'M' is For: [Ch11] Sweet Little Lies - Part 2

Thomas must have seen the look on my face, because he quickly said, "Let me call Pauline. She can let us in." He pulled out his phone, pressing it to his ear.

I waited, my heart thumping in my chest. I could faintly hear the sound of the ringing as Thomas's call went unanswered.

"What?" I asked as Thomas lowered the phone, even though I guessed what he was about to say.

"She's not by the phone," Thomas said, looking uneasy. "Let me text her." He started tapping out his message on the phone screen.

I stood and waited while Thomas did that, trying not to let panic set in. Rationally, I knew it was unlikely we were going to be stuck out here for long. We just needed someone, anyone, to let us in. Calling Jeb was out of the question, and I didn't have Charlene's number. I pulled out my phone and tried calling the front desk, but like Thomas, my call went unanswered. Swallowing, I hung up.

Thomas finally slipped his phone back into his jeans backpocket and sighed. "Well, hopefully one of the people I texted will get back to us soon." He jammed his hands into his pockets. "Sorry, this wasn't how I imagined our celebratory lunch ending."

"It's fine," I reassured him, not wanting to let my spiking anxiety rub off on him. "You couldn't have known this was going to happen." I checked my watch. I had eight minutes until I had to be back. I cleared my throat. "Is this the first time you've been locked out?"

"Yeah," Thomas admitted. "Maybe in that sense we were overdue, given how often we've been using the roof this summer."

Suddenly, I was hyper aware of how close we were standing to each other. After both of our efforts to open the door, we found ourselves standing barely a foot apart. Thoughts completely unrelated to our current predicament started crowding into my head, like just how soft and tempting Thomas's lips were looking right now.

I tried to wrestle my thoughts under control, but then I made the mistake of catching Thomas's eyes. He was gazing at me with that warm and intent gaze that had started to come into his eyes recently whenever he looked at me. Something sparked between us, and I shuddered from the sudden electricity that surged through me, raising my pulse and demanding I make this right now.

It was impossible to say who moved first. Our lips found each other as my arms wrapped around the back of his neck to pull him close. I could taste the sweet tang of the blackberry soda on his tongue as we kissed, his tongue mingling with mine, and the sweetness intensified into a dizzying, delicious heat that overswept us. Thomas's hands were gentle on me, but the dazed look in his eyes spoke of a deeper, urgent hunger. It aroused in me a fierce response I'd never felt before, crumpling what little resistance remained. I was in total freefall, hurtling willingly down a dark and seductive abyss I had never thought I would risk. Released from rational thought, my hands, so familiar with the lines of his body, slid down his torso toward his belt buckle...

The sound of the latch moving on the door interrupted us. We had just enough time to break away like two fumbling, awkward adolescents before the door swung wide open, revealing Thomas's co-worker Pauline with her phone in her hand.

"There you are," Pauline said brightly. "Sorry about the delay. I'd gotten pulled aside into a conversation."

Chest heaving, breath slightly uneven, Thomas pushed up his glasses on the bridge of his nose. "That's totally fine. Thanks, Pauline. You're a life saver." He glanced at me, and I sensed the finality of the moment. He hadn't meant the kiss to happen, and he wasn't about to let it happen again.

I'm sure what had passed between us was written all over my face. The idea of meekly following Pauline and Thomas back down the stairs to return to work felt laughable. Thomas had distanced himself from me, but still I could feel the heat and want radiating off my skin, demanding the nearness of him once again. It was a hunger that laid painfully bare all my unsuccessful attempts to keep my feelings for Thomas strictly platonic, and I wondered how I could ever have thought it possible to keep romance out of the equation.

All the same, standing in the doorway with Pauline waiting expectantly, I wrestled together the remnants of my self-control and dignity and forced a friendly smile.

"Thank you," I said. "I don't know what we would have done without you."

❖❖❖

I knew that the right thing to do was immediately text Missy to come clean about what had happened. But how to put into writing the momentary madness that had overtaken us on the rooftop? How to make it not incredibly awkward?

The question hung over me all the rest of the day, totally eclipsing any other thoughts. Truthfully, I'd completely forgotten all about my upcoming date with Edward. Once I was finally back home and changed into my pajamas, I curled up on the apartment couch and prepared myself to tackle the challenge.

Hey, Missy. Just wanted to let you know that Thomas and I might have kissed earlier today. I bit my lip, debating my choice of words. That felt too blunt, almost like I was challenging her. I deleted my message and started over: Hey, Missy. I have something to tell you. Call me? But that sounded too serious. A kiss wasn't serious, was it? Especially given all of the other things we had done...

I put down my phone, burying my chin into my pillow. My pulse was beating like I'd just been sprinting, but I took a deep breath to steady my nerves.

Okay, so clearly I was more attracted to Thomas than even I realized, but I had no interest in pursuing someone who was taken. What had happened on the roof was just a momentary slip-up, a one-time aberration. It would never happen again. And in that light, what would telling Missy really accomplish? Thomas had kissed plenty of people besides Missy, and it was no secret that Missy did more than that with her impressive roster of lovers. At best, Missy wouldn't care and laugh at me for making a big deal out of nothing. At worst... I could, I thought to myself, just bury this inside me and pretend it had never happened.

The one thought that persisted was that Thomas was too dangerous for me. He made me forget my own rules, or at least want to break them. I had to remind myself that the rules were there for a reason. I knew I was never going to ask Missy for permission to borrow a man I was attracted to, and if I wasn't going to do that, I had to be doubly sure to avoid Thomas. No more rooftop chats or time alone together. He was still my friend, but we'd be safer if we enjoyed each other's company with others around.

I didn't text Thomas any of these thoughts because I instinctively knew that I didn't have too. When it came to Missy, we both unquestioningly put her first. Except when you didn't, a savage little voice in my mind pointed out.

Determined to put Thomas squarely back in the friend zone, I tried to think only about my upcoming date with Edward. I recalled what he had said about the restaurant Edward planned to take me to and how it was supposed to be pretty nice. I pulled up The Terrace's website to see what I could learn. Aside from a little bit of the restaurant's short history and a sample prix fixe menu, however, there was little else to enlighten me. The dress code I found simply said, in italics, 'Jackets preferred.' Talk about unhelpful.

At least I had more options to choose from in my closet. Since I'd gotten to know Missy and Kiara, my wardrobe had expanded considerably in the dress department. I pulled out a couple likely options from the closet and laid them out on my bed. Surveying them, I finally opted for a black sequined dress with sheer sleeves. I had worn it once before to a book club, and it hadn't escaped me how Edward's eyes had lingered appreciatively that night.

Just as I hung the dress up on the knob of my closet, my phone buzzed. It was Kiara.

Date with Edward tomorrow night?! Omgggg what are you going to wear?

I smiled at how colorful her text message was. She'd managed to pack in quite a few emojis in there.

I turned my phone toward the closet and snapped a photo. I'm thinking this, with some black heels?

Keeping it simple? I like it! Send me a photo before you go out girllllll, I want to see!

After promising Kiara to keep her updated, I spent a couple hours fiddling with my article before finally calling it a night. If I felt a little more giddy than usual, I told myself, it was only natural. How long had it been since I was last asked on a date?

I sincerely hoped with all my heart that I didn't absolutely whiff it.