Page 24 of The Spy Ring

I watched her from over my shoulder but turned completely around in amazement at what was in the cabinet.

“Wow, that’s a lot of candy. I guess your son likes the sweet stuff.” I stood, moving to the other side of the beige, granite island that separated the living room from the kitchen.

“Actually, most of this is mine. I have a bit of a sweet tooth. Especially when it comes to hard candy.”

“Did you buy out the candy aisle at the Jewel Osco?” I gazed in wonder as all four shelves were overflowing with various bags of candy. The two upper shelves had boxes of the stuff. She must have bought them online because I don’t think they sell bags of candy by the box at the grocery store.

“I have a subscription.” Tiffany frowned. “It’s called Candy Gram and I have the VIP subscription.”

“No wonder you stripped,” I said without thinking of the consequences of my words.

She dropped the green lollipop that was in her hand with a small thwack. Her face had lost all its color.

“I was a stripper in Las Vegas? Oh no. I must have been drugged. You have to believe me, I would never have done that otherwise.”

I came over and put my hands on her shoulders. “No, that came out wrong. You didn’t become a stripper. It was something that happened in the hotel room. You kept saying you needed a wedding ring and only a candy ring would do. I thought it strange but figured you had too much to drink.”

Due to her surprise and horror at thinking she stripped in front of strangers, I felt it best to leave out the part where she did strip for me.

“Oh, thank goodness.” Her head fell into her hand.

My thumbs rubbed circles around her shoulders to give her relief but I felt she might need more so I pulled her into an embrace. Tiffany melted into me as my arms circled her back. She was warm, soft, and it seemed right.

She felt amazing.

And her hair—it was soft and smelled as sweet as that lollipop. It was only natural when my hands slipped lower. Moving without thought or hesitation to the part of her back that dipped and then curved just before it separated into two plump cheeks. I shuddered with every twist of her body.

Tiffany pushed back. “What are you doing?”

“I’m sorry. I got, uh, carried away.”

Leaning against the counter, I shoved my hands into my pockets to disguise the growing bulge in my jeans.

An awkwardness fell over the room like something sticky and thoroughly unwanted. She didn’t step away but her head turned in every direction that didn’t include me.

“You had sex with me,” she whispered. Her hands clasped in front of her and for a moment she was too delicate to touch. As if a brush of my finger across Tiffany’s shoulder would shatter her completely.

“No, we didn’t. I would never have done that with someone who was drunk,” I said.

That was a fact. I wanted to have sex with her. But as inebriated as I was, I had enough sense to keep her safe.

Her eyes peered up at me, wide but still uncertain. “But I woke up naked? In your hotel room. Wait. Was that your hotel room?”

Tiffany was shrinking again.

“Yes, that was my hotel room. I was in the shower when you left.” I paused and gathered the courage to explain what happened. “Maybe I will take that tea.”

My smile was weak but she nodded. I walked back to the living room and sat on the couch. In a few minutes, she came over placing a dark blue mug with a red crab on it that said, Got Crabs, in front of me on the coffee table.

“Here’s some cream and sugar if you take that.” She sat on the other end of the couch and waved at the small white porcelain container of creamer, shaped like a pitcher, and a bowl holding loose sugar.

I took a sip of the bitter tea and decided to drink it straight.

“You were naked because you insisted on taking off all your clothes,” I said and took a second to gauge her reaction.

She had one leg folded, resting on the couch, while the other leg dangled over the edge. Her eyes weren’t looking at me, but at something in the distance.

“I know it doesn’t sound believable but it’s true. I would never take advantage of someone while they were drunk. Even if you didn’t have anything to drink before we met, you did afterward. At one point, I told the bartender to stop giving you anything.”

---