arrives with a cross-stitched floral bag that looks like a thrift-store find.
“Nice bag.”
“Thanks. It was my granny’s. She used to bring it with her every time she visited. There were always at least three packs of cookies inside.” She holds it up to me. “It still smells like shortbread.”
