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I was grateful I wasn’t facing her, as I was unable to prevent the smile from slipping.
She was always breaching me, always digging her way back inside.
A stubborn sliver.
Pivoting around, I tried to erase the smile in time, but she saw it. She latched onto it, clung to it, stored it away, and I was defenseless. “Shower,” I stated.
“Video games.”
My lips pursed to the side.
Then, at the same time, we both raised a hand and slammed it to our opposite palm.
One, two?—
Halley did paper.
I did rock.
Grinning with victory, she stepped forward, inched up for a kiss, and reached down between us to grip the growing bulge in my shorts. “Paper covers rock.”
She kicked my ass at Mortal Combat, and then I took her one more time in the shower like I’d promised. I watched her on her knees with equal parts agony and ecstasy as she sucked me to near completion before I hauled her up the tiled wall and buried myself between her thighs. Our wet bodies tangled, danced, and yearned, slipping and sliding with no traction to keep us bound together for long. Water spewed from the showerhead, drenching us in hard jets, trying to wash us clean.
But even after I released inside her and then took my time to lather her in soap bubbles, gently shampoo her hair, and cradle her against my chest until the water ran cool, neither of us felt cleansed.
There were too many layers.
Too much dirt piling up, just beneath the surface.
And as I said goodbye and watched her dejectedly leave my apartment an hour later, her eyes glistening with unshed tears, I knew nothing in the world could erase the stains of our sins.
More importantly, nothing could ever wash away the haunting residue of what we would become.
CHAPTER 27
After spending the afternoon touring apartments with Whitney and Tara, I paced the common grounds of a nearby complex with my camera in my hands, taking pictures of the vibrant rose bushes and lush landscaping. A little bird’s nest was hidden in the foliage, so I crouched down, angled the camera, and snapped a picture that was draped in half-shade and half-muted sunlight. Zooming in closer, I was able to capture a mama bird dropping food into the tiny, wide-open mouths of three baby robins.
A smile gleamed on my lips, and I couldn’t wait to process my film at the local art center. It had a public darkroom I’d visited a few times with Scotty, who enjoyed tagging along after coffee and lunch dates to witness my creative side take over. There were so many new photos I was dying to see and relive, my goal being to make a big scrapbook of my life’s sweeter moments.
As I straightened in place, a woman wearing an eclectic, multicolored pantsuit exited through the main doors, smiling at me as she passed. “Hey, darlin’. Moving in?”
I smiled back. “Not currently. We’re on the hunt for an apartment. My friend and her mom are still inside talking to the leasing agent.”
“It would be nice to see some new faces around here,” she said, approaching me in the grass and extending a hand. “I’m Monique.”
We shook. “Halley.”
“Are you a photographer?”
“In-the-making, I guess you could say. But I’d love to make a career out of it.”
Nodding, the woman skimmed a hand through her short cropped hair. Amethyst nails and lipstick dazzled against warm dark skin. “I see you’ve met Annie and the kids.”
I blinked, glancing around the empty common area. “Who?”
“Our bird family.” She pointed to the nest, her dark-brown eyes glimmering. “Not that I’m trying to scare you off, but they’re by far the most likeable residents. They keep to themselves. Zero noise complaints.”
A giggle fell out as I glanced at the nest, then back to Monique. “Have you lived here long?”