I nodded, feeling my pants start to tighten. I shut the light off in the kitchen and went upstairs to kiss my kids good night. When I came back down, Emily was standing in the living room, looking out the window. I went to the couch, sitting down and pulling a pillow into my lap. I knew I should just go up to my room and lock myself away from her for the night, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it just yet.
Emily came over and sat next to me on the sofa. My heart was pounding in my chest and I hoped she couldn’t hear it. When I looked at her, she was watching me closely. There was something different about her expression. It was one I hadn’t seen before.
“I still can’t believe you thought Tanner was my boyfriend,” she said with a laugh. “God, he’s impossible.”
“I shouldn’t have assumed,” I said. “But in my defense, he was whispering in your ear.”
“He does that,” Emily said. She rolled her eyes. “Janie calls him my stalker.”
“Is he that bad?” I asked, a spark of irrational anger in my gut.
“No,” Emily said. “He’s persistent but truly harmless. He’d never hurt a fly. He just thinks his persistence will eventually win me over. He doesn’t realize it makes me less attracted to him when he comes sniffing around like a lovesick puppy.”
“If he ever bothers you too much,” I said. “I can take care of it for you.”
I didn’t know what inspired me to say that, but the words were out of my mouth before I could stop them. Emily looked at me with wide, grateful eyes. She still had that same expression on her face, and I suddenly realized what it was: desire.
Fuck.
My stomach tightened, and I felt my face flush. Our eyes were locked on each other’s, and I knew I couldn’t fucking resist her for another second.
“Emily,” I breathed. She moved closer to me, and suddenly, we were kissing.
Her lips were soft and gentle against mine. I didn’t intend to kiss her, but I wasn’t surprised that the urge overtook me. What surprised me the most was that she kissed me back. Her lips were eager against mine, and soon, our kiss turned more insistent.
I wrapped my hand around the back of Emily’s head and pulled her harder against my mouth. She moaned and kicked her leg over so she was sitting in my lap. I kissed her harder, my lips devouring hers. She tangled her fingers in my hair while I held her hips.
“Emily,” Sarah said softly.
We jumped apart quickly and both turned to the stairs. Thankfully, Sarah was nowhere in sight. Emily hurried to the foot of the stairs and looked up.
“Can I have some water?” Sarah asked.
“Sure,” Emily said. She hurried into the kitchen and then went upstairs with the water in her hand. I heard her footsteps as she led Sarah back to bed and tucked her in.
I listened carefully, waiting for a sign that Emily would return. Instead, I heard her bedroom door open and close with a soft click.
CHAPTER TEN - EMILY
It was Tommy’s idea to go to dinner on Monday night. He said we needed to celebrate my return and that we should go to the best restaurant in town. I was flattered by his insistence, but one look at Sean told me he didn’t feel the same way.
Ever since our kiss the other night, he’d barely spoken two words to me. I didn’t know what to do or say. After Sarah interrupted us, I was afraid of being caught so I just went to bed, thinking Sean and I would talk in the morning. We didn’t.
All day Sunday and most of Monday was spent in silence. I talked to the kids. We played games, and I cooked them meals. I put them to bed on Sunday night, and when I went downstairs, Sean was already locked away in his room. I thought about knocking on the door, but I resisted the urge, knowing he would talk to me when he was ready.
Still, it was hard not knowing how he felt. We kissed, and now it may as well have never happened. From the way Sean was acting, I couldn’t help but think he wished it hadn’t.
I tried to tell Tommy a celebratory dinner wasn’t necessary, but he dug his heels in, the way only a seven-year-old can. Eventually, Sean stepped in and said it was a great idea.
“There’s a nice Italian place I wanted to try,” he said. “Have you been?”
“Riggazzonis?” I asked.
“I think so.” Sean nodded.
“It’s wonderful,” I said.
“Perfect!” Tommy said with excitement. “That’s where we’ll go then.”