them and marches into the elevator, interrupting us. It’s that guy from across the hall who likes to wear Hawaiian shirts all the time and pulls his hair back into a man bun.
“Oh, sorry. Didn’t realize it was that late in the day.”
Hailey’s cheeks turn bright red, and she hurries out of the elevator while I give him a nasty look on my way out. “Yeah, like there’s a time when a guy can kiss someone in here. Aloha, dude.”
By the time I get down the hall, she’s giggling uncontrollably. “Did you just say aloha, dude to a guy wearing a Hawaiian shirt? What did he say back?”
“Nothing. He’s an asshole. Like this is some puritan building that doesn’t allow me to kiss you in the elevator. That guy needs to get laid and change his clothes. The seventies want their look back.”
As I open my door, she whispers next to me, “Don’t be mad. I don’t think he meant any harm.”
I turn my head so our mouths are just inches away from one another. “He ruined a sexy moment on me. He’ll pay in the future. I’ll make sure of that. It will be painful and torturous. Maybe it will involve a wreath.”
“If I kiss you now, will that spare that man all that pain?” she asks with a gentle smile.
“No, but that’s because he’s been a Hawaiian shirt wearing dick for years,” I say before leaning toward her and kissing her on the lips.
“Hell hath no fury like a man denied a kiss in an elevator,” she says as she walks into my place.
“Othello, right? Or maybe Hamlet? Sounds pretty tragic, so I’m guessing one of those,” I joke before following her into the living room.
Wrapping my arms around her, I snuggle up to her back and press a kiss to her neck. “So did we decide if we’re staying in or going out? I don’t remember.”
Hailey slides her hands out from beneath mine at her waist and pretends to weigh the choices. “Hmmm…go out and possibly get killed by a maniac driver on a jet ski or stay in and have sex. What’s a girl to choose?”
“Just one question before we decide. Am I the maniac driver?” I ask before nuzzling her neck.
Giggling, she wriggles out of my hold and turns around to face me. “Yes, I’m sorry to say you are, so that only leaves us with sex. I hope you aren’t too disappointed.”
I reach out and pull her back to me, loving how her body feels on mine. “I’ll get over it. I can go jet skiing with one of my cousins or my friends.”
We stand there with me holding her to me for a while, neither one of us saying a word, and I can’t remember the last time I was this quiet with anyone, but especially with a woman. I use talking to get what I want. Always have. It’s just how I am.
But with Hailey, I want to be quiet sometimes. Like now, when we’re standing in my living room and her eyes are closed and I have a feeling she wants to run.
I have to make it that she can’t, though, and I have a feeling that isn’t with anything I can say right now.
Finally, she whispers into the silence we’ve created together, “So you got quiet there. Everything okay?”
“I was just thinking the same exact thing.”
She looks up at me and nods. “Yeah, everything’s okay.”
“Good. I liked that, though.”
With a smile that lights up her beautiful blue eyes, she says, “I liked it too. It made me feel calm.”
“I thought maybe you might want to run there for a few seconds.”
Before she says another word, I know by the look in her eyes she did feel like running. But she didn’t, and that’s all that matters.
“I did, but I remembered what my therapist told me to do and made a list in my head of all the reasons I shouldn’t. Want to know what was on the top of that list?”
For a moment, a flash of doubt crosses my mind and I wonder if I actually do want to know the most important reason why she stayed. That passes, though, and I say, “Yeah.”
Taking my hand, she begins to walk us toward my bedroom as I wait for her to give me that reason. When we reach the doorway, she turns around and says, “The number one reason I had for not leaving is after last time, I’d be crazy