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Apparently, today is ‘throw Seth under the bus’ day. “I’ll have you know it’s not a permanent scowl. Life has been a little busy lately.”
“It’s not his fault. It’s actually mine,” Parisa confesses. “I said something I didn’t mean. So, his hurt feelings are completely valid. I just want him to know I’m sorry and I’ll do whatever it takes to make amends. Even if that means we can only be friends.” Parisa turns toward me, a pleading look on her face. I know I should forgive her. She’s left countless messages apologizing, but it’s hard when it’s a person who’s stolen your heart and won’t give it back. But also, it’s not like I want it back either.
“What are you waiting for? Forgive the girl already. Because let me tell you something. If you don’t snatch this one up, someone else will. Then you will have a permanent scowl on your face, and it won’t be because I beat you in Euchre.”
“Thanks for the advice, Mr. Rickett.”
Lenard continues down the line, snagging two cookies before he sits down at his usual table. We finish serving the rest of the line while an awkwardness lingers in the air. Maybe I need to accept her apology, then we can all move on.
Once everyone’s trays are full, we begin our clean up. I reach for a tray at the same moment Parisa does. Her fingers rest on top of mine. The touch sends an electric current through my entire body. My gaze remains fixed on her hand. Then her eyes meet mine and behind her hazel irises I can see she feels the same magnetic pull as I do. What seems to last for minutes is only seconds before I pull my hand away. She mutters a quick sorry and makes her way to the next tray. I watch as she lifts the tray and strolls past me before disappearing behind the kitchen door. Resting my hands on the table I bow my head, inhaling a deep breath. My head and my heart are at war with each other. I spend every waking second thinking about her but then a bucket of cold water is thrown on me every time I think back to the night at the bar. My sister is right, I shouldn’t be anyone’s dirty little secret.
“Hey Seth.” Maggie’s voice interrupts my self loathing. “We have most of the kitchen cleaned up minus a few of the dishes. Parisa volunteered to stay back to help finish. Also, before you leave, your dad mentioned cutting the power to the dishwasher. It’s been acting up again and he just wants to make sure nothing happens before he can get someone out to look at it.”
I nod. “Thanks Maggie.” She turns and disappears down the hallway. The door latching closed echoes down the empty corridor. Shit. The last thing I wanted was to be stuck here all by myself with Parisa. It’s easy to be distracted with other people around but when it’s just the two of us…I can only fight it so long before I want to feast on the temptation. I pick up the last tray and carry it into the kitchen. Parisa is loading everything into the dishwasher. She turns around when she hears the swinging door close.
“Maggie said she needed to get home so I told her I would stay. Hope that’s okay?”
“Yeah. Thanks for doing that.”
Parisa turns back around and presses the start button. I hold my breath as the machine starts up and the dishes slowly feed through, everything seeming normal. In the meantime, Parisa heads to the closet for the rest of the cleaning supplies and we get to work. An uncomfortable silence fills the room as I wipe down the counter tops and she mops the floor.
While staring at my rag I break the silence. “Congratulations on the promotion. You deserve it. I know you would have gotten it whether I stayed or left.”
“Thanks. But…why did you up and quit?”
I pinch my eyes shut before looking up to Parisa. She’s standing on the other side of the stainless steel worktable, mop still in hand, head tilted to the side, curiosity written all over her face. “My family needed me. The night at the bar, when you told everyone you were seeing some fake guy?” Parisa nods her head. “I was there to tell you that my mom was in the hospital.”
“Oh Seth. I’m so sorry. I wish you would have told me.”
“My head was a jumbled mess with my mom and then after what you said…I figured it was just easier to leave.”
“I get that. What happened with your mom?”
“She had a mild heart attack. She’s on the mend. But I needed to step up and help with The Lilith House. That’s why I quit. My family needed me to step in. But this works out for everyone now.” I continue wiping down the surface, mostly to distract myself from spilling my true feelings.
“I guess so,” Parisa says, her voice somber as she continues mopping.
Every time she walks past me, I get a whiff of her peach scent and it makes me want to lift her up on the table and kiss the hell out of her just like last time we were here together. Instead, I stand here wiping the same spot over and over again. I have so many things I want to say but I don’t know how to say them.
“If you keep that up, I’m afraid you’re going to scrub a hole right through the metal.”
When I look her way, Parisa hoists herself onto the table next to me. Her legs dangle off the side. She reaches up and tugs her hair loose from her ponytail. Auburn strands cascade down her shoulders. It’s times like these when I want to run my fingers through those luscious locks and tug, forcing her to look up at me. I want to take what’s mine. I shake the thought from my head because she’s not mine. She won’t let me be hers. I walk past her to throw my rag into the sink, but she stops me with her hand on my arm.
“Seth.” Her gaze drops to the floor before meeting mine. “I hate things are weird between us. I wish things could just go back to the way they were.”
“Me too. But it’s hard to forget what you said.”
“I know. And I am sorry. The ex has found a way to ruin my life even after we broke up.” She lets out a humorless laugh and drops her head.
I place a finger under her chin and force her to look at me. “That guy’s an asshole for many reasons. You deserve so much better than him.”
“Clearly not, since I’ve messed this up, too.”
I bend down so I’m eye level with her. “Parisa, you are a bright, intelligent, amazing, beautiful woman. Don’t let yourself think otherwise.” Her eyes search mine. With each passing second her lips get closer and closer to mine. It’s hard to tell if I’m the one moving closer or her. But in the last second our lips crash into each other, mouths fused together. I wrap my hand around the back of her neck to draw her closer to me and she comes willingly. My tongue strokes and caresses hers. She wraps her arms around my neck like she’s afraid I might let go. If I had it my way, I would never let her go. Suddenly, there’s a loud clacking noise behind me followed by the sound of gushing water splashing on the floor. Pulling away, I rush over to the dishwasher and quickly press the stop button. Everything comes to a grinding halt. Within a few seconds Parisa’s at my side with a handful of towels.
“Dammit. Of course, this would have to happen.”
“Hey. We got this. Nothing we haven’t done before.” Parisa throws a small smile in my direction, and it makes me feel slightly better about the situation. Hurriedly, I turn off the water supply while Parisa cleans up the water. I remove all the unwashed dishes and place them in the sink. An hour later everything is back to normal. All the water is mopped up and the remaining dishes have been washed and put away. I lean against the counter and Parisa follows suit. When I turn toward her, she lets out a big yawn.
