Ficorpio
Chapter 1
My girlfriend was acting strangely while we were making out.
I kissed her the way she liked best, but she didn’t respond. Instead, she trembled in my arms.
The bedroom lights were off. I leaned close to her ear and blew softly against it.
“I bought you some new lingerie for our anniversary. Will you put it on for me?”
Her breathing grew ragged.
Encouraged, I pulled her tighter against me and kissed her more passionately.
Then my girlfriend’s voice came from outside the room.
“All the lights are on. Where is everyone?”
I froze. Blood rushed to my head.
If Claire was outside, then who was I holding?
I shoved the woman away and hurriedly buttoned my shirt in the darkness.
“Who are you?” I whispered, staring in horror at the shadowy figure before me.
A moment later, a soft, cool voice answered.
“Nora Hayes.”
The name stopped me cold.
She was Claire’s roommate.
I’d seen her a few times when I came over to visit Claire. From what I remembered, Nora was aloof and quiet, the kind of person who seemed difficult to approach. Whenever we crossed paths, we did little more than nod. We’d never even exchanged a proper greeting.
My face burned as I thought about what had just happened.
“What are you doing in Claire’s bedroom?”
“Borrowing her makeup remover.”
Her answer was brief, but I was already panicking.
The two of us were alone in a dark bedroom. If Claire walked in and found us like this, there would be no way to explain it away.
Desperate, I grabbed the lace lingerie from beside the bed and climbed into the closet.
“Please don’t let Claire find me,” I whispered.
Nora was silent for two seconds. Then she came over and closed the closet door for me.
At that exact moment, the bedroom door opened.
Claire walked in and switched on the light, flooding the room with brightness.
“Oh. Nora, what are you doing in my room?”
Nora picked up a bottle from the dresser. “I came to borrow some makeup remover.”
“Oh.”
Nothing in Claire’s voice suggested that she found the explanation strange.
“By the way, have you seen Ethan? He texted me that he was coming over.”
“No.”
Sweat broke out across my back.
Today was the first anniversary of my relationship with Claire. Before leaving work, I’d messaged her to say I would come over so we could celebrate together.
She had to work late, which had given me plenty of time to prepare the surprise.
My plan had been simple: when she got home, she would put on the anniversary lingerie I’d bought her, and we would spend the night wrapped up in each other.
I never imagined it would turn into such an embarrassing mix-up.
“Claire, I bought a new outfit,” Nora said. “Will you come tell me if it looks good?”
“Sure.”
Chapter 2
As soon as Nora led Claire into her bedroom, I grabbed my things and slipped quietly out of the apartment.
On the way home, I texted Claire.
Baby, I’m not feeling well tonight, so I won’t be coming over after all. Sorry.
She replied almost immediately.
Are you okay? What’s wrong? Do you want me to come take care of you?
No. I’m already in bed. You should get some rest too.
All I wanted was to be alone and get my emotions under control, so I quickly shut down the idea.
Okay. I’ll come check on you tomorrow morning.
All right.
I set down my phone and breathed a sigh of relief.
The moment I got home, I headed straight for the shower. Warm water streamed over my body, bringing a few precious minutes of comfort and calm.
But the fragmented images in my mind kept surging back, beyond my control.
I had held Nora against me. Pressed myself to her. Kissed her. I had even taken her hand and made her touch me like that…
Yet aside from her unsteady breathing and the slight trembling of her body, she hadn’t done anything.
If a man took those kinds of liberties with a woman, wouldn’t she normally fight him off and run?
But Nora…
Why hadn’t she pushed me away?
My heartbeat quickened at the thought, and heat spread through my entire body.
Her reaction had been strange too, hadn’t it?
Had she known it was me in the room?
I quickly forced those reckless thoughts out of my head.
I was the one who had mistaken her for someone else in the first place. She had covered for me and distracted Claire so I could leave. I should have been grateful.
I had no right to make wild assumptions about her.
Early the next morning, Claire arrived at my apartment with her arms full of grocery bags.
“How are you feeling? Any better?” she asked once I was up.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I was just a little tired yesterday.”
“It’s getting late. Go wash up while I make breakfast.”
I nodded.
By the time I came back out, Claire was already bustling around the kitchen.
Claire and I worked at the same company. Ours was a workplace romance, though we kept things professional at the office.
We’d been together for over a year, and she had always taken wonderful care of me. Whenever we had a day off, she would come over and cook for me.
Having her in my life made me genuinely happy.
We spent holidays and special occasions going to the movies or out on dates. Even when we argued, she always wanted to talk things through right away. She never threw tantrums or picked fights for no reason.
Last night had been our first anniversary.
I’d planned for us to spend a sweet, romantic evening together. Instead, everything had gone wrong and ended in that mortifying mix-up.
When Claire finished cooking, she called me over to eat. She had made a full spread, including four of my favorite dishes and a pot of soup.
“I made everything you like. Come try it.”
Chapter 3
She filled my plate and watched me expectantly.
“Thanks.”
I nodded, warmth spreading through my chest.
What happened yesterday had been an accident, but I still couldn’t shake the feeling that I had wronged Claire somehow.
Halfway through the meal, I finally gave in to the question nagging at me.
“Your roommate, Nora Hayes… what’s she like?”
“Nora?”
Claire paused for a fraction of a second. “She’s nice. Why?”
“It’s just… whenever I come by and see her, she always seems kind of cold. I was curious what she’s like when it’s just the two of you.”
“She takes a while to warm up to people, and she can definitely seem aloof. But she’s actually a good person.”
“I see.”
I hesitated, then asked, “Is she single? Does she have a boyfriend?”
“I’ve never seen any men come looking for her. She’s always by herself, so I assume she’s single. Plenty of guys at the company are after her, though.”
Nora worked at the same company as Claire and me, although she was in a different department.
She was strikingly beautiful, so naturally, she attracted a lot of attention. Even I’d heard people talking about her.
Claire lifted her eyebrows. “What’s this? Why are you suddenly so curious about her?”
She took another bite, then teased, “Did she catch your eye? Have you started thinking about her?”
Her tone was playful, but I denied it at once.
“No! Of course not!”
Claire laughed. “I’m only teasing. I know my baby only has eyes for me.”
“Glad you know it.”
I went to the office on Monday.
To my surprise, Nora was in the elevator.
Remembering the embarrassment of that night, I instinctively dropped my gaze.
But we were bound to run into each other all the time from now on. I forced myself to look up and gave her an awkward smile.
Nora barely reacted.
She stepped up beside me, as cool and distant as ever.
Right.
I was the only one feeling awkward.
Then a crowd of people piled into the elevator behind us. Nora was pushed in front of me.
We were standing so close I could feel the warmth of her body and catch her scent.
She wore a faint, subtle perfume. I had no idea what brand it was, but it smelled incredible.
Thinking back, I had caught that same scent that night.
I just hadn’t connected it to anything at the time.
Now she was almost pressed against me, warm and close, that familiar fragrance surrounding us. Every detail from that night came rushing back at once.
Heat climbed all the way to my ears.
Get it together, Ethan.
I cursed myself silently.
It had only been an embarrassing mix-up. It was over.
So why was I still so hung up on it?
Nora seemed to notice how stiff I had become and shifted a little farther forward.
When a group of people finally got off, I could breathe again.