“It’s complicated,” she murmured, barely meeting my eyes.
“Is it?” I shot back. I was done tiptoeing around this. Jules could plan and overthink all she wanted, but that wasn’t me. I didn’t care about logic or what made sense. I moved with my gut, and my gut told me one thing: we were supposed to be together. “It’s crazy, for sure,” I continued, my words spilling out now. “The whole ‘I know you from a dream’ thing is definitely freakish, but complicated? I’m single, and you’re single?—”
“Except you’re not single,” she interrupted.
I let out a frustrated groan, rubbing the back of my neck.
“Really? This again?”
It was a PR stunt.The thought blazed through my mind, but I didn’t say it. Maybe if she were in the business, she would see it more clearly.
She crossed her arms. No more avoiding my gaze. Her eyes locked onto mine.
“I didn’t see any news about you and Anna breaking up.”
I sighed. She wasn’t wrong. But Vanessa was in charge of the narrative, and I knew better than to mess with her plans.My career was the only thing that had mattered to me for so long, and I wasn’t ready to compromise it. At least, I hadn’t been before.
“Blaze…” I used the nickname because I knew what it did to her, and if there was ever a time to use every weapon in my arsenal, it was now. I stepped closer, my hand found her waist, and I felt her body tense under my touch.
“We’re just two people who want to be close to each other,” I murmured, my voice low, coaxing. “I’m done fighting it… so can we just…?”
I didn’t let her answer. I knew her too well; she’d start overthinking, and I couldn’t give her the time to spiral. I kissed her before her thoughts could drown her. My lips crashed into her with a hunger that even caught me off guard. For a second, I felt her hesitate, but then she gave in. She melted against me, her arms around my neck, holding on for dear life. We broke the kiss, but our lips stayed close, our breath tangled, neither of us ready to pull away completely.
I whispered, “I don’t believe being together could ever be wrong when our bodies do what they do when we’re close.” I’d had my fair share of… encounters. But what Jules and I had was art. It was something that transcended reason or explanation. Before I could stop myself, I kissed her again, like I couldn’t stand the thought of being apart for even a second longer. Everything else disappeared. The complications, the noise, the questions—all of it faded away. All that mattered was her.Us.
I guided her toward the kitchen counter, my hands sliding down her back, pulling her closer with every step. Her fingers tangled in my hair, her body pressed against mine, and for a second, I thought maybe we could have this.
Then a voice shattered the moment like glass.
“Oh shit!”
Jules and I broke apart, breathless, and caught completelyoff guard. Our heads snapped toward the doorway where Carol stood, her eyes wide with surprise. Quickly, she spun around, her back to us.
“I’m sorry!” she blurted.
Jules pressed a hand to her chest, trying to steady her racing heart. She adjusted her hair, smoothed her clothes, and finally said, “It’s okay. Just… come in.”
Carol hesitated, then turned back around dramatically, her hands covering her eyes like a kid who walked into the wrong room.
“The kids asked for more blueberries. Luckily, I offered to come get some.” I couldn’t help but smile at the way she overdid it, though Jules looked far less amused. With a sigh, she took the plate from her sister’s hands and added more blueberries.
Carol, however, wasn’t done. She gave Jules one of those knowing, sisterly looks, her lips curling into a sly smile. Then she mouthed, “Nice!”and threw in a wink for good measure. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing. Jules rolled her eyes and flushed a deep shade of pink.
“I’ll take these,” she said while brushing past Carol. Then she looked at me. “You should go.”
I crossed my arms. “We’re not done talking.”
Carol didn’t miss the opportunity and smirked.
“Is that what the kids call ‘talking’ these days?”
Jules shot her another look, this one so sharp that Carol wisely glanced down at her shoes, pretending to suddenly find them fascinating.
She turned back to me, “I have to take the kids to their father’s.” She hesitated like she didn’t want to get the words out, like saying them would hurt me. I appreciated that. But we still needed to talk. “We can talk later,” she continued.
“Do you want me to wait for you here, or…?”
“On the phone.” Her words came out too fast. She bit herlower lip as if she could still taste me there, and I got the message loud and clear. She didn’t trust herself totalkto me in person. I bit back a smile. Personally, I didn’t see the problem with continuing this conversation while lying naked in bed, but I would always respect her wishes.
