by Lisa Sumil
His laugh was loud and hearty and I couldn’t help but smile. His laugh was one of my favorite things in the world and I could listen to it all day. You couldn’t help but laugh or smile when he did. His happiness was infectious. Not only to me, but everyone that came in contact with him. He never noticed his affect on anyone, which only made him more endearing. Me on the other hand. I was like wallpaper.
Then, I heard footsteps in the distance in the parking lot and I froze. He raised his eyebrows at me daringly and I just frowned at him. I quickly straightened out my skirt and shoved at him jokingly as I walked quickly back to the lobby before anyone saw us. I heard him laugh again as I hurried away, my legs shaky under me.
My phone chimed again as I rode the elevator back up to the eighth floor.
I like that you didn’t wear underwear today Mel - means I just need to come after you again
I fell against the elevator wall. I wasn’t sure if I’d make it until the weekend. I was half-tempted to continue riding the elevator to the twenty-fourth floor and wait in his office naked and see how he reacts to that. That thought had me half laughing as the elevator doors opened and then my laughter quickly evaporated.
“Zach!”
He must have been waiting for the elevator. But, why was he on my floor?
“Mel? I was just going to see if I could find you. I saw your car here so I thought you’d be at your desk. Then, when you weren’t I figured I just missed you.”
“Uh, yeah - I um, just went for a walk and some fresh air.”
My heart raced in my chest nervously.
“Wait, is Lil-“
“Lilian is fine, she’s still in school. I feel like I haven’t seen you in a while and thought we could go have some coffee or something.”
“Yeah, that’d be great.” I self-consciously smoothed my skirt and played with my hair. I had no idea what I looked like.“You don’t have to work today?”
“We have a new client on sixth. Kind of works out. Now we can see more of each other while I work on this case.”
My phone chimed. I slid it into my purse.
“Don’t need to get that?” Zach asked, watching me as he stepped back into the elevator.
“Um, no. But, I do need to let Charles know I’m stepping back out for a bit. I’ll meet you in the lobby?”
Zach nodded and pressed the elevator button. As soon as the doors sealed shut I took off running to the ladies room. Surprisingly, other than looking flushed, I looked normal. I spritzed some perfume on me to cover Warrens cologne and ran my fingers through my hair. I sent a text to Charles telling him I’d be stepping out for a few and then headed down to the lobby. My heart was racing the entire way down. Zach showing up was completely out of character. I racked my brain trying to remember when was the last time he had visited me at the office and I couldn’t think of a single time. He didn’t even come to our Christmas parties because he was usually working a case.
The elevator doors open and Zach stood in the lobby, leaning against the counter talking to Stu. For a moment my heart fluttered. I had a flash of why I had fallen for Zach. He was charming. He now leaned on one elbow and I could see the thread of muscles through his fitted dress shirt, which he now wore casually. The sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and the top of his shirt unbuttoned. His jacket and tie were probably thrown in the back of his Mercedes.
Stu’s laugh boomed through the lobby and I couldn’t help but smile.
“There you are kitten,” Zach said as he saw me watching them.
He hadn’t called me kitten in years. Tears prickled the corners of my eyes as I approached him.
“You okay?” he asked, as he led me out the front lobby doors, his hand resting on the small of my back.
“You haven’t called me that in a long time,” I whispered.
“I haven’t, have I?”
We stepped outside on the sidewalk and Zach suddenly pulled me toward him, stopping me.
He pressed my face between his hands and memories came rushing back to me. Memories of our life before. His scent, the way he held my face, the way his face crinkled around his baby blues that would send any woman’s heart thrumming.
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
His lips brushed against mine, startling me. My husband.
“You’re just surprising me is all.”
“I’ve missed you,” he whispered in my ear and a tear escaped.
He wiped the tear with his thumb. His eyes were sad and the light blue seemed to darken as he looked at me, realization dawning on him.
“Melanie,” he sighed.“I’m sorry,” he whispered. His eyebrows furrowed together.
I just looked up at him questioningly, not understand the depth of his sorrow. Did he know?
“Zach?” I looked up at him.“Zach? What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry, for not being there,” he finally said.
He pressed his lips against mine, hard. It felt strange and familiar all at once. I realized, when his mouth formed against mine, how much I had missed him. Yet, when he continued to kiss me, I realized how much I resented him. Was it too late?
Kissing my husband, on the street, in public, felt strangely wrong. It was at that moment that I realized Warren might see us and my panic seized me - realizing how twisted and tangled everything had become.
Yet, I couldn’t stop kissing my husband. There was a yearning there that I couldn’t control and I saw myself spiraling farther into this tangled web of chaos.
“Let’s go home,” Zach responded. At the same moment I distantly heard my cell phone chime from my purse.
End
Part 1
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Table of Contents
Copyright
1
2
Part 1
