When Sparks Fly (Sexy Secrets Book 2) (2 page)

Before I can ring the doorbell, the massive door is opened
by - a butler?  I barely keep from scoffing; only Jacqueline would hire a valet
and
a butler for her New Year’s Eve dinner party.  He takes my black
dress coat and clutch.  I follow him to the large formal living room where a
dozen or so people are milling about with drinks in hand.  I instantly scan the
room for Jacqueline or Taylor because I don’t recognize anyone else in the
room.  Someone comes up behind me, placing a hand on my lower back. 

“Happy Holidays Olivia.”  A deep voice says – too close to
my ear.  I take a small step away from the person and look to see who is in my
personal space.  It is Alton.  Alton is twenty years older than Jacqueline.  He
is attractive for an older guy, but he has always creeped me out. 

“Happy Holidays to you too Alton,” I reply politely with a
smile.  He just smiles at me, which looks so much like a leer.

“Let me get you a drink.”  He snaps his fingers and a guy in
server attire seems to appear out of nowhere.  “A Jack and Coke, right – heavy
on the Jack?”  He winks at me.  His leer - I mean smile - is getting bigger and
he’s already starting to creep me out.

Yeah, that is my go to drink, but not tonight.  Something
tells me that I need to have my wits about me, so I tell the server my drink
order.

“Actually, I’ll have a ginger ale.”

The server has my drink back to me in no time. 

“So, I will take you to Jacqueline,” Alton says as he takes
my hand and tucks it into the crook of his arm.  I instinctively want to pull
my hand back, but that would be rude, so I let him lead me to his wife.  She is
in the room adjacent to the formal living room.

Jacqueline is talking with an older couple when she looks my
way and sees me.  As usual, she is beautiful in a long white gown that shimmers
in the light and shows off her perfect curves.  She smiles but the smile
doesn’t reach her eyes.  She excuses herself and walks my way.  She gives her
husband a kiss on the cheek as he releases me and I swear I feel his hand brush
against my ass.  Jacqueline then gives me her signature air kiss. 

“You look nice Olivia,” she says with a fake smile.

When Jacqueline says you look nice, it is code for, ‘what
the hell are you wearing?’  I roll my eyes, instantly irritated. 

“What is wrong with what I have on Jacqueline?”

“Oh nothing is wrong with what you have on Sweetie.”  She
rubs her hand up and down my arm in which should be a soothing manner, but it
feels patronizing.  “I just thought I told you the dress was formal.  Your
dress looks to be a little – after five-ish.”

“Stop it!”  I say in a tight whisper. 

She holds her hands up in a surrendering manner, trying to
look innocent.

“I’m not doing anything, I just don’t want you to feel bad
because the rest of the ladies are wearing long gowns and you chose a short
little frock,”  she tilts her head at me and gives me that fake smile again. 
“You look pretty though.” 

I honestly don’t know why I am still friends with her.  I
loathe and love her at the same time.  She can take me back to my days of being
that awkward teenager with just a few simple words. 

Maybe I should have had my Jack and Coke after all.

After Jacqueline has made sure to plant doubt in my head
about my dress, we spend a few moments catching up.  Taylor joins us at some
point and she – like me – has on a ‘short little frock’.  I wonder if
Jacqueline gave her a hard time too.

Doubtful…Jacqueline can be so full of shit sometimes.  

When dinner is finally served, I am quite hungry.  The
servers bring out small plates of green salads with a medley of colorful
vegetables and shrimp – shrimp that I cannot eat because I am allergic to
shrimp and all other shellfish.

Great!

I quietly ask the server if there are salads without shrimp
because I have a shellfish allergy.  He looks at me all wide-eyed and says no
and that all the dishes tonight have some sort of shellfish in them.  I sit
back in my chair as everyone starts to eat, not believing that this is
happening.  I watch the server who I just spoke with confer with Jacqueline who
is at the end of the table a few chairs down from me.  After the server tells
her the issue, which I am assuming is about my shellfish allergy, she simply
shrugs at me sheepishly before dismissing the server.  She mouths ‘sorry’ to me
before continuing her conversation with the person to her right.

