CHAPTER 16 #2
The question hung in the air like a heavy executioner’s axe.
The room went completely silent, save for the sound of our ragged, desperate breathing.
Helisa stared at me, her chest heaving, the tears streaming freely down her face now, washing away the corporate titan and leaving behind a woman completely exposed to her own demons.
"Fuck it," Helisa muttered, the curse word sounding entirely foreign and incredibly sharp coming from her lips.
Before I could even process the shift in her energy, Helisa aggressively kicked off her own designer heels, letting them clatter carelessly across the floorboards.
She stepped out of her shoes, eliminating the height difference between us, and closed the final gap of space in a single, fluid motion.
Her hands came up, her long fingers gripping the sides of my face with a terrifying, heavy pressure, and she slammed her mouth against mine.
I let out a sharp gasp of absolute shock against her lips, my entire body locking up like iron.
But Helisa didn't let me go. She captured my lips with a fierce, passionate desperation that knocked the wind right out of my lungs.
It wasn't the tentative, gentle kiss of a friend; it was a white-hot explosion of everything she had been burying for three long years.
Her mouth opened over mine, her lips warm, soft, and tasting intensely of the red wine and raw emotion we had been drowning in all night.
For a fraction of a second, my brain screamed at me to push her away, to punish her for making me wait this long.
But as her tongue gently brushed against mine, a sudden, overwhelming wave of pure surrender washed over me.
I gave in completely. My eyes closed, my hands rising to grip the silk material of her shirt, pulling her body flush against mine until the heat between us felt like a furnace in the middle of my living room.
We were kissing passionately, our breath mingling, our tears mixing on our cheeks as the heavy walls of our corporate professional facade dissolved into pure, raw desire.
"I’m sorry... I am so, so sorry," Helisa whispered, her lips barely parting from mine as she spoke, her warm breath caressing my mouth. She kissed me again, a softer, deeper stroke that made my knees buckle, her tears streaming from her dark eyes and wetting my skin.
She pulled back just an inch, her forehead resting against mine, her hands still cupping my face like I was made of fragile glass.
"Ciara... I am so incredibly sorry. I just...
I never wanted to spoil our friendship. You are the most important person in my entire world, and I realize now that giving my heart, my love to another person would surely tear us apart. "
I looked into her eyes, my heart shattering and putting itself back together all at the same time. "Then why did you avoid me, Helisa? Why did you hurt me like this?"
"Because it’s not that I don't love you, Ciara," Helisa revealed, her voice cracking with a profound, emotional weight that shook her entire frame.
She kissed the corner of my mouth gently before looking back into my eyes.
"It’s just that I love you too much. I was terrified, Ciara.
I was so afraid to even touch you, fearing that if I let myself fall, I would love you too much and you wouldn't love me back the same way.
When I love, I truly and deeply love, Ciara.
It consumes me completely. I couldn't risk losing you if things went wrong. "
A soft, watery smile broke through my tears, the sheer validation of her words healing a wound I had carried for years.
"I’m just the same, Helisa," I revealed, leaning up on my tip-toes to press my lips back against hers, kissing her with all the pent-up love and loyalty I had saved for her.
"I love you just as deeply. I always have. "
We stood there in the quiet luxury of my living room, wrapped in each other's arms, the heavy storm of the evening finally settling into a warm, gentle tide. I slid my hands down her back, feeling the solid, real warmth of her body against mine.
"Helisa?" I whispered against her neck, the scent of her perfume making my head spin.
"Yes, beautiful?" she murmured, her hands smoothing over my hair.
"Is this the part where we make love?" I asked, my voice carrying a tentative, steamy hope as I looked toward the hallway that led to my bedroom.
A soft, bittersweet chuckle escaped Helisa’s lips, the vibration of her laughter warming my chest. She pulled back slightly, her dark eyes looking at me with an incredible, tender affection that made me feel like the only woman in the universe.
"We could, Ciara... god knows I want to more than anything," Helisa revealed, a gentle, remorseful smile playing at the edge of her lips as she glanced back toward the heavy oak front door.
"But Marcus is just outside those doors. He’s been driving me across the boroughs all night, and he has to get home to his kid.
I can't keep him waiting in the car until dawn. "
I let out a soft, dramatic sigh, but a genuine smile broke across my face.
The sheer, unyielding consideration Helisa had for the people who worked for her was one of the many reasons I had fallen in love with her in the first place.
She was a powerhouse executive, but her heart was fundamentally good.
"Ah, that’s very considerate of you, Helisa," I smiled, wrapping my arms around her waist, refusing to let her go just yet. "Always looking out for the team."
"Marcus is family, you know that," Helisa murmured, her fingers tracing the line of my collarbone. "But tomorrow... tomorrow is a completely different story, Ciara."
"Now, kiss me one more time before you go," I demanded playfully, leaning my body against hers, my eyes locking onto her lips. "And tell me this isn't where it ends. Tell me I’m still on the front-page."
Helisa did just that. She didn't hesitate for a single fraction of a second.
She closed the distance, capturing my lips one more time with a deep, slow, and completely soul-stirring kiss that promised me everything I had ever yearned for.
Her tongue parted my lips gently, sealing a silent vow between us in the dark of my apartment.
"This is not the end, Ciara. It’s just the beginning," Helisa whispered against my mouth as she finally, reluctantly pulled away.
She stepped back, walking over to the velvet armchair to retrieve my green stiletto.
She walked back over, handing me my shoe with a graceful bow of her head, before leaning down to slip her own heels back onto her feet.
She straightened her silk shirt, running a hand over her hair to restore a bit of her corporate composure, though her eyes were still soft and bright with affection.
I slipped my foot back into my green heel, feeling whole again, and walked her toward the front door. I couldn't resist—just as she placed her hand on the brass doorknob, I stepped in and kissed her one more time, a quick, sweet press of our lips that made her smile.
Helisa opened the double-oak door, stepping out into the elegant, carpeted elevator vestibule. Standing right by the elevator banks, looking entirely patient and professional, was Marcus.
"Goodnight, Ms. Executive," Marcus said, offering me a respectful, understated bow of his head and a warm smile. "Glad to see things sorted out."
"Goodnight, Marcus. Thank you for taking care of her," I replied, my voice smooth and filled with a genuine happiness. "Get home safe to your kid."
"Will do, Ms. Ciara," he nodded.
Helisa stepped into the waiting elevator cabin, turning around to face me as the silver doors began to slide shut. Right before the metal sealed her away, she blew me a soft, delicate kiss across the hallway, her eyes sparkling with a secret promise.
Click.
The elevator disappeared into the shaft, the vestibule falling into a peaceful, serene silence.
I leaned my back against my closed front door, letting out a massive, exhausted, yet utterly ecstatic sigh that came from the very depths of my soul.
"Phew... what an absolute night," I laughed to myself, looking down at my diamond earrings resting on the floorboards, glinting in the dark.
I walked over, scooped them up, and headed toward my bedroom, the heavy weight of jealousy completely gone from my chest. "But thank God, it ended well.
I can finally sleep in perfect peace tonight. "