Presque Vu

Chapter 10

Raina stared at the phone, the text message waiting there making her head spin.

Green. Yellow. Red. Tell me what those colors mean Raina

She had dropped Shannon back off the bar to get his truck before heading into work. They had lingered there in the parking lot for several minutes before he left her, exchanging slow, wet kisses and promises to get together again soon. He hadn't mentioned anything about her revelation that she was seeing someone else since she had told him in the bar and she was grateful that he seemed to be willing to let it go. It probably meant he was seeing other people too, and she was fine with that. And since she didn't have to worry about Shannon it left her the whole drive into work to think about what she was going to do about Jared. She had thought about texting him back that morning, but wasn't sure what to say after their exchange last night and tossed her phone into the bottom of her purse to be dealt with later. She didn't know what she even wanted from him. Now as she sat down for lunch, she wondered what exactly she had gotten herself into. Cautiously, she typed her reply.

Go. Caution. Stop. And I know they're not just for traffic lights if that's what you're asking.

She may have been inexperienced in that department but this was the age of the internet after all. There were all flavors of smut available to fuel her imagination. She set her phone down on the table and went back to her sandwich. There was no immediate response, but that didn't surprise her as the message was already several hours old. She wasn't really sure what she wanted him to say. She wasn't even sure what she herself wanted to say. Last night with Shannon had been amazing. Waking up this morning to see him next to her, sleeping on his tummy, pillow all bunched up under him had made her smile in a way she hadn't in a long time. But strangely it didn't make her want Jared any less. She was still irritated with Jared for assuming she would just be sitting around waiting for him to call, but she wanted to see him. She told herself it was all sex and chemistry and no connection but that wasn't entirely true either. She had been acutely aware of how deliberately they both had danced around opening up at that dinner. For whatever reason, Jared seemed to be as careful about his emotions as Raina was. The question was could they get through that? In the meanwhile, what he was offering were things she could never get from Dan. He had balked at the suggestion of anything that strayed from the bedroom norms. It was no wonder she was dying for a little adventure now.

The phone buzzed with another alert.

Good. I'll be over at 7.

I did warn you about being a naughty girl. I hope you enjoyed your date.

Raina bit her lower lip. A few lines and her heart was already racing. He knew exactly the things she craved, how to make her crumble. However, she wondered if this wasn't the point where they needed to sit down and have at least some kind of talk.

Don't you think that maybe we should try talking for a change?

The response was quick.

Oh, we're going to talk. There's going to be quite a bit of talking. But the first conversation is going to be between my hand and your ass.

You can tell me no. You can tell me right now not to come over. We can make dinner plans and have a nice quiet meal and talk about nothing again. Probably sleep together again when it's over. But that's not what you want, is it?

She considered the possibilities. But Jared was right. That wasn't what she wanted at all. She typed up her reply.

I'll see you at 7

Raina started to pour herself a glass of wine to steady her nerves but then decided it would be best if she had all her wits about her and returned the unused glass to the cabinet. Impatiently, she waited for him, watching the clock as it counted down to his scheduled arrival.