Jacqueline knows of my shellfish allergy.  Hell, she was
there when I had an allergic reaction back in twelfth grade and ended up in the
ER because the restaurant we ate at used the same utensils for the French fries
and fried shrimp. 

I quietly excuse myself from the table.  Jacqueline stops me
and I tell her I am going to the bathroom and will be right back.  She gives me
a disapproving look.  I am sure that in her book I am breaking some kind of
social rule by leaving the dinner table to use the bathroom.  I probably am,
but I really don’t care.

Instead of going to the bathroom, I head towards the front door
and ask the butler for my purse and coat.  He promptly gets my items and I
leave.

I make it home a little before 1opm.  I order a pizza before
I wash off my makeup and change into pajama shorts and a sweatshirt.  Chewy and
I ring in the new year cuddled together on my bed watching the first Avengers
movie.

Isaac - New Year’ Eve – around 8pm

I am bored out of my fucking mind.

I shouldn’t be because it’s New Year’s Eve and I am at a New
Year’s Eve party – my family’s New Year’s Eve party to be exact.  My pop and
uncle own a construction company (R&R Construction) and every year they
have a New Year’s Eve party for their clients and family friends.  This year is
the 22
^nd
year they have had the party and this is the first time I have
been this bored. 

I should be having a good time – my family and friends are
here and I have a gorgeous date – yet I have chosen to hide out in the shadows
of the balcony that overlooks the busy hotel ballroom below.  

From my hiding place, I have a good view of the crowd.  I
see my baby sister, Zoe and her husband Charlie, who is also one of my best
friends.  Hell, he is more like a brother since we have known each other since
we were ten-years-old and he practically lived with us.  I smile to myself,
watching them sway to the slow song playing.  They look happy. 

I let my gaze scan the crowd some more, looking for my other
friends.  My gaze doesn’t go far as I spot Ivy and her husband, Wood, along
with Maddie and her date.  My date, Claire is a few feet away talking with…I
don’t know who the fuck who.  I take a sip of my neglected and now watered down
drink as I think about my date.

Claire Barnett has been my steady piece of ass for the past
six months.  We are not dating nor are we ‘boyfriend and girlfriend’; as I
said, she is just my steady piece of ass.  I know that may sound crass and just
down right doggish, but it is what it is.  I am by no means a dog, a player, a
pimp or whatever some men seem to aspire to be.  I am not one of those men who
hate women and therefore treat them horribly.  I am the total opposite
actually. 

I absolutely
love
women.  Apart from the way they
smell, how they feel, how they taste, I also love a woman who is independent
and self-assured.  There is nothing more sexy than a woman who can handle her
business and still allow a man to protect and comfort her.  I love how they can
render me speechless with something as simple as giving me a glimpse of their
thigh high stockings or seducing me with verbal foreplay.  I love everything
about women and would never hurt them intentionally. 

With that being said, the women I get involve with know what
to expect.  I tell them upfront that I am not looking for a relationship beyond
a physical one.  Most of time, this works out well.  I get a steady diet of
pussy without the emotional attachment.   Yet, on a few occasions, a woman that
I am involved with will become attached and wants something more than just
sex.  That is when I end things.  I just don’t want a real relationship. 

Claire has been the perfect physical relationship - until
recently.  She has been hinting to wanting more.  Which to be honest, I am not
ready for – well, with her anyway.  I think if the right woman came along who
piqued my interest beyond sex, I think I would be ready to try a real
relationship.

At the beginning of December, I told Claire that we should
end things because I couldn’t give her what she wanted - she upped her game by
bringing another female into the mix – offering me a threesome.  I hadn’t had a
threesome since my college days, so of course I was all over that shit – on two
separate occasions. 

Even with that, I know I am going to end things with Claire
and I need to do it soon.  I don’t want to lead her on any more than I might
have already by not ending it when I should have.

I see a figure coming up the winding staircase that leads to
the balcony.  I step back further in the shadows, not wanting to be discovered.

 “Isaac.”  The voice calls out.

