me a few seconds to come to terms with the mistake I was about to make. As much as I wanted to, I knew I couldn’t let it happen. I turned my head, rejecting her next attempt for a kiss. I think she knew right then that I wasn’t going to let it happen anymore. “Please. I love –.”
The mere mention of that word was enough to scare me away from any relationship that I’d had in the past. There hadn’t ever been time in my life for love. Perry had been the first woman that I’d considered getting serious with, and my actions had only personified the fact that I wasn’t ready.
With a determined look on my face, I pulled away and rested my forehead on hers. “I can’t. I’m sorry.”
She cupped my cheeks and waited for me to open my eyes and look at her. “One last time? Let me show you what you’re giving up. I don’t want to lose you.”
The constant urge between my legs was giving me the go-ahead, while my mind fought with that decision tooth and nail. I picked Perry’s petite body up and sat her back down on the couch beside me. “Jesus, Per. I told you I can’t do this. Please don’t make this harder than it already is. I care about you, but it ain’t goin’ to work out. Enough is enough. I’ve got too much goin’ on in my life right now.”
“There’s always a reason, so if it isn’t me then you need to tell me what it is. I know you aren’t happy at home, but that has nothing to do with us. You can get another job while we’re still together. Just tell me.” She waited for me to reply, but I kept quiet. Perry turned, grabbing my shirt and shaking me. “Please, just tell me. Tell me why you don’t want me anymore. Give me a reason to let you walk away, because right now it hurts too much to think about.”
I covered my face with my hands, realizing that it would have been easier to do all of this over the phone like every other pussy my age would have done. “Would you just stop? I’m just not into this anymore. It’s old and I want out.”
I was lying through my teeth, avoiding the real truth to spare her heart for breaking even more. Why couldn’t women just let things go? Why did they have to keep digging for answers all of the time?
“You slept with someone else, didn’t you?” She sniffled and wiped her tears before continuing. “Who is she, Noah? Do I know her? Is it one of your old girlfriends? Is that why you won’t tell me? Did you fuck one of them while I was away? How could you do this to me? How could you?” she repeated.
Before I could deny anything she was saying the front door shut and we turned to see her sister standing there, looking at what was happening. She dropped a bag of groceries and looked to be in some kind of trance. She finally looked over at me and I attempted to shake my head, as a silent plea for her to stay quiet. I could see the words coming out of her mouth before I could hear them.
“Per, I’m so sorry. We didn’t mean for it to happen.”
And there it was.
She’d walked in hearing half of a sentence, seeing Perry a mess, and thought I’d told her sister that we’d slept together. Her apology was something that neither of us saw coming, and neither was the fist to my face that followed it. I clenched my jaw as I stood up and turned to see her hauling ass toward her sister, knocking her on the foyer floor.
While a cat fight could b e considered sexy, this was far from being that. I’d destroyed the friendship between these two sisters, just like I ruined everything else in my life.
Once I had Perry by the back of her hair, I slowly lifted her off of her sister, giving her enough time to grab her purse and leave. When I release d my hold on her, Perry fell to the floor and began to sob.
That’s probably where I should have walked out the door and changed my cell phone number. Instead, being the man I was, I crouched down and wrapped my arms around her. “I’m sorry, Per. It was an accident and I didn’t want it to