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“Like you just did? What about tonight was you taking care of me?”
“I’ll do better, I promise.” The words barely make it past the lump in my throat. I’ve totally fucked this up.
“I have to go.” She looks at the bubbles and at the door.
“Not yet. Stay. Take a bath. Relax. Drink a glass of wine. Don’t run from me. Don’t abandon me. Please.” I never beg for anything, but I do tonight.
I turn my back for a second to shut off the water, and when I turn around, she’s gone. I race to the living room and find her on her phone. She tosses it to the couch and pulls on her pants.
“Don’t leave.” I pick up my jeans and hop to her while I pull them on.
“I have to. I have to think about what just happened.”
“Something wonderful happened.” It was too soon to tell her I love her, but I do. I feel it in every cell of my body, and if she walks out the door, I’ll be less.
Bent over, she ties the laces to her boots. “Ripley. I need a minute. So much has changed. I need to process everything I’m feeling.”
“Take a minute. Take ten minutes. Take an hour, just do it here.” I’m on my knees. A place I’ve never been with a woman and not had her pussy in my face.
“I can’t think around you. You… you… you distract me. You turn my brain to mush. I make bad decisions. Decisions that can affect the rest of my life.”
I’m frustrated and before I lose my temper or worse—lose myself—I rise from the floor and walk away from her. “Fine. Go.”
I grab her jacket and put it over her shoulders. “Before you go, you need to understand one thing. I’m the best fucking decision you’ll ever make.”
Car lights shine through the glass of the front door, and I know I have but one moment before she’s gone. I pull her into my arms, and I kiss her like my life depends on it.
Ten
Maddy
I cry all the way back to the hotel. How did everything go from perfect to problematic? I met the perfect man. He makes me feel like I have value. He kisses me like I’m the last woman on the planet. And although the initial penetration was shocking, everything else that followed was amazing. I’m conflicted. I’m upset and yet, I already miss him so much that I want to tell the driver to go back, but I know I can’t. I need to think.
I tip the driver and walk back to my room. Once there, I run a bath. It’s not as charming or appealing as the bath Ripley ran for me, but it will do. I pull down my underwear and run my fingers through the wetness. It’s him and me mixed together. In any other situation it might seem okay, but I’ve only known him two days. I gave him everything. He says he’ll take care of me. What does that mean?
My hands come to my stomach. Could a child be growing inside me? Chances are slim to none. This is why I need to be by myself. I need clarity. I look up the odds. All I find is the confirmation that any time a sperm and an egg meet, it’s possible. The only thing that gives me comfort is that I recently ended my cycle, which lessens my chance of fertility.
I pick up my phone and climb into the hot water. There are no bubbles. I lean back and slide into the water up to my chin. Who is Ripley Stark and why does he affect me so?
My tight, tender muscles relax and my tears stop falling. My phone vibrates and skitters across the bathtub ledge.
One glance tells me it’s Ripley.
Are you okay?
Was I? No, I was out of my element. I fell for a man in forty-eight hours. I gave him everything I held back for years. Maybe it was the wine. Maybe it was being in Vail with a sexy man. I could give it every excuse in the world from aliens to mental illness, but I know in my heart I’d do it again. Only next time, I’d bring a condom.
I’m sorry I left you. It wasn't to hurt you. I’m conflicted. I’m confused.
I toe the drain plug open and watch the water swirl away. I don’t want a rapid exit for Ripley and I—
if there is a Ripley and I. This could be his game. One night of amazing sex, and that’s it. I set my phone down and pull my body from the tub.
I ache in all the right places and the wrong places too. My heart feels heavy. The terrycloth robe wraps comfortably around my body and my phone buzzes again.
Let me in. I need to know you’re okay.
I read his message over and over again. Let me in… I race to the door and look through the peephole. He is there, leaning against the wall across from my door. His hair is a mess, like his hand has run through it a thousand times. His shirt is buttoned wrong. He’s a mess.
