“And how do you know things wouldn’t work out?” he said with a teasing tone, even though his eyes looked serious.
“Because we both know I’m not your type, Henry. Plus, I’m way too inexperienced for you. The furthest I’ve gotten is face farting.”
Chuckling, Henry shook his head and said, “Sorry, I just had to let out a little laugh.”
“That’s alright. I was waiting for you to finally lose that veneer you were living behind.”
Shrugging, he said, “I’m only human, but back to us.” Shaking my head, I let him continue, “Think about it, love. My experience can help your inexperience. I can teach you everything you need to know.” Softly, he looked up at me and said, “We would be perfect together.”
My heart dropped in my stomach as I thought about the possibility. God, at that moment, I wanted him, I wanted to see what it would be like to be his, to have his lips on mine, to experience another side of Henry, the only side I didn’t know.
Instead of throwing my arms around him, I brushed him off, not ready to throw away one of the best friendships I’ve ever had.
“Get out of here, not going to happen.”
“Why?” he asked seriously, making me sweat. Was he for real right now?
“Seriously?” I asked, feeling nervous.
Silence fell between us as Henry looked into my eyes, searching for something from me, and I had no clue what it was.
“Forget it. I’m not up for a movie. I think I might just go into my room and watch some TV and go to bed. You’re welcome to join me.”
I could feel him pull away, and I didn’t want that, so I said, “Slumber party?”
His face brightened again as he nodded and took my now empty plate to the kitchen. I turned off the TV in the living room and helped Henry pack up the rest of the Chinese food. We worked in tandem, not having to say a word, but getting the job done efficiently. I giggled to myself as I thought about it. No wonder my mom wanted us together; we already acted like an old married couple.
The kitchen was clean, the lights were turned out, so we headed to Henry’s room, which was always immaculately clean, cleaner than my room, and a hell of a lot cleaner than Delaney’s, since she decided living in a rat’s nest was a lot easier than just cleaning it.
We snuggled into Henry’s bed, both facing the TV, but with Henry behind me wrapping his arm around me. We started snuggling in college, and it was something we did often, so to have Henry wrapped around me was nothing new, but this tingly feeling that was developing in the pit of my stomach every time I was around him was new.
“Where’s the remote?” he asked, looking around. “It was on the bed,” he reached over me and started digging around for it.
“Hey, watch it,” I said, just as his hand connected with my breast. We both sucked in a breath as he looked down at me from his position over me.
Time stood still as we searched each other, tried to figure out the electric energy that was passing between us. In that instant, for the first time I could remember, I saw heat in his eyes as he took in my rising chest. My nipples were hard from the small contact he made, as well as from the heated look he was giving me, and from the proximity of our bodies; it was all too much.
My mind was screaming at him to kiss me, to touch me again. I never thought I would have such feelings for him, such outrageous cravings for the man, but with him staring down at me, so close to my body, building a wave a heat through my veins, I wanted his touch…needed his touch.
Painstakingly, his hand slowly moved to the front of my shirt where my breasts were resting. I could feel my breathing start to pick up at his closeness. His head lowered down just enough so his nose grazed mine, barely touching me. My heart seized in my chest just as his hand lightly caressed my breast over my shirt. My heart pounded in my chest as he lowered the extra inch and his lips just barely danced against mine. It was subtle, but it was fucking electrifying, as if damn sparklers were shooting off between us.
All the nerves I experienced before with the other guys were gone, and all that was left was an overwhelming feeling of euphoria. But this was Henry, my Henry, my best friend, the one guy I could count on. Was I really just letting him kiss me? Was I really having these all-consuming feelings for him?
Not once did he press me nor push too hard, he kept his kiss light, his hand soft, and his body relaxed, which caused me to feel every inch of him, every ounce of sweetness he was pouring through me, every last bit of yearning he possessed for me.
I was so gone.
The minute he pulled away, I felt empty, and for some weird reason, I wanted more…and that was what scared me the most. I didn’t want him to stop kissing me, or touching me. I wanted him to strip me down and take what I was offering to every other man in my life. In that moment, I wanted Henry to be the one to take my virginity.
His eyes glazed over as he looked down at me and said, “Sorry, love.”
The smile that crossed his face told me he wasn’t truly sorry, which only confused me even more.
He reached under his pillow and pulled out the remote control that was hiding and turned on the TV. He rested his head against mine as his arm pulled me in close to his body. He didn’t say anything to me, but he didn’t have to, his lips literally did the talking for him.
For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out Henry’s motives or what he was planning on doing with the situation he just brewed up between us. After the conversation we had about being together and probably the most amazingly fantastic kiss I ever experienced, I was more confused than ever, but damn was I satisfied.
As the TV played in the background, I thought about everything that transpired between Henry and me. Was this really happening? Were we really crossing the line of friendship?
I could feel him drift off to sleep while he held on to me, so I planned my escape as I turned the TV off after a while and just laid in his bed, in his embrace, thinking what tomorrow was going to bring.