It’s my brother, Judah.

“I know you are up here, so stop hiding,” he continues.  I
smile to myself because no matter what, he can always find me, even when I
don’t want to be found.

I step out of the shadows and greet him with a chin nod.  He
hands me a glass tumbler of amber colored liquid.  I give it a sniff.  It’s
scotch.  I see that he has one too.

“Thanks Judah,” I say, pulling a chair from the corner and
taking a seat.  He does the same.  I place my watered-down drink on the floor
beside my chair.

“So why are you up here hiding little brother?”

I shake my head with a slight smile as I take a sip of my
drink.  Judah and I are identical twins.  He was born at 11:53pm on October 29
^th
while I was born at 12:11am on October 30
^th
.  Just because he was
born eighteen minutes earlier that me, he likes to refer to me as his little
brother.

“I’m not hiding per se; I am just bored as shit and I really
don’t feel like mingling.”

We sit in silence for a moment before I speak again.

“So why are
you
up here hiding?  Are you bored too?”

“Maybe,” he says before taking a sip of his drink.

As I said before, Judah is my identical twin and since we
shared a womb, we pretty much know everything about each other.  If he is up
here with me – ‘hiding’ – I know he is bored too.  Judah is usually the life of
the party - the wild twin some would say.  Truth be told, he is not the ‘wild
twin’ - our personalities are very much identical, although how we show them to
the world is quite different. 

With Judah, what you see is what you get.  He will say
whatever is on his mind – inappropriate or not and he makes no apologies for
it.  While I may think the same inappropriate thing as Judah, I will run it
through my mental filter first – making it acceptable before I speak.  That is
not always the case though.  When I am with my boys, I am very much like Judah
– spewing out whatever pops into my head.  However, in mixed company, I try my
best to run it through my mental filter, so I don’t come across as crude and/or
crass.

“So I think Claire and I have run its course,” I finally
say. 

Judah looks at me with a raise eyebrow. 

“Yeah?”

“Yeah,” I respond before taking another sip of my drink. 
“She has been hinting to wanting more, beyond the physical.”

I know that Judah understands, because he is just like me
when it comes to relationships.  He only does the physical relationships too. 
And before you think we are like this because we come from a broken home or
some girl broke our hearts or some shit like that – trust me, it is nothing
like that.  Our parents have been married for 37 years and we know what a
healthy and loving relationship looks like. 

My last girlfriend was almost seven years ago.  We broke up
because she accepted a job in New York and I wasn’t willing to move.  Since
then, I have been content to keep things with females on a strictly physical
level.

“So when are you going to end it,” Judah asks me, taking a
sip of his drink.

“Tonight – before midnight.  I know it may be shitty to do
it now, but I don’t want to give her false hope.  I mean, how would it look if
I fucked her and then ended it?”

He agrees with me and we sit in silence, watching the crowd
below.

__________________________

Around 9pm, I find myself seeking out Claire.  I plan to
leave the party before midnight (alone) and I need to talk to her.  I finally
spot her speaking with a couple near the bar.

I catch her eye and she excuses herself from the couple and
comes over to me.  Claire is really quite beautiful.  Her café au lait coloring
is radiant as she walks toward me; her black dress showcasing her curvy and
luscious body; a curvy and luscious body that I can fuck six ways to Sunday if
I want.  She saunters up to me.

“What’s up Isaac?” she asks before she gives me a kiss to my
cheek.  I raise my hand and stroke my thumb down the soft skin of her cheek. 
Claire is definitely wife material.  In addition to being beautiful, she has a
good head on her shoulders with a career in Public Relations (which she excels
in), she’s a homeowner, she’s independent, she’s dislikes relationship drama,
she can cook and she’s a freak in the bedroom.  Yet as much as I think she is a
good catch, I can’t see spending the rest of my life with her. 

I wrap my arm around her waist and guide her out of the
ballroom into the hallway.  I walk us away from the people milling about and to
a private area.  I remove my arm from her waist and step back, stuffing my
hands into my pockets. 

“So, I think I am going to head out.  I am not really in the
mood to celebrate tonight,” I say as I look down at her. 

