Page 13 of Sugar Pie
Staying with him was a temporary reprieve, but I needed the energy Warren gave me. One day, I would find a way to repay his kindness, but for the first time in years, I wandered into my bedroom and quickly drifted into a peaceful sleep that I’d stopped believing existed—and it definitely had to do with Warren’s calming presence as I figured out my next move.
5
Kerry
A second shower in one day wasn’t my norm, but I needed to relax my muscles, wash out my underwear, and leave them by the bedroom window. Soon, I would get myself more—underwear was a necessity.
The apartment was nice, and the mattress seemed firm, but my heart pounded. I was tense.
I finished in the shower quickly, as the pulse of the water didn’t work to silence my mind. Once I’d toweled off, I turned my phone on and saw three messages from Romeo and four from my mother. My head began to pound, so I turned off the phone.
The day had been long, but I still wasn’t tired. I crawled onto the bed to meditate. I crossed my legs with only a towel covering me. I imagined Warren walking in and tugging my towel right off and got chills. We would fall backward, his kiss would leave me breathless, and I would run my hands over his hard muscles until he took me and we were one.
My center grew warmer.
I heard a knock on the door and opened my eyes. He poked his head in then out. I blinked, and he said, “Can I—“
I pulled my T-shirt over my head and yanked on my one pair of jeans. A second later, I opened the door and saw Warren pacing. Goose bumps covered my body, and I swallowed hard. I’d only half imagined my fantasy, but my cheeks heated as I rubbed the back of my neck. “What do you want?”
His face was red. “The light was on, and since you’re up and not using the shower, I hoped it was okay to get a five-minute shower, too, before bed.”
Fair enough. It was his place, not mine. Luckily, he couldn’t see my underwear on the window, as I’d put a vase in front of it. I nodded and stepped out of the way.
He passed me. “Thanks.”
I looked into the living room and saw he’d set up a bed for himself on the couch. He clearly meant to keep the lines intact.
I closed my eyes and hoped he hadn’t seen any of my private parts earlier. My skin singed as though he had, but I hoped I was just self-conscious.
He came out a few minutes later, wearing boxers and a T-shirt, his hair still wet.
My soon-to-be ex wore less than he did to bed, but my eyes drank in the sight of Warren. He moved out of my way so I could head back in and close the door.
I tensed and squared my shoulders. I wouldn’t get a wink of sleep if I didn’t calm down. “Can we talk for a few minutes? I’m slightly nervous about staying here indefinitely… with you.”
He fixed the couch, put the throw over the back of the fabric, then waved for me to join him. “Sure. What do you want to talk about?”
I was turned on enough that I couldn’t walk straight, but I took the seat on the other side of the couch, leaving tons of room between us.
Silence clung to the air as he waited for me to speak. I massaged the back of my head. “When’s the last time you had a relationship?”
He relaxed his shoulders and gave me a smile that made me believe he was nice, but I refused to accept that. “I was seeing a woman casually a few weeks ago, but we parted amicably. Why did you marry a doctor?”
“Amicably” sounded nice. I began massaging my shoulder as if that might stop me from being so tense. “I don’t want to talk about me yet. I want to be relaxed near you.”
He nodded, and then the gleam in his gaze captured my attention. “Fair enough. It’s been a while, probably since college, that I’ve seen anyone seriously. My work didn’t leave a lot of time for myself.”
“And your family.”
“It’s true. With eleven brothers and two parents, it’s almost like every weekend there is a birthday.”
All boys meant his mother was a saint. My father, when he spoke to me, only ever said he was glad I was a girl and didn’t need too much attention. “Sounds fun. My parents were socially active with the country club, and so was my husband with his doctor friends, but I was never directly involved with anything.”
He shook his head. “You could adopt children if you didn’t want to give birth.”
“Wow.” I curled a leg on the couch and stared at him. “That’s so admirable. I thought about adoption but never followed through, as Romeo liked his quiet life.”
He shrugged, but his face brightened. “Maman believed she had more than enough to share, which she did, and Pedar does whatever she wants.”
