Chapter 5 Emma #2
I wonder if every one of them has a meaning.
His body glistens with water droplets as he pats his wavy mid-length blondish-brown hair with a white towel.
I track one drop in particular that travels from the side of his neck, down over his muscular pec, to his well-defined six-pack abs.
Then even lower, sliding along the right side of his V-shaped muscles and disappearing below the waistband of a new pair of jeans that hang low on his hips.
Since when is watching a droplet of water disappear so interesting?
I swallow, my mouth suddenly seeming dry.
I grab my glass and take a mouthful of wine, forcing it down my deserted throat.
I’ve seen Greyson in swim trunks before, so it’s not the first time I’ve seen him without a shirt; hell, I just saw him in only his boxers.
Yet I’ve never really taken the time to admire him like this.
I guess his grumpy personality always overshadowed my ability to check him out properly.
I haven’t taken my eyes off him since he entered the room. I should probably stop before someone notices. But I can’t. It’s like they’re glued to him. Can’t. Look. Away. My core suddenly clenches on its own, thighs squeezing tightly together as I shift in my seat.
What the hell is going on? I am NOT attracted to Greyson Ford! It has to be because I just almost saw him naked in his bathroom. Yes, that has to be it. It’s messing with my head.
I blink a few times, hoping that will clear the spell I seem to be under. Needing to do something with myself, I jump off the stool and rush over to the fridge. Leaning inside, I grab a beer at the back, then straighten before closing the door.
When I turn my back to the fridge, Greyson is suddenly standing right in front of me. I take a step backward and bump into the fridge, producing a loud gasp. “Shi- Shoot! Don’t sneak up on me like that.” I place my free hand over my racing heart.
The side of his lip twitches, the only sign of amusement on his features. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.”
He reaches up with a hand to the side of my temple, not touching me but so close I can feel the heat from his fingers against my skin. Goosebumps scatter my arms, the little hairs at the back of my neck standing to attention.
My breath catches as we stare at each other. His gaze roams over my face, then dips down to my slightly parted lips. Seconds tick by before he clears his throat and looks to his hand at the side of my head, bringing it back down in my line of sight. “You had a little fluff,” he says quietly.
I give my head a little shake, clearing my jumbled mind. “Oh…”
He peers down at my hand and juts his chin in the direction of the bottle. “That for me?”
“Uh…” I look down at the beer, suddenly remembering I’m still holding it. “Yeah… yes! Here.” I push it to his chest.
He wraps his hand around the glass bottle before I have time to remove mine. His fingers slide over my own as a bolt of electricity zaps through my hand at the contact. I pull it away quickly and examine my fingers.
What the...?
When I gaze back up at Greyson, I find him frowning as well. Before I have time to wonder if he felt it too, Gracie lets out a loud cry, capturing both our attention. So much for her getting a good nap in.
“I’ll get her!” I rush out and dash off to her. Yes, that’s a good plan. Get away from Greyson. Clearly, something’s wrong with my head right now.
I take my time changing her, hoping whatever confusion from earlier has faded, then return to the kitchen with Miss Gracie in hand. Greyson places a warm bottle of milk on the counter and holds his hands out as I pass him his daughter for him to feed.
Retaking my seat between Cecilia and Morgan, I find them both staring curiously at me. “What?”
Cecilia leans in, bringing her voice to a whisper. “Is there something going on between you two?”
My eyes widen comically. “Me and Greyson?! No! Absolutely not,” I whisper-shout with a small laugh. “Why would you even think that?”
“You two did seem to have a moment there,” Morgan adds, joining the hushed conversation.
I snort and flip my hair back. “Well, we didn’t. There’s nothing going on. We’re just slightly more friendly toward each other given the situation.” Yeah, that makes sense. Probably explains that weird feeling from earlier too.
“What are you girls whispering about?” Silas asks, looking over quizzically.
“Now wouldn’t you love to know?” I smirk at him.
No way am I giving this conversation more attention than it needs.
Jesus, I just got out of a relationship, and as I just said to the girls, there is absolutely nothing going on between me and Grey.
Besides, Silas can’t keep a single thing to himself.
If he got word of what the girls are assuming, he’d be blabbing around about an attraction that doesn’t even exist and making things super awkward for us.
“Hey, what happened with fuckface anyway?” Clay speaks up before Silas can question anymore.
“LANGUAGE!” Cecilia and I shout at the same time with a scold.
Silas snorts beside him and pats his shoulder. “It’s okay, man. I’m still trying to get the hang of it, and it’s been over ten months.”
Clay looks from Sy to our angered faces. “Jesus, sorry. But seriously, what happened? We’ve all been wondering.”
I sigh deeply. They deserve to know. I just hate thinking about that day. Actually, I just hate thinking about anything that’s related to Tommy.
He’s been persistent. Constantly calling and texting. Telling me to stop being dramatic and to come home immediately. Watching his name flash on my screen fills me with such disgust toward him and myself that I rarely carry my phone with me anymore.
“It’s no big deal, honestly. Things hadn’t been going well for a while. We were always fighting, and everything I did was wrong according to him. I tried everything to make it work, but we always felt so disconnected in the end.” I shrug, acting like I really don’t care about any of it.
“The truth is I had been thinking about leaving him for a little while already. But I’m not a quitter, you know? So I thought, let’s try a different approach. I showed up at his work with plans of having a little naughty time in his office, a way to bring back the passion we had lost.”
And here goes the rest of my disastrous story.
“Well, when I got there, he was getting sucked off behind his desk by his assistant, and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the first time.
” I chuckle sarcastically to myself. “And you know what the worst part is? That he told her to stay and me to go home and wait for him there like I’m supposed to. ”
The girls both gasp beside me while Silas chokes on his beer with bulging eyes. Clay looks both shocked and angry, as if he’s hoping he heard me wrong, but it’s Greyson’s expression that confuses me the most. He looks murderous.
“Honey, when we get home, you’re adding him to my hit list!” Cece says to her husband.
I turn to her with a frown. “You have a hit list?”
She waves a hand at me while Sy chuckles. “It’s fairly new. Ever since our neighbor complained about Dante’s incessant crying when he was sick, Minnie began to make a hit list of everyone who pisses her off.”
I smile fondly at the way Silas looks at his wife, wishing I could have that, too. She’s lucky to have found him. A man who makes her his entire world and gives her cute nicknames. Ugh, I hate being jealous of my best friend.
“Anyway, as I said, it’s no big deal. I’m over him, and he got what he deserved.” I smirk to myself, remembering how his place looked before I left.
“What do you mean?” Clay questions with a frown.
“I may or may not have trashed his place before leaving,” I giggle.
The girls look at me with wide eyes, while the guys seem satisfied with my comment. “But isn’t he a lawyer? Can’t he come after you for doing that?” Morg watches me closely with concern.
“Oh, he is, and he can. But he won’t.”
“Why not?” Silas asks next.
“Because even though he’s a good lawyer, I have an even better one in my corner. Besides, Daddy would never allow him to file a lawsuit against me without losing his job at the firm,” I tell them with satisfaction.
I fucking dare him to bring it on.