She gives me a long and searching look – I can see the
realization and understanding seep into her eyes as she looks back at me.

“So this is it?” she asks with a resigned sigh.  “We’re
done?”

“Yeah – I know you want more, but I am not at the point in
my life where I want to give more.  I’m really sorry.”

I witness her eyes get teary, but they clear quickly.

I really hate doing this, because no matter how I say it or
what I do to try and soften the blow, I know it still hurts.  And if I am being
honest, it makes me feel like an asshole.

 She visibly inhales a deep breath before giving me a
beautiful smile.  She steps closer to me and places her palm flat against my
chest.

“I know we could be great together.  Are you sure I can’t
change your mind?”

I give her sad smile and a shake of my head.  She reaches up
and palms my jaw before guiding my head down to give me a slow and deep kiss.

“Thank you for always being honest with me,” she says, using
her thumb to remove her lipstick from my bottom lip.  She backs away slowly. 
“Happy New Year Isaac,” she says before turning and walling away. 

I stay where I am for a few minutes, trying to shake this
shitty feeling.  I pull out my phone to text my brother.

Me - I’m going to head home

I get a reply about thirty seconds later. 

Judah – You okay to drive?

I have only had two drinks tonight – neither of which I
finished.

Me – Yeah, I’m straight.  You coming home later or
staying out?

My brother and I live together.  We own a renovated
farmhouse on the outskirts of Henrico County.  

Judah – I’ll be home in the morning.

Me – Ok – Happy New Year Bro

I pocket my phone, not waiting for a reply.  I really should
wish the rest of my family and friends a happy new year before I leave, but I
don’t feel like it. 

A few hours later, I am kicked back in front of the TV with
chopsticks and a big container of shrimp lo mein as I bring in the new year
watching old
Walking Dead
episodes. 

__________________________

Mid-March

I sling my gym bag over my shoulder as I enter the gym.  I
silently curse all the alcohol I drank last night.  We (as in my brother,
Charlie and Wood) were supposed to be at the gym at 7am this morning, but
because we decided to drink our weight in alcohol last night, we are arriving
at the gym some three hours later.  We work out together Monday through Friday
at 7am, but on very few occasions, we start later. 

Today is one of those days.

We all stumble out of the locker room about a quarter after
ten, ready to start our workout.  Out of the corner of my eye, I spot a cute
female who appears to be finishing up her strength-training workout.  She is
walking toward us but seems to be oblivious to her surroundings as she walks
with her head slightly down.  However, even with her head slightly down, I can
see that she is very pretty. 

She has a headful of light brown braids pulled into a high
ponytail, but a few wayward pieces cling to her slightly sweaty butterscotch
complexion at her nape.  I can’t see her eyes, but I can see her lips – they
are juicy and pink and have me licking my lips.

As she passes us to exit the room, I take in her semi-fitted
black and pink t-shirt that she is wearing along with a pair of form-fitting
black workout pants  - showcasing her curvy little body.  Her plump little ass
has me staring longer than is socially acceptable.

“Nice ass,” Judah says to me once she leaves the room. 

I turn my attention to my brother.  Even though I just
thought the same thing, I don’t like that he noticed her ass and commented on
it - it pisses me off a little. 

“Have some respect,” I say before walking away from him to
start my own workout.

I am trying my best to ignore the curvy cutie in pink and
black but as we go through our workout, I find myself seeking her out.  I
locate her in the cardio room above as she does walking and running intervals
on the treadmill. 

“Why don’t you go up and talk to her,” Judah says as I start
my bench press and he spots me.  “You keep looking up at her – we all see it,”
he gestures to Wood and Charlie as they gather round.

From that point on, every time they catch me looking her
way, they razz me; I ignore them for the most part.  It’s not that I don’t want
to talk to her; it is just that I know that she came here to work out and not
to get hit on.  My sister Zoe, Ivy and Maddie belong to the same gym and they
have told me plenty of times how some guy has hit on them when all they want is
to be left alone so they can work out in peace. 

I finally relent and make my way up to the room.