Page 9 of Deja Brew

It’ll go down great with her. Fucking hell, I’m an idiot. How am I supposed to date her without telling her? Although, if we’re dating, maybe she wouldn’t find it weird if I wanted to drive her to work. I could make sure she gets there safely and spend time with her. Not a bad deal.

Unless she finds out.

Or I keep it a secret and tell her on our twentieth wedding anniversary and deal with the consequences later.

Neither sound like great options. Either way, I’m fucked.

Unless I get her to fall in love with me and convince her it isn’t weird.

I groan and stop at a red light. This is going to be complicated.

4

LILY

When I ‘accidentally’forgot to grab the keys before going to the storeroom with Leo, all I wanted was to spend time with him. I knew Gem would arrive soon, so felt safe locking us in. The door barely ever auto-locks…unless you know how. I felt awful locking him in when I saw his skin. When I realised the boxes marked his skin, I’d forgotten I locked the door, and we didn’t have a first-aid kit in the storeroom. No clue what I would’ve done to help the marks, but getting to touch his skin was a bonus and he seemed to enjoy it by his tinged cheeks.

What I hadn’t bargained for was my brain taking a holiday after nearly kissing him and blurting out my ridiculous question. Granted, I got the answer I wanted, but did I have to make it sound like a demand? Some tact would’ve been ideal, but whatever. He agreed and I will be holding him to it. Even if he seemed hesitant, I’ll just have to change his mind and convince him we’re a good match.

Did my underhanded way to spend time with him keep me awake at night? Yes. Not my finest moment. In fact, in the dark of night, with my mind racing, it kept coming back to the idea that I’m no different from my stalker.

Well, technically, I’m not stalking him. I’m just very eager to see him and always look for him on the street. But forcing him into a room with me with no way out isn’t exactly full of good intentions. Not that he realises what I did.

Gentle coercion never hurt anybody. Right?

Considering he hasn’t texted me about dinner, I’m not sure it matters. Despite giving him my number and his agreement to dinner, I haven’t seen him since the storeroom incident two days ago. Which makes sense since it’s my day off, so there’s no reason to see him. Unless he’d send me a tiny little text. I’d take an emoji at this point.

To distract myself from spiralling thoughts, I decided to go shopping. Somehow, I ended up in a lingerie store.

It makes no sense. I won’t buy any of it. Probably.

A violet bra decorated with ribbon catches my eye. There’s no reason for me to buy it, I don’t need it. Not like anyone will see it, though a girl can hope. Maybe I will buy it. To give me confidence or whatever. Or because it looks cute.

I wander through the shop, brushing my fingers against silk, and pause when I see a white set. The bra is mesh with a delicate floral pattern and ruffles at the top and bottom. It’s see-through except for some strategically placed blue flowers. I find my size, snag the matching underwear, and duck into the changing room.

After stripping off my winter clothes except for my jeans, I try on the ruffled bra and stare at the mirror. Can’t say I’ve ever owned anything see-through before, but something about this makes me want to. To see Leo’s face when he sees it. Or whoever is lucky enough to see it. It’s not hard to admit I want Leo to see it. To watch him take it off me, throw it across the room and…

I lift the underwear and grimace. Can they be classified as underwear? I turn them around. Not when there’s that little fabric holding it together. How is it comfortable? It’s as see-through as the bra withsignificantlyless fabric. Think I’ll try those on in the privacy of my bedroom, after they’ve gone through a washing machine. But I’m committed, and after I’ve changed back into my clothes, I collect the set and march to the counter to pay for them before I can convince myself otherwise.

The sales assistant wraps them in pink tissue paper and puts them in a tiny bag, which I take with a quiet thank you.

Exiting the store, I open my tote bag and shove the lingerie in it. Don’t need, nor want, people knowing I bought a g-string thank you very much. I only take a few steps, too busy hiding my purchase, before I crash into someone. A warm hand grasps my upper arm to steady me. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t—oh. Hello.”

Leo squeezes my arm gently, and his lips twitch. “Are you okay?”

“Fine. You?” I stammer, surprised to see him here. He’s wrapped in a black coat with a soft looking blue scarf, which makes me want to nestle into him. Not exactly new emotions.

“I’m great.” He releases my arm. “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, nothing. Just walking.” I stuff the lingerie deeper into my tote and close the bag. Hiding the evidence. God, of course I bump into him after I bought lingerie with him in mind—I mean for me.

Dark eyes glance at my hand and then at the store behind me. His cheeks flush and he coughs. “I was about to text you. Are you free tonight?”

“I’m free now,” I blurt out. I cringe and correct myself. “I mean, I’m free tonight.”

“You’re not shopping?” he asks, eyes gleaming as he looks at the store behind me to my bag.

“Nope. All done.” Someone save me from myself and my red cheeks, giving me away. “Just walking around.” Have I said that already?

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