A Stranger In My Home

Chapter 15

A/N: Picture of a Florida Room to the side :)

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Time stood still for Jason as he watched Julie nervously bite her lip, no doubt worrying what he would say to her confession. He’d wanted to kiss her that night, too. Hell, he’d wanted to do a whole lot more.

He didn’t have the chance to respond, though, as Julie suddenly disappeared from his line of sight. He could hear her running up the stairs and he sunk back on the couch. Things just got a whole lot more complicated.  

-

Julie clasped a hand over her heart as she waited for her breathing to return to normal. What had she done? One minute, she was reliving the horror of her marriage, and the next she was practically begging for her ex-husband’s cousin to… Julie shook her head. What was wrong with her?

She quickly undressed and got into the shower, hoping the heat of the spray would relax and warm her. As the water cascaded down on her, she closed her eyes and let her mind wander. She could practically feel Jason’s body heat warming her as he backed her up against the wall. She imagined his warm hands roaming her body and his mouth fastening on… Julie snapped her eyes open, horrified at where her thoughts had gone just then.

Jason was her ex-husband’s cousin and her friend. There could never be anything else between them. She turned off the shower and toweled off before wrapping a robe around her and climbing under the covers. She just wanted to sleep for the rest of her life.

-

“So you mean to tell me you never did pizza-and-movie night?” Jason gawked as he set down two pepperoni pizzas on the Florida Room table along with a couple of beers.

When Julie woke up on Saturday morning, Jason had left her a note saying he had a few errands to run but that he’d be back later. She was partly relieved that she wouldn’t have to face him after her embarrassing confession the night before, but also worried that he was thinking awful things about her. She’d eventually gone for a swim, trying to rid her mind of conflicting thoughts, and now she was exhausted. The idea of watching TV all night seemed very appealing to her, even though Jason’s presence had her tensing slightly.

“Pizza’s are fattening,” Julie replied and curled up on the couch.

“Then I’m gonna have ten slices,” Jason proclaimed. “How ‘bout you?”

Julie shook her head. “Weirdo.” At least he was trying to lighten the mood, and she felt her body relax in response.

“Oh, come on, taste this,” Jason said and picked up a slice, holding it to Julie’s lips. “Hurry, the sauce is dripping.”

She sighed and opened her mouth to take a bite.

“Good, huh?” Jason said proudly. He’d made the pizzas himself and Julie had to admit it tasted better than the deliverable kind. She nodded in response. “Oops, got a little sauce riiight… there,” Jason said and reached out to wipe the sauce from the corner of her mouth with a paper napkin. “There, all better,” he smiled and put the napkin away. “Ready for the movie?”

“What did you pick?” Julie asked. “It better not be horror – or thriller. I don’t think I could handle that right now.”

“The guy at the video store said it was – and I quote – a ‘total chick flick’,” Jason said and loaded the DVD player. “Something about a girl who shops too much.”

“But… you’re going to watch a chick flick?” Julie frowned.

“Yeah, so? Next weekend, I’m gonna make you sit through some war movie or something,” he shrugged. “Fair’s fair.”