“Why? Where would you even get a tuxedo right now?”
“Well, what is he, six-foot-three? Four? We have something that one of the Bears wore to an event recently, he was about David’s build. Not perfect but it could work in a pinch. I guess I can go to the dentist on Monday.”
“Well,” I started, “maybe I can help.”
Her eyes drifted up to the ceiling as she thought. “You could. That would be so awesome, but you don’t have to. I can set everything up quickly and go to the appointment – all you’d have to do is wait here, give him the suit and lock up.”
“I can do that,” I said. “We probably won’t leave for the cabin ‘til eight or nine anyway.”
“Here, give me the phone,” she said, taking it from my hands. “David? It’s Lucy. Listen, I have an emergency dental appointment . . . No, no, it’s fine, but I think I have something here that could work. Liv says she will wait for you if you want to swing by on the way.” She paused and I held my breath. “Great. Sounds good.” She looked at me. “She’ll see you in half an hour.”
I knew I should be disappointed about the delay, but instead I just felt anxious. The way my stomach knotted up and my nerves hummed, I was forced to recognize that a friendship with David just might not be possible. Whatever had been planted inside me the night at the theater was fast blossoming.
“Oh crap,” she muttered. “I don’t have dress shoes or a shirt in his size.”
“Just get out of here,” I said, a plan forming in my mind. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Liv, you don’t understand. David is a huge client. I can’t mess this up.”
“K look, it’s no big deal. I can call Jack, the bartender from your party, remember? He’s our gopher when we need stuff at the office, and he’s almost always available.”
“There’s a Men’s Wearhouse in this neighborhood,” she said. “I know because Andrew has an appointment there next week.”
“Perfect. Call in the order on your way, and I’ll have him pick it up while I wait for David.”
“You’re a lifesaver,” she said, squeezing me in a tight hug. She ran out of the office and then back in with the tuxedo. “Everything else is in this bag. Call me if there are any problems, I have to go or the dentist will leave.”
“Go,” I urged.
Jack picked up on the first ring and was ready to help. Over the years he’d become one of the few people who made my life easier instead of harder. As I waited for him, I drank almost an entire water bottle in one gulp, used the restroom, and then drank another one. My nerves continued to hum.
“You are the best,” I said when Jack arrived thirty minutes later.
“You said that on the phone already,” he replied, blushing faintly.
“I can’t believe I caught you. Hope you didn’t have plans.” He opened his mouth but I didn’t wait for his answer. “By the way, thank you for bartending Lucy’s party. You were a hit. Score any digits?”
“Of course. Nobody good though.” His eyes crinkled with a mega-watt smile.
“I know, silly question,” I said as I unpacked the bag. “This is nice,” I said, admiring the shirt.
“Um,” he started just as the elevator sounded.
“That’s probably the client,” I said. “Thanks again, Jack. I’ll pay you for the extra hour.”
“Don’t worry about it, Livs. Consider it a favor. Er, some of us are headed to Navy Pier for a drink later. You should come.”
“Ah, I don’t think so. Bill and I are going north this weekend.” Just then, David’s impressive figure rounded the doorway.
“Too bad,” he said, turning and almost running into David. Jack, with his slick blond hair and hard body, was a hot topic at the office. They were comically matching in light jeans and half-zip pullovers, but Jack paled in comparison to David.
“Jack, this is Mr. Dylan. Jack was kind enough to personally deliver some things for your event tonight.”
“Nice to meet you,” David said indifferently with a quick handshake.
Jack turned back to me. “Maybe next time Liv?” he said with a hint of hopefulness. “You have my number if anything changes.”
Once we were alone, I shut the door and turned my attention to David. “So, here we are again. I’m going to ask Lucy to start paying me.”
“He likes you,” David stated.
“Oh, pfft,” I waved my hand dismissively. “He doesn’t. I’m not even sure he’s straight,” I added, knowing that he definitely was.
“He is straight, and he’s into you.”
“And you can tell that after thirty seconds?”
“He was flirting with you at Lucy’s party.”
My smile melted down my face. Jack’s and my only interaction at the party had been right before I’d spilled my drink. I thought of those chestnut browns on me, watching, observing.
“Yes, I saw you,” he said, reading my expression. “I followed you into the kitchen to find out your name, which I did, and ask you out, which I did not.”
“Oh,” I said, involuntarily touching my heart. His candor always sent it aflutter, and I was clinging to the small hints he kept dropping.
