Page 42 of Silver Linings
She gives me a “it’s about time” look, along with the slightest nod of her head, tilting her mouth up to me just a fraction closer in invitation.
I begin to lean down infinitesimally, giving her time to change her mind—or maybe giving me the time to talk myself out of a selfish decision. But the combination of her scent mingling with the feel of her body on mine is making me dizzy and stupid.
Our mouths are nearly touching, and?—
BUZZ!
The loud vibration of her phone against the counter rattles us out of the moment, and frustration and relief war against each other.
We’ve pulled apart by a couple inches, no longer in the danger zone, when I reach for her phone behind me.
Finance Fuck
Hey! I had a great time with you the other night. I’d love to take you out again. Are you free this weekend?
I straighten to my full height and hand her the phone, pretending I didn’t see the message. She starts to type out a reply. Is she accepting the date? Suggesting a place for them to go? I can’t read the look on her face from the corner of my eye, trying not to make it obvious I’m snooping.
What the fuck am I doing?
How did I conveniently forget she was seeing someone? Kissing her when she’s still involved with John would be a mistake, and one of the many reasons I’ve been trying to keep my feelings under lock. The last thing we both need is for this to get complicated because I couldn’t keep my hands to myself and then have to see her all the time at The Langham. Fairbanks’ no fraternization rule was starting to make more sense. Things already feel awkward, and we didn’t even kiss.
She fiddles around on her phone while I resume painting my section.
Twenty minutes pass by in awkward silence and ignoring the almost kiss. Night has fully descended, and it’s edging close to ten at night when Silver finally breaks our silence.
“What’s your favorite movie? Don’t sayDie Hard.”
“Die Hard 2.”
“Okay…what would you take with you to an abandoned island?”
“Flint.”
“What is your deal?”
“I don’t know what you mean.” I avoid her gaze.
“Yes, you do. Half an hour ago, we almost kissed, and now you’re completely shut down.” We’re still standing behind the register counter when she faces me head on, hands on her hips and paint forgotten. “Look, if you changed your mind, that’s fine, but don’t be a dick.”
Fuck.
“I…I saw that John texted you, and he seemed like a nice guy, so I thought…I thought I should back off if you were already taken, not complicate things further.”
“Taken? This isn’t the fifties. No one is staking their claim on me. Maybe you should ask before jumping to conclusions.”
“I-I—” I stutter out before she cuts me off.
“If you had justtalkedto me about it, I would have told you that yes, John is a nice guy, but it won’t work out between me and him in the long run.” She’s definitely edging on angry. “But instead, you made an assumption based on one night out. A night where you barely spoke to me, by the way.”
I don’t know what to say, everything I’ve said already was just digging me deeper.
“Look, it’s fine. We can just call it. You’ve been running hot and cold since I met you, and it’s been giving me whiplash. If this was something you wanted, you would have made a move, because I made it more than clear I was interested.”
Was.
“Let’s clean up for the night. I won’t let this make things awkward. Like you said earlier, we’re adults, and this store is important to me, and nothing is getting in the way of that.”
Panic claws at my chest. She turns to walk out from behind the counter, away from me, when, for the second time tonight, I don’t think—I react, unable to let her walk away.
