Oral Care

Chapter 12: Calculated Risks

*** Rafael's POV ***

I don't know what happened back at the hotel. Call it what you will: desperation, desire, dominance. I couldn't accept that she didn't want more with me.

I put the worst out there. I slept with Tara. Now what was left was addressing the uncertainty of where that left all of us. If Tara had never shown up at the resort, my pathway forward with Evelyn would be so much clearer. I could try to say the same thing about Evelyn. If we had never met...if I had never tasted her...if I had never fallen for her, maybe things would be more clear with Tara, but I know that isn't true either.

I needed advice.

"You are never going to believe this." I tell Kevin on the phone as I am driving back to the office.

"You finally put us all out of our misery and ended things with Tara?" He guesses.

"I'm getting there because guess who showed up to my office this morning." I don't wait for him to guess. "Evelyn."

"Whoa. Resort Evelyn?" I suddenly have Kevin's attention.

"How many other Evelyn's do you think we mutually know? Yes, Resort Evelyn." I retort. I fill him in on what went down.

"This is bonkers. What a small fucking world." He mutters.

"Right?! But now I'm stuck on what my next move is." I state.

He scoffs. "Why? It's obvious. You take the far superior chick and worship her day and night."

"She claims she doesn't want anything with me." I remind him.

"And you called her on that BS. Look Raf, I know you're trying to take the gentle approach with backing out of this thing with Tara, but it's over. It has been for awhile. So regardless of what happens with Evelyn, cut Tara loose." Kevin advises.

"But two years, man."

"Right, Rafael. Two years and she's still the same selfish pain-in-the-ass. People don't change all of a sudden. She doesn't deserve more time." Kevin points out bluntly.

He is right, of course. And now that I have spent time with someone who holds all the traits that I had hoped would surface in Tara, even her good traits seem dull.

"Try this. Tell Tara about Evelyn and see how she handles it. Remember six months ago when you two were on a similar break and she hooked up with that Peruvian guy? See if she is as gracious with you as you were with her." Kevin suggests.

"Do you want me to get my balls ripped off and shoved down my throat?" I quip.

"See? This is your way out. You can do better, bro. Evelyn is a sexy reminder of that." He nudges.

"You gotta quit with the comments about her." I grumble.

"Why? You're leaving her wide open for the taking." He pushes my buttons as siblings are prone to do.

"First, bro code. No secondsies with each other's girls. Second, if you think Evelyn is just some damsel waiting to be plucked out of singledom, you don't know her at all." I retort.