Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Chapter 25

Ten minutes later he walked out of the bathroom with the towel slung around his waist. His hair was damp and the toothbrush was sticking out of the side of his mouth. He caught her eye and grinned, removing the toothbrush. “I left my jeans out here,” he said around a mouthful of toothpaste.

He left them out here on purpose. What an exhibitionist. “You’re certainly not shy, are you?”

“Since when have I ever been shy?”

The jeans he’d worn the night before were folded on the arm of the couch. When he got there, he dropped the towel and pulled the jeans on. She just stood there gaping at him. He turned to her as he buttoned his jeans and burst out laughing at the look on her face. “What? It’s not like you haven’t seen it before.” His laughter caused toothpaste to run down his chin, so he cupped his hand underneath it and ran back to the bathroom to spit.

“You are a rude, sloppy houseguest!” she called after him, but she was laughing too.

“You love it!” he called back. “And don’t forget, you’re the one who begged me to stay last night.”

“I did not beg,” she protested. Did I?

He came back into the living room, smirking at her like a wiseass. “Yup, you begged. Oh, Jon, please, please stay, I don’t want to be alone.”

She put her hands on her hips. “Don’t let it go to your head. I was drunk and can’t be held accountable for my actions. At least I had the good sense to make you sleep on the couch.”

“That’s only because you’re intimidated by me.”

What?” she shrieked.

He nodded and crossed his arms arrogantly over his chest. “Yup. You’re afraid that I’m too much man for you to handle.”

Keira knew he was only teasing, trying to draw a reaction out of her. She didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, but seeing him standing there bare-chested after making such a smug comment, even if was in jest, was too much for her. She started to laugh. She laughed so hard that she had to crouch down on the floor to keep from peeing her pants. She laughed until she snorted. When she finally got herself under control, he was still standing there with his arms crossed, waiting for her to say something. He was struggling to keep a straight face.

“I’m going to take a shower now,” she said, and turned on her heel. Walking into the bathroom, she closed the door and leaned against it. I must be crazy. I should have driven him home first thing this morning. I’m just asking for trouble.

She took a long, hot shower, washing the lingering smell of cigarette smoke out of her hair. Stepping out of the shower, she dried herself off and wrapped up in a towel, then brushed her teeth until her mouth felt sparkly clean. It was amazing what a shower and toothbrush could do to help cure a hangover. She blow-dried her hair until it was just slightly damp, then put on moisturizer and a quick squirt of vanilla after-shower body spray. She realized that she’d forgotten to bring her clothes in with her, and suddenly a naughty thought crossed her mind. Payback is a bitch, but do I really dare to do this?

She was suddenly tired of being a “good girl” all the time, one who always played by the rules. It had been a very long time since she’d done anything spontaneous and daring. Hell, the last time she’d lived on the edge was when she was still with Jon, over thirteen years ago. Apparently he brings this side out of me. Maybe that’s why I’m scared to be with him; because I can’t trust myself around him.

She looked at herself in the mirror. Good old reliable Keira, she thought. Molly’s always been the fun one. And suddenly Tom Cruise’s voice was in her head again. Sometimes, you just have to say fuck it. She was going to have to print that quote and stick it on her fridge.

She opened the door of the bathroom and stepped out into the hallway. Jon was on the couch, flipping channels on the TV with the remote control. He looked up when she came into the room. The towel was small and barely covered her. Before she could lose her nerve, she said, “Oh my, I seem to have forgotten my clothes.” She dropped the towel at her feet and made sure he got a good long look before she turned and scampered into her bedroom to get dressed. Holy shit, I really did it. Molly is going to be so proud!!

She dressed in black capris and a red v-neck t-shirt, then walked back into the living room, trying her best to act like nothing had happened. He raised his hands in surrender. “You win,” he said, shaking his head. “I did not see that coming. Point taken. You win.”

Satisfied, she sat down next to him on the couch. “You’ve been around long enough to know that girls always win at these games.”

He leaned over and bumped his shoulder against hers. “I just wanted to see if you still had it in you, Kathy. And you do.”

3 comments:

Alina said...

Yes she does. And she should keep on doing it. But if that's the best decision - probably not. But we've got to forget that self-control thing. That's boring - LOL ^^

Opester said...

I totally agree with Allina! Self-control is definitely tiresome-let's have some fun!

Anonymous said...

I am totally loving this story, can't wait for the next chapter.