Brian blew out a breath. “Well, you don’t need me to tell you to be careful.”
“How did you know? What gave it away?”
“Riley gave it away.”
Lauren sat forward. “She said something?”
“No. I just mean her body language. She went into a bit of a panic when you showed up. But then she couldn’t take her eyes off you so...” They sat in silence for a minute, but Lauren knew Brian wasn’t done giving his opinion yet. “What was wrong with Taylor?”
“Brian, don’t be dramatic. Nothing was wrong with her. We just didn’t click.”
“You’re something else,” he said with a grin.
She shook her head. “I’m going to be careful, okay? I promise.”
“I know.”
Lauren knew that Brian was just looking out for her, but she knew there was something different about her and Riley. It was incredibly new, and she had no idea what was going to happen, what either of them wanted, but she knew Riley wouldn’t blackmail her. She was nothing like Deirdre.
14
Lauren got comfortable on Taylor’s sofa as she returned from the kitchen with two glasses of wine.
“Here you go,” Taylor said, sweeping her long blond hair across one shoulder as she sat down.
“Thanks.”
“Thanks for coming,” Taylor said with a half-smile. “I wasn’t sure if you would.”
“Why wouldn’t I? Because of Friday?”
“Yeah.”
“I overreacted,” Lauren said. “And I’m glad you called because I wanted to apologize.”
Taylor held out her hand. “You don’t need to. I’m the one who should be apologizing.”
“Let’s just put it behind us.”
“Alright,” Taylor said. “I can drink to that,” she said lifting her glass.
Lauren took a drink. She knew why she’d reacted the way she had on Friday. She was afraid of rumors, both old and new, and now it wouldn’t even be a rumor. She was sleeping with Riley. Lauren cleared her throat. “So, I know we’re going to move on from Friday, but... What was going on with you? You had me worried. You said you wanted to talk to me about something.”
Taylor leaned back into the cushions, crossing one jean clad leg over the other. “I did, but I don’t know. I don’t want to burden you with my problems. It’s not even a problem, really. It’s just...” Taylor blew out a breath. “This is not the kind of problem I thought I’d be having when I moved here. I thought I’d have trouble fitting in, getting used to a new school, finding a decent place to live.” She sighed. “All of those things haven’t happened.”
“So, what’s happened? What are you worried about?” Lauren asked.
“In my last job, one of the guys I worked with was having an affair with one of his students. It turned in to a whole thing, made the local papers... She was twenty and he was in his thirties.” Taylor bit her lip. “I’m not even sure what I thought of it at the time. I wasn’t completely put off. They were two adults. I guess, it depends on the people involved, how it happened, if there was anything else going on like the promise of a better grade... Anyway, he was fired, and basically run out of town. It was even more small town than here.”
Lauren brought her glass to her lips, her pulse increasing slightly. What was Taylor getting at? Was she involved with a student? Was she trying to get it out of Lauren, that she was sleeping with Riley?
“Sorry,” Taylor said as she took another drink. “I’m rambling, aren’t I? The point is, I never saw myself being one of those teachers. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with it, again, if there aren’t any other factors, like coercion... But I could be one of those professors.”
“What?” Lauren’s eyebrows furrowed. “Why did you say could be?”
“Because nothing’s happened. At all. I’m just attracted to her, and I really don’t want to be.”
“Oh.” Lauren released the breath she hadn’t even realized she’d been holding in. “Oh. Okay. Well, that’s nothing to worry about, right? We all have crushes.”
“Yeah, I guess. I just don’t know what to do.”
Lauren smiled. “Is she a senior? Couldn’t you ask her out when she’s graduated?” Lauren asked, wondering why she couldn’t be so logical. That’s exactly what she should have done with Riley. Then there wouldn’t be any of this sneaking around and worrying about who might find out.
“She’s in her third year.”
“Oh.”
“So I’d be waiting almost two years,” Taylor said, and by the faraway look on her face, Lauren wondered if she was actually considering it.