“In any case, he likes you.”
“Well, he’s headed for disappointment then,” I said, wiggling my left hand. I wasn’t sure if I’d meant the reminder for him or for myself. “Here.” I handed him the shirt and ended the conversation before it could go anywhere. “The tuxedo’s in there,” I said sternly. “We do not take sartorial emergencies lightly.”
As he changed, I smoothed my hair and quelled my stirring libido. I fought with myself, battling thoughts and reactions that were sinful, but that also felt out of my control.
He came out soon after, buttoning up the shirt. Each button swallowed up a little bit of dark, curly chest hair. His hair was black marble, styled in its sophisticated, slight ripple. My breath caught as he walked over to the mirror and slipped into the shoes I had placed on the floor. Men look infinitely more handsome in a tuxedo, I thought wistfully.
“These are too small.”
I pulled out the shoebox and flipped it around. “Yep. Size fourteen. Guess she couldn’t quite get that half, so you’ll have to make it work.”
“Where did Lucy find all this on such short notice?” he asked.
“Our secret.”
“Great,” he said to himself. “I’m impressed.”
I walked over and handed him the jacket, taking his wrist in my hand as I inserted the cufflinks. I stealthily admired his watch, a thick silver Rolex with a large black dial. “The tux is on loan for tonight,” I said.
“Can’t I just buy it?
“No, it belongs to someone else.”
“I doubt he’d miss it,” David said. When I looked up, he had a half smile on his freshly-shaven face.
“I’m sure he would. A lot.” I wrinkled my nose at him. It was becoming hard to ignore the palpable heat that was building between us. His stare followed when I moved to the left cuff, but I willed my eyes downward. A deep breath filled my nostrils with his spicy aftershave. I returned to the bag Lucy had left and held out the bow tie. He draped it around his neck, furrowing his brow as he applied singular focus to the task.
“Here, let me,” I said softly, slipping between him and the mirror. The spicy scent, now mixed with something fresh, something from a recent shower, intensified as I leaned in. Reaching up, I deftly molded the fabric into a neat bow. Aside from our wedding day, I’d never seen Bill in a tux, but I’d fixed my dad’s bowties when I was younger, and the motions were automatic. The memory of my mom and dad going out one evening made me smile. My mother wore a floor-length, black beaded dress that she had called ‘fancy,’ and Chanel No. 5 clouded their tiny bathroom.
As I pulled the bow taut, my fingers stilled and lingered; I could no longer avoid his penetrating gaze. I watched the rise and fall of his chest until my eyes traveled up his exposed neck. His
Adam’s apple jumped as he swallowed. The ends of his hair looked damp. Creases around his lax mouth remained, though his smile did not. Finally, our eyes locked.
In one slow, measured movement, he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me to him. His other hand rose and raked through my hair, tilting my mouth upward. Instinctively, I pulled away as he closed the space between us, but his hold was firm. My eyes unwittingly fluttered shut as his lips touched mine, testing the new territory. Warmth pulsed through me with the rise and fall of my chest, reacting to the disparateness of his purposeful but tender touch. My mouth parted imperceptibly and he answered with a harder kiss, opening me with his lips. An ache blossomed between my legs, responding to the hot breath and heady taste of another man.
Without direction, my body molded to his, and my mouth gave way. He cupped my face and backed me against the mirror as the kiss became needier. His hands moved down my neck, over my collarbone and covered my shoulders, where he pressed me into the glass. That ache grew painfully, eager for satisfaction. I yearned to reach up and touch him but his unyielding grasp immobilized me.
An impassioned moan escaped my lips, and he tore away, leaving me gasping for air. He released my shoulders abruptly and stepped back.
“What are you doing?” he asked so softly that I was sure he hadn’t meant for me to hear. “Fuck.” He turned away from me and ran both hands through his styled hair. “Fuck!” he yelled and pounded his fist against the wall. He whipped the door open and stalked out.
Slowly, I covered my tingling mouth as shame seeped over me. I methodically picked up the office with trembling hands. I folded the clothes he’d left behind and set them in the bag. Twice, because of my shaky hand, I wrote a note to Lucy explaining that David had left in a hurry without his things.
This can’t happen, I told myself. Put it away, Olivia. This has to stop.
~
I felt physically and emotionally drained when I returned home. The idea of a weekend sojourn, beginning with an hour car drive felt impossible. When I entered the apartment, I heard noises coming from the bedroom.