Page 76 of Love Me Carefully
“Yes. I mean, no.” Leah took a deep breath and decided to simply spit it out. “The feelings I had for you, or I should say, the feelings I didn’t have for you, had nothing to do with my current relationship. Things just weren’t meant to be between us. But I’d like to be friends.”
His lips melted into a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I’ll always be your friend, Leah. That was never in question. And I respect your honesty. I’m just sorry we don’t see eye to eye.” Leon stood and reached for her hands.
Putting her hands in his, Leah stood as well. That hadn’t been as bad as she’d thought. Leon really seemed like a good guy, and she prayed he’d find a woman who could appreciate him. For long moments he held her hands tightly, rubbing his thumbs over her skin as his eyes studied her intently. The strange look made her want to pull free.
Then as if reading her mind, he released her hands, smiled and held his arms out. “Can I at least get a goodnight hug, friend?”
“Of course you can.” She smiled nervously and went into his embrace.
“I hope he knows what a wonderful woman he’s got,” Leon said as he held her.
“He does,” Terrell said from the doorway.
Leah instantly turned towards the voice and maneuvered her way out of Leon’s arms.
“Terrell? I thought you’d be a while longer,” she said, crossing the room to where he stood.A quick kiss on the lips and she was grasping Terrell’s arm and pulling him further into the living room. “Terrell Pierce, this is Leon Reynolds. Leon, this is Terrell.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Terrell,” Leon said extending his hand.
Terrell eyed the man suspiciously, then extended his hand as well. “Likewise,” he said in a guarded tone.
“I was just leaving.” Leon began to move toward the door. “Leah, you make sure you get some rest.”
“Oh, I will. I only have four weeks until the next wedding, but I’m giving Melinda most of those responsibilities,” Leah said as she walked Leon to the door.
“I’ll always love you,” Leon whispered. Then noticing that Terrell was watching them closely, added, “Take care of yourself.”
Love?He’d definitely never said that word to her before and she knew she’d never given him reason to believe his feelings were reciprocated.
That uneasy feeling she’d felt before when they were alone resurfaced, but she forced a smile and said, “I will. And you do the same.”
She closed the door behind Leon and turned to go back into the living room.
“How many visitors do you need in one night?” Terrell asked the moment she was in front of him.
“He showed up at the reception right after I talked to you. He said he needed to talk. That was all, Terrell. We talked.”
“You and I are talking right now and I’m not touching you. So how come Leon couldn’t do the same?” He hated seeing her in another man’s arms, hated that he’d known instinctively who the other man was.
Leah took a step closer to him, placed her hands on his shoulders. “I can remedy that,” she said in a sultry voice.
He tried to resist any reaction to her touch. “I’m just not comfortable with your ex being alone with you in your apartment at this time of night.”
She removed his glasses, set them down on the table beside them. “That’s fair. I’d probably feel the same if the tables were turned. Now, can’t we find something else to talk about besides Leon?”
She pushed him onto the couch, straddled him and began to unbutton his shirt. Terrell’s hand stopped her motions. “I’m serious, Leah. It’s just me and you now. I’m not into sharing.”
Because she knew he was thinking about when he’d walked in on Tanya, she held on to her anger. She could imagine that if she’d walked in on her boyfriend in bed with another woman, that doubt would linger in her mind for a while too. “Listen to me, because this is going to be the last time that I tell you this.”
Terrell looked at her intently.
“I don’t cheat. When and if I decide to be with someone else, I’ll be sure to let you know. Don’t bring what she did to you into my house again.”
Terrell sighed with the realization of what he’d done. He had thought of Tanya and her little escapade in their bed—the bed he’d since thrown out. He’d seen Leah in another man’s arms and felt the sting of betrayal without even giving her the opportunity to explain. Moving his hands to rest on her hips, he gently massaged her. “I’m sorry.” He let his head fall to her chest, kissing her breast through her blouse. “I guess I did do that. It’ll never happen again.”
Leah sucked in a breath as he lightly bit her nipple. “It had better not.”
With lightning quick motions Terrell ripped her blouse open. Buttons fell onto the cushions around them as he freed her breasts from her bra, taking the soft mounds into his mouth. “I just can’t stand the thought of somebody else touching you, loving you,” he whispered between his frantic nipping.