I felt awkward; I didn’t know what to say to him, what to do. Did we just ignore what happened and move on our merry way, or did we talk about it in the morning while enjoying a cup of coffee together?
Heat blazed through me at the thought of having that conversation. There was no way I would be able to do that. I was too much of a wuss.
Instead of staying the night with Henry, I slowly crept out of his bed and covered him up with his blankets. Before I left, I looked down at him and studied his handsome face. Ever since I could remember, I had crushed on him, big time, but I always knew we were better off as friends, and I was right. He was my best friend in the whole world, and I wouldn’t give that up for a crush. I would never want to lose him.
Once I left his room, I started thinking about what his intention was with his kiss. Why would he do that and risk everything we had together? Was he really a cherry chaser like Delaney said? It would devastate me if he was.
I went back to my room and shut my door quietly, not to wake up Henry. I pulled out my Kindle and started reading to clear my mind, and get lost in other thoughts other than my own. I drifted off to sleep that night, ignoring the pressing feeling that was starting to build in my chest from the knowledge that, in fact, Henry and I crossed a line tonight that I was pretty sure was going to have a huge impact on our friendship.
The next morning, I avoided him at all costs, getting ready for work. Usually, we ran into each other in the bathroom, or he would come in my room while I was doing my makeup and check up on me, but that didn’t happen. We kept our distance and that gnawing feeling grew bigger with every minute we weren’t talking to each other.
I got dressed in a high-waisted black pencil skirt and polka dot silk top and paired it with black heels. My hair was in waves this morning, thank you curling iron, and I was wearing my signature red lipstick. I had no clue why I got all dressed up for work, since my coworkers were a bunch of fur balls, but all I could think was that getting dressed for the work day made me feel better about my
self.
Because Delaney was at Derk’s last night, it was just Henry and me in the apartment, making it that much more uncomfortable.
I walked out into the kitchen while buttoning my shirt up, deciding if I could get away with two or three undone buttons, when I spotted Henry leaning against the counter in the kitchen, dressed in one of his immaculate suits, drinking a cup of coffee.
“Good morning, love,” he said casually over his mug of coffee, as if he hadn’t given me the most passionate kiss of my life last night.
“Good morning,” I replied, while looking down at the ground and over to my purse. I was ready to get the hell out of the apartment, even if it meant getting to work early.
There was no chance for me, though, as I felt Henry come up to me from behind and place his hands on my hips. He lowered his head to my ear, sending chills up my spine.
“You look beautiful, love.”
Virginia squealed with delight as I tried to calm my raging heart. What was happening?
“Thank you,” I squeaked out.
“Turn around,” he demanded, and I did as he said, not even questioning it.
With a tilt of my chin, he had me staring into his beautiful eyes, wishing I could read his mind.
“I’m sorry if I caught you off-guard last night, but I’m not sorry for what I did. I couldn’t help myself when you looked so gorgeous with your hair fanned out against my pillow and your blue eyes staring up at me. I had to taste you, love.”
Umm, not something I expected to hear from my best friend.
“Okay,” I said like an idiot.
Smiling, he pressed his lips against my forehead and said, “Have a good day, love. I’ll talk to you later.”
With that, he buttoned his suit jacket and put his phone in his pocket. I watched as he walked away with ease, as if the tension between us wasn’t hovering over us like a giant pink elephant.
Once the door to the apartment closed, I let out the long breath I was holding in and leaned against the kitchen counter. What the hell had I gotten myself into?
Chapter Fifteen
The Melting Pot of New York City’s finest Bodily Fluids
“Where’s Delaney?” I asked Derk, who was hanging out in our apartment, looking rather fidgety.
“Out shopping,” he looked around the living room as I grabbed a lint roller and started lint rolling the sweater I was wearing.
I was getting ready for my date with Greg that I was semi-looking forward to now. It felt like more of a chore than anything at this point. I was excited about the pizza part though.
The last two days had been the most awkward of my life, thanks to Henry’s spontaneous kiss. All day yesterday, I thought about how he treated me in the morning, and how it felt right but also so weird. When I got home last night, I faked sick and made sure no one came in my room by turning out the lights and practically hiding under my blankets so my Kindle didn’t shine too brightly.
Was I avoiding Henry? Of course. I didn’t know what to say to him, how to react to him, and the one person I wanted I talked to, the one person I worked my problems out with was the problem this time. I thought about talking to Delaney about it, but I didn’t want to get her in the middle of our little roommate drama, especially because she probably wouldn’t ever let us live it down.
That left Jenny, so when I got to work yesterday, I sat in her office and waited for her to come in. Unfortunately, she and Henry really don’t get along, so she wasn’t of much help when it came to talking it out. She kept telling me to forget about him and move on, that he was just playing me, which I didn’t believe was the truth; at least, I hoped it wasn’t. He would have no reason to do such a thing, except for…Cherry Chaser.
There was no way he was a Cherry Chaser. I couldn’t believe the idea of such a thing, and I couldn’t believe he would ruin our relationship for that, no way.
