Page 39 of Shade
Tucking her phone away, she slaps her hand over Tom’s mouth. “Stop. Talking.”
He grins, and I’m assuming he licks it because she rips her hand away and wipes it on her pants. “You haveno ideawhere my hand has been this morning, and you just licked it.”
Tom shrugs, I think, but I don’t know, I’m not looking. “And honey, you haveno ideawhere my tongue’s been today.”
She really doesn’t. Knowing Tom, I have a few guesses, all of them between the legs of women.
Mila’s on a mission, apparently, and exits the elevator on the second floor. That’s when Tom traps me on the elevator and pushes the Close Door button and stops the elevator.
He corners me, his hands on either side of my head, hard body pressing me into the side of the elevator. Tom’s forward and not afraid of making body contact with anyone. Don’t go thinking this is going anywhere either. It’s not. Been there, done that, probably won’t ever again.
“We need to talk about Dania.” He gives me a pointed glare, dark eyebrows knitting together before his tongue jets out and he licks his bottom lip. “What were you thinking telling her to call me. I slept with her. She bit my fuckin’ dick.”
My hands raise to his chest, pushing him back. “Don’t act like you didn’t like it. If I remember correctly, you’re into the freaky shit.”
He doesn’t budge and presses into me again, our bodies aligned with one another. Though it’s familiar, I don’t react because my body wants someone else. “I draw the line when biting and my dick are involved.”
Tom breathes in, deep, his stare drawn to my mouth when I reply with, “Yeah, right.”
“I do.” He drops his lashes quickly. “You’re the one who liked her clit bit, remember?” My cheeks burn like a heat lamp is suddenly on me. Yes, I remember. “Besides, I don’tlike her.” He backs up, removing his hands from the wall and hits the Stop button again, the elevator begins to move again with a sudden jolt.
I don’t say anything else to him, but he also doesn’t get off when the elevator reaches the lobby. “What are you doing? Get out. I have to go back up to Mila’s office. I left my cart up there.”
“I got nowhere to be.” He flicks his eyes to mine, shrugging, his hoarse whisper drawing my attention to his again. “Did you hook up with the bicycle guy the other night?”
An inexplicable feeling of emptiness roots inside me. It’s more like dejection, or disappointment. Heartache? Probably all of it. “You mean the motocross racer?”
“Yeah, sure. Him.”
“No.”
“Couldn’t seal the deal?” There’s amusement now in the way the corners of his mouth lift and his tongue darts out again and toys with his lip ring.
My cheeks warm, again. No, I couldn’t seal the deal, but I also don’t want Tom of all people reminding me of it. “Fuck you, Tom. I’m not done yet, but don’t be an asshole. He’s dealing with some shit. His friend killed herself the other day.”
His eyes soften. “I think I read about that.”
I’m quiet, trying to think of any way where I could afford to go to California to see Shade. Maybe somehow run into him and convince him we’re meant to be. But then again, how can I do that when he’s clearly not in his right mind? If I couldn’t get inside his hotel room, what the hell makes me think I can find him in California?
And how exactly would I start a conversation with him?
Hey, so my boyfriend killed himself when I was younger. I think we can relate to one another.
Nope. Wouldn’t work. For one, if anyone had tried that on me following Asher’s death, I would have punched them in the face. And two, I’m not as brave as I seem. I’d more than likely find him, then stare at him like a complete idiot. Kind of like the elevator ride with him.
I know one thing. . . my heart goes out to him. His life will forever be altered by that day. Life, love, everything about him will be different because of what she did. They say suicide is selfish. I don’t believe that.
The only selfish part about suicide I found to be true was the way I’ve never quite found the girl I was before Asher.
