First Kiss Last by Sara Miller (read e book .TXT) 📗

Her defenses rose. “Did you need something?”

“Yeah. Okay if I grab the rest of my clothes?”

“Of course.” She stepped aside and watched him enter the room.

Leah knew what he was seeing for the first time. The lamps, the rug and the curtains. The jewel of the room was the bedspread. It was a quilt with every color of the rainbow. Pattern on pattern, color on color. It was cheerful and warm and made her smile.

“Well, okay then.” It did not make Eric smile. He gathered his things and left.

Leah did not know what to make of the encounter. She wondered what message Eric thought her choices were saying to him. Did it look like she’d moved on and replaced him? Had she? She didn’t know.

Not having the answers made Leah more anxious about the coming weekend. What would happen when they were home alone together for days instead of hours?

Leah did not get to find out. Friday morning Eric left for work early. She found a note from him by the coffee maker.

Staying over at Tim’s. See ya Sunday.

No explanation. No signature. She didn’t even know who Tim was. Yet, she was relieved, which caused her to instantly feel guilty. She couldn’t win.

She was distracted most of the day at work. When she got home, the first thing she did was check the spare room. It was still filled with Eric’s stuff. She let out the breath she’d been unknowingly holding. He would come back. Leah waited to see how that made her feel and felt . . . nothing. She wasn’t sure where that left her emotionally, but where it left her physically was home alone on a Friday night.

What to do? She wasn’t a bar or club person, so that was out. She did not want to have to explain where her husband was, so phoning a friend didn’t feel like a good option.

A terrible thought occurred to her: did she even have any friends to call? Aside from Eric, her sister Lily, and a couple co-workers, no one else was truly a part of her day-to-day life. It should shock and worry her. For now though, she was glad no one was pestering her with questions.

Leah walked over to the window and peered out. Even with the cooler temps, the darkening sky and now rain, downtown still bustled with activity. She frowned and let the blinds close.

In the kitchen, she realized she would need to go grocery shopping soon. Eric liked to have things delivered while Leah enjoyed picking out her own produce. They often bickered about it. Usually Eric won, but her argument never wavered: pizza was the only thing that should be delivered.

Mmm, pizza sounded good. She quickly ordered her favorite, one Eric never approved of: bacon, feta, and tomatoes! Leah even added a garlic crust. She wouldn’t be kissing anyone tonight.

As she waited for the pizza, she decided to make it a movie night. Leah checked their streaming services but nothing appealed to her. She checked the few DVDs they kept on hand and dismissed them as well. She knew what she wanted to watch.

Leah logged back in and purchased a digital copy of what she wanted. As she queued it up, the pizza arrived. She tipped generously on account of the rain and set the pizza box directly on the coffee table. She was going to eat in the living room. Without a plate. Eric would be pissed. She pushed play.

A slice of hot pizza was halfway to her lips when her phone pinged. She took a bite anyway. With just a pinky, she swiped at her phone, trying to see the message without getting her phone greasy.

Did you just buy Princess Bride on my account?

She set down her pizza, found a napkin and wiped her hands before replying to Eric’s text.

We have separate accounts now?

Did you buy it or not? I wanna know if we got hacked!

I bought it.

Why?

Duh. Wanted to watch it.

Are your nieces over?

Your nieces, he said. Not our. She sighed.

Nope. Just me.

He sent back a thumbs up. She wanted to know why it mattered but she wanted to eat her pizza while it was still hot even more. She turned her phone to silent and restarted the movie.

Two hours later, belly still full, Leah was totally sleepy. At one point she had paused the movie to put the leftovers in the fridge and use the bathroom. She enjoyed being alone, having an uninterrupted evening. Now that the movie was over, she checked her phone but there was nothing from anyone.

As the credits continued to roll by, Leah decided to call it a night. Eight-thirty was incredibly early but she did not care. She grabbed her phone and readied herself for bed.

Snuggling into bed, now super cozy with the t-shirt sheets and heavy quilt she bought, Leah felt almost content. She’d eaten what she wanted and watched what she wanted. It was a good night, though maybe not quite as nice as the last time she’d watched the movie. But it was a close second.

She thought about the dream night, snuggling with Cade, listening to Liam’s giggles. But it was not real. Neither was the coffee or the evening by the lake. If she was honest, she wanted it to be. Leah wondered if she should leave Eric. Wondered if Eric would leave her. Wondered if they did divorce, would Cade even want her in real life? Would she want him? So many unknowns. She drifted off to sleep wondering what Cade was doing and if he was thinking of her too.

Chapter 10

The bed moved and Leah knew she was not alone. But was it Eric or Cade? She stayed perfectly still, unsure how to react. She held her breath and waited. The person next to her rolled over and with one arm, pulled her close. She involuntarily sucked in air and noticed the now-familiar woody scent, the earthiness of it in sharp contrast to the expensive cologne