“Have you...” Lauren’s voice trailed off. “Does she know? Have you spoken about it or...?”
“No.” Taylor smiled. “It could be completely in my head. Nothing has happened. Not a thing. Sometimes, when I’m in the middle of a lecture, and I turn around to look at the class, I could swear her eyes are on me, but then again, so are everyone else’s, for the most part anyway. There’s always one or two who are asleep, and I try not to let that get to me,” she said with a chuckle. “So, this more than likely isn’t a problem, because...” she shrugged. “It’s just a fantasy.”
Lauren smiled. She knew exactly what Taylor was going through, but she couldn’t bring herself to tell her about Riley. “You never know. You’re a catch, Taylor. She could very easily be interested in you.”
“Thanks.” Taylor said with a smirk before she sipped her wine. “And then what?”
“I don’t know. That’s something you’d have to figure out, but technically... It’s not against the rules. Not at this college, anyway.”
“But there’s my reputation, and her future. If it all goes to shit, or it gets out...”
“Yeah. There’s a lot to think about,” Lauren said, knowing that all of this was true for her and Riley, except that they’d done very little thinking. They’d just given in.
“I guess, I could maybe be friends with her? I don’t know. Like you and Riley. You guys are friendly, right? You gave her a ride to the casino the other night.”
Lauren nodded. She really didn’t want to be a shitty friend, but she also wasn’t ready to tell Taylor about Riley. She needed to figure out what was going on with Riley first. “I wouldn’t worry about it too much,” Lauren said, her phone buzzing on the glass coffee table.
“Do you want a top up?”
“Sure,” Lauren said as she picked up her phone. It was a text from Riley just asking her how her Sunday was going. Lauren had picked up her phone several times last night, only to put it down again. She’d wanted to text Riley, but at the same time, she was trying to stay in control of this situation.
Lauren’s eyes moved over Riley’s text again. It was a harmless message. If anyone had read it, they wouldn’t think anything was going on between them, but that didn’t keep the smile off Lauren’s face as she typed back a reply, asking her if she was free tonight.
“Here I am telling you about my non-existent love life,” Taylor said as she came back into the room with two full glasses of wine, “And you’ve got those heart-eyes going on. So, who is it?” Taylor teased as she handed Lauren her glass and sat down.
Lauren exhaled. She really wanted to tell her.
“Oh,” Taylor said, frowning. “Sorry. You don’t have to tell me.”
Lauren closed her eyes for a second. “I really like you, Taylor, and I can’t lie to you like this.” She sighed. “It turns out... I have the same problem as you.”
“What do you mean?”
“Riley.”
“Oh.” Taylor took a drink and left her glass on the coffee table. “So you... Are you...?”
Lauren nodded, not entirely sure of Taylor’s question, but either way the answer was ‘Yes.’
“You two are... together?”
“I’m not even sure to be honest,” Lauren said with half a smile.
“And you don’t think that it’ll cause you problems?”
“It mi
ght. It’s extremely new. That’s why I freaked out on Friday. It hadn’t even happened yet, but I guess I knew I was attracted to her...” Telling Taylor about Riley was one thing. She wasn’t going to get into the past. There was no point telling Taylor about Deirdre. It would only worry her, and Lauren hated thinking about that time in her life.
“But... how?” Taylor asked, reaching for her drink. “If you don’t mind me asking. You don’t need to tell me if you’d rather not.”
“No, it’s fine. I don’t know if you heard, but Riley won the tournament on Friday night, and I asked her back to my apartment. We both live in the same building, so it wasn’t that big of a deal. I wanted to apologize for what happened. She’d overheard some of our conversation, and I didn’t want her to think...”
“Yeah. That probably looked bad,” Taylor said.
“Yeah, but then... Wow. It’s hard to believe all that happened on Friday night.”
“You don’t waste any time, do you?” Taylor asked with a smirk.
