You Don't Know..What you Don't Know

Chapter Forty: Summer

Jim drove us home because, unbeknownst to him, I was too sore to drive. I blamed it on my knee, saying I'd twisted it playing around with my cousins. He accepted the explanation without another question.

The lie came far too easily.

When we got home, I disappeared into my room and spent the rest of the day curled beneath the covers. I didn't text Phillip to tell him we'd made it back.

After Torri kissed me goodbye, reality had crashed over me.

Phillip was my boyfriend.

I had cheated on him.

There wasn't a prettier way to say it. No excuse. No technicality. I could dress it up however I wanted, but a spade was still a spade.

I buried my face in my pillow.

Now what?

Instead of answering the question, I shoved it into the darkest corner of my mind.

No one would ever know.

Torri and I had kept our feelings hidden for a year. We could keep this hidden too.

It didn't make it right.

It didn't erase what I'd done.

But Torri and I could never really be together, so why destroy my relationship with Phillip over one impossible afternoon?

Athena sighs. Congratulations, Tia. You're officially a terrible girlfriend.

Avoidance became my new hobby.

I dodged Phillip's calls Sunday night and managed to miss him most of Monday too.

Unfortunately, Phillip wasn't giving up that easily.

Late that afternoon I was soaking in the backyard Jacuzzi, hoping the hot water would ease the ache in my muscles and maybe wash away a little of my guilt, when the back door slid open.

Phillip walked outside carrying his usual easy smile.

"Welcome back."

Phillip sat beside the Jacuzzi and, without thinking, rested his hands on my shoulders.

My entire body stiffened.

His thumbs worked gentle circles across the tight muscles in my neck, the kind of massage that usually melted every ounce of stress away. Today it felt like sandpaper.

I fought the urge to lean forward and slip out from under his hands.

Every stroke across my skin made my stomach knot tighter.

It wasn't him.

It was me.

His touch reminded me of another pair of hands.

Another afternoon.

Another secret I could never erase.

The guilt curdled into irritation, and somehow my mind aimed it at the one person who deserved it least.

Athena folded her arms.

You're annoyed because every time he touches you, you're reminded that he still trusts you.

"Thanks," I said, forcing a smile. "What are you doing here?"

"I figured we'd go catch a movie or something since you're back."

Before I could answer, he leaned over and kissed me.

The moment his lips touched mine, my chest tightened.