“What are you doing, Dad? I said up there.” Eva directed me to the doors she’d requested.
“Uh, I’m gonna drop you at the edge of the parking lot.” I searched for an excuse that would seem believable. Somehow telling Eva that I didn’t want to run into her teacher from last year (you know, the one I’d been screwing) didn’t seem like an appropriate response. “The buses are pulling up. It’ll be easier to turn around. And it's not cool to be seen with me, remember?" I quickly added hoping that would strengthen my argument.
Eva seemed to accept the excuse without question, and I sighed internally with relief. But she had always been observant: able to read people better than most. “What are you looking at?” she asked as her eyes shifted toward the school.
Shit, shit, shit. Had I been that obvious? I was surprised at how easily I recognized Lily from twenty-five yards away. Her wavy brown hair had grown longer, almost reaching the middle of her back. And her skin was still golden from the summer. But as much as I didn't want to think about her, didn't want to see her, I couldn't stop my eyes as they made their way up her bare legs to imagine the soft curve of her ass under that tight skirt. And as I ogled her, my mind reminded me how difficult these last five months had been. I'd had nothing but time to think about what had happened between us. And the simple truth was that, as painful as the summer had been, my life was easier without her. She had been disloyal. And selfish. And these were transgressions I didn’t think I could forgive. So I had made a valid attempt at moving on. I’d even gone out with a few women, though nothing too serious.
But even though I didn’t want to think about her, my dick had other plans. It twitched at the sight of her confident stride as she made her way toward the building. With no luck, I willed myself to look away, to shut my eyes. I tried to think of anything but grabbing her by the waist and pulling her against me. Anything to rid myself of my sex-filled visions. But to no avail.
For once, I was thankful for Eva’s short attention span. She had already gathered her things and exited the car, seemingly forgetting about her question. Thank God.
But as she shut the door, I realized that dropping the subject completely would have been too good to be true. “Oh, that’s Miss Hamilton,” Eva said excitedly as she popped her head in the window one last time. “I loved her."
As Eva made her way toward the building, my eyes remained on Lily, penetrating her with my gaze. "Me too," I whispered.
I waited until she entered the building before I reached down to adjust myself through my pants. This is gonna be a long fucking day.
***
Normally, my drive down the Pennsylvania Turnpike gave me time to relax, sip my coffee, and listen to sports radio in peace. Despite the length of my commute, it was the one point in my day when no one bothered me. No one asked me about last-minute design changes or how to use our drafting program—something most of the guys had received adequate training on and should know how to use by now. The drive gave me time to not think.
But today’s ride didn’t provide that same respite I had grown to appreciate over the course of the past several weeks. My mind was plagued with thoughts of Lily. I hadn’t expected to see her, though I didn't know why. She worked at the school, for God's sake. It shouldn't have been that much of a surprise. But I still hadn't been prepared, especially for the physical reaction I'd felt. I'd spent the past few months fluctuating between being disgusted by her and missing her. Finally, my emotions had melded into a kind of melancholic ambivalence.
But I wasn't feeling ambivalent today. I couldn’t deny that I’d felt something. I just wasn’t sure what that something was. Part of it was physical, and I could easily chalk that up to being a guy. There was no denying that she was still hot as hell. But what else had I felt?
For once I was thankful when my phone rang and the new intern John’s question about the build materials for the Ashcroft Development interrupted my thoughts. “Did you look in the Ashcroft folder?” Jesus, it’s like fucking Romper Room there. Can’t they do anything without my help? “All of it should be on the computer where I showed you last week. I’m driving. I can’t look it up now.” I heard John whistling as he searched the computer for the file that held the material specs. I wish I could be that carefree when I work.
“Okay, got it, Mr. Carter.”
I hung up the phone quickly before John had a chance to fire off his next stupid question.