ACHE

by M. Never

  “And speaking of lunch,” I stop Everly before she goes. “Where are we going?”

  “Today?” she relays, slightly confused.

  “Yes, today. Celebration starts as soon as those papers are out the door.”

  “Shouldn’t it start when they’re signed?”

  I shrug. “Meh. I’m confident in the deal.”

  “You’re the professional.” She gives me my well-deserved props. And I do fucking deserve them. I didn’t work my ass up from nothing, graduate from Yale at the top of my class, and become the fastest junior partner in this firm’s history for nothing. Maybe that’s why I come off grouchy all the time. My work is my life, and that’s usually how I like it. But even workaholics need something to unwind them. I have habituates, and now, Everly.

  “You’re right, I am the professional. And he says a celebratory lunch and dinner are on him.” I convey, matter-of-factly. “And anything else I feel like throwing in there.” Everly cocks her eyebrow, but I cut her to the quick. “Don’t question me, Miss Paige.”

  She rolls her eyes, and I smirk.

  “Hot pastrami from Katz’s deli.”

  “’Scuse me?

  “That’s what I want for lunch. A hot pastrami sandwich from Katz’s deli,” She returns my matter-of-fact tone.

  “That’s it?” I curl my lip. “We live in the midst of a culinary mecca, and you want hot pastrami?”

  “You make it sound so boring.”

  “It is boring.”

  “Not when you eat it with me.” Everly turns on her heel to leave. “I want sauerkraut and spicy mustard, please.” She tosses out her order over her shoulder. “And a Dr. Pepper.”

  “Anything else?” I ask dryly.

  “Just you.” We both pause at her flirtatious reply. Something stirs inside me, and the exact same sentiment seems to reflect in Everly’s eye. “Your company,” she scrambles to clarify, but we both know it’s not what she meant. We both know there is something more happening between us. We both know it can be detrimental to our careers, and we both know we just don’t care. And now that it is lingering in the atmosphere, there’s no turning back. There’s no taking it back. There is just moving forward.

  9

  Everly

  “Just you.”

  I swear I didn’t mean to make it sound the way it came out. All sexy, and husky, and take me right here, right now, right on your fucking office floor. I mean, Jesus, could I have sounded any more hard-up on the guy? I will admit, though, Alec is the first man in a really long time who actually affects me.

  It’s more than just a physical attraction, or curiosity about a slightly older, much more successful man. It’s something elemental. Something instinctive. Reflexive. Once the veil between us lifted, our connection shifted. Something unexpected happened, and now we are at the precipice of exploring it.

  I want to jump, but I also don’t. I want to live, but I am terrified of the outcome. My heart is still so tender, but it beats with a fury. I’m confused. I don’t know who I am, so how can I be transparent with another person?

  With Alec Prescott, no less. He is the epitome of transparent. What you see is what you get. He doesn’t pull any punches. He lets you know exactly who he is, and he doesn't care whether you like him or not. That’s pretty intimidating, and inspiring.

  “Looks like there is a lot going on in that head of yours,” Lara comments as she types away.

  I just stare at my screen. Maybe I’m more transparent than I think.

  “Someone hacked my credit card.”

  “Oh, shit.”

  “And Alec wants to take me on a date.” Technically, he didn’t call it that, but let’s just call it what it is.

  “Oh, really?” Her interest is explicitly piqued.

  “Yes, he wants to take me to dinner, he wants to buy me lunch, he wants to give me all the things.” I sigh.

  “And that’s a problem because?”

  “We work together?” It’s a rhetorical reply.

  “Get over it already.”

  Yeah, I think that excuse has hit its limit, even if it’s the truth and can cost us both our careers.

  Probably just mine. I’m expendable.

  “Sometimes you have to choose nonsensible over sensible. It’s the only way you live. It’s what reminds you you’re alive. And sometimes, the outcome is favorable.”

  “What happens when it’s not?” I already know the answer to that. I took a risk once. I chose nonsensible over sensible, and all it got me was monumental heartbreak.