This morning, when I got ready for work, I slipped out quickly, avoiding him once again, and I knew he knew because later today, he sent me a text letting me know he was displeased with not seeing me in the morning. I felt guilty, so damn guilty, but I was a nervous wreck now whenever I was around him, and I hated that. I shouldn’t be nervous around him, ever.
I pushed the Henry drama out of my head when I got home from work and started getting ready for my date. I was hoping for at least an enjoyable night with Greg. He seemed like a good guy. I got a message from him earlier that he wasn’t able to secure us reservations at the pizza place, but he thought it would be fun to make pizza at his place, which I decided I was comfortable enough with. I gave Jenny the guy’s information, normally a task for Henry, and told her if I didn’t text her later tonight, he had abducted me.
I studied Derk some more and noticed he was really on edge, like bouncing his leg up and down, looking at his watch constantly kind of on edge.
Taking a moment, I sat next to him and asked, “Is everything okay, Derk? You seem a little, strange right now.”
“Fine,” he curtly said, still looking at his watch.
“I don’t buy it, what’s going on?”
Derk ran his hands through his hair, looked around again, and then pulled something out from his pocket. He held it out to me and I gasped as I saw what it was.
“Is that what I think it is?”
“Yeah,” he nodded.
“Are you proposing tonight?”
“I was thinking about it, but she’s taking forever to get home. I’m going to lose my nerve.”
“Why? Do you think she’s going to say no?”
“She might. We haven’t talked about marriage or anything like that, Rosie. But I know I can’t be without her anymore. I can’t stand this her place and my place thing. I want us to live together, to share a life together.”
My heart melted right there on the spot. I liked Derk, but I just grew a little bit fonder of him after his little speech.
“She’s going to say yes, Derk. No doubt about it. She’s crazy about you.”
“You think?” he asked, clearly fishing for compliments, but I would give them to him, because he looked seriously distraught.
“I know, Derk. She is going to be so excited. How do you plan on doing it?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know really. I thought about doing something elaborate, but that’s not the kind of couple we are. I was thinking about just meeting her in her bedroom and going down on one knee, keep it simple.”
“It will be a total surprise. Eep! I’m so excited for you two,” I clapped my hands.
“Thanks, Rosie.”
I thought about Derk and Delaney’s relationship over the years, and how they started off as friends, but found they were a lot more than friends as their time together went on. I didn’t blame them; they were electric together.
“It will happen for you, Rosie,” Derk interrupted my thoughts. “Just have faith. You’re going to end up with some stud; I just know it.”
“Thanks, Derk,” I smiled at his choice of words. “I can’t believe you two are finally going to get married. I feel like you’ve been together forever.”
“We have, but I’m glad we started out as friends, because there is no relationship unless you’re friends first.”
“But, weren’t you worried about losing that friendship, if things didn’t work out?” I asked, trying to sound casual about the question, but by the way Derk looked at me, he could see right through my motive for the question.
“I was more worried about not having Delaney in my life, every second of the day. You know that feeling when something happens to you and there is only one person in the world who will understand you and who you absolutely just have to tell?”
“Yes,” I responded, while thinking about Henry, he was my go-to.
“That was Delaney for me. I realized that, at some point, I no longer just wanted her as a friend, I wanted her in my life at all times.”
“But, crossing over that line, from friends to…more than friends, was
n’t it awkward?”
“No,” he said matter-of-factly. “It almost seemed like it was meant to be, like it was crazy we hadn’t been making out for years.”
“Hmm,” I twisted my hands in my lap as I thought about the other night, how my lips so easily glossed over Henry’s, how his hand roaming my body didn’t make me want to swat him away, more like pull him even closer.
I’ve read books where best friends got together, and it always seemed so easy. Was this what it was like, to start to see your best friend differently? Did he see me differently? Or was I just being a girl?
“You should go for it. Henry is a great guy and adores you.”
“Excuse me?” I asked, feeling a little shocked that Derk could read my mind.
“Come on, the sexual chemistry between you two is so damn uncomfortable to be around. It would be great if you two did us all a favor and finally did the dirty deed.”
“I don’t want that, though, to just have a night with him. That would ruin everything, Derk.”
“I don’t think he just wants one night with you, Rosie. You can see it in his eyes, the way he looks at you, the way he’s overprotective of you.”
“That’s him being a friend.”
“Is that right? Well, he doesn’t do the same thing for Delaney, now does he?”
I opened my mouth to answer, to tell him he did, but when I thought about it, he really didn’t. Henry and Delaney were friends, but not as close as Henry and I were.
“He doesn’t treat her the same because she has you; he doesn’t need to be protective over her,” I countered.
“That’s crap and you know it.” Derk got up off the couch and walked toward Delaney’s room, where I assumed he was going to wait for her. “Just admit it, Rosie, you like Henry and he likes you. The sooner you two figure that out, the sooner you will be able to find what Delaney and I have, and believe me when I say, I would wish my relationship upon anyone; it’s the best thing in my life.”
With a smile, he walked in her bedroom and shut the door.