In Bad Faith

Chapter 52

My heart was pounding as I put the key into the lock of my apartment. In my head, I was going over if I left anything that could lead to my true identity, or anything FBI-related. Since during the car ride here, Misha asked if he could come inside with me. I said yes. I kept stuff like the old files of my dad, my real documents, and my real phone in a safe, but still, I was paranoid. Maybe I've left something lying around with how chaotic my mind had been the last couple of days.

Just before I opened the door I averted my gaze to Misha, who was standing next to me. He quickly changed clothes before we got here, and was now wearing a casual outfit consisting of jeans and a black hoodie. I'd never seen him so casual. And he clearly wanted to make sure that he wouldn't get recognized together with me, since he was also wearing a black cap and sunglasses. Okay, he did have the excuse that it was actually still sunny out, but he didn't take them off when we entered my apartment building either. I didn't blame him. He wasn't a stranger to the public eye, especially not in New York, and I was hesitant myself too. Floyd never came over here, but what if somehow the wrong person saw me together with him?

"Welcome," I smiled at him as I opened the door, and gestured for him to walk inside. And after we both did, I closed the door behind us. I guided him down the hall into the, for New York standards, spacious living room. I immediately scanned the room, but luckily I saw nothing out of importance lying around. Thank god. "You live nice," I heard Misha say after he took off his sunglasses and let his gaze glide down the room. All the furniture was picked for me before I got here, so I bought some plants and decorations to make it feel a little homier. And it wasn't bad, at all. It was pretty modern and had enough space. It just wasn't me. I often missed my Seattle apartment.

"Thank you," I said softly as our eyes locked. I wish he could see my real apartment, since it felt wrong having him in here. Misha turned to face me, after which he took both of my hands into his. Just this was enough to take most of my nerves away. He looked into my eyes as his lips curled up into the sweetest smile, and it was the most beautiful sight. I couldn't help but mirror it. "I'm so glad you're coming with me," he told me, his fingers intertwining with mine.

"I'm glad you're taking me," I smiled. And it was true. Aside from all the risks, worries, and boundaries I was crossing by doing this, I wanted nothing more. Misha and I on an island where it was just us sounded like heaven. Like we could get away from all of this chaos, as if it just didn't exist for a few days.

"I can't believe we're doing this," I then whispered, still looking up at him. Misha's smile got even wider. "Me neither," he softly said, after which he slowly leaned into me and pressed his lips against mine. It caused my eyes to fall shut, as I felt how an outburst of warm feelings took over my entire body. He let go of my hands to then pull me in closer by my hips, and I also pulled him closer by throwing my arms around his neck. And soon his tongue met mine, as we started deepening the kiss. It had been a few days since we made out like this. And just now, I realized how bad I had been craving it. It was like I couldn't even go without it anymore.

I lost track of time fully indulging myself in the fiery kiss, but just as I grabbed the fabric of Misha's hoodie to pull him even closer, Misha let go of my lips. I was still holding on to him as I looked up in displeasure as my lips now felt empty without his. "You need to go get your stuff," he whispered, his face still way too close to mine. I softly sighed against his lips. "We will have all the time in the world in just a few hours," he followed. I slowly nodded. He was right. We couldn't let ourselves go and miss this flight, and we both knew that was exactly what was going to happen if we hadn't stopped. So after shortly pressing my lips against his one more time, I let go of him, and I tried to grab myself together since my heart was still pounding in excitement, and my body still felt all warm and fuzzy.