It was quite an eclectic sort of office, but it worked. Felix was organized and put-together. He was allowed to have a comfortable office, which
was unexpected, but pretty cool. It looked like a mix between something you’d find at home and something you’d find in an actual place of business. While David and Felix both worked in criminal law, my brother’s clients were usually younger people. He worked with a lot of teenagers and he often represented people who had committed what most people would consider to be pretty mundane crimes.
That was probably where the personal touches came in, too. I hadn’t missed the Spiderman comics tucked between his legal texts or the bobble head Avengers character resting on one shelf. I bet having that sort of thing around made Felix’s clients feel more comfortable and at ease. It probably made them less scared.
I couldn’t imagine having to see an attorney as a teenager. I had never been particularly brave but going to a lawyer’s office required a level of courage I couldn’t even imagine. The kids that Felix got in his office were probably terrified. If having pictures of us as children helped them to calm down, or if staring at a Black Widow bobblehead helped someone relax, then my brother was a genius. He was kind, too. Most people wouldn’t go to that kind of trouble for others.
While he typed, I busied myself with nosing around. He didn’t seem to care or notice that I was touching his stuff, which was kind of nice. I rarely got a chance to be a total weirdo. Back in Monterey, I always kept my hands to myself at home. I never dared to touch anything that belonged to my roommates, so getting free reign at Felix’s office felt pretty cool.
I heard a familiar voice out in the hallway, all of a sudden, and I wandered to the doorway. Then I peered out into the hall. David was out there with someone. It was a woman. I was going to raise my hand to wave hello to him in a totally not-weird and not-stalker sort of way, but something told me to wait. I got a weird, twisty feeling in my gut, and I kept my hands planted firmly at my sides.
“I’m so glad you were here for me today,” the woman said. She was facing towards me, and David was facing away. Still, after spending a night under those broad shoulders, there was no way for me to miss him. I knew exactly what he looked like under his clothes. I knew precisely what he felt like.
Something told me that this woman did, too.
“Of course,” he said. “Anything to help a good friend like you.” His voice sounded tight and tense, but I couldn’t see his facial reaction to what the woman was saying. Who was she to him? Was this his ex? Or was it another woman who had captured his attention the same way I had?
“I think we’re a little more than friends, don’t you?” She asked. Her voice came out in a sort of purr, and I was instantly jealous. Why was she touching him like this? Who was this woman?
Only, David and I weren’t dating. Were we? We weren’t even really friends. If I was being honest with myself, we were little more than acquaintances who had grown up together. David really was just some guy I knew. Yeah, he was Felix’s best friend, but he wasn’t mine.
I had no hold over him. I had no say in whether he dated other women. I definitely didn’t have a say in him dating this woman. He could sleep with whoever he wanted to, and there was not a single thing I could – or should – say about it. I was nothing to him. Nothing. We had one night, and that was it. My stomach tightened at the realization. Yeah, I shouldn’t have come here. This was a bad idea. Still, I couldn’t force myself to look away. I must have been a glutton for punishment because I just kept staring.
David cleared his throat. I couldn’t see his face. Was he turned on? Did he like her attention? Did he think she was being annoying? I had no way of knowing. I didn’t have to wait to decide, though, because she reached for him and leaned forward. Then she kissed him. I couldn’t see whether it was on his cheek or his mouth, but I heard it loud and clear.
Judging from the way my brother’s head shot up, everyone in the office heard it.
Yeah, so that was a real kiss.
I thought I might throw up. What the hell had I been thinking? I didn’t get like this after a fling. If anything, I was always the one who was more than happy to fuck and run. With David, though, things had felt very different than they were supposed to. With him, things had felt wildly magical. Wonderful. Oh shit. I was in so much trouble.
“Debra, not now,” David said, trying to silence the woman in front of him. He lowered his voice, but it didn’t matter because the entire office had fallen silent. Everyone was trying to pretend like they were still working, but it was obvious that nobody was. Everyone had their ears strained to find out who this woman was with David Walker and what he was going to do about her.
“Of course,” she said. “You’re at work, after all. I’ll see you in a few hours.” Then she gave him a little wave and walked past him. I stepped back into my brother’s office doorway as she passed me, not wanting her to bump into me. She was grinning as she left, walking toward the front door. It was definitely the face of a woman who had gotten everything she wanted. She was the kind of woman who didn’t even have to try. If there was something she wanted, something she craved, then she just got it. That was how girls like her worked.
She left the office confidently, and I turned back to look at David. He looked over his shoulder to watch her walk away, but his eyes caught mine. They widened instantly. There was so much contained in that expression.
Surprise.
Horror.
Embarrassment.
Disappointment?
David looked like he was going to walk toward me, but I didn’t want to talk to David. Not now. Maybe not ever again. Horrified at what I’d just seen, I darted into my brother’s office and closed the door. Then I locked it. I turned around and stared at my brother. My back was to the door. Felix was still at his desk, and he was staring at me. He’d heard the kiss, but he didn’t know what had happened between me and David. I hadn’t told him. I didn’t want to tell him.
“What’s going on?” Felix asked, standing up. He came around the side of the desk and started walking toward me.
I just shook my head. I turned around and stared at the door. Then I started backing away from it. I looked at it like it was going to bite me. I knew that David was coming to the door. I knew it. He had spotted me, and he’d seen the look on my face, and he was going to want to talk about what had just happened. I didn’t want to talk to him.
Sure enough, a knock came loud and clear. It was the kind of knock that showed ownership and leadership. That kind of knock said that this guy knew what he wanted, and he took it. What he wanted right now was to talk to me.
“Zoey? I think we need to talk.”
Felix appeared beside me. We were both staring at the door. I felt Felix’s eyes on me. He was watching me to see what I would say and do, but I could barely form words. David and I had gone our separate ways just hours ago, and now he was already kissing someone else. It had been a fling. I knew that. Wasn’t there like, a certain amount of time you were supposed to wait before kissing someone else, though?
“I do not want to talk,” I whispered to my brother. The idea of having to face David made me feel sick. What would I even say? He hadn’t done anything wrong. It was just...