Page 28 of The Red Zone
I bit my bottom lip to refrain from making a snide remark. My intention for coming out here was to relax, and that wasn’t going to change simply because he was here too.
In truth, I didn’t care if he thought Molly was prettier than me. Then or now.
He seemed remorseful once the truth finally came to light.
And I think, deep down, I always knew he would be whenever my truth finally came to light. He might not have been the one directly responsible for the words that hurt me, but he understood the role he played in what happened, which was something.
The worst part was that it made it much harder to hate him knowing that he wasn’t the monster that had been living inside my head all these years. That despite our animosity, he’d still dropped to his knees without a second thought to console me when I needed it.
For the first time he made me see that he was more human than monster. Would he ever see the same with me?
I’d had eighteen years to let go of the feelings that harbored in my heart for so long after overhearing Molly’s comment. I was willing to extend forgiveness, but I wasn’t ready to embrace him with arms wide open yet.
Squatting down, I took a seat on the edge of the pool opposite him, dipping my legs in the ice-cold water until they were submerged up to my knees. Leaning forward, I placed my palms on the stone coping and looked around the dark yard. The only source of light was the crystal blue haze illuminating from the pool.
“Sometimes I like to come out here late at night when the world is still and the only sounds are the bugs chirping and the pool circulating water.”
“It’s calming,” he offered in response.
“Exactly.”
“About tonight…”
“Save it,” I cut him off, though there wasn’t any malice in my tone like usual. “I’d rather not takeanothertrip down memory lane.”
He nodded, loosening the tension in his shoulders as he ran his passions over the top of the water.
What I’d said back on the boat earlier about our little heart to heart not changing anything between us was true. One apology couldn’t erase the twenty years of damage we’d administered to each other.
Yet, there was an uncertainty between the two of us that landed somewhere between hatred, lust, and acquaintanceship. These few minutes, sitting outside in silence, were the longest we’d gone without snapping at each other for as long as I could remember.
Which didn’t help the fact that with each passing second the voice inside my head which was screaming‘What if Scarlett was right?’got louder. And louder. And louder.
You know what… fuck it. The worst he could say was no, and frankly, I could use a little excitement in my life right now. Something to take my mind off of the chaos around me.
I mean, it’s not like things were going to get better between us. So, the least we could do was relieve some of this tension by exchanging a few orgasms. Then, tomorrow, we could pretend like nothing happened and go back to regularly scheduled programming where we avoid each other at all costs.
“You know what? Why don’t we call a temporary truce?” I pushed off my elbows and submerged myself into the water until it waded around the middle of my rib cage.
“A truce…” He whipped his head toward me, tilting it to the side.
“You know, an agreement between enemies to stop fight—"
“I know what a truce is.”
“Oh really? Couldn’t tell.” I shot him a playful smile and he shook his head. “It would only be temporary. For a few weeks, until you moved out. Then we can go right back to loathing each other the second you’re gone.”
I couldn’t make out his face well in the darkness, but I could’ve sworn he was sporting knotted brows. “Before I answer that, I’ve been meaning to ask…”
I took a few steps until I was in the middle of the pool. “Yeah?”
“Was there any truth in what you said earlier? About Scarlett’s comment…”
“I wasn’t lying about what she said. She’s been saying we should fuck for months.”
Until now, I’d always brushed it off. Assuming it was just some sort of trivial joke made at my expense for the sake of a laugh. I didn’t mind it much, because we both knew how far off from reality I’d have to be to actually consider it.
Yet, here I was, arguably about to make one of the most unhinged decisions of my life. Weird thing was, I felt a sense of calm about it. If he sucked in bed, then I’d have more material to work with at our next battle. And if he was halfway decent, then at the very least, it would make for a fun night.