“It wasn’t even like that. It just happened.” Saying it out loud made Lauren even more aware of how crazy it was. They’d gone from zero to sixty in just a few minutes. How was this not going to end in disaster? “It was intense,” Lauren said, taking a drink.
“So, there’s hope for me yet?”
Lauren blew out a breath and smiled, shaking her head. “Yeah. Why not? We said we’d talk, that there were risks. What else can we do? I probably shouldn’t have given in so easily, but...”
“Do you regret it?”
“No. Definitely not,” Lauren said without hesitation. “It wasn’t a mistake. I just wonder if I’ll look back on this in a few weeks or a few months and see that I should have done things differently. This is Riley’s final year. I should have just waited.”
“But you said it just happened. That you had a moment, right?”
Lauren nodded before taking a drink.
“So, if you let that moment pass...” Taylor shrugged. “She might have thought you weren’t interested, and that would have been that. She’d finish college and maybe move away.”
“That could happen anyway.”
“True.” Taylor reached for Lauren’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “You’re happy though, right? I mean, you’re not...”
“Am I having a midlife crisis?” Lauren asked with a grin.
“I’m just making sure you’re okay, and thanks for telling me by the way. For trusting me.”
“Thanks for listening, and I hope you feel like you can talk to me, you know, if things progress.”
Lauren’s phone buzzed again, sliding across the glass. She ignored it this time, not wanting to be rude.
“Are you seeing her tonight?” Taylor asked.
“Possibly.”
“That’s her, isn’t it?”
“I’d say so.”
“Go ahead,” Taylor said, handing Lauren her phone.
Lauren unlocked her screen. Yeah, Riley was free.
Taylor chuckled. “I’ll take that silly look on your face for a ‘Yes.’”
Lauren dropped her phone into her bag. She couldn’t even deny it either. She’d really have to try harder later. She didn’t want this thing with Riley to get out of control.
“Yes,” Lauren said, finishing her drink. “That was her. I’m going to meet her later. We’re keeping things quiet, obviously. Because we haven’t really talked about what exactly it is we’re doing, and because of everything you’re worried about.”
“I understand. I won’t say anything.”
“So, you’re okay?” Lauren asked.
“Yeah. I feel better after talking about it, and I can’t believe you know exactly how I’m feeling.” Taylor smiled. “Well, you’re ahead of me now, but you know what I mean.”
“You are right to be cautious. I should have been, and I hope it doesn’t come back to bite me.”
“You’ll be fine. Now, I’m not kicking you out, but you have better places to be.”
Lauren’s lips tugged into a smile. “I should probably get going.”
Taylor walked her to the door. “I’m happy for you, Lauren. I really hope it works out, if that’s what you want.”
Lauren nodded. That was the problem. She had to figure out what she wanted. Fast. Before either of them got hurt. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” Lauren said as she gave her a quick hug.
“Bye.”
The door clicked shut behind her, and Lauren stood in the hallway, knowing she had some serious thinking to do. Riley would be knocking on her door in about two hours, and if Friday night was anything to go by, all logic went out the window when she was around Riley.
On the short drive back to her apartment, Lauren made the decision to at least put some space between them, to not jump back into bed without thinking it through. That would be easier said than done.
15
Riley managed to leave her apartment without seeing Nicole. She knew that Nicole would ask her where she was going, not in a nosy way, but Riley was wearing more makeup than she would to college, and she was definitely more dressed up.
After trying on five different outfits, Riley had gone with dark wash jeans and a white top, torn between wanting to look good yet not trying too hard. She’d put a few loose waves in her hair though, and between the makeup and her black ankle boots, she hoped she looked alright. Lauren was so fashionable and sophisticated that she wondered how Lauren would feel about being seen out with her. If it ever came to that.
