21. Chapter 21

Chapter twenty-one

Juliette

Several nights later Nate and I went out to a local Italian place that served great food, and even better wine. Two glasses in, and a hand on my thigh, my body was finally reacting exactly as he wanted it to. Nate insisted we sit next to each other rather than across the table, and I knew why. The ease with which he seduced me with his laughter and touch turned to a not so innocent desire pooling at the space between my legs.

There was chemistry between us, but the date had proven to me that we weren't compatible. He was young enough (twenty-eight!) that we were at different points in our life. It became increasingly obvious the more we talked and the less substance he truly had to what he said.

On my end, I still didn't want to tell him about Kelsey. Or my career. Everything about me that lay beneath the surface was off limits.

I kept comparing the way I felt with Nate to how effortlessly I craved Caleb. Nate was doing his best to seduce me, caging me in against my front door. Meanwhile, Caleb had impulsively held my hand at an appropriate time and made me spiral for hours afterwards... days if we counted this intrusive thought. It made me question if any feelings I had for Nate had ever been real.

Or if I'd projected onto him what I shouldn't feel for Caleb.

No! I didn't feel anything for Caleb. I was curious. Just curious.

Nate leaned in and kissed me sweetly on the lips. I inhaled the strong scent of his cologne, focused on the feel of his lips on mine.

"I don't really have time for anything serious," I reminded him.

"What if we just had some fun? "

I invited him inside, under the lie that we were going to watch a movie. We did pick one over text earlier in the day, but we didn't make it much farther than the first scene before he pushed me gently down and ran his hand up my thigh, hiking my skirt up. I wore thigh-high stockings with lace trim and a swell of pleasure washed over me when Nate growled his approval.

He slipped his finger under the lace, and I opened my thighs, an invitation for more, even though he was going a tad too fast for my taste. The blood in my veins ran thick and hot to the surface of my skin as he teased the inside of my thigh, squeezing gently as he kissed me, our tongues touching and exploring. I ignored his lack of finesse because I was hungry for an orgasm that didn't include my own hands, and he was going to give it to me.

Pushing him off me, I straddled his hips, finding his length hard and wanting. He moaned into my mouth and slid his hands up under my skirt to my ass, pressing me harder down onto him.

Suddenly, the lock to the front door rattled. My insides lurched so violently up my throat it felt like my skeleton would turn me inside out. No one was supposed to be home until midnight, the earliest. We were supposed to have at least two hours together—an hour to fuck, and an hour for me to clean up. I had planned all the details.

Scrambling off Nate's lap, I stood and yanked my skirt down over my hips.

Caleb burst through the door and shouted for me, towards the staircase. "Juliette? Are you home? Come here!" He had an arm around Kelsey, who was crouched over, relying on him to keep her upright. His voice turned tender, comforting in a way I'd never heard it. "Okay, you're alright. Let it out."

Kelsey retched into the kitchen garbage pail as her father smoothed her hair back and winced, looking to the staircase that led to my bedroom again.

"What happened?" I finished pulling the lace up my thigh, back to its place .

Caleb's head snapped towards me, confusion written across his face. Mortified, I wiped at the edges of my lips to catch any smudged lipstick. Combed my fingers through my hair.

"We were getting to the theater, and she started puking. Pass me—oh." I watched his face blanch with understanding. Nate stood up next to me. Caleb's eyes darted between me and FedEx Man, piecing together my disheveled hair, and his shirt tucking.

I felt massively guilty. Like a kid caught with her lips covered in chocolate before dinner. I signaled to Nate to sit back down out of Kelsey's sight.

Kelsey coughed and her whole body shuddered. She gripped the trash can and continued to empty her stomach.

Caleb snapped out of that wretched moment of realization with a sharp edge in his words, "Water, Juliette, please!"

I darted to the fridge and smoothed my skirt, making sure it wasn't riding up in the back. I handed him the bottle and buttoned the top two buttons of my blouse, my back to them as I pretended to find the thermometer I knew was in the cabinet on the other side of the room.

"Let's get you to bed," he said to Kelsey.

"I think I'm going to vom—" Kelsey turned to the sink and tossed up the two sips of water she had.

I rushed over to her and pressed the back of my hand to her forehead. "She has a fever," I said to Caleb over her shoulder. "Kelsey, sleep in my room tonight, you'll be closer to the toilet."

"I'm fine," she swatted us away. "I'll just throw up anything I take. It's okay. I've had a stomach virus before."

"Are you sure it's a stomach virus? Shouldn't we take her to an emergency care?" Caleb's voice was dripping with worry and inexperience.