  “You pick up the pieces and move on.” She shrugs.

  “You’d be okay with losing everything if things with you and Luke don’t work out?” I ask her point-blank.

  “Would it suck, yes? Would I be devastated, yes? I love my job. I love my life, but I also love Luke. I’d rather know it didn’t work out and learn from my mistakes than wonder what if. That is my biggest fear. . .the ‘what ifs’.”

  I’ve lived with a thousand what ifs. It’s basically all I know. It’s the only way I know how to live, but it’s not how I want to live.

  “You can say no, Ever. Stay home and play your Stories app, like every other night.” Her tone is passive, but her message is anything but. “It’s your choice. Play a game of life, or actually live one.”

  Harsh. But she’s so right.

  I’m tired of pretending to have a life. I actually want one.

  I stand in front of the mirror in a form-fitting, black, off-the-shoulder dress with three-quarter-length bell sleeves. It’s understated and elegant and sexy all at the same time. I just ripped the tags off. It’s been sitting in my closet for close to a year. I never thought I’d wear it, yet here I am with my hair tied back in a low, sleek ponytail and my nails painted a bright, bold pink.

  Alec is taking me to some French-fusion restaurant whose name I can’t even pronounce. He said he had to have one of the senior partners pull a string to get a reservation, the wait list is months long. I know I said I want to live, but a date with Alec is intimidating enough. Add all the bells and whistles, and I’m totally out of my element.

  The buzzer in my apartment rings, alerting me that Alec is here. I take a deep breath, check myself out one last time, and rush to the front door.

  “Yes?” I sing playfully through the intercom.

  “Miss Paige, your date has arrived,” Alec toys back with me.

  I press the button, granting him access into the building.

  I’m nervous. So much can go wrong tonight.

  But so much can go right, my subconscious hisses. I don’t have time to ponder it as my doorbell rings. He’s here, the little girl's voice from Poltergeist rings in my head.

  I swing the door open to find Alec dressed in a three-piece, navy blue suit. Gulp. He’s gorgeous. The color of his suit is making the blue of his irises gleam like a jewel. I have reluctantly admitted that to myself in the past, but tonight I am owning the thought.

  He. Is. Gorgeous.

  “Wow.” His face lights up as he looks me over. He approves. That takes some of the edge off. It probably shouldn't, but it does. I want him to like me. Does that sound pathetic? Probably, but it’s the truth. It's been a long time since someone liked me, and I actually liked them back.

  My chest pinches from the reminder of the past. But that’s just what it is, the past, and that’s where it’s going to stay. Tonight is all about the present.

  “Shall we?” Alec offers me his arm.

  “We shall.”

  10

  Tage

  I watch Everly from afar as she is escorted into a posh restaurant by a man I’ve never seen before. My blood boils as he puts his hand on the small of her back and walks through the establishment like he owns it, and her. They sit at the very end of a large bar that looks into the kitchen of the restaurant. The entire place is all red up-lighting, glossy wooden tables, red cushioned chairs, and gold accents. Dressed the way she is, Everly fits right in to the high-end world.
She’s beautiful and glowing and happy. She smiles at the douchebag sitting next to her like she doesn't have a care in the world. Ironically, that’s exactly how I want her to feel, except I want to be the douchebag sitting next to her. It’s supposed to be me. It was always meant to be me.

  I know I should just leave her alone, but I can’t. I have wanted her to move on with her life for so long, and now that she obviously is, I can’t bear the thought of her being with anyone except me.

  My feet move faster than my mind. Slipping into the restaurant undetected, I make myself invisible among the bar crowd. The place is packed, with a line at the door. I steal a glance at a plate being carried by a waiter. Two stalks of asparagus with black stuff sprinkled across the top. That’s the whole dish. Seems a bit anticlimactic to me. Disappointing, if I’m being blunt. I move around the perimeter of the restaurant until her face is in clear view. It takes her a while to notice me, but when she does, the alarm of my presence is evident in her stare. Our gazes catch, then lock, her green eyes trapped by mine. It’s only for a few precious seconds, then I disappear. I wanted to send a message, and by the looks of it, she received it.