Riley knocked on her door, telling herself to relax, that she had nothing to be nervous about, really. Friday night had been amazing. Yesterday had turned out alright too, although the coffee shop could have been a complete disaster. She couldn’t imagine sitting down across from Lauren and having to act normal around her brother, while also trying to impress both of them and prove that she wasn’t some immature student.
“Hi,” Lauren said, her piercing blue eyes raking over her, giving Riley a slight boost in confidence.
“Hey...”
“Come in.” Lauren stepped back, and Riley felt the nerves creeping back in as she entered the apartment.
Lauren’s hair was pulled back, parted just off center like she wore it a lot of days to class, and for some reason, it hit Riley, the gravity of this, of what they were doing, of how badly it could reflect on both of them. Just because it wasn’t explicitly against the rules didn’t mean that they didn’t have to worry about their reputations, about their futures. More so Lauren than her. She’d be leaving in a few months.
“You okay?” Lauren asked, her hand on her hip, her eyes studying Riley.
“Yeah,” Riley breathed, a half smile on her lips. “Yes.” If Lauren wasn’t worried about this, why should she be? Riley wasn’t going to walk away from this, not without a real reason to. She wasn’t going to think about all the ‘what-ifs.’
“Are you sure?”
Riley nodded. She had to snap out of it. It wasn’t like her to worry, but after everything that happened with her parents, she knew she’d been on edge lately, and she was starting to wonder if that uneasiness would ever go away. “How was your day?” Riley asked, determined to stay in the moment and not worry about the future.
“Good. I went for a long hike this morning. I think this weekend was the last of the mild weather, so I wanted to take advantage of it, and then I went over to Brian’s for dinner with his family. And I just had a drink with Taylor a little while ago, so... Busy day. What about you?”
Riley followed her into the living room. “Yeah. Nothing too hectic. I actually spent most of the day in the library. I’m kind of avoiding Nicole. She’s going to know something is up with me, and I’m... Well, I know I’m not going to tell her, but I think I need a little more time to get my story straight. I think I’m going to blame it all on poker.”
“Blame what on poker?”
Riley opened her mouth and quickly shut it. Why couldn’t she think before she spoke? She had to play it cool, a
nd this was the opposite of that. Riley cleared her throat. “My uh... You know, my shift in mood.”
“Oh. Yeah.” Lauren tugged at the rounded collar of her black sweater, a smile on the corner of her lips. Why did she have to look so good in black? “I know what you mean. I’ve had to come up with excuses too.”
Riley blinked. “You have?”
“Yes. You sound surprised.”
“No. Well,” Riley stuttered. “I’m just... I guess, I’m trying to see things from your point of view.”
“And you assumed this meant more to you than it did to me?”
“Yeah,” Riley said, feeling incredibly stupid.
“Do you want something to drink? I feel like we should have something, you know, just in case this conversation turns serious.” Lauren winked, and Riley’s heart skipped a beat. “Wine? Something stronger?”
“Wine is fine. Anything white would be great.”
“Okay. Be back in a minute.”
Riley ran her hand through her hair. She’d been reluctant to let herself start daydreaming about Lauren, about a relationship. Lauren wanted to keep this a secret, so how serious could it possibly be?
Lauren was back with two glasses of wine.
“Thanks.” Riley took a much needed drink.
“Riley, I wish you would tell me what’s wrong,” Lauren said, sitting back, draping her arm over the back of the couch. “I feel like you might run out on me at any moment.”
“I’m not going to run out.”
“Then what’s wrong? You seem nervous.”
Riley ran her finger over her eyebrow. Telling her about what happened over the summer would be a bad idea, wouldn’t it?
“Look, if this is making you uncomfortable...” Lauren’s voice trailed off. “We can stop. We said we’d talk so.” Lauren shrugged. “I feel like this is where you tell me what’s bothering you, and we figure out how to fix it or move on. Whatever’s the best way to deal with the problem.”
Riley’s heart accelerated. “No. No. It’s nothing to do with us.”
Sweet Temptation Page 8
