Liar

Liar



As I sat there watching him move about the restaurant, I realized there was no actual way I could have denied myself this opportunity.

This indiscretion...

He stood at a distance, the dark green forested wallpaper behind him creating a sharp contrast against the torn jeans and battered knit sweater. A shredded plastic bag was tied in a knot around two of the belt loops of his torn denim, the only thing keeping them above the visible bones of his hips. Fabric stretched thin over his broad biceps as he motioned energetically towards the chef behind the buffet line. The man behind the table of food looked as though he was about to take cover.

He didn't fit in here.

I rose my eyebrows at him across the space and we locked in on each other. I watched words of gratitude for the service fall from his lips while his eyes remained on mine.

I will have no regrets.

He was sliding into his seat across from mine in seconds, his smile cracking across his face and breaking my heart in two.

Now, why didn't that happen with Craig...

"This place is ridiculous." He laughed, his plates clinking loudly as he set them down.
“Not the only thing that’s ridiculous," I murmured, covering my face with my hands and leaning into the table as he swiveled in his chair.
"Sir, that looks phenomenal, I must say," he said to a rather large fellow sitting behind us with a dead animal on his plate. The hefty individual sputtered his agreement as my companion turned back to me, grinning.
"Must be good," he murmured, winking. I kept my head in my hands, leaning against the table my elbows creating a stretched pattern in the immaculate cloth as my shoulders shook with silent laughter.

Who was this man?

Martinis arrived. I watched him study the tiny glass cone before picking out the olives and tossing them on the table. Even his most fickle movements kept me watching. The drink rose to his lips, allowing me to study the harsh angles of his jaw and the deep dimples of his cheeks covered in a delicious honey-colored beard. It hasn’t been trimmed in some time, but that didn’t stop the desire I had to run my fingers through the coarse hair. I had watched him earlier from my garden as well. While I had picked tomatoes and trimmed the hedges, he had replaced the stones of our patio. He had caught my stares more than once when I had failed to pull my eyes away from the glistening of his bronzed skin. Even in my embarrassment of being caught, I couldn’t help but continue to watch him move about under the burning Sun. Six hours carrying massive stone to our yard and the man still had his wits about him, sitting across the table from me as if he owned this place already. His blue eyes snapped up towards mine again and I felt any resolve that I might have left disintegrate into thin air.
"Like what you see?" He asked. A chuckle snuck out of him as a rush of blood flowed up my neck and into my cheeks. I was already addicted to the deep rumbling in his chest.
"So this is where the 1% like to spend that blue cheese?" He asked me, unaffected by the many stares he was pulling from that same class.
I gave him another curious look but he seemed happier to leave me confused with his wording. I placed my lips against the cool glass of my drink, and let out a shaky sigh. This was unknown territory. After taking a generous sip, I licked at the residue left behind and I could feel something change in the way that he was looking at me.
"You don't seem like the type." He said, gesturing at it all.
I scoffed and shook my head. "I would say it's more of a Craig thing"
My acquaintance smiled his smile, "Ah yes, my hero. For had he not hired me to replace his stone patio, I might not be sitting here across from his beautiful wife at this very moment."
I blushed, smiled, and looked away. His gaze was tearing me down and I kept telling myself I wasn't quite ready yet.

I will have no regrets about this night...

The waiter, the other patrons, the chefs, the hostesses, they had faded slightly, our table suspended in a distant place away from it all.
"I'm not sure I've ever received such a wonderful thank you. Dinner at a fancy restaurant?... With dessert included, I assume." As he said this, he leaned in across the table, pressing his body into it and getting as close to me as he possibly could. I could smell him. Cigarette smoke and sunshine. Gasoline and roses. I inhaled deeply, equally ashamed and unashamed at my reaction. His eyes continued to burn holes into my resistance. I glanced down at his calloused hands to see his right tracing lazy patterns in the white cloth.
“One might have thought you would need reservations at a place like this,” he stated, glancing about. “How did you manage to swing these digs, my lady?”
“My husband has a recurring dinner date every Thursday evening for us,” I explained, dryly. “Sometimes, he will even actually make an appearance.” I let my words drip with all the sarcasm I had never released, knowing my audience would be happy to have the same view of Craig.
If only I could just…

I let my fingertips graze over the back of his fingers and the touch made something snap in me. I was losing focus, the desire thick like an invisible mist all around us. His need for me was consuming us both. I could feel it pushing in on me, surrounding every one of my atoms in the best way possible.

Craig didn’t even know how to look at a woman this way.

His fingertips were on mine before I could pull back. His thumb left behind a tingling sensation as it crept up and down, torturous and slow. How could such a simple movement send my mind and body into overdrive? What had started as subtle curiosity had mounted to a clawing need within my belly.

We hadn't even ordered dinner yet…

I took another large gulp of my drink, trying to drown the waves of anxiety flowing along with the currents of my desire.
"He doesn't appreciate you, does he?" He asked me, stating it simply. I looked for the sympathy in his eyes but found nothing. He must have known I couldn’t bear the pity. His fingers squeezed mine. "I would appreciate you, baby girl."
It was too much. I stood up then, "I just gotta..." I turned on my heel, heading towards the bathroom. I could feel the restaurant reappear around me, various onlookers making their unease known to me with quiet scoffs. Once inside of my tiled hide-out, I stood in front of the sink letting cold water run over my arms trying not to hyperventilate.

I can do this…

I slipped back into the corridor, patting my eyes with a damp paper towel, and immediately collided with a large figure. There he was, standing watch outside the door. He steadied me on my feet.
"Woah there. Can't I help you?" He flashed his beautiful smile at me and I knew with each passing second that I would say yes. I returned his smile, falling into step next to him as we slowly walked back down the hall. He leaned down, pressing his lips against my ear. "You can trust me."
And for some reason, I did. I wanted to take in every syllable that left his pretty mouth. Every move he made felt genuine and bright and took all the focus I had. The way about him created this need in me, the need to release my hair and undo the clasp in my bra, letting a feeling of ease wash over me. Oh, how I loved to watch the man move… and that's exactly how I wished to spend the rest of my night.
"I do.”
"Do you?" He said closing the gap between us, pressing his hands on either side of my face against that gaudy wallpaper. My gulp was undeniably audible away from the din of the establishment and my breath quickened. I tried my best to cover up the intense physical reactions I was having to his body being so close to mine but failed miserably.

Just take me...

He leaned in close, and his breath tickled my ear. His thumb, index finger, and middle finger gripped my chin gently, "Tell me what you want, baby girl."
Before I could start begging him, a sound pierced through the buzzing need in my ears. Tiny and annoying from beneath me, the ringing came again.

Shit!

I reached for my blaring cell phone and picked it up immediately.
"Hi, Hunny." His body remained against mine breathing his need against my ear and smiling into my neck.
"No, I won't be home tonight, I'm visiting with Janet from work. I'm sure I'll be home late afternoon tomorrow, we'll be running an event in Asbury.”
I felt his smile growing even bigger against my skin. I continued to make childish banter with my husband slowly demolishing the edge of doubt in his voice with my undeniable reputation that I was about to smash into a million pieces. My admirer had started tracing the hem of my dress. Just one subtle brush from a fingertip running over the middle of my right thigh. I was already his.
"Well, Hunny, I gotta go, sweet dreams." Click.
I sighed, dropped the phone back into my bag, and let a smile spread over my face again as I thread my arms around his waist.
"Mmmmm," he growled, pulling me close. "Let's make a liar out of you."