  I’m always watching. I’m never far.

  You’ll always, one way or another, belong to me.

  11

  Alec

  Everly looks like she just saw a ghost.

  “Everly? Ever, are you all right?”

  “Hmm?” She blinks rapidly. “Yes, of course.”

  “You sure? ’Cause it looked like something spooked you.”

  “No, not at all.” She smiles, and the woman I was just conversing with returns. “I’m here. With you.”

  “Right where you want to be?” I lean in closer to her.

  “Yes.” She bites her lip. Gone is the demure librarian from work, in her place is a vixen who captivates my entire attention. It’s amazing how she can be two entirely different people in one enticing body. She’s like Diana Prince and Wonder Woman or Linda Lee Danvers and Supergirl. Two completely different alter egos behind the same pair of gorgeous green eyes.

  “It’s where I want to be, too. With you.” I’m not going to waste a second beating around the bush. I want Everly, and I want to make it crystal clear. If the last week has affirmed anything, it’s that my attraction to this woman is real and warranted and not fizzling out anytime soon. I breathed her in, and now she’s a part of me. In my bloodstream, moving my cells, causing my heart to beat.

  Our celebratory dinner consists of several bottles of prosecco and several tapas plates, including green asparagus mimosa with imperial caviar and wasabi whipped cream, roasted baby artichoke with a chickpea emulsion, and spicy duck with kumquat confits. If it sounds showy, ostentatious, and pretentious, that’s because it is. I want to impress Everly. I want to show her how good life can be. I consist of upscale taste and meager beginnings. For some reason, I feel like Everly can relate.

  By the third bottle of bubbly, our bellies are full and our heads are light. Everly is resting her hand on my thigh while I caress the bare skin on her shoulder. She knew what the hell she was doing when she picked out this dress.

  “I don’t want this night to end,” I murmur in her ear as the minutes tick away. It’s nearly midnight, and the restaurant is thinning out. The kitchen is closed, and the bartenders are relaying last call.

  Everly’s eyes widen, but not in hesitation or fear, more in excitement. In a way that communicates she feels the same.

  “So, let’s not let it.” She swipes her thumb back and forth over the material of my dress pants, sending a shock of exhilaration coursing through my body. I want her to touch me so much more. So much more intimately.

  “We can go back to my place.” I run my lips over the curve of her neck, the temperature in the room rapidly rising.

  “I’d like that.” I can almost hear the rapid acceleration of her heartbeat as she agrees. We are stepping over a serious threshold. Both our careers hang in the balance. Moving our relationship to the next level isn't anything to fool with. But we are both consenting adults, whose attraction is apparent to more than just us. The few people left in the room notice it, too.

  I pay the check and lead Everly away. I hail a cab and verbally toss my address to the driver. We aren't very far but nowhere near close enough to walk. The driver speeds through the streets of Manhattan, but the only thing I can concentrate on is the woman sitting beside me. Confined in the back seat, there’s no excuse not to touch her. No excuse not to pull her close and take advantage of the small space. I want to kiss her. The urge has a life of its own. I’ve been fantasizing about those plump, pouty lips for days, and I’m finally ready to make my dreams a reality.

  I inhale her spicy-sweet scent as I touch her reverently. I want her to feel how much I want her. How much I respect her. How tender I can be.

  “Alec,” she sighs as I run the tip of my nose up her neck. God, that sound. My name spilling from her mouth, it causes an uproar inside me. I want to hear it again and again, all fucking night long. While I pin her down, while she rides me, while I take her from behind. I cup her cheek with one hand and trap her face an inch away from mine. We both breathe heavily from the anticipation of what’s to come. I move my mouth fractionally closer to hers, and her lips part. She wants me. Wants this. But just before I close the distance, she places her palm on my chest.

  “Alec?”

