The Fling

28

"It's hot," Abigail commented after we'd been outside for around thirty minutes.

I was reading over the recipe I was making tonight for the third time, with hopes I'd be able to manage it. "The afternoon sun is pretty brutal," I agreed without taking my eyes off my phone.

"Want to go in and cool off?"

I looked over at her and saw that she was grinning. "Did you just-"

"-use your line from Palm Springs on you? Indeed I did. It worked then and I'm hoping it works now." She sat up and swung her long toned legs over the side of the lounge chair.

I really wanted to prove to her that I hadn't come over just to have sex, but if my plan to convince her that we should be together failed, I'd go home tonight miserable from the rejection and without the satisfaction of one last interlude. Was it worth denying myself that pleasure to make a point?

"Your face is all scrunched up like you're in deep thought," she giggled. "After that kiss, I figured you were into the idea, but if you'd rather not, it's okay."

I let out a frustrated groan. "You have no fucking idea how badly I want to!"

"There's something holding you back?" she sang.

"Ha ha. But yeah, there is. I don't want this to be about sex."

"Shawn, I know that there's more to what we have. There's a connection. I feel it whenever we are together and I miss it when we're not."

"But?"

"But that doesn't mean we're meant to be," she replied sadly.

"You don't know that."

"If you think about it logically-"

"No!" I said loudly. "Logic is great, but sometimes you have to follow your gut and your heart! That's what I'm doing and it's why I'm here right now!"

She stood and walked inside, while I remained on the patio. I put my arms behind my head and closed my eyes, trying to focus on deep breaths since my blood pressure was spiking. A few minutes later I heard the door open and close and felt her presence near me. She probably needed a minute to breathe, too.

"Since it's hot and we're obviously not fooling around, do you want to go for a swim?" she asked.

I got up and did a running jump into the deeper end of the pool near the waterfall, which made Cosmo dart around the perimeter barking loudly. Abigail got him settled down and hopped in, swimming over to me. I sat on the underwater ledge, and she boldly climbed on my lap.

"I really don't want to argue any more today," she said breathily as she wrapped her arms around my neck. "Positivity only."

There was no avoiding another confrontation before I left, given that I was going to be very honest about my feelings, but until then, we could call a truce. "I'm good with that."

She pulled me closer for a kiss, and we stayed in the water making out until it was time to start dinner. I never ate this early, but if her children were arriving home at seven, we didn't have a choice.

Back in the house, we got dressed and she poured us each a glass of white wine. I gathered all the ingredients and went to work on the mushroom risotto I endeavored to make. Unlike this morning, I didn't pretend to host a cooking show because I was so focused on the recipe. Abigail offered to help, though I insisted she relax.

"Cutting board?" I asked after washing the mushrooms.

"They're in the narrow cabinet to the left of the dishwasher."