Page 12 of Easy Reunion
Isaac places his drink down next to him, but Rierson doesn’t release my hand. “Tell me about yourself, Kee.”
There’s a kernel of the girl who tutored him who wants to be outraged and offended he doesn’t recognize me. It’s tempered by the more pragmatic part of me who looks in the mirror every day. I wouldn’t know who I was either if I hadn’t lived through the transformation myself. Instead of slamming both of my hands in Ry’s chest, or dumping my excellent wine over his shirt, I find myself slipping into a mask I know well. And within a few minutes, he’s looking at me much the same way most people do when they realize I’ve hit “the list”—with admiration and respect.
It’s a whole different look than the pained one I last saw on his face, that’s for sure.
Shoving aside the voices in my head screaming at me to tell him who I am, I finish my drink and wave for another.
Time passes quickly as Ry and I keep talking. It feels like only minutes, so I’m surprised when Isaac quietly approaches to tell me it’s the last call.
I feel good—so much more relaxed with Ry now than when he first approached me. In talking about my life, even if he doesn’t know who I am, I realize it doesn’t matter if anyone knows. My lips curve. I got the closure I came here for. Feeling more relaxed with the man I’ve been talking to for I don’t even know how long, I’m about to ask Rierson if he’d like a final drink when he brushes my shoulder-length hair away from my cheek. “How about we get a bottle of whatever you’re drinking to go?” His fingers rest on the pulse at the base of my throat.
The invitation is as open and relaxed as our conversation has been. We’re just two strangers. Only I know there’s so much more that lies between us, that long ago, his hurtful words were my last memory of this city.
If I walk away, we’re a chance at what might have been—nothing more, nothing less.
But as I stare into fathomless blue eyes, for once I want to know what it might have been like if I could have had a date—if I was “good enough” to have been seen with, not just for help with tutoring. I want to know for one night what I should have been able to have felt if I were as beautiful as my grandparents told me I was, as Ry himself said I was. Even if he only muttered it the one time when he hugged me after he got the grade that guaranteed him entry to his first-choice college.
So, I do what I normally do when I find an attractive man who obviously is interested in me—even if it’s only for just one night. I turn off the memories of who and what I was. There’s no place for Kelsey here. Then again, other than with my family and with Angel, maybe there’s no place for her anywhere anymore. If I didn’t know Rierson before tonight, I’d want him. And, my heart taunts me quietly, there’s no way I would have been able to have had him before.
Sliding off the stool, I let my hand rest lightly against his chest. “I have an early flight.” I’m pleased to see the flash of disappointment before I whisper, “I don’t need any more wine if I’m going to keep my head on straight when I touch you.”
His nostrils flare dangerously. “Why don’t you wait for me by the elevator?” I suggest. I still need to sign the bill, and I don’t want him to see that Kee Long and Kelsey Kennedy are one and the same.
Tipping his head close to mine, I feel my hard-won stomach muscles clench when his lips brush my ear. “Don’t be long.” He takes a quick nip, then strides off. Quickly, I scribble my real name on the receipt with a hefty tip for Isaac before following him.
I’ll give myself a few hours to indulge in my fantasies, the ones Kelsey had that Kee will fulfill. Then my ass will be on a plane back to New Orleans, never to see him again.
* * *
Quietly,I slip out of bed where Ry’s still sprawled. The bed is a wreck, much like my body. I refuse to delve into my heart or mind. God, the things we did…it almost makes me want to call the airline and reschedule my flight back, but I force myself to turn my back to him and tug the silky material over my head.
I hunt for—and find—my bra. I don’t bother with the panties since Ry ripped them off me and they’re lying in shreds on the floor. Sliding my feet back into my shoes, I slip out of the bedroom to where I dropped my clutch.
I flick open the clasp and pull out my room key. Holding it tightly in my hand, I pause just before I open the door. God, he seems so perfect. If only I didn’t know what he’s really like. Ruthlessly turning, I slip into the hallway to make my way back up to the Penthouse Suite. I have only an hour until the car picks me up for my flight.
Later, after I’m settled on the way to the airport, I turn my phone on. There are half a dozen messages from Angel. The only one I answer is,What the hell is going on?
Quickly I type,Too much to tell you in text. I’ll catch you up when I get back to your place.
There are a few floating dots before I get,Good. I’ve been up all night worrying.
You’ve been up all night because Lucy is giving you heartburn.
Well, that too. I laugh out loud.
The further the driver takes me away from my reunion and Rierson Perrault, the more I can feel myself relaxing back into the woman I’ve become, secure, self-confident.
Content.
Leaning back against the seat, the quick trip to Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport passes quickly. Within hours, I’m airborne. I refuse to give too much thought to what happened.
After all, I never have to see any of those people ever again.
Including Ry.
By the time we hit 20,000 feet, I’m dozing in my seat to make up for the lack of sleep, knowing I face an inquisition when I touch down in New Orleans. My lips curve just before I fall into a deep sleep.
Everything about how I’m feeling is different than the last time I left Savannah, that’s for sure.