"They won't do anything unless there's vomiting for more than two days," I said. FedEx Man stood forgotten in a shadowed corner while Caleb and I snapped at each other. The movie played on, casting it's glow on the empty couch.

"Get some Zofran?" he pleaded .

"I'm fine!" Kelsey hunched over and gripped her stomach, disappearing up the stairs.

"What happened?" I asked, sounding angrier than I meant.

"We were driving into the city after dinner, and she blew chunks. I had to stop the car a few times for her to puke on the side of the parkway."

"Why didn't you call me?" I demanded.

"I thought you were still out!" Caleb spat back. Comically, if not for the situation, our heads turned to Nate.

"I should go." He was already jingling his keys, one hand on the front door.

"Wait, this isn't," I started.

"You told me you were single." The look on his face was a mixture of betrayal and shock. My lipstick was peppered up his neck and lips.

"I am! This isn't!" I pointed between Caleb and me. "Caleb is Kelsey's father."

"You told me you were divorced."

"I am."

"With no kids."

"Kelsey isn't mine. She's living with me, temporarily. It's complicated." I cut a look to Caleb. Shoulders sagging, I shook my head. "I'll walk you out." I passed Caleb on the way, shame curdling inside of me. "I'm really sorry," I said to Nate as I closed the front door behind me.

Nate and I stood on my stoop, my hand on the front doorknob holding it closed behind me. Nate was furious. "Is he your ex?"

"No! God, no."

"Because I don't want to get caught up in something messy like that. Does he live with you?"

"No! Just Kelsey."

"Yet, he somehow has a key?"

I resigned myself to the fact that I sounded insane. I didn't even want this. "You know what, I'm sorry." I sounded like a liar of the first order. Tears prickled at the corner of my eyes. "I had a really great time. I swear I'm not lying, even though it doesn't look like that. I'm not in a place to have a relationship right now. I should have kept avoiding you. "

"This is crazy," he answered. "I was really into you, but this is too much."

"Yeah, that's why I was avoiding you."

"Don't, uh, don't call me unless you have this all figured out." He pointed into the house as he backed away. I didn't bother saying goodnight.

Caleb was still in the kitchen when I got back in after a moment of pure embarrassment and a pep talk about how I didn't owe Caleb an explanation.

Still, I found myself wiping my lips of the evidence and raking my fingers through my tousled hair. It didn't matter because he didn't look at me. He was wiping down the sink and pretending he didn't hear me come in. The room reeked of bleach. I stood there stupidly until I mustered up the courage to sneak behind him to get to the garbage can. He dropped the paper towels he had been using into the bag and I tied it up.

"Sorry I ruined your night. I would have taken her to Erin's if I knew you were bringing him back here." Caleb rubbed the back of his neck.

"I wasn't bringing him back here ."

"Sure," Caleb said, grabbing the bag out of my hands. He headed to the back door to throw the trash out and I followed him.

"I wasn't going to have sex with him. I don't do that on the first date." Why, why was I saying this?

Caleb avoided my gaze. He yanked the sliding door open and I continued to follow him to the trash cans. "I wouldn't judge you if you did. It's none of my business."

"It's not."

"Exactly."

"Exactly." So, why did I feel guilty that I got caught making out? And lying about my intentions to fuck him?

We returned to the kitchen in a horrifically awkward silence. We tidied things on the counters to avoid each other before Caleb spoke. "I'll make sure to call you first next time. "

"There isn't going to be a next time. I'm pretty sure this scared him off." I filled a glass of water.

"What makes you say that?"

"We didn't really click."

"You clicked enough," he smirked, finally eying me side-long. The suggestion didn't come across his eyes, though, which told a different story.

"Shut up."

"Sorry I cock-blocked you." The smirk grew to a grin. In contrast, his gaze and tone suggested he wasn't sorry in the slightest.

I gave him my teacher stare.

Caleb pointed lazily up and down my body, his gaze gobbling me up along with it. "Just saying, women don't wear little black skirts like that to ‘watch a movie .'"

"Shut up, Caleb."

"Why? You look great," he said, raking his gaze down my body once more. "Jeans and a top, huh?" The timbre of his voice spoke the ancient language of lust, an undertone that said he was jealous. He wasn't allowed to be jealous.

I wasn't allowed to blush at it, either. "Go home!"

"Even though your buttons are all crooked." His grin turned to laughter as my cheeks blazed red-hot.

My blouse was, in fact, buttoned completely wrong. "I'll take care of Kelsey. Go!" I groaned and shoved him out the door before he could embarrass me further.