  I pause all movement. I thought she wanted this. I read the signs.

  Everly searches for something in my eyes. “What is it?”

  “Can I ask you something?” She doesn't move. She doesn't pull away or push me away. She keeps us close.

  “Anything.”

  She swallows anxiously. “Who do you see when you look at me?”

  I know the answer immediately. I know exactly who I see when I look at Everly.

  “I see someone” — I caress my thumb across her cheek — “who is so much more than whom she portrays herself to be.” And it’s the God’s honest truth. Her exterior might be mild-mannered, but there is a passionate wind blowing beneath the surface.

  Her eyes become glassy as she gazes at me. It’s only for a short moment, but it is a profound one. Any space left between us evaporates as Everly crushes her mouth to mine. The kiss escalates in an instant, becoming everything I’d imagined it would be. Hot, needy, hungry, thrilling. A glorification of lust and a facilitation of emotion.

  I fuse our lips, darting and rolling my tongue until neither of us can breathe. I feel like the Hulk growing in the small backseat of the taxi cab. I need to get out. I need to expand. My hormones are raging, and the only antidote that can sate the animalistic creature is Everly’s body.

  The elevator ride up to my apartment is virtually a blur as my entire concentration is consumed by the spellbinding brunette allowing me to run my hands all over her body.

  The entryway is dark as I push open the door and we stumble into the apartment. I’ll give Ever the two-cent tour of the place tomorrow. Right now, all she needs to worry about is where the bedroom is.

  With our lips molded together, I walk her into the shadowy room, the skyscape of Manhattan glittering through the picture windows.

  As much as I want to rip her clothes off and throw her on the bed, I equally as much want to take my time exploring her curves. Exploring all her secret places and sensitive spots.

  I’m a man tearing in two. My wants clashing like Titans.

  Pumping the brakes, I put some separation between us. Just enough to keep Everly in my grasp but also enough to admire the woman standing before me.

  Her cheeks are pink, her eyes are dilated, and there is a small, sheepish smile playing on her lips. God, she’s beautiful, and I don’t even think she realizes. I didn’t realize, and I’ll be the first to admit I was a fucking asshole for it.

  But not anymore. I know what I have now. What I refuse to let go of.

  I sit on the edge of my bed and stare up at the gift the universe has offered me. Runnin
g my hands gradually along Everly’s curves, she places her palms on my neck. A pivotal moment passes between us. It feels like a day of reckoning. I am going to show Everly how much I want her. How my misjudgment and indiscretions of the past are no longer.

  “I have been thinking about you all goddamn day.” I tighten my grip on her hips.

  “Good, because I’ve been thinking about you, too.” Her voice is faint and so fucking alluring.

  “Oh, yeah? What were you thinking about?”

  “This. Right here, right now. If we were ever going to get to this point.”

  “Did you have doubts?”

  “Maybe a few,” she confesses.

  “I know I’m not always the most tolerable person. Or the nicest, or warmest, but being with you, I feel different.” I drop my head and stare into the blackness of her dress. “You make me want to be different.” It’s my turn to confess. For as long as I can remember, work has been my main priority. To strive professionally and reach an elevated level of success, and up until now, I have excelled. But Everly has made me realize there is so much more to life than just work, or money, or status. There’s intimacy and companionship and affection. My job has always been my first love, but now there’s room for another, and she’s standing right in front of me.

  I feel Everly’s sweet touch on my cheek. “You make me want to be different, too.” I lift my head to gaze up at her face. “I have avoided life for so long, but I don’t want to do that anymore. I don’t want to be alone or hide. I want . . . more.” She struggles to find the right word.

  “With me, you can have more.” That’s all I want, to give her more.

  With a bright smile, she asks, “So, what are we waiting for?”

  I mirror her facial expression. “Not a damn thing.” Life starts right fucking now.

  Inhaling a collective breath, Everly reaches around and unzips her dress. The oxygen in the room thins as she seductively peels the clingy material from her body. I don’t even think she’s trying to be sexy — she just is.